A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose (Oprah's Book Club, Selection 61)

SO packed with enlightening ideals, truths and knowledge - and yet - intense + use of term EGO as a bop on the head, rather than 'super brain' or 'over-protective mind' is a lot to reconcile, once overcoming this hurdle, could be the best book I've read. The Power Of Now is much more comprehensive BUT this book is epic with important truths to consider.

First, I really recommend you start by reading Eckhart's previous book, The Power of Now, first. A lot of ideas glossed over in A New Earth were fully explained back in The Power of Now. This makes sense to me. You don't want Eckhart to write two books with the exact same content. It's like reading Harry Potter #2. You assume you know the relationships of people, their fears and goals and go from there. You have to start out by separating the message from the messenger. Yes, Eckhart can be a bit pompous at times. Yes, he can blatantly state things like "this book is for spiritually awakened people - like those who read my previous book!" :) He talks about the pain-body as if it's an alien living in your stomach, ready to poke its head out. He talks about all corporations everywhere being evil, being all about profit. I know many corporations which do have very great aims. A corporation is just a legal structure. It depends on who runs it, as to what they are about. Heck, some of my friends have incorporated their small businesses to protect their homes. They're not about profit at all, they are very charity minded. Eckhart has many factual errors. He perpetuates the extreme notion of 5 million women slain in a period of 300 years. Yes, I'm female and I abhor some things the church has done to women, but this 5 million slain number is just not reality. It makes people doubt the actual problems which did happen. He claims that the average 60 year old has watched 15 years of TV. This means the average person watches 6 hours of TV a day - EVERY single day - for their entire life from birth. It's scary enough that kids under age 18 average 3 1/2 hrs a day, and adults a bit more, but NOBODY (male or female adults included) averages 6 hours a day. When you know the first 18 years are 3.5 hrs, Eckhart's number is simply not true. Related to this, he seems convinced that men are responsible for all negative history events and that if women ran things we would be a land of peace and joy and plenty. I find both views to be a bit extreme. Eckhart talks about few animals being killed in the Tsunami, but again, he's perpetuating a rumor. As the deputy managing editor of Science scoffs, "I have heard rumors that none of the animals were killed, but how do they know that? Did they take a census?" It's just that we KNOW when people are missing - but we rarely know (or worry about) wild animals missing after something like this. Yes, animals might hear the subsonic noises and be nervous - but to say animals weren't killed makes no sense. I'm sure even if a lot of animals "sensed something wrong" that they would be incapable of moving far enough inland to escape the torrential flooding. Or maybe Eckhart only worries about large, identifiable animals like elephants ... My biggest issue with both of these books is that Eckhart is trumpeting a message of despair. He talks about how our whole world is mad, how we are surrounded by crazies, and that we better rise up against them and claim our minds or we're all going to go insane. It gets a bit much. He talks about the madness accelerating, when really if you look at history things are MUCH calmer now than pretty much any time. People actually try to talk out issues now. Yes we have a few wars - but look back to when EVERYTHING was settled by war. We are making huge progress. But that wouldn't sell books. So that all being said, I do want to say this book has MANY good points, if you take it all with a critical, open eye. He talks about how Buddhism seeks to make us aware of the troubles in daily life and how we must learn to accept the way life is. He says that sin in the original language of the Bible was not "evil", it was about "missing the mark". People were being advised to learn from their mistakes and correct their path as they went. He warns that all possessions fade over time, just as beauty and strength does. Taking pride in these things is setting yourself up to feel sadness when they are no longer there. It is better to be content inwardly, rather than based on external objects. He includes branded name objects in this category, and groups. He points out that your internal frame of mind shapes how you view the world. "Complaining is one of the ego's favorite strategies for strengthening itself," he warns. It's about making you feel better by putting down someone else. He elaborates later - "Complaining is not to be confused with informing someone of a mistake or deficiency so that it can be put right. And to refrain from complaining doesn't necessarily mean putting up with bad quality or behavior." So it is about standing up for yourself, certainly, but not by abusing others. He talks about how some people feel they can't be happy until something in their current life changes (I get a new house, I get a new job). He says other people feel they can never be happy because of something in their past (maybe the DISTANT past). He says both sets of people are mistaken. You can choose to be happy NOW. Not that you resign yourself to your situation necessarily - you can strive to better your life. But you can accept that you are where you are, that you will find serenity where you are while you work to improve things. He says that every moment we're in we should either be thinking of acceptance, enjoyment or enthusiasm. If we really don't want to be changing a flat tire in the rain, simply accept it, do it as best you can, and move on. Being stressed and angry isn't going to make the tire change more quickly, and will add stress hormones and bad health to your list of problems. I definitely think the key messages of this book are important. If Eckhart is phrasing them in a way which most people "get" - even though there are numerous other books on this same topic with this same message - then more power to him. It goes to show that people react differently to phrasing and that a writing style that makes sense to one person does not to another. Sure, a lot of this book is Buddhism - but I'm sure many of these readers have never been in a Buddhist temple and would not have gone to talk with a Buddhist monk. A lot of these concepts are basic psychology, but a person who doesn't read psychology tomes would never know that. Eckhart has made the information palatable to a large group of people. That's a well done task. My complaints are just that he didn't need some of this "incorrect junk" in here - and that his book would have been that much better if it left those things out.

