Wim Hoff is quite the enigma. I have no doubt that he is quite insane and also quite brilliant. It is clear to me that the two walk hand in hand.
ThereWim Hoff is quite the enigma. I have no doubt that he is quite insane and also quite brilliant. It is clear to me that the two walk hand in hand.
There’s something to his words, something true and quite profound. There’s no doubt his method works for him. He has figured out some mental knack to allow him to transcend the perceivable limits of the human body, which sounds a bit crazy, but he can do things most of us can’t and he seems to be genuinely interested in teaching these methods to other people. However, this book doesn’t really scratch the surface of capturing what he does.
Practice is the key. As is learning. And this book doesn’t quite pin down precisely what is needed. It’s like he’s trying to convince us that his method is real, and that it works, but he doesn’t quite show us what his method is. He gives us data and a lot of biography. He tells us how he came to his method and why he felt it was necessary. And it’s very convincing. I believe in what he says. I think he has found something, and he understands a crucial fact of human existence: none of us ever really discover our true potential.
“In nature, it is not only the physically weak but the mentally weak that get eaten. Now we have created this modern society in which we have every comfort, yet we are losing our ability to regulate our mood, our emotions.”
But how do we implement it? Hoff suggests we start with cold showers and that our bodies will eventually adapt to the cold. Afterwards our general fitness will improve. We should meditate and allow love into our life. We should open our hearts and our minds and embrace human experience, true human experience in which our survival instincts become activated. And that’s the key: going back to nature and allowing our adaptive responses to be brought into everyday existence. Life is too comfortable, and our bodies have forgotten that we are animals with drives that are not used.
This book certainly made me think. Unfortunately, Hoff is not the most talented of writers. Don’t get me wrong, I believe he is a very accomplished individual. However, I don’t think this book captures the essence of his ideas particularly well. He is a much better speaker, and it’s a shame he didn’t do the recording for the audiobook version of this. It may have helped clear things up a bit and to carry forward more of his personality. His social media videos are much more powerful and convincing. They make me want to try his method more.
Overall, this book is a curiosity with some wisdom to share. One thing I was shocked to discover is that he is a vegetarian – or perhaps even a vegan – because he never really talks about it much. It helped him form a spiritual connection with the earth and nature. It helped him on his way to discovering who is he is. Clearly, it’s a big part of who he is and I wish he would push it a bit more publicly.
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“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up,“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become. No single instance will transform your beliefs, but as the votes build up, so does the evidence of your new identity.”
I’ve been trying so hard lately to break out of a funk and every self-help book I read recommends starting at the most basic level. We must sort out our daily habits before we can begin to feel better and more fulfilled in our lives. But how do we do this?
Gradual change is the answer. If we improve each day by just 1% by the end of the year we will be dramatically and unrecognizably better. Winning tiny battles will determine our future self. Identifying bad habits that are ruining our potential is the key to change. We must eradicate them, slowly, if need be, and replace them with habits that allow us to grow each day. We must set goals and work towards them in a sensible and patient fashion.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
We also need to design a system to achieve our goals. Simply having goals is not enough. We need to have an actionable framework on how we can move towards these otherwise we will never reach them. We must have a process to follow and daily habits that allow us to achieve them. Our level of commitment to the process will determine our level of progress. Sticking to healthy proactive habits with our end goals in mind is the key.
So, here’s a little bit about me and my goals for this year: I want to complete a 100-mile ultra-marathon and I also want to have written up a full draft of my PhD. How will I achieve these goals? Habitually running and writing each day, habitually working towards them and remaining committed to the process of daily improvement. I will also read everyday and review on Goodreads more frequently because it helps me remain focused on the process. Daily writing is so important for me as is learning and discovering more literature.
I quite enjoyed this. It proposes a very straightforward approach to being successful and one I am very keen to implement into my own life. So let’s do this 2023!
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There’s a lot of hate leveled at Jordan Peterson for things he has said in interviews and in his media work. He has been labelled many things. I don’tThere’s a lot of hate leveled at Jordan Peterson for things he has said in interviews and in his media work. He has been labelled many things. I don’t want to get into the correctness of these labels here, nor do I want to engage with his political views (because that’s not what this book or review is about.)
