This is why Professor Michael Puett says to his students, “The encounter with these ideas will change your life.” As one of them told his collaborator, author Christine Gross-Loh, “You can open yourself up to possibilities you never imagined were even possible.”These astonishing teachings emerged two thousand years ago through the work of a succession of Chinese scholars exploring how humans can improve themselves and their society. And what are these counterintuitive ideas? Good relationships come not from being sincere and authentic, but from the rituals we perform within them. Influence comes not from wielding power but from holding back. Excellence comes from what we choose to do, not our natural abilities. A good life emerges not from planning it out, but through training ourselves to respond well to small moments. Transformation comes not from looking within for a true self, but from creating conditions that produce new possibilities.In other words, The Path upends everything we are told about how to lead a good life. Above all, unlike most books on the subject, its most radical idea is that there is no path to follow in the first place—just a journey we create anew at every moment by seeing and doing things differently.Sometimes voices from the past can offer possibilities for thinking afresh about the future.A note from the publisher: To read relevant passages from the original works of Chinese philosophy, see our free ebook Confucius, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi: Selected Passages, available on Kindle, Nook, and the iBook Store and at Books.SimonandSchuster.com.

    Forever.

    Wilde teaches readers how to deal with opinions, feelings, contradiction, expectancy, and finally how to elevate their spirits to feel freer and lighter.

    Inspiration from well-known minds such as Maya Angelou, Confucius, and Anne Frank is combined with original reflections and practices that will help you recognize the abundance of everyday opportunities for gratitude and joy. Hand-lettered art makes this beautifully designed collection a gift to treasure, regardless of whether you keep it for yourself or give it to a loved one.

    "Psychotherapy is all things to all people in this mega-selling pop-psychology watershed, which features a new introduction by the author in this 25th anniversary edition. His agenda in this tome, which was first published in 1978 but didn't become a bestseller until 1983, is to reconcile the psychoanalytic tradition with the conflicting cultural currents roiling the 70s. In the spirit of Me-Decade individualism and libertinism, he celebrates self-actualization as life's highest purpose and flirts with the notions of open marriage and therapeutic sex between patient and analyst. But because he is attuned to the nascent conservative backlash against the therapeutic worldview, Peck also cites Gospel passages, recruits psychotherapy to the cause of traditional religion (he even convinces a patient to sign up for divinity school) and insists that problems must be overcome through suffering, discipline and hard work (with a therapist.) Often departing from the cerebral and rationalistic bent of Freudian discourse for a mystical, Jungian tone more compatible with New Age spirituality, Peck writes of psychotherapy as an exercise in "love" and "spiritual growth," asserts that "our unconscious is God" and affirms his belief in miracles, reincarnation and telepathy. Peck's synthesis of such clashing elements (he even throws in a little thermodynamics) is held together by a warm and lucid discussion of psychiatric principles and moving accounts of his own patients' struggles and breakthroughs. Harmonizing psychoanalysis and spirituality, Christ and Buddha, Calvinist work ethic and interminable talking cures, this book is a touchstone of our contemporary religio-therapeutic culture." -- Publishers WeeklyKeywords: MIND & BODY PSYCHOLOGY SOCIOLOGY RELIGION

    Journey to the Heart will comfort and inspire us all as we begin to discover our true purpose in the world and learn to connect even more deeply with ourselves, the creative force, and the magic and mystery in the world around and within us.

    This is an exact reproduction of his 1930 work (now Public Domain), formatted for Kindle devices. It contains detailed descriptions and instructions in the following techniques: (1) Kriya Proper - The basic Kriya Pranayama technique (2) Maha Mudra - Preparatory technique for Kriya Proper (3) Jyoti Mudra - Technique to see the Spiritual Eye

    Stop Fixing Yourself: Wake Up, All Is Well provides the simple path to living an enlightened life. De Mello tells us that if you are watchful and awake, all that is false and neurotic within you will drop away and you will begin to live increasingly from moment to moment in a life made whole and happy and transparent through awareness. Awareness transforms you from a seeker to a finder, opening your eyes to the reality of the love, peace, and beauty that has always surrounded you. Awareness will set you free. In Stop Fixing Yourself, De Mello’s down-to-earth teaching method helps you discover true awareness, releasing the divinity all around you and making your life meaningful, beautiful, and prosperous.

