Ekhart Tolle's message is simple: living in the now is the truest path to happiness and enlightenment. And while this message may not seem stunningly original or fresh, Tolle's clear writing, supportive voice and enthusiasm make this an excellent manual for anyone who's ever wondered what exactly "living in the now" means. Foremost, Tolle is a world-class teacher, able to explain complicated concepts in concrete language. More importantly, within a chapter of reading this book, readers are already holding the world in a different container--more conscious of how thoughts and emotions get in the way of their ability to live in genuine peace and happiness.

Tolle packs a lot of information and inspirational ideas into The Power of Now. (Topics include the source of Chi, enlightened relationships, creative use of the mind, impermanence and the cycle of life.) Thankfully, he's added markers that symbolise "break time". This is when readers should close the book and mull over what they just read. As a result, The Power of Now reads like the highly acclaimed A Course in Miracles--a spiritual guidebook that has the potential to inspire just as many study groups and change just as many lives for the better. --Gail Hudson

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing style (at one point he tells the reader "please just listen").
* massively over-complicates the issues
* is a book about Christ and God (although he doesn't get to the Christ bit until half way through the book, when the reader suddenly realises that this is a religious text).

Not recommended.

essential reading, 10 Sep 2008
This book has been written in the sense of a dialogue between master and disciple reminicent of the Corpus Hermeticum. However in this case the reader may or may not find these imposed questions useful or, indeed annoying... This is a book which is either going to hit a chord, or will seem like utter nonsense. From my point of view as an average reader, I have found it very important because it explores concepts of this mind/ego (a double) which is inside of each person which needs confronting in someway. I think this book is must read for anyone who feels they are on a spiritual path, because fundementally (and in my limited understanding) the awareness of the 'double' and the fission of dark and light is inevitable along this path. If this is really the case, then this book should be seen as essential reading.

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing style (at one point he tells the reader "please just listen").
* massively over-complicates the issues
* is a book about Christ and God (although he doesn't get to the Christ bit until half way through the book, when the reader suddenly realises that this is a religious text).

Not recommended.

essential reading, 10 Sep 2008
This book has been written in the sense of a dialogue between master and disciple reminicent of the Corpus Hermeticum. However in this case the reader may or may not find these imposed questions useful or, indeed annoying... This is a book which is either going to hit a chord, or will seem like utter nonsense. From my point of view as an average reader, I have found it very important because it explores concepts of this mind/ego (a double) which is inside of each person which needs confronting in someway. I think this book is must read for anyone who feels they are on a spiritual path, because fundementally (and in my limited understanding) the awareness of the 'double' and the fission of dark and light is inevitable along this path. If this is really the case, then this book should be seen as essential reading.

A clear message for our times, 17 Oct 2008
I feel Eckhart Tolle has his finger completely on the pulse.
It so clearly argued, and the best part is ; put it into practice and it works.
How could it not.

Erm!, 16 Sep 2008
I found this too wordy and deep for a simple soul such as myself however I did as advised on the Oprah site and sat with 2 marker pens in different colours to underline that which I understood and that which I didn't. Needless to say one colour got a heck of a bashing!!

I've given it 3 stars though because I did actually get some really good bits out of it which I jotted down on the spare blank pages at the back (in my own words so I would understand later) and for that it was worth reading/buying.

What I am most chuffed about however is reading a review by Paul Chipperfield (lower down) recommending Cheri Huber's book which as he said is much kinder to us mere mortals and he is sooooo right!! Cheri Huber writes in a way I can understand and access reasonably easily - challenging still but achievably so!

Nice one mate!

There are better books out there, 03 Sep 2008
Reading this pretentious, sensationalistic, overblown book makes me want to dry-heave and at times a little sick actually came out my mouth from its eye-watering, vomit-inducting passages like.....

'By the end of the century, the number of people who died a violent death at the hand of their fellow humans would rise to more than one hundred million... we only need to watch the daily news on television to realise that the madness has not abated, that it is continuing into the twenty-first century. Another aspect of the collective dysfunction of the human mind is unprecedented violence that humans are inflicting on other life-forms and the planet itself.. blah blah'

You get the message. We are doommmmeeeeddd!!! Having to wade through scaremongering sensationalistic crap like that is annoying to say the least. The style of writing is like reading sheet from The Sun.

I did give it two stars because there is something behind this book. The concepts are drawn from Hinduism and particularly about understanding the ego, self, self-realisation and self-awareness. I guess the good thing is that at least it does get the message across to the new age masses. But personally, I would go straight to the source from where the author get these ideas from... The Bhagavad Gita, The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, books by Swami Vivekananda etc etc.



super book, 02 Sep 2008
Great one for the spiritual sceptics , stick with it there is something for everyone in here . Personally reccomended to a few friends something in here for everyone but if your reading it you probably dont need it , if your in doubt go check out the "is that so" chapter at the book store

A big ego writes about ego, 12 Aug 2008
I was given this by someone who saw Oprah raving about it and bought two copies in a state of excitement. I thought that the first three pages were quite good then was extremely disappointed as the rest went no further than to rehash Buddhism. My overriding concern is Tolle's continual denigration of the ego and his attempts to persuade us that if we could just annihilate any sense of being an individual or having individual thoughts or preferences we could all acheive permanent bliss. In fact, if we all followed this advice we would all coagulate in one big splurge of mush as no one would be allowed a personality at all.
This kind of spirituality feels very uncomfortable. I have always believed that the ego is a misunderstood beast and gets very bad press in New Age circles. We each represent a shard of God, here to express and experience our uniqueness and to evolve the whole while understanding we are part of the whole to which we will return following death. In addition, Tolle's regurgitated and extreme trashing of the ego is incongruent given that he benefits from the proceeds from a whole range of products, from calendars to cards, emblazoned with his name. No ego there then!
This book feels like a quick attempt to jump on the coat tails of his previous book and, for me, offers nothing new. I am sure this will do very well for the Eckhart Tolle franchise but am concerned about the cost to anybody who adopts this philosophy without understanding that 'God' the Universe or whatever you believe in gave us the ego for a reason. It enables you to find who you are and what you stand for. There is nothing inherently spiritual about voluntary self anhihilation. Even the Dala Lama left Tibet rather than adopting a stance of staying put and being 'meek' in the presence of danger. It isn't a New Earth it is a rehash and it doesn't say what it says on the tin 'awakening to your life purpose' should read 'putting your life purpose to sleep as it doesn't exist.'

If you haven't seen Hay House's "Lifestyles" series of gorgeous gift books, there is no better way to acquaint yourself than with publisher/author Louise Hay's You Can Heal Your Life. A bestseller for many years, You Can Heal Your Life has been republished with bright beautiful illustrations in full living colour and exquisite typography--each and every page is a work of art by artist Joan Perrin Falquet. The timeless message of the book is that we are each responsible for our own reality and "dis-ease". Hay believes we make ourselves ill by having thoughts of self-hatred. She includes a directory of ailments and emotional causes for each with a corresponding affirmation to help overcome the illness. For example, the probable cause of multiple sclerosis is "mental hardness, hard-heartedness, iron will and inflexibility". The healing "thought pattern" would be: "By choosing loving, joyous thoughts, I created a loving joyous world. I am safe and free." --P. Randall Cohan

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing style (at one point he tells the reader "please just listen").
* massively over-complicates the issues
* is a book about Christ and God (although he doesn't get to the Christ bit until half way through the book, when the reader suddenly realises that this is a religious text).

Not recommended.

essential reading, 10 Sep 2008
This book has been written in the sense of a dialogue between master and disciple reminicent of the Corpus Hermeticum. However in this case the reader may or may not find these imposed questions useful or, indeed annoying... This is a book which is either going to hit a chord, or will seem like utter nonsense. From my point of view as an average reader, I have found it very important because it explores concepts of this mind/ego (a double) which is inside of each person which needs confronting in someway. I think this book is must read for anyone who feels they are on a spiritual path, because fundementally (and in my limited understanding) the awareness of the 'double' and the fission of dark and light is inevitable along this path. If this is really the case, then this book should be seen as essential reading.

A clear message for our times, 17 Oct 2008
I feel Eckhart Tolle has his finger completely on the pulse.
It so clearly argued, and the best part is ; put it into practice and it works.
How could it not.

Erm!, 16 Sep 2008
I found this too wordy and deep for a simple soul such as myself however I did as advised on the Oprah site and sat with 2 marker pens in different colours to underline that which I understood and that which I didn't. Needless to say one colour got a heck of a bashing!!

I've given it 3 stars though because I did actually get some really good bits out of it which I jotted down on the spare blank pages at the back (in my own words so I would understand later) and for that it was worth reading/buying.

What I am most chuffed about however is reading a review by Paul Chipperfield (lower down) recommending Cheri Huber's book which as he said is much kinder to us mere mortals and he is sooooo right!! Cheri Huber writes in a way I can understand and access reasonably easily - challenging still but achievably so!

Nice one mate!

There are better books out there, 03 Sep 2008
Reading this pretentious, sensationalistic, overblown book makes me want to dry-heave and at times a little sick actually came out my mouth from its eye-watering, vomit-inducting passages like.....

'By the end of the century, the number of people who died a violent death at the hand of their fellow humans would rise to more than one hundred million... we only need to watch the daily news on television to realise that the madness has not abated, that it is continuing into the twenty-first century. Another aspect of the collective dysfunction of the human mind is unprecedented violence that humans are inflicting on other life-forms and the planet itself.. blah blah'

You get the message. We are doommmmeeeeddd!!! Having to wade through scaremongering sensationalistic crap like that is annoying to say the least. The style of writing is like reading sheet from The Sun.

I did give it two stars because there is something behind this book. The concepts are drawn from Hinduism and particularly about understanding the ego, self, self-realisation and self-awareness. I guess the good thing is that at least it does get the message across to the new age masses. But personally, I would go straight to the source from where the author get these ideas from... The Bhagavad Gita, The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, books by Swami Vivekananda etc etc.



super book, 02 Sep 2008
Great one for the spiritual sceptics , stick with it there is something for everyone in here . Personally reccomended to a few friends something in here for everyone but if your reading it you probably dont need it , if your in doubt go check out the "is that so" chapter at the book store

A big ego writes about ego, 12 Aug 2008
I was given this by someone who saw Oprah raving about it and bought two copies in a state of excitement. I thought that the first three pages were quite good then was extremely disappointed as the rest went no further than to rehash Buddhism. My overriding concern is Tolle's continual denigration of the ego and his attempts to persuade us that if we could just annihilate any sense of being an individual or having individual thoughts or preferences we could all acheive permanent bliss. In fact, if we all followed this advice we would all coagulate in one big splurge of mush as no one would be allowed a personality at all.
This kind of spirituality feels very uncomfortable. I have always believed that the ego is a misunderstood beast and gets very bad press in New Age circles. We each represent a shard of God, here to express and experience our uniqueness and to evolve the whole while understanding we are part of the whole to which we will return following death. In addition, Tolle's regurgitated and extreme trashing of the ego is incongruent given that he benefits from the proceeds from a whole range of products, from calendars to cards, emblazoned with his name. No ego there then!
This book feels like a quick attempt to jump on the coat tails of his previous book and, for me, offers nothing new. I am sure this will do very well for the Eckhart Tolle franchise but am concerned about the cost to anybody who adopts this philosophy without understanding that 'God' the Universe or whatever you believe in gave us the ego for a reason. It enables you to find who you are and what you stand for. There is nothing inherently spiritual about voluntary self anhihilation. Even the Dala Lama left Tibet rather than adopting a stance of staying put and being 'meek' in the presence of danger. It isn't a New Earth it is a rehash and it doesn't say what it says on the tin 'awakening to your life purpose' should read 'putting your life purpose to sleep as it doesn't exist.'

A bizarre, complacent, offensive and off the wall little book for the bourgeoisie, 15 Nov 2008
This book was given to me as a present - I would not have dreamt of buying it myself!

What can I say but that the thought process (seasoned with narcissism and treacled with worship of the self) which underpins this little book goes against all that I hold dear.

Further, it is downright bizarre and borders on the offensive at times. I will quote from it liberally below to support what I have said. Pseudo-religion for the bourgeoise, complacent and self satisfied.


"We are each responsible for all our experiences" (page xiii)

This is plainly wrong. We possess a human nature which is subject to the vagaries of the external world - famine, disease, earthquakes. These are simply beyond our control and you bet they affect our experiences. Further this ignores the fact that we are surrounded on all sounds by other persons, who themselves are free agents. They impact on us and thus impact on our experience of life. This statement only can make any sense if it is intended to mean: it is up to us to determine how we respond to internal and external stimuli. But I am not sure she means this limited sense.

"We create every so called illness in our body" (page xiii: Deeply offensive

"Each one of us decides to incarnate upon this planet at a particular point in time and space. " (page 4) "I agree with the theory that we choose our parents (page 30).

Bizaarely we chose our parents as well. Note how in her narcissistic world, she chooses her parents which implies her parents own free will has been impaired in some way - why would they agree to this? Where did she get this from?

"No matter what the problem is, our experiences are just outer effects of inner thoughts" (page 5)

This thinking is dualistic - when our bodies are in pain, we are in pain, our whole being is in pain - we experience pain. Again, she ignores impact of nature and other free agents impacting on us. This echoes Gnostic thought.

"Whenever we are ill, we need to search our hearts to see who it is we need to forgive" (page 8)

I agree that non-forgiveness can cause huge problems for the psyche but if she is suggesting that diseases are caused by non-forgiveness always and everywhere, then it is offensive.

"Self approval and self acceptance in the now are the main keys to positive changes in every area of our lives" (page 9)

I think this statement is one of the keys to her little narcissistic philosophy. There is no imperfection in us - its just all about acceptance of ourselves. Is this Lady oblivious of the 20th century drenched in the blood of the innocent, killed by villains and murderous thugs. All these actions were committed by human beings!

"In the infinity of life where I am, all is perfect, whole and complete" (page 9)

What planet is this lady on? We are all broken creatures struggling to make our way through life.

"They (babies) already are perfect and they act as they know it. They know they are the centre of the Universe" (page 19)

Babies are lovely alright but they are not perfect. They howl like mad in the middle of the night when hungry!

"I love you and accept you exactly as you are" (page 19)

A complete loss of the wisdom of the ancients is evident here. The writings of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are replete with talk of virtue and educating and training oneself to be a virtuous man or woman. The point is: when we look at ourselves, if we are anyway self aware, we must know that things need to be changed.

Not sure I quite follow her because later on she talks about being willing to change - why would we change anything we wholeheartedly and unreservedly approve? A perfect being does not need to change!

"We are here to recognise our own magnificence and divinity" (page 31)

We are not divine - we are creatures albeit creatures endowed with wonderful gifts.

"Whatever we believe becomes true for us" (page 33)

This is plain nonsense. If in her philosophy we are all divine, and one divinity exercises his free will to impact on another divinity, does that not have any effect. Complete and utter individualism.

"My personal nutritional approach is simple, If it grows, eat is. If it does not grow, don't eat it. (page 45)

I wish her all the best eating the lovely wild mushrooms in the neighbourhood!

"I think its is our natural birthright to go from success to success all our life" (page 109)

Oh dear - the mantra of success. This lady is oblivious to the suffering of the multitude - this book is definitely for the bourgeoisie and those who want to continue remain blissfully ignorant of the cries of the poor, the moans of those starving and dying of malaria, typhoid and other conditions.

"I believe we create every so-called illness in our body": Deeply offensive!

"I find that most BLADDER problems come from being "Pissed off", usually at a partner" (page 132)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Cancer is a dis-ease caused by deep resentment held for a long time until it literally eats away the body" (page 138)

Tell that to the million dying of this nasty disease including young kids and even babies!

"Even if constipated people are not actually stingy, they usually do not trust that there will ever be enough! (page 135)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Everything I need is revealed to me. Everything I need comes to me" (page 242: Oh dear, very sad really.





The Psychological Side of Healing, 07 Nov 2008
You Can Heal Your Life is all about using your thoughts to fix the problems in your life. What kind of problems? Well, the book specifically looks into healing some pretty major life areas: relationships, work, success, prosperity, and your body. But wait a minute, did I say the book is using thoughts to heal your body? What's up with that? Is that even possible? Well, after reading this book, I think in many cases, yes, it is possible.

