True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart

From Publishers Weekly Zen monk Nanh offers his insights into love as private emotion and public force in his thought-provoking guide to Buddhism's four key aspects of love. Narrator James Gimian, a Buddhist himself, relates Hanh's ideas with admirable clarity. However, listeners may find themselves struggling to get through the entire recording as Gimian's delivery is fairly monotonous. For those able to focus on the message rather than the medium, there is much to be gained by repeated listening. A Shambhala hardcover. (Mar.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Product Description In this treasure, the renowned Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh offers timeless insight into the nature of real love. With simplicity and warmth, he explores the four key aspects of love as described in the Buddhist tradition: loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and freedom. Thich Nhat Hanh presents transformative practices to cultivate these qualities in our day-to-day lives. He also describes how to lovingly accept ourselves when we are in the midst of challenges. 2 CDs, 2 hours. Unabridged. Review “True Love offers simple, realistic techniques that enable us to reconnect to our loved ones and to ourselves.”—Ascent Magazine “This book offers simplicity and directness that brings true love within reach.”—Dragonfly Review About the Author A Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh is an internationally known author, poet, scholar, and peace activist, and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Martin Luther King Jr. He is the author of numerous books, including the best-selling Living Buddha, Living Christ; Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames; Peace Is Every Step; and The Miracle of Mindfulness. He has founded monastic communities in France, Vermont, and California and teaches actively around the world. From AudioFile TRUE LOVE, by prolific author and Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh, feels somewhat like a Buddhist primer on how to love well. During the course of the two-hour reading by Buddhist practitioner James Gimian, the book covers the basics of mindfulness and how, with practice, it can help people develop greater compassion. Gimian's voice is slow and steady, a style that sometimes suits the spiritual attitudes that Hanh extols. But his presentation is often so flat it undermines the ideas with which Hanh wants to inspire his readers. Yet while Gimian starts his narration stiffly, he does warm up as he describes his beloved Buddhist tenets. His voice conveys the most varied tone as he relates Hanh's allegorical anecdotes of people who struggle to love. R.L.G. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine