Recommendations based on "Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life"

The lessons monks learn are profound but often abstract. Shetty transforms them into advice and exercises we can all apply to reduce stress, improve focus, improve relationships, identify our hidden abilities, increase self-discipline and give the gifts we find in ourselves to the world.

Mental health is . . . being yourself.A prescriptive and positive guide, illustrated with line drawings, making the case that mental well-being, like physical health, can be strengthened over time and with specific techniquesWe all want to feel less anxiety, guilt, anger and sadness. We want to obsess less and be less lonely, free ourselves from our demons, compulsive habits, and stress. But as humans (unlike rocks) we experience all of these. And paradoxically, trying to avoid and control them only makes things worse.Having struggled with serious mental illness for many years himself, Mark Freeman has become a dedicated mental-health advocate and coach. He makes the case that instead of trying to feel less and avoid pain and stress, we need to build emotional fitness, especially our capacity for strength, balance and focus. With wit, compassion, and depth of experience and anecdotes, he shows that we can recover from many mental disorders, from mild to very serious, at all ages and stages of life, and even if other methods have failed. Freeman's innovative approach makes use of a range of therapeutic techniques, mindfulness training, peer support, humor, and common sense.

With Search Inside Yourself, Chade-Meng Tan, one of Google's earliest engineers and personal growth pioneer, offers a proven method for enhancing mindfulness and emotional intelligence in life and work.Meng's job is to teach Google's best and brightest how to apply mindfulness techniques in the office and beyond; now, readers everywhere can get insider access to one of the most sought after classes in the country, a course in health, happiness and creativity that is improving the livelihood and productivity of those responsible for one of the most successful businesses in the world.With forewords by Daniel Goleman, author of the international bestseller Emotional Intelligence, and Jon Kabat-Zinn, renowned mindfulness expert and author of Coming To Our Senses, Meng's Search Inside Yourself is an invaluable guide to achieving your own best potential.

“Inspiring, refreshing and practical - a delightfully lucid guide to healing yourself.” –Bessel van der Kolk, MD., New York Times bestselling author of The Body Keeps the Score From two mind-body practitioners comes the new essential self-healing bible—a revolutionary body-first guide to reducing stress, resolving long-term pain, and healing from trauma for good using your body’s own nervous system. Your autonomic nervous system is responsible for the constant but mostly subconscious communication between your brain and body. When you experience stress, anxiety, or trauma, your nervous system formulates responses to keep you alive. But you can also become trapped in survival mode if you’re consistently exposed to unsafe environments, toxic relationships, or destructive thought patterns. When this happens it’s known as nervous system dysregulation or sensitization, which can result in chronic mental and physical pain and confusion, leaving you unable to cope with life’s strains and stresses. Mind-body practitioners Jen Mann and Karden Rabin, co-founders of the Chronic Fatigue School now provide the first in-depth look at nervous system regulation, somatic therapy, Polyvagal theory, the vagus nerve, and the mind-body connection. Combining science-backed insights and hands-on techniques, The Secret Language of the Body teaches you how to move out of survival mode, regulate your nervous system, and heal your mind and body. Rabin and Mann don’t teach stress management, but something far more powerful–how to control your body’s nervous system. With this revolutionary book, you will learn to skillfully speak the language of your body and train it to not only manage stress but achieve personal transformation. The Secret Language of the Body includes helpful illustrations.

A leading translation of timeless Stoic philosophy in practical aphorisms that have inspired luminaries like The Daily Stoic author Ryan Holiday, and influenced countless others to use philosophy as a tool for self-improvement and resilience to live a better life in a beautiful hardcover gift edition, with a cover designed by Coralie Bickford-SmithWorld-changing ideas meet eye-catching design: the best titles of the extraordinarily successful Great Ideas series are now packaged in Coralie Bickford-Smith’s distinctive, award-winning covers. Whether on a well-curated shelf or in your back pocket, these timeless works of philosophical, political, and psychological thought are absolute must-haves for book collectors as well as design enthusiasts.Written in Greek by an intellectual Roman emperor without any intention of publication, the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius offer a wide range of fascinating spiritual reflections and exercises developed as the leader struggled to understand himself and make sense of the universe. Spanning from doubt and despair to conviction and exaltation, they cover such diverse topics as the question of virtue, human rationality, the nature of the gods and the values of leadership. But while the Meditations were composed to provide personal consolation, in developing his beliefs Marcus also created one of the greatest of all works of philosophy: a series of wise and practical aphorisms that have been consulted and admired by statesmen, thinkers and ordinary readers for almost two thousand years.To provide a full understanding of Aurelius's seminal work, this edition includes explanatory notes, a general index, an index of quotations, an index of names, and an introduction by Diskin Clay putting the work in its biographical, historical, and literary context, a chronology of Marcus Aurelius's life and career.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

An astonishing new science called "neuroplasticity" is overthrowing the centuries-old notion that the human brain is immutable. In this revolutionary look at the brain, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Norman Doidge, M.D., provides an introduction to both the brilliant scientists championing neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they've transformed. From stroke patients learning to speak again to the remarkable case of a woman born with half a brain that rewired itself to work as a whole, The Brain That Changes Itself will permanently alter the way we look at our brains, human nature, and human potential.

