As followers of this blog have surely noticed, I’m a big fan of David Richo, the psychotherapist and author. Although their titles sound simplistic, his books How to Be an Adult: A Handbook on Psychological and Spiritual Integration and How to Be an Adult in Relationships: The Five Keys to Mindful Loving impress me with their clear, sensible analysis and compassionate insight. The latter book also serves as a primer/refresher on Buddhist meditation and Buddhist principles as they apply to everyday life.
In the course of recommending these books to a therapy client, I discovered that Richo has his own website, on which he offers a free book as a downloadable PDF, a compendium of excerpts from his various writings. You might want to check it out here.
Good stuff online: downloadable free book from David Richo
August 1, 2011Quote of the day: ZEN
August 1, 2011ZEN
There is a Zen saying: “This being the case, how shall I proceed?” This adult question implies an acceptance of reality as it is or of a partner as she is – that is, mindfully. Alternatives would be “This being the case, how should you proceed” or “I can complain,” or “I expect you to change it” or “I will retaliate.” It is a turning point toward commitment when one partner accepts the other as she is – for example, as a procrastinator – and instead of complaining, looks into himself and asks, “How shall I proceed? Do I wait for her to change, or do I find a way to take care of myself and attend to my concerns using my own resources?” This is not a way of distancing ourselves from her but of taking responsibility for our behavior and predicament. It grants us power because it puts us in touch with our inner authority.
— David Richo
Quote of the day: SPACE
July 31, 2011SPACE
You know what space is. There is space in this room. The distance between here and your hostel, between the bridge and your home, between this bank of the river and the other – all that is space. Now, is there also space in your mind? Or is it so crowded that there is no space in it at all? If your mind has space, then in that space there is silence – and from that silence everything else comes, for then you can listen, you can pay attention without resistance. That is why it is very important to have space in the mind. If the mind is not overcrowded, not ceaselessly occupied, then it can listen to that dog barking, to the sound of a train crossing the distant bridge, and also be fully aware of what is being said by a person talking here. Then the mind is a living thing. It is not dead.
— J. Krishnamurti
Quote of the day: ILLUSIONS
July 30, 2011ILLUSIONS
We would rather be ruined
than changed
We would rather die in our dread
Than climb the cross of the moment
And let our illusions die.
— W. H. Auden
Photo diary: the last of Berlin
July 27, 2011
on the U-bahn
Badeschiff is a hilarious faux-beach that has become a kind of hipster hangout
Lutz
Pietro, pretty in pink
underground or underwater?
Harald and Robert
the twins
another eye opens 