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The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual…
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The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment (original 1999; edition 2004)

by Eckhart Tolle

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
7,7741391,137 (3.91)55
I didn't really get what the fuss was about with this book. It didn't strike me as anything new, and I don't remember what it was about anymore... ( )
  sumariotter | Nov 2, 2011 |
English (130)  Spanish (4)  Dutch (2)  French (2)  German (1)  All languages (139)
Showing 1-25 of 130 (next | show all)
Not up to the hype. I was turned off by the absolute claim suffering is the absence of being in the now. I don’t mind the idea that living in the past and in the future causes a lot of pain, but that can’t be the ultimate truth, yet the author built and entire complex spiritual system around it.
Also a lot of jargon to describe a model of his own making… ( )
  Bloum | Feb 23, 2024 |
Spiritual life
  BooksInMirror | Feb 19, 2024 |
Having done some meditation and a few attempts at mindfulness, I found this book to be a good way to really learn to be present and not dwell on the past or worry about the future. That's not to say that I'm an expert by any means. I feel this book has given me a start on being in the now and not thinking away the best of every moment. It's not going to be easy to complete this journey, but I already can feel benefits of the little bit of pure presence I have managed to accomplish. One thing that really helps is to apply the concepts during my yoga class. Yoga lends itself very well to the ideas from this book. ( )
  GadgetComa | Jan 13, 2024 |
given all the positive reviews, i MIGHT check it out on print. but i did the audio book and it was annoying. ( )
  mimo | Dec 18, 2023 |
Lots of incoherent rambling most of which seem to be based on the author's incorrect assumptions (e.g., disease mechanisms) and his personal 'enlightenment' journey. One really has to stop thinking to enjoy this book. ( )
  BerrinSerdar | Dec 5, 2023 |
Un poco complicado de leer, por lo que me llevo bastante tiempo de lectura, aun así me gusto bastante ( )
  mahebelen | Aug 25, 2023 |
Hallway-2-4
  Romero_Institute | Aug 25, 2023 |
Timely and just what I needed to read right now. Feeling at peace. ( )
  AAPremlall | Jul 23, 2023 |
First half is simplistic, but tolerable, even if somewhat obnoxious. Second half is a mix of pseudoscientific nonsense (everything about body and energy) and bad unsolicited relationship advice. Which brings it, on average, below the readability threshold. ( )
  Arseny | Jul 3, 2023 |
Having lived by the essence of Budhha for years as well as a devotee of East meets west thought, the insights are great reminders that Now is all there is. Tolle emphasizes that human suffering is connected with thought which is tied to time, whether the past or future. And there lies the bend! For me personally, much if not all was familiar. Books such as these really don't deserve ratings since they're deeply personal and based on spiritual elements that not all are drawn toward. Whatever the case, the practice of being present in every moment is the most important thing we can all do, since suffering, pain and fear are all tied to thoughts the mind creates. As one of the originators of East meets West stated ages ago, Be Here Now ( )
  Jonathan5 | Feb 20, 2023 |
Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment taught people how to live a full spiritual life. By concentrating on stillness presents individuals with the best gift that life has to offer. It’s certainly a new way of shaping one’s way of living.
This eminent and spiritual teacher pointed out that people are trapped into thinking about the past and the future when they act unconsciously. From moment to moment, they would be thinking what lies ahead, or where they have been. This is the nature of their thinking on a daily basis. The ends justify the means. But it’s healthier and more fulfilling to live consciously by being in the present. According to Eckhart, to live fully means living in the Now.
Problems will inevitably arise in people’s lives. This is a reality that everyone faces. These could be big or small, but the way of dealing with them is the same. All one has to do is to live consciously by being in the present. Both the past and the future are in the present. All time is present. With such an exercise each person is able to focus on this reality. He or she will be living with stillness, by breathing, and observing what’s around him or her.
At home there’s no need to be involved in arguments. Debating who is right or wrong has no place in this dialogue. By being in the Now tension is relieved, and negative thoughts fall by the wayside. Being in the present neutralizes all bad reactions. This new state of living is also good for one’s health. To be calm, focused, and by concentrating on the Now removes the pain and stress of living.
Couples do live happier lives when they are experiencing the Now. They move away from their ego-centric way of thinking. They are now able to complement each other by being in the present. Suffering from depression becomes unlikely, and couples will appreciate each other more fully. As the saying goes, they are now on the same wavelength. There will be no tensions between them, as they are living their lives to the fullest. Being in the Now is undoubtedly a character booster, and is good for the health of their family. ( )
  erwinkennythomas | Feb 13, 2023 |
Don't dismiss this as New Age psychobabble. It's as profound as it gets... ( )
  MikeMcGuire | Nov 12, 2022 |
I really enjoyed this book. If focuses on staying present in the moment. This is where your power lies. In the Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle guides the reader to focus on the present moment. He assists the reader though the ego and eventually past the ego. The book reminds us that we are not the body and that if we ground ourselves in the present moment, most of the stress and problems that we think we experience will disappear. It is the mind to create problems. The ego takes over and adds all these false beliefs to our lives which have us held back and frustrated at times, leading to stress and other negative feelings such as fear, doubt, worry, etc. This need not be the case. In the now nothing is wrong but what the mind makes wrong. It has to do with your perception on life and your experiences along the way. When we ground ourselves in the present moment, the ego cannot take control and lower vibrational energies, such as fear, doubt, frustration, etc. cannot exist. If you are looking to get past the pain and stress in your life, this book is a good place to start. ( )
  NicoleGauder | Oct 21, 2022 |
This is one of those books that is worth re-reading every few years.

