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The Warrior Mind: Ancient Wisdom from the Martial Arts for Living a More Powerful Life
by Jim Pritchard Sharon LindenburgerWhen we think of martial arts, we think of self defense, but for the true practitioner it is so much more than that. It is a mindset, a form of mental discipline that enables the warrior to face any challenge with grace and strength. In The Warrior Mind, Jim Pritchard, a disciple of legendary Ninjitsu and Taijitsu masters, reveals how we can adopt this mindset whether or not we practice the physical components of the martial arts. Pritchard describes six mental principles: * Attentive curiosity: slow down, observe calmly * Undulation: move side-to-side to build strength * Clear intent: know when and how to act * Grappling: engage the issue or opponent with confidence * Rolling waves: demonstrate persistence and the will to triumph * Whirlwind: when necessary, unleash an all-out onslaught Using colorful anecdotes, insightful examples, and inspiring stories, Pritchard shows how these six principles will help readers maintain focus and balance -- no matter what obstacles await them.
The Warrior Poet Way: A Guide to Living Free and Dying Well
by John LovellFrom the founder of the Warrior Poet Society, a daring manual on how to become a dangerous—and good—manThere is a war on masculinity, and everywhere we look—on every front we hold sacred—we can see the painful reminders of this collapsing order. The chaos and crisis we are experiencing today should be a signal for men everywhere to rise up; to fight to preserve our way of life by once again walking the ancient paths. But this isn&’t a journey that need be taken alone.In The Warrior Poet Way, public speaker, former Army Ranger, and all-around patriot John Lovell offers a needed antidote to the lack of strong men in our modern world. This is a call to all men to be what they truly are. Both dangerous and good. Lovers and fighters. Lions and lambs.Both philosophical and practical, this guide dispenses essential advice on how to be a whole man, from tyranny-proofing your home to wooing the right woman. Through anecdotes of his time in the military, interviews with other men, and practicums at the end of each chapter, Lovell teaches the virtue of balance—navigating the tension between violent warrior and romantic poet—and guides men through each mental and physical change they must make to embody the ancient spirit of a real man.This is a manual for every man to use in the fight of their life—and what it takes to win. No good thing comes easy, and the life you want is just on the other end of what you don&’t want to do. This is the Warrior Poet Way. Are you ready to walk it?
The Warrior Within: Own Your Power to Serve, Fight, Protect, and Heal
by D.J. VanasA transformational guide to getting yourself right in order to accomplish the work you were meant to do, from speaker, former U.S. Air Force officer, and member of the Ottawa tribe D.J. Vanas.When faced with an important job, and people depending on you to do it, most of us will give and give until there&’s nothing left. But running on empty, even for a worthy cause, only sets you up for failure in the long run. To persevere on the path to success requires more than sheer fearlessness and willpower. It requires what D.J. Vanas calls the warrior spirit, the kind of strength that looks outward but comes from deep within. Drawing inspiration from Native American philosophy and tradition, The Warrior Within outlines a new model for personal power in the face of overwhelming chaos. A true warrior is not the toughest or bravest person in the room. A true warrior is committed to self-mastery, knows how to navigate change and disruption, transforms setbacks into opportunities for achievement, refuses to quit, and most importantly, always fights for something bigger than the self. With a vast array of stories and examples, from vision quests to treacherous hikes to veterans and service providers at the front lines, Vanas shows how to apply these principles to transform how you show up both for yourself and those around you. More than an empowerment manual, The Warrior Within is a call to accomplish the world-changing work you were meant for by tapping into the power of the warrior spirit.
The Warrior's Book of Virtues: A Field Manual for Living Your Best Life
by Nick Benas Matthew Bloom Richard BryanCHOOSE VIRTUE ALWAYS Time-tested principles for succeeding in life through the understanding and development of character, virtues represent the moral excellence of a person. From discipline to prudence, fortitude to faith, the warrior virtues presented in these pages are guaranteed to transform your life to one of meaning and purpose.The Warrior’s Book of Virtues uses the battle-tested principles of the United States Marine Corps to help everyone live their best life in easy and practical ways. Don’t settle for less, and don’t make excuses for yourself. Become inspired to achieve your full potential and complete every objective you set. Adapt and overcome.
