Surrender is not about passivity or defeat

• Surrender is a positive, healthy state. Being a surrendered person does not mean one is being passive, is beaten down and so hopeless he or she has “given up.” It’s quite the contrary. Surrender is a state of living in the flow, trusting what is, and being open to serendipity and surprises. Judith Orloff MD
• To some people, surrender may have negative connotations, implying defeat, giving up, failing to rise to the challenges of life, becoming lethargic, and so on. True surrender, however, is something entirely different. It does not mean to passively put up with whatever situation you find yourself in and to do nothing about it. Nor does it mean to cease making plans or initiating positive action. Eckhart Tolle
• Surrender is a positive, healthy state. Being a surrendered person does not mean one is beaten down and so hopeless he or she has “given up.” It’s quite the contrary. Surrender is a state of living in the flow, trusting what is, and being open to serendipity and surprises. Judith Orloff
• Surrender and humility are not the same thing as passivity because, paradoxically, both surrender and humility are positive acts of the Spiritual Will and are thereby in a positive agreement to ‘allow’ rather than to ‘get’. David R. Hawkins

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Surrender is not about resignation

• Resignation is not surrender. You don’t need to accept an undesirable or unpleasant life situation. Nor do you need to deceive yourself and say that there is nothing wrong with being stuck in the mud. No. You recognize fully that you want to get out of it. You then narrow your attention down to the present moment without mentally labeling it in any way. This means that there is no judgment of the Now. Therefore, there is no resistance, no emotional negativity. You accept the “isness” of this moment. Then you take action and do all that you can to get out of the mud. Such action I call positive action. It is far more effective than negative action, which arises out of anger, despair, or frustration. Until you achieve the desired result, you continue to practice surrender by refraining from labeling the Now. Eckhart Tolle

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Surrender doesn’t mean you can’t say no

• If you resist or fight unconscious behavior in others, you become unconscious yourself. But surrender does not mean that you allow yourself to be used by unconscious people. Not at all. It is perfectly possible to say “no” firmly and clearly to a person or to walk away from a situation and be in a state of complete inner nonresistance at the same time. When you say no to a person or a situation let it come not from reaction but from insight, from a clear realization of what is right or not right for you at that moment. Let it be a nonreactive no, a high-quality no, a no that is free from negativity and so creates no further suffering. Eckhart Tolle

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Surrender doesn’t mean you don’t take action

• In the state of surrender, I see clearly what needs to be done. I take action, focusing on one thing at a time. Calmly and in the now. Eckhart Tolle
• The action you take after surrender is always more effective than when you fight against life. Eckhart Tolle
• Surrender is perfectly compatible with taking action, initiating change, or achieving goals. But in the surrendered state a totally different energy, a different quality, flows into your doing. Eckhart Tolle
• Surrender is a purely inner phenomenon. It does not mean that on the outer level you cannot take action and change the situation. In fact, it is not the overall situation that you need to accept when you surrender, but just the tiny segment called the Now. Eckhart Tolle

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Surrender gives rise to more appropriate, intelligent action

• You are conditioned to believe that if you let go, if you surrender, you will either be a victim of circumstances and not assertive in your own being, or you will be viewed as being lazy, lacking in willpower, and un-motivated. Yet will and power cannot exist alongside one another. Motivation does not come into question when you surrender fully into the present moment. Motivation to do, to take action, to make moves, comes naturally from this surrender. Kelly Martin
• Whenever you encounter some difficulty you should never fight it. Acknowledge it, surrender to it and take action from the present moment. Simona Rich
• When you yield internally, when you surrender, a new dimension of consciousness opens up. If action is possible or necessary, your action will be in alignment with the whole and supported by creative intelligence, the unconditioned consciousness which in a state of inner openness you become one with. Circumstances and people then become helpful, cooperative. Coincidences happen. If no action is possible, you rest in the peace and inner stillness that come with surrender. You rest in God. Eckhart Tolle
• If action is possible or necessary, your action will be in alignment with the whole and supported by creative intelligence, the unconditioned consciousness which in a state of inner openness you become one with. Circumstances and people then become helpful, cooperative. Coincidences happen. If no action is possible, you rest in the peace and inner stillness that come with surrender. Eckhart Tolle
• Surrender is perfectly compatible with taking action, initiating change or achieving goals. But in the surrendered state a totally different energy, a different quality, flows into your doing. Surrender reconnects you with the source-energy of Being, and if your doing is infused with Being, it becomes a joyful celebration of life energy that takes you more deeply into the Now. Through nonresistance, the quality of your consciousness and, therefore, the quality of whatever you are doing or creating is enhanced immeasurably. The results will then look after themselves and reflect that quality. We could call this “surrendered action.” Eckhart Tolle

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Surrender gives rise to empowered action in alignment with the universe

• Doing one thing at a time means to be total in what you do, to give it your complete attention. This is surrendered action—empowered action. Eckhart
• Through non-resistance, the quality of your consciousness and, therefore, the quality of whatever you are doing or creating is enhanced immeasurably. The results will then look after themselves and reflect that quality. We could call this surrendered action. Eckhart Tolle
• Resignation is not surrender. You don’t need to accept an undesirable or unpleasant life situation. Nor do you need to deceive yourself and say that there is nothing wrong with being stuck in the mud. No. You recognize fully that you want to get out of it. You then narrow your attention down to the present moment without mentally labeling it in any way. This means that there is no judgment of the Now. Therefore, there is no resistance, no emotional negativity. You accept the “isness” of this moment. Then you take action and do all that you can to get out of the mud. Such action I call positive action. It is far more effective than negative action, which arises out of anger, despair, or frustration. Until you achieve the desired result, you continue to practice surrender by refraining from labeling the Now. Eckhart Tolle

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