Eckhart Tolle: "A New Earth" | Oprah's Book Club Bonus Episode

Okay, echartle. I mean, my favorite. favorite favorite [music]. conversation to have in the world. I'm. so happy. So, how many of you were. [music] EARD readers before this? EARD. readers. Oh. Oh, this is the Echart. reading class over here. And how many of. you This is your first time. Oh, this is. exciting, too. Wow. Ah, this makes my heart sing. I'm so. [music] excited. Back in January of 2025, I picked.

Echarolei's seminal book, A New Earth: [music] Awakening to Your Life's. Purpose, for the second time for my book. club. That's the first time I've ever. picked a book twice because that [music]. is how strongly I believe in Echart's. profound spiritual insights. Deep within you, there is a silent. power. This year marks the 20th anniversary of. A New Earth. It's been translated into. 50 languages and sold over 15 million. copies. I believe that Echart's.

teachings have never been more relevant. or needed than they are right now. Even one conscious breath is a mini. meditation. My hope and intention is that these. [music] principles can help you navigate. the turbulent times we are now living. in. Echart and I met at a local. Starbucks in New York City for some. coffee and conversation with an audience. who had just read this book. [music]. They had so many breakthrough moments. around his teachings that we recorded.

this special bonus episode. I'm excited. to share with you. First, listen to what. the audience told us about their. experience. To have the gift of being together in an. audience where we got to share moments. of just presencing together, I think was. a very special thing. Being in the same. room with Oprah and Echart felt like. walking through a portal of presence. It was my first time reading A New. Earth. It's the main thing for me. I. just took away being more present in my. life. And it's amazing the rewards that. just come from that simple task.

For me, it was like going to church. Like the best church you've ever been. to. Like you never need to go to church. again. Something shifted when EARD started to. talk about the pain body which I have. read over and over again. One can find great refuge in just the. presence of the now. Know thyself. Cease to identify with the. content of your life. Big aha moment for.

me. How I do what I do matters more than. what I do. to understand that it's not. always about me and that everyone is on. their own spiritual journey. I'm living life awake, one day at a time. for the very first time in my life. Reading a new earth was a big shift for. me. I have never had a favorite book. before. I do now. Echarole's Pearls of. Wisdom have enriched my inner peace and.

I love myself more. A day with Eard and. Oprah. How does it get any better than. that? What else is possible? Truly. Dear listener, I'm hoping that you. enjoyed this special bonus episode of. our transformative conversation with. Earli. Mark, did you have a question? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Um, so I feel like I've been on this. journey for definitely quite some time. and your book absolutely contextualized. a lot of where I'm currently at. And for.

me, I'm at this place where my I'm a. social person by nature, but my job. demands me to be extremely social. Um, and I feel that in moving towards a more. present place of consciousness, I am. constantly managing a tremendous amount. of people who are not as aware, which. will often times then lead me to feel. either very isolated or lonely or not. quite know how to manage myself. So I. guess my question is how do you take.

care of yourself when you're constantly. managing all of the egos around you who. may not be as aware or present as you. are right now. Do you find yourself uh. resenting the fact that other people are. not present? I think I eb and flow. I think there's. times where I'll go into consciousness. and I'll say okay you know uh that's. where they are and this is where I am. and I have to respect them for where. they're at. And then there's other times. where I'm like, "Ah, this is really. hard." [laughter].

Yes. And I will get angry. Yes. Yes. That's part of the acceptance practice. of the present moment, whatever it is, because it's quite normal for humans to. be surrounded by other humans who are. not doing what they're supposed to do. That's usually the case that they go. against your expectations. Uh you might. have noticed that humans can be quite. difficult. No, [laughter]. not not not not you, the others, not.

and and so um it's very important to. make that part of your presence practice. of accepting the limitations of other. humans. And again, don't make those. things. Oh, I love that. Make that a part of the. presence practice. Yeah. You accepting the people who don't get. it the same way you do. That's great. that they're there what are they there. to teach you acceptance. Exactly.

That's [laughter]. they're there to teach you acceptance. They're there to help you to surrender. into the space. And I think surrender is. such a hard term for people because for. most people it means giving up. Yes. Or I failed or I've given in or I've you. know I didn't keep I didn't fight it. Yeah. It's not surrender is a very. powerful thing. It's not there. I mean. there's another word resignation. You.

you that's a different thing. There's uh. negativity about resignations. Oh, there's nothing I can do. Um in English, English language has two expressions. One is I don't mind and the other is I. don't care. So we're not not talking. about I don't care because there's a. negativity. You might have given up. I. just don't care anymore. Of course. Oh, Mark just had aha. I can see it. Mark is aha over there. I think that's. great. But that is why it's there. When. you say I don't care anymore.

You still care. There's a negativity. inside that I don't care anymore, but it. still does. But she I don't mind that. Then you're free. I don't mind. Oh, that's a good one, isn't it? Okay. What what just happened to Mark is is. the is one of the big lessons I learned. the very first time I read this book on. page 41 where you say life will give you. whatever experience is most helpful for. the evolution of your consciousness. How. do you know this is the experience you. need because this is the experience you.

are having at this moment. I think a lot. of people have trouble with that phrase. because they think that you're saying. you brought this moment on yourself but. that's not what you're saying. No. No. You will often find uh in new. age um teachings. you will find often people say um. you created. why did you choose that you you created. that moment and I I never say that you. created it what I do say is. uh accept this moment as if you had.

chosen it I don't say you chose it. that's not helpful because that makes. you feel guilty or resentful I didn't. choose. why would I choose this I didn't do this. to myself. Yeah. Accept this moment as if you had chosen. it because it's here. That that works. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And so it is there for the. evolution of your consciousness. Everything. So think about that for a. moment. Life will give you the. experience you need for the evolution of.

your consciousness. And how do you know. that's the experience you need? Because. that's the experience you're having. And. think about every time you've been. through a tough thing, what was it there. to do? It was to evolve you to the next. level, right? No matter how hard it was, it was there. to evolve you, to help you move out of. that and move you to the next level. So. when you're in the middle of the thing, you just ask the thing, "What is it you. what are you here to show me so I can.

move on out quickly?". That's what I That's what I found. And. sometimes you don't know until. afterwards why it did that for you. But. and now a child for example a child. cannot probably cannot do that. Cannot. ask why am I what is what is it teaching. me? But afterwards we look look back on. their childhood and say all the. suffering that I went through as a child. were actually part of my evolution. If I. had had a more normal childhood.

I wouldn't be who I am. The same with. you because I remember you talked about. your childhood and your mother. uh if your mother had been able to give. you true love, more love, you won't be. who you are because that forced you to. go deeper within yourself and and find. the source there. Absolutely. Absolutely. It's hard to see. it particularly when you're a child. though. You can't see it. So I want to. introduce you all to Victoria Garrick. Brown and Aubrey Gavalo. They are. zooming in from Los Angeles. And I hear. that you guys were inspired by Echarts.

and my 10-p part digital series of a new. earth. They host their own podcast. series on a new earth to bring it to a. different generation, a younger. generation. It's called So Much to Say. So hi to both of you and tell us how did. this come about? Hi, I'm Victoria Aubrey. Thank you so much for this opportunity. We first started reading the book and we. only got through about three chapters. until we needed a breather. It's dense.

It's very dense. We felt moved and changed. It took us a few years to then feel like. we had grasped just the awareness of. ourselves versus ego to then finish the. book and go further into the material. And when we did that, we would call each. other and we'd go over the chapters and. we thought, why not record this so that. other people who maybe don't have a. friend who wants to do the work can can. listen and feel part of it. And as far. as the title, we I would call Victoria. after every chapter and just say, I have.

so much to say. And she was like, there. it is. There's the title of the podcast. So much to say. So, what what have been. the biggest ahas for you? Both. Well, actually, Oprah, the quote that you just. read is the one that I was joking when. Chris Evans was on. That's the one I. would tattoo. It literally it it helps. you accept the moment as it comes, but. there was actually a part that we're. still stuck on and we're hoping EART. could help us better understand it. It's. on page 141 and it says, "Nothing ever. happened in the past that can prevent.

you from being present now. And if the. past cannot prevent you from being. present now, what power does it have?". Yeah. And you know, as a personal. example, my dad passed away when I was. young. And while I'm in a great place in. my life now, that is something that I. hold with me every day. And I'm curious. how you hold presence while also still. holding space for that person and that. sort of loss. Yes. So the you can remember the past uh. but at the same time be in touch with.

the deeper dimension of presence as you. remember the past. You're not the past. The memory of the past does not. completely absorb your attention. Some. of your attention remains within you as. the awareness. You are the awareness of. this. This this memory lives in you and. you honor this memory. You're not. completely absorbed in it. You're not. completely consumed by it. That's also.

the case if for example somebody close. to you dies. Of course there is mourning. there's deep sadness and usually after. close to you dies sadness comes in waves. it comes and goes that that is something. to be allowed and that's fine but in. between the waves of sadness you can go. into come to a place of acceptance go. deep within so there's peace even and. then even when a wave of sadness comes.

