Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness: Walking the Buddha's Path Review

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Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness: Walking the Buddha's Path ReviewBhante Henepola Gunaratana has summarized all of the Buddha's path to happiness, everything we know about affecting change in our lives, and everything that psychology teaches us about healthy living into a single, easy to read, easy to apply manual for happiness. This book is a gem! It can be used for inspiration, or instruction. It can be read countless times for added insight. If you are inclined toward Buddhism, or at least are taken with the Buddhist perspective, you will appreciate the straightforward approach he takes to describing the eight steps. If you are not Buddhist or so inclined, you might be put off with some of what you read (the Author clearly believes that the Buddha's way is THE way, and you might be inclined to think of Jesus as the way, or someone else), but I think any rational person would recognize the power and potential for creating change that is captured in this book.
The eight steps are:
1. Skillful Understanding - recognizing the roles of cause and effect, and truly understanding the Four Noble Truths as taught by the Buddha
2. Skillful Thinking - Emphasis on understanding how our attachment to things is the source of our suffering (letting go), the practice of loving-friendliness, and practicing compassion.
3. Skillful Speach - Special emphasis on truth-telling, gentle speach, and avoiding useless chatter.
4. Sillful Action - Particular attention to the Five Precepts, namely abstaining from killing, stealing, speaking falsely, sexual misconduct and misuse of intoxicants.
5. Skillful Livelihood - Understanding that how we make a living can have negative or positive impacts (skillful or unskillful) on our path to happiness.
6. Skillful Effort - Recognizing and dealing with the hindrances and fetters that keep us tied to our unhappiness.
7. Skillful Mindfulness - A study of mindfulness practice in terms of the body, feelings, the mind, and mental objects.
8. Skillful Concentration - Teaches what concentration means in the context of meditation, and how it is developed through the four stages to full Concentration.
At each step, you'll recognize yourself and the things you do that hold you back from the path of happiness. You'll find solace in the knowledge that you are not alone (these are common to all us human beings), and relief in learning how to see things differently so that the world you live in works FOR you and not against you.
This is a wonderful book, and anyone who feels they need to make changes in their life would benefit enormously.Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness: Walking the Buddha's Path Overview

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Question Your Thinking, Change The World: Quotations from Byron Katie Review

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Question Your Thinking, Change The World: Quotations from Byron Katie ReviewThis may be one of the most profound books I've read. If Katie's approach to life resonates with you ("The Work"), this book will have a special place on your bookshelf.
This book isn't about "information". If you need "information", look elsewhere. This isn't snackfood. It's not about a quick-fix to problems in your life. (Go see your psychologist.) It's about seeing life in a whole new life-altering perspective.
The book takes you through Katie's laser-focused process of systematically destroying everything you thought you knew about life and simplifying it down to it's beautiful core. The book works its way around a number of topics, but the theme always comes back to "The Work", a simple set of questions that allows you to really see what is going on around you.
It's about how to wade through life without the weight that is currently on your shoulders. She takes you through an amazing journey that will show you that even in the worst of circumstances that the only villain is your own thoughts.
I've read all of Katie's work. I've met Katie in person. I love that this stuff isn't "pie-in-the-sky" pink-crystals-and-new-age-music stuff. It's real. It's very specific. It has changed real people's lives. And if you let it flood your mind, it will change you forever in a positive way.
To be specific, this guide is a compilation of many bits from her other books. However, because they are in small bites, they really strike you deep in your heart. I absolutely loved this book and plan to re-read it regularly.Question Your Thinking, Change The World: Quotations from Byron Katie Overview

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Nothing Special Review

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Nothing Special ReviewI am a buddhist.I have read a single talk out of this book every night for over a year. These are concise dharma talks. Zen is pretty new to the US, and many of the traditional Zen stories have to do with monks having exotic experiences. It is easy to get caught in these dreams of 13th century Japan. Joko brings us back from our dreams of a far away practice to doing our dishes while the kids yell in our house in Denver. She offers a sober message of being just here. You wont find a heartwarming Hallmark message here. Joko is as direct and harsh as reality. It is no fun to follow the teachings back to our drab old smelly life, so don't look for the book to be a fun escape. It is the opposite -- which is why it is so good.
The book is comprised of a series of talks from Joko and some questions from her students. Joko is an American and so the message couched in the familiar language of our culture. IT is not like reading Dogen, and is more accessible. I would recommend this work to anyone who is serious about---well words escape me. It is not quie accurate to say that it is for those who are serious about taking the Zen path. But for anyone who wants to learn to be present with their real life, this offers solid guidance as much as words can.Nothing Special Overview

