A Simpler Life: A guide to greater serenity, ease and clarity
- Downloads：1961
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-01-08 00:19:02
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：The School of Life
- ISBN：B09JVX7YZC
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Mana
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In today's world we are drowned in a consumerism， noise， information and much more。 This cult of busyness insists that a good life， indeed the only life worthy of a capable and intelligent person， is one of continuous activity and application; we must strive relentlessly to fulfil every ambition， and every hour of the day must be filled with intense activity。 This is why， ultimately， modern existence feels so complicated。 Millions of possibilities are offered to us， but we are never encouraged t In today's world we are drowned in a consumerism， noise， information and much more。 This cult of busyness insists that a good life， indeed the only life worthy of a capable and intelligent person， is one of continuous activity and application; we must strive relentlessly to fulfil every ambition， and every hour of the day must be filled with intense activity。 This is why， ultimately， modern existence feels so complicated。 Millions of possibilities are offered to us， but we are never encouraged to stop and ask what any of them might actually be for。We crave simplicity not because we are simple， but because we are drowning in complexity。The book explores ideas around minimalism， simplicity and how to live comfortably with less and is an undecorated and straightforward manual for the simpler life we hanker for – and deserve。 This book explores a set of ideas with the power to foster simpler lives。 It considers the outer world – how we might build ourselves simpler living spaces， routines， working patterns and friendships – but it also looks at how we might achieve inner simplicity。 When we lead quiet and simple lives， we aren’t deprived; we have been granted the privilege of being able to travel the unfamiliar， sometimes daunting， but essentially wondrous continents inside our own minds。Simplicity isn’t so much a life with few things and commitments in it， as a life with the right， necessary things， attuned to our flourishing。I highly recommend this guide to simpler and slower living。4，5/5 。。。more
Bernie Gourley
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This book is hard to rate because for the person who is entirely new to the subject， it will offer some interesting food for thought and point one in the direction of useful resources。 However， if you’ve been giving the topic some thought and have read works like Kamo no Chōmei’s “The Ten Foot Square Hut，” you’re likely to find it a disappointing regurgitation of the thoughts of others mixed with banal truisms。 So， I wouldn’t recommend it for someone who’s begun simplifying their lives， but for This book is hard to rate because for the person who is entirely new to the subject， it will offer some interesting food for thought and point one in the direction of useful resources。 However， if you’ve been giving the topic some thought and have read works like Kamo no Chōmei’s “The Ten Foot Square Hut，” you’re likely to find it a disappointing regurgitation of the thoughts of others mixed with banal truisms。 So， I wouldn’t recommend it for someone who’s begun simplifying their lives， but for someone who needs an entry point that isn’t as intimidating as hardcore works such as that of Chōmei it might be of use。 ttMy biggest problem with this book was that it seemed to suggest that because simplifying means more simplicity that all readers would be converging toward the same life。 In other words， that there isn’t space for a diversity of approaches to simplicity。 In one of the great ironies of the book， it advocates for reading less and having at most a dozen books on one’s shelf。 The irony isn’t the suggestion of fewer books， but that in a world in which no one had more than a dozen books on their shelves， this book would not exist on any of them。 And the kinds of books this book suggests are essentially self-help titles。 [To be fair， I almost never read self-help books because they mostly （and certainly in this case） leave me feeling like I would having come from a fortuneteller – i。e。 feeling lighter in the wallet， but no wiser in the mind。]tThis isn’t a bad book， but I think most readers can do better。 。。。more
Venky
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"Ten Foot Square Hut" is universally acclaimed to be one of the great masterpieces of Japanese literature。 It is also an autobiography of a man who spent fifteen years of his life inhabiting a space that was just 3 metres square。 Kamo no Chomei was born in an opulent family and initially led a life of grandeur。 Bequeathed a large estate by his grandmother， Chomei lacked for nothing。 However indiscriminate friendships and ill advised monetary dealings led him to financial ruin。 His fall from grac "Ten Foot Square Hut" is universally acclaimed to be one of the great masterpieces of Japanese literature。 It is also an autobiography of a man who spent fifteen years of his life inhabiting a space that was just 3 metres square。 Kamo no Chomei was born in an opulent family and initially led a life of grandeur。 Bequeathed a large estate by his grandmother， Chomei lacked for nothing。 However indiscriminate friendships and ill advised monetary dealings led him to financial ruin。 His fall from grace and means was so steep that he was forced to construct a hut with his own bare hands and forage for food on a daily basis。 His 'abode' was an isolated land's end near the hills of Toyama。 Rotting leaves nestled on the roof while moss sprouted out the floor。 He lay down every night on a pile of bracken and the hut was bereft of even a single piece of furniture。 However it was in such abject poverty that Chomei found wealth。 It was sitting in such sparse and harsh environs that he composed his mesmerising work。 When he says "I love my little hut， my simple dwelling"， the reader can almost visualise a man clad in tattered rags yet wearing a contended disposition; a man living in utter darkness yet exuding a beatific aura。 "A Simpler Life" an upcoming work from the house "The School of Life" is a primer on how to lead an uncomplicated life。 The School of Life is a global organisation that has as its objective the furtherance of efforts expended in leading fulfilled lives。 Lest the reader be misguided， "A Simpler Life" does not advocate abdication of all material riches and retreating to the confines of a meagre dwelling a la Chomei。 It does however encourage its readers to embrace a concept known as "voluntary poverty"。 