Eckhart Tolle Silent Group
craig sheehan
Brisbane Eckhart Tolle Silent Group Meeting
The ego’s greatest enemy is the present moment, which is to say, life itself.
In this newsletter:
v Next meeting
v Meeting Theme
v New Group announcement
v Tolle Seminar 2009
v Tolle Retreat and State Election
v Extract from Oneness with all Life
v Guidelines for discussion groups
v Information for new members
v Website
v Other Tolle Groups in South East Queensland
v Unsubscribe
A Gentle Reminder - Our next meeting for the year: Thursday 19th Mar, 2009 at 6:45pm
Venue
We meet at St Mary’s Catholic Church in South Brisbane.
This
Week's Meeting's Theme:
There is no meeting at St Mary’s this week. Most of the group will be at
Eckhart’s seminar at the convention centre. We will meet again the
following Thursday.
New Group
Karen Allen has been attending our group for a while, making the commute from Caboolture. She is now ready to host a group and is interested in hearing from people who live in the Caboolture / Bribie Island area.
Karen can be contacted on 0404 965 393 or at lilac...@yahoo.com.au.
Tolle Seminar 2009
Tickets will be available for collection tonight at the venue. The event commences at 8pm. Tickets will be available from 6.30. Please be seated by 7.30. Our group will have a designated area for seating. We will have 45 seats put aside if you would like to sit with the group.
There are still tickets available for the Brisbane Seminar. If you have friends and relatives that are considering coming, there are still spaces available. (We may even be able to get the discount extended to them, but no promises. Will have to negotiate that with the Hay House people).
Tolle Retreat and State Election
For those attending the retreat at Coolum, you may wish to consider doing a postal vote or pre-vote. (if you need help with either of these see the ECQ website for details: http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/asp/index.html You can pre-poll at City Hall, and each electorate has a site.)
From Oneness With All Life
(Extracts this year will be taken from Oneness With All Life. As Eckhart describes in the introduction to the book, “ For this companion volume to A New Earth, I selected passages from the original book that felt particularly suitable for inspirational or meditative reading’.)
Defining yourself through thought is limiting yourself. When you fully accept that you don’t know, you actually enter a state of peace and clarity that is closer that is closer to who you truly are than thought could ever be.
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Don’t seek happiness. If you seek it, you won’t find it, because seeking is the antithesis of happiness. Happiness is ever elusive, but freedom from unhappiness is attainable now, by facing what is rather than making up stories about it. Unhappiness covers up your natural state of well-being and inner-peace, the source of true happiness.
Guidelines for Discussion Groups
Eckhart recommends following the Silent Group format. The group may begin with ten to twenty minutes of silence (silent meditation), 1 to 1 1/2 hours of an Eckhart Tolle audio or visual recording, ending with ten to twenty minutes of silence (silent meditation). It's best not to engage in discussion, as it tends to stimulate the mind and ego.
However, since we will be having a discussion group, the following guidelines are offered:
v When the desire to speak comes up, observe it and let the desire pass. Then, pause and speak from presence. You may find that after the desire to speak has passed, there is nothing to say.
v If you are embarrassed about speaking, that is also the ego. Observe that, and then let it pass.
v If you are going to speak, ensure that you speak loudly enough for the whole group to hear.
v Speak to the group, not just to one person.
v Only one person to speak at a time (no side conversations).
v If there begins to be too much activity of mind, then pause as a group, and go back to reading Tolle’s words.
v You will find the process of reading the books as a group very rewarding. To make it so for everybody, presence must be the dominant state.
Information for New Members
Meetings:
We meet each Thursday at St
Mary’s Church, Merivale St, South Brisbane.
Although the meetings are held in a Catholic Church, we are not affiliated with
any religion. The church is open from 6:15 pm to allow silent meditation for
those who would like that, or a cup of coffee for others that arrive
early. We ask everyone to be present from 6:45 with the meeting starting
at 7 pm. The meeting finishes at 9pm, with an open invitation to go from the
church to a local coffee shop to continue the discussion.
How
to get there:
The meeting is in
the church itself, not at
the adjacent Parish Hall. To get there, take the driveway at 20 Merivale Street and park in the
car park. The car park is well flood lit. Knock if the church door is closed
and we have started.
Note: Parking can be difficult as there are other meetings nearby, and the car
park can be full. Make sure you allow plenty of time to find an alternative.
What
we do:
We commence and end with silence and each week either read a section of one of
Tolle’s books or watch a part of one of Tolle’s videos. The
'meditations' are usually up to 15 minutes at beginning and end. Afterwards, we
retire for a coffee at The Three Monkeys coffee shop on Mollison St, West End to continue any
discussions.
Our library:
There is a large a/v library for
lending. There is a one off fee of $5 to borrow from the library. (This covers
the cost of replacement discs, cases, etc).
The cost:
There is no formal cost, but we
request a gold coin donation each week per person. Any donations are appreciated
and go to the church for electricity and costs.
For More Information, contact:
Craig
Sheehan:
email craiga...@hotmail.com
ph:0411 177 031
For more information, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/brisbane-eckhart-tolle-silent-group
Other Tolle Groups in South East Queensland
Marie Condon will be hosting a weekly meeting at Bellbowrie commencing on Thurs the 17th Feb at 7pm. If you live in the west, or know people who live out that way that have found it difficult to come into South Brisbane on a regular basis, please give them Marie’s details. Marie can be contacted on 32026628 or via e-mail at mar...@pacific.net.
Susan Thiesfield hosts a group in the Wynnum / Manly area. If you live in the east, or know people who do, please let them know about Susan’s group. Susan can be contacted at s.thie...@gmail.com
Roslyn Bates hosts a group at Bridgeman Downs. Meetings are held in her home 10am to 12 noon every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month commencing March 9th. If you know people living on the northside of Brisbane, please let them know about Roslyn’s group. For further details contact Roslyn on 0403 995 000 or at rbat...@bigpond.com
Elaine Berndt hosts a group at Tamborine. Meetings are held on the first and third Wed of each month at 10am. The address is 137 Murray Grey Drive, Tamborine, ph: 5543 6493. Elaine can also be contacted at elaine...@hotmail.com.
Karen Allen hosts a group at Caboolture. Karen can be contacted on 0404 965 393 or at lilac...@yahoo.com.au
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