Book: 20260808 to 20260825, "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle
20260808 - Chapter One The Flowering of Human Consciousness - 1
It's surprise that Eckhart Tolle got almost everything wrong, when they are related to science.
No doubt he has perfect control of his mind(consciousness), but he is not humble in front of science.
There are a lot of things that science itself cannot handle properly, so far. We still need to learn to live in the moment.
20260809 - Chapter Two Ego: The Current State of Humanity - 25
Ego is our major obstacle.
At that stage, some children refer to themselves in the third person. "Johnny is hungry." p28
Can I play this trick? If I use my name to replace "I" in thinking, then the real "I" is behind my thoughts. If I notice the difference between these two all the time, then it will be much easier to prevent myself been controlled by emotion or subconsciousness.
The ego isn't wrong; it's just unconscious. p42
The ultimate boss is not the ego, but "I".
How can I stop the voice in my mind?
20260813 - Chapter Three The Core of Ego - 59
"How dare you serve me cold soup...…" That's complaining. There is a "me" here that loves to feel personally offended by the cold soup and is going to make the most of it. p64
I think the point here is about "you" instead of "me". We should always focus on "things" instead of "people". That means we don't need to mention the word "you" in talking.
However, we are used to think from our personal point of view.
These days you frequently hear the expression "the war against" this or that, and whenever I hear it, I know that it is condemned to failure. p75
It's easy to criticize other people, but it's hard to find better options. What's the better way to handle war, drug, crime, poverty? Failures are part of the ecosystem.
Should we get rid of ego? No need to eliminate it completely. Just make sure it doesn't control us.
Once you realize and accept that all structures (forms) are unstable, even the seemingly solid material ones, peace arises within you. p81
What's the meaning of "obsession"? Let it go.
The three predominant states of egoic relationships are: wanting, thwarted wanting (anger, resentment, blaming, complaining), and indifference. p84
Indifference! That's interesting.
20260814 - Chapter Four Role-Playing: The Many Faces of the Ego - 85
Say: "There is unhappiness in me." Then investigate it. p95
Good idea. We are always in some kind of mood, and normally there is a reason for that. This practice make us more sensitive to our ego.
Don't seek happiness. Happiness is ever elusive, but freedom from unhappiness is attainable now, by facing what is rather than making up stories about it. p96
Well said.
Although eventually suffering destroys the ego - but not until you suffer consciously. p102
For example, boredom brings us suffering, and meditation is hard.
The ego cannot distinguish between a situation and its interpretation of and reaction to that situation. p110
Always ask ourselves: why do I feel happy/sad/nervous/angry/numb ?
20260817 - Chapter Five The Pain-Body - 129
An instinctive response is the body's direct response to some external situation. An emotion, on the other hand, is the body's response to a thought. p133
Our duck's lesson is this: Flap your wings - which translates as "let go of the story" - and return to the only place of power: the present moment. p138
Deep breath may work. Physical exercise may work. Watching the backyard may work. Stretch may work.
20260817 - Chapter Six Breaking Free - 161
A good example is FSD. When the car drive by itself, or some other driver, we don't have "road rage". If our emotion doesn't represent us, then we are not affected by it.
20260822 - Chapter Seven Finding Who You Truly Are - 185
Thinking isolates a situation or event and calls it good or bad, as if it had a separate existence. Through excessive reliance on thinking, reality becomes fragmented. p196
We are the brain in a vat. We are the result of emergence of that brain.
What is my relationship with Life? p203
This question is interesting. What is my relationship with Time and Space? What is my relationship with Assets and other people?
People believe themselves to be dependent on what happens for their happiness, that is to say, dependent on form. p213
Good point! Do we really need external stuff to stay happy? Or, one step further, do we need internal thoughts to stay happy?
20260822 - Chapter Eight The Discovery of Inner Space -223
This, too, will pass. p224
Nothing last forever. Everything temporarily exist, and they all (indirectly) connect to each other.
So addicted to anyone or anything is weird.
20260825 - Chapter Nine Your Inner Purpose - 257
Ultimate question: what do I want?
There is no ultimate answer.
We need to do one thing first before finding the answer: Awaken the mind without dwelling on anything. (应无所住而生其心)
Let the monkey(ego) calmed down first. If the ego keep talking all the time, we are distracted all the time.
How to calm it down?
Substitute ten thousand wandering thoughts with a single focal thought; substitute that single thought with the state of thoughtlessness. (以一念代万念, 以无念代一念)
What is this "single focal thought"? The one thing we are doing at the moment. That's live in the present.
The temporary answer will pop up automatically, when the monkey stop talking.
Will we be happy if the monkey stop talking? Will we be happy if we are not distracted, and become the real master of ourselves? Surely.
We all have a bowl of murky water, we should stop stirring it, and wait for the dust to settle. Then we can see what is in it.
Why people want to play games or watch TikTok? To let the monkey take full control.
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