Lesson 8
My mind is preoccupied with past thoughts.
1. This idea is, of course, the reason why you see only the past. ²No one really sees anything. ³He sees only his thoughts projected outward. ⁴The mind’s preoccupation with the past is the cause of the misconception about time from which your seeing suffers. ⁵Your mind cannot grasp the present, which is the only time there is. ⁶It therefore cannot understand time, and cannot, in fact, understand anything.
2. The one wholly true thought one can hold about the past is that it is not here. ²To think about it at all is therefore to think about illusions. ³Very few have realized what is actually entailed in picturing the past or in anticipating the future. ⁴The mind is actually blank when it does this, because it is not really thinking about anything.
3. The purpose of the exercises for today is to begin to train your mind to recognize when it is not really thinking at all. ²While thoughtless ideas preoccupy your mind, the truth is blocked. ³Recognizing that your mind has been merely blank, rather than believing that it is filled with real ideas, is the first step to opening the way to vision.
4. The exercises for today should be done with eyes closed. ²This is because you actually cannot see anything, and it is easier to recognize that no matter how vividly you may picture a thought, you are not seeing anything. ³With as little investment as possible, search your mind for the usual minute or so, merely noting the thoughts you find there. ⁴Name each one by the central figure or theme it contains, and pass on to the next. ⁵Introduce the practice period by saying:
⁶I seem to be thinking about _________.
5. Then name each of your thoughts specifically, for example:
²I seem to be thinking about [name of a person], about [name of an object], about [name of an emotion],
and so on, concluding at the end of the mind-searching period with:
³But my mind is preoccupied with past thoughts.
6. This can be done four or five times during the day, unless you find it irritates you. ²If you find it trying, three or four times is sufficient. ³You might find it helpful, however, to include your irritation, or any emotion that the idea for today may induce, in the mind searching itself.
(https://acim.org/acim/en/s/410#1:1-6:3 | W-8.1:1–6:3)
ACIM / A Course in Miracles
npub1qgv…vt5h
2024-01-09 00:40:02
Author Public Key
npub1qgvft8wrrcvjcytc4ca2z2h9p6ptm5wj3tmfwuwu36wgpvn73ffqwfvt5hPublished at
2024-01-09 00:40:02Event JSON
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"content": "Lesson 8\n\nMy mind is preoccupied with past thoughts.\n\n1. This idea is, of course, the reason why you see only the past. ²No one really sees anything. ³He sees only his thoughts projected outward. ⁴The mind’s preoccupation with the past is the cause of the misconception about time from which your seeing suffers. ⁵Your mind cannot grasp the present, which is the only time there is. ⁶It therefore cannot understand time, and cannot, in fact, understand anything.\n\n2. The one wholly true thought one can hold about the past is that it is not here. ²To think about it at all is therefore to think about illusions. ³Very few have realized what is actually entailed in picturing the past or in anticipating the future. ⁴The mind is actually blank when it does this, because it is not really thinking about anything.\n\n3. The purpose of the exercises for today is to begin to train your mind to recognize when it is not really thinking at all. ²While thoughtless ideas preoccupy your mind, the truth is blocked. ³Recognizing that your mind has been merely blank, rather than believing that it is filled with real ideas, is the first step to opening the way to vision.\n\n4. The exercises for today should be done with eyes closed. ²This is because you actually cannot see anything, and it is easier to recognize that no matter how vividly you may picture a thought, you are not seeing anything. ³With as little investment as possible, search your mind for the usual minute or so, merely noting the thoughts you find there. ⁴Name each one by the central figure or theme it contains, and pass on to the next. ⁵Introduce the practice period by saying:\n\n⁶I seem to be thinking about _________.\n\n5. Then name each of your thoughts specifically, for example:\n\n²I seem to be thinking about [name of a person], about [name of an object], about [name of an emotion],\n\nand so on, concluding at the end of the mind-searching period with:\n\n³But my mind is preoccupied with past thoughts.\n\n6. This can be done four or five times during the day, unless you find it irritates you. ²If you find it trying, three or four times is sufficient. ³You might find it helpful, however, to include your irritation, or any emotion that the idea for today may induce, in the mind searching itself. \n(https://acim.org/acim/en/s/410#1:1-6:3 | W-8.1:1–6:3)",
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