Books are pivotal in getting across a story or philosophy to mass number of people. The best books are the ones that speak to you as an individual reader.
Below is a list of 4 well known and not so well-known books that are inspiring, consciousness-driven and empowering. The books share wisdom in different spheres of life (mindfulness, love, anger, consciousness) and provide practical tools for us to start imbibing the concepts in our day to day lives. You can see the links in the titles of the books
All of these are simple reads that can help you understand and transform your thoughts and actions today.
Book 1: Wisdom for a meaningful life by John Bruna
The profound simplicity of this book is inspiring. John Bruna lays out a practical and step-by-step approach to transforming the way we live our day to day. My two favorite things about the book are — the affordable price and foundation meditation/awareness practices.
John also shares a few of his personal stories of immense transformation and they are very motivating and empowering. Most of my approach to my mornings comes from this book.
If you do not buy anything else from this list, I would suggest you get a copy of this book and read it with an open mind. The book will help solidify your foundations as you embark on any form of a mindfulness or conscious living journey.
Book 2: 40 Rules of Love by Elif Shafak
40 Rules of Love is a work of fiction that draws from philosophies of Shams Tabriz and Rumi. The beauty of the book is its ability to reconnect you to the pure source of love. The moments that you will spend reading the beautiful lines of this book will transport you to a different world. For me, this book is a constant reminder that love lives in all of us.
The book oscillates between two different eras (the present and Rumi’s). Each chapter comes with profound wisdom. The book might not give you a practical guide to living your life more meaningfully, but it will introduce you to simple philosophies and concepts.
You may choose read the book as pure fiction, in which case, I recommend it as a beautifully written work of literature.
Book 3: The Dance of Anger by Harriet Lerner
I bought this book with a lot of skepticism. It has been written by a clinical psychologist. My long standing prejudice against Clinical Psychologists dictated that the book will be too scientific and might not dive deep enough into human triggers and emotions. Boy was I wrong. Dr. Lerner provides a revolutionary new way of looking at anger (both aggressive and passive).
She explores her theory with lot of practical examples and some gridlock situations that can occur in relationships closest to us. Having gone through many books on anger, I can confidently say that this book provides the closest practical understanding in today’s world.
Many approaches to anger fail because they assume that ANGER IS WRONG. Harriet has succeeded in breaking that pattern to a constructive way of thinking about anger.
If you or someone you know struggles with bouts of anger, I highly recommend this book. The book will not be to everyone’s palate because it forces the reader to ask some very pertinent questions and not all of us are ready to really look at our lives with a clean lens yet.
Book 4: The New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
Eckhart Tolle probably needs no introduction. He is the bestselling writer of Power of Now. I stumbled upon one of his YouTube videos and was drawn to the way he addressed questions that were raised by people. The book is good for people who are acquainted with the concepts of energy bodies and the power of our thoughts.
Eckhart could have laid out his teachings in less than 100 pages, so the book definitely can be a little repetitive. However, this is the first book that has laid out the concept of pain body so clearly and provides basic tools that take us towards more awareness.
While the other books in the list serve literary or practical or transformation purpose, The New Earth is a guidebook that starts introducing a new way of thinking into our lives. If you are curious about presence, awareness and past pain — this book will be an interesting read.