USING AND RELINQUISHING NEGATIVITY - раздел Образование, Acclaim for THE POWER OF NOW
All Inner Resistance Is Experienced As Negativity In One Form...
All inner resistance is experienced as negativity in one form or
another. All negativity is resistance. In this context, the two words are
almost synonymous. Negativity ranges from irritation or impatience to
fierce anger, from a depressed mood or sullen resentment to suicidal
despair. Sometimes the resistance triggers the emotional pain-body,
in which case even a minor situation may produce intense negativity,
such as anger, depression, or deep grief.
The ego believes that through negativity it can manipulate reality and
get what it wants. It believes that through it, it can attract a desirable
condition or dissolve an undesirable one. A Course in Miracles rightly
points out that, whenever you are unhappy, there is the unconscious
belief that the unhappiness “buys” you what you want. If “you” — the
mind — did not believe that unhappiness works, why would you
create it? The fact is, of course, that negativity does not work. Instead
of attracting a desirable condition, it stops it from arising. Instead of
dissolving an undesirable one, it keeps it in place. Its only “useful”
function is that it strengthens the ego, and that is why the ego loves
it.
Once you have identified with some form of negativity, you do not
want to let go, and on a deeply unconscious level, you do not want
positive change. It would threaten your identity as a depressed,
angry, or hard-done-by person. You will then ignore, deny, or
sabotage the positive in your life. This is a common phenomenon. It is
also insane.
Negativity is totally unnatural. It is a psychic pollutant, and there is a
deep link between the poisoning and destruction of nature and the
vast negativity that has accumulated in the collective human psyche.
No other life-form on the planet knows negativity, only humans, just
as no other life-form violates and poisons the Earth that sustains it.
Have you ever seen an unhappy flower or a stressed oak tree? Have
you come across a depressed dolphin, a frog that has a problem with
self-esteem, a cat that cannot relax, or a bird that carries hatred and
resentment? The only animals that may occasionally experience
something akin to negativity or show signs of neurotic behavior are
those that live in close contact with humans and so link into the
human mind and its insanity.
Watch any plant or animal and let it teach you acceptance of what is,
surrender to the Now. Let it teach you Being. Let it teach you integrity
— which means to be one, to be yourself, to be real. Let it teach you
how to live and how to die, and how not to make living and dying into
a problem.
I have lived with several Zen masters — all of them cats. Even ducks
have taught me important spiritual lessons. Just watching them is a
meditation. How peacefully they float along, at ease with themselves,
totally present in the Now, dignified and perfect as only a mindless
creature can be. Occasionally, however, two ducks will get into a fight
— sometimes for no apparent reason, or because one duck has
strayed into another’s private space. The fight usually lasts only for a
few seconds, and then the ducks separate, swim off in opposite
directions, and vigorously flap their wings a few times. They then
continue to swim on peacefully as if the fight had never happened.
When I observed that for the first time, I suddenly realized that by
flapping their wings they were releasing surplus energy, thus
preventing it from becoming trapped in their body and turning into
negativity. This is natural wisdom, and it is easy for them because
they do not have a mind that keeps the past alive unnecessarily and
then builds an identity around it.
Couldn’t a negative emotion also contain an important message? For
example, if I often feel depressed, it may be a signal that there is
something wrong with my life, and it may force me to look at my life
situation and make some changes. So I need to listen to what the
emotion is telling me and not just dismiss it as negative.
Yes, recurring negative emotions do sometimes contain a message,
as do illnesses. But any changes that you make, whether they have to
do with your work, your relationships, or your surroundings, are
ultimately only cosmetic unless they arise out of a change in your
level of consciousness. And as far as that is concerned, it can only
mean one thing: becoming more present. When you have reached a
certain degree of presence, you don’t need negativity anymore to tell
you what is needed in your life situation. But as long as negativity is
there, use it. Use it as a kind of signal that reminds you to be more
present.
How do we stop negativity from arising, and how do we get rid of it
once it is there?
