Walter Hottinga . Com

Where is it?
I bought and read the book years ago. Coming back from Central America I had an urge to read it again. As with more things I was seeing the world differently now and wanted to refresh his teachings. On a visit I quickly looked in the boxes with books that I keep in storage at a friends place. No luck.

Sign of the universe?
Visiting my brother for his birthday the Dutch version was lying on his table. It was one of his presents. I borrowed it. That evening I was going to baby sit a friend of a friend’s house in Amsterdam. There it was again. The only book lying around in the house, on the side table of the freshly made bed. The universe could not make it easier or clearer this was the time to read it again.

Powerful
The book was as clear and powerful as the first time. Although Eckhart is giving you the opportunity to read it bit by bit I breezed through this time. I particular like the way he succeeds in getting you to understand very complex concepts. He carefully builds a framework that gives you the opportunity to understand the complete principle and he mixes this with practical examples and exercises. Well done.

Reaching beyond the mind
In the old days all the (spiritual) teachings were done oral. In present day the Masters in India, the Pastor, the Imam, a lot of spiritual books they still use the oral tradition. They talk and use words but try to connect on a deeper level with their audience then the logical brain by using among other things a different style. A question asked, an answer given, preferable two directional, sharing and understanding. Eckhart, in this book, is also using the question & answer style and rightly so I think. Trying to share my lessons with others I also quickly discovered that the q&a style is virtually the only road to understanding and true sharing.
You can give a perfect rational dialog were one logical argument is support by the next one and so one. All this will in the end do nothing for the deeper understanding of the listener. All the things you tell maybe true but if somebody is not accepting the lessons on a deeper level they will never accept the outcome. Let alone start working with it. You only get a nice philosophical discussion that is pleasing to the mind. (And probably only for the mind of the speaker )

Many concepts
For me rereading was a joy of recognizing many of the concepts I had learned in dept during the last 2 years. Sometimes Eckhart only hints on it, the next time he is using more in all cases weaving them in a sound framework. The exercise’s he is describing are almost one on one the Vipassana exercises, dressed down and shortened but still. In the end of the book he is mentioning A Course In Miracles a couple of times. (I will write more on ACIM later.) In between you will find many teachings and concepts more often in disguise and partly then named but all fully supporting the goal of a higher understanding.

I learned …
…this round a lot from the distinction he is making between your life and your life-situation. His description is clear and practical. Using his framework and definitions makes it for me a lot easier to share a lot of lessons I have learned.

• Life: I have experienced in dept what is the you behind your thoughts, the peace and beauty that is there, the stillness, the power in everything. Eckhart is describing this state in the introduction of his book. Eckhart refers to this as life. An ongoing quiet happiness that is the you behind your mind and pain-body.
• Life-Situation: Leading a life like everybody I also witness a lot of life-situation according to Eckhart’s definition. The need to feed my body, seeing my train leaving before my nose, slow internet connections, lack of sleep, relationships, feeling lonely and insecure just the complete gamma like all of us. My mind and its concepts, my pain-body, my physical body, my Ego. They are all part of this state of being….the ongoing drama between birht and death.

Eckhart nicely explains how you can be unhappy in your life situation and still very happy in life. (Eckhart uses different words to make a distinction between the two status of being and how you feel in them. I agree with his explanation but it is dangerous close to a rational mind game. And as I expressed before that has nothing to do with real understanding).

The Power and you?
If you made it to here reading I strongly suggest to read Eckharts book. I wonder how you relate to his description of these concepts…leave a comment and share it with us. I trust that you will enjoy this book and find your own lessons clearly back in it.

If you cannot wait….at the bottom of the article I added the extract of the book written by Eckhart Tolle himself copied from his website.

Walter

Book details
The Power Of Now
Also sold trough the website of Eckhart.

