Having read “The Power of Now” only recently, I was curious to see if Tolle’s latest had a least a slightly sunnier view on the current state of human nature. Sigh. Not so much. As much as I generally agree with his underlying points (if we all awakened, the world would be a much better place — very much an oversimplification of his book, but that’s the general idea), I have a difficult time with how he expresses them in at least some of the book. He seems to feel that the current state of humanity is very much a mess, which seems to harken back to the notion that we are all sinners who need to be fixed.
For an example, on page 37, he talks about “the unchecked striving for more, for endless growth, is a dysfunction and a disease.” It seems as though as long as you are happy with your current state of being, recognizing that the Universe is continually expanding is a good and positive thing. This sentence in particular seems to conflict directly with the Hicks’ outlook. I’d love to hear what others who are familiar with both authors would say. Using the way the Hicks’ books look at things, it’s as though Tolle is focusing on the ingredients he doesn’t want in his pie, rather than what he does.
On the other hand, he does have some very good points. On page 62, he talks about how the ego reacts to others’ egos: “instead of overlooking unconsciousness in others, you make it into their identity” and “what you react to in another, you strengthen in yourself.”
And, on page 228, he sums up true freedom and enlightened living as “nonresistence, nonjudgment, and nonattachment.” Now that is a beautiful thought…more of that in his writing would be great.
Posted by: Tolle, Eckhart — Meg
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