Tolle describes how accepting the current moment, living completely in the Now, brings a deep inner peace. Instead of reliving drama from the past or dwelling on fears about the future, accepting the current moment for what it is, realizing that the current moment is the only thing that actually exists, creates a deep sense of calm and peace and even enlightenment. ( )
  Gwendydd | Oct 8, 2022 |
spiritual thoughts
  Mohammadfaiz | Sep 13, 2022 |
To make the journey into the Now we will need to leave our analytical mind and its false created self, the ego, behind. From the very first page of Eckhart Tolle's extraordinary book, we move rapidly into a significantly higher altitude where we breathe a lighter air. ( )
  Iqrakhalid | Sep 12, 2022 |
student my work ( )
  Nadia678 | Sep 11, 2022 |
A wonderful book or guide to realize and understand the essence of human being and unlocking one's full potential.
  Sadia_Baksh05 | Sep 10, 2022 |
—It’s really funny that “Time” magazine didn’t like modern Eckhart’s book. That must have been why he chose that particular one to mention briefly. I mean, they call it “Time”. So, it’s funny.

—Also one of my pet peeves is that I don’t like the Course In Miracles myself, because I could never get through the book itself (Look at me I am this wonderful book), and the people who say they teach from it seem to me to be pretty codependent and weird and also not really interested in the Course In Miracles. But some people like it. I guess that modern Eckhart can get a lot out of a line or two from the Course, since he is I guess rather minimalist, but also meaning-dense, you know. Maybe. Eg, “personal history” and “life situation” compresses the ordinary consciousness I guess into two terms, which is very concise and minimalist, but also meaning-dense. But I’m not sure I would like it better if he were trying to spoon feed you, as I’m not sure that would work really.

—I know that the first time I read this book, the first couple times, I guess, I didn’t get it. (Actually I first started to like it maybe when I read Leonard Jacobson. I know you’re not supposed to compare people but sometimes hearing the same thing from someone you don’t have history with helps.) I tried to turn ‘enlightenment’ into a ‘superhuman accomplishment’. I guess because I thought “no suffering” meant “nothing will happen that you don’t like”. But of course some things happen that you don’t like, you know. You have bliss, and then it ends, or you get unbliss. Blessings are given and then taken away. I thought it meant stasis, you know, but it’s not.

—God is Being Itself.
Aquinas

—It’s easy to think you’re patiently waiting for the internal complaining to stop; I guess in a way, I’m not waiting for it to stop like that but I just ignore it somewhat; but Tolle says just to watch it, which is subtly different from what I’ve been doing.

…. “…. a conscious presence…. behind or underneath the (internal complaining)” [Actually Richard said that too; he said some guy told Theresa of Avila that— underneath, underneath it…. I forgot already lol….]

I guess I still thought in terms of either/or.

…. But I do get a gap in the complaining to some extent, either silence or a sort of harmless chatter about the king of the leprechauns. (He lives in the forest.)

…. Actually, I guess what I do is a bit like skepticism (my “this is all there is” mantra), because I doubt my personal mythology. I have no idea what the other technique that Tolle talks about is, really.

—It’s ok to feel pain, just don’t believe the story. “How could you derail world history like this….”—that’s delusion. But it’s not necessary to pretend that you feel at peace if you feel pain.

…. —I guess that the proper term is noting, but sometimes I think I need un-affirmations, you know. Not dramatic poetic story telling blaming exaggerations, but just really feeling the feels, you know. “I feel shame…. I feel shame…. Shame sticks to me.” Try putting that to New Age music and selling it, lol. And actually maybe I keep saying it, like, Yes, shame sticks to me…. And it’s gone but it’s like, Why is it gone? I need it…. I need it…. Lol.

—“Accept—then act.”

—“When the future comes, it comes as the Now.”

—“‘What, at this moment, is lacking?’”

—Be silent sometimes. And if you must speak, ask yourself if you speak with your own voice. Seriously.

I mean, if you’re really (literally) psychotic, you’re talking and it’s not you, and somebody kinda shakes you, like, What the hell is the matter with you, and you don’t know.