The Water Of Life: A Treatise on Urine Therapy
by John W ArmstrongIn this revolutionary treatise, J W Armstrong puts the compelling case that all diseases (except those caused by traumatism or structural disorders) can be cured by one simple means: urine therapy. The therapy is an entirely natural treatment, a drugless system of healing that treats the body as a whole. Moreover, the only ingredient needed is a substance manufactured in the body itself, rich in mineral salts, hormones and other vital substances, namely human urine. It may seem strange to take back into the body something that the body is apparently discarding. Yet the theory is similar to the natural practice of organic composting. Fallen leaves, when dug back into the soil, provide valuable mineral salts to nourish new plant life. The same principle holds true for the human body.
The Water Prescription: For Health, Vitality, and Rejuvenation
by Christopher VaseyA guide to how water can prevent and treat disease as well as rejuvenate the body and mind• Shows the role water deficiency plays in a large number of diseases and other health disorders• Explains how to determine the quality and quantity of water that is best for you and the time during the day it is best to drink• Includes 10 water cures for profound physical rehydration, toxin removal, and remineralizationDrinking sufficient quantities of water is a necessity for optimal physical functioning, but it can also play a major role in the prevention and treatment of many diseases. Chronic fatigue, depression, eczema, rheumatism, gastric disorders, high or low blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, and urinary infections are but a few of the many disorders that can result from not drinking enough water--and which can be treated by raising our intake of this vital liquid.The physical assaults that our bodies endure from pollution, stress, overly rich and processed foods (often containing too much salt), and alcohol and tobacco have dramatically increased our daily need for water over what our ancestors required. Christopher Vasey explains not only why water is so essential to our health but also what quantities we should drink and when. He also discusses the qualities of different types of water and demonstrates which will best address certain conditions. In addition, he provides 10 water cures that will rehydrate the deepest levels of the body, remove toxins, and restore vital minerals.
The Wave Three Way To Building Your Downline
by Richard PoeThe face of home business has changed in recent years. People are building businesses based on good products, treating each other well, and using the power of internet technology. Now millions of people just like you are learning to make a living from home. In this book you'll find dozens of stories of people from soccer moms to beach bums and fortune 500 executives and how they learned to make a living from home. They show you how you can too.
The Way Forward: Master Life's Toughest Battles and Create Your Lasting Legacy
by Robert O'Neill Dakota Meyer“The Way Forward will help every reader master their own challenges—this is a must-read book!” —Admiral Bill McRaven, U.S. Navy (Retired) and author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Make Your BedAmerican Sniper meets Make Your Bed in these life lessons from decorated United States service members and New York Times bestselling authors Robert O’Neill and Dakota Meyer—an in-depth, fearless, and ultimately redemptive account of what it takes to survive and thrive on battlefields from Afghanistan and Iraq to our daily lives, and how the perils of war help us hold onto our humanity.Rob O’Neill and Dakota Meyer are two of the most decorated and recognized US service members: O’Neill killed the world’s most wanted man, Osama bin Laden, and Meyer was the first living Marine to receive the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War. But beyond their actions and courage in combat, O’Neill and Meyer also have much in common in civilian life: they are both sought-after public speakers, advocates for veterans, and share a non-PC sense of humor. Combining the best of military memoirs and straight-talking self-help, The Way Forward alternates between O’Neill’s and Meyer’s perspectives, looking back with humor at even the darkest war stories, and sharing lessons they learned along the way.The Way Forward presents O’Neill and Meyer’s philosophy in combat and life. This isn’t a book about the glory of war and combat, but one about facing your enemies, some who are flesh and blood and some that are not: Your thoughts. Your doubts. Your boredom and your regrets. From Rob’s dogged repetition at the free throw line of his childhood basketball court to Dakota’s pursuit of EMT and firefighter credentials to aid accident victims, these two American heroes turn their experiences into valuable lessons for every reader. Gritty and down-to-earth, O’Neill and Meyer tell their stories with candor and vulnerability to help readers handle stress, tackle their biggest obstacles, and exceed their expectations of themselves, while keeping life’s battles in perspective with a sense of humor.
