Die To The Past

Dr. Bijal Maroo would like us to start Year 2023 with a promise to ourselves to not delve into the past but live life fully in the moment

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The words "die to the past" are indelibly etched in my memory. They were written by the famous author Eckhart Tolle in his best-selling book The Power of Now. To be intensely alive in the present moment, we must rid ourselves of the past.

We are all familiar with the tales of King Vikramaditya and Betaal. Why was the vampire given this particular name 'Betaal'? Well, my interpretation is that it meant 'betaal,' meaning 'one who is out of sync or out of step.' 'Taal,' as we all know, is the metric cycle of rhythm in music. Taal breathes life into the music. Hence, 'Be-taal' is the one without life, the corpse.

We are just like Betaal when we lose touch with the present moment and slip into the past. We are no longer alive because the past is no longer alive. We do not realise how often we die in this manner.

In Betaal Pachisi, Vikram was also tempted into commenting on an incident that was done and dusted in an era of yore. He was compelled to use his intellect to stand in judgment and justify what he stood for. All this made him lose consciousness and the past (Betaal) ran away with his lifeblood. Vikram kept chasing it instead of staying in the present moment.He did this foolishly, twenty-five times over.Lifeblood in this context means the awareness of the present moment.

What was the threat that Betaal used to coerce Vikram into answering? "If you don't answer, your head will roll away from your body." The head represents the intellect. It is your very identity and, hence, your ego. When truly conscious, one no longer takes sides, nor does one lose the present moment. Hence, the ego or the head is bound to roll away. Ego and intellect belong to this world of illusions.

Why, then, are we always so married to our past? Why can't we divorce it and move on with our lives? This is because it comprises two types of thoughts: