Oprah and A New Earth

Oprah had people on yesterdays show that have had their lives change because of reading Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth." I haven't read it but want to read it. She also answered some questions people had about the book. These were just a few notes I took during Oprah.

Interfere with Religion
One question if the book interferes with your religion. But Oprah answered that question - saying it was like the honey in tea. It only enhances/sweetens the tea. The book only enhances your religion. It doesn't change the basics of your beliefs but might help make it easier to understand and apply to your life as a spiritual person.

Jesus' Death & Life
One of the people that Oprah talked to said it has helped her with her understanding of Jesus. I believe this person was a decon in church also. She said she always thought that the importance of Christ in Christianity was about his death - his dying for our sins. But she came to a Christ-consciousness that is about being fully human. That to be fully human is to be Christ-like. She said when you don't follow your spiritual calling/self, you are being a lesser human and not being Christ-conscious. Oprah said she got that a long time ago after reading Discover the Power within You by Eric Butterfield. She said Jesus was here to show us how to do it - how to be - how to live - to show us Christ-consciousness he had - and that his consciousness resides inside all of us. She said she had always thought it was about his death too but it wasn't - Jesus was about life....how to live life. And frankly I had never looked at it that way.

Winning
In the above story about Jesus the reason the woman came to the conclusion was because of a story that Eckhart told in one of the online classes Oprah and Eckhart are doing for the book. He told a story of a zen master watching an archery competition and one competitor was really concentrating on winning. But he was doing very badly and someone asked the zen master why the person was doing badly and he said "his need to win drains him of power." That focusing on winning is putting energy to the future instead of just putting his energy into the now and just doing the competition.

Death
Turning 40 has made me think of death more. I think about that I have 40 to 50 years left and it seems so short to me considering this 40 years has went fast. And I am scared of what happens when I die. And that I haven't done all I wanted to do with my time. I think about all I screwed up too. I am giving lots of energy and power to the future and past....instead of living the now - I realize that. But anyway one thing that was said today about death was that we are all made of energy. Eckhart says that energy can't be destroyed so there is no death. That energy goes on to other things/places so we really don't die.