ISBN etc.
English version:
POWER OF NOW: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
ISBN: 1-57731-480-8
Pages: 256

Dutch version:
DE KRACHT VAN HET NU
ISBN: 978-90-202-8230-6
Pages: 191
Author: Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle: also the author of:

• A New Earth
• Stillness Speaks

^top

Wiki on Tolle
with a short intro to his teachings

^top

All the text below is a direct copy from Eckhart Tolle’s website. I putted the text here as a service to you. All copyrights are as stated by Eckhart Tolle on his own website.

---

Description

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 this extraordinary book, we move rapidly into a significantly higher altitude where we breathe a lighter air. We become connected to the indestructible essence of our Being, “The eternal, ever present One Life beyond the myriad forms of life that are subject to birth and death.” Although the journey is challenging, Eckhart Tolle uses simple language and an easy question and answer format to guide us.

A word of mouth phenomenon since its first publication, The Power of Now is one of those rare books with the power to create an experience in readers, one that can radically change their lives for the better.

An Extract from The Power of Now

By Eckhart Tolle

I have little use for the past and rarely think about it; however, I would briefly like to tell you how I came to be a spiritual teacher and how ‘The Power of Now’ came into existence.

Until my thirtieth year, I lived in a state of almost continuous anxiety interspersed with periods of suicidal depression. It feels now as if I am talking about some past lifetime or somebody else’s life.

Awakening
One night not long after my twenty-ninth birthday, I woke up in the early hours with a feeling of absolute dread. I had woken up with such a feeling many times before, but this time it was more intense than it had ever been. The silence of the night, the vague outlines of the furniture in the dark room, the distant noise of a passing train – everything felt so alien, so hostile, and so utterly meaningless that it created in me a deep loathing of the world. The most loathsome thing of all, however, was my own existence. What was the point in continuing to live with this burden of misery? Why carry on with this continuous struggle? I could feel that a deep longing for annihilation, for nonexistence, was now becoming much stronger than the instinctive desire to continue to live.

‘I cannot live with myself any longer.’ This was the thought that kept repeating itself in my mind. Then suddenly I became aware of what a peculiar thought it was. ‘Am I one or two? If I cannot live with myself, there must be two of me: the ‘I’ and the ‘self’ that ‘I’ cannot live with.’ ‘Maybe,’ I thought, ‘only one of them is real.’

I was so stunned by this strange realization that my mind stopped. I was fully conscious, but there were no more thoughts. Then I felt drawn into what seemed like a vortex of energy. It was a slow movement at first and then accelerated. I was gripped by an intense fear, and my body started to shake. I heard the words ‘resist nothing,’ as if spoken inside my chest. I could feel myself being sucked into a void. It felt as if the void was inside myself rather than outside. Suddenly, there was no more fear, and I let myself fall into that void. I have no recollection of what happened after that.

I was awakened by the chirping of a bird outside the window. I had never heard such a sound before. My eyes were still closed, and I saw the image of a precious diamond. Yes, if a diamond could make a sound, this is what it would be like. I opened my eyes. The first light of dawn was filtering through the curtains. Without any thought, I felt, I knew, that there is infinitely more to light than we realize. That soft luminosity filtering through the curtains was love itself. Tears came into my eyes. I got up and walked around the room. I recognized the room, and yet I knew that I had never truly seen it before. Everything was fresh and pristine, as if it had just come into existence. I picked up things, a pencil, an empty bottle, marvelling at the beauty and aliveness of it all. That day I walked around the city in utter amazement at the miracle of life on earth, as if I had just been born into this world.

Bliss
For the next five months, I lived in a state of uninterrupted deep peace and bliss. After that, it diminished somewhat in intensity, or perhaps it just seemed to because it became my natural state. I could still function in the world, although I realized that nothing I ever did could possibly add anything to what I already had.

