Stillness Within Meetup Eckhart Tolle talk: Suffering, Meditation and Seeing without Labels

The late July meetup profiled a number of audience Qs and As from a recent retreat, as well as a guided type meditative Eckhart talk.  There were some interesting points made: – Deep suffering can lead to a deep shift in consciousness but suffering is not essential to awakening. – We sometimes hold the objective of realisation or ‘freedom’ – as a future end point.  This can be a barrier and ET pointed out that we are already in an unfolding awakening process.   – In the presence of each moment, facets of deep truth of our essential being was are evident when obsessive thinking begins to subside. – There seems to be a relationship between the degree of unconsciousness and the degree of seriousness in people;  as one becomes less consumed by thinking and past ‘programming’, a lighter world view also seems to emerge. – Finally, Eckhart offered practical advice that if we can observe the world around us without labels, judgements or even naming, we will begin to sense the essential true nature of all that we encounter (this can be applied internally as well when we sense notice an emotion or habitual impulse… – Simple observation without analysis will lead to a deeper seeing or a shift in the internal experience itself. – When asked how and when he meditates, Eckhart described a way of being in the world that is comprised of many small spaces throughout the day, with a constant awareness of an undercurrent of stillness.  While there are times when a longer pause or deepened state is expressed, Eckhart has come to feel that life as a whole is a moving meditation of sorts. – The group enjoyed discussing many of these points, and I later mused that Krishnamurti and Eckhart could have been great friends given their similar outlook on so many dimensions of the human experience.  This includes many of the points above:  neutral observation, release from thought or judgement, and the inherent truth that will reveal itself to us without effort. Thanks to the KECC team for their contribution of space for these valued meet ups.