While I think it is the way to go to treat things such as an acute appendicitis with surgery, fractures with a cast, and pneumonia with antibiotics, there are many conditions where conventional medicine blatently falls short. Of course I'm talking about health problems such as migraines, backaches, or stomach ulcers- you know, those kinds of nagging disorders where we all know that stress/mental processes DO play a role. But while few would argue that psychological factors can cause an ulcer, what about more serious conditions such as, say, arthritis?

Well it may not be too far fetched. Consider this. One study of 1,198 subjects found that only 56% of men with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain (Lawrence 1966). Another study X-rayed 84 seventy-nine year-olds and 76 eighty-five year-olds and found that only 43% of them with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain complaints (Bagge 1991). There are plenty more examples in the scientific literature, but obviously there two alone show us that there is NO clear-cut association between severe knee arthritis and pain.

ON THE OTHER HAND, when one looks at the relationship between psychological variables and knee arthritis, one does see a clear association. For instance, one study looked at 65 patients (ages 55 to 87) with hip and/or knee arthritis. X-rays, pain, depression levels, anxiety levels, coping styles, and functional impairment were all assessed. The findings? Researchers discovered that the severity of one's arthritis showed little relationship to pain, BUT, psychological variables were strong predictors of who had pain and how impaired they were (Summers 1988).

Along the same lines, Salaffi examined 61 women (ages 51-79) with knee arthritis. Here again, results showed that how disabled someone was, was more related to psychological variables than how bad their knee looked on an X-ray film. Interestingly, both anxiety and depression WERE important predictors of pain (Salaffi 1991). Any one conducting a literature review on Medline will find more such examples IF you're looking for them. While I used knee arthritis as an example, there are MANY more studies on other health problems with similar findings.

All of this should be causing us to raise an eyebrow. The literature is telling us that it is far from being clear cut that things like bad knee arthritis ALWAYS mean pain. And the research is also giving us clues that the mind and our thought processes definitely play a role. So the question now becomes, if bad thought patterns can play a role in health problems such as arthritis, why not in other diseases such as cancer, as the book suggests?

You be the judge. I found that the main value in this book was getting me to look at how our thinking does influence the functioning of our bodies- as well as our life in general. Note that I'm NOT saying that you can think yourself well all the time either.

Remember that while Louise Hay did change her thought patterns and was cured of cancer, she has also written that she used other alternative treatments as well, such as foot reflexology and colon therapy (Chapter 16). Therefore, my advice is to look at ALL the options when dealing with a health problem, one MAJOR one being changing your mental patterns (which is the what the book does a nice job of addressing). And for this reason, I can recommend this book to anyone who needs physical healing or otherwise. Other alternative healing books of interest include The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution. Thank you Louise Hay!


The bin is the best place for this book!, 03 Nov 2008
I found this book offensive and it ended up in the bin, which quite frankly I feel is the best place for it. I couldn't even give it away, because I found it dangerous in places. I'm sure there is a lot of good advice in what she says about accepting ourselves, but this book also contains a lot of self indulgent rubbish. Louise Hay says there is a mind association or stress/anger element with all illnesses and seems to say that people bring all their illnesses/conditions on themselves. Whilst it can be acknowledged that something such as stress is not good for health, sometimes things just happen. And much as we might like to have reasons for everything, sometimes we can't. And to blame people when they have problems such as heart disease or cancer is just nasty. (And what about genetic conditions ... whose fault are they Louise?) Louise Hay thinks she has the answer for everything, which is a little misguided. Great, if she has found her way in life. But to lead others down a road with her opinions, which she lays down as fact is irresponsible. I agree with another reviewer that if I could have given this book zero stars, then I would have done.

A life changing book, 03 Sep 2008

I CANNOT SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH OF THIS BOOK. THIS TRULY IS A LIFE CHANGING BOOK!

I have read many books on spirituality but this book is still my favourite.
My advice - If you are new to the concepts introduced in this book then, please just be patient and openminded to explore a different belief system. Then see what it can do for you :)

Thank you Louise Hay for helping me to go within!

Interesting, 20 Jun 2008
I find this a handy reference when trying to get to grips with tricky conditions that are stubborn to overcome without aggressive drug intervention. Delving into the subconscious is a skill and not always straighforward, and the suggested thought patterns are definitely worth consideration. The statements may not totally line up for everyone with the same condition, so adjusting the phrasing may be necessary until it rings absolutely true. I see this work more from the viewpoint that more kindness and tenderness is needed in a world that is steeped in conflict and aggression, and where better then to start by being kind and tender to ourselves. I don't for a second think this book is intended to create guilt or blame for developing a serious illness, or replace other medical intervention, rather it offers a possible way forward out of many possibilities and will always work alongside traditional interventions.

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing style (at one point he tells the reader "please just listen").
* massively over-complicates the issues
* is a book about Christ and God (although he doesn't get to the Christ bit until half way through the book, when the reader suddenly realises that this is a religious text).

Not recommended.

essential reading, 10 Sep 2008
This book has been written in the sense of a dialogue between master and disciple reminicent of the Corpus Hermeticum. However in this case the reader may or may not find these imposed questions useful or, indeed annoying... This is a book which is either going to hit a chord, or will seem like utter nonsense. From my point of view as an average reader, I have found it very important because it explores concepts of this mind/ego (a double) which is inside of each person which needs confronting in someway. I think this book is must read for anyone who feels they are on a spiritual path, because fundementally (and in my limited understanding) the awareness of the 'double' and the fission of dark and light is inevitable along this path. If this is really the case, then this book should be seen as essential reading.

A clear message for our times, 17 Oct 2008
I feel Eckhart Tolle has his finger completely on the pulse.
It so clearly argued, and the best part is ; put it into practice and it works.
How could it not.

Erm!, 16 Sep 2008
I found this too wordy and deep for a simple soul such as myself however I did as advised on the Oprah site and sat with 2 marker pens in different colours to underline that which I understood and that which I didn't. Needless to say one colour got a heck of a bashing!!

I've given it 3 stars though because I did actually get some really good bits out of it which I jotted down on the spare blank pages at the back (in my own words so I would understand later) and for that it was worth reading/buying.

What I am most chuffed about however is reading a review by Paul Chipperfield (lower down) recommending Cheri Huber's book which as he said is much kinder to us mere mortals and he is sooooo right!! Cheri Huber writes in a way I can understand and access reasonably easily - challenging still but achievably so!

Nice one mate!

There are better books out there, 03 Sep 2008
Reading this pretentious, sensationalistic, overblown book makes me want to dry-heave and at times a little sick actually came out my mouth from its eye-watering, vomit-inducting passages like.....

'By the end of the century, the number of people who died a violent death at the hand of their fellow humans would rise to more than one hundred million... we only need to watch the daily news on television to realise that the madness has not abated, that it is continuing into the twenty-first century. Another aspect of the collective dysfunction of the human mind is unprecedented violence that humans are inflicting on other life-forms and the planet itself.. blah blah'

You get the message. We are doommmmeeeeddd!!! Having to wade through scaremongering sensationalistic crap like that is annoying to say the least. The style of writing is like reading sheet from The Sun.

I did give it two stars because there is something behind this book. The concepts are drawn from Hinduism and particularly about understanding the ego, self, self-realisation and self-awareness. I guess the good thing is that at least it does get the message across to the new age masses. But personally, I would go straight to the source from where the author get these ideas from... The Bhagavad Gita, The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, books by Swami Vivekananda etc etc.



super book, 02 Sep 2008
Great one for the spiritual sceptics , stick with it there is something for everyone in here . Personally reccomended to a few friends something in here for everyone but if your reading it you probably dont need it , if your in doubt go check out the "is that so" chapter at the book store

A big ego writes about ego, 12 Aug 2008
I was given this by someone who saw Oprah raving about it and bought two copies in a state of excitement. I thought that the first three pages were quite good then was extremely disappointed as the rest went no further than to rehash Buddhism. My overriding concern is Tolle's continual denigration of the ego and his attempts to persuade us that if we could just annihilate any sense of being an individual or having individual thoughts or preferences we could all acheive permanent bliss. In fact, if we all followed this advice we would all coagulate in one big splurge of mush as no one would be allowed a personality at all.
This kind of spirituality feels very uncomfortable. I have always believed that the ego is a misunderstood beast and gets very bad press in New Age circles. We each represent a shard of God, here to express and experience our uniqueness and to evolve the whole while understanding we are part of the whole to which we will return following death. In addition, Tolle's regurgitated and extreme trashing of the ego is incongruent given that he benefits from the proceeds from a whole range of products, from calendars to cards, emblazoned with his name. No ego there then!
This book feels like a quick attempt to jump on the coat tails of his previous book and, for me, offers nothing new. I am sure this will do very well for the Eckhart Tolle franchise but am concerned about the cost to anybody who adopts this philosophy without understanding that 'God' the Universe or whatever you believe in gave us the ego for a reason. It enables you to find who you are and what you stand for. There is nothing inherently spiritual about voluntary self anhihilation. Even the Dala Lama left Tibet rather than adopting a stance of staying put and being 'meek' in the presence of danger. It isn't a New Earth it is a rehash and it doesn't say what it says on the tin 'awakening to your life purpose' should read 'putting your life purpose to sleep as it doesn't exist.'

