Many Western cultures view time as linear, from the past to the present to the future. In contrast, many Indigenous cultures, such as the North American Hopi, see time as cyclical. Events, like seasons, are cyclical, and the past, present and future are deeply interconnected. Where cultures like the United States or Japan emphasise the future, Latin American and African cultures focus more on the present moment, where spontaneity, relationships, and living in the “now” are valued more than long-term planning.
Although there have been many films and books on time travel, the actual possibility is open to debate. Some physicists say, in theory, it is theoretically possible to travel into the future, but not into the past. One interesting challenge is that although the Earth orbits the sun, our solar system orbits the centre of our galaxy, the Milky Way, which moves through space at over a million miles an hour. So even if you could travel in time and wanted to remain on Earth, you would also need to travel across space.
Of course, we all already travel in time, the flowing moment of experience. We are a year away from this day last year and are moving forward at a rate of 60 seconds per minute. There’s also another kind of time travel that’s possible, which is when we access past memories or imagine what might happen in the future in our heads.
Our ability to recall the past is dependent on episodic memory, which uses the same networks in the brain that simulate future events. Thinking about the past and future is something we all do and is a natural process for the brain to engage in. The ability to imagine future scenarios provided an important evolutionary advantage for humans. One of the main purposes of the evolving brain was to anticipate threats in the environment, which remains a primary process today. And it’s not just thinking that’s involved; when we explore future situations, we can also get a sense of how we would feel emotionally in the future. This gives us the power to adapt our approach as we encounter the actual situation.
For instance, imagine a future job interview where, as well as the people and questions involved, we may also have some anxiety. Imagining this can then help us acknowledge and work positively with the feelings before the actual session. So, on the way to the interview, we may think, “It’s quite natural for some anxiety to arise in a situation like this, but I’m a strong candidate, and acknowledging how I feel, while connecting with my body and senses, will help me remain calm and confident.”
When we’re conscious of our mental time travelling, we can use it as a useful resource. But when our level of conscious awareness drops and our minds wander away from the present moment, into the past and future, it’s sometimes not so useful. There are times when emotions from the past resonate with a situation, which causes painful and unresolved feelings to re-energise below conscious awareness. Negative thoughts then arise, which makes us feel even worse, so our mood lowers, and we entertain more negative thoughts and enter a downward spiral. Similarly, mindlessly drifting off in our imagined, anticipated future, we’re more likely to experience fear, worry, and anxiety about what might happen.
By developing mindfulness skills, we can:
- Ground ourselves into the present moment by connecting with our body and senses.
- Notice when we mentally time-travel, making the most of any useful learning and insights about the past or future.
- Know that the thoughts and feelings we have about the future, however useful, are not facts and the future may not materialise in the way we imagined.
- Respond skilfully if memories from the past are affecting our present state of well-being.
- Allow the emotions to be just as they are without resisting or avoiding what we feel.
- Let go of energising the downward spiral of negative thoughts and emotions that maintain anxiety and low mood.
- Notice the link between worrying thoughts and feelings of anxiety.
- Meet each moment with openness, flexibility, balance, kindness, and self-compassion.
While physical time travel may have its challenges, the mental equivalent can sometimes take us into a space that no longer serves us well. We spend almost half our waking lives distracted and disconnected from the present, mainly in automatic thoughts about the past or future. Learning to become more aware of what’s going on, by witnessing our mental time travel, opens the possibility of living an easier, happier, and more fulfilled life.
Suggested weekly practice
- When you notice your mind wandering during the week, note whether this tends to be about the past, present or future.
- See how skilfully you can work with your own mental time travel, knowing that thoughts and feelings about the future are not facts and are exploring a range of possibilities, not defining them. Also. that working through past memories and feelings with awareness and self-compassion allows you to acknowledge and release what you may have been holding onto.
- Contemplate time with wonder and curiosity, as a natural phenomenon that affects all living creatures, from how the sunrise and sunset define each day, to the flowing moments that we travel through. [/private]
Guidance
Find somewhere undisturbed and sit in a comfortable, dignified, and upright posture, where you can remain alert and aware.
There are two guided practices for this session. You can close your eyes or lower your gaze while the meditations play.
- Play the first settling practice, then read through the session content, which you can print off if that helps.
- Then play the second practice to explore mental time travel, as well as the difference between thinking about the past and future and present-moment awareness.
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