The 3 Minute Life Cycle - Michael Joly

New listeners to N.O.W. sometime comment on its 3 minute duration. “Why is it only 3 minutes long?” “Can you make it longer?”

We could have very easily made N.O.W.’s duration longer. But while your thinking mind may want a longer duration, your essential self (the non-thinking, observing consciousness that is “you”) does not. I’ll explain.

N.O.W. is far more than a device that brings stress and anxiety relief. N.O.W. offers a healing experience of Oneness. If you could go to the gym for just 3 minutes a day and end up physically transformed, wouldn’t you do it? N.O.W. helps you experience a transformation of consciousness in just 3 minutes. Why wait any longer?

The Life Cycle of Formlessness and Form

I find it helpful to think of N.O.W. as a teacher. Or if you like, a non-verbal message delivery system that works with the student to create individualized Teachings. While I invented the hardware and software that is N.O.W.’s physical form, I’m continually amazed by what comes through N.O.W. as Teachings. For example, N.O.W. offers an elegant Teaching on the cycle of formlessness, form, impermanence of form and return to formlessness. 

The first intentional act when using N.O.W. is your conscious decision to pick up the speakers and turn then on. You’ll notice there is no sound for 3 seconds after the power on button is pressed. This is intentional. You are being given an opportunity to intentionally be aware of nothingness, no-sound, no-form, “the un-manifested and un-born”, emptiness … the ground upon which sound forms shall shortly emerge and be heard. In this way N.O.W. gives you an opportunity to intentionally experience and contemplate (I use “contemplate” in its classic sense of “non-thinking reverent awareness”) stillness and empty spaciousness–the source of all form.

In short order the New Origin Waveform tones begin to play. Now you are aware of, and enjoy, the lovely pure tones of N.O.W. as they continuously emerge, combine in the space around you and continuously evolve and change–”the dance of forms”. The present moment has been made alluring, friendly and easy to inhabit. And because inhabiting the present moment is so rare for many people, (past and future-focused thinking obscures present-moment awareness) it is a fairly common reaction to desire a longer experience.

For many people, listening to N.O.W. and having their mind’s attention pulled towards following the tones and largely leaving their thoughts behind, is a remarkably new, joyous and loving experience of being aware of their essential self.

But one should be careful not to seize upon N.O.W. as a physical form that brings the experience of one’s essential self to the forefront and become attached to it. For to do so would continue the egoic mind’s desire to “have and to hold” as a means of substantiating its insubstantial self. And besides–the practice of being aware you are aware needs no device ; )

In relatively short order, N.O.W. moves from sound form to formlessness again. The tones begin to fade, N.O.W. begins to teach dissolution of form and a return to the spacious stillness of emptiness.

Dissolution of form is part of the life cycle of: formlessness manifesting into form then dissolving again into formlessness–the life cycle of all creations; human, animal, plant, machine or building. N.O.W. gently Teaches dissolution of form, and allows one to become familiar with, and comfortable with, dissolution of form. The shock of the death of a loved one is partly due to a lack of experience with, and contemplation of, dissolution of form on a daily basis.

If N.O.W. was longer, say 30 minutes, you would not be able to observe a succinct and palpable cycle of: stillness, form manifesting, then form dissolving into stillness–as a whole experience.

So this is another reason why N.O.W. is only 3 minutes long. N.O.W. wants to teach non-attachment to form and provide an experience of the wholeness of the life cycle–quickly.