A bizarre, complacent, offensive and off the wall little book for the bourgeoisie, 15 Nov 2008
This book was given to me as a present - I would not have dreamt of buying it myself!

What can I say but that the thought process (seasoned with narcissism and treacled with worship of the self) which underpins this little book goes against all that I hold dear.

Further, it is downright bizarre and borders on the offensive at times. I will quote from it liberally below to support what I have said. Pseudo-religion for the bourgeoise, complacent and self satisfied.


"We are each responsible for all our experiences" (page xiii)

This is plainly wrong. We possess a human nature which is subject to the vagaries of the external world - famine, disease, earthquakes. These are simply beyond our control and you bet they affect our experiences. Further this ignores the fact that we are surrounded on all sounds by other persons, who themselves are free agents. They impact on us and thus impact on our experience of life. This statement only can make any sense if it is intended to mean: it is up to us to determine how we respond to internal and external stimuli. But I am not sure she means this limited sense.

"We create every so called illness in our body" (page xiii: Deeply offensive

"Each one of us decides to incarnate upon this planet at a particular point in time and space. " (page 4) "I agree with the theory that we choose our parents (page 30).

Bizaarely we chose our parents as well. Note how in her narcissistic world, she chooses her parents which implies her parents own free will has been impaired in some way - why would they agree to this? Where did she get this from?

"No matter what the problem is, our experiences are just outer effects of inner thoughts" (page 5)

This thinking is dualistic - when our bodies are in pain, we are in pain, our whole being is in pain - we experience pain. Again, she ignores impact of nature and other free agents impacting on us. This echoes Gnostic thought.

"Whenever we are ill, we need to search our hearts to see who it is we need to forgive" (page 8)

I agree that non-forgiveness can cause huge problems for the psyche but if she is suggesting that diseases are caused by non-forgiveness always and everywhere, then it is offensive.

"Self approval and self acceptance in the now are the main keys to positive changes in every area of our lives" (page 9)

I think this statement is one of the keys to her little narcissistic philosophy. There is no imperfection in us - its just all about acceptance of ourselves. Is this Lady oblivious of the 20th century drenched in the blood of the innocent, killed by villains and murderous thugs. All these actions were committed by human beings!

"In the infinity of life where I am, all is perfect, whole and complete" (page 9)

What planet is this lady on? We are all broken creatures struggling to make our way through life.

"They (babies) already are perfect and they act as they know it. They know they are the centre of the Universe" (page 19)

Babies are lovely alright but they are not perfect. They howl like mad in the middle of the night when hungry!

"I love you and accept you exactly as you are" (page 19)

A complete loss of the wisdom of the ancients is evident here. The writings of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are replete with talk of virtue and educating and training oneself to be a virtuous man or woman. The point is: when we look at ourselves, if we are anyway self aware, we must know that things need to be changed.

Not sure I quite follow her because later on she talks about being willing to change - why would we change anything we wholeheartedly and unreservedly approve? A perfect being does not need to change!

"We are here to recognise our own magnificence and divinity" (page 31)

We are not divine - we are creatures albeit creatures endowed with wonderful gifts.

"Whatever we believe becomes true for us" (page 33)

This is plain nonsense. If in her philosophy we are all divine, and one divinity exercises his free will to impact on another divinity, does that not have any effect. Complete and utter individualism.

"My personal nutritional approach is simple, If it grows, eat is. If it does not grow, don't eat it. (page 45)

I wish her all the best eating the lovely wild mushrooms in the neighbourhood!

"I think its is our natural birthright to go from success to success all our life" (page 109)

Oh dear - the mantra of success. This lady is oblivious to the suffering of the multitude - this book is definitely for the bourgeoisie and those who want to continue remain blissfully ignorant of the cries of the poor, the moans of those starving and dying of malaria, typhoid and other conditions.

"I believe we create every so-called illness in our body": Deeply offensive!

"I find that most BLADDER problems come from being "Pissed off", usually at a partner" (page 132)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Cancer is a dis-ease caused by deep resentment held for a long time until it literally eats away the body" (page 138)

Tell that to the million dying of this nasty disease including young kids and even babies!

"Even if constipated people are not actually stingy, they usually do not trust that there will ever be enough! (page 135)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Everything I need is revealed to me. Everything I need comes to me" (page 242: Oh dear, very sad really.





The Psychological Side of Healing, 07 Nov 2008
You Can Heal Your Life is all about using your thoughts to fix the problems in your life. What kind of problems? Well, the book specifically looks into healing some pretty major life areas: relationships, work, success, prosperity, and your body. But wait a minute, did I say the book is using thoughts to heal your body? What's up with that? Is that even possible? Well, after reading this book, I think in many cases, yes, it is possible.

While I think it is the way to go to treat things such as an acute appendicitis with surgery, fractures with a cast, and pneumonia with antibiotics, there are many conditions where conventional medicine blatently falls short. Of course I'm talking about health problems such as migraines, backaches, or stomach ulcers- you know, those kinds of nagging disorders where we all know that stress/mental processes DO play a role. But while few would argue that psychological factors can cause an ulcer, what about more serious conditions such as, say, arthritis?

Well it may not be too far fetched. Consider this. One study of 1,198 subjects found that only 56% of men with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain (Lawrence 1966). Another study X-rayed 84 seventy-nine year-olds and 76 eighty-five year-olds and found that only 43% of them with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain complaints (Bagge 1991). There are plenty more examples in the scientific literature, but obviously there two alone show us that there is NO clear-cut association between severe knee arthritis and pain.

ON THE OTHER HAND, when one looks at the relationship between psychological variables and knee arthritis, one does see a clear association. For instance, one study looked at 65 patients (ages 55 to 87) with hip and/or knee arthritis. X-rays, pain, depression levels, anxiety levels, coping styles, and functional impairment were all assessed. The findings? Researchers discovered that the severity of one's arthritis showed little relationship to pain, BUT, psychological variables were strong predictors of who had pain and how impaired they were (Summers 1988).

Along the same lines, Salaffi examined 61 women (ages 51-79) with knee arthritis. Here again, results showed that how disabled someone was, was more related to psychological variables than how bad their knee looked on an X-ray film. Interestingly, both anxiety and depression WERE important predictors of pain (Salaffi 1991). Any one conducting a literature review on Medline will find more such examples IF you're looking for them. While I used knee arthritis as an example, there are MANY more studies on other health problems with similar findings.

All of this should be causing us to raise an eyebrow. The literature is telling us that it is far from being clear cut that things like bad knee arthritis ALWAYS mean pain. And the research is also giving us clues that the mind and our thought processes definitely play a role. So the question now becomes, if bad thought patterns can play a role in health problems such as arthritis, why not in other diseases such as cancer, as the book suggests?

You be the judge. I found that the main value in this book was getting me to look at how our thinking does influence the functioning of our bodies- as well as our life in general. Note that I'm NOT saying that you can think yourself well all the time either.

Remember that while Louise Hay did change her thought patterns and was cured of cancer, she has also written that she used other alternative treatments as well, such as foot reflexology and colon therapy (Chapter 16). Therefore, my advice is to look at ALL the options when dealing with a health problem, one MAJOR one being changing your mental patterns (which is the what the book does a nice job of addressing). And for this reason, I can recommend this book to anyone who needs physical healing or otherwise. Other alternative healing books of interest include The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution. Thank you Louise Hay!


