Managing your addiction to technology | Eckhart Tolle Teachings

Oh yes. Can you speak about how to be in this world with this constant push for connectivity on the. How did we, how did we get to the most profound things from a relatively simple question? Oh yes, we talked about doing and being without feeling that being present is another thing to do. How to be in this world without this constant push for connectivity? Well, the first thing is you turn off your push notifications. That's already a big step forward. And you need to be disciplined in the use of your device, your phone, whatever, tablet, phone, so that it doesn't take you over. Because it's simply an extension of the mind. And if it wasn't enough, before we invented these devices, humans had already been taken over by their minds even 2000 years ago. Not as much as now, but even 2000 years ago. Jesus said why are you always thinking about tomorrow? Why are you always worried about the next thing? Look at the flower, look how it lives in total alignment with the present moment. And it's being sustained by the one consciousness. That's my translation. So already then humans had been taken over by mind, but even more so since then, mind has proliferated. And then the clever human mind came up with these devices, said let's extend ourselves into the realm of things and then we can create this which is an extension of the human mind. So when you might have noticed when you are with yourself, you have the voice in the head, unless you begin to awaken, in which case you are able to experience spaces of alert, still presence. It's beautiful, but otherwise you have this think, commenting, talking, arguing, and then this becomes a burden for many people. Of course it is a burden because a lot of the stuff it says is actually not pleasant and so you experience it as a burden. And since you derive your sense of identity from becomes yourself, this talking voice, you think that's you, it becomes the self. And you walk around with this burden of the self. And in order to unburden yourself, one thing you can do, you think you can do is you can watch the television or you can go on. There are countless things that you can watch on the little screen, the entire world's knowledge at your fingertips. And the moment you watch the screen, whether it's television or on the screen, you might have noticed that your so called own thought processes come to a stop. So to some extent your you are free of the self. This is why people sometimes find watching television relaxing. Say okay, I just need to relax now, let's turn it on. By this they mean while they watch the television screen, they are not burdened by their self induced thought processes. What they do, however, they replace their own thoughts with the collective thoughts. So they just. You're in a state. You're not in a state of thoughtless awareness. When you watch television or you watch something on the screen, you absorb the thoughts from there into your mind and you link in. So for people often in a state of semi or hypnosis when they watch and it kind of paralyzes you can also happen with the screen, with television already started, of course, I don't know. Whenever, 60 years ago, whenever television started as you go. And so your mind is just absorbing whatever is playing. It's the TV mind which is receiving stuff from wherever it comes from, is going into your mind and you become no longer thinking your own thoughts. Occasionally you might, you say, oh, this guy is so stupid. And then you're watching again. And then another thought, why am I watching this rubbish? Half an hour later. This is so awful. But you can't, you can't turn it off. Here's the remote. Let's. Let's just try one more channel. There might be something else there. Oh no, that's stupid. Try one more. This is how an addict behaves. And the device is even more addictive because you carry them with you. And you have to admit, you may have to admit that there is an addiction in you. Not everybody here, but quite a few. It would be almost normal, normal to feel this draw towards it. And you use it even when you don't need to use it. That's the amazing thing. When you're standing at the elevator, waiting, another person is standing next to you and he or she is pulling out the phone and then you pull out yours. You don't know why or anywhere. You are in a. You're ordering a tea or coffee somewhere and you're standing in line. And if you look around, there's almost nobody, and probably nobody who is not looking at this little thing. This is scary zombie. Like now. If somebody from the past, the so called past, a time traveler from the past came here, and even not the distant past, let's just say even 20 years ago, and he arrived and would see in the streets, in restaurants, in cafes, everywhere, public transportation, people are walking around with these things, staring at these things, say, what's happened? Something has happened to humanity. They've all become zombies. Something terrible must have happened. What was that? There are. These are wonderful devices, the incredible possibilities of having access to all kinds of knowledge. But there's always the downside. There's A huge, huge downside to it. They are addictive. They stimulate the mind, the thing you want to become free from. You want to become free of mind, and this will prevent you from becoming free of mind. So you need to be disciplined enough to not automatically look at it. Whenever there's a moment and you are waiting for something or whatever it is, and not. There's no need to check these things. I don't even know what they are, but I just know that Facebook is the biggest thing. And then there's Instagram and Snapchat and countless names, and some people have all of them on their phones. But you need to know the latest thing. Crazy. But if you detect the addiction in yourself, then you have to first of all admit that you are addicted. Don't deny it. You know Alcoholics Anonymous. The first thing when you go there, you have to say, I am an alcoholic. Now, some people say, well, that's not a good thing, because your identity is not being an alcoholic. Of course not. So it could be misunderstood. But your nature is not being an alcoholic. It is your present condition is that. But to recognize the problem, the difficulty, the challenge is just you state it, yes, I'm addicted to this phone, and I choose not to be addicted. And then you can be the only one in many places who is not looking in waiting rooms, waiting in line, whatever it is, waiting on the phone for somebody to talk to you. And in the meantime. But you use this beautiful thing of just being, Just being present. And you look around and you step out of thinking, and all the others are still in the hypnotic state. So practice not to use it unless there is a true purpose. If you want the answer to something in a conversation, there's a what is what. Then you can get the knowledge. You have the world's encyclopedia there. Then you can look it up, okay, that's how it is. And then you put it away again. There are some apps that are meditation apps. I want to check them out a bit more. I have a few on my phone, but I haven't tried them yet. They've been there for a year or two. And that would be something great. It transforms something that otherwise would amplify your mind. It transforms it into its opposite. It.