Bring awareness to the many subtle sounds of nature - The rustling of leaves in the wind, Raindrops falling, The humming of an insect, The first birdsong at dawn.
Prejudice of any kind implies that you are identified with the thinking mind. It means you don't see the other human being anymore, but only your own concept of that human being. To reduce the aliveness of another human being to a concept is already a form of violence.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Prejudice limits our understanding of others by reducing them to mere concepts, leading to a disconnect from their true humanity.
Eckhart Tolle's quote emphasizes the detrimental effects of prejudice, suggesting that when we hold preconceived notions about others, we lose sight of their individuality and complexity. By equating a person with our own mental concept of them, we inflict a form of violence upon their essence, stripping them of their aliveness and unique experiences. This failure to truly see and connect with others undermines genuine human relationships and fosters division.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the importance of empathy, this quote can illustrate how prejudice hinders true understanding.
More from Eckhart Tolle
All quotes →Body awareness not only anchors you in the present moment, it is a doorway out of the prison that is the ego. It also strengthens the immune system and the body’s ability to heal itself.
Whenever you become anxious or stressed, outer purpose has taken over, and you lost sight of your inner purpose. You have forgotten that your state of consciousness is primary, all else secondary.
Nothing that was real ever died, only names, forms, and illusions.
Suffering has a noble purpose: the evolution of consciousness and the burning up of the ego.
Sometimes surrender means giving up trying to understand and becoming comfortable with not knowing.
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Let us not ignore the truth among ourselves ... politically we are the aggressors and they defend themselves... The country is theirs, because they inhabit it, whereas we want to come here and settle down, and in their view we want to take away from them their country.
How do we transform mere power into justice, mere sentiment into love?
A benevolent malefactor, merciful, gentle, helpful, clement, a convict, returning good for evil, giving back pardon for hatred, preferring pity to vengeance, preferring to ruin himself rather than to ruin his enemy, saving him who had smitten him, kneeling on the heights of virtue, more nearly akin to an angel than to a man. Javert was constrained to admit to himself that this monster existed. Things could not go on in this manner.
There are those who argue that the public celebration of festivals such as Christmas should be discouraged, in the questionable belief that it might somehow offend those of other religions or none.