Stillness Within Meetup: Enlightened Approaches to Relationships

The August 13th Gathering of Stillness Within enjoyed a viewing of a talk given by Eckhart Tolle in Norway last year.  The talk was centred around relationships, with people we meet for a fleeting moment but also those whom we love deeply.  It was a lovely talk and the audience in Norway also asked some great questions. Some of the key messages which the group discussed after the videos follow…  The ego has a tendency is to see people around us in terms of what they can or can’t do for us or to compare them in some way to a standard we hold (judging).  Eckhart suggested that it’s possible to shift even the briefest exchanges with shop keepers, parking attendants or others we encounter by shifting this transactional view of others into a more presence based exchange.  He talked about being the space for your daily encounters (letting judgements or labels fall away), and allowing yourself to see more purely the essence of each new person. Eckhart also talked about the habits we may have accumulated over our lifetime.  He was asked what needs to be given up in order to find true freedom.  His answer was very similar to some of the things that Krishnamurti has shared about noticing yourself ‘acting out’ – looking at the actions and sentiments with curious observation.  Eckhart indicated that when there is a strong compulsion to over-consume something like food or alcohol, or indulge in any kind of habitual activity, it’s often about fostering unconsciousness. His suggestion is that rather than simply trying to refrain, we instead make that pattern or activity more conscious.  Noticing the feeling before opening the fridge habitually in the evening… and becoming attuned with what discomfort or contraction might be bubbling below the surface.  Making what is unconscious conscious.  Over time, we may see a shift in what we feel drawn to or some of the underlying sources of discomfort. The group used these topics to look at real life examples that we face and how some of these approaches could be put to use.  It was a wonderful get-together.  Thanks to KECC for hosting us this month.