there's still peace underneath the. sadness that's I exper experience that. when my parents died there were tears. and at the same time there were was an. underlying peace. There was an. acceptance and a peace and they both. coexist. They it but does not exclude. the fact that you are mourning. Well, what you need to be careful about is. that the the morning does not talk does. not develop into something pathological.

because you could be if two years later. you're still weeping a lot this then. this sadness has taken possession of. your mind. You cannot stop thinking. about this person that passed away. You're continuously riving the memories. and the memories are very painful now. All the good times you had are now. considered as very painful memories. because they're all gone. And then. mourning can become pathological. So you.

have to be careful that that there's a. time for mourning and then there's a. time for also for letting go eventually. Then the peace prevails rather than this. the sadness may still still come in. little waves but then peace begins to. take over. It's you always live in. always two worlds. This wood I sometimes. call it. You're a human being. You are a. human that's the person that's. conditioning of the person that has the. reactions of a person. But many humans.

don't realize yet that they are al. there's a being dimension which is the. awareness. And so you have to have one. you have one foot in the human world. where you are a person conditioned by. the past and you have you need to have a. certain amount of compassion with that. entity also that character that you are. you have some compassion but you are. more fun. that's your human part. Yes. more fundamentally you are the.

being you and so the the realization of. the beingness of you of the deep I am. that is the spir spiritual realization. and the but the important thing is this. being dimension as opposed to what many. so-called spiritual people believe they. think they they believe that at some. point they're going to become. enlightened if they if this or that to. the other happens but It never happens. in time. Spiritual awakening is not an.

achievement. It's a discovery. Because. everybody already has that dimension. within themselves. You don't need to get. it. You don't need to achieve it. You. only need to discover what's already. there because it's it's it's something. It's a part of you. You being a human. being. And being is the essence of you. Being is the essence of you. That is why we're here. That's right. is to discover that. Yes, that's the discovery of all the.

ancient traditions. I don't think we're doing a good job. [laughter]. I don't think we're doing such a good. job. We are work in progress. So, we're not a. finished product. So, and that's the. good news because if we were with humans. were finished product would very sad. Yeah. Okay. Echart says each one of us. is a work in progress. Our spiritual. development is far from finished. We are. on the way to awakening but we haven't. arrived yet. Being awake means reaching.

the deeper dimension of ourselves. [music] that is higher than thinking. Both Buddha and Jesus described this. heightened awareness. [music] Echart. says we will find it when we relinquish. our normal state of consciousness which. he describes [music]. as relentless compulsive thinking. So we are work in progress and all the. ancient traditions point to the very. thing that we're talking about the being. underneath the human. This is in. esoteric Christianity is discovering the.

Christ within. Yes. As your essence identity. Uh in Buddhism. they talk about the discovery of your. Buddha your innate Buddha nature. Every. human has that Buddha nature. or in. Indian spirituality it is the atman the. divinity within you. Brahman is the. external divinity and atman is the the. inner divinity. And so unhappiness no longer has a place.

with you is because you echarolei in. this lifetime as a human have focused. more on your being than your human part. Exactly. Exactly. That's it. I got it. [laughter]. That's exactly That's exactly it. Thank. you so much. I know you all have so much. to say. We do. And one last thing we wanted to. share with you guys is that we have a. group chat. We text our aha moments with. our friends and it's called an echart a.

day keeps the ego away. Oh, I love that. I love that. [applause]. I love that. I love that. I love that. So, what was your e card for today? Did. you have an echart thing for today? This is our echart for today. [laughter]. Your echart is actually echart for. today. An echart of day. Thank you both. so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Carrie, where are you? Hi. Thank you both. Um, I wasn't able to receive this message.

when I read it a long time ago. I was a. young mom. and I experienced some severe big tea. trauma. that I never dealt with. Well, I dealt. with it with addictive behaviors that. I'm ashamed of and I never tackled those. ever until this past year. So, when I. reread this book, I was able to receive it for the first. time.

