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Real Zen for Real Life
- Narrated by: Professor Bret W. Davis
- Length: 13 hrs and 51 mins
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Publisher's summary
What do you think of when you hear the word Zen? Many Westerners may associate Zen with the counterculture of the 1960s and '70s, while others may associate it with today’s hipster culture. Many use the word to simply mean laid-back and relaxed.
But what does Zen really mean? Zen is a school of Buddhism and a rigorous spiritual discipline. To understand what Zen is really about, it is vital not only to study its profound philosophical teachings, but also to engage in the practice of Zen. The word Zen means meditation, and Zen meditation is a practice of “clearing the heart-mind”. For Zen, an open mind entails an open heart, and this open heart-mind is the source of both creativity and compassion.
Professor Bret W. Davis, professor of philosophy and the T. J. Higgins, SJ, chair in philosophy at Loyola University Maryland, has created a highly accessible introduction to the philosophical concept of Zen with Real Zen for Real Life. Bringing the academic purview of a philosophy professor, the view of an academic scholar, and the spiritual experience of a practitioner and teacher of Zen, this course reflects the push and pull between Eastern and Western traditions and cultures with the goal of making the study and practice of Zen more accessible and engaging to all viewers.
Over the course of 24 lessons, including the eight meditation checkups within lessons, you will learn both what Zen has traditionally meant for East Asians and what it can mean for contemporary Westerners. Prepare to be challenged as Professor Davis asks you to set aside your preconceptions in order to open yourselves to what Zen masters who lived in the past and in distant lands have to teach you. You will especially need to be open to the possibility that Zen may be able to teach you about yourself. This course aims to challenge and inspire you, both intellectually and personally.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
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Pretty good, but very old
- By Azrharn on 08-24-19
By: Laird Close, and others
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The Art of Focus
- 45 Stories to Uplift the Mind and Transform the Heart
- By: Gauranga Das Prabhu
- Narrated by: Abhishek Sharma
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the world we live in, more so than all the recent events put together. The pandemic has made humans question certain assumptions, relook at priorities and adjust life according to the new normal in the twenty-first century. As we take stock of life ahead, beyond this cusp of change, focus emerges as the fulcrum to help ease this transformation.
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Ancient wisdom for developing focus and avoiding distractions delivered succinctly
- By Rahul on 01-01-23
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How to Be You
- Stop Trying to Be Someone Else and Start Living Your Life
- By: Jeffrey Marsh
- Narrated by: Jeffrey Marsh
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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An interactive experience, How to Be You invites you to make the audiobook your own through activities such as answering questions about how you do the things you do, and discovering patterns in your lives that may be holding you back. Through Jeffrey's own story of "growing up fabulous in a small farming town" - along with the stories of hero/ines who have transcended the stereotypes of race, age, and gender - you will discover that you are not alone.
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A must read!
- By Laura H. on 04-11-21
By: Jeffrey Marsh
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Existentialism and the Authentic Life
- By: Skye C. Cleary, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Skye C. Cleary
- Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins
- Original Recording
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In the 24 fascinating lectures of Existentialism and the Authentic Life, Professor Skye C. Cleary will lead you through the writings of many existentialists to help you understand how they addressed the biggest of all questions. Writing about love, death, sex, war, plagues, intrigue, murder, deception, and more, these thinkers guide you toward living an authentic and meaningful life in a world that often seems absurd.
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Friendly presentation
- By Anonymous User on 06-04-24
By: Skye C. Cleary, and others
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Unlocking the Hidden History of DNA
- By: Sam Kean, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Professor Sam Kean
- Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins
- Original Recording
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Locked inside the DNA of every species that ever lived are endless stories - about origins, ancestors, fate, and much more. Until recently, these secrets were completely inaccessible. But with the help of new technologies, scientists are now reading the hidden history of DNA, making remarkable discoveries about ourselves and our fellow species. Your gateway to this treasure trove of information is Unlocking the Hidden History of DNA, 12 informative and accessible lectures delivered by New York Times best-selling author Sam Kean.
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Great course
- By MyGrnEyesF on 04-29-21
By: Sam Kean, and others
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Don't Worry
- 48 Lessons on Relieving Anxiety from a Zen Buddhist Monk
- By: Shunmyo Masuno, Allison Markin Powell - translator
- Narrated by: Douglas Hachiya
- Length: 3 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Think of a time when you were worried about something, but then you suddenly realized how insignificant it was. Isn’t it amazing how much lighter you felt? The key is to focus only on the here and now. By doing so, you free yourself from unnecessary anxiety, and your mind will be at peace.