Understanding
I knew, of course, that something profoundly significant had happened to me, but I didn’t understand it at all. It wasn’t until several years later, after I had read spiritual texts and spent time with spiritual teachers, that I realized that what everybody was looking for had already happened to me. I understood that the intense pressure of suffering that night must have forced my consciousness to withdraw from its identification with the unhappy and deeply fearful self, which is ultimately a fiction of the mind. This withdrawal must have been so complete that this false, suffering self immediately collapsed, just as if a plug had been pulled out of an inflatable toy. What was left then was my true nature as the ever-present I am: consciousness in its pure state prior to identification with form. Later I also learned to go into that inner timeless and deathless realm that I had originally perceived as a void and remain fully conscious. I dwelt in states of such indescribable bliss and sacredness that even the original experience I just described pales in comparison. A time came when, for a while, I was left with nothing on the physical plane. I had no relationships, no job, no home, no socially defined identity. I spent almost two years sitting on park benches in a state of the most intense joy.

But even the most beautiful experiences come and go. More fundamental, perhaps, than any experience is the undercurrent of peace that has never left me since then. Sometimes it is very strong, almost palpable, and others can feel it too. At other times, it is somewhere in the background, like a distant melody.

Sharing
Later, people would occasionally come up to me and say: ‘I want what you have. Can you give it to me, or show me how to get it?’ And I would say: ‘You have it already. You just can’t feel it because your mind is making too much noise.’ That answer later grew into my book, ‘The Power of Now’.

From The Power of Now, copyright 1999 by Eckhart Tolle.

My introduction to…
Vipassana was in Guatemala. I had just finished my 3 months retreat in Las Piramides and was mixing with the semi-permanent crowed in San Marcos. All of them travelers and busy discovering the spiritual path. Sharing my experience of two months in complete silence, other people were interested in the same experience. (See also Las Piramides). They were looking for possibly quicker and maybe different approaches to reach the same goal.

Vipassana was mentioned and one week later some decided to travel to South America where the course was thought. I was curious back then but thought it to much to go for the next heavy impact course while my system was still recovering from the Sun-Course.

Sitting still….hmmm
Anxious I waited for their return. The Vipassana participants were very enthusiastic. They talked about transformation, better then anything they had done before. Maybe even better then the retreat I had just finished. Hmmm. I started asking what they had done that made it such a great experience. Basically they had been sitting still. Completely still, putting all there attention on their breath and later on feeling all the sensations in their skin. That was it? Yep. I was very curious.

Finding info

Back in the Netherlands I remembered my curiosity from more then a year ago. Vipassana? I googled and came across the link to http://www.dhamma.org/.

I started reading;

“Vipassana’ meditation. In the language of India in the time of the Buddha, passana meant seeing with open eyes, in the ordinary way; but Vipassana is observing things as they really are, not just as they seem to be. Vipassana was rediscovered by Gotama Buddha more than 2500 years ago and is one of India’s most ancient techniques of meditation. It and was taught by him as a universal remedy for universal ills, i.e., an Art Of Living.”

Old technique in the tradition of Buddha?

“Is the process of self-purification by self-observation. One begins by observing the natural breath to concentrate the mind. With a sharpened awareness one proceeds to observe the changing nature of body and mind and experiences the universal truth of impermanence, suffering and egoless ness. This truth realization by direct experience is the process purification. “

Direct experience of truth?

“Vipassana is a technique not an organized religion and by its nature can be practiced by people from all different backgrounds.”

No organized believe system but a practical technique?

I surfed to the site for the nearest course location.
Belgium.

I came across the code of discipline. It explained very well what to expect. The strictness of explanation of the rules made that the rebellious I started protesting however. Call me a free spirit, an independent mind or a law on to myself. I simply cannot follow rules because there is a rule. Making clear that once you start you are not allowed to leave was not helping. Not only a cage but also a closed door. Thinking of the friends who had done the course in South America I decided to walk the line. They are clever and independent as well and made it to the end…

…I felt that I had already made up my mind I would go for it!

