Quotes About Presence

Gurdjieff used to say, "If you can serve a cup of tea properly, you can do anything." That is, if you are able to perform any act in a true karma-yogic fashion, it's because you're acting from a place where you're free of attachments and not busy being the actor—and being in that place will shape every act you do.

Whose presence reveals how subtle is the path of Love.

You can stay in touch with your soul by dwelling in the moment.

Who I am is awareness and deep love, a presence beyond experience within a temporal, changing form. Who I am is a soul, a soul without a name, address, social security number, or biography, who isn't born and doesn't die. I am.

The art of life is to stay wide open and be vulnerable, yet at the same time to sit with the mystery and the awe and with the unbearable pain—to just be with it all.

At night he didn't seem to sleep like I did. That is, any time I'd wake up at night, I'd look over and he would be sitting in the lotus position. And sometimes I'd make believe I was asleep and then open sort of a half-eye to see if he wasn't cheating—maybe he was sleeping Now—but he was always in the lotus posture.

It's all right now But later?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . forget it baby That's later Now is Now Are you going to be here Or not? It's as simple as that!

Ask yourself: Where am I? Answer: Here. Ask yourself: What time is it? Answer: Now. Say it until you can hear it.

you don't need to go to anywhere else to find what you are seeking.

Did I ever tell you about the time that Tim and I . . ." And he'd say, "Don't think about the past. Just be here now." Silence. And I'd say, "How long do you think we're going to be on this trip?" And he'd say, "Don't think about the future. Just be here now." I'd say, "You know, I really feel crumby, my hips are hurting . . .

Don't think about the future. Just be here now.

Maharajji invited a famous pundit to come to Kainchi and recite the Shrimad Bhagavatam. This man was used to reciting before large and very receptive crowds, and he complained to Maharajji that on this occasion he had to recite to only a few illiterate villagers. Maharajji gently rebuked him and said, "Don't worry. Hanumanji is listening.

Begin to notice that wherever you go or whatever time it is by the clock . . . it is ALWAYS HERE AND NOW.

As I understand the law of it all, we are all dwelling in Grace all the time. The only thing that ever falls out of Grace is our own thinking mind:We fall because we think we fell.The minute we give up our thoughts—just our thoughts!—there we are. God is always exactly one thought away—and the minute we quiet that thought, here we are again.

but who's minding the store?" When I could finally focus on the question, I realized that although everything by which I knew myself, even my body and this life itself, was gone, still I was fully aware!

Home is where the heart is. Home is the quality of presence. It's the quality of being. Home is always here.

The goal of the path is to BE high, not GET high.

I want you to remember, always, that no man who sits upon a throne likes to hear another man being praised. Never praise me in Bharata's presence or show how much you miss me. Don't speak of me at all before him.

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water" (Psalm 63:1). We may imagine we want a thousand different things, but God is the one we really long for. His presence brings satisfaction; his absence brings thirst and longing.

We don't pretend all is well. But knowing God's commands to rejoice in him through his all-sufficient power, we meditate on his Word and call on him to impart his gladness to us. In time God exchanges our natural responses with his supernatural, joy-giving presence. Sometimes sorrow and joy do battle; sometimes they coexist, but when our hearts and minds are on Christ, joy is never far away:

If we believe Scripture, we can reverently seek to enjoy happiness and laughter with God himself. I often remind myself that God is always with me. He wants us to know we can be happy both in him and with him—not only after we die, but as we live today. When I'm alone, whether I'm meditating or reading or looking at photos or watching a movie, any happiness or laughter I experience is a laugh I share with God because, in fact, I am not alone!

the promise of the Resurrection—eternal delight and joy in the presence of our Redeemer. Peter preached in Jerusalem of "the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his holy prophets" (Acts 3:21, NLT).

Presence, relationship, holiness, trust, beauty, goodness, peace—all were present in the relationship between God and humanity at creation. By playing God and redefining good and evil according to our own discretion, we introduced into the human spirit disobedience, absence, severance, distrust, evil, and restlessness.

Pain can easily produce the sense of being abandoned. The presence of someone who loves and cares can most persuasively counter that fear. God's words were important to Job, but most important to him was the assurance that God was with him through it all, revealing Himself to Job at the most critical moment. And Job said, "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you" (Job 42:5).