7 Ways To Dissolve The Ego According To Eckhart Tolle S Teachings

Ego, which is unaware of true source within, derives its sense of self from fleeting things, status, conditions, culture, looks, physical appearance, relationships, gender, experiences, stories, knowledge, history, etc. “Better” or “worse” the label or story or condition, stronger the identification. Ego says: ‘I have, therefore I am. And the more I have, the more I am’ and vice versa. This delusion is the opposite of the truth.

Here’s a few questions to ask yourself: What if you lost your looks, vigor and health due to ageing, illness or an accident? Would you feel complete if you lost your status, job, relationships, money or possessions? Sooner or later you will have to relinquish these things and conditions anyway. As with aging and death approaching, all forms, relationships, concepts, and conditions that you identified with will become irrelevant and illusory. As death is stripping away of who you are not. [5] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 41. Is this not a fact? This does not mean to not enjoy and honor what you have, relationships and passing pleasures of the world. In fact, when you truly realize their impermanent and passing nature,[6] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 80. you honor and enjoy them more. It’s because fear of loss and attachment to forms, relationships, memories and experiences dissolve. Their transient nature is allowed to be. Suffering arises when you seek yourself and long-lasting fulfillment in the fleeting world, relationships, pleasures, experiences and things, which they can’t give. If you didn’t realize this, you will be condemned to chase after experiences, sensory or sexual pleasures, relationships, and things of this world, one after another, unconsciously seeking lasting fulfillment and sense of self which they can’t give. Ask yourself, ‘If I lost the things, assets, relationships or conditions in my life, would I feel complete?’ or ‘What would I be without them?’. Feel the answer within your intelligent body, rather than asking the mind. As mind, false God, may say something like “Of course, you will be diminished. “. Make the deep intuitive responses through inner-body or Being as the primary source of intelligence. Read Inhabit Your Inner Body More Deeply for more depth.

“Ego is identification with form, primarily thought forms. " Eckhart Tolle. It may seem like fear, desire, longing, frustration, anger and so on are caused by the external circumstances and people but are actually mind created. Example: You see a desirable thing or person, and feelings and thoughts of desire and/or fear and/or frustration arise. Which are conditioned responses. Be very alert to recognize that ‘desire’ or frustration are not out there but are created by mind that seeks forms, relationships, identity, security, experiences, pleasures etc. in the transient world to enhance its ultimately fictitious sense of self with an unconscious expectation that they will fulfill it. Another example: You experience pain or pressure in body and mental-emotional reactions (anxiety, worry, fear etc. ) arise in response to it. Be alert to recognize that suffering is not caused by the condition (pain or pressure) but due to your conditioned thoughts, reactions and emotions in response to it. As you will read later. That’s why Ramanan Maharshi said “Mind is maya (illusion)”.

Realize that you are not your mind. Here’s a practice: Simply watch your mental activity. Which usually arises in the left side of your head. Can you see that this activity, or ‘voice in head’, is automatic, reactive, pointless, compulsive and never stops?[9] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 21 [10] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 18 . Deeply realize that it’s not You but your mind or Ego generating an incessant stream of thoughts, emotions and reactions in your space of consciousness, based on its conditioning, to ensure its survival. As you will read later. Here’s another pointer: if you are the ‘watcher’ or observer of the voice, reactions and emotions (observed), how can you be them? “Recognizing the false as false is meditation. This must go on all the time” Nisargadatta Maharaj. What is ‘false’ in you? Incessant ‘voice in head’ (conditioned mind) and emotions. A large part of suffering and problems arise when you believe the voice, reactions and emotions are “you” and follow or believe them. [11] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 118 [12] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 90 . That’s when the ‘phantom self’ takes over your whole life and thinking becomes compulsive. In other words, when you become the voice and emotions. That’s the sickness of mind-identification or ego. You are not even there but a mind created image of you.