The bin is the best place for this book!, 03 Nov 2008
I found this book offensive and it ended up in the bin, which quite frankly I feel is the best place for it. I couldn't even give it away, because I found it dangerous in places. I'm sure there is a lot of good advice in what she says about accepting ourselves, but this book also contains a lot of self indulgent rubbish. Louise Hay says there is a mind association or stress/anger element with all illnesses and seems to say that people bring all their illnesses/conditions on themselves. Whilst it can be acknowledged that something such as stress is not good for health, sometimes things just happen. And much as we might like to have reasons for everything, sometimes we can't. And to blame people when they have problems such as heart disease or cancer is just nasty. (And what about genetic conditions ... whose fault are they Louise?) Louise Hay thinks she has the answer for everything, which is a little misguided. Great, if she has found her way in life. But to lead others down a road with her opinions, which she lays down as fact is irresponsible. I agree with another reviewer that if I could have given this book zero stars, then I would have done.

A life changing book, 03 Sep 2008

I CANNOT SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH OF THIS BOOK. THIS TRULY IS A LIFE CHANGING BOOK!

I have read many books on spirituality but this book is still my favourite.
My advice - If you are new to the concepts introduced in this book then, please just be patient and openminded to explore a different belief system. Then see what it can do for you :)

Thank you Louise Hay for helping me to go within!

Interesting, 20 Jun 2008
I find this a handy reference when trying to get to grips with tricky conditions that are stubborn to overcome without aggressive drug intervention. Delving into the subconscious is a skill and not always straighforward, and the suggested thought patterns are definitely worth consideration. The statements may not totally line up for everyone with the same condition, so adjusting the phrasing may be necessary until it rings absolutely true. I see this work more from the viewpoint that more kindness and tenderness is needed in a world that is steeped in conflict and aggression, and where better then to start by being kind and tender to ourselves. I don't for a second think this book is intended to create guilt or blame for developing a serious illness, or replace other medical intervention, rather it offers a possible way forward out of many possibilities and will always work alongside traditional interventions.

Really good book and easy to follow, 15 Oct 2008
I really loved this book.. It is easy to follow as it is written in very simple english unlike some other writers here i have to take my dictionary out. I guess it has changed the way i think about life.
I have now started reading "I can make you Rich" by Paul Mckenna and it seems to be another fantastic book.
I simply loved it.

A waste of time and money, 13 Sep 2008
Don't bother with this book. One must suspect that it's all a clever trick which will contribute to Paul McKenna's success in life but definitely not to yours. I followed the book and listened to the CD exactly as directed. It's hard to believe the generally platitudinous advice but for a week it seems worth a try.

Of course absolutely nothing changed and I question my naivety in ever thinking that reading a simplistic book and listening to a frankly very boring CD could make any difference in the real world. There are many people who seem to feel that this book helped them but my suggestion would be to attend instead to your own problems and not to look for simple solutions.

It certainly wasted my time and money.

Too much of nothing in too little time..., 18 Jul 2008
I am on the 7th day of this book having read it every day for the last week.

Of course, on day 1 I was very excited about the week ahead and getting to grips with life and taking on a more positive attitude. Although I still feel this is my intention, I found the book overall to be disappointing.

For one, there is too much to read each day! I have not been working this week - I have been on holiday and had a few other things to do but not much and it has taken the best part of all day to read each chapter and do the exercises. I mean it takes an hour to listen to the CD alone. (Half hour in morning, half hour in evening) If I had been doing an 8 hour working day, plus travel time, plus dinner and every other thing life needs, there is no way I could have got through all this in a week!

The exercises become very repetitive after a while. I found myself feeling angry every time I read the next exercise, they all read EXACTLY the same way!

i.e. "Think of a time when you felt really..." (confident, positive, happy) Now, make the colours brighter and richer, the sounds louder, allow your feelings to intensify", "times that feeling by 10" and "step into it now, feel those great feelings" Voila! You are now programming your mind to feel... (confident, positive, happy)

Pick any day - it is the same formula. What's more, it becomes overwhelming. Each day, you have more and more exercises to do before starting the day and as they are so similar it becomes irritating to say the least, that along with the dumbed-down tone of the book.

Yes, the advice is so superficial, written in a catch all style, aimed at mass markets. Paul McKenna makes no secret about loving wealth which is fair enough but it makes the more discerning reader feel like a bit of a mug.

I have not found this CD to be as good as the Confidence CD that was recommended to me by a friend (and that wasn't great)and they are both very similar. The Confidence one seems a little bit more polished. Is Paul McKenna just a one trick pony? Also, I feel he doesn't give you enough time during the trance to get into those feelings.

I personally find it difficult to bring up great feelings on cue, especially if I am feeling down, unmotivated etc... if I didn't, I probably wouldn't be reading books like these, I would just remember a happy time and be done with it! This is true of the exercises and of the CD.

I like what I have seen of Paul McKenna on the television. He has done some miraculous things and I believe them all to be genuine. But I guess that's the power of a one-on-one session with a hypnotherapist; there is feedback.

Felt this all needed saying as the question I emailed to the Paul McKenna website was not answered by any of the team - again, just makes you feel like the sucker who bought the book and was moved on from!

I do aim to have a great life and a lot of simple advice in this book is true and may be useful to some, even a lot but 90% of the book was 'gash' and only 10% was enlightening for me.

Having said all that though, I suppose the week has been good. After a year of not being sure what to do career-wise, I have decided upon a career change and have set aside the next 6 months to learn the new skills and become qualified. Wondering how to get the £500 needed to get the materials and exam entries, I was contacted by my credit-card company saying they refunded all the money on it that was taken off fraudulently and there is an extra £1000 on there which they say I can keep as they don't know where it came from! Law Of Attraction maybe?!

This book tells you how to do it. But you must do it yourself., 29 Jun 2008
I'll start by saying, I have all Paul's books, and I'm a massive admirer of his work and ethos.

There's one massive flaw with this book though. Reading the synopsis, the reviews and even the introductory chapter, you get the impression reading the book will change your life in seven days. If you just read it, you won't. I do feel if I was to knock one mark out of one hundred for this book, it would be that Paul doesn't make it clear enough, you can't just read the book. It's a manual you have to learn from and apply to your life.

Practise, and execution is the key. Paul will show you how to do it, but really you have to do it. I would consider needing 15 mins a day (best in the morning) to go through the exercises.

And when the going gets tough, don't give up. Go back to the methods.

I say this, because I've twice "failed" on the book. I'll go for up to a week, before falling back in bad habits.

Having just split up with my girlfriend, I'm taking on the book again (and Paul's other title 'I Can Mend Your Broken Heart'). And this time I'm going to take on the suggestions, and the life changes religiously. Life I breath air!

And when you do this with the book, its fully worth 5 stars.

Change your life ...at your own pace, 21 Mar 2008
I agree wholeheartedly with the rave reviews others have given this book/CD, and I second the notion that the "7 Days" part of the title is quite ambitious. But no one can predict how much reprogramming their own mind will need until the work gets under way. In my first few days of listening and reading, before I noticed any real changes in my outlook or my behaviour, I found myself looking forward to the time I would spend on this. So maybe there were changes already happening that were a bit too subtle for me to recognise them. Within about 3 weeks' time, there was no mistaking that my thought patterns were becoming more positive and now (about 3 months since I first bought the book/CD), it's clear that much of the content has stuck with me and plays itself in my head automatically.
The big message is that you can't just spend 7 days and imagine that your life is "fixed." Buy the book and CD, use it steadily for a week, then come back to it from time to time to make sure you don't take a backward slide into old ways of thinking.
The single most important thing that has stuck with me from this CD is that whatever occupies your attention most is what you will create for yourself. So you are the only one who can decide what that will be, but Paul's book and CD can certainly help make it positive and constructive.
If you find you get tired of listening to the same CD over and over (which did happen to me after about 10 days), try alternating this one with Glenn Harrold's positive thinking CD, which is a bit more relaxing. (I like Paul in the morning and Glenn at night. ;)
So off you go to change your life. Who else is going to do it?

"Most gulls don't bother to learn more than the simplest facts of flight--how to get from shore to food and back again," writes author Richard Bach, in this allegory about a unique bird named Jonathan Livingston Seagull. "For most gulls it is not flying that matters, but eating. For this gull, though, it was not eating that mattered, but flight." Flight is indeed the metaphor that makes the story soar. Ultimately this is a fable about the importance of seeking a higher purpose in life, even if your flock, tribe or neighbourhood finds your ambition threatening. (At one point our beloved gull is even banished from his flock.) By not compromising his higher vision, Jonathan gets the ultimate pay-off: transcendence. Ultimately, he learns the meaning of love and kindness. The dreamy seagull photographs by Russell Munson provide just the right illustrations--although the overall packaging does seem a bit dated (keep in mind that it was first published in 1970). Nonetheless, this is a spirituality classic and an especially engaging parable for adolescents. --Gail Hudson

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing style (at one point he tells the reader "please just listen").
* massively over-complicates the issues
* is a book about Christ and God (although he doesn't get to the Christ bit until half way through the book, when the reader suddenly realises that this is a religious text).

