Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth

Recently Oprah Winfrey launched her worldwide weekly webcast to discuss the bestselling book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle. With five weeks of “destructing the ego” behind us, readers should be moving into a place of greater peace and higher consciousness.

The book is an excellent guide for how to detach from the ego and become less attached to the outcome of any situation. Tolle suggests that when humans are able to get into a space of being instead of doing that we are creating a new Earth.

Here are some highlights from the book, to bring you up to speed on A New Earth.

Just Breathe
Tolle suggests we can achieve higher awareness (inner space) simply by taking two or three deep breaths a few times throughout the day. Even a single deep breath will help. Conscious breathing slows down the mind, allowing you to get into what Tolle refers to as the I am (or now) space. Being in the I am enables you to see things more clearly, takes the small self (ego) out of the equation, and makes it easier to not become attached to a specific outcome in any situation (think of becoming like Teflon, allowing perceived negativities to roll right off your back, instead of sticking with you).  

Simple breathing, how easy is that? And it’s very powerful. And free! Tolle says deep breathing (even taking just two or three conscious deep breaths a day) will lead to higher consciousness (transformation) faster than taking classes, reading books or anything else. The power of a few deep breaths should not be underestimated.

Become the Observer
When the mind slows down, you become more mindful of what is really going on in any situation. See if you can separate you as the physical body and become the observer. Instead of being attached to a specific outcome, or thinking about what you are going to say or do next (instead of quietly listening to the person you are with), observe yourself and the situation from a neutral perspective. Think, and be aware, before you react.

Be in the Now
In his earlier book, The Power of Now, Tolle said that there are no troubles in the now. It’s when we get caught up in thinking about the past or worrying about the future that negativity presents itself. Tolle suggests that making friends with the present moment (instead of being against or ‘at war’ with what is going on in any situation, including thinking people are out to ‘get’ us), we are living in the now and on the way to creating A New Earth.

You’re invited to join the conversation about A New Earth at the Lisa.fm Book Club podcasts.