Effortless Living: Wu-Wei and the Spontaneous State of Natural Harmony


Jason Gregory - 2018
    Attributed to the great sage Lao-tzu, the philosophy of wu-wei teaches you how to develop a natural state of consciousness not bound by thought or preconceived limitations. Experienced by the greatest artists, athletes, musicians, and writers, this heightened state of consciousness, referred to as “being in the zone,” is where intelligent spontaneity and effortless action flourish via a practice rooted in permitting the natural harmony of the cosmos to prevail. Merging Taoist philosophy, Hindu principles, and Confucianism along with scientific findings, Jason Gregory outlines the practice of wu-wei as a vehicle to realize our innate freedom, revealing that when we release our ego and allow life to unfold as it will, we align ourselves more closely with our goals and cultivate skill and mastery along the way. Equating “being in the zone” with a stillness of the mind, Gregory shares meditation practices coupled with yoga exercises from Patanjali that allow you to approach life with a mastery of acceptance, releasing deluded beliefs of how to achieve success that make your mind “sticky” and poised for conflict. The author shows how practicing wu-wei paradoxically empowers you to accomplish all that you desire by having no intention to do so, as well as allowing you to become receptive to nature’s blueprint for expressing beauty. Revealing wisdom utilized by renowned sages, artists, and athletes who have adapted “being in the zone” as a way of life, the author shows that wu-wei can yield a renewed sense of trust in many aspects of your daily life, making each day more effortless. As an avid wu-wei practitioner, he provides keen insight on how you, too, can experience the beauty of achieving an enlightened, effortless mind while reveling in the process of life’s unfolding.

The Greatest Secret of All: Moving Beyond Abundance to a Life of True Fulfillment


Marc Allen - 2007
    The Greatest Secret of All clearly explains this law of manifestation but then takes it a quantum leap further, revealing what is truly important in life. We have what we need within us to do what we love, to be the people we dream of being, and to become completely fulfilled along the way — to become, as Abraham Maslow put it, self-actualized. We also have the capability, here and now, to create a world that works for everyone. In these pages, you will find the secret to a life of happiness, inner peace, ease, and fulfillment, and the secret that lets each of us contribute to making the world a better place for all.

The Teaching of the Twelve: Believing Practicing the Primitive Christianity of the Ancient Didache Community


Tony Jones - 2009
    The Didache is an early handbook of an anonymous Christian community, likely written before some of the New Testament books were written. It spells out a way of life for Jesus-followers that includes instruction on how to treat one another, how to practice the Eucharist, and how to take in wandering prophets. In The Teaching of the Twelve, Jones unpacks the ancient document, and he traces the life of a small house church in Missouri that is trying to live according to its precepts. Readers will find The Teaching of the Twelve inspirational and challenging, and they will discover a unique window into the life of the very earliest followers of Jesus the Christ. A new, contemporary English translation of the Didache is included.

No-Fail Habits


Michael Hyatt - 2020
    Our work follows us home, even on weekends and vacations.The result is stress, burnout, and strained relationships. Ironically, burning the candle at both ends makes work quality suffer too.Days full of busyness, where you go to bed wondering where all the time went and why so little got done, is primarily the product of habit. One action triggering another that fills every moment of the day, crowding out anything that's not an emergency.It's automated overwork. And when a person succumbs to the stress and leaves for greener pastures, this “burnout pattern” follows them around from one job to the next.But there's good news . . .Self-automation can become your advantage as well.And it's all laid out in the newest book from Michael Hyatt & Company, No-Fail Habits.No-Fail Habits reveals how you can permanently drop habits that don't serve you.You'll also discover how to identify negative triggers and replace them with actions, habits, and rituals that free your time and give you the mental space for deep work—the fertile soil of accomplishment.No-Fail Habits is the blueprint for leveraging habits to build a life of success at work and in your personal life. No-Fail Habits will help you achieve more than you ever thought possible.

The Experience of No-Self: A Contemplative Journey


Bernadette Roberts - 1982
    Explores the journey beyond union, beyond self and God, into the silent and still regions of the Unknown.

The Voice of Knowledge: A Practical Guide to Inner Peace


Miguel Ruiz - 2000
    Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, this breakthrough book shows us how to recover our faith in the truth and return to our own common sense.Ruiz changes the way we perceive ourselves, and the way we perceive other people. Then he opens the door to a reality that we once perceived when we were one and two years old - a reality of truth, love, and joy.