The Way Home: Discovering the Hero's Journey to Wholeness at Midlife
by Ben KattA guidebook for those at midlife struggling to find themselves, applying Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey to the modern reader’s quest for wholeness. Those reaching midlife often discover that they have been bombarded with messages from society telling them who they should be and what their life should look like. While chasing the three-headed monster (achievement, perfection, and the approval of others), author Ben Katt realized that he had lost himself along the way. The Way Home is a book for those struggling to find their way back to themselves, especially at midlife. Katt distills Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey into an accessible, ten-step program to help readers move beyond their limitations, find fulfillment, and make the greatest possible contribution to their community and world. Anyone – ordinary, extraordinary, or somewhere in between – can embark upon the Hero’s Journey, leaving the familiar, falling into the unknown, and ultimately rising to wholeness.Bringing together personal experience, spiritual wisdom, and well-known mythologies, The Way Home serves as a practical guidebook to inspire and equip people in the second half of life, helping them move from isolation to belonging, from security to surrender, from conformity to wildness. Katt employs a number of tools and rituals to guide readers along the path back to themselves, including solitude, dreamwork, fasting, and meditation.This book serves as a reminder to those at a transition point in their life that the most important task is to stay connected with their own heart.
The Way Home: God's Invitation to New Beginnings
by Tessa AfsharWinner of the 2021 Christian Book Award® (Bible Study Category)Enter the Story of Ruth Like Never Before through This 6-Week Bible StudyRuth was a vulnerable, widowed woman starting over in a foreign land. While Naomi was returning to community, Ruth was setting herself up to be the odd one out her whole life. What gave her the strength to do it? Could it be that she sensed all along that her journey away from Moab was a journey toward home?The story of Ruth is a remarkable tale of bravery, calling, and God&’s provision, and it will come to life in new ways as you dig deep in this 6-week Bible study. Tessa Afshar, author of award-winning biblical and historical fiction, teaches you how to study the text, discern meaning, pray through it, and live it out. She&’ll show you how to draw on the same strength and courage that Ruth did and accept God&’s invitation to new beginnings in your own life.This Bible study also includes optional teaching videos that can be purchased separately to enrich your study.
The Way Home: God's Invitation to New Beginnings
by Tessa AfsharWinner of the 2021 Christian Book Award® (Bible Study Category)Enter the Story of Ruth Like Never Before through This 6-Week Bible StudyRuth was a vulnerable, widowed woman starting over in a foreign land. While Naomi was returning to community, Ruth was setting herself up to be the odd one out her whole life. What gave her the strength to do it? Could it be that she sensed all along that her journey away from Moab was a journey toward home?The story of Ruth is a remarkable tale of bravery, calling, and God&’s provision, and it will come to life in new ways as you dig deep in this 6-week Bible study. Tessa Afshar, author of award-winning biblical and historical fiction, teaches you how to study the text, discern meaning, pray through it, and live it out. She&’ll show you how to draw on the same strength and courage that Ruth did and accept God&’s invitation to new beginnings in your own life.This Bible study also includes optional teaching videos that can be purchased separately to enrich your study.
The Way Home: Tales from a Life Without Technology
by Mark BoyleIt was 11pm when I checked my email for the last time and turned off my phone for what I hoped would be forever. No running water, no car, no electricity or any of the things it powers: the internet, phone, washing machine, radio or light bulb. Just a wooden cabin, on a smallholding, by the edge of a stand of spruce. In this honest and lyrical account of a remarkable life without modern technology, Mark Boyle explores the hard won joys of building a home with his bare hands, learning to make fire, collecting water from the spring, foraging and fishing. What he finds is an elemental life, one governed by the rhythms of the sun and seasons, where life and death dance in a primal landscape of blood, wood, muck, water, and fire – much the same life we have lived for most of our time on earth. Revisiting it brings a deep insight into what it means to be human at a time when the boundaries between man and machine are blurring.
The Way Of The Heathen: Practicing Atheism In Everyday Life
by Greta ChristinaSo you're an atheist. Now what? The way we deal with life -- with love and sex, pleasure and death, reality and making stuff up --can change dramatically when we stop believing in gods, souls, and afterlives. When we leave religion -- or if we never had it in the first place--where do we go? With her unique blend of compassion and humor, thoughtfulness and snark, Greta Christina most emphatically does not propose a single path to a good atheist life. She offers questions to think about, ideas that may be useful, and encouragement to choose your own way. She addresses complex issues in an accessible, down-to-earth style, including: Why we're here, Sexual transcendence, How humanism helps with depression -- except when it doesn't, Stealing stuff from religion, and much more. Aimed at new and not-so-new atheists, questioning and curious believers, Christina shines a warm, fresh light on the only life we have.