    The most potential you can have on your contemplative path is a trusted teacher like Jack Kornfield, who stands out as one of the most helpful and encouraging Western instructors for newcomers to the art of meditation.With Guided Meditation, this renowned Buddhist teacher brings you six practices that will open the door to the serenity and joy of meditation, and serve as your foundation for years to come.Offering you precise guidance through every step of these transformational practices, Kornfield introduces you to:Basic sitting practice—The essential starting point for nurturing nonjudgmental spaciousness• The heart-opening techniques of lovingkindness and forgiveness meditation to help you discover liberation from suffering• A visualization exercise for overcoming difficulties by making direct contact with the voice of your highest wisdom• The gratitude and joy meditation, which nourishes an innocent rejoicing in life itself• Mind Like Sky—a practice to enter "original mind," the pure space of awareness that is consciousness itselfSince the time of the Buddha, meditation taught under the guidance of an expert has proven to be the easiest and most effective way to begin. Whether you are just starting out with meditation or have decided to reconnect with the ground of your practice, Jack Kornfield's Guided Meditation provides concise and gentle training of the heart and mind to enjoy the fruits of this centuries-old art.Course objectives:Apply the six guided meditation practices to cultivate love, awareness, and wisdom• Practice each of the six guided meditation practices as a way to cultivate stillness and "knowing"• Explore mindfulness practices related to awareness of the breath, loving kindness, forgiveness, visualization, gratitude, and the spaciousness of consciousness

    Author B. Alan Wallace has nearly thirty years' practice in attention-enhancing meditation, including a retreat he performed under the guidance of the Dalai Lama. An active participant in the much-publicized dialogues between Buddhists and scientists, Alan is uniquely qualified to speak intelligently to both camps, and The Attention Revolution is the definitive presentation of his knowledge.Beginning by pointing out the ill effects that follow from our inability to focus, Wallace moves on to explore a systematic path of meditation to deepen our capacity for deep concentration. The result is an exciting, rewarding "expedition of the mind," tracing everything from the confusion at the bottom of the trail to the extraordinary clarity and power that come with making it to the top. Along the way, the author also provides interludes and complementary practices for cultivating love, compassion, and clarity in our waking and dreaming lives.Attention is the key that makes personal change possible, and the good news is that it can be trained. This book shows how.

    Self-discipline is a wonderful thing. It can mean the difference between achieving goals or not achieving goals. It can give a person a greater sense of self-worth. It can allow someone the ability to work harder for a shorter amount of time and accomplish much more than before. Self-discipline can make the process of dropping bad habits in favor of good ones much easier to accomplish.People who have self-discipline are happier in life.They have a greater sense of purpose overall and a greater sense of accomplishment in everyday life. Seeking self-discipline is the best way to a better life.Self-discipline is a goal that will only be accomplished by following a path that will cause a great deal of pain. Walking this path will require a good deal of hard work and dedication because this path is not an easy one to walk. Sometimes, people fall off. Sometimes, the direction of the path needs to be changed. Sometimes, the path needs to be broken up into smaller trips in order to be able to complete the whole journey.Self-control and self-discipline require hard work and serious commitment. If a person is not really serious about the need to develop self-discipline, then it just will not happen. No one can give anyone else self-discipline. It needs to be learned within. However, consider what happens if self-discipline is never developed. Can a person go on in life without ever developing any level of self-discipline? Of course, they can. What they will be missing out on is a lifetime of achievement. They will be giving up all sense of self-worth and self-fulfillment. They will lose out on the ability to replace bad habits with good ones. They will never know the joy of getting rid of addictions and temptations. They will be forever plagued by negative feelings of anger and regret and guilt. They will live their entire lives accomplishing nothing because they lack the necessary self-discipline to accomplish anything. They will not succeed.Of course, it is a purely personal choice. It is possible to live life without accomplishing anything. It is possible to just skate through life devoid of any sense of self-worth and self-love. It is possible to get to the end and never achieve any type of goal. However, what kind of life would that really be?The best way is to begin today to work on personal goals. Start now by deciding which habits are bad and need to be replaced. Make a list of good habits that need to be cultivated. Decide when this new lifestyle will begin--keeping in mind that sooner is better. Write down all the goals that need to be achieved and all the good habits that need to be cultivated. Post this list where everyone can see it.Tell family and friends.Get everyone involved! Most importantly, remember that a successful outcome will be its own best reward!