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The Pocket Guide to Inner Peace Review

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The Pocket Guide to Inner Peace ReviewIn The Pocket Guide to Inner Peace and in his other books, Gary Egbert always touches and names my experience. This alone makes for both challenging and comforting reading. Yet, the author goes further by offering practical suggestions for growing toward a fuller life.The Pocket Guide to Inner Peace Overview

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Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children Review

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Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children ReviewThis book is a beautiful, practical, and extremely helpful book that anyone interested in introducing children to mindfulness and related practices will greatly appreciate. It was written by the Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Zen monk and teacher, and author of many well-known books, including Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life. The book evolved out of his work with children at Plum Village Community, a Buddhist center in Southern France that he co-founded. The book encompasses the work of himself and many of his colleagues at Plum Village, including nuns and monks in-residence, as well as educators and parents that have attended retreats at the center focused on children.
Written for both parents and educators, each chapter of Planting Seeds begins with an overview of a topic, including mindful breathing, meditation, compassion, nature, suffering, healing, age, and death. After the overview, each chapter includes stories, sample activities, and guided meditations that adults can use to explore these themes with children. Many chapters include personal stories from educators and parents that work at Plum Village, or that attended retreats there and then strove to integrate what they learned in their work. They describe their personal experiences - including challenges - introducing children to these activities, in both home and school environments.
Although the themes are all grounded in Buddhism, they are introduced in a way that is non-religious, and so could be used to introduce children of any background to mindfulness. In fact, most of the educators that offer testimonials describe integrating these themes into secular environments, or even religious ones of other persuasions.
The book includes a CD with some of the guided meditations and songs tied to the exercises in the book, including "I Follow My Breath", "Pebble Meditation" and "Deep Relaxation for Young People." Lyrics are included for those songs that have them in the back of book, as well as written overviews of the guided meditations. Four meditation cards corresponding to the four meditations included in the 'Breathing in, Breathing Out' meditation are also in the Appendix.
For example, in the first meditation, the focus is on feeling as fresh and pure as a flower, so the card says:
"Breathing in, I see myself as a flower, a human flower...
Breathing out, I am beautiful just as I am, and I feel very fresh."
Subsequent cards are focused on being solid as a mountain, calm as still water, and free as open space.
Many chapters also include excerpts from Q&A sessions Thich Nhat Hanh did with children involved in these activities. One of my favorites was from a discussion on age and death (Thich Nhat Hanh is referred to as Thay here):
Child's Questions: How old are you?
Thay: Well, how old are you first?
Child: I am six, almost seven.
Thay: Listen, I am going to give you a good answer. I am the continuation of the Buddha, so I am 2,600 years old.
Child: Oh!
Thay: I am also the continuation of my father, so I am 110 years young. I know that you are my continuation and I feel that I am in you, so at the time I am six years old also. That is true, because I have been reborn in that child. He will carry me into the future. So I am quite young. I am six years old. If you look around, you see me a little bit everywhere. I have different ages. Okay?
Overall, this is a beautiful and practical book that any parent or educator (Buddhist or no) will treasure as a guide to introducing children to mindfulness, compassion, and related themes.Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children Overview

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Spirituality For Dummies Review

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Spirituality For Dummies ReviewThis is truly a gem of a book. It is inspiring and illuminating. The author helps us to recognize (and live) the spirituality in every day life. I find it incredibly uplifting. If I am feeling down, I need only open it to a random page, and I find something helpful. It is not a book only to be read, but to be experienced as well. There are many helpful tools to help drive home many of the points. Don't be put off by this, though. You can still get a lot out of it even if you choose not to partake in the exercises. Even if you don't agree with my five stars, I recommend you buy this book anyway. It is well worth the cost of the included CD alone.Spirituality For Dummies Overview

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Dancing with Life: Buddhist Insights for Finding Meaning and Joy in the Face of Suffering Review

