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kjzilke's review against another edition
Would prefer to read in physical form so I can digest better
jamz02's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.5
I really enjoyed reading this book. While I expected it to touch more on climate change and similar topics, it explores a number of personal struggles that reshaped how I view the climate crisis on a more personal level altogether.
spyralnode's review
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
'Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet' is less about concrete actions of saving the planet, but more about the internal 'homework' that you need to do before you start your plan of attack. It invites you to look inside before you look outside. But even though that is what the content is about, it still instils a sense of urgency, because 'Once there is seeing, there must be acting. Otherwise, what's the use of seeing?'
I found this reading experience extremely calming and meditative, which makes a lot of sense. Most of it was written by Thich Nhat Hanh himself, but the segments also contain commentaries from Sister True Dedication that sparked while she was putting all these pieces together.
The main point brought across is the interconnectedness of the world. We are not the owners of our land, our seas, our environment, we are only one part of it, together with the plants, the animals, the mountain, the rivers, all the beautiful elements that surround us. This network means that any harm brought to the planet is a personal harm as well, none of them can exist independently.
So much of our precious mental energy, our time and physical resources, such as finances, have been spent on suffering. Look at the 1%, the billionaires, the oligarchy, who are profiting off ordinary people barely succeeding in making ends meet. The class divide is real, there are countries were people barely have access to clean water, shelter or education, and this is only getting worse as more of the planet becomes uninhabitable due to climate change. And not to mention how much of our focus goes towards war, military, weapons. The amount of progress we could achieve if we thought positively, looked to raise those around us regardless of race, gender and we sought to create a truly egalitarian society is endless.
I found myself wanting to look closer at my surroundings after I read this book, to take it more slowly, to appreciate and be joyful by the miracles in my everyday life. While for me it wasn't revolutionary in the sense that I already practice mindfulness and meditation, it was still beautifully told, and I thought it absolutely worthwhile, especially the short mentions of impact achieved by those with a rich inner life (which I do wish had been longer).
I found this reading experience extremely calming and meditative, which makes a lot of sense. Most of it was written by Thich Nhat Hanh himself, but the segments also contain commentaries from Sister True Dedication that sparked while she was putting all these pieces together.
The main point brought across is the interconnectedness of the world. We are not the owners of our land, our seas, our environment, we are only one part of it, together with the plants, the animals, the mountain, the rivers, all the beautiful elements that surround us. This network means that any harm brought to the planet is a personal harm as well, none of them can exist independently.
So much of our precious mental energy, our time and physical resources, such as finances, have been spent on suffering. Look at the 1%, the billionaires, the oligarchy, who are profiting off ordinary people barely succeeding in making ends meet. The class divide is real, there are countries were people barely have access to clean water, shelter or education, and this is only getting worse as more of the planet becomes uninhabitable due to climate change. And not to mention how much of our focus goes towards war, military, weapons. The amount of progress we could achieve if we thought positively, looked to raise those around us regardless of race, gender and we sought to create a truly egalitarian society is endless.
I found myself wanting to look closer at my surroundings after I read this book, to take it more slowly, to appreciate and be joyful by the miracles in my everyday life. While for me it wasn't revolutionary in the sense that I already practice mindfulness and meditation, it was still beautifully told, and I thought it absolutely worthwhile, especially the short mentions of impact achieved by those with a rich inner life (which I do wish had been longer).
whereishaleh's review against another edition
5.0
I've always wanted to read one of these Zen &<> books, and when I saw this one was by Thich Nhat Hanh, I decided to give it a try—and I'm so glad I did. It's always a pleasure to read anything written by Thich Nhat Hanh. Fortunately, I also got the audio version from my public library, which turned out to be a major treat as it included a recording of Thich Nhat Hanh Meditations at the end.
The approach this book proposes to saving the planet (and by extension, ourselves) is by disrupting the autopilot mode that most of us operate on during much of our daily lives. It poses the question, what if even some of us learned to live each moment deeply, to look into our fears instead of running away from them regardless of our walk of life or beliefs? If we just took a few minutes of calming breaths some of the time before speaking or acting under the strong influence of anger or hurt?
This is from the audio (a poem that is recited).
Waking up this morning I smile,
24 hours are for me
I want to live them deeply, whole heartedly
and learn how to look at people around me with the eyes of compassion.
The approach this book proposes to saving the planet (and by extension, ourselves) is by disrupting the autopilot mode that most of us operate on during much of our daily lives. It poses the question, what if even some of us learned to live each moment deeply, to look into our fears instead of running away from them regardless of our walk of life or beliefs? If we just took a few minutes of calming breaths some of the time before speaking or acting under the strong influence of anger or hurt?
This is from the audio (a poem that is recited).
Waking up this morning I smile,
24 hours are for me
I want to live them deeply, whole heartedly
and learn how to look at people around me with the eyes of compassion.
icbikecommuter's review against another edition
4.0
This book is primarily Buddhist principles with very little about the planet. The basic premise being you need to take care of yourself in order to have energy to save the planet. In order to save the planet we need a collective awakening and meditation helps us look deeply. How Christina Figueres can include the Koch brothers in her arc of love truly amazes and inspires me.
labricoleuse's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I’ve read this before and felt compelled to reread it again.
jun1pper's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
5.0