Being with Dying: Cultivating Compassion and Fearlessness in the Presence of Death by Joan Halifax

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When Zen teacher Joan Halifax first started working with the dying, it didn’t come easily or naturally for her. “Working so closely with death often scared me,” she reports. “I was afraid I might get what the dying person had. When I recognized, however, that I already have what dying people have—mortality—I stopped being afraid of catching it.” This insight has been foundational in her nearly forty years of working with people facing the dying process. Understanding that the category of “the dying” ultimately includes all of us, Joan makes no distinction in her teaching, whether it’s addressed to those who happen to be dying right now or to those who happen to be their caregivers. Bringing mindfulness to the process is the key in either situation. The Buddhist wisdom she presents for approaching the end of life has proven beneficial for people of all religious backgrounds, as is demonstrated in the often deeply moving stories she recounts of people she has worked with. She also provides a wealth of practical advice for caregiving, and guided meditations aimed at helping readers to face death without fear, to develop a commitment to helping others, and to transform suffering and resistance into courage.

Zen Heart: Simple Advice for Living with Mindfulness and Compassion by Ezra Bayda

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It’s a testimony to the wisdom of Ezra Bayda’s teaching that it rings true for so many people, whether they practice Zen or not. He’s got an ability for applying the dharma to the facts of our daily lives and relationships that’s reminiscent of Pema Chödrön’s in its clarity and practicality. This is the third of Ezra’s books we’ve published (the first two were Being Zen and At Home in the Muddy Water), and in it he presents a model for spiritual practice that breaks it down into three distinct phases: the “Me Phase,” in which we become intimate with ourselves; “Being Awareness,” in which we cultivate a more spacious sense of being that moves beyond the small self; and “Being Kindness,” in which we learn to connect with the love that is our true nature and to live from a place of compassion.

When the Past Is Present: Healing the Emotional Wounds That Sabotage Our Relationships by David Richo

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Ever get in a fight with your partner and afterward get that sinking feeling that the whole thing was nothing but a rerun from your childhood? That’s because it probably was. Our past is constantly playing itself out in current relationships—with husbands, wives, friends, colleagues, and so forth. It’s unfair both to ourselves and to the person who bears the projection. But it doesn’t have to be that way, according to David Richo, and he shows us the way out of this destructive pattern. Recognizing that it happens is the first step. Then, if we can learn to bring mindfulness into our interpersonal interactions, we can discover true intimacy with others—by allowing them to be nothing more or less than who they are, and by allowing ourselves the same.

Women’s Qigong for Health and Longevity: A Practical Guide for Women Forty and Older by Deborah Davis

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Qigong is that famous Chinese system of gentle exercises that channel life force through the body to increase energy, calm the mind, and promote vibrant good health in general—and unlike a lot of other exercise programs, it’s really easy. There’s almost no one who can’t do it. Here is a system of qigong specially designed for the needs of women in midlife and beyond. It includes exercises that address such health issues as insomnia, cardiac fitness, menopause, osteoporosis, breast health, depression, sexuality, and much else.

Teresa of Ávila: The Book of My Life translated by Mirabai Starr, foreword by Tessa Bielecki

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In her youth, the beautiful and high-spirited Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada was the last person anyone—including she herself—would have expected to become a nun. But then, many things in the life of St. Teresa of Ávila (1515–1582) were unexpected. She became, by any estimation, one of the most influential women of her age. Most famously, she was a mystic who was able to articulate the soul’s union with God in a way that has never been surpassed. Reading her autobiography may be the best way to get to know this remarkable woman who combined a proclivity for being swept up in divine ecstasy with a down-to-earth sense of humor and a practical approach to life. Mirabai Starr’s translation gives a real feel for the intimate, conversational style of this classic spiritual memoir. It’s like sitting down with Teresa in the convent parlor for a chat.

Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion by Pema Chödrön, read by Joanna Rotté

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The main themes of Pema’s teaching are brought together here in this collection of excerpts from her numerous works. It’s a perfect way to get acquainted with her if you’ve not encountered her before, or if you’re familiar with her other books, this is a great refresher course. Uncertainty, Pema contends, is the reality of our existence—and wanting that to be otherwise is the root of all our suffering. She invites us to experiment with not wanting it to be otherwise, just to see what happens. This audio program is a complete and unabridged reading of the best-selling book.