I do take issue with Peterson’s diet choice, as he eats nothing but beef, but, again, that’s irrelevant here. Open mindedness is key when approaching any work of literature, as is trying to separate the value of the work from the author’s personal failings and opinions.
Peterson is an intellectual. He has a great mind, despite some of his contentious viewpoints, and I think it would be extremely foolish to dismiss everything he has to say based on any personal misgivings and disagreement towards aspects of his rhetoric. This is, indeed, a very good book written by a Professor of Psychology who has some wisdom to share. Curiosity drew me to his words because of how much media attention he has received. I did not expect to take so much from his 12 Rules for Life. I did not expect to it to be quite this thought provoking. So this is going to be quite a long one.
These points are quite profound and actually very helpful, so here’s a breakdown of each one:
1. Stand up straight with your shoulders back
This is an important essay to start the book with. Essentially, it suggests that we must face the world and bring everything we have to bear. We must become the best versions of ourselves, and we must try as hard as we can. We have a duty- a moral responsibility – to develop ourselves as much as humanly possible. Anything else is a brutal lack of attention to the world around us and a waste of our potential, and we have a lot of potential to reach if only we were willing to reach for it. We must stand up straight and become the person we ought to be.
2. Treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping
This one sounds quite simple, but in reality it is something we all often neglect. It’s very easy to look at someone else’s life and to see the behavior they need to change, though it is much harder to look at our own lives, and to be honest with ourselves, and to see the changes we need to make. We need to help ourselves. We have a responsibility to do so to become all that we might be. And we can do this by taking action and working towards pour goals and our vision. We can strengthen ourselves once we learn to help ourselves.
3. Make friends with people who want the best for you
This rule is quite challenging because, if enforced fully in the truest sense, it means losing people. Yes, these people may be bad for you. Yes, these people may drag you down and they may even be a bad influence. They may make you weaker than you are. This, however, does not stop you from loving them.
We need people who bring out the best in us, who challenge us and who make us work harder. Sometimes we have to ignore our instincts and understand that it is not our duty to keep people in our lives who disrupt our peace.
4. Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not to who someone else is today
It’s so easy to get lost in life when we begin to compare. Some people become a massive success at a very young age. In the world of social media, it is easy to feel like a failure when we compare our lives to that of others. And that’s how we can become lost and detached from our own individual purpose. We become distracted with what others have achieved rather than focusing on what we can achieve. So, it’s important to go inwards and to look at our own lives. We must identify the bad habits and maladaptive cognitive functioning. We must strive to be better than the person we were yesterday because that’s the only way we can continue to grow.
5. Do not let your children do anything that makes you dislike them
I don’t have children so this one feels a little wasted on me. I do have a cat though if that counts? Well anyway, this one is quite straightforward: if you dislike what your children are doing the chances are, other people who are not related to your child will dislike those things more. We should all strive to be better parents and educators and help our children find their own paths.
6. Set your house in perfect order before you criticize the world
This is a good one because it addresses something quite simple, making sure our own spaces are clean and tidy is important for our own wellbeing, but it is also important before we try to fix other people’s problems. How can we criticize the state when we cannot successfully run, organize or clean-up our own lives? There’s something quite profound here, a bit of wisdom that encourages us to be at our very best before we attempt to address bigger issues.
7. Pursue what is meaningful (not what is expedient)
The key to this one is sacrifice. We must sacrifice momentary gains and instead work towards achieving greater goals. Delay-gratification is crucial as well as understanding that success – true success in achieving our unrealized potential – takes consistent effort every single day of our lives without fail. If we want to live a meaningful existence, then we must pursue and become the greatest version of ourselves to help the world.
Again, we must do this at the most basic of levels first and strive to reduce any suffering we create in the world. Peterson’s use of biblical narrative here is at its most potent and relevant; it is articulated to such a creative and penetrating degree of wisdom that it is impossible not to be convinced of his arguments for their relevancy as instructive moral narratives – and this is coming from an agnostic.
