With apologies to those who already understand who Eckhart Tolle is, and for the benefit of the people who haven't heard of Eckhart Tolle at all, here is a quick résumé: Eckhart Tolle is a spiritual writer of German origin who has lived most of his adult life in Canada. Now in his sixties, Tolle is one of the Western world’s most revered spiritual luminaries, and through working with Oprah Winfrey – thanks to the 10-week live ‘webinar’ that Oprah held with him – has boosted his notoriety among the masses considerably.
Write stuff
Eckhart Tolle has had 4 books published so far, of which The Power of Now became a New York Times bestseller and was translated into 33 languages. Similarly, his latest book, A New Earth: Awakening to Life’s Purpose, has also topped the NYT bestsellers list. What’s more, Oprah has chosen A New Earth to be part of Oprah’s Book Club, calling it one of her favorite reads.
The two most popular books retain a fundamental similarity. The Power of Now suggests that we focus on the present moment. In A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle further explores the makings of the human ego and how it distracts us from the present experience of the world. According to Eckhart Tolle, the increasing influence of the human ego is the cause of all our inner and outer conflicts. And so, it is only by watching and being aware of the ego that people will begin to go past it and gain the peace that passes all understanding.
Changing life
A reason for the enormous appeal of The Power of Now maybe be that it offers, not only advice but solutions. A tremendously popular concept in the book was that of ‘being the watcher of your mind’. This is a concept through which Tolle encourages a reader to watch his or her own thoughts and to realize how negative thoughts from the past and fear of the future can dominate the present. But, according to Eckhart Tolle, judging yourself is all part of ego identity and the only escape from that is to identify with the present moment. That includes eradicating pain that has more or less been ‘implanted’ in you by your family or social surroundings, but which is not born out of your own experiences.
Books and beyond
Eckhart Tolle has been infuenced by books all his life and read the bible at a very early, he says, “First I picked up a copy of the New Testament almost by accident… and reading the words of Jesus and feeling the essence and power behind those words… So that was an incredible realization, just reading and understanding ‘beyond mind’ the deeper meaning of those words… Then came the Bhagavad Gita, I also had an immediate, deep understanding of and an incredible love for such a divine work. The Tao Te Ching: also an immediate understanding… I knew the translator had misunderstood, and knew what the real meaning was although I do not know any Chinese… Then I also started reading on Buddhism and immediately understood the essence of Buddhism… I have a great love for the teaching of the Buddha, a teaching of such power and sublime simplicity.” Given such influences, is it any wonder that Tolle can influence your life with his books?
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
To the illustrious books mentioned in this article I would add:
The Heart of the Ribhu Gita (out of print, but available)
Pathways Through to Space by Franklin Merrill-Wolff
Over three decades ago these writings had a transformative effect on me that I am still graced by to this day.