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Dancing with Life: Buddhist Insights for Finding Meaning and Joy in the Face of Suffering ReviewMost of the Dharma books that I've read fall into two categories: lightweight new-age fluff or heavily-footnoted scholarship. This book avoids both extremes. It's very compactly written, with no apparent filler. (If anything, I think he is too brief in touching on some important points.) I find the title of the book to be a bit unfortunate, but it's actually appropriate to the subject matter.
The book is structured around the Four Noble Truths, and as a long-time Buddhist (with a strong predilection for scholarly detail) I thought that it couldn't teach me anything new. It did, though, and on a number of levels. You might think you know all about the 4NT, but this version from the Samyutta Nikaya really adds a new dimension, and is directly applicable to one's practice.
In short, I give this book a pretty-much unqualified rave. A few stylistic weaknesses and an overuse of italics, but in content it's deeply inspiring and immediately useful.Dancing with Life: Buddhist Insights for Finding Meaning and Joy in the Face of Suffering Overview

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Living Buddha, Living Christ Review

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Living Buddha, Living Christ ReviewWhen you begin to read it you can see it is written by a Zen master because Thich Nhat Hanh is able to say much with few words. I am a Christian and this book introduced me to Buddhism. Nearly every sentence would cause me to stop in my tracks and think. I was introduced to many completely new ideas and philosophies through the course of this book. Although I will never be a Buddhist and I do not agree with everything Thich Nhat Hanh believes, I have a great respect for their beliefs as well as others. It also helped me to understand Christianity and Christ's message, and shaped my own beliefs. You will gain a lot of cultural and philosophical insight if you read this book.Living Buddha, Living Christ Overview

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Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death Review

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Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death ReviewI have scanned the market of books about caretakers and the dying process, and to me this is the finest book available on the subject.
It is cut-to-the-bone view of dying with many personal case stories.
The book is in my view not so well-structured. It is divided in sections, but these overlap, and it seems more like a long association about dying, care-taking and the death process. Sometimes the subject in focus is elaborated and sometimes there is a lot of condensed knowledge in a few sentences.
But it doesn't matter.
You are taken on a journey by this book. It contains so much knowledge (years of experience in the field), so much good advice for living more fully, and so many obvious ways to handle the dying process.
The book describes subjects only rarely found in other similar books - how to take care of the body after death (which can be tremendous healing for grievers I must say from personal experience) and the shadow side of caregiving.
I especially like the description of the dissolution of the elements just before death - indeed what it feels like physically to die - experienced from the inside!
It contains many touching stories, and simple, yet profound sentences of great wisdom - summations of experience from Joan's many hours and years on the bedside of dying fellow human beings.
I only read about 20-30 pages a day to have time to think about and absorb the knowledge in the book.
It is stressed again and again that there are no single good way to die. What the dying person experiences can be so very different from what family, friends, and caretakers experience from the outside.
Each chapter is followed by meditations, which can be used on your own or together with a dying person (well, aren't we all!)
And after completing the book - in the end you end up wishing Joan or somebody trained by her could be there for your own death. And that's kind of a compliment... ;-)Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death Overview

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Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World Review

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Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World ReviewLama Surya Das has masterfully written an enlightening introduction to Buddhism, which should prove to be an enduring classic on the subject for years to come. He takes the ancient teachings of Buddhist traditions and wisdom and delivers them succinctly and wholeheartedly to the Western mind.
His astounding work is a source of inspiration and awareness that serves as a "handbook for living" that should be carried with us at all times and used often on our spiritual path. Regardless of the reader's religious or spiritual affiliation, these simple golden rules could change your life.
His introduction to the classic Buddhist teachings of The Four Noble Truths and The Eight-Fold Path are the most comprehensible and understandable that I have yet read. Finally, we are presented with a rich compilation that makes absolute sense and many readers will understand, for the first time, how to integrate this ancient Tibetan wisdom into everyday life.
Often, those of us curious about Buddhist philosophy and practice, find it hard to get beyond the dogma of the many teachings. Lama Surya Das succeeds in bringing the reader the most simple and fundamental ideas and lessons of Buddhism. Throughout the book, he reminds us to be responsible for our own thoughts and actions and to find the kindness, compassion and grace that are inherent in all of us.
For those challenged by meditation, Lama Surya Das strips away all the confusion and mystery around the practice of meditation and brings to the reader a profound understanding and "how to" guide to meditation -- the importance of which must be realized and embraced.
Toward the end of the book, he further reminds us that "We are modern mystics - living in monasteries without walls. The entire planet is our heaven on earth. Instead of being overly dependent on anyone else, we must be leaders and seers." This book teaches us how to lead by example. You do not have to have an interest or belief in Buddhism to enjoy, understand and be moved by this book. It is a book to be read, read and read again.Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Western World Overview