Anyone interested in psychotherapy or personal growth will rejoice at the publication of The Gift of Therapy, a masterwork from one of today's most accomplished psychological thinkers.From his thirty-five years as a practicing psychiatrist and as an award-winning author, Irvin D. Yalom imparts his unique wisdom in The Gift of Therapy. This remarkable guidebook for successful therapy is, as Yalom remarks, "an idiosyncratic mÉlange of ideas and techniques that I have found useful in my work. These ideas are so personal, opinionated, and occasionally original that the reader is unlikely to encounter them elsewhere. I selected the eighty-five categories in this volume randomly guided by my passion for the task rather than any particular order or system."At once startlingly profound and irresistibly practical, Yalom's insights will help enrich the therapeutic process for a new generation of patients and counselors.

A neuroscientist’s powerful framework for enhancing quality of life through the regulation of four key hormones: Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, and Endorphins.The brain’s ability to change and adapt is one of the most powerful tools we can harness to create positive changes in our lives. Renowned neuroscientist and co-founder of Neurify, TJ Power, believes in the human ability to optimize and rewire brain chemistry to unlock one’s full potential. However, to do so, one must first implement a series of practical, life changing strategies.The Dose Effect reveals the secrets of our brain chemistry, offering simple and accessible ways to make modifications to your lifestyle that can transform your brain. Drawing on clinical expertise and cutting-edge science, Power explores how biohacking your brain can not only enhance cognitive performance but also improve the aspects of your life that ultimately control a happier, healthier, and more productive lifestyle.The Dose Effect proves the intrinsic connection between lifestyle factors and mental and physical wellbeing Split into four sections, this essential guidebook provides the most effective techniques for understanding the key hormones that rule our thinking and our behaviors:1. Dopamine, the motivation and reward drug of the brain.2. Oxytocin, the “Great Facilitator of Life.”3. Serotonin, the “Confidence Chemical.”4. Endorphins, the chemical warriors responsible for reducing stress and pain.Research-driven and deeply inspiring, Power’s revolutionary strategies allow readers to harness behaviors and practices to improve mental health, manage stress, elevate mood, and promote overall wellness. His key findings include the influence of effortful activity on dopamine production, the significance of social connection in oxytocin levels, the value of connecting with nature and maintaining gut health for optimal serotonin levels, and the beneficial effects of physical exertion and laughter on endorphin release. By emphasizing the importance of understanding and optimizing our brain chemistry, this revolutionary book offers a path to a more fulfilled and meaningful life for all that are willing to take the first step.

"An exquisite mapping of the Buddhist and totally beyond Buddhist path of liberation, done with the lightest of touches, with perfect grace and clarity and warmth of heart, in a way that makes it so human, and so compelling, that it shows this path, and the work play of meditation, to be nothing less than life itself, the human condition, offering anyone and everyone the actualities, the shadows, the blossoms, and the boundless, ever-present possibilities of a life lived in awareness, with nothing holding." —Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Wherever You Go, There You AreIn this landmark guide to the spiritual journey, respected Zen teacher and psychotherapist John Tarrant brings together ancient Eastern traditions and the Western passion for the soul. Using real-life stories, Zen tales, and Greek myths, The Light Inside the Dark shows how our darkest experiences can be the gates to wisdom and joy.Tarrant leads us through the inevitable descents of our journey—from the everyday world of work and family into the treasure cave of the interior life—from which we return with greater love of life's vivid, common gifts. Written with empathy and a poet's skill, The Light Inside the Dark is the freshest and most challenging work on the soul to he published in years.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER A vital approach to combating climate change and creating a better world for us and our future generations—from beloved Buddhist and environmental activist Thich Nhat Hanh We face a potent intersection of crises: ecological destruction, global warming, inflation, rising inequality, racial injustice, and the lasting impacts of a devastating pandemic. As shown time and time again, the situation is beyond urgent. To face these challenges, we need to find ways to strengthen our clarity, compassion, and courage to act. As beloved Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh said, “When you wake up and you see that the Earth is not just the environment, the Earth is us, you touch the nature of interbeing.” He is blazingly clear: there’s one thing we all have the power to change, which can make all the difference, and that is our mind. Our way of looking, seeing, and thinking determines every choice we make, the everyday actions we take or avoid, how we relate to those we love or oppose, and how we react in a crisis. This book is for anyone who cares about the growing and devastating impacts of climate change, mindful consumption, how human and nature’s interconnectedness is paramount for the well-being of all humanity, and creating a better, regenerative world for us future generations. Energetic and altruistic, and filled of Thich Nhat Hanh’s inspiring meditations, Zen stories and experiences from his own activism, Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet shows us individual actions help guide institutional change, and bring healing and harmony to ourselves, our relationships, and our planet Earth.