8. Tell the truth--or, at least, don't lie
Lies are contagious and they grow out of proportion compared to the original falsehood. They also beget more lies until we are surrounded by our own denial of reality. Life becomes confusing as the lie is told over, and over, again. We begin to believe it and our own realities become warped: they become twisted and misshapen. So we must tell the truth and ground ourselves in the reality of our own beings. How can we improve ourselves if we don’t stand in the truth of who we really are?
9. Assume that the person you are listening to might know something you don't
It’s important to check our arrogance sometimes and that we can learn something from everyone we meet. We all have different levels of life experience and knowledge of different things to share. It would be folly not to see opportunity in every exchange.
10. Be precise in your speech
This does not just mean articulating ourselves correctly and coherently; it also means accuracy in determining exactly what we want from life. We must have clear goals and a clear vision, and we must walk towards them. We must create a precise direction, one that is actionable and measurable. Precision in our thoughts, language and speech will allow us to aim up and find the right trajectory.
11. Do not bother children when they are skateboarding
Sometimes a bit of danger is needed for growth. Sometimes children have to learn the hard way. Let them have fun.
12. Pet a cat when you encounter one on the street.
Because it would be just rude not to right? And it would also be rude to walk way from opportunities.
Final Thoughts
I took a lot from this one. It is a self-help book and it certainly got me thinking about many things and about how I could become better than I am. I took an extensive set of notes when reading this. I copied down quotes and passages and I feel like this will linger on my mind for a while. Let see if I can use some of these rules in my own life. ___________________________________
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“Hope is what enables us to keep going in the face of adversity. It is what we desire to happen, but we must be prepared to work hard to make it so
“Hope is what enables us to keep going in the face of adversity. It is what we desire to happen, but we must be prepared to work hard to make it so.”
Jane Goodall is a shining beacon of light in a dark world; her words radiate hope, wisdom and integrity: she is nothing less than an inspiration.
I find her story truly remarkable. As a young woman, with next to no qualifications or experience, she found herself in a position many would dream of. Because of her strength of character and belief in the intelligence of non-human animals, she was granted the opportunity to observe Chimpanzees directly in their natural environment. Her discovery, the fact that they use tools like humans, awarded her a PhD and led to multiple campaigns directly addressing the use of animals for vivisection.
Jane has been a lifelong vegetarian and recently turned vegan (hurrah!) She understood the consequences of eating meat on the planet and eventually made the decision to ditch animal products entirely. This is monumental because not only is she a person of great influence, but the move also fully matches her actions with her beliefs. It signifies so much and it suggests that you are never too old or too set in your ways to change your behaviour and better represent your own morals. This gives me hope. And for those that claim to love animals, Jane is an excellent example to follow.
“If everyone starts to think about the consequences of what we do, for example, what we buy – and I am including young people thinking about what they ask their parents to buy from – if we all start to ask whether its production harmed the environment, or hurt animals, or is cheap because of child slave labour or unfair wages – and, if so, we refuse to buy it – well, billions of these kind of ethical choices will move us to the kind of world we need.”
Jane has worked so hard to affect change and to educate people; she has dedicated her life to improving the welfare of others through multiple initiatives. Fundamentally, she hopes for a kinder a fairer world and she has changed these hopes into action. The young generation hold the key to change. Jane writes these words as a rallying cry; she wants the young generation to act, as she did; she wants them to work for a better world for all living beings. Jane is also deeply spiritual. She believes, well she knows, that her path was one of purpose and it was chosen for her. She had a calling and she answered it with all her enthusiasm. She simply knew what she must do with her life; she knew what change she could affect if she tried, so that’s precisely what she did: she gave her work her absolute all, and she has done so much good in this world.
I especially like the way in which she gets her message across. She is clever and careful and uses stories to represent her beliefs. Rather than telling people her point, she shows the facts to them through a narrative and attempts to sway the reader (or listener) to her cause when they are presented with simple facts. Education is the key to change. And this can be difficult when the ones you are educating are the cause for problems you are so opposed to. Patience and understanding is the key.
“Its main message: every single individual matters, has a role to play, and makes an impact on the planet – every single day. And we have a choice as to what sort of impact we will make.”
