
Losing Ourselves
Learning to Live Without a Self
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Narrated by:
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Eric Meyers
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By:
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Jay L. Garfield
About this listen
This audiobook narrated by Eric Meyers reveals why you don’t have a self—and why that’s a good thing
In Losing Ourselves, Jay Garfield, a leading expert on Buddhist philosophy, offers a brief and radically clear account of an idea that at first might seem frightening but that promises to liberate us and improve our lives, our relationships, and the world. Drawing on Indian and East Asian Buddhism, Daoism, Western philosophy, and cognitive neuroscience, Garfield shows why it is perfectly natural to think you have a self—and why it actually makes no sense at all and is even dangerous. Most importantly, he explains why shedding the illusion that you have a self can make you a better person.
Examining a wide range of arguments for and against the existence of the self, Losing Ourselves makes the case that there are not only good philosophical and scientific reasons to deny the reality of the self, but that we can lead healthier social and moral lives if we understand that we are selfless persons. The book describes why the Buddhist idea of no-self is so powerful and why it has immense practical benefits, helping us to abandon egoism, act more morally and ethically, be more spontaneous, perform more expertly, and navigate ordinary life more skillfully. Getting over the self-illusion also means escaping the isolation of self-identity and becoming a person who participates with others in the shared enterprise of life.
The result is a transformative book about why we have nothing to lose—and everything to gain—by losing our selves.
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Critic reviews
"Popular books on the illusion of self tend to be crass and sensationalist, the academic ones dull and turgid. Jay L. Garfield has successfully followed the less trodden middle way. As a result, the promise of losing yourself in a book has never been more literal."—Julian Baggini, Times Literary Supplement
“Wise, useful, and surprising, this is a remarkable and brave exploration of selflessness and personhood by the brilliant Buddhist scholar and philosopher Jay Garfield. It is a book for our time, when the author opens for the reader the ethical implications of selflessness, and, to quote him, ‘what it means for our understanding of our place in the world.’ A wonderful book.”—Roshi Joan Halifax, Zen Buddhist teacher and author of Being with Dying
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Story
The jhānas are eight progressive altered states of consciousness that can be identified with the aspect of the Buddha’s Eightfold Path called Right Concentration. Training in concentration leads to these states, each of which yields a deeper and subtler state of awareness than the previous one. The jhānas are not in themselves awakening, but they are a skillful means for stilling the mind in a way that leads in that direction, and they are attainable by anyone who devotes the time and sincerity of practice necessary to realize them.
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great overview
- By Sam on 08-01-23
By: Leigh Brasington
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Then I Am Myself the World
- What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It
- By: Christof Koch
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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In Then I Am Myself the World, Christof Koch explores the only thing we directly experience: consciousness. At the book's heart is integrated-information theory, the idea that the essence of consciousness is the ability to exert causal power over itself, to be an agent of change. Koch investigates the physical origins of consciousness in the brain and how this knowledge can be used to measure consciousness in natural and artificial systems.
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The Exciting Side of Science
- By Christi McAdams on 02-23-25
By: Christof Koch
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Reverse Meditation
- How to Use Your Pain and Most Difficult Emotions as the Doorway to Inner Freedom
- By: Andrew Holecek
- Narrated by: Andrew Holecek
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Reverse Meditation is for anyone who wants to bring the challenges of life onto the path of awakening. When things get hard, it’s time to turn your practice on its head—and throw out any assumption that meditation exists to insulate you from the confusion, difficulties, and uncertainty of life. “By putting your meditation into reverse,” Holecek teaches, “you’ll actually find yourself going forward. Step into your pain and you can step up your evolution.”
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Life Changing Material
- By Azeem Y Sitabkhan on 08-23-23
By: Andrew Holecek
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The No Self, No Problem Workbook
- Exercises & Practices from Neuropsychology and Buddhism to Help You Lose Your Mind (The No Self Wisdom Series)
- By: Chris Niebauer
- Narrated by: Ken Kamlet
- Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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In his best-selling book No Self, No Problem: How Neuropsychology Is Catching Up to Buddhism, Professor Chris Niebauer explored the incredible link between Eastern philosophy and recent findings in neuropsychology, which is now confirming a fundamental tenet of Buddhism: anatta, or the doctrine of “no self.”
By: Chris Niebauer
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Mind
- A Journey to the Heart of Being Human
- By: Daniel J. Siegel M.D.
- Narrated by: Daniel J. Siegel M.D.
- Length: 18 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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A scientist's exploration into the mysteries of the human mind. Neuroscience studies the brain, but what does science have to say about the mind? A full examination of what we mean by the term "mind" has traditionally been the province of philosophers, but what might neuroscience teach us about it? How does the mind differ from consciousness? And how do we know who we really are?
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love
- By Rach on 01-13-17
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The Self Illusion
- Why There Is No "You" Inside Your Head
- By: Bruce Hood
- Narrated by: Bruce Hood
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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The Self Illusion provides a fascinating examination of how the latest science shows that our individual concept of a self is in fact an illusion. Most of us believe that we possess a self - an internal individual who resides inside our bodies, making decisions, authoring actions and possessing free will. The feeling that a single, unified, enduring self inhabits the body is compelling and inescapable. But that sovereignty of the self is increasingly under threat from science as our understanding of the brain advances.
