Three Important Questions in Life

When is the most important time?
Who is the most important person?
What is the most important thing?

I heard this during one of Ajahn Brahm's public talks so I’m sharing it now.

Our day-to-day living is so hectic, so full of stress that we often get so muddle-headed, we lose track of what we’re thinking and lose sight of what we’re doing. These three great questions will jolt us out of our daydreaming, blindness and bring us back to reality.

When is the most important time?

Now. That’s the most important time of our lives. What has happened in the past is all gone. Nothing can be done to change that, no matter how hard you try. Whether it was a happy past you liked so much and want to keep with you forever, it’s all gone the moment it happened. If it was a sad and unhappy past that you hated and never want to keep with you, that is also all gone the moment it happened. So put it down, it’s all gone.

And what is going to happen in the future, we are never sure. In fact, we may never even know because no one knows if we will live beyond today, this moment. So dreaming of the future is also not wise. We must constantly remind ourselves to live in the present moment, now. Enjoy the now, treasure the now.

Who is the most important person?

You and the person you are with now. As we never know what is going to happen in the future, we must treasure and appreciate the person we are with right now, ourselves included. I always believe everyone of us is cosmically connected to be existing on this earth together so we must learn to accept every single person we come into contact with, even those strangers on the streets we don’t know. By making the person next to you the most important person at that moment, you will learn to be more tolerant, accepting.

What is the most important thing in life?

To love and care for the person you are with that moment. That’s the most important thing in life. We must learn to focus on the person we are with right now. Very often, we may be talking and listening to each other but our minds are actually dreaming away in some faraway lands. That’s rude! I’m also guilty of doing that all the time. We must learn to focus and give our entire attention to the person we are with that very moment. Only then we are sincere.

So people, don’t be with your partner and yet let your eyes and mind stray to the gorgeous girl or ‘帥’chap that just walked past. Remind yourself to give your 100% attention to the person you are with. This is a good way to help people maintain healthy, loving relationships.

Now I’m more conscious of my thoughts, I constantly tell myself not to have negative thoughts of the people around me. The person sitting next to me on the train is digging his nose and it irks me but I watch my thought and I let it pass. The person in front of me in a queue is smoking and irritating me. I also watch that thought and let it pass. Yes, the irritation, the opinion, still pops up but I try not to cling to it. I am learning to let it pass because he is the most important person at that moment and there’s a reason why I met him .

Love and care for the person you are with now, you yourself included!

ps: People, please note that Ajahn Brahm didn’t say all the above! I did. He explained the 3 questions differently. I just contemplate on them and applied it to my own situation.