So some thoughts (which also includes these words becoming thoughts in your head) can point you to the spiritual dimension within [15] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 71,251. , can be practical and counter or replace negative, repetitive thoughts and beliefs; thus not letting you fall into deeper level of unconsciousness i. e identification with mind. However, they are no ordinary, repetitive or attention seeking thoughts. So words or content can be part of your spiritual journey. However, deeply realize that words or content can at best point to the truth but are not the truth. [16] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 25. You are the truth. The timeless, perfect and formless ‘awareness’, that is aware of the incessant voice in your head, reactions, emotions and world[17] X Research source Singer, Michael A. The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself New Harbinger Publications 2007. Page 16. . As ego implies unawareness of the formless dimension. [18] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 64.

This is one of major reasons why ego is not personal. As all egos have same basic structure that is based on fear, desire, comparison, greed, attack, defend, survival, seeking conflict and enemies, resistance to what is, and primarily identification with forms. No matter how well disguised. [22] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page72. In other words, Egos differ only on the surface, deep down they are all the same. So words or content or stories that Ego identifies with could be different on the surface but the underlying energy and structure is of the Ego. For example: Most people compare themselves with others using different aspects like looks, height, life stories, strength, money, wealth, nationality, skills, job, background, title, gender, location, even illnesses etc. to feel superior or inferior, balance the comparison, judge, complain, feel victim, etc. The words, language, aspects, things and so on they use to compare may be different on the surface but underlying energy and structure is of the Ego that feeds on comparison, division, reactivity and so on. So if you consider Ego a personal problem or personalise someone’s unconsciouness, that’s a sign of more ego. As ego loves to personalize things and thrive on it. Once you truly see the impersonal and dysfunctional nature of conditioned mind or Ego, you naturally relinquish identification with it, become non-reactive, forgiving, tolerant and compassionate towards yourself and others. Events and egoic patterns are not personalized or labelled as good or bad or even neutral. The ‘fact of the moment’ is allowed to be.

So simply watch the automatic conditioned narration or commentary of mind with high alertness. When you watch, you reclaim trapped consciousness from the mind and more clearly see the dysfunction and irrationality of the ‘voice in the head’ that causes so much self created suffering by resisting, commentating and labelling ‘what is’. [24] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 8,12,10. . Its because ‘Watching’ or awareness is a new dimension of consciousness that is not part of thinking mind. More you practice watching the mind, compulsive and conditioned thinking slows as your presence deepens. Example: Have you noticed when you procrastinate, the ‘voice in the head’ says something like ‘I can do it later’ or ‘You have lot of time’, etc. ? If you simply observe the voice and allow it to be, even if it hypnotizes you to procrastinate because of some degree of identification with it, you may notice how dysfunctional the voice and unproductive procrastination are. In a way, it’s like collecting evidence (truth) to see the insanity of the ‘voice in head’ more clearly. That’s when presence deepens and ego starts to dissolve and separation of thinking (observed) and awareness (observer) begins, as you realize that you are not your mind but the observing presence behind it. Similarly, when you detect mental-emotional resistance within, just observe and allow it to be. Deeply realize that resistance serves no purpose and in fact is dysfunctional, keeps the undesirable situation, condition and thought patterns in place, and is more disturbing than the original cause its trying to dissolve[25] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 18 . Watching the ‘voice in head’ or mind also includes to watch and detect the background psychological unease, non-verbal urges, tension, impulses, mental noise and pre-verbalized thoughts and reactions, which are aspects of egoic mind, that are so deeply embedded and considered normal that many people are not even aware of them. Watching doesn’t mean to criticize or condemn or ignore or fight the ‘voice in head’, else it would be the same voice that came through the back door. This also implies to not treat Ego as an obstacle or enemy. Again, you can never dissolve unconsciousness or Ego by fighting, trying, controlling, suppressing, or running away from it. Bringing it in the ’light of your awareness’ is all that is needed. In other words, to dissolve the ego, in essence, there is no doing or trying required but an alert seeing or acceptance. So watch it impartially without judgement. Here’s another way to look at it: Fighting, resistance, reactions, suppression, trying, condemning etc. arise in form of conditioned thoughts, emotions or reactions, and you are not your thoughts, reactions and emotions. True intelligence is formless, unconditioned and intuitive. That’s why be aware of deeper feeling responses as you read. Here’s another practice: “Don’t take your thoughts seriously. " Eckhart Tolle. Being rooted in inner body is an essential aspect to be present and to be the watcher of the mind. Else, the mind will take you over like a wild river. When you are rooted in your spacious inner body, attention is withdrawn from the mind or Egoic structures to the Now. That is to say, attention remains in its unmanifested state. You can also experiment to notice that there’s no suffering when your attention is in the Now. While you suffer when attention is trapped in useless and compulsive thinking, mental patterns, emotions (negativity) and reactions.

“Ego thinks staying in the state of negativity and unhappiness (resistance) will get it what it wants”- Course of miracles. That is, of course, a delusion. Otherwise, who would want to remain stuck in unhappiness?[26] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 71 If “you” - the mind - did not believe that unhappiness works, why would you create it? The fact is, of course, that negativity (resistance) does not work. Instead of attracting a desirable situation, it stops it from arising[27] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 189 Also resistance feeds the ego, that’s why it loves it. So it becomes more important to acknowledge and watch or allow the resistive mental-emotional patterns than incessant thinking. You can also practice ‘relinquishing resistance’ or ‘accepting what is’ as an experiment to see if it works for you or not. Since resistance has not worked for you so far.

“She rejected me, I am ugly and a loser. “, “Why is it raining? I hate this weather. “, “He didn’t have the decency to text me back. “, ‘I am feeling so uneasy. Why this feeling won’t go away?’ etc. Can you refrain from adding mental stories or commentary or narration to ‘what is’ and just see the ‘suchness’ or fact of this moment’? Buddha called it Tathata. How simple life would be without those mental stories. [28] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. “Stillness Speaks” Vancouver,BC:Penguin, 2003. Page 121 ‘She didn’t want to talk to me. ‘, ‘It is raining. ‘, ‘He didn’t reply. ‘, ‘I am feeling unease and tension in my body’. You don’t feel uncertain or angry or sad because of the situation or condition. However, you feel unhappy because of the automatic negative thoughts or stories that come in response to it. “There’s nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so. " William Shakespeare. Here’s a spiritual practice: watch the situation or condition as well as the mental-emotional reactions or thoughts that come in response to it. Rather than getting lost in event and/or letting the reactive conditioned thoughts, emotions and resistance become unconscious and run your life.

Be aware and alert as ego is very clever as it may identify with facts and make them as mental positions to ensure its survival. For example: the relative fact that earth rotates or spins towards east may become a mental position in your head and in case you get into an argument with someone about it, you may be defending your mental position and not the truth. Like “Believe me that earth rotates towards east”. Look closely and you will see that Ego is hiding in the word “me”. “Truth doesn’t need any defense. " Eckhart Tolle. Here’s an experiment: Next time you feel a compulsive need to be right or urge to react or argue or resist or defend a mental position, which is basically identification with mind and a form of violence, can you drop it just to see what happens? Allowing the ‘false self’ to diminish and de-emphasizing your form identity are powerful spiritual practices. That is what Jesus meant when he said “Deny thyself”. This allowing of the diminishment or vulnerability makes way for your true power to shine through. The formless truth within that you are beyond your name and form. “Only by becoming vulnerable can you discover your true and essential invulnerability” Eckhart Tolle. However, it doesn’t mean to let yourself be abused by people or put up with bad behavior. There may be times when you would have to say a non-reactive and firm no, in no uncertain terms, or take action. With spiritual energy behind your words and actions, there will be great power. Its because non-resistance makes way for the greatest power in the universe; the Intelligence itself.

On an inner level when the mind resists what is, negativity arises. This pollutes your beautiful and sacred being or ‘inner space’ and that’s what is seen externally in the world we inhabit. [30] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 213 Its because world is just a reflection of your inner state. “The pollution of the planet is only an outward reflection of an inner psychic pollution: millions of unconscious individuals not taking responsibility for their inner space. ” (Eckhart Tolle). Resistance or negativity is also the cause of leakage of vital energy which could have been used to resolve or deal with the situations or challenges, instead of fighting them. Taking responsibility of your inner space, which is the only thing you can truly take responsibility of, will rapidly deepen and transform your life. [31] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 166

Emotions are a reflection of mind in body, so when pain-body gets activated, it makes your thinking extremely negative through negative emotions and then feeds on negative thoughts. As positive thoughts are indigestible to it. This loop continues until Pain-body has fed and then it becomes dormant. Although, some people may have a pain-body that is active all the time. Recognize and allow it to be. Every time you recognize and/or witness this unholy alliance between ego and pain-body, it loses energy and looks for another opportunity to feed, when you are less conscious. As unconscious identification and resistance feed the pain-body[35] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page154. So its an effective practice to catch and witness the pain-body before it takes you over. That is to say, detect it the moment it becomes activated or comes out of its dormant state. Since there’s no way out of pain (anxiety, fear, anger, sorrow or whatever it is), so the only way is through. So take your attention deeper into it or feel it fully but don’t think about it. In other words, bring the pain-body into your ’light of consciousness’ or accept it rather than fighting or trying to control or run away from it. Which are futile anyway and cause further suffering. In case pointers like ‘putting attention’ or ‘feeling it fully’ get misinterpreted as clinging or dwelling on to pain body, it helps to shift attention from pain-body to inner energy field of body (wherever it feels most natural) and/or breath and/or sense perceptions and/or constructive activity. Especially when pain body is about to get activated. If that’s not possible, accept it as part of “suchness” of the present moment by allowing it to be there or remove yourself from the situation, if possible. When you become friendly with your pain and/or don’t resist it i. e allow it to be, only then it becomes a fuel that transforms into consciousness. Like coal that burns into heat and light. “If you don’t mind being unhappy then what happens to the unhappiness?” Eckhart Tolle. Read How to Stay Rooted in Being for more depth. You can express or describe the isness or fact of how the pain-body feels like but don’t let it come up and turn into thinking. [36] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page131. Therefore an intense alertness and acceptance are needed. When you become unconscious, that is to say when you become identified with thinking and emotions (or pain body), guilt may arise. Which may say something like “I shouldn’t have lost my calm there. " or “I shouldn’t have said those things. “. Observe and allow it to be. As guilt is one of the most clever ego’s strategies to keep you identified with it. In other words, resisting or identifying with the feelings and thoughts of ‘guilt’ means Ego came through the back door. So simply forgive yourself and enter the now from there. Why add a layer of negative story and psychological pain to ‘what already is’ the case. Forgiveness becomes easier when you realize that one doesn’t have a choice when they are in the grip of the pain-body and/or Ego. Although they still suffer the consequences of their unconsciousness. As long as pain-body and Ego are not recognized as impersonal and not who you are, they will take you over again and again and make you unconscious, spiritually speaking. Also, it’s essential to dissolve the pain-body to be free of Ego, as they are close relatives and need each other.

