January Read/2019/2

Title: Nothing Is Hidden: The Psychology of Zen Koans
Author: Magid, Barry
Call Number: 294.3927 M194N 2013
Book Description from amazon.com:
In this inspiring and incisive offering, Barry Magid uses the language of modern psychology and psychotherapy to illuminate one of Buddhism's most powerful and often mysterious technologies: the Zen koan. What's more, Magid also uses the koans to expand upon the insights of psychology (especially self psychology and relational psychotherapy) and open for the reader new perspectives on the functioning of the human mind and heart. Nothing Is Hidden explores many rich themes, including facing impermanence and the inevitability of change, working skillfully with desire and attachment, and discovering when "surrender and submission" can be liberating and when they shade into emotional bypassing. With a sophisticated view of the rituals and teachings of traditional Buddhism, Magid helps us see how we sometimes subvert meditation into just another "curative fantasy" or make compassion into a form of masochism.
My Read:
Page 15--Perfection and change aren't opposites; they turn out to be synonyms. Not only don't we have to change in order to become perfect, our perfection manifests moment after moment in change itself.
Page 16--It was also a revelation that nothing is hidden. Everyone was fully displaying who they were. There was nothing more "behind the scenes" to uncover or decipher, the way my usual psychoanalytic mindset would lead me to think. There was both clarity and acceptance of each person being just who he or she was....For the rest of us, realization is never once and for all, and old doubts and old habits will resurface to be dealt with over and over throughout our life. Yet doubts and old habits are part of how we twinkle like that star. As is sickness, old age, and death. And delusion and joy--the full spectrum of life as it is.
Page 17--The koans that follow can all help us see who really are, especially those parts of ourselves that we have, sadly, for one personal reason or another, tried to turn away from. We have all blinded our self to parts of life we reflexively have felt too painful to behold or face directly.
Like Shakyamuni, we must be able to look up and say, "That's me."
Page 23--You can't answer by somehow standing outside of life, examining it and offering your description. You yourself must become the answer..We have natural human desire to be understood, and feeling understood in itself gives us a kind of strength to face the difficulties life brings.
Page 126--Boundaries must be maintained, differences respected, turns taken, acknowledgements made that, at some very important levels, you are not me. That is one very important meaning of love.
Page 154--To study the Buddha Way is to study the self. To study the self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be actualized by myriad things. When actualized by myriad things, your body and mind as well as the bodies and minds of others drop away. No trace of realization remains, and this no-trace continues endlessly. When you first seek Dharma, you imagine you are far away from its environs. At the moment when Dharma is correctly transmitted, you are immediately your original self.
Page 174--Acceptance can only happen with surrender. 
Page 175--Acceptance feels like a starting point. Killing the ego can not be equivalent to crushing our spirit.
Page 176--True surrender has no goal. True surrender kills completely any expectation or gaining idea.
Page 178--Unless we are prepared to admit that our own good intentions may mask a deeper unconscious need to always be seen as good, as always right, as always clear, we will never be able to acknowledge the ways that we have inadvertently hurt the very people we are trying to help. "We have met our enemy, and he is us."

