Last Friday, 1/8/10, I hosted a Meet-up gathering @ my home. This note is my retrospective & reflective thoughts. I feel it significant for my closure to elaborate.

A foreword: I have considered Eckhart Tolle to be the single most pervasive (yet still somewhat esoteric) spiritual & philosophical contemporary teacher offering hope & understanding during these trying times. I find incredible comfort & solace in his writings & talks, but mostly find incredible consolation in his clear tangible solutions & its “carry-over” practicality from theoretical concepts to applicable action & solution.

His “magic” focuses on the reader’s desire (& need) for understanding the reality of the external “meshing of cogs”, the reassurance that what is (as is)- should cause disharmony & stress & (although not verbatim) his endorsement that we are living lives of distorted perception, faulty aspirations, insanity, & improper priorities. [sidebar: Collectively our preconscious souls cry out for “something”, that Madison Avenue advertising so evilly (attempts to) exploit]. This coupled with his written clarity, succinct explanation, flow of topic, parable inferences & his fraternal (alive) presence (and understanding) makes him a shining light & bedrock of hope to our collective woes.

Comfort, hope, change & good comes from education, knowledge, sharing, understanding & love. Outward desire of good flows from self-comfort, enthusiasm, need, altruism, awareness & drive. Tolle “winds my gears” to understanding & action- reassuring my instinct & psyche that “what is", is reason for alarm thus my festering discomfort is an appropriate instinctual response to the madness & unpredictable aspects of our “re-manipulated” world. Although I have no power to affect the global change of things- I do have power over the single most important thing to my comfort- my attitude. With understanding I can quell internal discomfort & soothe my psyche, enlightening me into a higher plane of reality. All of this comes from Tolle & my submission into it (No Shit!!). [sidebar: Another bit of insanity- Did Eckhart Tolle get the 2009 Nobel (World Peace) Prize? NO!!! Barack Obama did… You figure).

That was one long foreword, back on track :) …

Last Friday I chose to host an Eckhart Tolle gathering in my home. Several of the reasons were essentially there wasn’t a meeting in awhile & this might stimulate interest in the East Bay. Additionally, like minds attract & although “like”, we are all unique, so we all can offer a particular flavor to the mix.

Sticking firmly to the intended format as described (with no deviation), the attendees were all guided by its implied expectation, ensuring an external order, comfort & predictability. My racing mind (in its discomfort w/ the proximity of a roomful of “unknown” people) initially had trouble latching on to the requirement of 10 minutes of silent meditation. As it was recommended I acquire a bouquet of fresh flowers, I was easily able to focus in to the beauty & stillness of the live flowers. I was clearly able to understand its importance of the “Pathways to the Now”, as Tolle explains in varied excerpts. The film began & 8 chapters (1:08) went w/o a sound of audience chatter. Occasionally my mind travelled & I had to refocus. Ten minutes of silence followed the film & was very comfortable. To my surprise I was not fixated on what I was planning to say to “break” the silence, but on the obvious bliss that encompassed the group. As the 10-12 minutes ended, slowly we got up, prepared snacks & beverages & still a gentle & peaceful silence prevailed. I was quite comfortable but surprised- there was no overt insatiable need to speak. There was a serene softness & gentleness in the absence of speech. I was rather surprised it went so much longer (approx 16-18 minutes). Eventually, there were references to the film (as per the format of the meeting). As others spoke, there was reflective appraisal, thought, silence & no rush to engage debate or flex ego. The evening ended after snacks, about 20ish minutes later. What moved me the most was the gradual comfort ability which grew in (& from) the silent presence of others, blossoming at the shared uniqueness but likeness of the groups individuals. It really was a wonderful & beautiful experience & one of which I am not all that accustomed to.

An additional reason of my wanted to host (or speed up) the frequency of these Meet-up events was perhaps a selfish one. I am not quite comfortable & experienced enough to take the theoretical concepts of Eckhart Tolle into the practical application of the “real” world. I tend to be overly chatty, engaging & somewhat opinionated. I love to talk and sometimes lack a cue in specific social “graces”. Under controlled conditions, in the presence of like minds, a voice out of the silence offers a well thought uniqueness, in clear succinctness, a different view to consider, a thought to ponder. Yes, we all are an individual beautiful flower in that bouquet of flowers (life)…

Steven Mashin
510-200-5755
Link to:
Jan 8, 2010 SF E. Tolle East Bay Meet-up

This sounds great, Steven. Maybe the group is getting big enough we can find a small location to rent for the meetings. Maybe some unused time at a Yoga studio, or something like that. Just an idea. John L.