Eckhart Tolle, a renowned spiritual teacher and author, has shared insights on Jesus' teachings from his perspective of present-moment awareness and spiritual awakening. Tolle's interpretations often emphasize the transformative power of presence and the importance of transcending egoic identification. The following are some key Spiritual but not religious themes and ideas he has expressed:
Cavalier - Christ taken prisoner Matt 27:42-56
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On The Power of Now:
One of Eckhart Tolle's central teachings (also a book in the same name) is the concept of the "Power of Now," which aligns closely with Jesus' emphasis on being present in the moment.
Tolle suggests that Jesus invited people to experience the divine reality and connection with God in the present moment. By being fully present, individuals can transcend the mind's incessant chatter and connect with their essential spiritual nature.
In a nutshell, the past is of no relevance today, as it has already happened and hopefully, we have learnt from it. The past is a reflection of a time when you as an individual may have been less aware and thus less conscious of your place in the interconnectedness of all humanity (consciousness). While we do suffer for our actions, conscious or unconscious, the best we can do is learn from the experiences but not give them attention and thus energy by reliving those moments today, whether joyful or causing anguish and regret.
Kussler - Immaculate heart of Mary Luke 1:26-28
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We don't worry about the future, because it has as yet to happen. We still make plans and execute based on an idea in the present, however living in the moment is much more important than future aspirations, which may never transpire. We should live in the present with the thought that it is significantly more important than the past and the future. All thoughts should coalesce around the present, and minimize thoughts on any other period.
I have been practising living in the present for about 3 months now; we are at the start of July 2023. It is revolutionary. At first, your thoughts will be all over the place as you train your mind to remain current. The future is normally about achieving goals and improving one's life; the problem is when you are overwhelmed by thoughts about the future, it's almost as if that future illusory self has arrived, ignoring the reality of the present. As for the past, I imagine you as well, may have many regrets based on things you have done, people you have hurt, failed endeavours and so on. Jesus taught that we should not dwell on the future, for the day has sufficient problems of its own; I think the same for the past. The best way to rectify the past is to live in the present and to minimize daydreaming about the future (both good and fearful), again, by dwelling more on the present.
In my case, the anxiety of day-to-day living has come down significantly as a result of exercising the power of now. It's a strange feeling, not having unconscious thoughts constantly floating about in the mind; a constant stream of useless thoughts that wreaks havoc with your emotions and thus stress levels.
On Transcending Egoic Identification:
Tolle highlights Jesus' call to transcend identification with the ego, the illusory sense of self. He suggests that Jesus' emphasis on selflessness, humility, and forgiveness reflects the need to move beyond the ego's desires and attachments and awaken to a deeper truth of our interconnectedness.
Now, a quick explanation of what the ego is and what the self is. Eckhart uses a simple though profound example to differentiate the two. Rene Descartes a C17th Philosopher, posited that "I think, therefore I am". The self was identified as the thinking mind. Eckhart considers this erroneous, and I am inclined to believe him. If indeed, you think therefore you are, who is doing the thinking, and who the knowing that you are thinking? It's generally accepted wisdom that the spark of the divine, or if you are not religiously inclined, the spark or source of the universe, is in each and every one of us; this is what creates our interconnectedness. Eckhart calls this observer in the mind, the true self also called the stillness that lives in all of us.
We have touched on the stillness, now the ego. Our identity as human beings is based largely on experience and environment. This is very separate from the stillness, which remains unaffected throughout one's life. Our sense of self, moulded by environment and experience constitutes the ego. The ego's primary aim is self-preservation and self-aggrandizement at the expense of everything or anyone else.
Give this a try. Observe your mind, see the great number of unconscious thoughts going in and out of it, and out of these choose what is relevant and what is not, or better still entertain only ideas that focus on the present, and are useful, otherwise discard the rest. That "stillness" that observes all this in the mind, that is the real you. The eternal you that has existed before you were born, will always be there and is a part of the universal source of all life. It can only disappear if all creation departs with it. You are a creature of infinity.