January Read/2019

Title: Healing From the Inside Out: Overcome Chronic disease and Radically Change Your Life
Author: Naeem, Nauman
Call Number: 616.044 N139H 2017
Book Description from amazon: 
This book takes you on a journey to the very core of your being. This is done through unravelling layers and layers of density that most of us accumulate throughout our lives, and which often initiate and perpetuate chronic disease. Once you touch the light of your being, you illuminate the dark recesses of your thoughts, emotions and your physical body, thus facilitating the healing of any chronic illness. The exercises given in this book allow you to gain more clarity about your life’s mission, heal old emotional wounds, lift subconscious blocks, remove limiting beliefs, enter the natural flow of the Universe and fearlessly embrace uncertainty. Dr. Naeem is a critical care specialist, pulmonologist and palliative care specialist, whose unique insights into healing stem from caring for tens of thousands of critically and chronically ill patients for more than a decade in two countries. This experience, combined with his own search for the meaning of existence and the true nature of ultimate reality, has culminated into the incredible journey which is the subject of this book.
My Read:
Main Point of this book is summarized at page 167:
All chronic diseases have their roots in deeper aspects of our being, and the physical body is simply the final place where they manifest.
Page 165-It is not simply the environment that affects your genetic expression but how you respond to your environment. Your response to your environment is conditioned by your subconscious mind, your emotional self, your vibrational frequency, and, ultimately your spiritual self. The development of illness, thus, ties back to the higher aspects of your being, which is why healing is a more comprehensive and holistic approach to dealing with disease than simply seeking a cure.
Page 172- Awareness is a type of knowing, but it is deeper than simply knowing as it is also involves focused attention. This focused attention can be directed toward anything within ourselves or outside ourselves. Awareness is the key to getting someone to a place where they can start to heal by setting their intention.
Page 176-The beauty of life's journey is that it is always trying to lead you back to your true nature, and your illness is just a signpost to show you that you have deviated away from who you truly are. There are no mistakes, no problems, and nothing to regret in life. Everything that you experience and suffer through in this world is just there to show you the way back to your true self, your whole self, your naturally healed self.
Page 38-The healing process has nine parts:
Intention: Self and Universe
Exploration
Mentation
Emotion
Narration
Vibration
Motion
Realization
Creation

December Read/2018

Title: Verbal Judo: The Gentle Art of Persuasion
Author: Thompson, George J.
Call Number: 153.6 T471V 2013
Book Description from amazon:

Verbal Judo is the martial art of the mind and mouth that can show you how to be better prepared in every verbal encounter. Listen and speak more effectively, engage people through empathy (the most powerful word in the English language), avoid the most common conversational disasters, and use proven strategies that allow you to successfully communicate your point of view and take the upper hand in most disputes.

Verbal Judo offers a creative look at conflict that will help you defuse confrontations and generate cooperation from your spouse, your boss, and even your teenager. As the author says, "when you react, the event controls you. When you respond, you’re in control."

This new edition features a fresh new cover and a foreword demonstrating the legacy of Verbal Judo founder and author George Thompson, as well as a never-before-published final chapter presenting Thompson’s "Five Universal Truths" of human interaction.

My Read:

Page 166--Train yourself to be free of bias, prejudice, and expectation. That's easier said than done, of course, and I'm the first to admit that it isn't something that comes naturally. There is a Chinese word that means both "crisis" and "opportunity." By remembering that, I am now able to like Difficult People, or at least to appreciate where they're coming from and view them as challenges and opportunities rather than obstacles.

Page 167-A whole day of Nice People would be boring, but a whole day of Difficult People makes us work. Difficult customers should be interesting and challenging.

PAVPO stands for:

Perspective

Audience

Voice

Purpose

Organization

LEAPS stands for:

Listen

Empathize

Ask

Paraphrase

Summarize

November Read 2018

Title: Paradise in Plain Sight: Lessons from a Zen Garden
Author: Miller, Maezen Karen
Call Number: 294.3444 M648P 2014
Book Description from amazon.com:
When Zen teacher Karen Maezen Miller and her family land in a house with a hundred-year-old Japanese garden, she uses the paradise in her backyard to glean the living wisdom of our natural world. Through her eyes, rocks convey faith, ponds preach stillness, flowers give love, and leaves express the effortless ease of letting go. The book welcomes readers into the garden for Zen lessons in fearlessness, forgiveness, presence, acceptance, and contentment. Miller gathers inspiration from the ground beneath her feet to remind us that paradise is always here and now.
My Read:
     Page 66--The beauty of a pond is that it is muddy.
          A saying is popular among Buddhists: Lotus flowers come out from a muddy pond. A lotus flower is color of white. It stands out by itself: straight and beautiful. The murky water is actually the lotus flower's fertile source. This world is like the muddy water. We live among others with various backgrounds, values, attitudes, skills and beliefs we hold on. How do you see this world, the people around, things happened on a daily basis? What makes you stand out among others? Where do you stand when things happen? Which side do you take when conflicts occur? When is the time you speak up for yourself and others? Answers to these questions define who you are or what you think you are.
     Page 84--When a good thing is not done silently, it's not good. Always start over.
          To be humble is hard for some people. To me, humble people are the strongest humans with kind hearts and passion. They are usually wise people with compassion and knowledge. The Way/Path is only one way. I believe everyone is walk toward the Way. The difference is lots of people unconsciously take wrong turns or detour to wrong directions. Eventually each of us will step on to and walk on the Way. Time will tell.

