This is a really difficult concept to get across, particularly in this text medium .. namely because even our language has the concept of time embedded in it.
Anyway, here goes ..
Ever sat in a play/movie theatre, (or a uni lecture room), and been able to hear everything being presented, but not been able to understand anything about what's being presented ? .. Not because the content is too hard to understand, but because your so deeply embedded in your thoughts about something else, that you have no idea of what the play/movie/lecture is about ?
Well lets say, at that moment, your mind simply isn't existing in the 'present'. If it was, it would be bristling with attention, eagerly trying to predict what's going to happen next, and ready to respond in an instant to any situation which presents itself .. with an almost 'instinctive' reaction response and lightning speed. This second state, (as opposed to being locked in your own thoughts), means you exist in the 'present'. You are 'present' to the moment. Perhaps instinct = living in the 'present' and wild animals are specialists at it.
The other state (embedded in your own thoughts), invariably turns out to be dwelling in thoughts which come from the past. I reckon humans spend about 99% of their time in this state .. drawing upon all those accumulated experiences you guys are talking about .. which come from memories .. stored in sequential order, by our time-generating operating system.
Yet more 'evidence' .. but in these cases, we're actually
generating our own sense of time, and then directly experiencing the effects of having done so ?
(This is a little along the lines of Bert's post #38 which suggests we can consciously, or unconsciously, 'dilate' the effects of time. Except the state I mention, is kind of like ensconcing oneself, deliberately maybe, in thoughts which come from the past).
Incidentally, there is little/no freedom of choice when we're in this 'past' state. We are driven by logical, rational thoughts, which all come from past experiences. The outcome will always be predictable. And actions will always have a 'reason' behind them. (As opposed to a '
no reason in particular' answer for our actions - which would suggest being 'present' to the moment).
What if, the universe was only ever doing things in the 'present' ?
Would we be able to be present to what is was doing ? .. or would we be viewing it from our own self-induced past ? (Y'know the one we spend about 99% of our time 'living' in ?)
Cheers