--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When great loss happens - deaths close to…" description: "\"When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own approaching death - this is an opportunity for stepping completely out of identification with..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg" --- # When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own… ![“When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own approaching death - this is an opportunity for stepping completely out of identification with form and realizing the essence of who you are, or that the essence of anyone who is suffering or dying is beyond death.” quote by Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg) > “When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own approaching death - this is an opportunity for stepping completely out of identification with form and realizing the essence of who you are, or that the essence of anyone who is suffering or dying is beyond death.” [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. Loss can reveal the deeper self beyond physical identity, showing that true essence transcends death. **In simple terms:** Loss shows the self beyond the body. Key Takeaway Recognize your inner essence during hardship. Themes spirituality death identity transcendence Mood contemplative calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - end‑of‑life care - personal meditation - support groups Key Concepts non‑duality mindfulness impermanence Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing inner essence change your response to loss? - Can this perspective ease fear of death? A Different Perspective The insight may feel abstract when grief is raw. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Approaching death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approaching-death/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Essence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence/) [Great loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-loss/) [Identification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identification/) [Loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loss/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) ## Related quotes > [If a person is determined to fight to the death, then they may very well have that opportunity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/if-a-person-is-determined-to-fight-to-the-death-then-they-may-very/) [Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/) > [They also have at that critical point of death the opportunity to be converted to God through repentance. And if they are so obstinate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/they-also-have-at-that-critical-point-of-death-the-opportunity-to-be/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [When you recognize that there is a voice in your head that pretends to be you and never stops speaking, you are awakening out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-recognize-that-there-is-a-voice-in-your-head-that-pretends/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Sometimes people need to experience great loss to really be driven deeper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/sometimes-people-need-to-experience-great-loss-to-really-be-driven/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Whenever I take a position, I like to imagine what it would be like under the worst-case scenario. In doing so, I minimize the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-blake/whenever-i-take-a-position-i-like-to-imagine-what-it-would-be-like/) [Gil Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-blake/) > [We were awful for a while. In that first half, oh my gosh. I'm looking at it, thinking, 'Can we be this bad?' Yeah.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calipari/we-were-awful-for-a-while-in-that-first-half-oh-my-gosh-i-m-looking/) [John Calipari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calipari/) > [No, I'm not (disappointed). There's no reason to be because I'm on an incredible run. You always expect a loss once in a while.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-federer/no-i-m-not-disappointed-there-s-no-reason-to-be-because-i-m-on-an/) [Roger Federer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-federer/) > [I used to think weight loss happens quickly, but it has taken a lot of time. There is no secret to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parineeti-chopra/i-used-to-think-weight-loss-happens-quickly-but-it-has-taken-a-lot-of/) [Parineeti Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parineeti-chopra/) > [“One of us fell easily asleep, a million days left except that particular one, forever almost over, an ending that happens again and again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-buntin/one-of-us-fell-easily-asleep-a-million-days-left-except-that/) [Julie Buntin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-buntin/) > [“At the beginning of the decade, the people I was close to seemed like friends for life, people I could never imagine not seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennette-mccurdy/at-the-beginning-of-the-decade-the-people-i-was-close-to-seemed-like/) [Jennette McCurdy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennette-mccurdy/) > [Grief is not just a series of events, stages, or timelines. Our society places enormous pressure on us to get over loss, to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/grief-is-not-just-a-series-of-events-stages-or-timelines-our-society/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [A self - a me - exists in every thought and every emotion. Suffering arises through complete identification with thinking and emotions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/a-self-a-me-exists-in-every-thought-and-every-emotion-suffering/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [By far the greater part of violence that humans inflicted on each other is not the work of criminals or mentally deranged, but of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/by-far-the-greater-part-of-violence-that-humans-inflicted-on-each/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Until presence becomes your predominant state, you may find yourself moving back and forth for a while between the old consciousness and the new,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/until-presence-becomes-your-predominant-state-you-may-find-yourself/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) ## More by Eckhart Tolle > [“The voice in the head that never stops speaking becomes a civilization that is obsessed with form and therefore knows nothing of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-voice-in-the-head-that-never-stops-speaking-becomes-a/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“A powerful spiritual practice is consciously to allow the diminishment of ego when it happens without attempting to restore it. 