The In-Between Place: Where Jesus Changes Your Story


Kat Armstrong - 2021
    But what do we do when challenges stop our forward momentum? What’s the next step when we fall into a pit of despair with the determination knocked right out of us? On his way from Judea to Galilee, Jesus traveled through Samaria, a broken place everyone knew to avoid. In Samaria he stopped in Shechem, where evil had gained such a foothold of power that it eventually reigned. Yet the place once condemned as somewhere no one wanted to visit—let alone hang out in for a while—was the location of one Samaritan woman’s most hope-filled encounter with the Savior. The In-Between Place offers deeply important insights to anyone who feels stuck and can’t see a way forward. It is for the person who feels that if she looks left, her face will be scraped by an immovable boulder, and if she looks right, she’ll see nothing but hard to handle. It’s for the person who feels lost and is not sure she is worth the effort to be found, for the person who feels overlooked and unfulfilled. Because sometimes Jesus saves our greatest spiritual breakthroughs for our in-between places.

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life


Karen Armstrong - 2010
    Here, in this straightforward, thoughtful, and thought-provoking book, she sets out a program that can lead us toward a more compassionate life.The twelve steps Armstrong suggests begin with “Learn About Compassion” and close with “Love Your Enemies.” In between, she takes up “compassion for yourself,” mindfulness, suffering, sympathetic joy, the limits of our knowledge of others, and “concern for everybody.” She suggests concrete ways of enhancing our compassion and putting it into action in our everyday lives, and provides, as well, a reading list to encourage us to “hear one another’s narratives.” Throughout, Armstrong makes clear that a compassionate life is not a matter of only heart or mind but a deliberate and often life-altering commingling of the two.From the Hardcover edition.

American Indian Prophecies: Conversations with Chasing Deer


Kurt Kaltreider - 1998
    The book is a series of conversations between young John Peabody of the New England gentry and Chasing Deer, an aged Cheyenne/Lakota and keeper of the true history of the Americas. As the conversations unfold, you see the contrast between Euro-American and American Indian cultures and values, bringing many interesting questions to light. As the conversations unfold, we learn that perhaps the Amercian Indian culture has some of the answers that we are all looking for.

This One Wild and Precious Life: A Hopeful Path Forward in a Fractured World


Sarah Wilson - 2020
    The climate crisis, political polarisation, racial injustice and coronavirus have left many of us in a state of spiritual PTSD. We have retreated, morally and psychologically; we are experiencing a crisis of disconnection - from one another, from our true values, from joy, and from life as we feel we are meant to be living it.Sarah Wilson argues that this sense of despair and disconnection is ironically what unites us - that deep down, we are all feeling that same itch for a new way of living. this one wild and precious life opens our eyes to how we got here and offers a radically hopeful path forward. Drawing on science, literature, philosophy, the wisdom of some of the world's leading experts, and her personal journey, Wilson weaves a one-of-a-kind narrative that lights the way back to the life we love. En route, she leads us through a series of 'wildly awake' and joyful practices for reconnecting again that include:- Go to your edge. Do what scares you and embrace discomfort daily. Use it to grow into your Big Life.- #buylesslivemore. Break the cycle of mindless consumption and get light with your life.- Become a soul nerd. Embrace poetry, deep reading, art, and classical music to light up your intellect.- Get 'full-fat spiritual'. How to have an active practice - beyond the 'lite' 'rainbows and unicorns' - and use it to change the world.- Hike. Just hike. Walking in nature reconnects us with ourselves, and with our true purpose.- Practise wild activism. If you can get 3.5 per cent of a population to participate in sustained, non-violent protest, change happens. We create our better world.The time has come to boldly, wildly, imagine better. We are being called upon, individually and as a society, to forge a new path and to find a new way of living. Will you join the journey?

Journey of a Master: Swami Chinmayananda


Nancy Freeman Patchen - 1989
    In telling the story of one master’s training and evolution in the Himalayas and his subsequent mission to his countrymen, the author enlightens you on the essence of India’s culture, philosophy and religion. His story will surely educate you, inspire you, and broaden your horizons of the meaning of life.The Swami spent five years in the Himalayas under the tutelage of two incredible Masters of live, as different as day and night. Although both were scholars of the scriptures, their manifestation was unique. One was an incredible streak of light and energy who traveled India teaching, then created a huge ashram center to serve all of humanity. The other was a quiet contemplative recluse who sang inspirational songs and taught only a few students.Swami Chinmayananda appeared on the scene at an appropriate time in Indian history. The British had just left the country with no one trained to take the helm of State. The British had taken all the top government positions. In addition, they had curtailed any industrial development; the Empire was about having consumers for British products. The Indians had lost their moorings: economically, spiritually and personally. To these countrymen, beaten down by 150 years of British rule, repression and slavery, the Swami gave a message of hope. He worked relentlessly for about 40 years to bring about a spiritual revival in India and abroad. His unique style and logical approach was appreciated by everyone from college students to bankers to priests—both Hindu and Christian.By teaching directly the wisdom of their ancient scriptures, he gave the listeners confidence and inspiration to move forward in business and in creating charitable endeavors for the uplifting of the downtrodden of the country. Through 200 centers in India, his devotees have built and operate schools, hospitals and clinics, nursing homes, retirement homes and training centers for nurses and teachers, as well as spiritual training centers.This story of the legacy of one of the most influential persons in the modern history of Hinduism is sure to surprise you, amaze you—and inspire you.

Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment


Deepak Chopra - 2007
    This iconic journey changed the world forever, and the truths revealed continue to influence every corner of the globe today.A young man in line for the throne is trapped in his father's kingdom and yearns for the outside world. Betrayed by those closest to him, Siddhartha abandons his palace and princely title. Alone and face-to-face with his demons, he becomes a wandering monk and embarks on a spiritual fast that carries him to the brink of death. Ultimately recognizing his inability to conquer his body and mind by sheer will, Siddhartha transcends his physical pain and achieves enlightenment.Although we recognize Buddha today as an icon of peace and serenity, his life story was a tumultuous and spellbinding affair filled with love and sex, murder and loss, struggle and surrender. From the rocky terrain of the material world to the summit of the spiritual one, Buddha captivates and inspires—ultimately leading us closer to understanding the true nature of life and our selves.

destressifying: The Real-World Guide to Personal Empowerment, Lasting Fulfillment, and Peace of Mind


Davidji - 2015
    . . it’s diabolical . . . it creeps into every moment of our lives. It influences our relationships, impacts our physical body, works its way into our conversations, sparks non-nourishing behaviors, and forces us to do things we’d never want to do. It’s infectious; it’s relentless . . .      It’s stress!      We all know it. We all experience it. It’s the human condition—but through this book, you will learn to transcend it.      Drawing on decades of experience working with individuals in extreme, high-pressure situations—including business leaders, world-class athletes, members of the military, Special Forces, and those in crisis—davidji will show you how to handle any type of stress that life throws at you. Just as he demystified the practice of meditation in his award-winning book Secrets of Meditation, here he will teach you proactive tools to breathe more easily, master your emotions, communicate more effectively, cultivate more nourishing relationships, and perform at a higher level. With his trademark easy-to-understand and entertaining writing style, davidji will transform your understanding of stress using time-tested techniques; cutting-edge science; real-world, practical applications; and in-the-moment stress busters.      How you respond to the world around you determines the fabric of your life—and one read of destressifying will enhance your performance at work, at home, and in the face of daily surprises. This book will allow you to determine the speed at which life comes at you and guide you to deeper fulfillment, greater empowerment, and true peace of mind.

Huna: Ancient Hawaiian Secrets for Modern Living


Serge Kahili King - 2008
    Dating back to the time before the first missionary presence arrived in the islands, the tradition of Huna is more than just a philosophy of living—it is intertwined and deeply connected with every aspect of Hawaiian life.     Blending ancient Hawaiian wisdom with modern practicality, Serge Kahili King imparts the philosophy behind the beliefs, history, and foundation of Huna. More important, King shows readers how to use Huna philosophy to attain both material and spiritual goals. To those who practice Huna, there is a deep understanding about the true nature of life—and the real meaning of personal power, intention, and belief. Through exploring the seven core principles around which the practice revolves, King passes onto readers a timeless and powerful wisdom.

Ask George Anderson: What Souls in the Hereafter Can Teach Us About Life


George Anderson - 2012
    For nearly fifty years and more than thirty-five thousand sessions, George Anderson, widely considered the world’s greatest living medium, has listened to those who have crossed to the other side. He has bridged the worlds of the here and the hereafter by communicating messages of hope from loved ones who have passed on, in order to help bring peace to those who continue on earth. But the souls can offer so much more than proof that there is something beyond this world. They can offer answers and practical advice about issues we struggle with daily: our finances, relationships, personal matters, and questions of faith. Having lived through the struggles we now face, they can also assure us that life’s problems are not random; they happen to each of us as part of a greater purpose and plan. Ask George Anderson shares the most common questions clients ask and reveals the illuminating answers that the souls have provided on issues and concerns of our everyday life here on earth. They are invaluable lessons that will enrich all our lives because they’re imparted from a profound and rare perspective: that of the souls who have already lived it and learned from it.