I cannot quite express how important this idea is. We each have an individual part to play, and we are each individually responsible. I have read so many environmental books that believe the power to affect change belongs only with governments, and our key to affecting change is to get them to act. It’s not that simple. We must each individually make conscious decisions with our consumer habits. We cannot expect others to act for us. If we hope for a better world, then we must each do something about it. If anything, this is the key to Jane’s message and one of the most important pieces of advice you could ever listen to.
Jane Goodall gives me hope: this book gives me hope.
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"Tell me what you eat and I will tell you who you are"
Everything we read, watch or listen to is food: it is material we are choosing to consume a
"Tell me what you eat and I will tell you who you are"
Everything we read, watch or listen to is food: it is material we are choosing to consume and pollute our bodies, minds and environment with. Naturally, we should be quite selective of this material because mindful consumption can save the planet.
Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) was a vegan Buddhist monk and spiritual teacher and through this book he discusses the impotence of Zen in changing the world for the better. Mindfulness is needed on so many levels. Mindful actions and mindful consumption are required to create a peaceful environment. We must first change ourselves if we want to encourage others to live a kinder life. And I cannot quite stress enough how important this is. So many people look to others to create change, such as governments and politicians, but we must first make active attempts to change individually.
“When you wake up and you see that the Earth is not just the environment, the Earth is us, you touch the nature of interbeing.”
If we wish to save the planet and act in an environmentally sustainable way, then we must first act. We must make changes to our diets and our habits, and we must encourage others to do better. Thay’s words are important and insightful; they are an indictment for peaceful living and a peaceful word. They're so desperately needed, and I wish more people would listen to them. To put it simply, if the entire world did listen to them the Earth would be reformed.
Thay passed away last year, but I think it's fair to assume what his current stance would be regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Thay would encourage peace, conversation and a kinder approach because the planet is at stake. We must always strive to do better and to be better. Achieving change is possible in the world, and I'm inclined to agree with his Zen approach that suggests we must first change ourselves before we can affect change at large. We must be beacons of peace and we must teach others the errors of their ways.
I absolutely loved this book. It is so inline with how I think and feel about advocacy, climate change and our environmental responsibility. I could not rate it any higher. I highly recommend this to other activists because it's insightful, energetic and entirely altruistic across species lines.
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There's something truly haunting about this book and I often find myself thinking about it during quiet moments. Life is Second Read - August 2022
There's something truly haunting about this book and I often find myself thinking about it during quiet moments. Life is strange and it can take us down many unexpected paths and diversions, but there's something all consuming and distracting about how many of these paths and alternate timelines there could have been in our own lives.
Life often leaves you wondering "what if?" but it's important to remember that we only have the now so we need to learn to embrace it. I find the idea behind this book quite profound. Matt Haig is a very intelligent and sensitive writer and I would recommend this book to just about anyone. Be warned though, there's lots of triggers!
First Read - October 2021
“You don’t have to understand life. You just have to live it.”
There’s a great deal to talk about here……..
If we think about the power of words, the power they have to move us and make us think and imagine, then The Midnight Library is a very powerful book indeed. Each book in the library offers a glimpse into an alternative reality, an alternative life we could have lived if we had made different decisions. How cool is that?
But if you’ve ever felt suicidal, depressed or like you’re not living the life you are “supposed” to be living, then this might be a very hard read because it makes us consider alternatives and the importance of small choices. We could quite easily be living a different life based upon a very small action. There’s something terribly consuming about regret, and if we’re not careful it can take over as we wonder where we could be. So tread lightly because there’s a lot of emotional triggers here even if the book has a understandably positive outcome.
Matt Haig is not subtle. This isn’t a book that’s going to leave you guessing or wondering what it’s all about: his message is very clear. Regret is pointless. Just because we are not what we might be (or we are not living as we could be) it doesn’t mean we will be happy or fulfilled. Every life is filled with problems. To invoke a cliché: the grass is not always greener on the other side. And this is important to remember. There are many paths we might take and they can lead us anywhere. The key here is to move forward the best we can and to remember that life is always worth living because there will always be new opportunities.
