Eckhart Tolle - The Power of Now

Acclaim for
THE POWER OF NOW

I heartily recommend this profoundly inspiring book to all seekers today.

Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Within

This seems to be the right book for many people at this point in time. The writing is clear as a bell; the words ring true. Truly an exceptional book that promises to make a real difference in peoples lives.

Tom Oakley, Banyen Books, Vancouver, British Columbia

The Power of Now was introduced to me by a customer. I read only one page and agreed that it rang true. It is a jewel of clarity and insight. The book has become a word-of-mouth bestseller here at East West.

Norman Snitkin, comanager, East West Bookshop, Seattle

Tolle has succeeded on two fronts: synthesizing the teachings of masters such as Jesus and the Buddha into an easily accessible guide to achieving spiritual consciousness and making a strong case that the inability of humans to free themselves from dominance by the mind and live in the present is the root cause for misery in the world.... He makes enlightenment seem attainable and necessary for both individual peace and the health of the planet.

ForeWord magazine

I have no hesitation in recommending Eckhart Tolles wonderful book. Everyone I know who has picked up a copy has ended up taking it home. The Power of Now sells on its own merit and by word of mouth.

Stephen Gawtry, Manager, Watkins Books Ltd., London

Fresh, revealing, current, new inspiration. Out of the many spiritual books that cross my desk this one stands out from the flock.... If you are considering getting back in touch with your soul, this book is a great companion.

Common Ground, Vancouver, British Columbia

With intense and compelling clarity, Tolles guidance holds the promise of leading us to our own best and highest place within, to resonate with and reflect the energy of true transformation.

Spirit of Change magazine

With Eckhart Tolles growing presence on bestseller shelves usually reserved for much lighter-weight fare, it will be interesting to see what time has in store for this unusual modern mystic.

What Is Enlightenment? magazine

... a guide to spiritual awakening from a man who is emerging as one of this generations clearest, most inspiring teachers on the subject.

Transitions Bookplace, Chicago

The most important book in a spiritual life written in the last decade.

Thunderbird Bookshop, Carmel, California

THE POWER OF
NOW

A GUIDE TO SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT

Eckhart Tolle

N AMASTE P UBLISHING
and

N EW W ORLD L IBRARY
N OVATO , C ALIFORNIA

and

Copyright 1999 by Eckhart Tolle
Preface to the paperback edition, copyright 2004 by Eckhart Tolle
First paperback printing, September 2004

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, or other without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.

Cover design: Jacqueline Verkley and Mary Ann Casler
Interior design: Jacqueline Verkley
Typography: Tona Pearce Myers

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Tolle, Eckhart, 1948
The power of now : a guide to spiritual enlightenment / Eckhart Tolle.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-57731-480-8 (alk. paper)
1. Spiritual life. I. Title.

Originally published in Canada by
Namaste Publishing Inc., 1997
ISBN 1-57731-480-8

Printed in Canada on 100% postconsumer waste recycled paper
A proud member of the Green Press Initiative

Distributed to the trade by Publishers Group West

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

You are here to enable the divine
purpose of the universe to unfold.
That is how important you are!

Eckhart Tolle

Six years after it was first published, The Power of Now continues to play its part in the urgent task of the transformation of human consciousness. Although I was privileged to give birth to it, I feel that the book has taken on a life and momentum of its own. It has reached several million readers worldwide, many of whom have written to me to tell of the life-changing effect it has had on them. Due to the extremely high volume of correspondence I receive, I am regretfully no longer able to send personal replies, but I would like to take this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude to all those who have written to me to share their experiences. I am moved and deeply touched by many of those accounts, and they leave no doubt in my mind that an unprecedented shift in consciousness is indeed happening on our planet.

Nobody could have predicted the rapid growth of the book when Namaste Publishing in Vancouver published the first edition of three thousand copies in 1997. During its first year of publication, the book found its readers almost exclusively through word of mouth. That was the time when I would personally deliver a few copies every week to some small bookstores in Vancouver, something I found enormously satisfying, knowing that every book that I handed over had the potential of changing someones life. Friends helped by placing copies of the book in spiritual bookstores farther afield: Calgary, Seattle, California, London. Stephen Gawtry, the manager of Watkins, the worlds oldest metaphysical bookstore in London, England, wrote at the time, I foresee great things for this book. He was right: by the second year The Power of Now had developed into an underground bestseller, as one reviewer later called it. Then, after the book received a number of favorable reviews in various journals and magazines, its growth accelerated and finally became explosive when Oprah Winfrey, who had been deeply affected by the book, proceeded to tell the world about it. Five years after it was first published, it reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, and it is now available in thirty languages. It has been very well received and become a bestseller even in India, a country considered by many to be the birthplace of humanitys quest for spiritual enlightenment.

Most of the thousands of letters and emails that have been sent to me from all over the world are from ordinary men and women, but there are also letters from Buddhist monks and Christian nuns, from people in prison or facing a life-threatening illness or imminent death. Psychotherapists have written to say that they recommend the book to their patients or incorporate the teachings in their practice. Many of those letters and emails mention a lessening or even a complete disappearance of suffering and problem-making in peoples lives as a result of reading