Warning. This might just be the best advice for being a live aboard.

Ekhart tolle, not much of a sailor i think, but a spiritual beacon who’s teaching on being present is well worth diving into; being into that sort of thing or not. I must admit I am and I see a clear link between his interpretation of being present in the moment and sailing.

According to him being present is being in the moment and accepting what is. The situation, the smell, the feelings, all of what the body and spirit can sense…not the mind. There is a clear separation in his teaching about the mind and the ”rest” sort of speak. Your mind is a thinking machine that have gone mental (in my words) and wants to identify with the outside world. It wants to label everything and put things into boxes. I feel, I am, he is, this happened to me, this is bad. The big entity that is your body and spirit is connected with everything around you and does not have a judgement at all. That is your mind. So for example; the weather is blowing at a certain way and maybe the sun is not out. You could interpret it as cold. The mind will label everything as cold, bad weaher, strong winds. The mind can quickly put a spin on it that gives a value, ranging between good or bad. The body and spirit that lives in the now can not.

The spirit lives in the now, and is free of time and deeper down space. It has no judgement. It is what it is and for a reason.

Maybe it’s the sea

I find many sailors are very present in the moment, and the more mileage i get with water under a keel the more present i feel as well. For me it comes with being in the presence of something you are not able to control anyway. You can be in the worst of weather and seas… but there is no pause or exit button. You have to deal with it. The spirit can because it possesses a great amount of sensory perception and deep knowledge. Sailing is for me a sensory wonderland. Not only are you feeling something but when you start to feel your ship…Oh man.

The mind cannot, most likely it will panic and start labeling and worrying about everything. For instance, when you are at the supermarket. Notice what is going through your mind. Thought, feelings, opinions, questions and so on.

 

My trick

I’ll give you my recipe/trick for going into the present moment, works while sailing but also the supermarket.

Get into a stance where you can feel all of your body being comfortable and strong. Not aggressive, but every major muscle should work…so no hunching over.

Pull your focus away from your thoughts and into your breath. Your mind, with all of your thoughts, will most likely resist this and start flooding your mind with more questions and opinions. Let them pass like a cloud on a blue sky. Don’t react or hold onto them. Let them pass.

Keep the focus on your breath.

Now start breathing like this.

Deep quick inhalations…hold for 5 seconds when full

slowly exhale, hold for 5 seconds when empty

That is pretty much it. When you do that for the first few times, your mind will mess with you. But keep at it. Keep the focus on the breath. I recommend starting with 5 minutes for the first times.

When the mind no longer has control over you, a presence of the moment will arise. Be open to it; start feeling your body and create waves of focus and let them travel your body.

Check out Eckhart Tolle

I highly recommend checking out ekhart tolle, either on his website www.eckharttolle.com or his YouTube Channel. There is a lot of wisdom that you can transfer directly into your private life. I feel the more i learn about being present the easier it becomes for me to handle the elements, my mood, and the situations around me…to some extend the fact that I am aware of being present in the moment is my biggest asset in being a live aboard.