The Moment of Truth | Non Duality with Syed & Kyle

Episode 5 – The Moment of Truth
Timestamps --
00:00 – Intro: The Moment of Truth & the Power of Now
01:22 – The Only Thing That’s Real: Kyle on the Eternal Now
03:11 – Welcome & Episode Setup: Present-Moment Teaching & Eckhart Tolle
03:50 – How Kyle Met Eckhart Tolle & Became His Photographer
06:47 – Meeting Another Awakened Person: Less Drama, More Presence
08:02 – The Death Process & the Black Hole Analogy for Awakening
12:54 – Discovering The Power of Now and the Simplicity of Awakening
18:36 – “I Can’t Stay in the Moment”: Why the Mind Resists Presence
21:03 – Trauma, Avoidance & Why the Moment Feels Dangerous
23:11 – Practical Guidance: You Are the Moment, Not Someone in It
26:10 – Halfway Up the Mountain: Fan Blades & “Half-Enlightened” Teachers
29:15 – “What Requires Time Is False”: Time, Story & Eternity
31:08 – Being Nobody in Daily Life: Names, Roles & Functioning
32:01 – Life After Awakening: Planning, Pain & Living Cluelessly
34:14 – Final Collapse: You Can’t Be “Somebody Who Is Present”
36:08 – Aging, Failed Stories & the Futility of Thinking Your Way Free
37:34 – Eckhart’s Line: “There’s Nothing Greater Than a Failed Story”
38:50 – Outro: Failing at Being “You” Is a Good Thing

In Episode 5 of Non-Duality with Kyle Hoobin & Syed, we explore one of the most direct and deceptively simple teachings in spirituality: this moment—right now—is the only thing that’s real.

Kyle begins the episode by pointing straight at the living immediacy of the present moment, breaking down why suffering only appears when we drift into the stories of “past” and “future,” and why the mind fights something so simple.

We also dive into Kyle’s surprising personal connection to Eckhart Tolle, including the story of how Kyle ended up photographing him for A New Earth—and what it was like to meet another awakened person face-to-face.

Other topics include:
• The death of the personal story
• Why people struggle to stay present
• Awakening as the collapse of identity
• The “black hole” metaphor for ego death
• Why trying to “be in the moment” keeps you out of it
• Halfway awakenings & “fan blade” teachers
• The futility of trying to become someone
• Eckhart’s teaching: “There’s nothing greater than a failed story.”