The 'Power of Then': The Uniquely Human Capacity to Imagine Beyond the Present

Humans appear to be uniquely in their ability to transcend the present and reflect on current ideas in terms of what was experienced in the past, or fantasize about the future. This paper presents an account, in layperson terms, of how this ability came about, its importance in modern life, and why it defines our ‘human-ness’. Live in the present. This is widely accepted as ancient wisdom, as the key to escaping the speed and pressures of modern life. The notion of ‘living in the present' has become even more popular with the publication of The Power of Now, a New York Times number one bestseller by Eckhart Tolle that has been translated into 30 languages. We are told that authentic human power comes by surrendering to the Now, the present moment, which is laden with myriad access points or portals to a state of inner peace where problems do not exist. We are told that when we dwell in the Now, we leave behind our analytic mind and its falsely created self, the ego. We may thereby awaken spiritual dimensions of our lives, enjoy more harmonious relationships, and discover that we are already complete and perfect. It may be that we can use a reminder now and then to forget our worries, appreciate our surroundings, and simply ‘be'. In so doing, inner strength may be found. But it is equally true that we can leave behind the ego and awaken new dimensions in our lives by escaping the now, by dwelling in the ‘Then'. There is good reason why, after millions of years of evolution, humans became able to escape the present, i.e. to plan, imagine, fantasize, and remember past events without a memory-jogging cue. Indeed when our ancestors acquired the capacity to break out of the present, it opened up for our species an entirely unprecedented and breathtakingly creative new kind of existence.