Immunizing Children Against Addiction

Dear parents and teachers,

I am developing an educational program for parents and teachers and would greatly appreciate your help. Please read on and post your comments and suggestions.

After studying Eckhart Tolle's works as presented in his books, A New Earth and The Power of Now, I realized that for the first time in human history we know how to prevent addiction. We now understand that substance addiction can happen only if a person is first addicted to their own thinking, and that compulsive (addictive) thinking cannot occur if the individual practices self-observation.

All that is required to immunize a child against addiction is to teach them to become stewards of their thoughts and emotions. When you are the observer of your thoughts, you cannot become a compulsive thinker. This terrible compulsion is the driving force behind all addictions.

You can begin this program with a child of any age--certainly not before 5 years of age, but ideally before the child has become a compulsive thinker. If the addiction to thinking has already taken root, another approach is advised (see the 10 steps proposed in previous posts). It is not necessary for you believe in the work of Eckhart Tolle yourself. The benefits of this program are not contingent on any belief.

The first thing you must convey to your children is the true nature of thought. Most of us were sure that thought was consciousness, or at least a very important and essential part of consciousness. Thus, we were certain that our thinking could encapsulate the truth. After all, thought was God's gift to humans. Thought was special and spiritual and separated us from other creatures.

Thanks to the work of Eckhart Tolle, we now realize that thought is just a physical attribute of our body and constitutes only a small part of who we are as conscious beings. Thought requires consciousness, but not vice-versa.

To immunize children against alcoholism and drug addiction, you will have to teach them this simple truth: We are not our thoughts. A child who never becomes thought-identified will be free of the driving force of addiction.

Encourage children to become aware that they can actually observe their own thoughts and emotions. Emphasize that they should not judge their thoughts as either good or bad--but just to observe them, as they would observe any object or event outside themselves.

See if you can get them to separate themselves from their thinking by getting them to talk about their thoughts and emotions (how they are feeling inside). Then ask: "Who is doing the observing?" "Who is talking about the thoughts and emotions?"

Make a game of it. Ask your child to imagine a thought is like a balloon--just pop it with a pin and it will disappear. Explain that we can’t stop thoughts from coming. What matters is what we do with them once they appear. If you give them importance they don’t deserve, they will take us over and imprison us.

It’s OK not to think--in fact, it’s our natural state. Not thinking is peaceful, joyful, creative and loving. Love is not a thought, it is a state of awareness. It is being conscious. What you feel for your mother or father, your child or your pet, is love.

Again, I’d love to hear your suggestions or ideas. If you’d like to participate in the development of a workbook based on the above ideas, please contact me.