Not recommended.

essential reading, 10 Sep 2008
This book has been written in the sense of a dialogue between master and disciple reminicent of the Corpus Hermeticum. However in this case the reader may or may not find these imposed questions useful or, indeed annoying... This is a book which is either going to hit a chord, or will seem like utter nonsense. From my point of view as an average reader, I have found it very important because it explores concepts of this mind/ego (a double) which is inside of each person which needs confronting in someway. I think this book is must read for anyone who feels they are on a spiritual path, because fundementally (and in my limited understanding) the awareness of the 'double' and the fission of dark and light is inevitable along this path. If this is really the case, then this book should be seen as essential reading.

A clear message for our times, 17 Oct 2008
I feel Eckhart Tolle has his finger completely on the pulse.
It so clearly argued, and the best part is ; put it into practice and it works.
How could it not.

Erm!, 16 Sep 2008
I found this too wordy and deep for a simple soul such as myself however I did as advised on the Oprah site and sat with 2 marker pens in different colours to underline that which I understood and that which I didn't. Needless to say one colour got a heck of a bashing!!

I've given it 3 stars though because I did actually get some really good bits out of it which I jotted down on the spare blank pages at the back (in my own words so I would understand later) and for that it was worth reading/buying.

What I am most chuffed about however is reading a review by Paul Chipperfield (lower down) recommending Cheri Huber's book which as he said is much kinder to us mere mortals and he is sooooo right!! Cheri Huber writes in a way I can understand and access reasonably easily - challenging still but achievably so!

Nice one mate!

There are better books out there, 03 Sep 2008
Reading this pretentious, sensationalistic, overblown book makes me want to dry-heave and at times a little sick actually came out my mouth from its eye-watering, vomit-inducting passages like.....

'By the end of the century, the number of people who died a violent death at the hand of their fellow humans would rise to more than one hundred million... we only need to watch the daily news on television to realise that the madness has not abated, that it is continuing into the twenty-first century. Another aspect of the collective dysfunction of the human mind is unprecedented violence that humans are inflicting on other life-forms and the planet itself.. blah blah'

You get the message. We are doommmmeeeeddd!!! Having to wade through scaremongering sensationalistic crap like that is annoying to say the least. The style of writing is like reading sheet from The Sun.

I did give it two stars because there is something behind this book. The concepts are drawn from Hinduism and particularly about understanding the ego, self, self-realisation and self-awareness. I guess the good thing is that at least it does get the message across to the new age masses. But personally, I would go straight to the source from where the author get these ideas from... The Bhagavad Gita, The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi, books by Swami Vivekananda etc etc.



super book, 02 Sep 2008
Great one for the spiritual sceptics , stick with it there is something for everyone in here . Personally reccomended to a few friends something in here for everyone but if your reading it you probably dont need it , if your in doubt go check out the "is that so" chapter at the book store

A big ego writes about ego, 12 Aug 2008
I was given this by someone who saw Oprah raving about it and bought two copies in a state of excitement. I thought that the first three pages were quite good then was extremely disappointed as the rest went no further than to rehash Buddhism. My overriding concern is Tolle's continual denigration of the ego and his attempts to persuade us that if we could just annihilate any sense of being an individual or having individual thoughts or preferences we could all acheive permanent bliss. In fact, if we all followed this advice we would all coagulate in one big splurge of mush as no one would be allowed a personality at all.
This kind of spirituality feels very uncomfortable. I have always believed that the ego is a misunderstood beast and gets very bad press in New Age circles. We each represent a shard of God, here to express and experience our uniqueness and to evolve the whole while understanding we are part of the whole to which we will return following death. In addition, Tolle's regurgitated and extreme trashing of the ego is incongruent given that he benefits from the proceeds from a whole range of products, from calendars to cards, emblazoned with his name. No ego there then!
This book feels like a quick attempt to jump on the coat tails of his previous book and, for me, offers nothing new. I am sure this will do very well for the Eckhart Tolle franchise but am concerned about the cost to anybody who adopts this philosophy without understanding that 'God' the Universe or whatever you believe in gave us the ego for a reason. It enables you to find who you are and what you stand for. There is nothing inherently spiritual about voluntary self anhihilation. Even the Dala Lama left Tibet rather than adopting a stance of staying put and being 'meek' in the presence of danger. It isn't a New Earth it is a rehash and it doesn't say what it says on the tin 'awakening to your life purpose' should read 'putting your life purpose to sleep as it doesn't exist.'

A bizarre, complacent, offensive and off the wall little book for the bourgeoisie, 15 Nov 2008
This book was given to me as a present - I would not have dreamt of buying it myself!

What can I say but that the thought process (seasoned with narcissism and treacled with worship of the self) which underpins this little book goes against all that I hold dear.

Further, it is downright bizarre and borders on the offensive at times. I will quote from it liberally below to support what I have said. Pseudo-religion for the bourgeoise, complacent and self satisfied.


"We are each responsible for all our experiences" (page xiii)

This is plainly wrong. We possess a human nature which is subject to the vagaries of the external world - famine, disease, earthquakes. These are simply beyond our control and you bet they affect our experiences. Further this ignores the fact that we are surrounded on all sounds by other persons, who themselves are free agents. They impact on us and thus impact on our experience of life. This statement only can make any sense if it is intended to mean: it is up to us to determine how we respond to internal and external stimuli. But I am not sure she means this limited sense.

"We create every so called illness in our body" (page xiii: Deeply offensive

"Each one of us decides to incarnate upon this planet at a particular point in time and space. " (page 4) "I agree with the theory that we choose our parents (page 30).

Bizaarely we chose our parents as well. Note how in her narcissistic world, she chooses her parents which implies her parents own free will has been impaired in some way - why would they agree to this? Where did she get this from?

"No matter what the problem is, our experiences are just outer effects of inner thoughts" (page 5)

This thinking is dualistic - when our bodies are in pain, we are in pain, our whole being is in pain - we experience pain. Again, she ignores impact of nature and other free agents impacting on us. This echoes Gnostic thought.

"Whenever we are ill, we need to search our hearts to see who it is we need to forgive" (page 8)

I agree that non-forgiveness can cause huge problems for the psyche but if she is suggesting that diseases are caused by non-forgiveness always and everywhere, then it is offensive.

"Self approval and self acceptance in the now are the main keys to positive changes in every area of our lives" (page 9)

I think this statement is one of the keys to her little narcissistic philosophy. There is no imperfection in us - its just all about acceptance of ourselves. Is this Lady oblivious of the 20th century drenched in the blood of the innocent, killed by villains and murderous thugs. All these actions were committed by human beings!

"In the infinity of life where I am, all is perfect, whole and complete" (page 9)

What planet is this lady on? We are all broken creatures struggling to make our way through life.

"They (babies) already are perfect and they act as they know it. They know they are the centre of the Universe" (page 19)

Babies are lovely alright but they are not perfect. They howl like mad in the middle of the night when hungry!

"I love you and accept you exactly as you are" (page 19)

A complete loss of the wisdom of the ancients is evident here. The writings of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are replete with talk of virtue and educating and training oneself to be a virtuous man or woman. The point is: when we look at ourselves, if we are anyway self aware, we must know that things need to be changed.

Not sure I quite follow her because later on she talks about being willing to change - why would we change anything we wholeheartedly and unreservedly approve? A perfect being does not need to change!

"We are here to recognise our own magnificence and divinity" (page 31)

We are not divine - we are creatures albeit creatures endowed with wonderful gifts.

"Whatever we believe becomes true for us" (page 33)

This is plain nonsense. If in her philosophy we are all divine, and one divinity exercises his free will to impact on another divinity, does that not have any effect. Complete and utter individualism.

"My personal nutritional approach is simple, If it grows, eat is. If it does not grow, don't eat it. (page 45)

I wish her all the best eating the lovely wild mushrooms in the neighbourhood!

