The Flowering of Consciousness

A New Earth
Eckhart Tolle
Chpt 1

Feel free to create dialogue in the comments section.  I'd love to hear how these quotes resonated within you, if at all.

"...most humans see only the outer forms, unaware of the inner essence, just as they are unaware of their own essence and identify only with their own physical and psychological form."


"A glimpse is enough to initiate the awakening process, which is irreversible."


"An essential part of the awakening is the recognition of the unawakened you, the ego as it thinks, speaks, and acts, as well as the recognition of the collectively conditioned mental process that perpetuate the unawakened state."


"According to Christian teachings, the normal collective state of humanity is one of "original sin"... translated from ancient Greek to the New Testament, to sin means to miss the mark... to miss the point of human existence."


"Fear, greed, the desire for power... Through them, you misinterpret every situation, leading to misguided action designed to rid you of fear and satisfy your need for more" 


"You do not become good by trying to be good, but by finding the goodness that is already within you, and allowing that goodness to emerge."

"Over the centuries, many things were added that had nothing to do with the original teachings [Christianity], but were a reflection of a fundamental misunderstanding."

"They [Christian teachings] became ideologies, belief systems people could identify with and so use them to enhance their false sense of self."

"They [religious followers] equate Truth with thought, and as they are completely identified with thought (their mind), they claim to be in sole possession of the truth in an unconscious attempt to protect their identity."

"... how 'spiritual' you are has nothing to do with what you believe but everything to do with your state of consciousness."

"... 'the voice in my head' is not who I am. Who am I then?  The one who sees that."

"'A new heaven' is the emergence of  a transformed state of consciousness, and 'a new earth' is its reflection in the physical realm."

"... heaven is not a location but refers to an inner realm of consciousness."

"Earth, on the other hand, is the outer manifestation in form, which is always a reflection of the inner.  Collective human consciousness and life on our planet is intrinsically connected."