--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The past is gone, the future is not here…" description: "\"The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of both. Right now, I choose joy.\" — Deepak Chopra" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg" --- # The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of… ![“The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of both. Right now, I choose joy.” quote by Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg) > “The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of both. Right now, I choose joy.” [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Letting go of past and future frees you to embrace present joy. **In simple terms:** Release past and future, choose joy now. Key Takeaway Live fully in the present. Themes mindfulness freedom joy Mood calm hopeful Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - meditation - stress relief - decision making - creative work Key Concepts spirituality psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does present joy affect your choices? - What steps help you stay present? A Different Perspective Ignoring past lessons can repeat mistakes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose/) [Choose Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose-joy/) [Future Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-free-3071683/) [Gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gone/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Past Gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-gone/) [Right Choose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-choose-352577/) [Right now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-now/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“The right to choose is always the key to progress for women, as it is for men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-holland/the-right-to-choose-is-always-the-key-to-progress-for-women-as-it-is/) [Jack Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-holland/) > [Everybody has the right to be who they choose to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/montel-williams/everybody-has-the-right-to-be-who-they-choose-to-be/) [Montel Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/montel-williams/) > [“That’s what life is about, having the right to choose, to make decisions that have the ability to span your entire existence, especially when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/addison-moore/that-s-what-life-is-about-having-the-right-to-choose-to-make/) [Addison Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/addison-moore/) > [“The rights we have as free individuals is the right to choose as we please.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/the-rights-we-have-as-free-individuals-is-the-right-to-choose-as-we/) [steven redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [“This is the best reason to learn history: not in order to predict the future, but to free yourself of the past and imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/this-is-the-best-reason-to-learn-history-not-in-order-to-predict-the/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [There is always someone else in your future if you can become free of your past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-rowe/there-is-always-someone-else-in-your-future-if-you-can-become-free-of/) [Rashida Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-rowe/) > [It is our responsibility to leave the people of the future a free hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/it-is-our-responsibility-to-leave-the-people-of-the-future-a-free-hand/) [Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/) > [Every dollar the Federal Government does not take from us, every decision it does not make for us will make our economy stronger, our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/every-dollar-the-federal-government-does-not-take-from-us-every/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [We must reinvent a future free of blinders so that we can choose from real options.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/we-must-reinvent-a-future-free-of-blinders-so-that-we-can-choose-from/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [I changed it. I had to. Do you know why?" She studied him, her eyes grave. "Because that was then and this is now.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-changed-it-i-had-to-do-you-know-why-she-studied-him-her-eyes-grave/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The spiritual life is a life beyond moods. It is a life in which we choose joy and do not allow ourselves to become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-spiritual-life-is-a-life-beyond-moods-it-is-a-life-in-which-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“I Choose Love... No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-choose-love-no-occasion-justifies-hatred-no-injustice-warrants/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [It is possible to be happy and joyful most of the time. You just have to look at little children and see their natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhonda-byrne/it-is-possible-to-be-happy-and-joyful-most-of-the-time-you-just-have/) [Rhonda Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhonda-byrne/) > [“Hephaistion had known for many ages that if a god should offer him one gift in all his lifetime, he would choose this. Joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-renault/hephaistion-had-known-for-many-ages-that-if-a-god-should-offer-him/) [Mary Renault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-renault/) > [God, help me to focus on Truth instead of the trial. Help me to give thanks instead of giving into fear. Help me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-daugherty/god-help-me-to-focus-on-truth-instead-of-the-trial-help-me-to-give/) [Whitney Daugherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-daugherty/) ## More by Deepak Chopra > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“Molecules form and dissolve, returning to the primordial soup of atoms. But consciousness survives the death of the molecules on which it rides. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/molecules-form-and-dissolve-returning-to-the-primordial-soup-of-atoms/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Unbounded awareness is the reservoir of possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/unbounded-awareness-is-the-reservoir-of-possibilities/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Spiritual awareness is not only one of the keys to the healing process. Spiritual awareness is the only way that healing can occur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/spiritual-awareness-is-not-only-one-of-the-keys-to-the-healing/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [All experiences are either positive for your brain or negative. If you maximize the positive ones, you are shaping the brain you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/all-experiences-are-either-positive-for-your-brain-or-negative-if-you/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [There are only 2 responses to the world, fear or love. Your life depends on which one you choose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/there-are-only-2-responses-to-the-world-fear-or-love-your-life/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [If you take the the insults of your fellow human beings personally, you will be offended for the rest of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-you-take-the-the-insults-of-your-fellow-human-beings-personally/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [A person desperately searching for love," Merlin said, "reminds me of a fish desperately searching for water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/a-person-desperately-searching-for-love-merlin-said-reminds-me-of-a/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Fighting your ego is a melodrama of the ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/fighting-your-ego-is-a-melodrama-of-the-ego/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [The same faint song is heard in everything: "Behold yourself".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-same-faint-song-is-heard-in-everything-behold-yourself/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“All creativity is based on quantum leaps and uncertainty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/all-creativity-is-based-on-quantum-leaps-and-uncertainty/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [The soul knows everything. Be who you are and your life will transform forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-soul-knows-everything-be-who-you-are-and-your-life-will-transform/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [The willingness to reach inside every part of yourself opens the door to total understanding. You place your entire identity on the line, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-willingness-to-reach-inside-every-part-of-yourself-opens-the-door/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Be willing to redefine yourself every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/be-willing-to-redefine-yourself-every-day/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [To have weakness is not to be flawed--it's to be complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/to-have-weakness-is-not-to-be-flawed-it-s-to-be-complete/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) [Explore all 1,675 Deepak Chopra quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) ## More Choose quotes > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [If somebody asks me to choose a biopic, it would be Narain Karthikeyan because I love racing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naga-chaitanya/if-somebody-asks-me-to-choose-a-biopic-it-would-be-narain-karthikeyan/) [Naga Chaitanya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naga-chaitanya/) > [“Either you soften your ego, or the world will do it for you. Choose!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-mccoy/either-you-soften-your-ego-or-the-world-will-do-it-for-you-choose/) [Bert McCoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-mccoy/) > [I'm aware of who I am and I'm comfortable with who I choose to date.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shibani-dandekar/i-m-aware-of-who-i-am-and-i-m-comfortable-with-who-i-choose-to-date/) [Shibani Dandekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shibani-dandekar/) > [No actor wants to choose - they just want all of the options available to them all the time; we tend to be pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-jacobs/no-actor-wants-to-choose-they-just-want-all-of-the-options-available/) [Gillian Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-jacobs/) > [If you choose to work at a larger company over a smaller company, you are more likely to be higher paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-sweet/if-you-choose-to-work-at-a-larger-company-over-a-smaller-company-you/) [Julie Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-sweet/) > [You can't choose what stays and what stays away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/you-can-t-choose-what-stays-and-what-stays-away/) [Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/) > [It's only a thought and a thought can be changed. Choose good ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/it-s-only-a-thought-and-a-thought-can-be-changed-choose-good-ones/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime...so you gotta choose who is good for you! Be wise, be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-come-into-your-life-for-a-reason-a-season-or-a-lifetime-so-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not opposed - we manufacture a lot of socks in North Carolina - I just choose not to wear them. It's a Southern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-burr/i-m-not-opposed-we-manufacture-a-lot-of-socks-in-north-carolina-i/) [Richard Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-burr/) > [Having too many options is bad. I want one person, just one. Not a whole bunch to choose from,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roderickthefirst/having-too-many-options-is-bad-i-want-one-person-just-one-not-a-whole/) [RoderickTheFirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roderickthefirst/) > [If I could be anyone, I'd choose the lead singer of Arcade Fire, Win Butler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-kardashian/if-i-could-be-anyone-i-d-choose-the-lead-singer-of-arcade-fire-win/) [Rob Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-kardashian/) > [People are as happy as they choose to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/people-are-as-happy-as-they-choose-to-be/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) [Browse all 3,851 Choose quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of both. Right now, I choose joy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Deepak Chopra" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here-now-i-am-free-of-both-right/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choose" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here-now-i-am-free-of-both-right/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/deepak-chopra-63_gone_the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here_1178952.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The past is gone, the future is not here, now I am free of both. Right now, I choose joy.” — Deepak Chopra", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Deepak Chopra", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The past is gone, the future...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here-now-i-am-free-of-both-right/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-past-is-gone-the-future-is-not-here-now-i-am-free-of-both-right/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```