Even though the term reads novel， it's practice has stood the test of time and temptation。 The Roman statesman Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus （519-430 BC） was disgusted by a devious and materialistic world。 Substituting palatial mansions for a plough， Cincinnatus retired to a life of idyllic farming。 Even when Rome was threatened by external aggression， Cincinnatus briefly returned to his erstwhile world， staved off the threat before fleeing back to his isolated farm。 A more contemporaneous example is that of the late Canadian artist Agnes Martin。 In spite of churning out art that commanded millions by way of consideration， she preferred to lead a reclusive life in a tiny self-constructed mud brick-house in New Mexico。 “A Simpler Life” advocates the removal of avoidable complications from life so as to make it eminently livable。 For example when two individuals are engaged in courtship， the tendency is to snuffle the real interests at the altar of “accommodation”。 Only when they get married do the oblivious couple realise the danger of incompatibility。 A degree of simple honesty would go a great deal in arresting an undesirable future situation。 Express your aversion to museums when goaded to visit one， but do so in a manner that is frank and respectful。 Set your expectations right and correct。 Similarly contrasting philosophies representing a generation gap characterise relationship between parents and their children。 It pays for both to speak out their minds， agreeing to disagree and reach a middle ground。 Non-interference and at times even separate existence might work wonders in furthering good relations and repairing those that are slowly but surely and steadily going downhill。 While these are dollops of wisdom that have been preached and practiced for a long time， the appeal of the book lies in the simplicity （no pun intended） with which they are conveyed and real life examples that serve as eye-openers。 The book also appeals to its readers to abhor pretentiousness and to stop leading lives for the singular purpose of obtaining approval and accord of others。 Thus there is a stampeded to read the book that is on everyone’s bookshelves after winning a prestigious prize and a mad rush to get immersed in a movie that is the rage of its day。 Even if the book does not make a jot of sense and the movie is more powerful than an anesthetic in inducing sleep， there is great hesitancy to admit the fact because doing so would make the person an “Other”， an exception from an “acceptable” norm。 I can personally relate to the example dealing with books。 Influenced a great deal by a cryptic podcast， I armed myself with ‘Infinite Jest’， Ulysses’， ‘A Confederacy of Dunces’ and ‘A Suitable Boy’。 After infinite attempts at giving the quartet a read， I finally realised the futility of my endeavours and gave up the seductive allure of being one of those ‘choice’ people who had chewed， swallowed and digested these supposed masterpieces。 Interestingly the book also warns against traveling just for the sake of it。 Just to satiate bucket lists and jump on the tourist bandwagon we seem to have made travel an absolute necessity and a chore。 Instead， one would do well to absorb the sage advice imparted by the French philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal。 “The sole cause of man’s unhappiness is that he cannot stay quietly in his room。” However this does not mean locking oneself up in the confines of a room until eternity like the unfortunate character in Charlotte Perkins Gillman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”。 All that the book requires is bouts of contemplation instead of aimless wandering。 Finally the book concludes with a plea to reconsider the phrase “retire early”。 One must not aim to confine this term purely in connection with professional responsibilities。 There must be a conscious effort to retire from perusing unnecessary wants， accumulating untold material possessions， and attending unwanted parties and congregations。 “A Simple Life” – a primer to selfless living （A Simpler Life by The School Of Life is published by The School Of Life and will be available for sale from the 31st May， 2022）Thank You Net Galley for the Advance Reviewer Copy 。。。more
Connie
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I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review， with thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley。 I was initially interested in this book because minimalism and simplicity are concepts that fascinate me。 Following watching The Minimalists documentary a few years ago， it's a choice that has always appealed to me。 It's easy to be overwhelmed by complexity in our society。 Everyone wants everything all the time and it's taxing。 Relationships， family， living， possessions I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review， with thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley。 I was initially interested in this book because minimalism and simplicity are concepts that fascinate me。 Following watching The Minimalists documentary a few years ago， it's a choice that has always appealed to me。 It's easy to be overwhelmed by complexity in our society。 Everyone wants everything all the time and it's taxing。 Relationships， family， living， possessions。 It all takes a toll one way or another。 I suspected that this book would be a really good starting point for those willing to make small changes in their lives to make a huge difference to their sense of self and mental wellbeing and I suppose in some ways it did meet that criteria。 That being said， I feel like as a whole， it largely fell flat。 This book reads as if it was written for the self-serving， the elite， those of us with the kind of money to put ourselves in what this book deems as "voluntary poverty"。 I personally found this term a bit gross。 It romanticises the notion of living with nothing when for the vast majority in poverty， this is not a choice。 This book is for the rich and the bored and I struggle to have my mind changed on that fact。 It reads more like a history lesson than a guiding book and frankly， it's very cliche。 It has nothing of substance。 It recommends that the reader should read less because we only read a lot to know everything， an absolutely nonsense notion if you ask me。 Overall， I just don't think this book achieved anything that it wanted too and I don't think I gained any insight from it other than being mildly annoyed。 If you're interested in quality content on how to simplify your life in ways， check out the likes of The Minimalists and Matt D'Alleva on Youtube。 。。。more
Tiarne
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