The Way Of Transition: Embracing Life's Most Difficult Moments
by William BridgesWilliam Bridges' lifelong work has been devoted to a deep understanding of transitions and to helping others through them. When his own wife of thirty-five years died of cancer, however, he was thrown head-first into the kind of painful and confusing abyss he had known before only in theory. An honest account of being in transition, this uncommonly wise and moving book is a richly textured map of the personal, professional, and emotional transformations that grow out of tragedy and crisis. Demonstrating how disillusionment, sorrow, or confusion can blossom into a time of incredible creativity and contentment, Bridges highlights the profound significance and value of endings in our lives.
The Way Out!
by Joseph BennerFrom the same author of the inspirational classic, The Impersonal Life, this channeled book takes the reader from their innermost spiritual values to an understanding of how they can achieve expression of those values in their daily life. New edition includes gender neutral terms to allow all readers to connect on a deeper level.
The Way She Wears It: The Ultimate Insider's Guide to Revealing Your Personal Style
by Dallas ShawYou are your own brand. But to market yourself well, you need the best package, and that’s your own authentic style. In The Way She Wears It, fashion illustrator and It girl Dallas Shaw shows you how to mix up your closet and shop like a rock star.The most highly sought-after fashion illustrator/luxury project designer working today uses her sketches, styling skills and visual expertise to help you develop your eye, define your aesthetic, banish the predictable, stock your wardrobe, and make heads turn in this highly visual and lavishly designed & illustrated personal fashion guide.Working backstage, in showrooms, and alongside creative directors and iconic designers, Dallas learned from the best. In this sophisticated, illustrated handbook, this go-to girl for clients ranging from Chanel, Donna Karan, Oscar de la Renta, Kate Spade, Christian Louboutin, and Ralph Lauren to Anthropologie, Target, Maybelline, and Neutrogena shares her insider tricks—expert layering hacks, the secrets to print pairing, bold color choices—and something you won’t find off the rack: confidence.Organized around a range of challenges, this lookbook-meets workbook-is a must for every woman, whether you’re a fashion novice trying to figure out your signature style, a fashionista who wants to step up her game, or the most stylish presence in the room looking to stay ahead of the competition. Mixing breathtaking creative visuals—hundreds of photos and drawings, including 100 original pieces of art—and a little bit of girl talk,Dallas teaches every woman how to banish the predictable and develop and maintain their own unique look. She also busts fashion myths, serves up insider industry tricks and expert picks, and most important, inspires you to live beautifully.
The Way Toward Health (A Seth Book)
by Jane RobertsFrom the Bestselling Author of Seth SpeaksIn September 1984, the voice that had spoken for one of the most profound and prolific metaphysical teachers of the 20th century fell silent. Seth, the entity who described himself as an &“energy personality essence no longer focused in physical matter,&” had spoken exclusively through Jane Roberts since 1963. During the long illness that led to her death, Jane continued to channel Seth from her hospital bed, but this final work was left unfinished. Now, in The Way Toward Health, Jane&’s husband, Robert Butts, shares with us the intimate story of Jane&’s final days, and the exquisite teachings that Seth gave during that time. In an examination of the miracle of life in a human body, Seth speaks about:• Why medicine and therapy often perpetuate illness• How the practice of naming diseases can work against us• The influence of religion in creating disease• How children&’s health is influenced by parents&’ beliefs• Humor as an effective factor in healing• Includes 8-page photo gallery&“Do not think of the mind as a purely mental entity, and of the body as a purely physical one. Instead, think of both mind and body as continuing, interweaving processes that are mental and physical at once. Your thoughts actually are quite as physical as your body is, and your body is quite as nonphysical as it seems to you your thoughts are. You are actually a vital force, existing as a part of your environment, and yet apart from your environment at the same time.&” — Jane Roberts, speaking for Seth in The Way Toward Health
The Way Up: Climbing the Corporate Mountain as a Professional of Color
by Errol Pierre Jim JermanokPractical and actionable advice for minorities seeking concrete strategies to help them move up the corporate ladder In The Way Up: Climbing the Corporate Mountain as a Professional of Color, accomplished executive Dr. Errol L. Pierre delivers a pragmatic and actionable guide to help underrepresented individuals from all ethnic backgrounds achieve their professional goals and elevate their careers in today’s virtual workplace. The book takes a step-by-step approach to understanding the skills and strategies required to move from entry-level and middle management roles to the executive ranks. Readers will also find: A collection of key lessons and short stories containing practical advice designed to help readers achieve their professional potential Strategies proven to work in the real-world, full of innovative insights and practical know-how Tips on navigating the offices and Zoom calls that make up today’s employment environmentAn indispensable discussion of what it takes to succeed in today’s hyper-competitive professional environment, The Way Up will earn a place in the libraries of newly graduated businesspeople as well as seasoned pros seeking to advance their careers.
