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In Advaita Vedānta, the statement “All thoughts are past” points to a very deep insight about the nature of mind, time, and awareness.
Here’s the meaning in a clear way:
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Advaita View: Why all thoughts are past
1. A thought appears only after consciousness is already present
Consciousness (awareness) is the ever-present background.
A thought arises within it, and the mind notices it only after it has formed.
By the time you notice a thought, it’s already over.
This is why a thought is considered “past” the moment it’s known.
2. Thoughts belong to time; awareness does not
Thoughts appear, linger briefly, and disappear.
They exist in time.
Awareness—the Self—does not come and go.
It’s timeless, so compared to awareness, thoughts are like ripples already fading on the surface of still water.
3. The “present moment” cannot contain a thought
A thought about the present still comes a fraction of a second after the experience.
Example:
You see a flower → then the mind names it “flower.”
That naming is a memory, not the immediate perception.
So even so-called “present thoughts” are already recollections.
4. Only awareness is truly present
What is always here?
Not thoughts.
Not emotions.
Not perceptions.
Only the knowingness, the silent witnessing presence.
Advaita points to this:
The past is thought.
The future is thought.
The Self is the present in which both appear.
5. Practical sense (from meditation and inquiry)
When one looks closely:
- A thought arises automatically
- It’s noticed slightly later
- The noticing is what you experience
- The thought itself is already gone
So attention is always meeting the echo of the thought, not the thought itself.
🌼 So the statement means:
Thoughts cannot be truly present.
Only awareness is the present.
Therefore, all thoughts are past.
If you’d like, I can also explain how this relates to:
- “I am not the mind”
- The witness (sakshi)
- Non-dual meditation
- Nisargadatta / Ramana Maharshi teachings
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