QuoteProject
Time is the horizontal dimension of life, the surface layer of reality. Then there is the vertical dimension of depth, accessible only through the portal of the present moment.
Eckhart Tolle
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote highlights the importance of being present to access deeper dimensions of life beyond the passage of time.

Eckhart Tolle's quote emphasizes the distinction between time as a linear, measured aspect of existence and the depth of experience that can only be tapped into by fully engaging with the present moment. It suggests that while we often focus on the chronological progression of time, true depth and meaning in life come from immersing ourselves in the 'now' and realizing that depth can transcend mere time.

Themes

TimePresentMomentDepthReality

In practice

Example use cases

In a mindfulness workshop, you could use this quote to emphasize the value of living in the moment.

More from Eckhart Tolle

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.
Eckhart TolleRead
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.
Eckhart TolleRead
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.
Eckhart TolleRead
Nothing that was real ever died, only names, forms, and illusions.
Eckhart TolleRead
Suffering has a noble purpose: the evolution of consciousness and the burning up of the ego.
Eckhart TolleRead
Sometimes surrender means giving up trying to understand and becoming comfortable with not knowing.
Eckhart TolleRead

Similar quotes

A lot of people, because of my contempt for the false consolations of religion, think of me as a symbolic public opponent of that in extremis. And sometimes that makes me feel a bit alarmed, to be the repository of other people's hope.
Christopher HitchensRead
Man is a simple being, and however rich, varied, and unfathomable he may be, the cycle of his situations is soon run through.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
The East knew and to the present day knows only that One is Free; the Greek and the Roman world, that some are free; the German World knows that All are free. The first political form therefore which we observe in History, is Despotism, the second Democracy and Aristocracy, the third, Monarchy.
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich HegelRead
Sin is too stupid to see beyond itself.
Alfred Lord TennysonRead
When a man wants to murder a tiger he calls it sport; when a tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.
George Bernard ShawRead
The individual is not accountable to society for his actions in so far as these concern the interests of no person but himself.
John Stuart MillRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.