Eckhart Tolle: Consciousness Coach #1

I just watched a DVD by Eckhart Tolle called "The flowering of Human Consciousness". Mr. Tolle is a wonderful coach on consciousness.

Eckhart Tolle: The basket metaphor

He asks us to imagine that we identify ourselves as a basket. We created the basket in our minds. We are born, and soon after that we create a "basket" and start filling the basket with "content".

Content is everything that we experience is our lives. Our thoughts, desires, emotions, and our life experiences.

It seems to me a part of the system of life is that you must go through a period in which you believe that you ARE the basket and the contents.

You ARE your past, your thoughts, and your "accumulated knowledge".

Eckhart suggests that what you really ARE is the "spaciousness" that surrounds the basket.

After you realize you ARE NOT the basket...but more the silent space around the basket...you can begin your journey of "waking up" to your true identity.

Obviously, I am paraphrasing here, but the simplicity of the idea really struck me enough to want to share the idea right away.

I have believed the same idea (and written about it in the past!) so, I don't feel like I am stealing his idea (HA!), but merely sharing some of his pointers.

The basket is similar to the idea of people living life as if there is a "hole" in them that needs to be filled.

Then people spend time filling in the hole with endless content: jobs, career, education, knowledge, purpose, causes, wars, toys, concerts, friends, lovers, pets, nations, peace processes, major defense programs, plays, movies, knick nacks, coupons, breakfast cereals, fruit bats, flowers, meditation...

...you get the idea.

...there is nothing wrong with any of the above enjoyments...you just need to realize that all of the above fits in your basket...and YOU will still remain the silent "space" that surrounds and pervades the basket and all the content.

You are not changed by the basket or its contents in any way.

If the basket tears, thats ok.

If someone takes something from your basket...you remain unchanged.

You can have a basket, and let things and ideas and experiences flow in and out of it, just remember you are NOT the basket.

Eckhart Tolle: Embracing NOW

I often think to myself...what is the best way to greet someone who I think "gets it"...everything that I write about.

I think the best way to greet someone like that is to greet them with love and silence...not an endless barrage of questions.

Eckhart Tolle really lets everyone at his talks sink into to the silent embrace of NOW. It is a really beautiful moment to witness a large group of people being largely silent...and occasionally laughing.

One idea that struck me during Eckhart's talk was how he so easily described "the field of NOW" and how everything occurs in the field of NOW.

If you think about what you want to do later...you are thinking about it NOW.

If you think about the past...you have to do it NOW.

I have said similar things, such as space and time are illusions (which of course they are)...I just really dug the way he pointed out that NOW is the only time there is is...and just left it that.

When I tell people that space and time are illusions (which of course they are)...people kind of shut me off...like I'm a crazy person (which I am...but I'm getting better).

So, Eckhart Tolle's pointer is much cleaner than my pointer....no one learns much from CRAZY people...so I should try new pointers to help people learn to embrace the NOW.

Eckhart Tolle: Learning to accept everything without identifying with it.

Once you realize that you ARE NOT the basket...you might HAVE a basket of a story of your life that you created...but it is NOT YOU.

....then you can begin to learn to accept everything that arises in your life and let it be and accept the fact that it has shown up.

After you accept its being, then you can respond to it as necessary. This is different from reacting to it.

...in other words...if something shows up in your life and you don't like it...you might not want to accept it all and try to deny it is here.

...if you first choose to allow it to be and let it go...it will come, be for a while and then go...don't worry some new idea or form or thing will come along after that one is gone.

The best you can do is to embrace its being and accept it that it showed up...if you don't like it...don't worry...it will be gone before you know it....let it go.

If you like it...enjoy it while it lasts...and then thank it for showing up and let it go...don't worry, there will be something new that you like coming very soon.

Eckhart Tolle: Learning to use the power of YES

I have started using the power of YES as my default answer to most questions people ask me. Sometimes, I still feel my EGO trying to tell me to SCREAM NO...and of course, I can still choose what I want...but in a very general way, I WANT to say YES to the universe and the people in my life.

It seems to me that YES is so much more useful than NO! Why deny the fact that something showed up. If it here...and you don't like it...at least acknowledge with a YES...you did show up again...and I still don't like you.

Eckhart Tolle: Learning to feel what "NO" feel like

You know what "NO" feels like...it feels like a "constriction" in your chest.

Eckhart used a great idea of a person in a traffic jam: "the bane existence" for a lot of people.

Imagine you are in a traffic jam. Why are you upset? You are upset because you are in traffic...but not moving. You are are saying NO! to what NOW is presenting to you.

This is really insane when you think about it.

I live in greater L.A. right now...I know that there is a parking lot pretending to be a freeway everyday waiting for me at the end of my day.

So if I choose to get on the 405 and try to drive south at 4-5 pm during the week...hmmm guess what...traffic. So I raise my fists and and get angry and curse the DAY and get stressed out.

OR

I can take my bike to work...

OR

I can take the surface streets to get home....less direct, but I move.

OR

I can take the bus...takes longer, but I can read.

better than all of these...work from home...or live close to work.

OR accept that the you are choosing to be in traffic. I find that the 405 can be quite peaceful if I embrace the journey. I am alone and it is relatively quite...at least no one is asking me questions...hey I even have AC!

When you feel a constriction in your chest...that is a warning to let you know that you are not accepting NOW as it is.