Eckert Tolle's book "A New Earth" hardly needs another Amazon book review considering the 1,451 that have been submitted so far. After reading a number of the reviews, I was startled by the extraordinary esoteric thinking of many the reviewers. This is hardly typical of the average American mind. It appears the "New Age" movement has grown exponentially and it demonstrates the immense hunger for spirituality that has been so suppressed in American culture. In a way, this is sad because it represents a hunger that much of the institutional church is not fulfilling. The critical issue is that Christian spirituality is meant to be pro-active, generating the powerful forces of love, compassion, forgiveness and caring for others while the new secular spirituality can be extremely self-centered. I have chosen to write this book review from the perspective a Catholic peace and social activist. Regardless, none of these reviews can substitute reading "A New Earth" because one needs to personally taste the absolute eloquence and powerful spiritual insights found in Eckhart Tolle's writing. Reading Eckhart Tolle is transformational. His writing is therapeutic. Chapter three, "The Core of Ego", is definitely a prime instructional source for good mental health. "A New Earth" is one of the most important books of our time. It needs to be read by all inquiring spiritual minds and those struggling to understand the increasing violence and insanity in the world. Eckhart Tolle's book presents a clear understanding of human consciousness, profound spirituality and the beginnings of a radical and evolutionary awakening of a higher consciousness. To arrive at this higher consciousness, Eckhart Tolle delves deeply into the dysfunction of the human ego, both in the individual and in the institutions of power and wealth. To Eckhart Tolle, "The greatest achievement of humanity is not its works of art, science or technology, but the recognition of its own dysfunction, its own madness". Eckhart Tolle states how the love of things can contribute to the domination of the human ego and how a consumer society honors material things as a means to self-enhancement.....it distorts our perception of reality and the true nature of our humanity. To quote Eckhart Tolle: "Ego-identification with things creates attachment to things, obsession with things, which in turn creates our consumer society and economic structures where the only measure of progress is always more. The unchecked striving for more, for endless growth, is a dysfunction and a disease. It is the same dysfunction the cancerous cell manifests, whose only goal is to multiply itself, unaware that it is bringing about its own destruction by destroying the organism of which is a part". With "A New Earth" chosen by the Oprah Book Club, and the numerous appearances of Eckhart Tolle on the Oprah Winfrey show, Oprah has played a big role in elevating the spiritual consciousness of hundreds of thousands of American readers. Oprah must be commended for this. As I understand it, more than any other book in recent history, this book was read and reviewed by the vast majority of book clubs in the U.S. I hope "A New Earth" will be the beginning of much needed maturity in American thinking and in American Christianity as well. Yes, to me, Christianity in America needs to mature in a spiritual way if ever there is to be greater maturity in American culture. A higher spiritual consciousness is the essential element for radical social transformation. As Fr. Richard Rohr, of the Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, NM, would say, Christianity in America has become a belonging system, "us" against "them", rather than a system for personal transformation. The tragedy is that Christianity has become in some ways just another institution seeking its own perpetuation and power, dominated by the human ego. The dysfunction of the human ego is what Christ tried so hard to get through to the minds of his disciples, particularly when he told Peter, the "first pope", to "get behind me you devil" (Mathiew 24,15) or "Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye" (Mathew 7). Christ had the perfect non-dualistic mind. In fact, addressing the human ego goes to the heart of all of the world's major religions, but Christianity seems to have walked away from it. Christianity chose to do so when it became part of the Roman Empire in 325 AD. Since then, Christianity has had a hard time critiquing the system and the unjust status quo that stems from the dysfunction of the human ego. Christianity has found it difficult to critique the system because it has become a part of the system. The culturally imprisoned mindset of many American Christians is totally