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Disappointing
- By David R Pinsof on 05-10-12
By: Bruce Hood
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The Attention Revolution
- Unlocking the Power of the Focused Mind
- By: B. Alan Wallace PhD
- Narrated by: Tom Pile
- Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Meditation offers, in addition to its many other benefits, a method for achieving previously inconceivable levels of concentration. Author B. Alan Wallace has nearly 30 years' practice in attention-enhancing meditation, including a retreat he performed under the guidance of the Dalai Lama. An active participant in the much-publicized dialogues between Buddhists and scientists, Alan is uniquely qualified to speak intelligently to both camps, and The Attention Revolution is the definitive presentation of his knowledge.
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Good book; lacks a little
- By Matthew on 06-15-19
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No Self, No Problem
- How Neuropsychology is Catching Up to Buddhism
- By: Chris Niebauer PhD
- Narrated by: Charlie Varon
- Length: 3 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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In this groundbreaking audiobook, neuropsychology professor Chris Niebauer explains how after decades of research on the brain, Western science may have inadvertently confirmed a fundamental tenet of Buddhism: anatta, or the doctrine of "no self". Niebauer shows how findings in neuropsychology suggest that our sense of self is actually an illusion created by the left side of the brain and that it exists in the same way a mirage in the middle of the desert exists: as a thought rather than a thing.
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Everyone should be reading this!
- By Mary Lou on 01-02-20
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The Art of Transforming the Mind
- A Meditator's Guide to the Tibetan Practice of Lojong
- By: B. Alan Wallace
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 10 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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In this book, B. Alan Wallace explains a fundamental type of mental training that is designed to shift our attitudes so that our minds become pure wellsprings of joy instead of murky pools of problems, anxieties, fleeting pleasures, hopes, and frustrations. The lojong—or mind-training—teachings have been the subject of profound study, contemplation, and commentary by many great masters. Wallace shows us the way to develop our capacity for spiritual awareness through his relatable and practical commentary on the mind-training slogans.
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Not as good as I was hoping it would be
- By Diomedes on 01-18-23
By: B. Alan Wallace
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Dreaming Yourself Awake
- Lucid Dreaming and Tibetan Dream Yoga for Insight and Transformation
- By: B. Alan Wallace, Brian Hodel - editor
- Narrated by: Tom Pile
- Length: 5 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Some of the greatest of life’s adventures can happen while you’re sound asleep. That’s the promise of lucid dreaming, which is the ability to alter your own dream reality any way you like simply by being aware of the fact that you’re dreaming while you’re in the midst of a dream. There is a range of techniques anyone can learn to become a lucid dreamer - and this audiobook provides all the instruction you need to get started.
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Unfortunately unlistenable
- By MMore on 12-15-14
By: B. Alan Wallace, and others
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Opening the Hand of Thought
- Foundations of Zen Buddhist Practice
- By: Kosho Uchiyama, Tom Wright - editor translator, Jisho Warner - editor translator, and others
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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For over 30 years, Opening the Hand of Thought has offered an introduction to Zen Buddhism and meditation unmatched in clarity and power. This is the revised edition of Kosho Uchiyama's singularly incisive classic. This new edition contains even more useful material: new prefaces, an index, and extended endnotes, in addition to a revised glossary.
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One of the best books on Zazen
- By Otto Hannah on 09-07-23
By: Kosho Uchiyama, and others
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Why Buddhism Is True
- The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment
- By: Robert Wright
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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From one of America's greatest minds, a journey through psychology, philosophy, and lots of meditation to show how Buddhism holds the key to moral clarity and enduring happiness. In Why Buddhism Is True, Wright leads listeners on a journey through psychology, philosophy, and a great many silent retreats to show how and why meditation can serve as the foundation for a spiritual life in a secular age.
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Clear Explanation of How the Mind Works
- By George on 08-10-17
By: Robert Wright
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Ask Powerful Questions
- Create Conversations That Matter
- By: Will Wise
- Narrated by: Dan Radin
- Length: 7 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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In Ask Powerful Questions, Will Wise explains how the questions we traditionally ask are virtually meaningless when it comes to establishing connection. Introducing a set of practical tools for accessing and understanding others by changing the way we ask questions, Will shows how to transform "How are you? I'm fine, thanks" into a conversation that changes not only how you lead, but who you are as a person.
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Content is insightful and triggering BUT .....
- By Anonymous User on 08-24-23
By: Will Wise
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Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind
- Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
- By: Shunryu Suzuki
- Narrated by: Peter Coyote
- Length: 2 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few. So begins this most beloved of all American Zen works....
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terrific book. Horrible recording.
- By Matthew Wash on 06-29-18
By: Shunryu Suzuki
We are all interconnected.
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noself brought to light
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Makes sense
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Best Explanation and Integration of Non-Dualism
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Clear and approachable
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Important and accessible
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Amazing!
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Note - I found a few chapters in the middle of the book to be numbing. The philosophical refutation of different views of the self was challenging to digest, having passing knowledge of the differing philosophical arguments about the subject matter.
However, having familiarity with non-dual practice, the chapters on ethics and values were invaluable. I purchased a paperback version of the book to go over slowly at my own pace.
Losing the self
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Understanding “not having a self”
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Clear and comprehensive
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