Addicted to YA discussion

992 views
Recommendations > Non-Fiction - Wisdom to Attain Happiness and Success (Zen, Tao and Western Philosophy)

Comments Showing 401-450 of 594 (594 new)    post a comment »

message 401: by Gustavo (new)

Gustavo | 10 comments Laura Of Nix by Valentina A. Lamonaca

good book I found on Amazon Laura of Nix


message 402: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Gustavo wrote: "Laura Of Nix by Valentina A. Lamonaca

good book I found on Amazon Laura of Nix"


Great! Thanks for the recommendation Gustavo


message 403: by Julian (new)

Julian Pyke | 77 comments Beatrice wrote: "Friday night, with a full weekend to look forward to! Reminds us how life is worth living haha"

The beginning of the weekend pleases you as much as the ending of it saddens you - remember the omnipresent paradox rule :)


message 404: by Neil (new)

Neil Chamberlain | 115 comments Julian wrote: "The beginning of the weekend pleases you as much as the ending of it saddens you - remember the omnipresent paradox rule ..."

Don't lose heart - the omnipresent paradox rule also means that busying through the work week only makes the weekend sweeter :)


message 405: by Martin (new)

Martin Sheridan (martin-sheridan-author) | 6 comments Thankful that you both have good weekends, and shut off from work.


message 406: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Ditto


message 407: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Thursday tips the balance of a working week - feels like Friday is waving at me :)


message 408: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments "It’s Friday morning mankind! Good vibe, don’t frown and let the monster see you smile!"

—Napz Cherub Pellazo


message 409: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Neil wrote: "Don't lose heart - the omnipresent paradox rule also means that busying through the work week only makes the weekend sweeter :)"

Yes - having had a tough week, I'm now fully enjoying this sweet weekend


message 410: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Chris wrote:" Yes - having had a tough week, I'm now fully enjoying a sweet weekend ..."

Tough is good. The easiest way is downhill :)


message 411: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Kicking start the engine is always the hardest bit - which is why I find it hardest to drag myself out of bed on Monday haha


message 412: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Beatrice wrote: "Kicking start the engine is always the hardest bit - which is why I find it hardest to drag myself out of bed on Monday haha"

Hope you feel better today, when the pendulum swings towards the second half of the week :) See how our happiness is manipulated simply by the flow of time? Surely a person with true wisdom should be able to stay unaffected and detached from the influence of time - time itself is a man-made concept, and means nothing to the universe and the immortal


message 413: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments A promising Thursday :)


message 414: by Neil (new)

Neil Chamberlain | 115 comments Chris wrote: ""The only thing I know, is that I know practically nothing" - Socrates
"To attain knowledge, learn something everyday. To attain wisdom, unlearn something everyday" - Lao Tsu
I found that these wisdom fundamentally the same..."


All good wisdom - the smartest people get straight to the substance without worrying too much about formality. Normal people dwell on formality so much they fail to appreciate the substance.


message 415: by Julian (new)

Julian Pyke | 77 comments Beatrice wrote: "Tough is good. The easiest way is downhill :)"


Good one... Suits the topic on how challenges improve people


message 416: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Gustavo wrote: "Laura Of Nix by Valentina A. Lamonaca

good book I found on Amazon Laura of Nix"


Cool!


message 417: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments Julian wrote: "Good one... Suits the topic on how challenges improve people"

Yes - loved the chapter on that one, when the essence of stoicism was presented alongside the omnipresent paradox


message 418: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Lawrence wrote: "Julian wrote: "Good one... Suits the topic on how challenges improve people"

Yes - loved the chapter on that one, when the essence of stoicism was presented alongside the omnipresent paradox"


Omnipresent paradox covers everything in this 3-dimensional world


message 419: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments Chris wrote: "Omnipresent paradox covers everything in this 3-dimensional world..."

Well true, although if one reaches the level of "enlightened empty" (such as Buddha and Lao Tsu), he will be able to overcome the omnipresent paradox that hassles everyone else, so that in these saints there is only good and no bad, only merit and no malice, only peace of mind and no sorrow. For us normal people, too much of good things will definitely bring about bad things as we can't escape the omnipresent paradox. That's the reason why we are learning the wisdom to reach "enlightened empty" as explained in the book


message 420: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Lawrence wrote: "Well true, although if one reaches the level of "enlightened empty" (such as Buddha and Lao Tsu), he will be able to overcome the omnipresent paradox that hassles everyone else, so that in these saints there is only good and no bad, only merit and no malice, only peace of mind and no sorrow...."

