This Darned Elusive Happiness [Paperback]

Theun Mares (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 30, 2001

Discover how you can make space for joy, no matter what your life is bringing you. Learn how you can handle your fear; how to deal with trauma, conflict and difficult relationships; how to avoid falling into the vicious trap of blame and how to put the past behind you.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Replete with insight and opportunities for finding and achieving happiness true to our natures and within the context of daily life in the real world." -- MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW (USA)

"Theun Mares has a marvellous sense of humour and writes in such an honest and down to earth manner you feel you're having a conversation with him over coffee." -- LIVING NOW! (AUSTRALIA)

"This is an excellent self-help book if you are trying to understand how to achieve true happiness. For it is not by material objects, but by the inner self." -- INDY'S CHILD (MIDWEST PARENTING PUBLICATIONS) (USA)

"practical solutions.. if you're not fulfilled in your love life, work's a drag and life seems to be offering mere scavengings, then this is the book you need." -- THE CITIZEN (SOUTH AFRICA) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Theun Mares is a nagol of the Toltec Tradition, with an extensive knowledge of life, human behavior and relationships. Following university, Theun Mares pursued successful careers in the performing arts, education and business.Since 1992 he has devoted himself spreading his unique knowledge by teaching, writting books and courses, and running residential retreats in England and the Usa. He lives in Cape Town, South Africa.

Product Details

• Paperback: 182 pages
• Publisher: Lionheart Publishing; 2nd edition (October 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1919792120
• ISBN-13: 978-1919792125
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,507,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SHIFTING THE FOCUS, January 14, 2001

By 

Jared Windhauser - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: This Darned Elusive Happiness (Toltec Teachings) (Paperback)

What I love most about this dynamic book is the way in which Theun shifts the focus from a technical approach to the teachings by choosing to place the accent on a fun, simple approach that begins a joyful journey. It has been nearly two years since I attended my first residential course taught by Theun Mares and I am still learning to shift the focus from complexity to simplicity. Well! Acquiring such a skill does not happen overnight, but acquiring such a skill is central to success upon the Path of Knowledge. In fact, it was during the course I attended in South Africa that I first picked up this book, as it was then hot off the press. I decided to buy a copy for my girlfriend back home and asked Theun to sign it. He was happy to do so quietly suggesting that it would be a good book for me too. I quickly fumed under the collar, for didn't he know that I was reading his formal books and that I was too "advanced" for this "simple" book? (What a laugh! Those memories make me chuckle today.) Six months later and after a failed relationship, struggle, heartache and sorrow, I was no closer to finding my own happiness than a snake is to walking. So I decided to read This Darned Elusive Happiness hoping it would shed some light on the concepts I assumed to understand. Welcome to the Ship of Adjustment! In order to board this ship one must first grasp and apply the four terms of Captain Life: (1) Becoming aware of another's state of being, (2) Changing your self-image, (3) Your shortcomings are your ticket to freedom, and (4) Give yourself time. Today, not too long after first setting sail, I find myself living with more awareness, a firmer belief in myself, a little more joy, and it all grows day by day. Keeping it simple was the first step that allowed me to move into this space and is one of the toughest lessons I've learnt. If you're relationships are not working, if your happiness is fleeting, then by all means, keep it simple, stop looking for complexity, shift the focus, and try reading this book! You may be surprised, I was! And if you are studying the Toltec teaching series that Toltec nagal Theun Mares is writing, might I suggest that this book is also for you. I now see a deeper meaning and insight in the formal books that Theun has written based on firmly grasping, and also applying, what I previously assumed to understand. Merry Sailing! and Thank-You Theun!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At Last, Actionable Information on How to Create Happiness, June 11, 2002

By 

"aspen-dance" (Park City, UT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: This Darned Elusive Happiness (Paperback)

Are you on that endless search to find a book that will help you find true happiness in your life? I have read many books in search of this, and the answers are here in Theun Mares' "This Darned Elusive Happiness".

While other books are heavy on theory and short on actionable ideas, "This Darned Elusive Happiness" cuts to the chase and puts the information you need right in the palm of your hand. This little volume contains deceptively simple wisdom that our schools and parents forgot to teach us.

The content is likely to challenge your thinking in some areas, and this is exactly what is needed in today's world where the old rules we were taught simply are not working. Has anyone explained to us what it truly means to be Male? To be Female? To relate and cooperate with the people in our lives and the world around us? To manifest true happiness? Bring an open mind and test one of the ideas for yourself in your life to see if it does not make a profound difference.

For those who want more in the way of theory, this book provides a good, high-level overview and entry point into Mares' more detailed writings where he presents theory along with practice.

Want to really get right down to it? Flip straight to Chapter Seven. It contains the ten key rules to enjoying successful relationships. That chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A practical book on happiness and relationships. I like it., January 28, 2001

By 

John Lavan (Huddersfield, W.Yorks United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: This Darned Elusive Happiness (Toltec Teachings) (Paperback)

I like this book which is small and easy to read. Mares focuses particularly on relationships as the key to happiness and gives many techniques to work on relationships and improve them. I especially liked the concept of using others as mirrors to gain insight into our own behaviour in a relationship and thereby generate new choices. These are powerful ideas once I put them into practice and my relationships have improved. For people who have read Castaneda, the text starts to make Toltec principles accessible and useful in a small book which is easy to read.