Live in the Present

Do not pursue the past.
Do not lose yourself in the future.
The past no longer is.
The future has not yet come.
Looking deeply at life as it is
in the very here and now,
the practitioner dwells
in stability and freedom.
We must be diligent today.
To wait until tomorrow is too late.
Death comes unexpectedly.
How can we bargain with it?
The sage calls a person who knows
how to dwell in mindfulness
night and day
"one who knows
the better way to live alone."

Bhaddekaratta Gatha

Bhaddekaratta - "knowing the better way to live alone" does not refer to living alone as a hermit. In fact, the Buddha reminded a student who misinterpreted his teachings that way and became a social outcast of this. It is necessary for a person to remain in society because he or she learns a lot from people and from living in society. The "better way to live alone" means that one lives with others but remains mindful and detached from mental defilements such as anger, desire, ignorance, hatred etc - living "alone".