Are you in need of nourishing your soul? These 4 books will inspire you to take a step closer to your happiest self.
Life can be hectic and overwhelming, leaving us feeling frazzled and empty sometimes. That's why taking care of ourselves is important and ensuring you are nourishing your soul in these moments. However, with the stress of modern life, finding inner peace and happiness can be a challenge.
That's why we've curated a list of our four favorite books that offer practical advice and wisdom to help you find your inner zen. We've avoided the preachy and repetitive self-help books, opting instead for books that feel like a warm hug for the soul. These books will leave your mind clearer and more prepared to take on the world.
We hope that these recommendations will inspire and uplift you, bringing you one step closer to your happiest self.
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Zen The Art of Simple Living by Shunmyo Masuno is a great read for anyone looking to live a more mindful and intentional life. As a guide to finding joy in the simple things, the book is filled with short and sweet lists of concrete actions that you can take to create happiness, calm, and organization in your everyday life.
The book is divided into four parts, each covering 20 to 30 topics related to Zen and mindfulness. Masuno, the head priest of a 450-year-old Zen Buddhist temple in Japan, provides 100 daily practices, simple habits, ideas, and hints for a lifetime of calm & joy based on his life's learnings living in a Zen Buddhist temple. The beauty of this book lies in its practicality. It's accessible, simple, and beautiful to look at. Its lovely design fully met our expectations, and we really couldn't find a single fault with this book. The book does read like a series of compiled lists, so if you are looking for more in-depth prose, this book may not be for you.
As type-A, overachiever types, we found some much-needed serenity in being reminded to let go and refocus our priorities on the things that truly matter and that we can control. Masuno's teachings on focusing on the present moment, cultivating gratitude, and embracing simplicity really resonated with us.
One new concept to us was the idea of "mitate," which is the Japanese concept of not being bound by a single, habitual perspective of the objects in your home. Masuno encourages us to reexamine the objects in our space, even if we think they are worn out, to see if we can put them to a new and better use. This idea helped us see that there is abundance to be found not in accumulating things but in knowing how to use things well. By reexamining our perspective on the things we own, we could also approach difficult life situations from new and different perspectives.
We also appreciated Masuno's insights on how your physical environment dictates your inner state of mind and vice versa. For example, if you're living in clutter and disorganization, this reflects your state of your mind. Your thoughts are likely disorganized, and you're likely to get distracted easily.
Masuno offers one simple habit you can implement right away to start clearing your space and mind: lining up your shoes each time you take them off. It only takes a few seconds out of your day, but it's a daily mindful practice that you can easily implement at any time. This simple act of mindfulness will likely spill over into other areas of your life, allowing you to bring more calm and orderliness to your daily life.
Suggested Reading: Simplify Your Home and Clear the Clutter with These 5 Surprising Tips
As self-proclaimed chocoholics, we knew we had to get our hands on Mindfulness for Chocolate Lovers. Our approach to life is all about balance, mindfulness, and enjoying the simple things, so this book seemed right up our alley. While we were expecting a light-hearted play on the many serious mindfulness and meditation books out there, we were surprised to find that this book is a lot more than just a fun gimmick.
It's well-written, well-researched, and a lot of fun to read! Gerhat's book offers practical and insightful guidance on how to enjoy life to the fullest, reduce stress, and find happiness in the little things through mindfulness. While this book is not a full-length encyclopedia on the topic, Gerhart's writing style is fun and easy to read, making it accessible for those new to the mindfulness concept. In addition, her book offers many fun and easy ways that will make you enjoy incorporating mindfulness into your day-to-day.
One of the best things about this book is its ability to infuse humor and fun into this typically serious topic. The book's approach removes the pressure and self-judgment that are often expected when starting a mindfulness practice.
Mindfulness for Chocolate Lovers is also a great reminder to keep a positive attitude about life and to stay engaged even in tough moments. And while it might be cliche, it's always good to be reminded to enjoy the journey and not just to focus on getting to the destination. This read will inspire and prepare you to take on the world with a new, more joyful, and mindful perspective.
The Untethered Soul is an enlightening guide showing us how to achieve inner peace and freedom by freeing ourselves from the limitations of our ego. Singer emphasizes the importance of becoming hyper-aware of your thoughts and emotions and provides different methods and thought practices to help you detach yourself from any negative thoughts and feelings, thereby leading to a deeper connection to our consciousness and spirituality. We loved this book's ability to convey profound spiritual concepts using clear and straightforward language that is accessible to everyone. In addition, Singer offers actionable advice that anyone can apply, making it easy for the reader to follow and implement. Although the book can seem repetitive, and Singer can be a little heavy-handed with his personal anecdotes, the book's many life-enhancing takeaways make it a worthwhile read.
The book teaches us how to develop our consciousness through mindful meditation so that we can be more present in the moment and let go of our negative thoughts and future worries. The quote that resonated with us the most was, "There is nothing more important to true growth than realizing that you are not the voice of the mind - you are the one who hears it." If you've ever struggled with meditation, this book will be a real eye-opener on what it truly means to meditate. Singer likens the voice in your head to a roommate who talks incessantly about unhelpful things. It is up to you whether you choose to listen and obey your roommate or not. Separating the voice in your head from your actual self and taking control of your thoughts is the first step to achieving inner peace through meditation.
Singer also reminds us that the purpose of life is to enjoy it and learn from the experiences. He reminds us we're not here to suffer. Events don't determine our happiness; as individuals, we get to choose to be happy regardless of the situation.
After reading this book, we found that we could form deeper connections with the important people in our lives, manage our stress and anxiety more effectively, and let go of the negative energy we had been holding on to for years. If that isn't a significant step towards achieving inner peace, then we don't know what is.
Sometimes that path to inner peace can be a little challenging and can ask us to take a hard look inward at how we're contributing to our own unhappiness. Brianna Wiest's book is like a little tough love from an older sibling or experienced aunt who only wants to see the best for you. She urges you to confront your fears and insecurities to overcome self-sabotaging tendencies.
In The Mountain Is You, Weist eloquently combines life-changing wisdom with inspiration to provide a clear path to regaining control over your happiness in a fast-paced, chaotic world.
Our biggest takeaway from the book is that you are the only one who can rescue yourself from your own chaos. Since our brains are wired to seek comfort, we often resort to self-sabotage to remain in our comfort zone. To end the cycle, we first have to identify our self-sabotaging behaviors and why we do them and eventually overcome those self-sabotaging behaviors to achieve what we want in life.
This book completely changed our perspective on how to handle anger. Anger was an emotion we typically avoided, but Wiest made us realize that anger could actually be a transformative emotion intended to help us recognize what matters most and when we need to set clearer boundaries in our lives. It was a definite aha moment when we realized that anger is not an emotion meant to be directed at others, but rather is intended to guide us toward where we need to make more positive changes in our own lives.
While some passages can seem long-winded, The Mountain Is You is an engaging read, brimming with unexpected insights you won't find in other books and worth adding to your library.
If you find yourself in need of nourishing your soul and cultivating some inner peace, the four books recommended in this blog post
- Zen The Art of Simple Living by Shunmyo Masuno
- Mindfulness for Chocolate Lovers by Diane R. Gehart
- The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer
- The Mountain Is You by Brianna Wiest
will provide you with valuable insights and guidance. These books will help you develop greater self-awareness, understand your purpose in life, and learn how to let go of your negative thoughts and emotions. We hope reading these books will be a transformative experience that will inspire you to live a more fulfilling and happier life.
This post was about nourishing the soul.
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