If acceptance of the outer form is not possible then bring inner acceptance. This means to say an ‘inner yes’ to present moment, doesn’t matter what you say or do externally. What does it mean to say an ‘inner yes’ or ‘surrender to what is’? It means to say ‘yes’ to the thoughts (including stories), persistent reactions and emotions that are arising at “this” moment in response to anything (situation, condition, people, other thoughts and emotions), by allowing, accepting, watching, being aware, giving them full attention, etc. However, you don’t have to follow them. Its because identification with thoughts and emotions creates a lot of problems too[38] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 40 . When there is true inner acceptance, you step out of thousands of years of conditioning or ’living past’ in you and an intelligent response, if required, comes from infinitely intelligent ‘unconditioned consciousness’ within. Not from limited conditioned mind. Along that intelligence comes peace and joy of Being. Infinitely greater than any pleasure or happiness that this world has to offer. There will be times when you would have to say ‘No,’ externally, but that would be a deeper or a high quality ’no’, not a reactive or conditioned one. So do experiments, like non-reactively refuse to follow some thoughts (including pre-verbalized thoughts and reactions) and then see the result. However there should always be an inner acceptance or inner yes. Or else you will suffer. Again, suffering, which is psychological, always arises due to some form of non-acceptance (negativity or resistance) to ‘what is’ and not because of the situation or condition. When you are completely in inner-alignment with what happens, that is to say when you are ‘one with life’, circumstances or conditions lose power over your state of consciousness. Just like depth of the lake remains unaffected regardless of the weather. And the miracle is when you are in inner alignment with ‘what is’, outer circumstances and inner conditions (illness, pain, wounds etc. ) tend to heal or improve greatly and quickly without a great deal of doing on your part. Also, synchronistic chance encounters and favorable events happen more frequently. Its because you are connected to One Consciousness or One life underneath all forms. If acceptance is not possible then accept that you cannot accept. Which means allow the thoughts, reactions, patterns of non-acceptance to be. Else take action or remove yourself from the situation, if possible. Anything else is madness.

What is Now? The timeless space of consciousness where all forms (thoughts, emotions, visuals, sounds, taste, touch, words, sensations, people, events and so on) come and go. [40] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 35 “Stay at the center of the circle and let everything fall into place” (Tao Te Ching). What is the ‘center of the circle’? The space of present moment. Past and future are no more than thoughts that you are thinking in the ‘Now’. So why give them any reality?

Forgiveness, which also means letting go of the story or narration or labels, becomes easier when you deeply realize that nothing you did/said or anyone did/said to you, can’t touch, even the slightest, who you are in essence. Be aware that forgiveness doesn’t become a mental concept. True forgiveness is non-conceptual[42] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 78. Read Stay Rooted in Being for more depth. When you truly forgive yourself and others, you reclaim your power from the mind. Mind is very unforgiving; only you can forgive. This doesn’t mean to let yourself be attacked or abused or continue to be with people just because you have forgiven them. Forgiveness is an inner phenomenon, as it helps dissolve the burden of psychological baggage of time (and Karma) you are carrying in your psyche. This is true freedom. When there is true forgiveness, which is a form of acceptance, you clearly see what needs to be done.

Don’t misinterpret the meaning of surrender. For example: If you have a disease or illness and you say “Ok. . I surrender to the illness”, that’s not surrender. Surrender doesn’t mean to resign to the life situation, condition, suchness of illness, which wouldn’t work anyway, but yield to whatever arises within (thoughts, emotions, reactions, pain, pressure in body, sensations etc. ) in the tiny segment called the Now. Else, clever Ego will continue to survive beneath the mental label or concept of surrender. Ask yourself, “What’s the problem at this moment?” You are reading ’this’ now. Even if you are suffering from a terminal condition or illness, that condition, at “this” moment, could be pressure, weakness, physical pain, burning sensation, tension etc. you are experiencing somewhere in your body and head, and that is what you surrender to and not the label of condition or emotional story or idea of illness or condition that says something like “I have had this condition my whole life. Life has treated me harshly” or “I have been suffering from depression for last 10 years” or “I was betrayed by my own family” etc. Allow these Egoic stories or narrations, which are conditioned thoughts, that are arising in the Now, to be. Some of these thoughts (stories) can be pretty deep seated, so an intense alertness is required. There’s no suffering in the Now because there are no problems in the Now. As suffering needs time and a mind made story. Make the Now primary focus of your life. It’s because that’s the most precious thing and only time there is. Ego loves to identify with labels or stories or problems, complain, react etc. without any true intention of solving or coming out of them. In fact, ego never wants an end to its problems because they give it a false sense of self or identity. Without them, who are you? So you will only surrender when you are ready to let go of the victim story, negative thoughts about illness or condition or something that happened, resentment, complaints, resistance etc. because you realize that they have no purpose other than to keep the ‘false sense of self’ or Ego and suffering alive. Even if you need to take action to resolve a life situation or condition or challenge, you can do so Now because the time is always Now and you have power only in the Now. “What at this moment is lacking?” Zen saying. Surrender happens naturally when you relinquish the ‘inner state of war’ or resistance, and suffer willingly because you see the futility and suffering nature of inner resistance. You surrender because you can’t take the pain or constant torture of mind (psychological suffering) anymore. The phrase from Bible “Not my will but thy will be done” points to this truth. Only a surrendered person has spiritual power. Hence, there’s a great strength in surrender, and it is perfectly compatible with action. [44] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 83 So surrendering to ‘what is’ is the most powerful practice to end suffering and realize who you are beyond your name and form. Also, if you look closely, you will see that all spiritual practices ultimately lead to surrender because all of them directly or indirectly point to inner acceptance of ‘what is’. When you truly realize that resistance is mad and futile, a peace emerges through you. This is the peace of God, that bypasses all understanding. [45] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page56.

