In this book, he gives of this wisdom, sharing different perspectives that have given him the potential of living side by side with his body, flowing in this effortless being, through this ease of life and thus this being. It is not hard, but it takes some contemplation as life already has filled with ideas and worries. But as we see these ideas, we can come to see beyond them and into the easefulness of being. So kick back, relax, and enjoy these words and the ease of being.
A 25th anniversary edition of a classic spiritual guide Celebrating 25 years as a classic among spiritual seekers, The Ease of Being is an accessible and captivating introduction to the concept of Advaita Vedanta (or non-dualism) from world renowned author, mystic, and teacher Jean Klein. This beautiful anniversary edition includes seven of Klein's famous lectures, and includes dialogues on the nature of reality and the root of our felt experience, as well as how these realizations can impact and shape our day-to-day lives. The profound dialogues in this tome are presented as interactions between Klein and an astute, unnamed interrogator, and include topics such as: What is memory? What is fear? How can I free my mind from conditioning? What is pain? According to Klein, it is only in a "spontaneous state of interior silence that we can open ourselves to our true nature: the 'I Am' of pure consciousness." Let this beautiful edition of The Ease of Being inspire your own awakening, and carry Klein's legacy forward to future generations of seekers.
Popular spiritual writer and teacher Jan Frazier shows how to move from emotional and mental turmoil to quiet joy and happiness in The Freedom of Being: At Ease with What Is. Frazier, the author of the bestselling When Fear Falls Away: The Story of a Sudden Awakening, offers practical and effective suggestions for developing "presentmoment" awareness as the key to awakening. Frazier shows how getting caught up in being on a spiritual journey often sustains the illusion of timespecifically some future time when you hope to awaken. But letting go of the idea of the future and staying focused in the present can give you access to a rich life free of suffering. "When you are hurting, or feeling very unawake, or dissatisfied with yourself, instead of saying 'I've got to change' or 'I've got to get enlightened,' step outside of the whole thing and simply observe your thoughts and feelings neutrally, without judgment. This nonjudgmental looking is transformative." Jan Frazier Whether you feel stuck in your life, or simply want to suffer less and live more consciously, The Freedom of Being offers a blueprint to make the shift into the present.
Most people know Joe Pantoliano from his memorable roles in The Sopranos, The Goonies, The Matrix, The Fugitive, and Risky Business, but the Emmy-winning artist has another important role—as an outspoken advocate for smashing the stigma of mental illness, or mental “dis-ease” as he prefers to call it. As a kid in Hoboken, New Jersey, he was just “Joey Pants,” the son of a fiercely controlling, schizophrenic mother. As he grew up, Joey always knew he was different. “It was as if I was born with a huge hole inside of me,” he writes. Much later in life he would be diagnosed with clinical depression, and now he has a message for the millions of people who suffer from mental illness, and for the friends and family who care for them: you are not alone. Asylum is the story of Joe’s Hollywood success, his undiagnosed mental illness, and substance abuse, and how all three led to his awareness, diagnosis, recovery, and public activism. Picking up where his first memoir, Who’s Sorry Now, left off, this unflinching memoir will resonate with victims of mental illness and others who have witnessed its devastating effects and will give all his readers understanding and hope for the future.
Enter into the teaching space of master Alexander Technique teacher Tommy Thompson. With compassion and integrity, Tommy's teaching explores the ways in which each of us can belong to the moment and stop defining ourselves by our habits. With its insightful, moving reflections, Touching Presence will inspire Alexander Technique teachers, trainees, and students -- indeed anyone -- to find their own path to being more fully present for themselves and the person in front of them.
“Far more than a conventional novel. It is a meditation on life, on the erotic, on the nature of men and women and love . . . full of telling details, truths large and small, to which just about every reader will respond.” — People In The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera tells the story of two couples, a young woman in love with a man torn between his love for her and his incorrigible womanizing, and one of his mistresses and her humbly faithful lover. In a world in which lives are shaped by irrevocable choices and by fortuitous events, a world in which everything occurs but once, existence seems to lose its substance, its weight. Hence, we feel "the unbearable lightness of being" not only as the consequence of our pristine actions but also in the public sphere, and the two inevitably intertwine. This magnificent novel is a story of passion and politics, infidelity and ideas, and encompasses the extremes of comedy and tragedy, illuminating all aspects of human existence.
In a time of social distancing and isolation, a meditation on the beauty of solitude from renowned Buddhist writer Stephen Batchelor “Whatever a soul is, the author goes a long way toward soothing it. A very welcome instance of philosophy that can help readers live a good life.”—Kirkus Reviews “Elegant and formally ingenious.”—Geoff Wisner, Wall Street Journal When world renowned Buddhist writer Stephen Batchelor turned sixty, he took a sabbatical from his teaching and turned his attention to solitude, a practice integral to the meditative traditions he has long studied and taught. He aimed to venture more deeply into solitude, discovering its full extent and depth. This beautiful literary collage documents his multifaceted explorations. Spending time in remote places, appreciating and making art, practicing meditation and participating in retreats, drinking peyote and ayahuasca, and training himself to keep an open, questioning mind have all contributed to Batchelor’s ability to be simultaneously alone and at ease. Mixed in with his personal narrative are inspiring stories from solitude’s devoted practitioners, from the Buddha to Montaigne, from Vermeer to Agnes Martin. In a hyperconnected world that is at the same time plagued by social isolation, this book shows how to enjoy the inescapable solitude that is at the heart of human life.
From bestselling author of The Book of Delights and award-winning poet, a book of lyrical mini-essays celebrating the everyday that will inspire readers to rediscover the joys in the world around us. In Ross Gay’s new collection of small, daily wonders, again written over the course of a year, one of America’s most original voices continues his ongoing investigation of delight. For Gay, what delights us is what connects us, what gives us meaning, from the joy of hearing a nostalgic song blasting from a passing car to the pleasure of refusing the “nefarious” scannable QR code menus, from the tiny dog he fell hard for to his mother baking a dozen kinds of cookies for her grandchildren. As always, Gay revels in the natural world—sweet potatoes being harvested, a hummingbird carousing in the beebalm, a sunflower growing out of a wall around the cemetery, the shared bounty from a neighbor’s fig tree—and the trillion mysterious ways this glorious earth delights us. The Book of (More) Delights is a volume to savor and share.
Jan Frazier experienced a radical transformation of consciousness at age fifty, in 2003. Her first book, "When Fear Falls Away: The Story of a Sudden Awakening" (Weiser Books, 2007), is an account of her awakening, as it unfolded over the first eighteen months. "The Freedom of Being: At Ease with What Is" (Weiser Books, 2012) offers guidance toward the reduction of suffering and the prospect of radical freedom. Both books are available in paperback and eBook. "Opening the Door: Jan Frazier Teachings on Awakening" is an eBook collection of essays on the nature of spiritual awakening. The book opens the reader's awareness to the possibility of a richly human life, beyond what appears possible to the ego and the mind. The teachings point to unresisting present-moment attention, where the truth of existence is known. Jan Frazier's teachings are drawn from direct experience, relying on no particular tradition or set of beliefs.
