--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you…" description: "\"When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought much more effectively than before, but you realize there is a depth to your Being, a vibrantl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg" --- # When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought… ![“When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought much more effectively than before, but you realize there is a depth to your Being, a vibrantly alive stillness that is much vaster than thought. It is consciousness itself, of which the thinking mind is only a tiny aspect.” quote by Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg) > “When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought much more effectively than before, but you realize there is a depth to your Being, a vibrantly alive stillness that is much vaster than thought. It is consciousness itself, of which the thinking mind is only a tiny aspect.” [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. Spiritual awakening reveals a deeper, still consciousness beyond thought, allowing more effective use of mind. **In simple terms:** Awakening shows a deeper stillness beyond thoughts. Key Takeaway Tap into stillness for clearer thinking. Themes spirituality consciousness mindfulness Mood calm reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - meditation - creative work - decision making - stress reduction Key Concepts nondualism inner stillness presence Questions to Reflect On - How does stillness change your daily thoughts? - What practices help you access it? A Different Perspective Stillness can be hard to maintain in busy life. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Depth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depth/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Stillness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stillness/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Some people awaken spiritually without ever coming into contact with any meditation technique or any spiritual teaching. They may awaken simply because they can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/some-people-awaken-spiritually-without-ever-coming-into-contact-with/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [To realize that you are not your thoughts is when you begin to awaken spiritually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/to-realize-that-you-are-not-your-thoughts-is-when-you-begin-to-awaken/) [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/) > [Although an increasing number of humans are undergoing a process of awakening, identification with thinking is still the prevalent state of consciousness. Thinking is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/although-an-increasing-number-of-humans-are-undergoing-a-process-of/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [You think, you become that thought. And consciousness, or the state of pure awareness, is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-long/you-think-you-become-that-thought-and-consciousness-or-the-state-of/) [Barry Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-long/) > [In the unawakened state you don't use thought, but thought uses you. You are, one could almost say, possessed by thought, which is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/in-the-unawakened-state-you-don-t-use-thought-but-thought-uses-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“Fredkin was quoted by Robert Wright in the 1980s as saying, There are three great philosophical questions. What is life? What is consciousness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/fredkin-was-quoted-by-robert-wright-in-the-1980s-as-saying-there-are/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [All consciousness is consciousness of something: in thinking I am aware that my thought is 'pointing towards' some object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/all-consciousness-is-consciousness-of-something-in-thinking-i-am/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [There are situations when all answers and explanations fade. When you fully accept that you do not know, you give up struggling to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/there-are-situations-when-all-answers-and-explanations-fade-when-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Enlightenment means rising above thought, not falling back to a level below thought, the level of an animal or a plant. In the enlightened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/enlightenment-means-rising-above-thought-not-falling-back-to-a-level/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Go within. Use the inner body as a starting point for going deeper and taking your attention away from where it's usually lodged, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/go-within-use-the-inner-body-as-a-starting-point-for-going-deeper-and/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Prejudice of any kind implies that you are identified with the thinking mind. It means you don't see the other human being anymore, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/prejudice-of-any-kind-implies-that-you-are-identified-with-the/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The thinking mind is a useful and powerful tool, but it is also very limiting when it takes over your life completely, when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-thinking-mind-is-a-useful-and-powerful-tool-but-it-is-also-very/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Humans eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. Suddenly, they start cutting reality up into bits and pieces, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/humans-eat-of-the-tree-of-the-knowledge-of-good-and-bad-suddenly-they/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“How easy it is for people to become trapped in their conceptual prisons. The human mind, in its desire to know, understand, and control,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/how-easy-it-is-for-people-to-become-trapped-in-their-conceptual/) [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 Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought much more effectively than before, but you realize there is a depth to your Being, a vibrantly alive stillness that is much vaster than thought. It is consciousness itself, of which the thinking mind is only a tiny aspect.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eckhart Tolle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you-can-use-thought-much-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you-can-use-thought-much-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b8/eckhart-tolle-81_alive_when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you_567465.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When you awaken spiritually, in fact, you can use thought much more effectively than before, but you realize…” — 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 you awaken spiritually, in fact,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you-can-use-thought-much-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-awaken-spiritually-in-fact-you-can-use-thought-much-more/#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 } } ] } ```