Re the "enlightened empty" holy state, Jesus also asked us to "Accumulate not the treasure in this world but in another world", and told us that "My kingdom is not of this world but of another world." This is a state which helps one break through the omnipresent paradox.


message 421: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments True - "enlightened emptiness" is a comfortable and inspired state. Just like a motor road - instead of "fullness" which means a traffic jam, you would like it to be "empty" so you can run your car through freely. Also like your house - spending more money to buy a big house effectively means you value more space (emptiness), rather than looking forward to filling it to the brim. I found these narratives of the book on the state of "enlightened emptiness" explanation quite enchanting


message 422: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Lawrence wrote: "True - "enlightened emptiness" is a comfortable and inspired state. Just like a motor road - instead of "fullness" which means a traffic jam, you would like it to be "empty" so you can run your car..."

That's the state where one becomes omnipresent, capable of controlling everything but care to control nothing. But that's a very difficult state to achieve, although any step towards it gives one more power and peace of mind. Meditation as analyzed in the book is certainly a step towards it


message 423: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Chris wrote: "That's the state where one becomes omnipresent, capable of controlling everything but care to control nothing. But that's a very difficult state to achieve, although any step towards it gives one more power and peace of mind. Meditation as analyzed in the book is certainly a step towards it..."

That's a holy state that is hard to achieve


message 424: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments Beatrice wrote: "That's a holy state and is hard to achieve."

By by way of learning and practising the wisdom as we are exploring here, we could get ever closer to the state and ultimately achieve it. Even getting closer to it will benefit us immensely


message 425: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Well... The whole point of the book is to bring out the ecosystem to access the ultimate wisdom for the 3 dimensional world so people can achieve happiness and success, so no surprise it covers the "enlightened emptiness" status as one of the subjects, or as famous sports couch and artists usually put it when talking about why some people enjoy much greater success than others - the ability to enter "the Zone"


message 426: by Neil (new)

Neil Chamberlain | 115 comments Yes the theory and practice of "enlightened emptiness" in the book does seem to be backed up by what prominent sports couch and artists put as “the zone” when they analyse why star sportsmen or artists enjoy much greater success than others


message 427: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Julian wrote: "Yes the theory and practice of "enlightened emptiness" in the book does seem to be backed up by what prominent sports couch and artists put as “the zone” when they analyse why star sportsmen or artists enjoy much greater success than others..."

All about gearing the mentality to a certain state


message 428: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Omnipresent paradox (rich and poor; high and low; happiness and sorrow; young and old) covers everything in your life so one always goes through rollercoaster on things - until you reach the higher status of "enlightened emptiness", with all double-sided things "emptied" out leaving only peace, inspiration and laser focus which bring us happiness and success. That's why some people follow certain methods to reach this status, such as through meditation


message 429: by Beatrice (new)

Beatrice Annabelle | 89 comments Chris wrote: "Omnipresent paradox (rich and poor; high and low; happiness and sorrow; young and old) covers everything in your life so one always goes through rollercoaster on things - until you reach the higher status of "enlightened emptiness", with all double-sided things "emptied" out leaving only peace, inspiration and laser focus..."

Is the "enlightened emptiness" anything to do with what Buddha put as "all that is visible is subject to change and is ultimately illusory"? Or as Jesus put it, "Do not accumulate wealth in the world which will be stolen by thieves or ruined by pests"?


message 430: by Neil (new)

Neil Chamberlain | 115 comments Beatrice wrote: "Is the "enlightened emptiness" anything to do with what Buddha put as "all that is visible is subject to change and is ultimately illusory"? Or as Jesus put it, "Do not accumulate wealth in the world which will be stolen by thieves or ruined by pests"?"