As I said, you stop it from arising by being fully present. But don’t
become discouraged. There are as yet few people on the planet who
can sustain a state of continuous presence, although some are getting
close to it. Soon, I believe, there will be many more.
Whenever you notice that some form of negativity has arisen within
you, look on it not as a failure, but as a helpful signal that is telling
you: “Wake up. Get out of your mind. Be present.”
There is a novel by Aldous Huxley called Island, written in his later
years when he became very interested in spiritual teachings. It tells
the story of a man shipwrecked on a remote island cut off from the
rest of the world. This island contains a unique civilization. The
unusual thing about it is that its inhabitants, unlike those of the rest
of the world, are actually sane. The first thing that the man notices
are the colorful parrots perched in the trees, and they seem to be
constantly croaking the words “Attention. Here and Now. Attention.
Here and Now.” We later learn that the islanders taught them these
words in order to be reminded continuously to stay present.
So whenever you feel negativity arising within you, whether caused by
an external factor, a thought, or even nothing in particular that you
are aware of, look on it as a voice saying “Attention. Here and Now.
Wake up.” Even the slightest irritation is significant and needs to be
acknowledged and looked at; otherwise, there will be a cumulative
buildup of unobserved reactions. As I said before, you may be able to
just drop it once you realize that you don’t want to have this energy
field inside you and that it serves no purpose. But then make sure
that you drop it completely. If you cannot drop it, just accept that it is
there and take your attention into the feeling, as I pointed out earlier.
As an alternative to dropping a negative reaction, you can make it
disappear by imagining yourself becoming transparent to the external
cause of the reaction. I recommend that you practice it with little,
even trivial, things first. Let’s say that you are sitting quietly at home.
Suddenly, there is the penetrating sound of a car alarm from across
the street. Irritation arises. What is the purpose of the irritation? None
whatsoever. Why did you create it? You didn’t. The mind did. It was
totally automatic, totally unconscious. Why did the mind create it?
Because it holds the unconscious belief that its resistance, which you
experience as negativity or unhappiness in some form, will somehow
dissolve the undesirable condition. This, of course, is a delusion. The
resistance that it creates, the irritation or anger in this case, is far
more disturbing than the original cause that it is attempting to
dissolve.
All this can be transformed into spiritual practice. Feel yourself
becoming transparent, as it were, without the solidity of a material
body. Now allow the noise, or whatever causes a negative reaction, to
pass right through you. It is no longer hitting a solid “wall” inside you.
As I said, practice with little things first. The car alarm, the dog
barking, the children screaming, the traffic jam. Instead of having a
wall of resistance inside you that gets constantly and painfully hit by
things that “should not be happening,” let everything pass through
you.
Somebody says something to you that is rude or designed to hurt.
Instead of going into unconscious reaction and negativity, such as
attack, defense, or withdrawal, you let it pass right through you. Offer
no resistance. It is as if there is nobody there to get hurt anymore.
That is forgiveness. In this way, you become invulnerable. You can
still tell that person that his or her behavior is unacceptable, if that is
what you choose to do. But that person no longer has the power to
control your inner state. You are then in your power — not in
someone else’s, nor are you run by your mind. Whether it is a car
alarm, a rude person, a flood, an earthquake, or the loss of all your
possessions, the resistance mechanism is the same.
I have been practicing meditation, I have been to workshops, I have
read many books on spirituality, I try to be in a state of nonresistance
— but if you ask me whether I have found true and lasting inner
peace, my honest answer would have to be “no.” Why haven't I found
it? What else can I do?
You are still seeking outside, and you cannot get out of the seeking
mode. Maybe the next workshop will have the answer, maybe that
new technique. To you I would say: Don’t look for peace. Don’t look
for any other state than the one you are in now; otherwise, you will
set up inner conflict and unconscious resistance. Forgive yourself for
not being at peace. The moment you completely accept your non-
peace, your non-peace becomes transmuted into peace. Anything you
accept fully will get you there, will take you into peace. This is the
miracle of surrender.