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Living with Your Heart Wide Open: How Mindfulness and Compassion Can Free You from Unworthiness, Inadequacy, and Shame Review

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Living with Your Heart Wide Open: How Mindfulness and Compassion Can Free You from Unworthiness, Inadequacy, and Shame ReviewI'm so grateful for this book! I ended it feeling as though I had attended an extended meditation retreat with many tools to help free me from tendencies to self-judge and to nurture self-compassion. The authors provide many grounded explanations and examples of the origins of the deficient-self and how, in applying mindfulness to body, mind, and emotions, our relationships to ourselves and others are transformed into greater love and service. Having read many books on the applicability of mindfulness, I believe this is one of the most comprehensive and clearly written with much heart. The teachings presented are universal and touch the humanness in each of us.Living with Your Heart Wide Open: How Mindfulness and Compassion Can Free You from Unworthiness, Inadequacy, and Shame Overview

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If the Buddha Dated: A Handbook for Finding Love on a Spiritual Path Review

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If the Buddha Dated: A Handbook for Finding Love on a Spiritual Path ReviewI have read more than my share of self help books but this is the most helpful book I have ever read. It started out slow - in the first pages I was rolling my eyes because I felt like it was simple stuff I already knew, but by page ten I was engrossed and thrilled. It is simple, straightforward, fun reading, it makes complete sense and helps clarify the issues that come up in every kind of relationship, from partners to potential partners, to family and friends. I could not put it down. I had an 'aha' every few pages, found it joyful and affirming and incredibly helpful. When I was halfway through it I bought 8 more copies and gave them to eight friends. They all loved it and have all given copies to their friends and family. I quickly saw my relationships to others and to myself start to change, I actively used the theories to improve my dynamics with others and one day read just one sentence and completely let go of some pain I'd been carrying for days over a conflict with a friend. Poof - it was gone and I was looking at it from a whole new place and learned a lesson I have used again and again since that day. I also re-established contact with a friend who I'd parted ways with years ago and in one easy conversation we came together again resolved the problem, laughed over how big we'd made it and have had a healthier, happier and closer friendship than ever since. I am back today to order 3 more copies for three more people - one of them is the new man in my life whom I feel this book was intrumental in helping me find. I'm choosing differently, approaching things differently and what's more - I'm happier and feel more clear and peaceful about relationships than I ever have. Get this book and a few extras for the people you love - you won't regret it. And grab your highlighter- there are gems on every page.If the Buddha Dated: A Handbook for Finding Love on a Spiritual Path Overview

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How Would Love Respond?: Imagine If You Were Given a Gift So Powerful That You Knew You Had to Share It With the World Review

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How Would Love Respond: Imagine If You Were Given a Gift So Powerful That You Knew You Had to Share It With the World ReviewWhen I was first asked to examine this book several months ago, I was not sure what to expect.
I had been told that Kurek Ashley was a kind of antipodean Tony Robbins. Nothing wrong with that: I have a great deal of respect for Tony's work. I then heard that Kurek had been in movies, held a record for fire walking and had helped a volleyball team to an Olympic gold medal, as well as propelling forward the lives of countless other people in all walks of life.
So I thought that I knew what I was getting: some sort of high-energy motivator. Then I met the author and discovered something very different. Certainly he is passionate, highly energetic and always positive. But there was another quality to him as well: he had a completely unexpected humility and clarity about what he wants to do for other people. I don't often meet someone with such evident integrity. He told an amazing story of being involved in the most terrible tragedy in which his best friend was killed. But then the dead friend reappeared to him and asked for his help. I had wondered whether he might have had some kind of breakdown. Instead I found a man who is remarkably level headed, and who has absolutely no reason to tell a story that could have damaged his reputation. Far from having had a breakdown, he had experienced a breakthrough. So for all these reasons I was eager to read this book and discover more of the story and Kurek's message.
I only review a small number of the books that I read, and I am not given to hyperbole, but Kurek's book is magnificent! The fact that I read it twice is unusual enough in itself. The book begins with an amazingly candid story of hardship and tragedy, and of the incredible series of experiences that ultimately transformed Kurek into someone very different. He becomes a shining example of what can happen to someone who opens his or her heart and mind. Though he became known as a motivator, as you read the book it becomes clear that he now inspires people to transform themselves in the most extraordinary way. This is a not just another feel good book. It presents a precise map for creating a different kind of life, and one that is in the reach of most of us. I really do believe that it will change many lives.
Very highly recommended.
Richard G. Petty, MD, author of Healing, Meaning and Purpose: The Magical Power of the Emerging Laws of LifeHow Would Love Respond: Imagine If You Were Given a Gift So Powerful That You Knew You Had to Share It With the World Overview