The Way We See It: A Fresh Look At Vision Loss
by Patricia Kirkpatrick Pamela Fletcher Wendy Brown-BaézLosing one's vision is full of both challenges and surprising opportunities.
The Way We Wed: A Global History of Wedding Fashion
by Kimberly Chrisman-CampbellFor fashion buffs, romantics, and brides-to-be, a fascinating collection of wedding garb and glamour through pop culture and history.The Way We Wed: A History of Wedding Fashion presents styles and stories from the Renaissance to the present day, chronicling evolving fashions, classes, and expectations. And because all wedding attire has a tale to tell, The Way We Wed also reveals fascinating personal stories of those who wore it.While the book is a rich source of bridal inspiration for all seasons, it's far from a monotonous parade of white gowns. The Way We Wed showcases wedding gowns of all colors and styles from around the world, as well as going-away dresses, accessories (shoes, veils, hats, and tiaras), and clothes worn by flower girls, bridesmaids, mothers of the bride, and grooms. Same-sex weddings are represented along with royal weddings, wartime brides, White House weddings, remarriage, Hollywood weddings, and more. The book features celebrity and historical couples as well as everyday people. A few of the included names:Angelina JolieFrida KahloElizabeth TaylorPrincess DianaMartha WashingtonSolange KnowlesEllen DeGeneresMeghan MarkleIllustrated with 100 gorgeous photos, The Way We Wed is a rich celebration of the art of wedding fashion across time and cultures, and those whose style and circumstances made a statement.
The Way We'll Be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream
by John ZogbyIn this far-reaching examination of contemporary American culture, John Zogby, one of the nation's foremost pollsters, explores who today's Americans are, identifying patterns in our social makeup that hint at the way we'll be. Companies from multinational corporations down to family-owned small businesses can benefit from this detailed information about where we are and where we're going. Zogby gets to the bottom of this topic by doing what he does best: conducting and analyzing surveys. The conclusions outlined in The Way We'll Be are drawn from literally thousands of polls posed to the broadest possible cross-section of Americans since the 1960s. However, Zogby's complex research techniques are nowhere near as astounding as his conclusions: that the American Dream is in great transition---that a new American consensus is building. According to Zogby, four meta-movements are redefining what we want, what we expect of our leaders, and what we hope for: ---We are learning to live with limits on everything---from the resources we consume to the exercise of national power abroad. ---Led by the youngest adults, we are embracing diversity and redefining ourselves not by nationality but as world citizens. ---Simultaneously, more and more of us are rejecting materialism and looking inward for guidance and sustenance. ---We are demanding authenticity---in politicians, products, and our daily encounters---like never before. These are the plate tectonics of American society today, and they define us as much as opening the frontier defined early American settlers. They shape our national character. Zogby concludes his discussion of each movement with a list of "rules" for businesses looking to sell everything from automobiles to political candidates.
The Way We're Working Isn't Working: The Four Forgotten Needs That Energize Great Performance
by Tony Schwartz Jean Gomes Catherine McCarthyThis book was previously titled, Be Excellent at Anything.The Way We're Working Isn't Working is one of those rare books with the power to profoundly transform the way we work and live. Demand is exceeding our capacity. The ethic of "more, bigger, faster" exacts a series of silent but pernicious costs at work, undermining our energy, focus, creativity, and passion. Nearly 75 percent of employees around the world feel disengaged at work every day. The Way We're Working Isn't Working offers a groundbreaking approach to reenergizing our lives so we’re both more satisfied and more productive—on the job and off. By integrating multidisciplinary findings from the science of high performance, Tony Schwartz, coauthor of the #1 bestselling The Power of Full Engagement, makes a persuasive case that we’re neglecting the four core needs that energize great performance: sustainability (physical); security (emotional); self-expression (mental); and significance (spiritual). Rather than running like computers at high speeds for long periods, we’re at our best when we pulse rhythmically between expending and regularly renewing energy across each of our four needs. Organizations undermine sustainable high performance by forever seeking to get more out of their people. Instead they should seek systematically to meet their four core needs so they’re freed, fueled, and inspired to bring the best of themselves to work every day. Drawing on extensive work with an extra-ordinary range of organizations, among them Google, Ford, Sony, Ernst & Young, Shell, IBM, the Los Angeles Police Department, and the Cleveland Clinic, Schwartz creates a road map for a new way of working. At the individual level, he explains how we can build specific rituals into our daily schedules to balance intense effort with regular renewal; offset emotionally draining experiences with practices that fuel resilience; move between a narrow focus on urgent demands and more strategic, creative thinking; and balance a short-term focus on immediate results with a values-driven commitment to serving the greater good. At the organizational level, he outlines new policies, practices, and cultural messages that Schwartz’s client companies have adopted. The Way We're Working Isn't Working offers individuals, leaders, and organizations a highly practical, proven set of strategies to better manage the relentlessly rising demands we all face in an increasingly complex world.
