The following is an excerpt from Eckhart Tolle’s book “A New Earth”. I will be basing this weeks journal on these thoughts.
It is take from Chapter Seven, Finding Who You Truly Are.
“The Joy Of Being
Unhappiness or negativity is a disease on our planet. What pollution is on our outer level is negativity on the inner. It is everywhere not just in places where people don’t have enough, but even more so where they have more then enough. Is that surprising? No. The affluent of the world is even more deeply identified with form, more lost in content, more trapped in ego.
People believe themselves to be dependent on what happens for their happiness, that is to say, dependent on form. They don’t realize that what happens is the most unstable thing in the universe. I changes constantly. They look upon the present moment as either marred by something that has happened that shouldn’t have. And so they miss the deeper perfection that is inherent in life itself, a perfection that is always already here, that lies beyond what is happening or not happening, beyond form. Accept the present moment and find the perfections that isd deeper than any form and untouched by time.
The joy of Being, which is the only true happiness, cannot come to you through any form, possession, achievement, person or event – through anything that happens. That joy can not come to you – ever. It emanates from the formless dimension within you, from consciousness itself and thus is one with who you are."
8 comments:
that's one great excerpt! Thanks...I'm even going to check out Oprah's site for the big thing where you all join in on the book club thingie...did you do that?
Nancy
Have you seen the ads for Oprah's interactive internet class based on this book? Apparantly she and the author will doing it. I'll have to pay better attention the next time I see the ad, or maybe visit Oprah.com. Very interesting...you beat her to it.
Hugs, Joyce
finding who I truly am? good grief....I've no clue. Isn't that sad?
~Amy
actually, the joy of my being is Jesus; and the hope I have of spending eternity with him; and thankfully I do believe that joy comes to me through the Holy Spirit living in me through my accepting Jesus as my Savior; I honestly don't think (for me) it emanates from the formless dimension within me, but rather from the One who lives in me :)
betty
For me joy is not dependent on how much I have or don't have. That is true. But joy does come, b/c I am trusting in the Lord, and happy in Him. When I am in perfect peace in Him, or at least trying to rest in Him in my life, then I can't get as swayed around by things (I mean either gaining or losing things in my life). Hope that makes sense.
Krissy :)
http://journals.aol.com/fisherkristina/SometimesIThink
Hi Rosemary. First wanted to say thank you for so many nice comments you leave me. I was reading this entry and I don't agree totally with what the author says. I get very little satisfaction from being.... partly because I fight so many battles and have come out of great great adversity.
From a personal perspective, and from my Biblical teaching, I have to disagree with the book on this one... All of my joy has come from God and his love for me... all of it. Were it not for God, I would be dead. I do celebrate that He has made me to be and to exist but only because of the things He has given me. The World for the most part has rejected me on numerous occasions and would have left me for dead. I was depressed in spirit and mind and body until I got hold of Jesus. I get my joy from the things He, God, gave me: Jesus; second chances; life; salvation and eternity; forgiveness; the ability to keep going in spite of great adversity; mercy; my family, husband and children, which have given me purpose. I would not have any joy in being unless these things were in place. I would rather not be if God was not there to give to me this life with these gifts. I would be nothing without Him and the cross. And there would be no future for me without Him. I guess I don't get the author of this book.
Hugs,
Lisa
Hey there!
First thank you for your comment. I truly appreciate thought filled comments such as yours.The book is long and very involved and it opens like a flower. This excerpt is close to the end.
This "topic" of conversation began on 2/19 with my entry http://journals.aol.com/attitudeslc/inspiration/#Entry428. Believe me I totally understand what you said and I agree. And there was more added today.
I would like to share a little more with you to get more of your perspective. I understand that when given in parts it is difficult to understand. "BEING" in the book means to be in complete harmony with God. Total trust. It means not to worry. Be where you are now and know that God is with you. Here is an excerpt from page 267 that might put the quote from today into perspective.
"Only when you align yourself with the present moment do you have access to that power. Or it may be more true that it then has access to you and through you to this world. Jesus was referring to this power when he said 'It is not I but the Father within me who does the works.' And 'I can of my own self do noting.' Anxiety, stress and negativity cut you off from that power"
or this from page 268
"Jesus likes to draw our attention to nature because he sees a power at work in it that humans have lost touch with. 'Look at the lilies of the field, how they grow" said Jesus, "they toil not, neither do they spin. Yet even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.'" ... Jesus goes on to say that if God clothes simple flower in such beauty, how much more will God clothe you. That is to say, that while nature is a beautiful expression of the evolutionary impulse of the universe, when human become aligned with the intelligence (God) that underlies it, they will express that same impulse on a higher more wonderful level."
So... what do you think?
Hi rosemary, better late than never!!LOL I am not sure i agree, i get joy from my sense of purpose, being a mother. As to god, I am afraid that that is a sore subject, I had a spiritual belive a few years back but lost faith, god has never really been a part of my life. I had hoped there was something more than this life but i really don't think so. someone once told me that there is a god shaped hole in everyone and that maybe that was what i was searching for. Not so sure. I find joy in my family, the little things my boys do, watching them sleep peacefully and safe, knowing that i keep them safe. take care mrs t xx
http://journals.aol.co.uk/mleppard06/eternity
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