You may have heard the phrase “turn the other cheek,” which a great
teacher of enlightenment used two thousand years ago. He was
attempting to convey symbolically the secret of nonresistance and
nonreaction. In this statement, as in all his others, he was concerned
only with your inner reality, not with the outer conduct of your life.
Do you know the story of Banzan? Before he became a great Zen
master, he spent many years in the pursuit of enlightenment, but it
eluded him. Then one day, as he was walking in the marketplace, he
overheard a conversation between a butcher and his customer. “Give
me the best piece of meat you have,” said the customer. And the
butcher replied, “Every piece of meat I have is the best. There is no
piece of meat here that is not the best.” Upon hearing this, Banzan
became enlightened.
I can see you are waiting for some explanation. When you accept
what is, every piece of meat — every moment — is the best. That is
enlightenment.
Все темы данного раздела:
A GUIDE TO SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT
Eckhart Tolle
NAMASTE PUBLISHING
and
NEW WORLD LIBRARY
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA
CHAPTER THREE: Moving Deeply into the Now
Don’t Seek Your Self in the Mind
End the Delusion of Time
Nothing Exists Outside the Now
The Key to the Spiritual Dimension
Accessing the Power of the Now
CHAPTER SIX: The Inner Body
Being Is Your Deepest Self
Look beyond the Words
Finding Your Invisible and Indestructible Reality
Connecting with the Inner Body
Transformation through the Body
About the Author
AUTHOR’S PREFACE TO
THE PAPERBACK EDITION
Six years after it was first published, The Power of Now continues to
play its part in the urgent task of the tr
THE ORIGIN OF THIS BOOK
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 this book came int
THE TRUTH THAT IS WITHIN YOU
This book represents the essence of my work, as far as it can be
conveyed in words, with individuals and small groups of spiritual
seekers during the past ten year
THE GREATEST OBSTACLE TO ENLIGHTENMENT
Enlightenment — what is that?
A beggar had been sitting by the side of a road for over thirty years.
One day a stranger walked by. “Spare some change?” mumbled the
FREEING YOURSELF FROM YOUR MIND
What exactly do you mean by “watching the thinker”?
When someone goes to the doctor and says, “I hear a voice in my
head,” he or she will most likely be sent to a
ENLIGHTENMENT: RISING ABOVE THOUGHT
Isn’t thinking essential in order to survive in this world?
Your mind is an instrument, a tool. It is there to be used for a specific
task, and when the task is co
EMOTION: THE BODY’S REACTION TO YOUR MIND
What about emotions? I get caught up in my emotions more than I do
in my mind.
Mind, in the way I use the word, is not just thought. It includes your
emot
CREATE NO MORE PAIN IN THE PRESENT
Nobody’s life is entirely free of pain and sorrow. Isn’t it a question of
learning to live with them rather than trying to avoid them?
The greater part of human pa
PAST PAIN: DISSOLVING THE PAIN-BODY
As long as you are unable to access the power of the Now, every
emotional pain that you experience leaves behind a residue of pain
that lives on in you. It merges
EGO IDENTIFICATION WITH THE PAIN-BODY
The process that I have just described is profoundly powerful yet
simple. It could be taught to a child, and hopefully one day it will be
one of the first things c
THE ORIGIN OF FEAR
You mentioned fear as being part of our basic underlying emotional
pain. How does fear arise, and why is there so much of it in people’s
lives? And isn’t a certain
THE EGO’S SEARCH FOR WHOLENESS
Another aspect of the emotional pain that is an intrinsic part of the
egoic mind is a deep-seated sense of lack or incompleteness, of not
being whole. In some peop
DON’T SEEK YOUR SELF IN THE MIND
I feel that there is still a great deal I need to learn about the workings
of my mind before I can get anywhere near full consciousness or
spiritual enlightenment.
END THE DELUSION OF TIME
It seems almost impossible to disidentify from the mind. We are all
immersed in it. How do you teach a fish to fly?
