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If small things have the power to disturb you, then you are exactly that: small (ECKHART TOLLE)

If small things have the power to disturb you, then you are exactly that: small (ECKHART TOLLE)

Gnothi Seauton – Know Thyself. These words were inscribed above the
entrance to the temple of Apollo at Delphi, site of the sacred Oracle. In
ancient Greece, people would visit the Oracle hoping to find out what
destiny had in store for them or what course of action to take in a particular
situation. It is likely that most visitors read those words as they entered the
building without realizing that they pointed to a deeper truth than anything
the Oracle could possibly tell them. They may not have realized either that,
no matter how great a revelation or how accurate the information they
received, it would ultimately prove to be of no avail, would not save them
from further unhappiness and self­created suffering, if they failed to find the
truth that is concealed in that injunction – Know Thyself. What those words
imply is this: Before you ask any other question, first ask the most
fundamental question of your life: Who am I?
Unconscious people – and many remain unconscious, trapped in their
egos throughout their lives – will quickly tell you who they are: their name,
their occupation, their personal history, the shape or state of their body, and
whatever else they identify with. Others may appear to be more evolved
because they think of themselves as an immortal soul or living spirit. But do
they really know themselves, or have they just added some spiritualsounding concepts to the content of their mind?

Knowing yourself goes far deeper than the adoption of a set of ideas or beliefs.

Spiritual ideas and
beliefs may at best be helpful pointers, but in themselves they rarely have the
power to dislodge the more firmly established core concepts of who you
think you are, which are part of the conditioning of the human mind.
Knowing yourself deeply has nothing to do with whatever ideas are floating
around in your mind. Knowing yourself is to be rooted in Being, instead of
lost in your mind.

WHO YOU THINK YOU ARE
Your sense of who you are determines what you perceive as your
needs and what matters to you in life – and whatever matters to you will have
the power to upset and disturb you. You can use this as a criterion to find out
how deeply you know yourself. What matters to you is not necessarily what
you say or believe, but what your actions and reactions reveal as important
and serious to you. So you may what to ask yourself the question: What are
the things that upset and disturb me? If small things have the power to
disturb you, then who you think you are is exactly that: small. That will be
your unconscious belief. What are the small things? Ultimately all things are
small things because all things are transient.

You might say, “I know I am an immortal spirit,” or “I am tired of this
mad world, and peace is all I want” ­ until the phone rings. Bad news: The
stock market has collapsed; the deal may fall through; the car has been
stolen; your mother­in­law has arrived; the trip is cancelled, the contract has
been broken; your partner has left you; they demand more money; they say
it’s your fault. Suddenly there is a surge of anger, of anxiety. A harshness
comes into your voice; “I can’t take any more of this.” You accuse and
blame, attack, defend, or justify yourself, and it’s all happening on autopilot.
Something is obviously much more important to you now than the inner
peace that a moment ago you said was all you wanted, and you’re not an
immortal spirit anymore either. The deal, the money, the contract, the loss or
threat of loss are more important. To whom? To the immortal spirit that you
said you are? No, to me. The small me that seeks security tor fulfillment in
things that are transient and gets anxious or angry because it fails to find it.
Well, at least now you know who you really are.

 

 

 

A NEW EARTH

ECKHART TOLLE



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