The Power of Eckhart Tolle’s Books

Eckhart Tolle is an influential spiritual teacher and author of life-changing books, such as The Power of Now and A New Earth. Eckhart Tolle’s teachings allow us to evaluate our own lives and grow through his words as they make us acknowledge and question what is important. Not only does his instructions give us the idea of what is important, but they also allow us to see what is not so important, things we have been merely wasting our time worrying about.

Tolle’s work allows us to recognise that the modern world is filled with the hustle and bustle of daily life, with many out of touch with their spiritual beings. The unconscious mind wakes up, rushes to work, eat, sleep, and repeat. In a sense, we lack awareness of the simplest things around us and are more focused on the future rather than the present. When we think about how everything we do is with the future in mind, we realise that we are not focused on the present moment’s beauty and tranquillity.

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The Power of Now

Like many, The Power of Now was the first novel I had read by Eckhart Tolle. It has sold millions of copies worldwide, translated into 52 different languages. The Power of Now is one of the most popular spiritual guidance books out there.

This book slows down your reading process with moments of pauses after sections highlighted. Tolle does this to ensure the reader absorbs the valuable information and takes into consideration how it can be applied to them. This idea certainly identifies with the title of the book and what it is about, absorbing and savouring the power of the now. Therefore, the book keeps you in a consistent presence.

Allowing yourself to put your full attention to the present opens opportunities for you to reach your full potential. How? By living in the present moment, you focus on yourself in that time, essentially not allowing anxieties from the past or future affect you in this instant.

We don’t realise how negative our intrusive thoughts can be, the human mind is constantly active; it never stops working. However, we have the power to shift our perspectives and allow ourselves to think freely and worry less. Once we remind ourselves that the only thing that matters is this exact minute we are in, we start to relieve ourselves from the fast-paced world around us. When we think of it, the possibility of wasting time away is there when we put our minds under stressful thoughts about the past or the future, effectively wasting our time and the time that we are currently in.

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A New Earth

The significance of A New Earth is linked with the ego and conscious mind. Tolle focuses on the human mind and its surroundings in this particular book. Something that stood out to me was when Tolle discusses human attachment and how this attachment stems from our ego. We unconsciously become attached to things that we do not realise are not always needed and necessities. Our ego gets anxious at the thought of losing these things when we are at threat of them disappearing from us, this is when we know we are attached. I found this so interesting because Tolle links this with our identity and how we base our identity on things rather than our actual beings.

With the acknowledgement of unnecessary attachment, Tolle highlights the beauty of letting go. Things that your ego has become attached to that you don’t need. Tolle’s work focuses on the path to happiness and self-enlightenment, in essence, the realisation that the Earth provides us with so much already daily that we must remind ourselves of little things we do not show gratitude for. The lack of consciousness will operate us to search for something we do not know what we are searching for, i.e. the meaning of life, material objects that will ‘add value’ to our lives, etc.

Something specific fascinated me in A New Earth, the mention of advertising such material things. Of course, treating ourselves is important, and there are things we love that match our personality. However, I found it interesting how Tolle talks about the advertising industry and the tactics that tell other humans that their product will make their lives better. Something I never thought of too much before, how companies convince you that you cannot live without something, and it will make you unique. It made me consider, the unique items to you are the one’s you are naturally drawn to, as they are more you. “They do this, for example, by telling you that you will stand out from the crowd by using this product and so by implication, be more fully yourself.” This made me reflect, do I want these things or are they just telling me I want these things? Tolle’s words allow you to evaluate and put things into perspective, giving yourself access to your thoughts and intuition.

Many of us humans are destined and determined to find ‘the meaning of life’. We ask ourselves, “what is the purpose in life?” as we are subconsciously living our lives, not toning into the fact that the point of life is simply to live it. This is why the present is so meaningful. Similar to the concept of The Power of Now. Eckhart Tolle’s words, “There is growing awareness of the intrinsic oneness of everything that exists”, illustrates the significance of the awareness that we are one as humans; we are opening our minds and quieting our egos. This quote demonstrates the goodness in finding tranquillity in the world and continuing on in life with a mindful perspective that allows us to radiate divine energy.