Matt Haig is a self-help author, naturally much of his positive rhetoric appears in this novel. It’s his novel. It’s to be expected. And as such the ending was expected. His moralising and ideals would only allow the story to end on a certain high note. Artistically, this sacrificed some of the narrative tension, but it gives the message of the story a little added weight and authority. Matt Haig infuses his writing with his stark knowledge about depression and mental illness. He’s lived it. He knows what toll it can take. And he understands that healthy thinking and actions can change much about one’s present situation.
Life is about perspective and sticking around long enough to see that it can change and develop. The Midnight Library explores this idea beautifully well.
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“Wherever you are, at any moment, try and find something beautiful. A face, a line out of a poem, the clouds out of a window, some graffiti, a wind“Wherever you are, at any moment, try and find something beautiful. A face, a line out of a poem, the clouds out of a window, some graffiti, a wind farm. Beauty cleans the mind.”
I find these words really moving because they are simple and true. Even during our darkest times, when life feels overwhelming and our plans go awry, it is important to appreciate the beauty of life and our surroundings.
This past year has been a strange one for many of us, and for me the beauty of nature has got me through it. Going for walks and runs has been essential for mental balance. Taking photographs of trees has been helpful too. Matt Haig suggests that we keep our thoughts focused on these elements to remember that life is, indeed, still worth living.
What makes this book particularly helpful though is the honestly and sincerity that has been poured into it. It’s a genuine book, one written to inspire you and to keep you moving. It tries to inject colour back into your life when perhaps it has become a tapestry of dull motionless greys. It’s a book that understands depression and one that also understands that moving out of it is very difficult, but it can be done with the right advice and actions.
For me, this isn't a book to be read just once: it's a guide to come back to when help is needed. __________________________________
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"It is a strange paradox, that many of the clearest, most comforting life lessons are learned while we are at our lowest."
This book is fresh air. "It is a strange paradox, that many of the clearest, most comforting life lessons are learned while we are at our lowest."
This book is fresh air. It is a sunset on a summer’s evening, and it is a cold shower on a very hot day. It is a book written to help you understand yourself and it is also a book written to help you heal and appreciate life.
True growth comes during our worst times, during moments when we feel like we have no more to give but carry on anyway. Our mindset is everything, and here Matt Haig draws on stoic philosophy to understand his own experiences and impart the wisdom he learnt through a crippling bout of suicidal depression.
It is a short book, but it is also one that understands the power of words and the act of writing itself. What we think, what we do, what we reflect on through writing, is what we begin to manifest. And it is extremely important we make active choices to engage in things that bring us comfort, hope and stability.
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"If Christianity is wine and Islam coffee, Buddhism is most certainly tea."
I like this quote a lot, that much so I decided to start my review with it "If Christianity is wine and Islam coffee, Buddhism is most certainly tea."
I like this quote a lot, that much so I decided to start my review with it because I think it says a great deal about the nature of Zen.
I've been told I have good Zen and although I don't consider myself a Buddhist, I actively try to live by many Buddhist principles. To be Zen is to be calm. To be Zen is to be free. To be Zen is to see things as they actually are. And this can only come from liberation, liberation of consciousness and liberation of being. But what does this mean? Becoming Zen means learning how to achieve this; it means practicing thought and behaviour that grant us the wisdom to separate ourselves from earthly desires.
What’s really important here though is understanding that not all of us can achieve this, simply because we don’t all want to be this way. And in this, Alan Watts provides an intellectual and academic study of Zen. This book is not a pamphlet promoting ideology. It is a Eurocentric dialogue attempting to understand eastern philosophy. It’s an explanation. It’s an attempt of the west trying to understand the east, and his been handled in a very thoughtful and delicate way. It’s respectful and informative.
The Way of Zen is loaded with history and research over the development of Zen practice and thought. It details the different practices of it. I especially enjoyed the section on Zen in the arts. Poetry plays an important role, as does capturing the essence of an image through a precise and perfect rendering of the Haiku form. All art is subjective, though there is something strikingly natural about a Haiku done well because it captures a moment in time exactly as it is and can offer much more.