contrary to the mind of Christ. As mentioned, addressing the problem of the human ego goes to the heart of all of the world's major religions. But not often enough do religious or spiritual writers critique the institutions of corporate capitalism. Eckhart Tolle's book is most timely to stimulate a new national conversation, particularly when considering America's "never ending war" against terrorism and the near dictatorial powers of the U.S. Military Industrial Complex. It is time U.S. citizens recognize that government propaganda in support of war and the interests of corporate capitalism is a force that strategically preys on the weaknesses of the human ego. Actually corporate capitalism can be said to be diabolical as it seeks to enrich itself by altering human consciousness. This then exaggerates the human ego that has led to a dysfunctional society. Eckhart Tolle never used the word "capitalism". Yet the underlying message of his writing is a severe critique of capitalism. I guess you could say the word "capitalism" has been "sanctified" in America, the unspoken word or the unseen elephant in the living room. Eckhart Tolle avoids saying in a direct manner, "corporate capitalism is intrinsically evil and unsustainable" or "corporate consumer capitalism alters human consciousness and is the destroyer of the human spirit". You have to come to that conclusion yourself. In March 2009, there was a conference at the Center of Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, NM called "The Emerging Church: Christians Creating a New World Together". This conference was attended by a thousand people, about half of whom were Catholic, the rest were mainline and evangelical Protestants and other Christians. Many of those at the conference believed that the future of the church will be the coming together of like minded people from all denominations who seek a more prophetic and contemplative faith. A higher global consciousness that is seeking a more just, sustainable and compassionate world is already a powerful emerging force in the world. The "emerging church" seeks to be part of this higher social consciousness. It seeks to serve as praxis and as co-creator for the evolutionary destiny of humankind to consciously provide for the survival of it's own species. An increasing number of Christians view this higher consciousness as the universal consciousness of the risen Christ. To these Christians, the salvation and survival of humankind is what the death and resurrection of Christ is all about. A more contemplative faith is about centering oneself in Presence, through meditation and contemplation, seeking wisdom through the gift of the Holy Spirit. This is done by embracing opposing thoughts and coming to spiritual discernment. Particularly for a Catholic activist, this centering of the human spirit is the critical means of overcoming personal anger when so involved in non-violent civic activism. Spiritual discernment goes to the heart of a healthy democracy as well. A healthy democracy is truly an act of the human spirit. Democracy is meant to work for the common good and to question the unjust status quo. This is why corporate capitalism hates democracy and seeks to destroy it with the total corruption of the U.S. Congress. I see the teachings of scholars like Eckhart Tolle and the emerging church movement as bringing maturity to Christianity in the 21st Century. It is the coming together of like minded people of all faiths that see the human ego, enticed by the institutions of corporate capitalism, as being the prime cause of social unrest, the scapegoating of others and the waging of war. It cannot be denied, the oppression of global capitalism is the cause of the "blow-back" of terrorism. This blow-back from war and economic domination is in reality the powerful forces of spirituality at work, the liberation of the human spirit. In meditation and contemplation, where we seek to separate ourselves from the dominance of the human ego, we can come to see what the Divine Spirit wants us to see, the holiness of all people, to understand our own brokenness and thus becoming able to forgive others with compassion. Father Richard Rohr stated so well in a September 4, 2009 article in the National Catholic Reporter that another word for contemplation is non-dualistic thinking. "That's what makes people able to be merciful and forgiving. You can't love your enemies with a low level dualistic mind. It's impossible. You don't have the software to know how to do it. So we tell people to love your enemies. A normal Catholic can't do that with the software that he or she has been given. Catholics were never taught they need a different consciousness to understand the Gospel".