Here is the key: End the delusion of time. Time
NOTHING EXISTS OUTSIDE THE NOW
Aren’t past and future just as real, sometimes even more real, than
the present? After all, the past determines who we are, as well as
how we perceive and behave i
THE KEY TO THE SPIRITUAL DIMENSION
In life-threatening emergency situations, the shift in consciousness
from time to presence sometimes happens naturally. The personality
that has a past and a futur
ACCESSING THE POWER OF THE NOW
A moment ago, when you talked about the eternal present and the
unreality of past and future, I found myself looking at that tree
outside the window. I had looked
LETTING GO OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TIME
Learn to use time in the practical aspects of your life — we may call
this “clock time” — but immediately return to present-moment
awareness when those practical m
THE INSANITY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TIME
You will not have any doubt that psychological time is a mental
disease if you look at its collective manifestations. They occur, for
example, in the form of ideol
NEGATIVITY AND SUFFERING HAVE THEIR ROOTS IN TIME
But the belief that the future will be better than the present is not
always an illusion. The present can be dreadful, and things can get
better in the future, and
FINDING THE LIFE UNDERNEATH YOUR LIFE SITUATION
I don’t see how I can be free now. As it happens, I am extremely
unhappy with my life at the moment. This is a fact, and I would be
deluding myself if I tried to c
ALL PROBLEMS ARE ILLUSIONS OF THE MIND
It feels as if a heavy burden has been lifted. A sense of lightness. I
feel clear. . . but my problems are still there waiting for me, aren’t
they? They haven’t be
A QUANTUM LEAP IN THE EVOLUTION OF CONSCIOUSNESS
I have had glimpses of this state of freedom from mind and time that
you describe, but past and future are so overwhelmingly strong that I
cannot keep them out for
THE JOY OF BEING
To alert you that you have allowed yourself to be taken over by
psychological time, you can use a simple criterion. Ask yourself: Is
there joy, ease, and lightness
LOSS OF NOW: THE CORE DELUSION
Even if I completely accept that ultimately time is an illusion, what
difference is that going to make in my life? I still have to live in a
world that is complete
AND DEEP UNCONSCIOUSNESS
What do you mean by different levels of unconsciousness?
As you probably know, in sleep you constantly move between the
phases of dreamless sleep and the dream sta
WHAT ARE THEY SEEKING?
Carl Jung tells in one of his books of a conversation he had with a
Native American chief who pointed out to him that in his perception
most white people have tens
DISSOLVING ORDINARY UNCONSCIOUSNESS
So how can we be free of this affliction?
Make it conscious. Observe the many ways in which unease,
discontent, and tension arise within you through unnecessary
FREEDOM FROM UNHAPPINESS
Do you resent doing what you are doing? It may be your job, or you
may have agreed to do something and are doing it, but part of you
resents and resists it. Are yo
WHEREVER YOU ARE, BE THERE TOTALLY
Can you give some more examples of ordinary unconsciousness?
See if you can catch yourself complaining, in either speech or thought,
about a situation you find you
THE INNER PURPOSE OF YOUR LIFE’S JOURNEY
I can see the truth of what you are saying, but I still think that we
THE PAST CANNOT SURVIVE IN YOUR PRESENCE
You mentioned that thinking or talking about the past unnecessarily is
one of the ways in which we avoid the present. But apart from the
past that we remember and
IT’S NOT WHAT YOU THINK IT IS
You keep talking about the state of presence as the key. I think I
understand it intellectually, but I don’t know if I have ever truly
experienced it. I wonder — i
BEAUTY ARISES IN THE STILLNESS OF YOUR PRESENCE
What you have just described is something that I occasionally
experience for brief moments when I am alone and surrounded by
nature.
Yes. Zen masters use
REALIZING PURE CONSCIOUSNESS
Is presence the same as Being?