Can you simply watch and/or allow or accept the thoughts, emotions, reactions, sensations, tension within to be? Can you become aware of the Now? Can you feel the aliveness or peaceful inner energy field of your body? Energy of your hands, legs, neck, feet, chest and so on. [47] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 123 Can you become aware of your heartbeat, surroundings, sensation of touch from the place you are sitting, objects around, sounds from the environment etc. Can you become aware of your breath? Can you become aware of ‘Awareness’? Read How to Stay Rooted in Being for more insight on these practices. Look closely and you will notice that Now is an essential aspect of each and every practice.

Your mind may be reacting with things like ‘This article is stupid,’ ‘What is this?’, ‘I’m a loser,’ ‘I can’t stop thinking,’ ‘The author is a moron,’ etc. That’s not you. It’s your mind in its habitual resistive and survival mode, reacting to these pointers. Don’t give it any reality. Just allow it to be. Your presence or awareness is more than capable of dissolving the phantom self (Ego) pretending to be you. If something deeper in you responds to these words then the process of awakening has begun in you. That’s why don’t just read with your mind, but pay attention to any deeper feeling responses as you read. Once you learn of the basic dysfunction i. e identification with mind and workings of Ego then you don’t need to learn a lot of spiritual truth to become free of it. Now is the key. Awareness is the key. It’s very possible that in the future the mind and/or pain-body will take you over and push you into state of suffering, despair and unconsciousness. But remember, suffering can either push you deeper into more unconsciousness or it can become your greatest teacher to enlightenment. Depending upon the degree of consciousness in you. Be aware. Stay present. Deeply realize that suffering has a noble purpose. According to a Buddhist saying, “All suffering is illusion. " It is true. The question is: Is it true for you?[49] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 23 Are you truly fed up of pain and suffering though?[50] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 65 Are you ready to wake up? Spiritual dimension has traditionally arisen in someone’s life not when something was added to them but when something was taken away in form of deep loss, impending death, sickness or accident, death of a loved one, loss of status or reputation or possessions, meaninglessness, failure etc. So loss can be a great opportunity for spiritual realization.