I looked at this book last year when Oprah had her series with him, and for whatever reason it did not resonate. I had read his book The Power of Now years ago and found it esoteric and 'heavy going' (too 'heady' and abstract for me at the time.) But I happened to be at Bart's Books in Ojai this weekend and picked this up. My friend and I were there on a kind of inspirational/contemplative getaway and the book seemed fitting fare to imbibe on the four hour train ride home. The phrase when the student is ready the teacher appears is what comes to mind. His message, most particularly the section about the 'pain body' and the ego and their cooperation with each other, just hit me like a thunderclap. Now I had spent the weekend being 'triggered' by someone I found obtuse, oblivious, thoughtless and even deceptive (our hostess at the BnB type place we stayed at). I spent a chunk of time fuming over how I wasn't getting what I paid for etc. Then in talking to my friend I realized I had had this SAME experience at least three other occasions in the past! Stayed somewhere where the female hostess/proprietor was unwell, unavailable, and not offering the level of service their reviews and marketing claimed they had. And when I read on the train about pain bodies, how we are all born with them, they vary in strength and activity, but when they are recognized (observed with neutrality), when events and the ego conspire to 'feed them' with stories of 'they did it again! this always happens to me! I recognized what had happened to me and in an instant the indignation melted into bemusement and I did indeed observe that the blocked energy of the pain body transmuted into a beautiful kind of awareness. In describing my epiphany to someone today I likened the pain body to the Wicked Witch of the West in Wizard of Oz who dissolves when pure water (awareness/ presence) is thrown on her. Our ego is clever and fancy and often the more 'intellectual' our tendencies, the more 'enlightened' and special we deem ourselves, the more 'defended' and blind we can be. The triggering event that provokes our outrage contains a beautiful gift if we can just allow neutral awareness to occur, even momentarily. All the stories rush in, the list of slights, the reasons our rage /indignation/frustration/annoyance/disgust is so very justified. But if we realize through the gift of a message like Tolle's , that indignation and defendedness is not real power...it's illusory, empty, and can lead to tragedy if left unchecked by awareness. We observe in the present world we live in, the array of fear permutations doing their riotous blooming as paranoia, lack, defensiveness, self righteousness, retaliation, and the endless cycle of misery we know as reality and 'the news' in mainstream media. But those things grow in us too, in the dank closed up world the ego has created in us, trapping us (seemingly). It was the 'pain body' concept that has rocked my world and feels as if the heavens themselves opened and gave me a rope of light to climb out of my pain with. Gave me hope that I don't have to stay 'stuck' in a holding pattern of experiencing variations on a theme of the same old pattern of me 'not getting what I need' story. I think the term 'Pain Body' does not quite do justice to this phenomenon. When we are 'titillated' with schadenfreude, the delight of our 'enemies' or the 'elites' stumbling from their lofty perch, when we thrill to a roadside accident or our pupils dilate and hearts race with excitement in witnessing gratuitous violence, or even the smug horror I feel watching my reality show guilty pleasures....that also is feeding the 'pain body'. It indeed likes to 'feed' and its fare is anything arising out of human suffering. The ego is its handmaiden. The concept can resonate with many mythological archetypes including those in Christianity (I'm not technically a Christian but I was raised so), but for me I have never heard / read it described in terms that are so accessible, and in a manner that is gentle and not as harsh and cold as even some Buddhist concepts of samsara can be. (Tolle describes the Christ figure himself in his suffering as the embodied symbolic 'pain body' which seeks to be transmuted into pure awareness through 'allowing' and non resistance to 'what is'. (Forgiveness in Christian terms). The allowing and nonresistance can then give way to the real power of Presence (Paradise in Christian terms). Fighting and resistance continue the pain, allowing transforms it. This is the paradox of the crucifixion that always puzzled me as a child (why is it good that people suffer? why must we always look at this gruesome imagery or talk and pray about it? why was Judas bad if what Christ did was necessary and preordained? etc.) Amazing that the same message delivered at an earlier time in my life could not take root, but now, when I was open, it has indeed been received.

