The
spiritual book that ignites me for being in the present moment.
During the 1st lockdown in Covid 19 pandemic, I
was able to download an eBook called “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle. At first, I couldn’t get the concepts clearly.
But, during the month of August, I got an opportunity to participate for a seven-day
residential retreat at Nissarana Vanaya, Meethirigala (details on www.nissarana.lk). There I learned to practice
mindful walking, mindful sitting and perform activities mindfully during the
day. Without any distraction from scrolling through social media on mobile, reading
books, watching television and even talking to each other. That relaxation helped
me to understand the importance of being in the presence. Once I return
back, I went through the chapters as I practiced with SMS - Slowly, Mindfully
and Silently.
Once I mentioned that I’m currently reading “The Power of Now”
in one of the Pick a Book sessions, an awesome friend of mine, TM Shuvo Hridayesh
said that he has the hardcopy and handed over to me to go through it. I got
super exited and did a presentation and practice session on it.
Let’s first get to know about the author;
•
Eckhart
Tolle is a spiritual teacher, presenter and best-selling author
•
He’s a German born resident of
Vancouver, Canada
•
“The most popular spiritual author in
US” – The New York Times
•
The Power of Now has sold over 2
Million copies and translated into over 30 foreign languages
On the Introduction, the author mentions that until
his thirtieth year, he lived in a state of almost continuous anxiety sprinkled
with periods of suicidal depression. It feels him, as if he’s talking about
some past lifetime or somebody else’s life.
On chapter one, You are not your mind, starts
with a story of an old man who had been sitting by the roadside begging for
years. One day a stranger came and said, “I have nothing to give you” also he asked,
“What’s inside that box you are sitting on” Then the beggar replied, “Nothing,
I haven’t ever look inside” Afterwards, the beggar opened it and found the box
full of gold. Just like that, we are sitting on our own treasure/wealth without
knowing what’s inside ourself.
Some of the concepts are;
Ø What is the greatest obstacle to enlightenment? – The author says that, “It’s true that I do lot of aimless thinking, like most people, but I can still choose to use my mind to get and accomplish things and I do that all the time.”
Ø Rising above thought – As per the author, “The mind is essentially a survival machine. Attack and defense against other minds, gathering, stories and analyzing information.”
On the next chapter, Consciousness: The way out of pain. The author mentions that “Nobody’s life is entirely free of pain and sorrow. Isn’t it a question of learning to live with them rather than trying to avoid them?” Also, some of the sub-headings the author discusses;
v Create no more pain in the present – “The greater part of human pain is unnecessary. It’s self-created as long as the unobserved mind runs your life.” Also, you can free yourself from disappointments in the past and worrying about the future.
•
Letting go of
Psychological time - “If you dwell on mentally, self-criticism, remorse or
guilt come up, then you are making it part of your Psychological time. Which is
identification with the past and continuous compulsive projection into the
future.”
•
Finding the life
underneath your life situation - “Forget about your life situation for a while
and pay attention to your life.”
•
All problems are
illusions of the Mind - “The problems are mind-made and need time to survive. It
is impossible to have a problem when your attention is fully in the Now.”
•
The joy of Being
- “As you honor the present moment, all unhappiness and struggle dissolve and
life begins to flow with joy and ease.”
Quick summary:
- Freeing yourself from your mind.
This is your state of Being. You have succeeded already!
(For more details on www.eckharttolle.com)