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 Approaching death quotes > [“Also, when you are young, you think you can predict the likely pains and bleaknesses that age might bring. You imagine yourself being lonely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/also-when-you-are-young-you-think-you-can-predict-the-likely-pains/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [“Daylight would have shown a wilderness weathered and blowzy, a wanton that had lived her summer too fast and too greedily. It would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-s-cobb/daylight-would-have-shown-a-wilderness-weathered-and-blowzy-a-wanton/) [Irvin S. Cobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-s-cobb/) > [ “\[About the main character approaching death in old age, observed by her husband . . .\] He saw that she had already laid down… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-d-o-brien/about-the-main-character-approaching-death-in-old-age-observed-by-her/) [Michael D. O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-d-o-brien/) > [“When children paint, they express their ideas rather than their perception, and when Picasso had recourse to such a technique, then that was his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingo-f-walther/when-children-paint-they-express-their-ideas-rather-than-their/) Ingo F. Walther > [“You were burning in the middle of the worst solar storm our records can remember. (...) Everyone else fled. All your companions and crew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-wright/you-were-burning-in-the-middle-of-the-worst-solar-storm-our-records/) [John C. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-wright/) > [When you lose someone, a whole lot of perfectly normal circumstances suddenly take on different meaning. You see it in a different light. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/when-you-lose-someone-a-whole-lot-of-perfectly-normal-circumstances/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“I sit, this evening, far away, From all I used to know, And nought reminds my soul to-day Of happy long ago. Unwelcome cares,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-branwell-bront/i-sit-this-evening-far-away-from-all-i-used-to-know-and-nought/) Patrick Branwell Brontë > [“why as a society we are often so cruel or oblivious to the elderly. Why do we find it so easy to make jokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-thomson/why-as-a-society-we-are-often-so-cruel-or-oblivious-to-the-elderly/) Hugh Thomson > [The signs that presage growth, so similar, it seems to me, to those in early adolescence: discontent, restlessness, doubt, despair, longing, are interpreted falsely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/the-signs-that-presage-growth-so-similar-it-seems-to-me-to-those-in/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [When it comes to jump-starting the intricate machinery of recollection, there's nothing more effective than the scent of approaching death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-krist/when-it-comes-to-jump-starting-the-intricate-machinery-of/) [Gary Krist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-krist/) > [I do not like eating meat because I have seen lambs and pigs killed. I saw and felt their pain. They felt the approaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaslav-nijinsky/i-do-not-like-eating-meat-because-i-have-seen-lambs-and-pigs-killed-i/) [Vaslav Nijinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaslav-nijinsky/) > [Although the time of death is approaching me, I am not afraid of dying and going to Hell or (what would be considerably worse)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/although-the-time-of-death-is-approaching-me-i-am-not-afraid-of-dying/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [The fear of approaching death, which in youth we imagine must cause inquietude to the aged, is very seldom the source of much uneasiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/the-fear-of-approaching-death-which-in-youth-we-imagine-must-cause/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [“4. Life Consists in Conflict. Life consists in conflict. So long as man remains a social animal he cannot live in isolation. All individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/4-life-consists-in-conflict-life-consists-in-conflict-so-long-as-man/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [I have been with many men approaching death; and not one has ever said, �I only regret that I didn't spend more time at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/i-have-been-with-many-men-approaching-death-and-not-one-has-ever-said/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) [Browse all 27 Approaching death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approaching-death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own approaching death - this is an opportunity for stepping completely out of identification with form and realizing the essence of who you are, or that the essence of anyone who is suffering or dying is beyond death.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eckhart Tolle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to-you-or-your-own-approaching/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Approaching death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to-you-or-your-own-approaching/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/14e/eckhart-tolle-81_approaching-death_when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to_360757.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When great loss happens - deaths close to you or your own approaching death - this is an opportunity for…” — Eckhart Tolle", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eckhart Tolle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When great loss happens - deaths...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to-you-or-your-own-approaching/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-great-loss-happens-deaths-close-to-you-or-your-own-approaching/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```