Guide Note

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment is a 1999 American self-help book written by Eckhart Tolle.

Fast Facts

1. Author: Eckhart Tolle
2. Genre: Self-Help
3. Publication Date: September 27, 1999
4. Publisher: New World Library
5. Pages: 224
6. ISBN 1577311523
7. One of Oprah's favorite books

Eckart Tolle's The Power of Now draws from parallels in Buddhism, relaxation techniques, and meditation theories to discuss living life in each moment to its fullest.

Tolle argues that most people are "unconscious" in that they live each day as a means for some future fulfillment (like retirement, promotion, or even death) instead of living in the "Now."

Because of this failure to fully live in the present, people develop "pain bodies" that accumulate self-inflicted fears, anxieties and torment from the past.

In The Power of Now, Tolle recognizes what constitutes a "pain body," and offers various methods to free oneself from them, allowing readers to happily (and consciously) live in the "Now."