Make your life zen

I just read this really amazing book. It's called "Zen: 24/7." It literally goes through almost any action, chore, errand, activity any person would go through in a day. It then relates that activity to something in the history of Buddhism and talks about the zen way to approach the activity.

My favorite is zen dessert. It talks about the importance of indulgence and learning how to savor things in life. It seems like such a simple thing, but so many people either neglect to do it at all or if they do, do not fully enjoy what they are taking in.

This book is wonderful because it reminds me of how easy it is to become mesmerized by little things in life that you go through the motions of every day without even thinking twice. If everyone in the world stopped to think about how all the components of their life contributed to a better existence for them, I think everyone would get along a lot better and the world would be an exponentially better place.

Lots of very trustworthy sources will tell you that spirituality is a common factor amongst the happiest people in the world. I can definitely believe that. People who are unhappy tend to get caught up in their problems and focus too much on introspection, which can sometimes lead to wallowing. It's important to take a step back and examine something bigger than you. Note that I think this is different than religion, which I am not a big fan of. Religion to me seems cultish and group motivated. Spirituality is self motivated and reminds people to put things in perspective. I've been reading a lot about Buddhism lately, and although this IS a religion, it seems different. In Catholicism, for example, it's an all or nothing deal - you either choose to be completely Catholic, participating in all the rituals, taking what you believe with what you find to be preposterous just to be a member of the Catholic community. It seems pretentious. Buddhism really attempts to reach people on any level. You can choose all, or just parts, but any attempt to understand is welcomed.

Anyway - this book is one of the best I've read so far (it's the final one for now in a series of six) so check it out!