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Splendidly informative, interesting, provocative,
- By William R. Todd-Mancillas (Name includes hyphen and capitalized M). on 08-07-24
By: Shunmyo Masuno, and others
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The Power of Thoughts
- By: Swami Mukundananda
- Narrated by: Sanyam Sharma
- Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Incredibly, the ingredients of a hugely successful life cost nothing at all. In fact, we mass-produce 60,000 of them every day. These are the thoughts that our mind creates. They are responsible for the happiness and distress we experience. They are the precursors of all we do. We grapple with improving our actions, only to find our attempts undone by impure thinking. If we focus on transforming our thoughts instead, incredible results will accrue from a fraction of the efforts.
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Ancient wisdom validated with modern science
- By nick shroff on 01-31-23
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The Great Ideas of Philosophy, 2nd Edition
- By: Daniel N. Robinson, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Daniel N. Robinson
- Length: 30 hrs and 11 mins
- Original Recording
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Grasp the important ideas that have served as the backbone of philosophy across the ages with this extraordinary 60-lecture series. This is your opportunity to explore the enormous range of philosophical perspectives and ponder the most important and enduring of human questions-without spending your life poring over dense philosophical texts.
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A Hard Review to Write
- By Ark1836 on 11-20-15
By: Daniel N. Robinson, and others
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Being Human: Life Lessons from the Frontiers of Science
- By: Robert Sapolsky, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: The Great Courses
- Length: 5 hrs and 53 mins
- Original Recording
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Understanding our humanity - the essence of who we are - is one of the deepest mysteries and biggest challenges in modern science. Why do we have bad moods? Why are we capable of having such strange dreams? How can metaphors in our language hold such sway on our actions? As we learn more about the mechanisms of human behavior through evolutionary biology, neuroscience, anthropology, and other related fields, we're discovering just how intriguing the human species is.
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Somewhat Interesting but not Quite as Advertised
- By Adam J Duhame on 10-05-13
By: Robert Sapolsky, and others
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Coming Home to Yourself
- A Meditator's Guide to Blissful Living
- By: Osho
- Narrated by: Leslie Howard, Osho
- Length: 4 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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All of us have experienced moments of "coming home" - feeling relaxed, grounded, free of the restlessness that characterizes so much of our everyday lives. These moments can arise in nature or in the depths of an activity we enjoy, alone or together with people we love. They show us that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. The meditations in Coming Home to Yourself were selected from Osho's hundreds of public talks and intimate conversations.
By: Osho
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Understanding the Science for Tomorrow: Myth and Reality
- By: Jeffrey C. Grossman, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Jeffrey C. Grossman
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
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Science and technology are, without a doubt, two forces that will change the way you live your life in the coming months, years, and decades. And in recent decades, these forces have evolved and developed at a lightning-fast pace. Explore the many possibilities of what your future may look like with these 24 lectures: a scientifically accurate and enlightening survey of today's most advanced research in fields such as engineering, biology, chemistry, and theoretical physics.
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Outdated - The "tommorow" is tomorrow of ~2010.
- By Ran on 11-06-19
By: Jeffrey C. Grossman, and others
What listeners say about Real Zen for Real Life
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Amazon Customer
- 12-20-21
Probably the best GC yet.
I have listened to about a dozen of these. Too often, for my tastes anyway, the professor is too....how do I say... professorial. Meaning, they don't seem to in anyway embody what they are teaching. So that I'd you are listening to a lecture on Hegel, you don't get the impression that he is "Hegelian. NOT HERE.
This man really has lived and lives Zen. He didn't read it in a book. Which is good because you cannot "learn" it that way, because it isn't something learned in any usual sense of the word.
I highly recommend this for people interested in Zen. If you have no, or too little, time spent with eastern philosophy it may be hard going at times; challenging. Surely you are tough enough to be confused though.
I would send anyone here to learn about Zen. It wouldn't be a bad place (though not optimal either) to begin to learn about Buddhism either. If your on the fence, consider this a nudge.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Travis P
- 07-01-21
balanced bias and beautiful insight
The book helped me understand old issues I've had with Christianity and opened my eyes to a myriad of things I'd like to continue investigating within zen. so glad it exists and that I've been able to find it.
