Present Consciousness & Mindfullness Meditation

Thinking to the concept of meditation a common thought often arises: why not take immediate shortcut to the "ultimate self" (no addictions, complete abstinence from sensational pleasure, etc.) and leave the past behaviour behind?

The answer actually lies in a simple idea that life is a process. Whether it is business, sport or academic education, there is a common knowledge in our society that assumes that people go through a certain experience first in order to later reach height in their chosen path. Buddhism is no different! Cutting all strings behind only helps to change the outside environment and not the inner self. However, buddhism aims to develop self that can withstands the changes in the outside environment--exactly what you would be running away from by immediate abstinence.

Instead, it makes sense to develop a critical consciousness of the mind in a present time - thus steadily training yourself until the time when change in environment happens not as a prerequisite but as a consequence of complete mindfullness. Of course, critical consciousness (unlike critical thinking) requires a person to be skilled at controlling his attention towards the present behaviour - hence the need for meditation; meditation helps us develop our concentration towards the present self-awareness--not something that can be trained through academic practice.