Similar, but it's a mental state which prominent sports couch called the "Zone", where one utterly forgets himself to immerse completely in the show at hand and achieve maximum potential


message 431: by Joshua (new)

Joshua Richmond | 14 comments Achieving happiness and success via those wisdom is just one side of the story. I feel ultimately it makes me see the truth hidden behind this world more clearly and become less easy to be brain-washed by Hollywood values when it comes to e.g. glorifying greed, killing and random sex.


message 432: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments I like the way it presents not just wisdom but also strategy. For me the strategies of succeeding in an interview and securing a deal etc. are more valuable, although I do enjoy the way it shows the wisdom behind these strategies so it's clear how it fits into the ecosystem the book presented


message 433: by Bruce (new)

Bruce Windsor | 8 comments Chris wrote: "I like the way it presents not just wisdom but also strategy. For me the strategies of succeeding in an interview and securing a deal etc. are more valuable..."

Practical advice is key


message 434: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Bruce wrote: "Practical advice is key"

Yes I like the way it's philosophical and practical, drilling deep into real life


message 435: by Julian (new)

Julian Pyke | 77 comments What goes round comes round, eventually. Like the Tai Chi sign analysed in the book


message 436: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Joshua wrote: "Achieving happiness and success via those wisdom is just one side of the story. I feel ultimately it makes me see the truth hidden behind this world more clearly and become less easy to be brain-wash..."

True...


message 437: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments The reason why Socrates said "The only thing I know is I know nothing" is that all "concepts" and "definitions" are unreliable, so theories and conclusions built on these concepts and definitions are unreliable too. As Tao Te Ching said: "You consider someone tall only behind the man standing beside him is shorter. You see yourself ahead only because there is someone behind you..."

And Buddha, when asked what is the ultimate wisdom, smiled without speaking a word, upon which silence many people immediately grasped the wisdom. Same thing essentially. The ultimate wisdom requires no word and does not rely on any concept


message 438: by Elliot (new)

Elliot S. | 62 comments Chris you are probably drilling too deep - I'd suggest staying with the practical advice meted out in the book


message 439: by Bruce (new)

Bruce Windsor | 8 comments Elliot wrote: "Chris you are probably drilling too deep - I'd suggest staying with the practical advice meted out in the book"

I understand where he is driving at - it's cool philosophy


message 440: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Ha! Thanks Bruce - so you know exactly what I'm talking about


message 441: by Joshua (new)

Joshua Richmond | 14 comments Julian wrote: "What goes round comes round, eventually. Like the Tai Chi sign analysed in the book"

Is that like the saying "Sharp tongue hurts yourself"?


message 442: by Bruce (new)

Bruce Windsor | 8 comments Wow ... thanks guys. As I delve into the book further I start registering the raw power of inner peace and strength. Thanks for sharing


message 443: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments Happy weekend by the way


message 444: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments A classic quote reflecting the omnipresent paradox principle : No good deed goes unpunished :)


message 445: by Elliot (new)

Elliot S. | 62 comments Julian, instead of spending time to read this book, I found it easier just to ask a specialised GPT regarding these questions - it's good fun and helpful for building up an invincible mind:

https://chat.openai.com/g/g-GzXNnDQSF...


message 446: by Lawrence (new)

Lawrence Whitehall | 36 comments GPT store? Cool


message 447: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments Lawrence wrote: "GPT store? Cool"

Sounds like new stuff. So I ask that directly re life's problems?


message 448: by Bruce (new)

Bruce Windsor | 8 comments Elliot wrote: "Julian, instead of spending time to read this book, I found it easier just to ask a specialised GPT regarding these questions - it's good fun and helpful for building up an invincible mind:

https://chat.openai.com/g/g-GzXNnDQSF..."


Suits me - don't have to buy the book and don't even have to read it. Just ask the questions and get the answer from GPT


message 449: by Chris (new)

Chris Sheen | 168 comments I heard a sort-of profound thought from a guy at work yesterday which perfectly embodies the principle of omnipresent paradox:

"Look - I want her to either love or hate me. I'm happy as long as she doesn't treat me like everyone else, with that polite indifference. I'm perfectly happy if her love for me turns into hatred - at least she singles me out."


message 450: by Julian (new)

Julian Pyke | 77 comments Chris wrote: "I heard a sort-of profound thought from a guy at work yesterday which perfectly embodies the principle of omnipresent paradox:

"Look - I want her to either love or hate me. I'm happy as long as she doesn't treat me like everyone else, with that polite indifference. I'm perfectly happy if her love for me turns into hatred - at least she singles me out"


Did this bloke fall in love with someone at work? His words are so sad... But it's true in the paradoxical sense - women always reserve the most ferocious hatred to men who they used to love. Everyone else they treat with respect or at least decency...


back to top