“Your inner purpose is to awaken. It is as simple as that. You share that purpose with every other person on the planet—because it is the purpose of humanity.” — Eckhart Tolle
This quote is circulating on social media right now. It’s a reminder for me that although ET seems awake enough, I often don’t quite resonate with how he expresses or interprets it.
That doesn’t mean that one or the other is wrong. No story is ultimately completely true. They are all pointers. More importantly, they are all – in this context – medicine for a particular condition.
THE PLAY OF EXISTENCE
I lean more towards seeing existence as play – they play of the divine, God, Spirit, life. Its existence expressing, exploring, and experiencing itself in always new ways. The play itself is the purpose.
That’s how it seemed to me in the initial oneness shift and within that shift that’s still here, and it’s also aligned with Advaita Vedanta and other traditions that reflect the noticing of others often very clear and insightful.
That means that for some, the purpose is to go deeper into the appearance of separation, and for others, the purpose is to awaken. And if someone is generally on a path of awakening, and happens to for a moment go in the direction of separation, that’s that person’s purpose in that moment, and the other way around.
We are all part of the play of Spirit. Taking it all very seriously is sometimes part of that play, as is recognizing it as play when that’s what happens.
DIFFERENT KINDS OF MEDICINE
The way ET says it seems to be the right medicine for many, so it’s perfect in that sense. ET’s quote may be medicine for someone on an awakening path who needs that confirmed and supported in that particular way.
And the play view may be medicine for someone who has a tendency to go into ideas of right and wrong, or one-sided duality in general, or take it all a little too seriously. (Which, of course, is part of the play too.)