By What Time are You living?

There are two very different views on the concept of time that we apply in our daily life.

The first view we call “clock time” or “astronomical time” which is that time that is part of the fundamental structure of the universe, a dimension in which events occur in sequence. This is the realist view (Newton) in which time itself is something that can be measured. Newton believed time and space form a container for events, which is as real as the objects it contains

The second view we call “psychological time”, in which time, rather than being an objective thing to be measured, is part of the mental measuring system necessarily structuring the experiences of any rational agent, or observing subject (Leibnitz, Kant).


You cannot live without the concept of astronomical time as it is essential for many practical purposes, making appointments, travelling, etc.

But do you need psychological time?

According Kant it is an a priori intuition that allows us (together with the other a priori intuition, space) to comprehend sense experience. However, too much preoccupation with psychological time can lead to stress and burnout. It often becomes a continuous egocentric preoccupation with the past and the future, your childhood, your past and future relationships, targets to be met, success and failure, illness, death, etc.



What are the benefits of living “without” psychological time?

Sometime you are aware of living without this psychological time. When you are engaged in an activity that you really enjoy you forget psychological time, for example when you are involved in peak experiences in sport, in creative activities, in love, in meditation, etc. These experiences make you forget psychological time and even the passing of astronomical time. You will also recall the sensations you had in those moments, full relaxation and the utmost joy. When living and working in the moment you will experience a very high energy level that will enable you achieve peak experiences that otherwise would either be impossible or would lead to physical or mental exhaustion.



How can you achieve those moments without psychological time?

First of all by awareness that neither time nor anything else that surfaces in your thinking is you. You are the core, the self that can have full control over your thoughts. Take some time to look at your thoughts and experiment how you can change them anyway you like.

You can also practice meditation, to enter the “now”, or “the moment”, by observing your breathing. One breath without thinking is already a masterpiece.

At a practical level you can start by not being obsessed by your agenda, by being less attached to outcomes, and instead by taking time to listen to your needs, to be open for coincidences, to surprises.

Take time to live without time! (luisa)

Human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.

(William James)