‘I am speaking with my own voice, aren’t I?’

…. Thought as enriched with non-thought, good. Kinda nice and loamy, not dry and sad. I don’t know how to complete the metaphor, maybe that would be the soil rolled away by a Giant Ant, you know. (I can’t call him Antonin, because for me Antonin means Dvorak, lol.)

…. “I say, ‘You are gods, children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless you will die like mortals,
and fall like any prince.” (Psalm 82: 6-7)

I like to think, because it’s an ability God has given me, basically to create. But of course, if I get too wrapped up in my ability to create, I start creating the wrong thing. Sometimes, I need to stop creating. That’s essentially what Eckie means by always talking about stopping the thinking, not thinking anymore. Just try letting God be the creator. He’s even better at it than you, lol.

…. I’ll refrain from commenting on the techniques, since I’d choose one, and you’d not like that one, (or my summary), and assume that that was it, when there are really at least half a dozen others, you know.

…. Of course, Eckie talks pretty much about Jesus as a teacher, and not about Jesus on the Cross, although if you think about it (laying aside people’s assumptions, which is I guess why he chose not to do it), Jesus on the Cross is maybe Even More relevant to his teaching…. And Jesus is relevant for Eckie, even if he’s not a “Christian”.

…. There are probably other things I could say, except I don’t know now exactly how I see it, although usually I am playing the part of an enlightened person, to some degree, basically, albeit with frequent lapses I am trying to feel instead of denying, right.

One thing I will say is that prosperity is not, usually at least, the very least, very important, basically. If you’re not prosperous, you get lumped in with the “losers” and the people that Nobody Likes, the transgressors and the idiots, which is not so bad and even sorta good, although it’s easy to think on some level that this sort of thing (humanity!) does not Really apply to you, so you lose the benefit. But of course if you’re prosperous in a way it makes little difference, really, because if you’re not a moral idiot you go right back and spend at least some of your time with those same exact people, or maybe with your greater resources you now find out about the deeper levels of more extreme “losers” and “failures”, etc—although it’s easy to do this as an insincere, purely external thing, thinking all the time, you know, Well, that’s fine, Buddy; after all, you’re not me!

The other thing, the thing I really don’t know how to assimilate yet, is more difficult to do than letting go of Specific expectations—fabulous wealth, any sort of want for this and that—is just this generalized…. negative attachment to your situation, good or bad. Like, you’re content—you’re not literally like, I hate what I cling to!—because you like it, but…. There’s a negative attachment because things are “good”, even if not “good” in the eyes of the YouTubers and the Twitter freaks, you know. But, like I said, I don’t know what it’s like!

…. “The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to keep still.” Exodus 14:14

…. ….. Last thing (maybe): One thing I’ll say is that one thing I have already believed but have only partially put into effect, (ie not seeing people as a threat really, and formally accepting them, but usually not feeling much good for them), is that I should see unconscious people as sick and have compassion on their illness; the other way to look at that would be, that some people are oppressed by sin, it takes them over, and so I should love them especially—and you know, till now I’ve, ha, tried to see people as good and gotten secretly frustrated when they’re obviously not, you know…. Although it is fun to feel pity for people; it’s more pleasant than excitement, really…. But then I tend to only pity the people I already like, like little white girls with scarlet fever who were born in 1875, nine years ago lol (Eim uh tyme travellah 😜).

And that’s a terrible way to end, so, that’s how I’ll end. Lol.
  goosecap | Sep 10, 2022 |
A wonderful book/guide to realize and understand the essence of human-being and unlocking one's full potential.
  sana8 | Sep 6, 2022 |
Even though self development literature is not my favourite genre, this one is great. I have read only a part of it before giving it as a present to my friend who recommended it to me in the first place. It was quite effective at that time (6 months ago) in making me a person both more relaxed and more aware of what happens around me. It confirmed my theory that there is no time to be bored, to despair, to hate, etc. It succeeds in making you look at and enjoy the really important things in live. I will read it again for sure. ( )
1 vote luciarux | Jul 3, 2022 |
9788484452065
  archivomorero | Jun 27, 2022 |
Pretty interesting concepts. ( )
  LeahWiederspahn | Jun 2, 2022 |
Cant discribe the clarity of the teachings in this book. Combined with personal experience this book is an absolute must have . ( )
  FlavioMiguelPereira | May 13, 2022 |
The book is very well structured by theme with a series of questions and answers interrupted by "breaths" for the reader to absorb, and ponder on, the content. This gives the book a unique pace aligned with its subject of sinking in the Now. It is a great summary of Buddhist principles, seemingly simple but difficult to attain. It took a long time to read but only to make sure that I read it as it was meant to be: slowly, mindfully, intentionally. ( )
  Cecilturtle | Mar 12, 2022 |
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