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5 people found this helpful
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- Nick V
- 07-18-21
An Enlightening Lecture
this audiobook surprised me with it's incredible content and the knowledge of the presenter. if you are looking to understand Zen Buddhism, or Buddhism in general, 5h8s is an amazing way to do it, and even better then the Buddhism for Dummies book (which is amazing too).
if you are coming from a Christian perspective, this is a great audiobook for you, as the presenter intertwines the two to help you understand the many similarities between them.
if you want to know more, get this audiobook... you won't be dissatisfied
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4 people found this helpful
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- DCB
- 01-20-23
very helpful
This course is great for anyone at any level of Buddhism. I recommend it highly.
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- JK
- 03-07-23
A GREAT “GREAT COURSE “
This is an outstanding set of lectures. I highly recommend getting this course.
Professor Davis is an excellent lecturer. I learned so much and I will certainly listen to this course again.
The accompanying PDF is interesting and you can also get a course outline by going to “Great Courses”.
My thanks to all involved on Audible and certainly my thanks to professor Davis, JK.
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- Gardeneroh
- 01-24-21
Excellent teacher and material
This is a "don't miss" for those interested in the topic, Dr. Davis is an internationally known scholar and practitioner of Zen who nonetheless makes the material very accessible and enjoyable. He is clear, personal, and humorous, even while presenting the history, philosophy, and practice of Zen on a very high level. I am learning so much from the course, and being inspired in my own practice. Instead of only talking about Zen concepts and figures, he also teaches how to meditate effectively ("Zen" literally means meditation) so that one can have personal experience and insights. Highly recommended!
Contents:
1 What Is Zen? Recovering the Beginner’s Mind
2 The Zen Way to Know and Forget Thyself
3 Zen Meditation: Clearing the Heart-Mind
4 How to Practice Zen Meditation
5 The Middle Way of Knowing What Suffices
Meditation Checkup: The Middle Way of Meditation
6 Embracing the Impermanence of Life
7 The True Self Is Egoless
Meditation Checkup: Lead with the Body and Physical Stillness
8 Loving Others as Yourself
9 Taking Turns as the Center of the Universe
Meditation Checkup: From Mindless Reacting to Mindful Responding
10 Who or What Is the Buddha?
11 Mind Is Buddha: If You Meet Him, Kill Him!
Meditation Checkup: Dealing with Unavoidable Pain
12 Dying to Live: Buddhism and Christianity
13 Zen beyond Mysticism: Everyday Even Mind
14 Engaged Zen: From Inner to Outer Peace
Meditation Checkup: Dealing with Distractions
15 The Dharma of Karma: We Reap What We Sow
16 Zen Morality: Follow and Then Forget Rules
17 The Zone of Zen: The Freedom of No-Mind
18 Zen Lessons from Nature: The Giving Leaves
Meditation Checkup: Three Ways of Breathing In and Out
19 Zen Art: Cultivating Naturalness
20 Zen and Words: Between Silence and Speech
Meditation Checkup: Chanting as a Meditative Practice
21 Zen and Philosophy: The Kyoto School
22 Just Sitting and Working with Koans
Meditation Checkup: Walking Meditation
23 Death and Rebirth: Or, Nirvana Here and Now
24 Reviewing the Path of Zen: The Oxherding Pictures
Finding a Zen Community
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40 people found this helpful
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- Dan
- 02-25-21
Great!
This course is Excellent. This is a perfect companion course to the other TGC classes on Buddhism.
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7 people found this helpful
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- LuLu
- 09-11-21
Making Zen relatable to us all
This is by far the BEST audible book I have had the privilege to listen to. Prof. Davis is a not only very knowledgeable, but takes a very difficult subject and makes it relatable. At no time did this feel like I was listening to a professor drone on and on, it felt as if he was sharing his knowledge with you, not talking at you. He actually explains the subject with ease giving examples of what is stated not just preachy texts. Loved his delivery and voice....truly meant to narrate audible. I would take his class, participate in his zen meditation class, and listen to anything that he has written. ....."to be sure"....Bret W. Davis is a true Sensei.....osu.
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- Jeffrey S. Geltman
- 03-19-24
Use more breath
Hard to listen to because the speaker ends every sentence without enough breath so his voice is constantly breaking up. When you don't put enough breath when you speak your words get muddy and distorted at the end of each sentence. Great information but the vocal performance is just too distracting. Every single sentence ends with his voice crackling.
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- fred
- 01-21-22
What an insightful look into the life of a Zen
This has become one of my all time favorites and I will continue to refer back to it as I practice. I enjoyed trying to guess who some of the stories were from...Thank you for hard work.
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2 people found this helpful