When you become conscious of Being, what is really happening is that
Being becomes conscious of itself. When Being becomes conscious
CHRIST: THE REALITY OF YOUR DIVINE PRESENCE
Don’t get attached to any one word. You can substitute “Christ” for
presence, if that is more meaningful to you. Christ is your God-
essence or the Self, as it is
BEING IS YOUR DEEPEST SELF
You spoke earlier about the importance of having deep roots within or
inhabiting the body. Can you explain what you meant by that?
The body can become a point of a
LOOK BEYOND THE WORDS
I don’t like the word sin. It implies that I am being judged and found
guilty.
I can understand that. Over the centuries, many erroneous views and
interpr
FINDING YOUR INVISIBLE AND INDESTRUCTIBLE REALITY
You said that identification with our physical form is part of the
illusion, so how can the body, the physical form, bring you to a
realization of Being?
CONNECTING WITH THE INNER BODY
Please try it now. You may find it helpful to close your eyes for this
practice. Later on, when “being in the body” has become natural and
easy, this will no longe
TRANSFORMATION THROUGH THE BODY
Why have most religions condemned or denied the body? It seems
that spiritual seekers have always regarded the body as a hindrance
or even as sinful.
Why
SERMON ON THE BODY
What you perceive as a dense physical structure called the body,
which is subject to disease, old age, and death, is not ultimately real
— is not you. It is a misp
HAVE DEEP ROOTS WITHIN
The key is to be in a state of permanent connectedness with your
inner body — to feel it at all times. This will rapidly deepen and
transform your life. The more c
BEFORE YOU ENTER THE BODY, FORGIVE
I felt very uncomfortable when I tried to put my attention on the inner
body. There was a feeling of agitation and some nausea. So I haven’t
been able to experienc
YOUR LINK WITH THE UNMANIFESTED
What is the relationship between presence and the inner body?
Presence is pure consciousness — consciousness that has been
reclaimed from the mind, from the world
SLOWING DOWN THE AGING PROCESS
In the meantime, awareness of the inner body has other benefits in
the physical realm. One of them is a significant slowing down of the
aging of the physical body.
STRENGTHENING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
Another benefit of this practice in the physical realm is a great
strengthening of the immune system, which occurs when you inhabit
the body. The more consciousnes
LET THE BREATH TAKE YOU INTO THE BODY
At times, when my mind has been very active, it has acquired such
momentum that I find it impossible to take my attention away from it
and feel the inner body. Thi
CREATIVE USE OF MIND
If you need to use your mind for a specific purpose, use it in
conjunction with your inner body. Only if you are able to be conscious
without thought can you use y
THE ART OF LISTENING
When listening to another person, don’t just listen with your mind,
listen with your whole body. Feel the energy field of your inner body
as you listen. That takes
GOING DEEPLY INTO THE BODY
I can feel the energy inside my body, especially in my arms and legs,
but I don’t seem to be able to go more deeply, as you suggested
earlier.
Make it int
THE SOURCE OF CHI
Is the Unmanifested what in the East is called chi, a kind of universal
life energy?
No, it isn’t. The Unmanifested is the source of chi. Chi is the inner
DREAMLESS SLEEP
You take a journey into the Unmanifested every night when you enter
the phase of deep dreamless sleep. You merge with the Source. You
draw from it the vital energy
OTHER PORTALS
The Now can be seen as the main portal. It is an essential aspect of
every other portal, including the inner body. You cannot be in your
body without being intense
SILENCE
Are there any other portals apart from those you just mentioned?
Yes, there are. The Unmanifested is not separate from the
manifested. It pervades this world, but
THE TRUE NATURE OF SPACE AND TIME
Now consider this: If there were nothing but silence, it wouldn’t exist
for you; you wouldn’t know what it is. Only when sound appears does
silence come into being
CONSCIOUS DEATH
Apart from dreamless sleep, which I mentioned already, there is one
other involuntary portal. It opens up briefly at the time of physical
death. Even if you have m
ENTER THE NOW FROM WHEREVER YOU ARE
I always thought that true enlightenment is not possible except
through love in a relationship between a man and a woman. Isn’t this
what makes us whole again? How
LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIPS
Unless and until you access the consciousness frequency of presence,
all relationships, and particularly intimate relationships, are deeply
flawed and ultimately d
ADDICTION AND THE SEARCH FOR WHOLENESS
Why should we become addicted to another person?