    And as one of the three most important expressions of Stoicism, this is an essential text for everyone interested in ancient religion and philosophy. Yet the clarity and ease of the work's style are deceptive. Pierre Hadot, eminent historian of ancient thought, uncovers new levels of meaning and expands our understanding of its underlying philosophy. Written by the Roman emperor for his own private guidance and self-admonition, the Meditations set forth principles for living a good and just life. Hadot probes Marcus Aurelius's guidelines and convictions and discerns the hitherto unperceived conceptual system that grounds them. Abundantly quoting the Meditations to illustrate his analysis, the author allows Marcus Aurelius to speak directly to the reader. And Hadot unfolds for us the philosophical context of the Meditations, commenting on the philosophers Marcus Aurelius read and giving special attention to the teachings of Epictetus, whose disciple he was. The soul, the guiding principle within us, is in Marcus Aurelius's Stoic philosophy an inviolable stronghold of freedom, the "inner citadel." This spirited and engaging study of his thought offers a fresh picture of the fascinating philosopher-emperor, a fuller understanding of the tradition and doctrines of Stoicism, and rich insight on the culture of the Roman empire in the second century. Pierre Hadot has been working on Marcus Aurelius for more than twenty years; in this book he distills his analysis and conclusions with extraordinary lucidity for the general reader.

    Imagine being unflappable and relaxed when your supervisor loses her temper. What if you were peaceful instead of anxious? What if your life were filled with nurturing relationships and a warm sense of belonging? This is what it feels like when you’ve achieved emotional freedom. National bestselling author Dr. Judith Orloff invites you to take a remarkable journey, one that leads to happiness and serenity, and a place where you can gain mastery over the negativity that pervades daily life. No matter how stressed you currently feel, the time for positive change is now. You possess the ability to liberate yourself from depression, anger, and fear. Synthesizing neuroscience, intuitive medicine, psychology, and subtle energy techniques, Dr. Orloff maps the elegant relationships between our minds, bodies, spirits, and environments. With humor and compassion, she shows you how to identify the most powerful negative emotions and how to transform them into hope, kindness, and courage. Compelling patient case studies and stories from her online community, her workshop participants, and her own private life illustrate the simple, easy-to-follow action steps that you can take to cope with emotional vampires, disappointments, and rejection.Emotional Freedom is a road map for those who are stressed out, discouraged, or overwhelmed as well as for those who are in a good emotional place but want to feel even better. As Dr. Orloff shows, each day presents opportunities for us to be heroes in our own lives: to turn away from negativity, react constructively, and seize command of any situation. Complete emotional freedom is within your grasp.

    I bump along, in fits and starts, on a perpetual path to finding better ways for me and my mate, Anxiety, to get around. It's everything I do.Sarah Wilson—bestselling author and entrepreneur, intrepid solver of problems and investigator of how to live a better life—has helped over 1.2 million people across the world to quit sugar. She has also been an anxiety sufferer her whole life.In her new book, she directs her intense focus and fierce investigatory skills onto this lifetime companion of hers, looking at the triggers and treatments, the fashions and fads. She reads widely and interviews fellow sufferers, mental health experts, philosophers, and even the Dalai Lama, processing all she learns through the prism her own experiences.Sarah pulls at the thread of accepted definitions of anxiety, and unravels the notion that it is a difficult, dangerous disease that must be medicated into submission. Ultimately, she re-frames anxiety as a spiritual quest rather than a burdensome affliction, a state of yearning that will lead us closer to what really matters.Practical and poetic, wise and funny, this is a small book with a big heart. It will encourage the myriad sufferers of the world's most common mental illness to feel not just better about their condition, but delighted by the possibilities it offers for a richer, fuller life.

    The Wisdom of Insecurity underlines the importance of our search for stability in an age where human life seems particularly vulnerable and uncertain. Watts argues our insecurity is the consequence of trying to be secure and that, ironically, salvation and sanity lie in the recognition that we have no way of saving ourselves.