Overall, this is a very good book on the subject matter. Having read many of this type, I wish I had started here because it feels like a strong introduction. I recommend reading this before moving onto books written by eastern Zen practitioners and teachers themselves.
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There are a plethora of self-help books and new age spiritual awakening guides that all claim to have the power to change your life in a positive way;There are a plethora of self-help books and new age spiritual awakening guides that all claim to have the power to change your life in a positive way; they all suggest a new way of thinking is required to alter your reality: they suggest that something more is needed to reach the next level of human consciousness.
The problem with most of these books is that such ideas are extremely difficult to define accurately in words. They feel vague and often like they are scratching the surface of large concepts that they cannot quite grasp. Simply put, the writers cannot quite articulate their ideas well enough to their readers. Because how does one precisely describe the moment of an acute realisation? How to you encapsulate a spiritual awakening with words never mind pave the way to it?
I believe Eckhart Tolle is one of the best in the business. His words are some of the closest I have read that describe such concepts. And this is because of his deep understanding of theology, which is not tarnished by dogma or prejudice. He understands the healing quality present in religion and he uses it in an attempt to teach mankind, to try and make him more awake.
I enjoyed reading his ideas here, and I will keep reading his works to see what more wisdom he has to impart.
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"Peace is every step. The shining red sun is my heart. Each flower smiles with me. How green, how fresh all that grows. How cool the wind blows. Peace i"Peace is every step. The shining red sun is my heart. Each flower smiles with me. How green, how fresh all that grows. How cool the wind blows. Peace is every step."
The main driving force of this book is the pertinent idea that happiness is a choice; it is a decision we each make and a response we can choose no matter what our internal or external situation may be: it is entirely dependent on us.
This idea is undeniably and irrevocably true. We can choose to be happy; however, the true difficulty resides in attaining the said happiness. And learning exactly how to choose it. It is not simple. It requires great willpower, a monk like detachment from ourselves and achieving a state of complete emptiness. And how do we achieve such a feat?
Mindfulness. Zen. Balance. Understanding that very step is important, and every action is significant to our wellbeing and to the wellbeing of others. We can choose to radiate positive energy and to make the world a better place. We can learn to see beauty in the simple things, and we can train our minds to appreciate what we have rather than what we do not have.
Thich Nhat Hanh is an incredible human being and his words are pure and altruistic. I will spend a lifetime trying to embrace them.
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Sometimes the right book finds its way into your life at the right moment, and sometimes the words are exactly what you need to hear at that exact poiSometimes the right book finds its way into your life at the right moment, and sometimes the words are exactly what you need to hear at that exact point in your life.
The Prophet depicts life and action and motive as they should be. In all, it is a wise soul (a prophet) sharing his learning and wisdom to a people that need spiritual guidance in order to become the best humans they can be. It is delivered in a semi-biblical fashion to give the words more weight; they are inspiring and uplifting, and they are spoken with pure altruism.
Although drastically different in styles, content and purpose, I’d like to compare this to both Meditations for the life wisdom it shares and to Siddhartha for the spiritual oneness it advocates for. These poetic essays here, though very short, are dense, intelligent and compassionate.
I like this quote in particular:
"The soul walks not upon a line, neither does it grow like a reed. The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals"
People often speak of growth, both personal and spiritual, but perhaps we have been going about it the wrong way? It’s not about growing upwards and becoming greater; it’s about expanding, unfolding, and revealing more of our true selves as we live and we learn.
There’s an important life lesson here, for sure.
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“Ultimately, happiness comes down to choosing between the discomfort of becoming aware of your mental afflictions and the discomfort of being ruled“Ultimately, happiness comes down to choosing between the discomfort of becoming aware of your mental afflictions and the discomfort of being ruled by them.”
True happiness is exceedingly hard to find in this life. And when I hit hard times I always find myself drawn to Buddhist teachings as a way to detach myself from my thoughts, feelings and desires in order to become mindful and live in the moment.