So, I'm truly grateful for that. But the. pain of big tea trauma and the the the. numbing out of addictive behaviors can. come in like a tsunami and just take it. takes me out and the the memories. and I haven't yet been able to deal with. that pain body. I haven't been able to. make peace with with that person and I. keep in this shame spiral. So, h how do.

we separate our identity and honor our. experiences. and get through that? Like, aren't. addictive behaviors just feeding the. pain body? And how do I separate that? Just can you give an example of the. addictive behavior so that we can feel. it more? Yeah, my addictive behaviors. are are definitely alcohol,

right? And overshopping. would be the two things that I numb out. to. Yeah. And so you still experience that. occasionally as a recurring problem. Yes. That that's what I'm in treatment. for and in therapy for. Right. Okay. Let's see. Um. [clears throat] so addiction of that. kind um can be very very powerful. They're almost like a case of. possession. You're possessed by the it. can transform a person's behavior that.

in the case it's alcohol or or shopping. I usually recommend that uh when you. feel the. addictive pull coming on. You can you. can feel it in yourself. Um, at that. moment create a time interval and allow. yourself to feel the energy of the. addiction, that pull that that wants you. to has taken you over. Instead of.

immediately. doing what it wants you to do and giving. in, make it into meditation. Put the. light of your awareness on the feeling. of it. Won't that send you further into wanting. to do it? Uh, no. Because awareness grows, the. awareness will grow and the because. you're shining the light of awareness on. an unconscious pattern. Whenever you. shine the light of awareness on an. unconscious pattern, it tends to shrink,

diminish. It may not go away immediately. It's. still if it's a strong addiction, it it. will try to linger. So you may have to. do it uh but quite often. So I worked. with somebody who um was extremely. overweight and he had this eating. addiction. Yeah. And uh and he said [clears throat] often. he would not he would be so unconscious.

that when uh he would only discover that. he's been eating again when he's already. he's already swallowing in the middle of. the night. He would get up, go to the. fridge, get something out and s and then. he's eating something and suddenly. realize that he's eating something. again. The the whole. because he had done that unconsciously. Yes. I mean he's not sleepwalking but. speaking unconscious and so um it worked. for him to introduce a time interval. between instead of giving in when he.

discovers the impulse feel it and be. there as the witnessing presence of it. So be there as a witnessing presence and. make it gradually allow the time. interval to be longer longer just let's. say just 10 15 minutes feel the and then. perhaps. I would have eaten the thing by that. time [laughter]. I know exactly what you're talking about. I've been standing in the pantry.

and I've gone to the pantry because. something happened that upset me because. I'm an emotional eater. and I will be and I was be opening the. nuts and getting the raisins and doing. my whole little thing. and saying to myself, "This is happening. now because. I I that was an upsetting phone call and. I I didn't want to have to deal with. that and I had to deal with that and so. now I just need to eat something to calm. myself down.". So I'm very much aware of why I'm in. there. That's a very important aspect of it. What you just said, the [snorts] mental.

commentary that justifies the behavior. That's a very important aspect of it. So. in your case there's a reason why you. allow yourself to do that. With the. person I worked with uh he for example. had the mind pattern says you have had a. rough day. Uh you deserve a treat. Yeah. What else have you got in your life? It's your only pleasure. You've got lost. you got left in your life. You might as. well you have nothing else do you? This. was a the mind had been taken over by.

the addiction and justifying the. addiction. And. so what do you tell yourself when you're. shopping? I'm unconscious to it. I don't even know. I'm doing it till it's over and then I'm. filled with shame, right? And then I'm angry with myself over and. over and I'm stuck in that cycle of. shame. So now I've. received this book differently. So, I. feel like it's my first step to. being present.

Yeah. And riding the wave of the urge, like. not scratching it or not or not giving. in to the addiction, just observing it. Observing it. And it's really hard to. do. It's hard, but it's hard. But you're right. It's first step and. first step for you. So, for all of you. who are reading it for the first time, I'm so excited because what it does is. it opens the aperture. It allows you to see your life.

differently. And as you stay more open, more things will show up, more books, more experiences, more conversations. that lead you to a more being space for. yourself than just doing doing the the. whole human thing. So this is this is. the beginning for those of you who've. don't you feel that way those of you. who've read it before that it opens the. door for much bigger things. Laura is. here with her son Oliver who's 13 and in. the ninth grade. Laura, what's your.

question? So as adults of I mean we're all engaged. in social media now, but we didn't grow. up like with social media since we were. aware and my son and all teenagers are. in that space. So, how with that. immersion or maybe addiction to social. media and the stimulation, how can they. be truly present? Well, that's a very big thing, a very.

big challenge. for youngsters especially these days. I I I love what you said. Uh, the. producer wrote that you said, "How do I. even begin to teach him this work of. being present when they're not present. at all during the day and they're. continuously fed a bunch of shit?". [laughter]. Is that what I said? Oh, God. That's what you said. [laughter]. So, they're continuously fed a bunch of. through social media all day that's. falsely telling them who they are. How.

