thepainmoreintenselythanever.
Thisisonereasonwhymostpeoplearealwaystryingto
escape fromthepresent moment andareseekingsomekind
of salvation in the future, The first thing that they might
encounteriftheyfocusedtheirattentionontheNowistheir
ownpain,andthis iswhat theyfear.Iftheyonlyknewhow
easy it is to access in the Now the power of presence that
dissolvesthe past and its pain,the reality that dissolves the
illusion. If they only knewhow close they are to their own
reality,howdosetoGod.
Avoidanceof relationships in an attempt to avoid pain
is not the answer either. The pain is there anyway. Three
failedrelationshipsinasmanyyearsaremorelikelytoforce
you into awakening than three years on a desert island or
shut away in your room. But if you could bring intense
presenceintoyouraloneness,thatwouldworkforyoutoo.

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Canwechangeanaddictiverelationshipintoatrueone?

Yes.Beingpresentandintensifyingyour presencebytaking
yourattentionevermoredeeplyintotheNow:.Whetheryou
are livingaloneor witha partner, this remains the key. For
lovetoflourish,thelightofyourpresenceneedstobestrong
enoughsothatyounolongergettakenoverbythethinkeror
the pain-body and mistake them for who youare. To know
yourself as the Being underneath the thinker, the stillness
underneaththementalnoise,theloveandjoyunderneaththe
pain, is freedom, salvation, enlightenment. To disidentify
from the pain-body is to bring presence into the pain and