Experiment. When you find someone complaining or ranting about their life, people, in general, a particular life situation etc. then just truly listen to them without any mental interpretation or judgment, as you hold the frequency of intense presence or alertness. If egoic thoughts arise within you, allow them to be. Don’t validate their story by reacting or confirming, no matter how sad or great it is. That is to say, look through their ego rather than looking at it. As when you look at the ego, it’s your ego that’s looking. But when you look through the ego, it’s the awareness that you are looking at itself, because essence of all things and beings is formless consciousness. In other words, relinquish all mental positions or judgments and be there as a field of spacious presence. This may bring out the sanity in them and you may witness them to realize the insignificance and irrelevance of their stories, drama, complaints and problems. It’s because when people complain, it’s the Ego that complains through them. Ego wants reactions, conflict, validation, drama and enemies to create further suffering and strengthen its illusory sense of self[51] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page42. [52] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 2005. Page 173. However when you hold it in the loving embrace of your awareness, without any judgments or giving any reality to its stories, it loses energy because its not getting reactions to feed on. “Can you be there as the space for the other person? I would say that’s the greatest gift you can give to someone” (Eckhart Tolle). Similarly, your own mind complains to incite reactions, so it can feed on them. So listen and look through your mind, which also implies watching the mind. Recognize the interconnection? What you do to others, you do to yourself. So when you look through other people’s ego, you also naturally go deeper within yourself. That’s why it is said that human interaction can be a great spiritual practice. Read Stay Rooted in Being for more depth. “Art of listening is essential for a relationship to deepen. " Eckhart Tolle.

Of course, it can be daunting to write down thousands of thoughts and reactions. So you can just spend a few moments on this every day. If you meditate, you can also make this a part of your meditation practice, as it can help clear your mind, which allows you to go deeper within. Alternatively, you can also verbalize your thoughts. This means you verbalize and inquire into what you are feeling and deep seated mental patterns (including unspoken assumptions or reactions), as they arise in the Now, to bring them in the light of your consciousness. However, be aware that there is a sense of dis-identification from thoughts and emotions. Again, you are not your thoughts, reactions and emotions. It helps a lot to be aware of inner-body and/or breath and/or sense perceptions as you verbalize. Read How to Stay Rooted in Being for more depth. You can also count your thoughts. Especially repetitive and compulsive thoughts and mental patterns. As counting can help you remain alert. Like an alert cat watching a mouse hole.

As an analogy, memories are like watching yourself the same way a player/athlete watches himself/herself in a video footage. You are in a more comfortable and less stimulated environment, thus are more aware. That’s why having a good memory can help you become aware of the mistakes and learn from them. So you don’t make the same mistakes again and again. However, be honest and alert that mind doesn’t falsify the memories[55] X Research source .

If you can’t accept, then ‘accept that you can’t accept. ’ Or take action immediately[56] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. “Stillness Speaks” Vancouver,BC:Penguin, 2003. Page 126 . As far as inner transformation is concerned, in essence, there’s nothing you can do about it but can only create a space for it to happen by practicing being present. Realize that even if you say “I allow” or “I forgive” etc. , they are just thoughts or pointers. It’s what the thoughts point to, is what brings acceptance and transcendence. If you didn’t realize this, you will remain stuck in the walls of concepts and thoughts. These words are not saying “look at me” but “look beyond me”. [57] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. “Stillness Speaks” Vancouver,BC:Penguin, 2003. Page 12 . Again, Truth is beyond any words and forms. When you detect resistive or egoic patterns in you or others, then resistance or beating yourself over them is just more ego and keeps them in place. Instead, simply become aware and allow them to be, or shift attention away from reactions and mental patterns to present moment anchors or Now. Whichever practice feels easier and natural. When you simply allow and don’t resist ‘what is’, egoic patterns naturally dissolve, giving way to peace and joy of Being from deep within.

“The greatest difficulty is the mental resistance to things that arise, and the underlying assumption is that they should not” (Eckhart Tolle). Resisting ‘what is’ is no different than doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results. Which is also how Einstein defined insanity when he said “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. " To deal with the automatic mental resistance, be there as the background witnessing presence or the Knower and/or allow or accept it to be. You can also immediately shift attention from thoughts, reactions and emotions to present moment anchors like inner body, breath, or sense perceptions i. e Now. If that’s not possible, accept that you cannot accept or take action or remove yourself from the situation. Whatever seems easier and natural at that moment. There are few more pragmatic practices in the article Stay Rooted in Being.