The Course
I traveled to Belgium. On arrival we had to fill in some forms and were asked to give in all our valuables, writing materials and mobiles for save storage. I was reluctant to give in my mobile.
Not because it is my phone but it is also my watch, timer etc. How would I wake up at 04:00? Since I had chosen to share rooms I thought it would work out one way or the other. It worked out.
Every transition in the program is given notice by the sounds of a big gong. No need for any time registration. Just wait for the sound and you make a move. To where? A wallboard always contains that relevant schedule for that day. Nothing the worry about you can concentrate fully on yourself.
What is true for the gong and the wallboard pertains for the complete course. Everything is very well organized to let you have the maximum benefit of your 10 day retreat. The course is completely run by volunteers (according to tradition nobody is paid). Many commercial organizations are not near this level of professionalism.

The experience
An experience is something that you, by its nature, have to experience yourself. The experiences differ from person to person and as the course veterans described also in time. One course can be easy the next very heavy.

Some highlights of my experience:

• Being quiet: A lot of people cannot imagine them self being quiet for long times. This fear is not based on experience. As it turns out most people are very well capable of being quiet. It may not always be easy but with a little discipline and helped by a silent-friendly environment most people succeed relative easily.

  I had previous experienced 2 months of silence in the Las Piramides course I mentioned before. Based on this experience I thought that I would probably be fine with Vipassana and even like the silence again. Vipassana is after all only 10 days. It is however also more strict; You are not allowed to write or draw. That little rule made it a lot heavier for me. One tends to have ideas. Seeing them stock up in your mind makes your head heavy. That little extra rule combined with the discipline of sitting still was the seed to remember: Move structurally, with discipline and attention, beyond thoughts. Not just for the duration of the meditation. Make it a habit all day long! Integrate! Bring the benefits of meditation structural in your daily life. Move from the dense to the subtle and with that from the unreal to the real.
  Or, put practically, use your mind and body only as tools. Put them on when needed and of when done. You are also not having the vacuum cleaner on all day long because you have to clean once a week. It makes a lot of noise, takes energy and is impractical. Clean the floor put it away!

• Sitting still and observing: 4 X 1 hour completely still, without even moving an eyelid, and many hours in between. Preferred is sitting with crossed legs on the ground because in the long run it will give you the best meditation posture. Beginners can find the best position for themselves; even a chair is fine if that’s the position your body can handle. Find a position, sit and observe. Only observe. Sensations will come and go.
  Sitting one hour without moving give you very gross sensations as well…………………nice way of saying that it really hurts.
  Those more painful sensations are thought to be the storage of experiences in the body. Every experience leaves an impression behind. Your mind/body system will label it as something it likes or something it dislikes. One big (dis)like or many small one will leave behind a permanent imprint. This imprint will make your body react accordingly in every experience that you still have to encounter. One decision of your mind/body/EGO system a long time ago is the basis of an ongoing, and unconscious, pattern of drama. You just keep on reacting the same way over and over again without even knowing that you are or why.
  Observing these gross sensations carefully and giving them your full non-judging attention will make them go away. A direct experience of the law of impermanence is the result. Nothing will last forever; everything will change “Anitsja”!
  And the pain is strangely enough going away. Day 5 and 6 are the most difficult for most people. Everything is hurting. You are tired and your body/mind/EGO system is fighting with you a fierce battle. Your attention is taken away from fulfilling every whip of this system. You are not thinking and not moving, just observing. All your concentration is needed to keep you observing. Your mind will give you very happy and sad thoughts. Your body will hurt and feel very pleasant. Your EGO will reason with you; you are better then this you don’t need this or you are to weak just give up. Everything is tried and done to get the attention back and with that complete control.
  There is a lot more to this “getting back your control”; why do you want that control? What does it give you? How is it done? Who is the you that is not your body/mind/EGO? Good questions! I have found answers to these and other questions on my discovery trip in spiritual land. I am looking forward sharing them with you. However; nothing beats direct experience. Do a Vipassana course yourself. Read as many books as you can and do other courses. Find the answers yourself. Start the journey and enjoy it!
  Or do you want a decision you made as a child to run your life instead of seeing the things as they really are and decide now?

