The Miracle of Mindfulness Book Review
I read at least 35 books a year. In this post, I’m reviewing the Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who was really great friends with Martin Luther King Jr. This is the second book that I read by the author.
🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences
The practice of mindfulness requires counting of the breathing in and out.
Creating a Mindfulness Day where you are slowly you, i.e., Saturdays are essential for rest
Active mindfulness means you are focusing on the present moment.
🎨 Impressions
This book is a part of my wintering process ( Retreating during cold and unfortunate times). During our first pandy, I am coming to terms with how I behave and act with my body.
I started my first company in 2016, forcing myself to be the best. This turned out to be a dumb mistake; I had forgotten what it feels like to be in the here and the now.
Thich Nhat Hanh taught me that it's okay to take the whole Saturday off and call it a Mindfulness day. The act of taking a bath and slowing things down is necessary for future engagements.
Who Should Read It?
If you’re working more than 10 hours a day, it's required reading. When we work these many hours, we often lose in work and not the act of doing work.
If you are into non-violent activism, Thich Nhat Hanh taught me the importance of being present and retreating to oneself during the pandemic, which has, in return, lowering my heart rate.
If you have the perfect work/ life balance for you, I don’t think you should read this. If you aren't into Buddhism philosophy, you might be thrown off with Hanh's version of mediation. However, there is a portion of the book where Hanh talks to Christians, and it's pretty profound.
How does this book embody Financial Wellness?
When we are paying attention to our day to day task, we are more likely to mindfully pay attention to our money.
☘️ How the Book Changed Me
The act of slowing down helped me see that this is right and a privilege that I can take advantage of.
Writing letters! In my 20s, I was an avid letter writer. It might have been because my friend Natalie wrote letters, so she inspired me to do so. A simple moment of gratitude can make a lifetime of differences.
MLK Jr. learned and respected Thich Nhat Hanh so much that he nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize. This is the third book that I've read of his, and this book feels more relevant than ever.
✨ My Top 3 Quotes
“Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your breath as the means to retake hold of your mind.”
“I clean this teapot with the kind of attention I would have been giving the baby Buddha or Jesus a bath.”
“There is no need to put anything in front of us and run after it. We already have everything we are looking for, everything we want to become. Be yourself. Life is as precious as it is. All the elements for your happiness are already here. There is no need to run, strive, search, or struggle. Just be."
📒 Summary + Notes
1. The Essential of Discipline
To form the habit of mindfulness requires a review of your daily life. We would look at this pattern of reviewing your daily life would hat consist of making a list and writing out all the things we did or are going to do. This is different from engaging in the act of mindfulness. Engaging in the act of mindfulness means that you are aware of what you are doing in the present moment.
Question: How do I know when I'm starting a discipline of mindfulness?
You notice it when you are engaged with the activities that you are doing. If you are noticing that you are sitting down, then you are engaging with the habit of mindfulness. If you see your hand slowly wash the dishes, you notice that you are engaging in the act of mindfulness.
When we are engaging in daily activity, we are thinking about the next thing that we have to do. We essentially lose the time of the present because we are so focused on everything else.
2. Miracle is to Walk on Earth
A thought that has never really crossed my mind is that it is a miracle to be alive. Thich Nhat Hanh explains that most of us don't recognize that our daily presence is a miracle in itself. Because many of us are forced to be on the go, we typically lose the idea of leisure. If our life is a miracle, we should treat every task as if it's the most important thing that we should do in a day. In my brain, I think that he means that we should do one task at a time with focus.
3. Day of Mindfulness
Thich Nhat Hanh is the kween of Self-care Sundays. Although my last sentence would raise eyebrows with many people, I believe that Thich Nhat Hanh recognized decades this idea that we need to have one day where we mindfully practice simple tasks. This portion was my favorite because it taught me that dedicating one day to taking a bath, reading, and walking is a perfectly normal day, and it should be placed in our daily activities.
The question to ask yourself: What is an ideal day of mindfulness?
An ideal day of mindfulness is to slow things down. This concept pairs well with the Self-Care Sunday or the Sabbath. This day is your launchpad of the week because you tell your body to retreat every week so that you can go out into the world and slay.
If you are interested in reading how people carve out their day, Tiffany's Slain's book 24/6 is a living and breathing example of carving out one day out of the week to focus on family and community. Slain is probably one of the most tech-savvy people, and she was so devout in making this idea a practice that her family purchased a home phone!
4. The Pebble
Our bodies have pebbles in them. When we tense up our faces, we make a hard surface. When we try to go to sleep, there are knots in our backs. The practice of mediation can only smooth out these pebbles. Finding time to sit our butts down in a seated position and breathe in and out, continuing the breathes in and out.
The Five Aggregates
I will be honest with you. I didn't think that I had the attention span to understand this concept fully. I will try to sum it up in one sentence we use mindfulness to strive to be interdependent to the mind, body, and spirit.