YH APR-MAY 2019 | Page 57

Which Room ARE YOU IN? By Kevin Murphy “Remember, happiness doesn't depend on who you are or what you have, it depends solely on what you think." A lthough the Buddha is often credited with that quote, its origin doesn't really matter. Few people would dispute its message. So if most people would agree that our thoughts determine how we feel, then why are we not very good at monitoring our thoughts? The analogy of The Three Rooms can help. From The Three Rooms perspective, our thoughts can only be in one of three places: they can be in the past (the Past Room); the future, (the Future Room); or the present (the Present Room); and whichever room our thoughts are in determines our experience of life in that moment. Since our thoughts can move back-and-forth in the linear concept of time, it is imperative that we observe our thoughts. It is that act of observation that separates our awareness from our thoughts so we are no longer at the effect of them. This awareness, or consciousness, is what all the spiritual masters have urged us to connect with. In order to access this Divine Consciousness, we need to know where our thoughts are. That's why the fundamental question that we need to ask ourselves is "Where am I?" In other words, "Where are my thoughts?" If you can ask and answer that simple question, then you have already separated your awareness from your thoughts. Unlike the Apr./May 2019 www.yogicherald.com 55