  Vipassana and me
  As I write this, I haven been on a “Spiritual-discovery” journey for almost two years. Growing up, my rational site took charge and made that I had to understand everything. Embarking on the spiritual path this didn’t change. I would have loved to come up with a nice clean rational philosophy. This is how the world works, what we are and what we should do. Philosophers have come and gone and all there constructs thought us a lot but didn’t give the final answer. I didn’t either of course.

  On that Spiritual journey I stumbled over different roads to answers however. I started investigating things mentally of course but the direct experiences of meditation and being silent showed me a different world, a different path. I immediately understood the spiritual books completely different. That was weird; I saw the world different and learned more and quicker. More books and new lessons let to new experiences and so the journey into the unknown went on. One big adventure.

  I have now reached a point that I can see the road ahead more clearly. I recognize it; see the potholes, the side roads, the beautiful sceneries. Not that I traveled so much on it. I just started but I can see a few steps ahead. (I have been thinking this many time before but the quality and consistency is now from a complete different order. Right till it is proven wrong and revision is more and more just a little tweak.)

  On this point Vipassana is a step stone or technique that is offering me a very sophisticated* way of making a next step. It helps me integrating what I have learned and it prepares me for the next step.

  Since this course I have practiced Vipassana every day. The results were so powerful that I decided to apply for the next course. The confirmation just came back, from 15 till 24 November I will practice some more. I foresee that I will also do a longer course in India, somewhere beginning 2007. (More info at the bottom)

  Is Vipassana better then the course in Guatemala? Like my friends said. Nope. Is Guatelmala better then Vipassana. Nope. No use in comparing they are experiences of a complete different nature. On top of that everybody will experience every course, every time you do them, differently. Get a different experience and as result of that learn new things or the same lessons on a different level.

  *) The number of experiences and lessons that I can integrate by practicing Vipassana are many and have reached a point were words alone are not a suitable medium of bringing the message across.

  Vipassana only Goenke/Dhamma
  No. There are many different Vipassana traditions and organizations. Without a doubt there are differences. As with many things decided for yourself what suits you best.

  Teaser: Movie
  A short video (5.7 MB) about the observation of breath and bodily sensations in this technique can be viewed with the free Quicktime movie player
  ^top

  Bookshop
  http://www.Ayana-book.com
  With books, CD and mediation CD’s. The CD’s on the bottom run for one hour in a row. They start with a intro to focus you. Are still in between and 5 minutes before the end the music will help you to get slowly back. No need to time or to work with the remote control. Sit down press play and just do the exercise.
  ^top

  Vipassana course in India?
  I am going to India and would love to do another course there. The first option I found:
  February 2 – March 20—45 Day Course
  In JAIPUR, RAJASTHAN, INDIA
  http://www.dhamma.org/schjai.htm
  ^top

  Address, links…

  • The assistant teacher for this course was: Andrea Schmitz
  • General websitehttp://www.dhamma.org/
  • Address and link to Belgium
    Vipassana Centrum, Dhamma Pajjota
    Driepaal 3
    B – 3650 Dilsen-Stokkem
    Belgium

    Tel [32](0)89-51.82.30
    Fax [32](0)89-51.82.39
    E-mail:
    Homepage: www.pajjota.dhamma.org
    Pajjota newsletter
    (Sent an empty email. You get an empty email back, reply with an empty mail and you will be regularly informed about Dhamma Pajjota.

    Adress and link to Germany (becoming ELCC)
    Vipassana-Meditationcentre – Dhamma Dvāra
    Alte Straße 6
    08606 Triebel ,Germany (close to the border with the Czech Republic)
    Ph.: [+49](0)37434 – 79770; Fax: [+49](0)37434 – 79771;
    Email:
    Website: www.dvara.dhamma.org
    ELCC (European Long Course Centre) will also be build here.
    To stay up to date about the progress of the ELCC.

    • Information on the organization and communication structure of the planned European Long Course Centre has been made available on the ELCC website. Please follow the link : www.eu.region.dhamma.org/index.php
    • Regular updated information on ELCC including minutes of the trust meetings is made available at www.eu.region.dhamma.org/os username & password required.