The reason why the romantic love relationship is such an intense and
universally sought-after experience is that i
FROM ADDICTIVE TO ENLIGHTENED RELATIONSHIPS
Can we change an addictive relationship into a true one?
Yes. Being present and intensifying your presence by taking your
attention ever more deeply into the Now:
RELATIONSHIPS AS SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
As the egoic mode of consciousness and all the social, political, and
economic structures that it created enter the final stage of collapse,
the relationships betw
WHY WOMEN ARE CLOSER TO ENLIGHTENMENT
Are the obstacles to enlightenment the same for a man as for a
woman?
Yes, but the emphasis is different. Generally speaking, it is easier for
a woman to
DISSOLVING THE COLLECTIVE FEMALE PAIN-BODY
Why is the pain-body more of an obstacle for women?
The pain-body usually has a collective as well as a personal aspect.
The personal aspect is the accumulated res
GIVE UP THE RELATIONSHIP WITH YOURSELF
When one is fully conscious, would one still have a need for a
relationship? Would a man still feel drawn to a woman? Would a
woman still feel incomplete without a
THE HIGHER GOOD BEYOND GOOD AND BAD
Is there a difference between happiness and inner peace?
Yes. Happiness depends on conditions being perceived as positive;
inner peace does not.
Is it not
THE END OF YOUR LIFE DRAMA
In that state of acceptance and inner peace, even though you may not
call it “bad,” can anything still come into your life that would be called
“bad” from a perspe
IMPERMANENCE AND THE CYCLES OF LIFE
However, as long as you are in the physical dimension and linked to
the collective human psyche, physical pain — although rare — is still
possible. This is not to
THE NATURE OF COMPASSION
Having gone beyond the mind-made opposites, you become like a
deep lake. The outer situation of your life and whatever happens
there is the surface of the lake. So
TOWARD A DIFFERENT ORDER OF REALITY
I don’t agree that the body needs to die. I am convinced that we can
achieve physical immortality. We believe in death and that’s why the
body dies.
The b
ACCEPTANCE OF THE NOW
You mentioned “surrender” a few times. I don’t like that idea. It
sounds somewhat fatalistic. If we always accept the way things are,
we are not going to make any
FROM MIND ENERGY TO SPIRITUAL ENERGY
Letting go of resistance is easier said than done. I still don’t see
clearly how to let go. If you say it is by surrendering, the question
remains: “How?”
SURRENDER IN PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
What about people who want to use me, manipulate or control me?
Am I to surrender to them?
They are cut off from Being, so they unconsciously attempt to get
TRANSFORMING ILLNESS INTO ENLIGHTENMENT
If someone is seriously ill and completely accepts their condition and
surrenders to the illness, would they not have given up their will to
get back to health? Th
WHEN DISASTER STRIKES
As far as the still unconscious majority of the population is concerned,
only a critical limit-situation has the potential to crack the hard shell
of the ego and f
TRANSFORMING SUFFERING INTO PEACE
I read about a stoic philosopher in ancient Greece who, when he was
told that his son had died in an accident, replied, “I knew he was not
immortal.” Is that surre
THE WAY OF THE CROSS
There are many accounts of people who say they have found God
through their deep suffering, and there is the Christian expression
“the way of the cross,” which I s
THE POWER TO CHOOSE
What about all those people who, it seems, actually want to suffer? I
have a friend whose partner is physically abusive toward her, and her
previous relationship w
Document Outline
Author’s Preface to the Paperback Edition Introduction The Origin of This Book The Truth That Is Within You CHAPTER ONE : You Are Not Your Mind The Greatest Obstacle to Enlightenment Freeing Yourse
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