Whilst not a miracle cure, the strongest benefit gained by Buddhist practice is the ability to gain perspective and understand that often it is our own reactions that cause us to suffer internally. The wisdom gained through achieving contentment with our life can lead to the emptiness Buddhist's strive for. But these are just words. Achieving them is an entirely different matter.
This is what Wright discusses here, the philosophy of Buddhism and the truth and positiveness behind it. Because it is true if we can embrace it. If we can learn to live it everyday we can achieve some small sense of internal happiness. Initially this is all marginal and preoccupied with the self; however, once we learnt to transform the self we can transform the world and others around us.
So I believe in the truth of Buddhism and this book provides a deep, stimulating and intellectual discussion behind exactly why the truth is such a potent one.
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"In a past life I was mistakenly a poet In a former existence I must have been a painter Unable to throw off my remnant habits."
I’ve been reading "In a past life I was mistakenly a poet In a former existence I must have been a painter Unable to throw off my remnant habits."
I’ve been reading a lot of Chinese poetry in translation lately. I’m in the early stages of researching my Master’s dissertation; I will be looking at how twentieth century western writers appropriated Chinese poetry and brought it into the modern world. Wang Wei is one of the best poets I’ve come across and he exemplifies the forms I will be discussing.
There’s a certain simplicity in his words that is thoroughly deceptive. Chinese poetry is bare and precise. The language appears commonplace and ordinary. It does not feel like an overflow of feelings or passion: it is discreet. Yet, for all that, it carries with it a certain persuasive power.
The poetry of Wang Wei is very much driven by descriptions of nature. Regardless of what’s happening in the world, whether it’s war or a woeful departure, nature remains a beautiful inspiration. Nothing can change that for him, as he marches on, as he plods through life, the splendour of nature remains. Like so:
On Leaving the Wang River retreat
“At last I put my carriage in motion Go sadly out from these ivied pines Can I bear to leave these blue hills? And the green stream – what of that?”
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It’s deceptively simple. These four lines carry so much meaning. The narrator is leaving, but that doesn’t matter. The reasons for his departure aren’t important. The real world isn’t important. The issues are small and perhaps petty when faced with such glory. His surroundings here mean more to him, in this instance, than the whole of mankind combined. Leaving the purity of the ivied pines behind is a lamentable loss. Walking away from the blue hills, the hills of stability, of intelligence and of heaven itself is no easy departure. They represent much. It’s all about the colours. The sky and the sea are both blue, as are these symbolic hills. And the stream, the green stream, that represents oneness with nature that is the hardest of all to walk away from. The line “at last I put my carriage in motion,” says it all. The reluctance is palpable. Simple language is the key.
It would remiss though to dub Wang Wei a nature poet. Such a thing ignores the mystical and spiritual elements to his writing. Much of it was driven by love and loss, by the sorrows of human existence. And he copes with such things rather well, as such there are echoes of Buddhist philosophy across his writing. For example:
Suffering from the heat
My thoughts went out to the world To somewhere utterly alone Far winds came from a thousand miles Rivers and seas washed impurities away Now I realized the body is the affliction At last I knew, my mind has never awakened Here is the way to Nirvana, the gate To pass though the joy of purity.
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The words suggest a certain separation the physical world, to the world of possession and objects. They recognise the impermanence of physical sensation, and that overcoming such an obstacle is the final hurdle on the road to enlightenment: to nirvana.
Wang Wei is an excellent poet, and his words are moving. They are driven by isolation, loneliness and will to reconcile with the natural order of things....more
It’s not dirty just, very, very messy. There are books everywhere. I used to organise them but I have lConfession time: my house is an absolute mess.
It’s not dirty just, very, very messy. There are books everywhere. I used to organise them but I have long since run out of shelf room. Books pile up, they get shoved into corners and form giant stacks and then I can’t find the ones I want (though all the best ones get shelved, of course.)
I need to sort them out. So after reading this I found myself going online and buying four new bookshelves to display the rest of my books on. This monk argues that our homes reflect our minds, and in a way it is true. If our homes are disorganised and messy then our minds become unfocused and disorganised. Our homes, our temples, reflect our thoughts and our degree of motivation for the day. And I really do agree with this sentiment.