do I break this cycle? How do I even. begin to teach him what's inside the. pages of this book? Actually, when I. heard you were coming on, I was thinking. you need a you need a young person's. version of this. You do. You need you. need to break it down. Yes. And and then maybe we all could read. that book and Phil [laughter]. and it won't take them a year to get. through it. Yes. Yeah. But but but I can't even imagine. because I'm a person who is on social. media and I use it for work and Oprah.

daily and all that, but I try to. personally keep myself out of it, the. storm of it, cuz it's vicious and vile. and allconsuming. It's just it's it's. it's and it's getting worse. Don't you. all think it's getting worse? It's. actually getting much worse. Yes. And if you get yourself sucked into. that, you can absolutely lose yourself. Exactly. If you think who you are is who people. are representing you to be online, then. you will you you will be messed up.

A huge addiction for many people. and uh also becomes part of their egoic. identity. That's the they. look for recognition. uh sense of selfworth. Well, the likes. have become the thing. Likes and then they have hundreds or. thousands of friends they never even met. uh in many cases and then they post all. kinds of photos of themselves that are.

modified by technology. So if they met. one of their thousands of friends in in. the flesh, they wouldn't even recognize. them because it's all in make believe. And u this is perhaps the greatest. challenge in our civilization is that. technology. Um if we don't master it, it. could easily lead to a breakdown of. civilization within two generations. because uh the ability to focus your. mind is a vital thing for not for.

creating something new or for solving. problems. If you lose the ability for. for prolonged focus as many youngsters. do because the continuous stimulus. shorter and shorter attention spans if. you lose that then you lose the ability. to become creative. You lose the ability. to solve problems because you need to be. able to focus. So where are we all? It's. our first is our responsibility to.

restra our own use of these and to how. addictive that is. I can feel it in. myself. I don't use it that much. I. don't don't post things personally. Uh. but the moment you interact with that. thing, this it pulls you in is some kind. of like magnet thing. It pulls and it. pulls you the attention out of you and. goes all in there. You lose yourself. So. first you lose yourself in your mind.

But in a way you could say that device. is your externalized mind. I I wrote in. the book, you lose yourself in your. mind. And now you lo not only lose. yourself in your mind, you lose yourself. in in a technological amplification of. your mind in the form of this device. Echart believes [music] science and. technology have made miraculous changes. in the way we live. However, Echart. believes these advancements contribute. to our [music] collective insanity. He. says they magnify human dysfunction to.

such [music] a degree it's threatening. the survival of the planet. Well, let's give Oliver credit because. Oliver went to you Oliver. I think. that's so cool. You went to your mom. asking for help because you realize. yourself you're obsessed with it, right? Because how much time do you spend on. your phone? A good amount. [laughter]. A good amount. Yeah. Yeah. And we can only control it when he's at.

home, of course. So, you know, I know. there's that idea of kids being more. reactive again. You get the beep. They'll be crossing the street and look. at their phone, whereas an adult has the. ability not to, but they're so quick to. be back on it as soon as anything, you. know, buzzes or such. in some countries. I believe I read something recently. Australia was it where they're. restricting the use of devices for. youngsters. um how exactly they go about it I don't.

know so um at some point I think we need. to arrive at that uh the point where we. very especially very young children must. not use these things or very controlled. if they do use. so what did you say earlier that within. two generations did you It could be that. that civilization would collapse if the. new new generation of you lose the. ability to focus their mind on. something. How are we going to deal with.

the problems of the world? If we cannot. focus anymore because any solution. requires focused attention. If humans. lose that ability, then what's going to. happen? So, it's everybody's. responsibility. you uh if I I don't have. children and it's a bit late now I'm not. going to have any in this incarnation I. can say that for sure but um. oh you never know [laughter]. if I had children I would definitely in.

a very gentle way restrict their use and. they have to get used to this uh so that. only very gradually allow them extended. use and even then. I had this conversation with uh the. author of an anxious generation who's. also saying the some of the same things. that you're saying that you certainly. schools and should get together and you. should be a certain age and all of that. But the problem is if all of your. friends have it then you become the odd.

kid out you become ostracized which then. begins to shape the way you see yourself. and the way the other kids see you and. that in itself is a challenge. Yes, perhaps it would take families getting. together in neighborhoods and. well that's what just what Jonathan. height says in anxious. generation the collective then comes to. an agreement. so you're not the only one. you're not the only one and the I think. that might be the only solution so for. you to take an initiative so get in.

touch with other parents so you have a. group of 50 or whatever group may be. one of the problems is a lot of parents. want their kids on it because it means. They don't have to actually parent. So. that device becomes a substitute for you. in your child's life. That's the real. truth. That's also harmful. Yes. Yes. Yes. Okay. Kima, where are you? So my question is around in a similar.

fashion. But I have a wonderful teenager. at home and he's about to go off to. college and I find myself always asking. him the question, what do you want to be. when you grow up? You know, what do you. want to do? What college? You know, every adult in his family is asking him. the same question. But after reading. this book, I thought, should I not be. asking these questions anymore? And. shouldn't we both be in the present? So. that's my question.

