WHEN NOTHING IS SPECIAL, EVERYTHING CAN BE
The best-selling author of 'Everyday Zen' shows how to awaken to daily life and discover the ideal in the everyday, finding riches in our feelings, relationships, and work. 'Nothing Special' offers the r
Nothing Special
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Browse our Bookshelf Favorites store for big savings on popular fiction, nonfiction, children's books, and more. |
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
Review
"Deep Wisdom; strong, clear, practical advice--wonderful common sense Zen." -- Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with Heart
"Joko Beck speaks from the timeless and the perennial, so her metaphors of ordinary things and everyday incidents illumine my mundane life. Nothing Special is Zen alive and how to live it." -- Robert Aitken, author of Taking the Path of Zen
"Joko Beck speaks from the timeless and the perennial, so her metaphors of ordinary things and everyday incidents illumine my mundane life. Nothing Special is Zen alive and how to live it." -- Robert Aitken, author of Taking the Path of Zen
About the Author
Charlotte Joko Beck, who passed away in 2011, was the founder and former head teacher at the Zen Center in San Diego.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images? |
More About the Authors
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
66 of 66 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
For years I was obsessed with Zen books. However, it wasn't until I came across Joko's books that I encountered the radical suggestion: OUR LIFE IS OUR PRACTICE!!! It was a real eye opener. I reread "Everyday Zen" three or four time in a row. My teachers in Rochester were pretty unimpressed; they thought that Joko was for people "who weren't ready for Zen." (One of them really did say that!) I thought otherwise; her work addressed the disconnect between a practice created for those in monasteries and the "self-centered dream" of our lives. It baffled me that people would be having "openings" in the Zendo and then treat their family like dirt after a retreat. She taught that working with our family "issues" (noticing our thoughts and resting in our physical experience) was not something separate from our practice on the cushions in the meditation hall. No duality.
I ended up working with Joko for about five years. She was (and is) every bit as remarkable in real life as she was in her book. There isn't a lot of drama in this practice. Our life becomes less of a soap opera and becomes more mundane. From that ordinariness emerge joy, compassion, love and all of the other aspects of our true nature. You might have fewer of the kind of lightening bolts of a traditional practice. Instead, you will have a grounded life that brings peace rather than pain into this world.
I ended up working with Joko for about five years. She was (and is) every bit as remarkable in real life as she was in her book. There isn't a lot of drama in this practice. Our life becomes less of a soap opera and becomes more mundane. From that ordinariness emerge joy, compassion, love and all of the other aspects of our true nature. You might have fewer of the kind of lightening bolts of a traditional practice. Instead, you will have a grounded life that brings peace rather than pain into this world.
78 of 80 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I am a buddhist.I have read a single talk out of this book every night for over a year. These are concise dharma talks. Zen is pretty new to the US, and many of the traditional Zen stories have to do with monks having exotic experiences. It is easy to get caught in these dreams of 13th century Japan. Joko brings us back from our dreams of a far away practice to doing our dishes while the kids yell in our house in Denver. She offers a sober message of being just here. You wont find a heartwarming Hallmark message here. Joko is as direct and harsh as reality. It is no fun to follow the teachings back to our drab old smelly life, so don't look for the book to be a fun escape. It is the opposite -- which is why it is so good.
The book is comprised of a series of talks from Joko and some questions from her students. Joko is an American and so the message couched in the familiar language of our culture. IT is not like reading Dogen, and is more accessible. I would recommend this work to anyone who is serious about---well words escape me. It is not quie accurate to say that it is for those who are serious about taking the Zen path. But for anyone who wants to learn to be present with their real life, this offers solid guidance as much as words can.
The book is comprised of a series of talks from Joko and some questions from her students. Joko is an American and so the message couched in the familiar language of our culture. IT is not like reading Dogen, and is more accessible. I would recommend this work to anyone who is serious about---well words escape me. It is not quie accurate to say that it is for those who are serious about taking the Zen path. But for anyone who wants to learn to be present with their real life, this offers solid guidance as much as words can.
40 of 41 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
This is the best book on zen practice that I have ever read . . . and I've read many books on this subject! Beck demystifies the process of living a compassionate life. Other books on this subject have left me feeling baffled and inadequate. Beck's approach helped me find some clarity. I HIGHLY recommend it.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The ultimate Zen book for modern times
This is the book that I go back to over and over again. Each time I read a deeper level of understanding is revealed to me. I have read many books on existentialism and Buddhism. Read more
Published 10 days ago by Jo
5.0 out of 5 stars
this should be read after Everyday Zen
These 2 books are required reading for any dharma practitioner, either Zen or any other school. I would, however, read this after her first book.
Published 13 days ago by E. Zobel
5.0 out of 5 stars
A gem
If I could only pick 10 books to take with me for the rest of my life, this would be in the pile. I'm not a Buddhist but I have read many books and articles about Zen and... Read more
Published 28 days ago by FryLady
5.0 out of 5 stars
The heritage of Joko Beck
This book helped me through tough periods. It's an honest guide. Things are as they are. This really helps. Thank you Joko.
Published 1 month ago by H. Harmsen
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great!!!
This Book change my life since the first time I'm read it. There is no more print copies, so It's terrific found it here!
Published 2 months ago by A. Naranjo Cruz
4.0 out of 5 stars
Get over life :)
I picked this up after reading Joko Beck's "Everyday Zen." Both of them are great books to re-read periodically when you find yourself falling prey to the materialism and... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Asianbandito
5.0 out of 5 stars
Charlotte Joko Beck is a Master writer as well as a Zen Master
This is the best book I've seen for Western readers interested in going sub-surface about Zen practice. Read more
Published 10 months ago by F. P. Nothnagel
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very practical Zen
This book is easy to read and the Zen teachings in it are very practical. This is the kind of book that I'll end up reading over and over as a Zen practitioner to remind me how we... Read more
Published 10 months ago by D. Williams
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nothing Special-Living Zen
Nothing Special-Living Zen by Charlotte J Beck is a helpful read for anyone trying to make sense of their life(for that, read ME! Read more
Published 10 months ago by Trish
5.0 out of 5 stars
the right book to read
sometimes you pick the wrong book, in fact there're soo many wrong books to choose from. This book is not one of them. Read more
Published 13 months ago by 7hyme
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
|
|