However, not all of us live as monks do. Some of us have to go to work. Some of us have university commitments. Some of us have both at once and some even more things to deal with. The point is not all of us can rise early in the morning and clean the entire house everyday (like this monk argues we should do) because there is simply too much to deal with in real life. We don’t all have the benefits of a stress free day spent in meditation and walking the grounds of a Buddhist temple.
This book shares a strong ideal, though it is one shared in complete ignorance about how the rest of the world works....more
"The essence of Buddhism is kindness, compassion. This is the essence of every religion."
I don’t really consider Buddhism a religion. I consider "The essence of Buddhism is kindness, compassion. This is the essence of every religion."
I don’t really consider Buddhism a religion. I consider it a way of thought, a means of training your mind in order to become a better person. It’s about acting in the right way, in a way beyond one’s self, in order to benefit others.
I have read so many books on Buddhism and I will likely read many more. The essence of it can never be conveyed in words accurately. True Buddhism is derived from action and thought. Words on the page are lifeless when it comes to such a profound philosophy. Its power resides in action and will, a will to make the world a better place.
And it really does begin with the small things, the little acts and the simple kindnesses. The Dalai Lama’s Book of Wisdom shows us exactly how possible it is.
It’s a lovely little book full of many wise quotes: it’s food for the soul....more
"Laziness will stop your progress in your spiritual practice"
I find so much truth in this statement, as with many others in this little book. Lazi"Laziness will stop your progress in your spiritual practice"
I find so much truth in this statement, as with many others in this little book. Laziness can come in many forms. A lack of attention, a lack of physical exercise and a total lack of effort are all prime examples.
I find exercise meditative. I run every single day and I find it helps to put my life into perspective more than any traditional Buddhist practice. Sitting in the zazen position undertaking mental exercises just doesn’t work for me. All it does is send me to sleep and, in effect, make me lazy. It seems to work less the more I do it. Running, on the other hand, makes me more motivated for life: it makes me a better, clear headed, person as meditation ought to.
So I say: don’t ever be defeated by laziness, keep moving forward one foot at a time....more
“I accept everyone as a friend. In truth, we already know one another, profoundly, as human beings who share the same basic goals: We all seek happ“I accept everyone as a friend. In truth, we already know one another, profoundly, as human beings who share the same basic goals: We all seek happiness and do not want suffering.”
The Dalai Lama is incredibly quotable and there are so many fantastic examples of his simple wisdom in here. Well, I say simple but it can’t be that simple if people still fail to follow it after all these years. Despite living in an age of globalisation, we are still tragically divided. Senseless wars plague our history books and they continue to dog our steps. When will the world learn that we are all the same despite nationality, religion or skin colour?
The Dalai Lama preaches that all men are equal. Despite having his own philosophical beliefs, he respects all other belief systems and encourages members of other faiths to pursue their path and attain their ultimate goals of peace and happiness. Such things should never divide us nor should politics. It all sounds extremely idealistic, but if everybody adopted a similar approach then the world would be a more peaceful place. If we all called our neighbours our friends, and ignored the minor differences and strove towards human equality and peace, rather than goals such as wealth and power, then hatred would start to die.
“More dangerous than guns or bombs are hatred, lack of compassion, and lack of respect for the rights of others. As long as hatred dwells in the human mind, real peace is impossible.”
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History, unfortunately, shows us the truth of these words. In this helpful guide, The Dalai Lama offers advice on how to cope with life and deal with such frustrating situations. Hating the hater achieves little. What is needed in such a situation is compassion, the first step on the road to inner-peace....more
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying is a manual on how to deal with death, but I would argue it has far more to do with life and the living. It is abThe Tibetan Book of Living and Dying is a manual on how to deal with death, but I would argue it has far more to do with life and the living. It is about understanding death and how it will, ultimately, come for all of us. We have one life so we should live it as fully as possible, being mindful in every single situation. It’s not just about how to deal with the consequences of loss, but it’s about understanding how to deal with life. This book gave me the kick I needed and helped propel me out of bad mind-state. I couldn’t have asked for more....more
Sean Barrs
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spirituality-buddhism-self-help
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