Just as you watch the thoughts and emotions in you, detect and watch the physical reactions and patterns. As becoming aware of physical and/or emotional reactions also makes you more aware of Egoic reactions, especially pre-verbalized and unconscious ones, that cause them. For example: Body may respond to an anxiety pattern or reaction, even before it becomes a thought, in form of leg/legs shaking, fidgeting, anxious emotions in your chest and/or head, you grinding or clenching your teeth, scratching objects, biting your lip or finger nails or inside of your mouth, tension in face, brain and other muscles, and so on. [60] X Research source This is so embedded that you may not be aware that you are engaged in these pain inflicting patterns and reactions, and may likely detect them later when they pass away. For example: You may notice your arms and legs being tired after fidgeting or shaking for a long time, experience pain after biting your mouth/lips/fingers or digging your nails in your palm or fingers or pressing your knees against a furniture, headache or soar body after muscles contraction, stinging sensation after unconsciously rubbing toes and fingers or scratching body parts and so on. This can also be seen as a proof of how self-destructive Ego can be. Even the slightest and subtle physical and/or mental and/or emotional reactions or patterns need to be detected or else they will continue to remain unconscious and run your life. Therefore a high degree of alertness is required. Here’s a hint: see if you can detect physical reactions or patterns like tension in heart, tongue, cheeks, jaw and brain muscles (especially left side) in response to an undesirable thought, reaction, situation, condition or people, as if trying to control, fight or suppress them. That is to say resisting ‘what-is’.

Concepts and pointers can be part of your spiritual journey, but deeply realize that they are no more than stepping stones or viewpoints to be left as quickly as possible, and never to be taken as absolute truth. [62] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 9 Again, thought by its very nature is limited and can at most show you the relative truth. In your spiritual journey, concepts may get replaced with more helpful spiritual sounding concepts or explanations or pointers. However, they are still bundle of words (thoughts). Hence limited and will become great obstacles, if used as crutch. True intelligence is holistic, formless and unconditioned. It’s the stillness within you. “Can you step back from your own mind and thus understand all things?” (Tao Te Ching).

Since time is always Now, so you can be present, fully or to some degree, while doing any task like interacting with someone, sitting, working, cooking, walking, even while thinking etc. So allotting dedicated time for meditation is not always necessary. Here are a few structureless meditation practices: {“smallUrl”:“https://www. wikihow. com/images/thumb/c/c2/Deal-with-Elderly-Alcoholic-Parents-As-an-Adult-Step-7. jpg/v4-460px-Deal-with-Elderly-Alcoholic-Parents-As-an-Adult-Step-7. jpg”,“bigUrl”:”/images/thumb/c/c2/Deal-with-Elderly-Alcoholic-Parents-As-an-Adult-Step-7. jpg/aid4902449-v4-728px-Deal-with-Elderly-Alcoholic-Parents-As-an-Adult-Step-7. jpg”,“smallWidth”:460,“smallHeight”:345,“bigWidth”:728,“bigHeight”:546,“licensing”:"<div class="mw-parser-output">

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<br />\n</p></div>”} Be aware of your breath as much as you can. Feel the flow of inbreath and outbreath, notice the gaps between inhaling and exhaling cycles, movement of your belly, and so on. Simply witnessing the breath creates a gap between incessant stream of pointless, compulsive and repetitive thinking and emotions. Or at least slows them down because attention is shifted or withdrawn from mind to the Now. Be the witness of your thoughts, reactions and emotions. We talked about this already. Become aware of your inner body. Can you feel that your body is alive and full of life? Vibrant energy field in your feet, legs, pelvis, abdomen, back, chest, hands, shoulders, neck, head, face, lips, nose and so on. That’s the intelligent life, inseparable from One Life, that runs thousands of incredibly complex functions of your body in a synchronous manner. Only through feeling the inner energy field of the body can you connect with it. Also, being rooted within inner body is an essential aspect to be present. Become aware of your sense perceptions. Can you just look, taste, listen, touch and see without any mental commentary? Give full attention to whatever you are doing Now. Like when you are walking, give full attention to each step, movement of your body parts, feel the sensation of feet touching the ground etc. That anchors you to the Now. It is highly recommended to read How to Stay Rooted in Being for more depth.