October Read

Title: Thoughts Without A Thinker
Author: Epstein, Mark M.D.
Call Number: 616.8914 E64T 1995
Book Description from amazon.com:

The line between psychology and spirituality has blurred, as clinicians, their patients, and religious seekers explore new perspectives on the self. A landmark contribution to the field of psychoanalysis,Thoughts Without a Thinker describes the unique psychological contributions offered by the teachings of Buddhism. Drawing upon his own experiences as a psychotherapist and meditator, New York-based psychiatrist Mark Epstein lays out the path to meditation-inspired healing, and offers a revolutionary new understanding of what constitutes a healthy emotional life.

My Read:

The concept of "emptiness" is not easy to understand. At page 90, the author listed two well-known poems of Shen-Hsiu and Hui-Neng allowing readers to "see" what emptiness "looks" like.

"The body is the Bodhi tree,

 The mind is like a clear mirror standing.

 Take care to wipe it all the time,

 Allow no grain of dust to cling."---Shen-Hsiu

"The Bodhi is not a tree,

 The clear mirror is nowhere standing.

 Fundamentally not one thing exist;

 Where then is a grain of dust to cling?"---Hui-Neng

September Read 2018

Title: Magnesium
Author: Blashfield, Jean F.
Call Number: J 546.392 B644M 2002
Book Description from amazon.com:
Presents the basic concepts of magnesium, a chemical element found in the Earth's crust used in making spacecraft and cars; present in the human body it helps activate enzymes that metabolize carbohydrates.
My Read:
It's a children's nonfiction book. Though it's for kids the knowledge stated in the book is good enough to glean basic information about the element "magnesium." 

August Read 2018/2

Title: Perseverance
Author: Hague, Tim
Call Number: 616.83309 H147P 2018
Book Description from amazon.com:
An inspiring story of beating the odds and learning to overcome--no matter what life hands you.

After starting a family and flourishing in his career, Tim Hague was struck by misfortune. The irritating tremor in his foot turned out to be early onset Parkinson's disease. He was only 46 years old. But what seemed to be an end became a new beginning. Just three years later, Hague won the inaugural The Amazing Race Canada (with his son, Tim Jr., as his teammate). His remarkable life story shows that perseverance is not just a matter of willpower: it is a skill that can be learned and honed. 
     And perseverance is the theme of his life. From the day he was born, Hague has gone from one struggle to another. Yet, remarkably, he doesn't have a trace of self-pity. In fact, he feels blessed. From his tough start in life as an unwanted mixed-race baby born in Texas in 1964, to his eventual move to the unforgiving climate of Winnipeg, Canada, to start a family under difficult circumstances, and his continuing battle with Parkinson's--Hague's life is a roadmap of perseverance. 
    Parkinson's has forced him to retire early from the work he loves as a registered nurse. But as a healthcare professional, and now suffering from a challenging disease himself, Hague discusses living with Parkinson's like no one else could. He now works with charities to help promote Parkinson's awareness and his "Live Your Best" message. Drawing on his experience winning The Amazing Race, and referencing cutting-edge research and studies, Hague weaves a moving story of failure and success, outlining the elements of his philosophy that anyone can apply to their own lives, including:

  *  The nature of luck: Luck comes to those who keep trying until the end--never stop until the race is over.
  *  Find community: As a nurse, a husband and father, and a man living with Parkinson's, Hague knows better than most that we all need to ask for help sometimes, and that's a good thing.
  *  Accept limits: By focusing on what we can do, we accomplish more than we ever thought possible.
  *  Cease striving: We think of striving as a positive attribute, but all we end up doing is banging our heads against the wall. Have goals, but have fun. Do not create anxiety out of nothing and maintain perspective.
  *  Live Your Best: No such thing as giving 110%--can only do your best. 

Inspirational and entertaining, Hague's message is both simple and profound: perseverance isn't just something a person has, or a trait we admire in others. Hague's book, like his life, is a guide to how we can all learn to persevere in the face of daily struggles--or even life-changing illness.