The Way of Abundance: A 60-day Journey Into A Deeply Meaningful Life
by Ann VoskampWhat do you do when you wake up and feel like you're not enough for your life? Or when you look out the kitchen window as dusk falls and wonder how do you live when life keeps breaking your heart? As Ann Voskamp writes, “great grief isn't meant to fit inside your body. It's why your heart breaks.” And each of us holds enough brokenness to overflow—to be given as the greatest story of our lives.In sixty vulnerably soulful stories, The Way of Abundance moves from self-weary brokenness to Christ-focused givenness. Drawing from the critically acclaimed, New York Times bestseller The Broken Way and Ann's online essays, this devotional dares us to embrace brokenness as a gift that moves us to givenness as a way to draw closer to the heart of God. Christ Himself broke like bread, giving Himself to us so we might have a lifelong communion with Him. Could it be that our brokenness is also a gift to the world?This gentle but exquisitely profound book does nothing less than take you on an intimate journey of the soul.As Ann writes, "The wound in His side proves that Jesus is always on the side of the suffering, the wounded, the busted, the broken." Discover how surrendering in unexpected ways is the first step toward receiving what you long for. Discover the good news that your beauty is not in your strength but in your fragility. Discover why your healing shines radiant through your wounds—and how only in brokenness will you ever be whole—and find the way to the abundance you were meant for.
The Way of Baseball: Finding Stillness at 95 mph
by Shawn GreenShawn Green’s career statistics can be found on the backs of baseball cards in shoe boxes across America: 328 home runs, 1,071 RBIs, .282 career batting average, All-Star, Gold Glove, Silver Slugger. . . . But numbers tell only part of the story.His path to success was as grounded in philosophical study as in ballpark wisdom. Striving to find stillness within the rip-roaring scene of Major League Baseball—from screaming fans to national scandals— Green learned to approach the sport with a clear mind. In the tradition of Phil Jackson’s Sacred Hoops,Green shares the secrets to remaining focused both on and off the field, shedding light on a signature approach to living by using his remarkable baseball experiences to exemplify how one can find full awareness, presence, and, ultimately, fulfillment in any endeavor. Following his development from inconsistent rookie to established All-Star to aging veteran,The Way of Baseball illustrates the spiritual practices that enabled him to “bring stillness into the flow of life.” Requiring mastery of perspective and continual management of ego, the game of baseball afforded Green the opportunity to explore his potential as more than just a ballplayer. A treasure of practical wisdom and an intimate look at what it really means to “let go,” The Way of Baseball illuminates the creative possibilities within us all.
The Way of Beauty: Five Meditations for Spiritual Transformation
by François ChengFive meditations on the role of beauty in human life and its direct connection with the sacred • Looks at how beauty has the power to elevate and counterbalance the negative side of the reality facing us • Presents the role of beauty in transforming individuals and transforming the world from a Taoist perspective In a time of mindless violence and widespread ecological and natural catastrophes, François Cheng asks if talking about beauty may not seem incongruous even scandalous. Yet this is actually the most appropriate time to revisit a subject that was a philosophical mainstay for millennia. The power of beauty to elevate and transcend counterbalances the negative side of the reality facing us. As John Keats noted in “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” beauty is inseparable from truth: “Beauty is truth, truth beauty,--that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.” The ultimate human reality pivots on these two extremes of the living universe--beauty and evil. Cheng begins his teachings with the intrinsic sense of beauty revealed by the landscape, symbolized by the staggeringly beautiful Lu Mountain of his native province in China. His five meditations carry the reader from the understanding of beauty being in the mind of the beholder to its intimate relationship with the sacred, both from a Western and Taoist perspective. He shows that the most telling indication of the importance of beauty in human life and for individual spiritual realization can be grasped by simply imagining a world without it.