--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: On the surface it seems that the present…" description: "\"On the surface it seems that the present moment is only one of many, many moments. Each day of your life appears to consist of thousands of moments whe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55e/eckhart-tolle-81_certain_on-the-surface-it-seems-that-the-present_2138529.jpg" --- # On the surface it seems that the present moment is only… ![“On the surface it seems that the present moment is only one of many, many moments. Each day of your life appears to consist of thousands of moments where different things happen. Yet if you look more deeply, is there not only one moment, ever? Is life ever not this moment? This one moment, now, is…” quote by Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55e/eckhart-tolle-81_certain_on-the-surface-it-seems-that-the-present_2138529.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55e/eckhart-tolle-81_certain_on-the-surface-it-seems-that-the-present_2138529.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55e/eckhart-tolle-81_certain_on-the-surface-it-seems-that-the-present_2138529.jpg) > “On the surface it seems that the present moment is only one of many, many moments. Each day of your life appears to consist of thousands of moments where different things happen. Yet if you look more deeply, is there not only one moment, ever? Is life ever not this moment? This one moment, now, is the only thing you can never escape from. The one constant factor in your life. No matter what happens. No matter how much your life changes. One thing is certain. Its always now. Since there is no escape from the now, why not welcome it, become friendly with it.” [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Only the present moment truly exists; all other moments are mental constructs, so embracing now brings peace and awareness **In simple terms:** Now is the only real moment Key Takeaway Live fully in the present Themes mindfulness philosophy spirituality time awareness Mood calm reflective Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - meditation - daily reflection - stress reduction Key Concepts Presence consciousness impermanence Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance present awareness with learning from the past? - What practices help you stay anchored in now? A Different Perspective Focusing solely on now may ignore valuable lessons from past experiences ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Day Of Your Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/day-of-your-life/) [Each day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/each-day/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life changes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-changes/) [Life changing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-changing/) [Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Present moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/present-moment/) [Stillness speaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stillness-speaks/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Why not](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/why-not/) ## Related quotes > [The present moment is all you ever have. There is never a time when your life is not 'this moment.' Is this not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-present-moment-is-all-you-ever-have-there-is-never-a-time-when-2/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [There will never be a time when your life is not this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/there-will-never-be-a-time-when-your-life-is-not-this-moment/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“Sometimes I wonder if life is all about one moment. Everything before and everything after is about that one moment, and we are all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-lafleur/sometimes-i-wonder-if-life-is-all-about-one-moment-everything-before/) [Suzanne LaFleur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-lafleur/) > [Whenever you are immersed in compulsive thinking, you are avoiding what is. You don't want to be where you are. Here, Now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/whenever-you-are-immersed-in-compulsive-thinking-you-are-avoiding/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The stream of thinking has enormous momentum that can easily drag you along with it. Every thought pretends that it matters so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-stream-of-thinking-has-enormous-momentum-that-can-easily-drag-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The Truth is far more all-encompassing than the mind could ever comprehend. No thought can encapsulate the Truth. At best, it can point to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-truth-is-far-more-all-encompassing-than-the-mind-could-ever/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Death is not the opposite of life. Life has no opposite. 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I recommend that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/a-powerful-spiritual-practice-is-consciously-to-allow-the/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [To become aware of the subtlety of nature you need to be alert. The moment you become alert you become still... thinking subsides. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/to-become-aware-of-the-subtlety-of-nature-you-need-to-be-alert-the/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [When you are not honoring the present moment by allowing it to be, you are creating drama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-are-not-honoring-the-present-moment-by-allowing-it-to-be-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [On a deeper level you are already complete. When you realize that, there is a joyous energy behind what you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/on-a-deeper-level-you-are-already-complete-when-you-realize-that/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/life-will-give-you-whatever-experience-is-most-helpful-for-the/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [You may not yet be able to bring your unconscious mind activity into awareness as thoughts, but it will always be reflected in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/you-may-not-yet-be-able-to-bring-your-unconscious-mind-activity-into/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“War is a mind-set, and all action that comes out of such a mind-set will either strengthen the enemy, the perceived evil, or, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/war-is-a-mind-set-and-all-action-that-comes-out-of-such-a-mind-set/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Whenever you step out of the noise of thinking, that is meditation, and a different state of consciousness arises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/whenever-you-step-out-of-the-noise-of-thinking-that-is-meditation-and/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Get the inside right, and the outside will take care of itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/get-the-inside-right-and-the-outside-will-take-care-of-itself/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [It is very hard to tell when I started to be a spiritual teacher. There was a time when occasionally somebody would come and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/it-is-very-hard-to-tell-when-i-started-to-be-a-spiritual-teacher/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Most people spend their entire life imprisoned within the confines of their own thoughts. They never go beyond a narrow, mind-made, personalized sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/most-people-spend-their-entire-life-imprisoned-within-the-confines-of/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Let the end of the world be inside you, then you don't need to fear the end of the world out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/let-the-end-of-the-world-be-inside-you-then-you-don-t-need-to-fear/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“Jeste li zabrinuti? Razmišljate li često: »Što bi bilo da sam...?« To znači da ste se poistovjetili s umom, koji se projicira u neku…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/jeste-li-zabrinuti-razmi-ljate-li-esto-to-bi-bilo-da-sam-to-zna-i-da/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) [Explore all 1,493 Eckhart Tolle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) ## More Certain quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. 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