Eckhart Tolle describes the pain-body as an entity that feeds on drama and negative emotions. Recognizing it in yourself and others is the first step to dissolving it. By observing it without reacting, you prevent it from taking over.
the pain body. Look upon it almost as if it were a little entity that lives in you, little monster or gremlin or something that lives in you. Maybe that thing lives in you somewhere, and occasionally it wakes up and wants to feed on— on what? On more of the same vibrational frequency that makes up its being. So it feeds on drama and unhappiness and whatever form it may take. So it's— once you recognize it, that's the beginning of the end of the pain body. But the recognition of it requires you to be present with it when it arises. First, you recognize it in the other person. You need to be really present so that you don't get drawn into this and drawn down to the same level of unconsciousness. You're present and you observe, you know exactly what's happening, you know this is the other person's pain, but it's not who or what they actually are in their being. It is something that kind of possesses them right now, so you don't need to react to it as if it were their real being. And then you can stay conscious while it's happening.
Why alcohol feels like relief, and what it is really giving you | Eckhart Tolle