"I think its is our natural birthright to go from success to success all our life" (page 109)

Oh dear - the mantra of success. This lady is oblivious to the suffering of the multitude - this book is definitely for the bourgeoisie and those who want to continue remain blissfully ignorant of the cries of the poor, the moans of those starving and dying of malaria, typhoid and other conditions.

"I believe we create every so-called illness in our body": Deeply offensive!

"I find that most BLADDER problems come from being "Pissed off", usually at a partner" (page 132)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Cancer is a dis-ease caused by deep resentment held for a long time until it literally eats away the body" (page 138)

Tell that to the million dying of this nasty disease including young kids and even babies!

"Even if constipated people are not actually stingy, they usually do not trust that there will ever be enough! (page 135)

Well, what can one say to this piece of wisdom!

"Everything I need is revealed to me. Everything I need comes to me" (page 242: Oh dear, very sad really.





The Psychological Side of Healing, 07 Nov 2008
You Can Heal Your Life is all about using your thoughts to fix the problems in your life. What kind of problems? Well, the book specifically looks into healing some pretty major life areas: relationships, work, success, prosperity, and your body. But wait a minute, did I say the book is using thoughts to heal your body? What's up with that? Is that even possible? Well, after reading this book, I think in many cases, yes, it is possible.

While I think it is the way to go to treat things such as an acute appendicitis with surgery, fractures with a cast, and pneumonia with antibiotics, there are many conditions where conventional medicine blatently falls short. Of course I'm talking about health problems such as migraines, backaches, or stomach ulcers- you know, those kinds of nagging disorders where we all know that stress/mental processes DO play a role. But while few would argue that psychological factors can cause an ulcer, what about more serious conditions such as, say, arthritis?

Well it may not be too far fetched. Consider this. One study of 1,198 subjects found that only 56% of men with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain (Lawrence 1966). Another study X-rayed 84 seventy-nine year-olds and 76 eighty-five year-olds and found that only 43% of them with SEVERE knee arthritis had any pain complaints (Bagge 1991). There are plenty more examples in the scientific literature, but obviously there two alone show us that there is NO clear-cut association between severe knee arthritis and pain.

ON THE OTHER HAND, when one looks at the relationship between psychological variables and knee arthritis, one does see a clear association. For instance, one study looked at 65 patients (ages 55 to 87) with hip and/or knee arthritis. X-rays, pain, depression levels, anxiety levels, coping styles, and functional impairment were all assessed. The findings? Researchers discovered that the severity of one's arthritis showed little relationship to pain, BUT, psychological variables were strong predictors of who had pain and how impaired they were (Summers 1988).

Along the same lines, Salaffi examined 61 women (ages 51-79) with knee arthritis. Here again, results showed that how disabled someone was, was more related to psychological variables than how bad their knee looked on an X-ray film. Interestingly, both anxiety and depression WERE important predictors of pain (Salaffi 1991). Any one conducting a literature review on Medline will find more such examples IF you're looking for them. While I used knee arthritis as an example, there are MANY more studies on other health problems with similar findings.

All of this should be causing us to raise an eyebrow. The literature is telling us that it is far from being clear cut that things like bad knee arthritis ALWAYS mean pain. And the research is also giving us clues that the mind and our thought processes definitely play a role. So the question now becomes, if bad thought patterns can play a role in health problems such as arthritis, why not in other diseases such as cancer, as the book suggests?

You be the judge. I found that the main value in this book was getting me to look at how our thinking does influence the functioning of our bodies- as well as our life in general. Note that I'm NOT saying that you can think yourself well all the time either.

Remember that while Louise Hay did change her thought patterns and was cured of cancer, she has also written that she used other alternative treatments as well, such as foot reflexology and colon therapy (Chapter 16). Therefore, my advice is to look at ALL the options when dealing with a health problem, one MAJOR one being changing your mental patterns (which is the what the book does a nice job of addressing). And for this reason, I can recommend this book to anyone who needs physical healing or otherwise. Other alternative healing books of interest include The 5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution. Thank you Louise Hay!


The bin is the best place for this book!, 03 Nov 2008
I found this book offensive and it ended up in the bin, which quite frankly I feel is the best place for it. I couldn't even give it away, because I found it dangerous in places. I'm sure there is a lot of good advice in what she says about accepting ourselves, but this book also contains a lot of self indulgent rubbish. Louise Hay says there is a mind association or stress/anger element with all illnesses and seems to say that people bring all their illnesses/conditions on themselves. Whilst it can be acknowledged that something such as stress is not good for health, sometimes things just happen. And much as we might like to have reasons for everything, sometimes we can't. And to blame people when they have problems such as heart disease or cancer is just nasty. (And what about genetic conditions ... whose fault are they Louise?) Louise Hay thinks she has the answer for everything, which is a little misguided. Great, if she has found her way in life. But to lead others down a road with her opinions, which she lays down as fact is irresponsible. I agree with another reviewer that if I could have given this book zero stars, then I would have done.

A life changing book, 03 Sep 2008

I CANNOT SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH OF THIS BOOK. THIS TRULY IS A LIFE CHANGING BOOK!

I have read many books on spirituality but this book is still my favourite.
My advice - If you are new to the concepts introduced in this book then, please just be patient and openminded to explore a different belief system. Then see what it can do for you :)

Thank you Louise Hay for helping me to go within!

Interesting, 20 Jun 2008
I find this a handy reference when trying to get to grips with tricky conditions that are stubborn to overcome without aggressive drug intervention. Delving into the subconscious is a skill and not always straighforward, and the suggested thought patterns are definitely worth consideration. The statements may not totally line up for everyone with the same condition, so adjusting the phrasing may be necessary until it rings absolutely true. I see this work more from the viewpoint that more kindness and tenderness is needed in a world that is steeped in conflict and aggression, and where better then to start by being kind and tender to ourselves. I don't for a second think this book is intended to create guilt or blame for developing a serious illness, or replace other medical intervention, rather it offers a possible way forward out of many possibilities and will always work alongside traditional interventions.

Really good book and easy to follow, 15 Oct 2008
I really loved this book.. It is easy to follow as it is written in very simple english unlike some other writers here i have to take my dictionary out. I guess it has changed the way i think about life.
I have now started reading "I can make you Rich" by Paul Mckenna and it seems to be another fantastic book.
I simply loved it.

A waste of time and money, 13 Sep 2008
Don't bother with this book. One must suspect that it's all a clever trick which will contribute to Paul McKenna's success in life but definitely not to yours. I followed the book and listened to the CD exactly as directed. It's hard to believe the generally platitudinous advice but for a week it seems worth a try.

Of course absolutely nothing changed and I question my naivety in ever thinking that reading a simplistic book and listening to a frankly very boring CD could make any difference in the real world. There are many people who seem to feel that this book helped them but my suggestion would be to attend instead to your own problems and not to look for simple solutions.

It certainly wasted my time and money.

Too much of nothing in too little time..., 18 Jul 2008
I am on the 7th day of this book having read it every day for the last week.

Of course, on day 1 I was very excited about the week ahead and getting to grips with life and taking on a more positive attitude. Although I still feel this is my intention, I found the book overall to be disappointing.

For one, there is too much to read each day! I have not been working this week - I have been on holiday and had a few other things to do but not much and it has taken the best part of all day to read each chapter and do the exercises. I mean it takes an hour to listen to the CD alone. (Half hour in morning, half hour in evening) If I had been doing an 8 hour working day, plus travel time, plus dinner and every other thing life needs, there is no way I could have got through all this in a week!

The exercises become very repetitive after a while. I found myself feeling angry every time I read the next exercise, they all read EXACTLY the same way!

i.e. "Think of a time when you felt really..." (confident, positive, happy) Now, make the colours brighter and richer, the sounds louder, allow your feelings to intensify", "times that feeling by 10" and "step into it now, feel those great feelings" Voila! You are now programming your mind to feel... (confident, positive, happy)

Pick any day - it is the same formula. What's more, it becomes overwhelming. Each day, you have more and more exercises to do before starting the day and as they are so similar it becomes irritating to say the least, that along with the dumbed-down tone of the book.

Yes, the advice is so superficial, written in a catch all style, aimed at mass markets. Paul McKenna makes no secret about loving wealth which is fair enough but it makes the more discerning reader feel like a bit of a mug.

