Eternal Now (New Age)

Eternal Now is a concept of time perception suggested by some proponents of New Age spirituality.Prominent examples include Deepak Chopra (The Mystery of the Eternal Now) and Eckhart Tolle (The Power of Now). Its characteristics vary from increased awareness of the present moment to a broader, more open and holistic perception of one's subjective past and potential variants of future. The concept is consonant with and constitutes an integration and development of a number of approaches to spiritual alertness and totality of perception advocated by various forms of Buddhist philosophy (in particular Zen Buddhism), Shamanic practices, and other philosophical and spiritual directions, both ancient and contemporary.Brent D. Slife. Time and Psychological Explanation. SUNY Press 1993. 343 pagesWouter J. Hanegraaff. New Age Religion and Western Culture:Esotericism in the Mirror of Secular Thought. SUNY Press 1998 580 pagesДжеймс Льюис The Astrology Book:The Encyclopedia of Heavenly Influences. Visible Ink Press 2003. 928 pagesRobert S. Ellwood, Gregory D. Alles. The Encyclopedia of World Religions. Infobase Publishing 2007. 514 pagesAdam Possamai. In Search of New Age Spiritualities. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. 2005 160 pagesDaren Kemp. New Age: A Guide : Alternative Spiritualities from Aquarian Conspiracy to Next Age. Edinburgh University Press 2004. 211 pages

Precursors to the New Age usage Prior to the advent of the New Age usage, the expression is used, perhaps in a more rigorous way, by Thomas R. Kelly in his book, "A Testament of Devotion" (see, for example, Ch. 4, "The Eternal Now and Social Concerns") and by Paul Tillich in his collection of sermons, entitled "The Eternal Now" (see sermon 11, "The Eternal Now").

Related terms Related terms used in various spiritual traditions and meditative practices include: restful alertness, total awareness, perception of here and now, as well as others.

See also Mindfulness Satipatthana - loosely translated "eternal now"

References