“Time isn’t precious at all, because it is an illusion. What you perceive as precious is not time but the one point that is out of time: the Now.”
- Eckhart Tolle, Spiritual Teacher and Author
🧠 Who is Eckhart Tolle?
- Lived: Born 1948
- Known as: Spiritual Teacher, Author, and Speaker
- Famous for:
- Writing The Power of Now, a bestselling book that explores mindfulness, presence, and the concept of enlightenment
- Advocating for spiritual awakening and the idea of living in the present moment
- Promoting the concept of "Ego" as a false sense of self, and how identifying with the ego creates suffering
- Contributions:
- Introduced a global audience to the practice of mindfulness and living in the moment
- Emphasized inner peace as the key to happiness, suggesting that our attachment to the past and future keeps us from experiencing life fully
- His teachings have resonated with millions worldwide, helping to shape modern spiritual thought
The quote captures Eckhart Tolle's central teaching on the illusion of time and the importance of living in the present moment.
It suggests that time, as we commonly understand it, is an illusion.
The real value lies in the present moment, the “Now”, where life truly unfolds.
Tolle believes that the constant pursuit of past memories or future plans distracts us from the only reality we can experience directly: the present moment.
In other words:
- What we think of as “time” is merely a mental construct; what’s truly precious is the present moment.
- True fulfillment arises when we stop living in the past or future and immerse ourselves in the Now.
In essence, Tolle invites us to free ourselves from the illusion of time and to experience life as it happens, without the mental clutter that comes from dwelling on what was or what might be.