This book is deep. I read it over about 6 weeks. Small bites at a time for me, allowed me to really process what I was reading in a better way. Something's really resonated with me, others not so much. I think this is the type of book that you'll take away what you need at the time you're reading it and if you reread it again later, your takeaway will probably be something different. In other words, I think you're going to get what you need at the time you're reading it. While I liked this book, I feel I got more out of The Power of Now, but this is still a worthwhile read and I'm sure I'll revisit it again at some point.

I gave “A New Earth” five stars because Eckhart Tolle hit the nail squarely on the head. The source of all human misery is the “self” and the most effective way to reduce misery is to diminish the “self.” In order to do that, we must keep reminding ourselves of this fact, over and over and over again. Every day. Every hour. Every minute. So if “A New Earth” seems repetitive, it’s because repetition is what it takes to free ourselves from the “self.” I will now paraphrase the fairly large number of negative 1-star and 2-star Amazon reviews. These fall into four categories: 1. The book is soooo boooring. I didn't get instant enlightenment after reading the first five pages, so I just gave up. It’s just another shallow self-help book. 2. The book contradicts my religion, therefore it's wrong and nobody should read it. 3. Oprah Winfrey deceived the public by recommending this book. 4. My book arrived damaged, had pages missing, or had things written in the margins, so it’s a bad book and nobody should read it. Tolle tells the reader right up front that this book isn't for everyone. It's not intended to be a "self-help" book or to provide entertainment. The main purpose of "self-help" books is to stroke the ego and make it feel superior to other egos. "A New Earth" does pretty much the opposite of that. Tolle isn’t trying to “help” the self; he’s trying to help us get rid of the self (or at least get rid of the incessant noise coming from it). Furthermore, Tolle doesn't promise that reading it will "enlighten" anyone. The purpose of the book is point out the fallacy of the ego and why the ego causes so much misery and heartache, and to help us steer our attention away from it. If people expected to be entertained, they would have been much better off spending $15 on a movie and popcorn. Several of the people posting negative reviews bought the CD audio version and played it while commuting to work! I don’t know whether they were listening to the CDs on a bus, a train, or in a car, but I’d say listening to Tolle while trying to navigate a car through rush-hour traffic is pretty much the worst possible way to absorb his message. There were also complaints about the quality of Tolle’s voice on the CDs. Some said it is “flat” or “monotone” or “boring” or hard to understand because of its German accent. Who were they expecting to hear? Don Rickles? Tolle’s English is nearly perfect in my opinion, and anyone who has watched an Eckhart Tolle video (and there are many free videos of him on YouTube) should know what his voice sounds like (including his soft German accent) and what to expect when listening to it. I don’t understand why a person clinging to religious dogma and believing it already provides all the answers to life's purpose would even want to read a book about finding life's purpose. I suspect the reason is because their religion really hasn’t given their lives true purpose, causing an underlying angst and thirst for the truth. Meanwhile, their judgmental egos engage in outrage because it enhances an image of their own righteousness. I also find it very odd that some reviewers who gave "A New Earth" one or two stars end up criticizing Oprah Winfrey as much, if not more, than the author who wrote the book. I watched the whole 1:29:00 of Oprah interviewing Tolle on YouTube, and I heard a fairly accurate description of the book's content. Nowhere did either of them claim the book would be entertaining or that it would provide instant enlightenment. I can't quite figure out why people think Oprah deceived them or what they were hoping to find in this book based on that interview. I guess the ego will blame everyone (other than itself) for being in such a sad state and will do and say anything to keep the truth from penetrating consciousness. Finally, there is no reason to expect a book advertised as used or second-hand to arrive in mint condition. If you’re disappointed with your purchase based on the book’s condition, your beef is with Amazon, the third-party supplier, or the company that shipped it to you, but not with the author or Oprah Winfrey. Giving the book a 1-star rating based on a book’s physical condition on arrival does a disservice to the reading public.

A New Earth” by Eckhart Tolle is one of those books that challenges the way you look at yourself, your emotions, and the world around you. It goes beyond simple self-help and dives into deeper ideas about ego, consciousness, and inner peace. What I appreciated most was how the book encourages self-awareness without feeling preachy. Tolle explains how much suffering comes from living through the ego and reacting unconsciously to life. Some chapters made me stop and reflect on my own habits, reactions, and patterns in a way few books have. The writing can feel deep and philosophical at times, so it’s not necessarily a quick read. It’s the kind of book where you may need to pause, reread sections, and really sit with the ideas. But if you’re open to personal growth, spirituality, mindfulness, or understanding yourself on a deeper level, it can be very impactful. Overall, “A New Earth” is a powerful and thought-provoking book that encourages readers to become more present, aware, and intentional in life. It’s a book that stays with you long after you finish it.