I have not found this CD to be as good as the Confidence CD that was recommended to me by a friend (and that wasn't great)and they are both very similar. The Confidence one seems a little bit more polished. Is Paul McKenna just a one trick pony? Also, I feel he doesn't give you enough time during the trance to get into those feelings.

I personally find it difficult to bring up great feelings on cue, especially if I am feeling down, unmotivated etc... if I didn't, I probably wouldn't be reading books like these, I would just remember a happy time and be done with it! This is true of the exercises and of the CD.

I like what I have seen of Paul McKenna on the television. He has done some miraculous things and I believe them all to be genuine. But I guess that's the power of a one-on-one session with a hypnotherapist; there is feedback.

Felt this all needed saying as the question I emailed to the Paul McKenna website was not answered by any of the team - again, just makes you feel like the sucker who bought the book and was moved on from!

I do aim to have a great life and a lot of simple advice in this book is true and may be useful to some, even a lot but 90% of the book was 'gash' and only 10% was enlightening for me.

Having said all that though, I suppose the week has been good. After a year of not being sure what to do career-wise, I have decided upon a career change and have set aside the next 6 months to learn the new skills and become qualified. Wondering how to get the £500 needed to get the materials and exam entries, I was contacted by my credit-card company saying they refunded all the money on it that was taken off fraudulently and there is an extra £1000 on there which they say I can keep as they don't know where it came from! Law Of Attraction maybe?!

This book tells you how to do it. But you must do it yourself., 29 Jun 2008
I'll start by saying, I have all Paul's books, and I'm a massive admirer of his work and ethos.

There's one massive flaw with this book though. Reading the synopsis, the reviews and even the introductory chapter, you get the impression reading the book will change your life in seven days. If you just read it, you won't. I do feel if I was to knock one mark out of one hundred for this book, it would be that Paul doesn't make it clear enough, you can't just read the book. It's a manual you have to learn from and apply to your life.

Practise, and execution is the key. Paul will show you how to do it, but really you have to do it. I would consider needing 15 mins a day (best in the morning) to go through the exercises.

And when the going gets tough, don't give up. Go back to the methods.

I say this, because I've twice "failed" on the book. I'll go for up to a week, before falling back in bad habits.

Having just split up with my girlfriend, I'm taking on the book again (and Paul's other title 'I Can Mend Your Broken Heart'). And this time I'm going to take on the suggestions, and the life changes religiously. Life I breath air!

And when you do this with the book, its fully worth 5 stars.

Change your life ...at your own pace, 21 Mar 2008
I agree wholeheartedly with the rave reviews others have given this book/CD, and I second the notion that the "7 Days" part of the title is quite ambitious. But no one can predict how much reprogramming their own mind will need until the work gets under way. In my first few days of listening and reading, before I noticed any real changes in my outlook or my behaviour, I found myself looking forward to the time I would spend on this. So maybe there were changes already happening that were a bit too subtle for me to recognise them. Within about 3 weeks' time, there was no mistaking that my thought patterns were becoming more positive and now (about 3 months since I first bought the book/CD), it's clear that much of the content has stuck with me and plays itself in my head automatically.
The big message is that you can't just spend 7 days and imagine that your life is "fixed." Buy the book and CD, use it steadily for a week, then come back to it from time to time to make sure you don't take a backward slide into old ways of thinking.
The single most important thing that has stuck with me from this CD is that whatever occupies your attention most is what you will create for yourself. So you are the only one who can decide what that will be, but Paul's book and CD can certainly help make it positive and constructive.
If you find you get tired of listening to the same CD over and over (which did happen to me after about 10 days), try alternating this one with Glenn Harrold's positive thinking CD, which is a bit more relaxing. (I like Paul in the morning and Glenn at night. ;)
So off you go to change your life. Who else is going to do it?


dreams have no boundaries, 05 Aug 2008
I was given this book some years ago by a good friend - I have dipped into it so many times and yet each time I read it I never cease to see inspiration vitality and encouragement on each and every page - Bach has the ability to see beyond 'an everyday occurance' and is able to turn it into a magical and enthralling experience. If all of this sounds cheesy then so be it - It is the sort of book you either love or loathe - I have bought several of these little treasures and have given them to friends especially those who have been dealing with difficult situations.

Always an inspiration, 10 Jul 2008
Shunned by his flock, Jonathan Livingston lives and flies while they merely survive and eat. His story is a beacon to freethinkers everywhere. It never fails to cheer me up when I'm feeling down. If it doesn't do the same for you, please pass your copy on to the nearest maverick.

Really, really hated this book.., 03 Jul 2008
Yep, 'hated'. It's a very strong word and I being the pale-faced egalitarian liberal that I am, is one I rarely use.

At best it's self-help drivel that will make those with low self-esteem feel (briefly) better about themselves. At worst, it's dangerous right-wing elitist fiction masquerading as a children's allegory.

I have no problem with self-help drivel - I choose not to read it. I do have problems with books that try and pretend to be something else.

A friend sent me a copy of this book a few years ago, which I read in a few minutes and it left me literally shaking with anger. The memory of this book is still etched in my mind..

Burn every copy you find. ;-)

Is Johnathan the true son of the Great Gull?, 22 Jan 2008
A beautiful story that took 1 hour to read.Behind the words is the message that we are poweful beings whose thoughts are powerful and that we need to step away from the crowd and search for higher realms.
I much prefer Richard Bachs book illusions which is more profound.
The message that should be taken very seriously is that our thoughts are truely powerful,this is why the Law of Attraction is such a powerful force in our lives.

A True Bond, 30 Dec 2007
This book is Richard Bach's finest work. A simple story told with complex texture, the bird symbolises the ineffable longings within humanity for a transcendental epiphany; a neon in the night of our stumblings; flash! I see! I hear! I fly! Valleys of failure and hills of hope are the topographic text through which the tale travels, and white-winged and wide are our stretchings towards self-actualization. This is a work of singular vision, aided by a slight editorial suggestion offered by his friend, Sean Connery. During a recent interview on 'Parkinson', Connery said, "Bach had just finished the final draft and we were sitting together on Brighton Pier, feeding bread to the gathering gulls. Hundreds of the wretched creatures, all squawking and pecking and flapping. It was like being in the centre of a feathery blizzard and we were covered in gull-goo and crumbs. Fearing for our lives and an exorbitant dry-cleaning bill, we decamped to the safety of a nearby bar. After a dozen or so fortifying flagons, Bach unwrapped the splattered manuscript and showed me the title. Something about it wasn't quite right, so I propped the stupefied scribbler back into his chair and said, 'Richie, sure the bird idea's got legs, but Jonathan Livingston TURKEY? When those flocking gulls disappear, take a stumble along the beach and see what else you can come up with.'"

A must read..., 02 Nov 2008
Well worth the few pounds on a life changing book and completely ignore the 1 star reviews. Read it slowly and let the words absorb into your very being.

Happiness is the Road, 31 Oct 2008
This book focuses on the way in which living 'in the present' is the road to true happiness.

If you enjoyed the book, you simply have to check out Marillion's recent CD, Happiness is the Road - Essence, which takes Tolle's work and builds it into a stunning musical journey.

Tolle's ideas, clearly explained in this book, although sometimes simplistic, provide a strong basis for achieving enlightenment - and are closely aligned with many principles of buddhist philosophy.

The book and CD are both recommended!

please avoid this book, 31 Oct 2008
Please avoid this book.

First of all, he is claiming to be an 'enlightened being' and yet to me it seems quite egotistical to start your book by declaring your own superiority and wisdom in this way. To my mind this device exposes a need to justify himself in the absence of having any relevant qualifications. Being the centre of so much attention through the publication of bestsellers also comes across as somewhat materialist to me, not what I would expect from the enlightened one.

This book is not original. It describes a philosophy based on the central claims of many doctrines associated with eastern mysticism. These are all wonderful, colourful, exciting and maybe even true. But Eckhart Tolle is cheating by presenting himself as a teacher, because he is not. He is just saying what he has learnt from his own study in this area, and then branding himself as a source.

I believe this is called hypocrisy. A well respected and more authentic spiritual master once said that 'God forgives everything except hypocrisy'.

So if you are not sure about buying his book. I recommend you avoid it. Go and do something you enjoy instead.

If you want an overcompicated book about Jesus, buy this....., 25 Oct 2008
This book:
* repeats itself over and over.
* has a lecturing st