Right. Thank you. Um well, we have uh again coming back to. the the human and the being. We live we. need to live in both worlds. The. transcendent dimension of being and the. human world. So this it's perfectly. legitimate to ask what do you want to do. when you grow up? I wouldn't ask. what do you want to be? Who do you want to be?

It's a it's a different question. because you already are being. Yes. Um so not to equate being with some. external thing with activities. or status in society or possessions not. to equate being with that. So there. that's the realm of doing that belongs. to the realm of doing and there's a. place for doing and doing of course all. doing requires time. So that's also the. place where time operates.

So yeah, you have a future goal. What do. you want to do next year? So there's. that dimension. We honor this dimension. We need to do. our best also in the human dimension. But without losing touch with the more. vital dimension of the essence of being. that is the mastery of life is finding a. balance between these the human. dimension and the being dimension not.

losing yourself in the human. Now nobody. has perfect balance. You're not you're. right in the except perhaps you. I don't have perfect cones. No, not a. bit. because. I'm still in the pantry looking for the. nuts. [laughter]. I know you have you have incredible. capacity for doing much more than I. have. Incredible capacity for doing but. you are connected with being. Yeah. So you are you are more on the doing. side without losing connectness with.

being. I am more on the being side. without completely losing my ability to. do. to do. Yeah. I have more being than most people I. know. I do have more being. Yes. I'm nowhere near where you are. Okay. But I I I I I spend a lot of time and. and Gail sometimes will just call and. say, "What are you doing being with your. thoughts?" [laughter]. Yes, I am. I actually am. It's a running. joke with us is that, "Oh, I'm just. sitting here being with my thoughts.". Yes. Yes. You beautifully sum up, I.

think, the essence of what this book is. on page uh 295 when you say not what you. do, but how you do what you do. determines whether you are fulfilling. your destiny. I'm going to say that. again. It's not what you do, but how you. do what you do determines whether you. are fulfilling your destiny. And how you. do what you do is determined by your.

state of consciousness. And ultimately. it's about how we bring consciousness to. every moment and to every action in our. lives. So do we need to be conscious in. every single moment? Because that is a. tall order for most people. Yes. Don't make impossible demands upon. yourself and then beat yourself up if. you can't fulfill them. So uh you don't need to be constantly uh. present because by by saying that you're.

already creating some future. Yeah. Saying I need to be all okay. No, it's. actually easier than that. All you need to be present is I am now. that there's nothing else. So there that can't be that difficult. But only when the mind comes in and says. yeah but can you sustain it in the rest. of your life? You're losing yourself in. the future. [laughter]. Yeah. So, and then it gets difficult because. then your self, your identity comes in. Am I spiritual enough to be able to do.

it and all kinds of things, ego identity. comes back in. Am I going to succeed in. being present? Another concept, mental. concept it. But the actuality of it is. more simple. All you need is right be. present. Now, you know, is that is that. that difficult? know then but then what. about the next moment you don't know. next because the next moment actually. never comes never comes it's always now.

so just be present now and if you the. moment you realize you lost it you you. lost your sense of presence in the. moment of realization it's back because. if you were truly lost you wouldn't know. you're lost. yes. in the same way that a truly mentally. let's say a crazy person or it's. politically incorrect term, but I'm. using in a loose sense. Uh, a crazy. person, a really crazy person doesn't. know they're crazy. But if you know.

you're crazy, you're not completely. crazy because there's a knowing there. There. because there's the awareness. [clears throat]. Awareness is there. Yes. Yeah. There's the awareness. I am acting crazy. right now. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. I appreciated the book. One of my other. favorite passages, I don't even know. where it is. I didn't underline it in. this version where you talk about how. what a miracle it is. What a what what. an absolute wonder that we are life and. that most people move through the world. thinking of yourselves as having a life.

instead of recognizing that you actually. are life. Yes. You don't have a life. Yes. You are life. Can you speak to that? Yes. I often say that you don't have a. life because talk people talk about my. life and they refer to but they identify. with something that they call my life. and this thing they think about. continuously because it's pro it's the. most important topic my obvious what. could be more important than my life and.

they talk about it and think about it. and of course what exactly is that of. course it's a it's a narrative it's a. story in your mind consisting of. memories, things that you did, things. that were done to you, all kinds of. things that you identify with your. memory banks. So, what people call my. life is actually um memories, a a a. bundle of memories that they identify. with.

