Buddhists: *Is the past, gone or is it a memory we experience in the present moment ?"?

Question

Plz think on this.

What insightful truths have you discovered concerning this during mindfulness meditation ?
Any additional thoughts, comments, etc. are appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

With Metta.

Answer 1

The past is gone. Memory is present.

Answer 2

The past is gone , but we compulsively take mental pictures of experience . Negative experience pictures in particular we can compulsively pull into the present moment and this affects our observation and experience/awareness of the present moment. Like looking at the present through the past.
Only we can perpetuate the past in the present.
Being able to completely BE in the present is the key.

P.S. I am not a Buddhist but the truths that Guatama Buddha taught are eternal.

Answer 3

Very interesting question.Had experienced something very similar to your question during one of my meditation session.
The answer I found is in the First Noble Truth.
Clinging to the past(pleasant/unpleasant) is suffering.As to whether it is gone or just a memory:My answer is ,it is not important to spend time speculating on it.
Hope this helps.
Metta to all.

Answer 4

We as Humans are made up of 5 Skandhas, 1 is physical and the other 4 are mental. On death these Skandhas are dissolved and if there is any outstanding unresolved negative Karma then our Skandhas are reformed in different measure due to the influence of that Karma and a Rebirth occurs.

These Skandhas (Sanskrit for parts) are temporary and impermanent, always changing. They are as follows...

1.Form
2.Feeling
3.Perception
4.Mental formations
5.Consciousness

Clinging to any of these is the ultimate cause of suffering and through the practise of Mindfulness of Breathing Meditation this can be achieved.

Our Mental formations Skandha in ascociation with our Consciousness Skandha are where our ideas and thoughts arise on our past. These thoughts arising within these Skandhas are often marred and are often a cause of mental confusion anxiety. Questions arise such as "where do I come from" "why did I do that action" etc. Clinging to these ideas and mental projections is the cause of problems and release from them should be the goal as they do no good to contemplate on. We should be concentrating on release from these clinging attitudes and concentrating on ways to improve our happiness and ultimately improving our future happiness rather than concentrating on our past. Our past cannot improve our future, but we can.

Is the past gone or is it memory....is the question asked..!

It is insignificant and unimportant to "cling to" ideas relating to the past, however having said that it is vital to consider improvement on past actions so that real improvements can be made to our conscious efforts on other's behalf. Our memory is sketchy at best, however we should put conscious effort into resolving issues which make our decision making selfish and cause hurt to others and impinge on our ability to respond positively to others. We can therefore learn from our past mistakes.

The past is gone, but there are things we can do to improve our happiness by using those lessons learned and practising. A clinging attitude to any Skandha will ensure unhappiness, this is because Skandhas are selfish and they are also insatiable.

Take any habit we have, the habit continues because it is our Skandha in control of our pyche, it wants the pleasure received from our habit to continue...a selfish desire. To break a habit we must release the clinging attitude we have to the selfish feelings we get. To do this requires serious effort because we have to get rid of the Skandha's control of our psyche.

Have you discerned my message about self..? I am not me..!! I am made up of selfish, insatiable Skandhas and I must make conscious effort to rid my psyche of their influence, that is why we meditate.

Memory is memory, the past is the past, be mindful of these things but do not cling to them.

Peace my friend from a Buddhist...

Answer 5

The past is not gone, for it never actually existed. It is a memory we experience in the past.