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Zen Gifts to Christians Review

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Zen Gifts to Christians ReviewThis is a small, but very wise and compassionate book. It is difficult to keep from reading it at a sitting, but even then it invites rereading perhaps many times, not just to try to penetrate the obscurity that necessarily cloaks all things Zen, but to rise to the challenges each chapter sets one's personal growth. The Catholic Church has discovered at Vatican II the working of the Spirit and the presence of the good beyond its borders and even the possibility that members of that Church might learn from those without. Who better to help that task along than Robert Kennedy who is both Catholic priest and Zen Roshi. In this book Kennedy comments on the ten traditional Zen ox-herding pictures, an allegory of the search for the true self. He illustrates their meanings with koans and stories of the Zen masters, but even more extensively with a wealth of modern poetry and literature. This is a guide for the searcher more than a theology for the theorist. The gifts he has in mind are: commitment to practice, transcending our latest theologies in an attitude of unknowing, self-reliance, accepting impermanence and constant change, self-mastery that is really vibrant living, experiencing the absolute incarnated in the relative, the coorigination of all things, finding the absolute within, being transformed into it, and compassionate service to others. These are Zen gifts Kennedy explains and commends principally to those Christians drawn by temperament to Zen practice. But he writes in such a way that I think the book suitable for people of any and even of no particular faith, who yet feel some calling to the way of Zen. The book is written with elegance, grace, generosity and compassion. But if one pays too much attention to Kennedy's message, that compassion can be the compassion of ten firm strokes from the Roshi's keisaku (stick) that strike at our sloth, illusions, dependency, mediocrity, and self-centeredness. I recommend it highly.Zen Gifts to Christians Overview

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The Gift of Loving-Kindness: 100 Meditations on Compassion, Generosity, and Forgiveness Review

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The Gift of Loving-Kindness: 100 Meditations on Compassion, Generosity, and Forgiveness ReviewI've mentioned loving kindness meditation here on the DailyBuddhism quit often in my postings the past few weeks, and it may still not be clear what it's all about. This book makes it clear as glass. The book is small (6"x6"), and as the title itself suggests, would make an excellent gift for someone interested in taking up a simple form of meditation for perhaps the first time. Although the introduction and explanatory pages mention Buddha a few times, the book is not religious and could be enjoyed by anyone of any faith.
The introductory section explains why the authors wrote the book, how to use the book, and basic instructions for both formal and informal loving kindness meditations. This takes around 44 pages, and is an interesting, fast read. The instructions on the formal meditation are clearly presented, and easy to follow and practice.
The book centers heavily on the ideas of generosity, forgiveness, and compassion. Towards others, of course, but starting with directing those concepts towards yourself. The book explains early on that it's hard to direct loving kindness outwards towards others if your mind is filled with blame or self-hate. Therefore, the book focuses on directing loving kindness (generosity, compassion, and forgiveness) towards yourself first, and then expanding that mindfulness outward towards others.
The rest of the book is broken into four parts, consisting of exercises that expand or modify these basic instructions in simple, yet useful ways. Part one of the book consists of meditations of loving-kindness towards yourself, part two is about loving-kindness towards difficult emotions, part three covers loving-kindness towards others, and finally, part four involves loving-kindness towards the world. On the last few pages are some additional resources for further exploration.
The bulk of the pages are filled with 100 mindful practices that can be attempted in any order. Some are quite good, others are a little weak, but since you can pick and choose the ones that appeal to you, there's plenty to work with. Each exercise is explained clearly and concisely, usually with only two or three paragraphs. Some of the ideas are a bit saccharine, but with a book on this subject, that's nearly unavoidable.
Buddhism Level: Beginner. All DailyBuddhism readers should be able to understand all parts of this one. It has no jargon and requires no special background. It's even find for those who may be uncomfortable with Buddhism, yet interested in meditation.
It's easy to do, it's easy to understand. Send yourself a little gift of loving kindness, and you can learn to pass it on to the rest of the world.
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