Echart says many of us fabricate an. identity for ourselves based on our. health, our careers, our finances, our. relationships. And Echart says over time. we weave these elements into a story we. call my life and often we become victim. to these narratives. However, Echart. teaches we don't have to turn. difficulties into suffering because when. you become awake or have a full sense of. awareness we can liberate ourselves from. the shackles of our incessant thinking.

And I call that I believe it's in the. power of now. That's actually not your. life. That's your life situation. That's your Everybody has a life. situation. That life situation has a. past and a future. An imagined future, but a future. So that's your life. But. what about your life? What do you mean. life? Well, life is this moment. C. Can. you feel alive at this moment? Can you. feel that you are conscious at this.

moment? Can you feel the essence of. yourself as consciousness in this. moment? And if you can feel the essence. of yourself as consciousness in this. moment, that's your life. And and that that is not a life that you. have. Because if you say I have a life, then there's you and there's life. In. the same way, if you say I have. consciousness, then who who is the eye? No, you are. consciousness. And you don't have a.

life, you are alive. This is an amazing. realization that the essence of you is. life and the life is the consciousness. of you. Of course, you still remember. those memories are still there, but do. you no longer go to the blame looking. for your identity. You honor the. memories and all those things that make. up the personality or the person. But. your identity can now be arrived from a. more vital and more real place which is.

the consciousness of you in this moment. And that gives you a feeling of. aliveness and joy in a deeper sense. And also not finding your identity in. things. and labels. Oh yes. Because all things will pass away. Yes. And all labels you will eventually lose. Yes. Yes. Not tweaking your identity in. any mental concepts.

because that's the egoic identity is. actually an identity based on. conceptualization of who who or what you. are mental concepts and and even even. possessions. Of course, many egos. identify with for possessions for. example. But even the possession itself, you experience it as it's a mental. concept. That's my such and such. whatever it is my car, my house, this is. my they're all mental concepts. So is. transcending.

a conceptual sense of identity that's. going beyond ego because ego is always a. conceptual sense of identity. So we are. here to transcend that still allowing. ourselves to be a person a personality. in this world of form in this world. where doing is often required in this. world where time is important. on in this dimension the human dimension. without completely losing yourself.

because we have the other foot so to. speak in the transcendent realm there's. a beautiful the parable in the New. Testament When Jesus visits Mary and. Martha, two sisters, and Martha is busy. in the kitchen doing cooking the meal, Mary sitting up at the foot of Jesus and. listening to Jesus or maybe tuning into. his presence. And he goes, and then. Martha gets angry in the kitchen says, Jesus, why don't you tell my sister to. help me in the kitchen because there's. so much to do here. Why is she just.

sitting there? And Jesus says, "Master, Martha, you're worried about unconcerned. about many things, but only one thing is. absolutely needful." And Mary has chosen. that one thing. So what he's pointing to. is the fundamental thing is is the being. dimension. The kingdom of heaven that is. within you. That's the same thing. The. kingdom of heaven kingdom of heaven is. at. that is within you. the being dimension.

This Martha represents the doing. dimension. Mary represents the being. dimension. Now an ordinary person would. then ask well how how how can I function. like that? Because if Martha also goes. to who is going to cook the cook the. meals? [laughter] Now the the the real. answer to that is ultimately Mary and. Martha needs to be become one. Mary and. Martha are really they need to merge. back into the the their oneness so that.

the doing and the be exists in one human. being. So Mary Mary and Martha are meant. to be be one. rather than separate. So okay a new earth awakening to your. life's purpose. If we focus more time on. being than just doing, we focus more on. our beingness as humans than on the. human stuff, we will lead a life that is awakened to.

a greater sense of purpose. That's what. you're saying. Yes. In in in a new earth. Okay. Final question. Are we going to be. okay? [laughter]. I mean, listen, the the world is so divided. You It's. hard to say anything without somebody. getting offended. It's hard to know. With AI and with all the conspiracy. theories and with everybody having their. own, you know, YouTube channel and.

