NANO RABBITS IN NOW-SPACE - A SHORT STORY

In one of the previous editions of this newsletter, we met the nano-rabbits. Please see the previous edition here

The Nano-Rabbits below NOW.

PLACES CALLED PAST AND FUTURE

"Where are you?", asked the first nano-rabbit.

"I am at a place called PAST", replied the second nano-rabbit

"Oh, wow", first nano-rabbit asked wide-eyed,"How is the place?"

"It has so much of what I did, where I visited, how much I ate and how much fun I had", second nano-rabbit excitedly stated. "Even I found you here in the place called PAST. You remember when both of us went to the carrot field and were chased by a man, who owned the field. How by sheer luck we were saved from him." The second nano-rabbit continued," This place has so many wonderful things, events, and experiences. It is called the PAST."

The first nano-rabbit commented," Looks interesting, this place called PAST. Are you planning to stay there only, or going to some other place as well". The second nano-rabbit replied," Well, usually I stay in this place, I call the PAST, but sometimes I also go to a place called FUTURE".

The first nano-rabbit said,"Oh, what is this place called FUTURE? I am also in this place you call FUTURE?" The second nano-rabbit explained,"The place I call FUTURE has many uncertainties and unknowns. Sometimes it looks like the place I called PAST, but it is never the same. The place called PAST sometimes has few aspects, things, people and even myself, that may not be true reflection of reality or even has elements of fiction that I might have added, unknowningly, subconsciously, or even confirming some expectations I had that never actually were realised.

The PAST does make its mistakes and provide painful elements as well, usually though, I have happy things in the place called PAST. Sometimes, I get to very painful things in the place called PAST. I remember when I lost my mother; suddenly she was not there. And so does I have in the place called PAST, loss of my father. Although, I get to see both of them in the place called the PAST. However, they appear as a caricature of what they really were. The place called PAST, brings up happiness and pain in equal measure."

"But you know,", The second Nano-Rabbit continued," the place called FUTURE, always have something called hope. A view of what the world will be ahead. How will my life change? What will happen next? Will the world have enough carrots for us? And fruits and berries? Or we may have to move to a new field for better food and opportunties, Ot to a new city?. It is always uncertain, the place I call FUTURE. I see you there in the place called FUTURE. Whether our friendship will continue, or will you leave me to go to a separate path. I may get married in the place called FUTURE. I will have small nano-rabbits as kids of my own. Oh, the place called FUTURE is so much full of interesting possibilities and I enjoy visiting it regularly."

Second nano-rabbit paused for a moment, as if comparing the two places - THE PAST and THE FUTURE. Thinking, why the FUTURE place looks very similar to the PAST place, yet it has its differences. Then the second nano-rabbit asked the first nano-rabbit,"OK, enough about me. Where are you dear friend? I am always either in the place called THE PAST or the place called THE FUTURE. What about you, are you also in your place that you call your PAST or your place that you call your FUTURE?"

The first nano-rabbit smiled,"I am not in a place, I am in space and It has to be called the NOW".

NOW IS NOT A PLACE

The first nano-rabbit continued,"Strange it may sound to you, but I also used to dwell in the places that you called THE PAST and THE FUTURE. But then I discovered the NOW".

The second nano-rabbit asked bewilderedly," How exciting, but I have no idea of the NOW. Tell me what is this place you call NOW and how it is different from the places I called THe PAST and THE FUTURE."

The first nano-rabbit replied," I must tell you, as I discovered NOW, it can not be called a place. It has nothing, no thing. It is just a moment. In this moment of NOW, there is just space, everwhere there is space - infinite in all directions. In fact, in NOW I discovered Space. I can not call it a place. Calling a part of space as a place, giving it an artificial identity, as I am imagining things, events, experiences, and their changing contexts, behaviours, losses and gains - I have been doing. I discovered, it was a mistake. The real is absolutely vast, infinite and I am in that real NOW. This NOW is not some place, actually, it can not be called "time" even. "

The second nano-rabbit stared is disbelief,"O God, where have you gone dear. It doesnt look like a place at all. Are there other rabbits in NOW? Am I there? Or do you find you as first nano-rabbit in this place , sorry space, you called NOW."

The first nano-rabbit replied, "NOW is not about you, me or any other thing. It is that that always is. Even when "I" dissolves, it is. It is ZERO place - no PAST, no FUTURE, no happiness, no pain. It is the space - vast, ever present. In NOW I dissolve into. The "I" as nano-rabbit, the you as nano-rabbit, your places - of THE PAST, of THE FUTURE, my places of the PAST, of the FUTURE - and hopes of anything, any experiences of the PAST of the FUTURE - all dissolve into NOW.-SPACE. I am the NOW-SPACE with ZERO Past, ZERO future and all that is. All that is known, unknown, knowable, unknowable, everything, everyone, everyones past, everyones future is in "NOW". I am in infinte, all pervading NOW-SPACE.

"I AM ZERO IN NOW-SPACE "

the first nano-rabbit completed with the bold statement. His eyes shining as the face glowed with discovery of Now-Space.

The second nano-rabbit, with mouth open, in a disbelief uttered," Is this place, I mean Now-Space, even real?"

The first nano-rabbit said," This is the only reality, and it exists independent of us being nano-rabbits, our experiences of nano rabbit life. "Now" I see, this vast NOW-SPACE, that only is real. We are having nano-rabbit life experiences - once it is over, these will dissolve into NOW-SPACE. Why not, then realise the NOW, the NOW-SPACE, rather than jumping from place to place - the PAST place, the FUTURE Place.

We must let go off all places, realise the NOW-SPACE !

*****

Author

Navneet Bhushan (Navneet) worked as a Scientist in DRDO from 1990-2000. He is the founder and director of CRAFITTI CONSULTING (www.crafitti.com) – an Innovation and Intellectual Property Consulting firm focused on co-crafting solutions for global problems. He regularly writes on defence, security technology, and innovation. He is the principal author of Strategic Decision Making- Applying the Analytic Hierarchy Process published by Springer-Verlag, UK, as part of the Decision Engineering Series. Navneet Blogs at https://innovationcrafting.blogspot.com.He can be contacted at navneet(dot)bhushan(at) crafitti(dot)com