George Evans -Outside Reading, The Power of Now

A little eastern metaphysics, a dash of Judeo-Christian metaphor, and a conglomeration of Buddhist principles make up the very basic premise that is Eckhart Tolle’s “The Power of Now.” First published in 1999, the work has sold over two million copies, and was featured on Oprah’s book of the month club. The book, while it uses religious metaphor and touts itself as “A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment” in actuality isn’t particularly religious in content. Rather, the work uses religious metaphor from texts such as the Christian Bible, Torah, Vedas and other works to reach the largest audience possible, as well as cut through the mental resistance of those who simply must see every aspect of the world through their own religious lenses.

In introducing the work, Tolle first gives the reader some context in which he gained the inspiration to write the book. Tolle describes himself as in a suicidal depression; each morning he would get up and dread having to face the next day. One night was particularly horrible, and Tolle decided that this sense of numbness and emptiness had to be stopped forever. Over and over a thought repeated itself in his mind, “I can not live with myself any longer.” Suddenly an epiphany of sorts occurred in Tolle’s mind. There are two, selves “I “and the “self that he could not live with.” Tolle soon blacked out after this revelation but before he did, he heard the words deep inside himself “resist nothing.” He had achieved inner peace, what the Buddhists call “enlightenment.” Tolle says he spent the next two years basking in the moment or the “now” and that he traveled around, homeless, penniless, sitting on park benches, but completely content taking in the real beauty of the world. Hordes of people would approach Tolle and say, “I want what you have,” his response always the same, “You already have it, you just don’t know it.” It was in this light that Tolle wrote “The Power of Now,” to help other individuals seeking inner peace, attain it.

There are a few basic premises that Tolle drills into the mind of the reader, beginning with the idea that “You are NOT your mind.” Tolle explains that our mind is a biological instrument that often acts out of evolutionary need, and is obsessed with thinking. Humans as a whole are obsessed with thinking and logic, and this often is a detriment to ones mental, physical and spiritual health. The mind is always thinking, judging, labeling, analyzing, and acting, and often in ways that hurt us. Tolle sets out a basic premise, the mind is concerned with the past, and it is concerned with the future, it is hardly ever concerned with the present moment or the Now. To slip into an inner peace, a stillness, one needs to stop thinking. Now stopping thought may seem exceptionally difficult to an untrained observer, but Tolle gives us a way to do it. Tolle explains that first we must be aware that we are not our minds, and that we must “Watch the thinker.” To elaborate further, “watching the thinker” merely means observe what your mind does, observe your thoughts, and what you are thinking, don’t judge just watch. This observation creates a duality, you, and your mind, and it really emphasizes the point that you are not your mind. Tolle takes it a step further and tells the reader to also watch your emotions, don’t make judgments, just feel the emotion, let it pass through you and observe. One will find that the mind is in a constant state of reaction, be it to preserve ones ego, to protect ones identity, or to actively feel pain.

Tolle continues in the same vein and talks about a concept related to the dichotomy of you and your mind, by introducing a concept called the painbody. This is where your mind is infatuated with the past, especially those events that caused some pain or perceived pain. One’s mind will go over these events over and over because it feeds on this perpetual cycle of pain, almost like a person continually picking at a scab; it hurts, “but it hurts so good”. This often materializes in actuality, think of a time in which you were in a bad mood, and did your best to transfer your bad mood onto as many other people as possible…misery loves company, and this is your painbody at work. Tolle emphasizes that we must feel the pain, observe it, realize what it is, and upon that realization it will go away. This is called consciousness.

To slip into this consciousness, beyond pain, in absolute peace and stillness Tolle describes that one must be completely in “the moment “or the Now. Tolle says a very simple exercise to get into the Now is to simply concentrate on ones breathing, feel each breath deeply and completely until all thoughts are out of your mind and you are concentrating only on the breath. Another exercise to get into the moment is to wash your hands; and concentrate on every feeling that goes along with doing so. Feel the cold metal of the facet, the wetness of the water, smell the scent of the soap, be absorbed by the scratchiness of the towel and suddenly one is completely and utterly in the moment. The past and present do no matter, only this moment, the Now. Tolle explains that any action or activity can be used for this exercise, and that with practice one will begin to be in the Now the majority of the time. Of course there are times in which being in the moment isn’t possible, or even advisable, Tolle isn’t saying don’t plan for the future or miss all of your job appointments and the like- this he called “psychological time” a sometimes necessary application of the logical mind. This is where logic, reason, analyzing and reanalyzing have their place, but their function is limited. As soon as one can, your mind needs to slip back into the Now. The majority of people are in this “psychological time” at all times, and merely slip into the Now for a brief moment. Tolle explains that during emergency situations, the mind is drawn deeply into the Now. Other things such as exercise and high adrenaline activities such as skydiving or bungee jumping also allow the mind to momentarily drift into the Now. Rather than live in the anxious and reactionary frame of “psychological time” Tolle implores that we live in the Now at all times, and briefly reach into psychological time to get practical matters taken care of, and then go back into the Now.

There is heavy mental resistance to the Now. Without the differentiation that “you are not your mind” one may find the Now to be a scary and isolated place. Tolle says that there are specific tests to see if one is “present.” (Present in this sense meaning in the moment.) Do not try and clear your mind, and then think, “What is going on in my mind right now…what am I thinking? What emotional state am I feeling right this second?” For the person who is present, the mind tends to be blank of thought, and there is often a deep warmth in their torso, accompanied by a feeling of bliss and peace. Things look more vibrant and alive, and everyone and everything radiates with some innate energy. Tolle says that many people “have never truly seen the world, unless they have experienced it through the Now.”

In closing, the Now is always, and there is no time other than the Now. There is no time that hasn’t been the Now, it is all there ever is, all that ever was, and all that ever will be. All we have is the present moment. Eckhart Tolle brings this peace and a new way of thinking to the masses. These principles have brought joy and peace to this author, and millions overall. His philosophical teachings are extremely valuable to society, and I sincerely recommend this work to anyone and everyone.