everybody saying whatever they want to. say, it's hard to know what is true and. what isn't true. And discernment is. missing. We don't we, you know, it's. it's it's hard to know. Are we going to. be okay? Well, your main responsibility is to for. yourself, are you going to be okay? Am I. a more direct question is am I okay in. this moment? uh because your your state. of consciousness is your responsibility.

and I would say don't underestimate the. importance of your state of. consciousness for the world because you. you are an inseparable part of the your. state of consciousness also. because we are the world. Yes, we are the children. Yes. Echart says we still have quite a. distance to go in our spiritual growth. What's critical is that we transcend our. thinking. He says it's absolutely. necessary for our survival. Echart. believes that the human race is at a.

turning point. We must evolve beyond our. current state of consciousness. [music]. When a significant number of people. connect with their transcendent selves, an entirely new world will be born. [music] Echart calls that a new earth. We are going to be okay because you are. going to be okay. And you are okay. Okay. means conscious. Are we going to destroy. ourselves? Um, probably not. As a single.

I thought you were going to say maybe. [laughter]. That That's what you said when you came. to dinner years ago. You said maybe. And. it only lasts a couple hundred years. The dark ages. Yes. Maybe. Well, um it's. it's still a possibility, but it would. only be a temporary setback, but. temporary setbacks are actually part of. the evolution of consciousness. I. believe that the earth itself has.

already experienced. five mass extinctions of life over. millions and millions of years. The last. one was when the dinosaurs died out. Earth has already experienced five mass. extinctions when 60 70 in some cases 80%. of all life forms became extinct and. each time. Earth recovered not only it took a few. years a few million years to recover. each time but each time Earth recovered.

and every time it recovered the life. forms that it produced then were were. more complex than the previous life. forms. forms. So there was chaos leading. to a higher order then chaos coming in. again disrupting chaos. descent into chaos and the and again. leading into high higher a more complete. a fuller expression of manifestation of.

consciousness and complexity of life. So the chaos and the confusion and the. disorder that we're feeling offers an. opportunity to move into something. higher. Yes. And and the chaos also is. part of the suffering actually has an. awakening effect on humans to come back. to human beings. Suffering is an great. awakener in I I have experienced in my. own life. Many of you have experienced. in your life and that works both on an. individual basis and it also works on a.

collective collective basis because. sometimes the sometimes the suffering. comes to you as an individual. At other. times suffering arises and affects. millions of people at the same time. That's collective suffering. And most of. that suffering. is actually produced by humans to they. do it to themselves and to each other. And so it's natural disasters are only. secondary. The worst suffering the. inflicted is inflicted by humans on.

other humans. The this is a dysfunction. of the egoic mind playing itself out. there. So and again if that happens and. I do know I have a strong sense that we. are moving into a period of turbulence. not only in this country many other. places in the world too we are moving. you can see kind of if you're on a boat. on a river and you can look oh there's a. turbulence coming. all rocky maybe even a few waterfalls.

too and so we are collectively moving. into a period of turbulence and that's. fine. That that is your responsibility. is to stay conscious not to get drawn. into the the turbulence which ultimately. into the current. Yes. The turbulence ultimately is a an. inner turbulence that manifests this. outer turbulence. So not to become part. of that when you use device social media.

and all those things stay present. Don't. don't. So more than ever, it's important for. each of us to do the work of being. Echart says the coming changes for. humanity are necessary for our. evolution. Collectively, we are going. through difficult times. We all. recognize this because real change only. occurs when society is pushed to the. brink. [music] Without adversity, there. is no transformation. He says when. hardship strikes we don't have to fear.

because that too is a catalyst for. spiritual growth. [music] Echart teaches. us historically humanity has gone. through many regressions. [music] They. are intrinsic to the process of. awakening because every setback is part. of the journey. The best way to save the world is work. on yourself. Stay conscious so that you. are are the solution. You're not part of. the problem. Who said be the change that.

want you want to see in the world? Gandhi. Gandhi. Yes. Be the change that you want. to see in the world. That's ultimately. that is your your responsibility and. it's a it's a wonderful thing. So you. can save the world. You starts here. Starts here. Yeah. Thank you, Echarolei. Thank you for the. gift that is a new earth. Thank you to. our extraordinary partner Starbucks for. supporting us here. I hope this episode. actually inspires you to read A New. Earth and uh talk about it with a.

friend, maybe over a cup of Starbucks. And thank you for listening and. watching. We hope you all join our. community and become a part of all of. our conversations on the Oprah podcast. Subscribe to the show on YouTube and. follow us on Spotify and Apple Podcast. or wherever you listen. Everybody, a new. Earth. Thanks. [applause].