Rubens- Christ on the cross Matt 27:32-56
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On Non-Resistance and Acceptance:
According to Tolle's teachings on non-resistance and turning the other cheek are not passive surrenders to injustice or harm. Instead, they convey the power of non-reactive awareness, where individuals can respond to challenging situations from a place of inner stillness and presence, rather than reacting from the ego's patterns of conflict. There are three things here; non-resistance and surrender, non-violence and an acceptance of "what is".
Non-resistance and acceptance suggest flowing with what is, rather than resisting. Those that always look for the silver lining use less force and energy than those that use force to bend things to their will. Change your mind to suit the circumstances; the goal may be the same, but the application (way of attaining that goal) does change. Intransigence is a poor alternative.
Nonviolence is about the unconscious actions of other human beings. Awareness means identifying with the spiritual self and doing away with the ego (the all-preserving self). An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth is all egoic. The more aware or conscious one becomes, the easier it is to rise above the manipulation of the ego or unconscious. Christ on the cross said, and I paraphrase, "Lord, forgive them, for they know not what they do"; the suggestion here is that his tormentors were unconscious and driven purely by ego and were completely unaware of the travesty of their actions.
I think am slowly becoming aware, but I don't think I could ever simply walk away if an act of violence was directed at me. I tend to believe more in the idea of measured violence against a violent act. It may not be right by Eckhart's or Spiritualities standards, but that is what I am inclined to do.
On Compassion and Love:
Tolle emphasizes the profound spiritual significance of Jesus on love and compassion. He sees Jesus as pointing to the essential interconnectedness of all beings and the recognition of the divine presence within each person. Tolle encourages individuals to cultivate a sense of deep compassion and love for themselves and others as a path to spiritual growth.
Compassion and love seem to flow naturally once we all understand that we are interconnected. I watch many videos on Near-death experiences, and in all of them, there is the message of our universal connectedness and the effect that a single human action has on commonality. This does not seem far-fetched if you start from the premise that we all emanate from the same source; the source of all life.
We are like rays of sunshine, emanating from the sun; how can we claim to be independent of the sun? The argument further extends to all of creation and thus created things being connected given their source. All of creation is aware of itself as we are. We may not understand it, but even inanimate objects like rocks and carved wood, having been created, are aware.
Kamskoy - Christ prays in the wilderness Luke 4:1-13
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On Inner Transformation and Awakening:
For Tolle, being "born again" and entering the "kingdom of heaven" point to a radical transformation of consciousness and not just a declaration as many Christians do today. If your thinking does not change from the egoic to your spiritual (conscious self), or at least begin to change, then there is no transformation. This transformation involves transcending the egoic identification with the mind and recognizing one's true nature as pure awareness or consciousness. Tolle teaches that spiritual awakening involves a shift in perception from identification with form (ego) to identification with the formless (consciousness).
As a Christian, I have studied and tried my best to live according to Christ's teachings. There is no better way to inculcate his teachings than to apply them to daily life. Jesus's teachings demand experiential living, which will in time lead to an inward change.
When I began to combine the power of now and Jesus's teachings, the effects were astounding. Many of the things that Jesus taught, were in direct contradiction to the self-preserving ego, and this is in tune with or intensified by Eckhart's teachings on the power of now or the present. By applying the latter, you automatically employ the former; just remember at all times to watch your mind and its thoughts and keep the thoughts in the present, and the rest seems to fall into place.
Tolle often discusses the ego as the false sense of self that arises from identification with thoughts, emotions, and roles. He sees Jesus' teachings on humility, selflessness, and forgiveness as guiding individuals to disidentify from the ego and awaken to a deeper, more authentic aspect of themselves.
We touched on this briefly above. Who is the true you? It is the consciousness that is aware of your every thought and emotion. It is the awareness that can see the lies and separate the chaff from the wheat. It requires much personal practice and a general understanding of our interconnectedness at the level of consciousness; all the other differentiating factors are illusory given that we will leave them right here on earth. Only that awareness is eternal, and we will carry it with us into the afterlife; remember at all times, that we are eternal spiritual beings and that we will leave these bodies and all that is material behind.
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Eckhart Tolle Official Website
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