This book is perhaps even more descriptive of the truth that Tolle points to in The Power of Now. Both books are wonderful, even revolutionary transmissions of truth. This is my review of TPON: "Tolle writes in simple sentences, with a direct tone and practical, modern language. However, what he describes is the timeless truth of the present moment, the very awareness that sages and masters have been pointing humans toward for millennia. I do not have adequate words to describe how the book has changed my state of being. I was in deep despair and anxiety in my Junior year of college, and my therapist gave me the book. He must have known intuitively that conventional psychotherapy couldn't help me. Within a few weeks of reading and re-reading, I had a very fearful and painful night, with the ego fighting for survival and my identification, and then peace arose the next morning. It has not left me since. I have given the book to around 30 people. It is the most simple and powerful spiritual book I've come across, with authors like Jeff Foster, Byron Katie, and Gangaji being close seconds. Here are some quotes from the book: "So when you listen to a thought, you are aware not only of the thought but also of yourself as the witness of the thought. A new dimension of consciousness has come in. As you listen to the thought, you feel a conscious presence - your deeper self - behind or underneath the thought, as it were." Ch-1 "Instead of "watching the thinker," you can also create a gap in the mind stream simply by directing the focus of your attention into the Now. Just become intensely conscious of the present moment. This is a deeply satisfying thing to do. In this way, you draw consciousness away from mind activity and create a gap of no-mind in which you are highly alert and aware but not thinking. This is the essence of meditation." Ch-1 "Why should we be addicted to thinking? ...Because you are identified with it, which means that you derive your sense of self from the content and activity of your mind. Because you believe that you would cease to be if you stopped thinking. As you grow up, you form a mental image of who you are, based on your personal and cultural conditioning. We may call this phantom self the ego. It consists of mind activity and can only be kept going through constant thinking. The term ego means different things to different people, but when I use it here it means a false self, created by unconscious identification with the mind." Ch-1 "To the ego, the present moment hardly exists. Only past and future are considered important. This total reversal of the truth accounts for the fact that in the ego mode the mind is so dysfunctional. It is always concerned with keeping the past alive, because without it - who are you? It constantly projects itself into the future to ensure its continued survival and to seek some kind of release or fulfillment there. It says: "One day, when this, that, or the other happens, I am going to be okay, happy, at peace." Ch-1 "Most humans are never fully present in the now, because unconsciously they believe that the next moment must be more important than this one. But then you miss your whole life, which is never not now." The book has the potential to set you free from compulsive worry and excessive thinking, if you are ready. $5 for a used copy is perhaps the greatest deal I've ever seen, I've bought about 45 copies." A New Earth describes the ego and the pain body in much more depth, and includes more of Tolle's observations about human society than TPON. These are two books that you should have around. -Ethan

„A New Earth“ is one of the best books I have ever read.

For this price, you’d at least expect a cosmetically fine book. Other than that, the book speaks for itself, it’s decent.

Lo consiglio

Love the book

J'ai connu cet écrivain grâce à mon frère. Il avait lu "the power of now" et il m'avait envoyé en audio, j'ai bien aimé. Récemment je faisais des recherches sur la conscience, et c'est comme ça en effet que j'ai retrouvé Ekhart Tolle a New earth. J'ai été assez vite charmé de les premiers pages de ce livre. Après 40 pages lues, déjà je peux dire que je vois le monde d'un autre angle, et ça commence petit à petit à changer ma vie, de mal en bien évidemment. Il y a une connexion rapide qui s'est fait entre moi et ce livre, de que je le prends pour continuer ma lecture je m'en souviens très vite ce que j'avais lu des pages précédentes. Cela ne m'arrive pas à d'autres livres, en plus depuis longtemps j'ai une très mauvaise mémoire mais ce livre est magique, ça améliore ma mémoire, la capacité de concentration. Je suis très très satisfaite de cet achat