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Voor andere auteurs genaamd Francesc Miralles, zie de verduidelijkingspagina.

Francesc Miralles (1) via een alias veranderd in Francesc Miralles Contijoch.

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Sort of interesting, but I was hoping for more. I'm glad that Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki were mentioned.
 
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aljosa95 | 20 andere besprekingen | Aug 23, 2024 |
- I learned about FLOW, to be present and be in state while you work and find your fulfillment in what you do
 
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CarlosHustin | 20 andere besprekingen | Aug 18, 2024 |
review -https://booksteacupreviews.com/2022/09/21/does-ikigai-book-really-help-in-finding-ikigai/

Ikigai is interesting and informative self-help book that focuses on how one can live long, happy, and purposeful life by finding their Ikigai.

Book started with what work Ikigai means, where the word came from, and what one can expect from the book that explores if the Ikigai is the reason more centenarians are found in Japan and what is the secret of living a long life. I love that diagram of Ikigai.

There are many points/aspects covered in this book but not all are new to me or I haven’t already known but some are interesting and informative. Most interesting parts are those that highlight Japanese culture and lifestyle.

Why 3 stars- I think ****finding Ikigai is sidetracked in some parts and it is more focused on longevity and how centenarians lived long life. All well known and universally accepted things are included. Like I said some points I already knew and so it didn’t add much for me. I also don’t think I agreed with everything. The community this book talked about, I don’t think we find that kind of community everywhere in world. I’ve seen dysfunctional and toxic communities as well.

Overall, Ikigai summarises all important concepts to live healthy, long life but I don’t think it exactly helps in finding Ikigai which is important for Long and Happy Life.
 
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BooksTeacupReviews | 20 andere besprekingen | Jun 28, 2024 |
Novel·la que barreja la història biblica de Judes amb una intriga contemporània de poder de les familíes més poderoses del món.
El ritme no és gaire dinàmic i molt sovint la trama és confusa, amb personatges molt simples. L'he trobat en general força avorrida.
 
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Jordi_Camps | 1 andere bespreking | Apr 28, 2024 |
La profecía 2013
Francesc Miralles
Publicado: 2008 | 160 páginas
Novela Fantástico

AÑO 95 D.C.: Tras ser expulsado de Éfeso por el emperador romano, San Juan se refugia en una cueva de la isla de Patmos, donde le será revelado el Apocalipsis. Allí conoce a Kynops, un hechicero que le enseña a encontrar efigies de los muertos bajo las aguas. ACTUALIDAD: Un kabalista autodenominado Kynops, líder de Renacimiento ―una organización ecologista ultraviolenta―, se ha instalado en Patmos para recibir la nueva profecía, según la cual la humanidad debe tocar a su fin el 2013. Mientras busca unas misteriosas cartas robadas, el periodista Leo Vidal se encontrará siguiendo la pista de unos crímenes que siguen deliberadamente los arquetipos de Jung, un anzuelo para llevarlo hasta las entrañas de Renacimiento…
 
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libreriarofer | Apr 25, 2024 |
El 23 de octubre de 1940, coincidiendo con la visita de Hitler a Hendaya, el jefe de las SS Heinrich Himmler escondió en las montañas de Montserrat una misteriosa caja que contenía el gran secreto del Führer. Setenta años después, el periodista Leo Vidal recibe el encargo de hallar una fotografía inédita de aquella expedición a Montserrat. En su investigación, que se convertirá progresivamente en un oscuro y peligroso juego, recorrerá medio mundo hasta descubrir, casi sin quererlo, uno de los grandes misterios de la Historia. Una enigmática hermandad internacional ha custodiado el preciado tesoro, ahora, casi 130 años después del nacimiento de Hitler es el momento elegido para que salga a la luz. ¿Podrá alguien detenerlos?
 
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libreriarofer | 5 andere besprekingen | Dec 21, 2023 |
The gist: Okinawans consume a rainbow of vegetables, only eat to 80% fullness, do low intensity exercise, have healthy relationships with their friends, smile, live in the present, connect with nature and tend to their allotments (for most of the Okinawans in the book, this is also their ikigai).

The book mainly focuses on Okinawans who are retired in the professional sense, and who busy themselves with social and naturalistic activities around the island. In the UK, people aged 65-79 are also the happiest group in society, but they also live in dramatically different circumstances to younger age groups. With that in mind, can centenarians without a day in day out routine really give effective advice to a millennial yuppie who desperately wants more meaning in her life, but cannot find it?

I think the central problem with this book is that it never really delves into the idea of ikigai, or at least not in a rigorous way. I was often confused by the activities that the authors identified as one's ikigai. For instance, tending to an allotment is indeed an enjoyable task, but if 100% of the people described in the book keep vegetable gardens, then I highly doubt that it is something one 'can be paid for', the bottommost circle of the diagram. Further to that, it is not necessarily something the world needs either, as it is done for the benefit of the individual; low demand is created by such abundance. Below are two similarly inconsistent examples from the book. I would make it three, but there are so few case studies of ikigai actually in the text that I can only really cite two.

> Parenting as ikigai: you may love it, be good at it, the world certainly needs it, but who gets paid for being a parent?

> Being in a relationship as ikigai: your spouse may need you desperately, and you may love her, and you might also be a good partner, but to achieve ikigai you still need to be paid for your relationship, and may have to consider some saucy career options as a result.

Many millenials are deeply talented individuals --musicians, artists, software developers, writers-- with strong senses of both passion and mission. For most of us, however, we haven't been able to turn the things we love, are good at, or which the world needs into professions or vocations. For me, this book fails to acknowledge the disturbing truth of the bottommost circle: it's extremely difficult to get paid for almost anything unless it's on someone else's terms.

I was hoping this book would reconcile internal goals with external limitations, but it doesn't. Instead, it just seems to glorify a culture of either starving artists, or low expectations. In which case, who the hell would want to live to 100?
 
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nmnili | 20 andere besprekingen | Dec 13, 2023 |
23 de octubre de 1940. Coincidiendo con la visita de Hitler a Hendaya, el jefe de las SS, Heinrich Himmler, esconde en las montañas de Montserrat una caja, el gran secreto de Führer, cuyo contenido guarda un misterio.
Actualidad. El periodista Leo Vidal recibe el encargo de hallar una fotografía inédita de la expedición nazi a Montserrat. Un juego peligroso y oscuro le llevará a recorrer medio mundo para descubrir una conspiración que nadie se atrevió a sospechar.
 
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Natt90 | 5 andere besprekingen | Mar 27, 2023 |
Año 28. Judas Iscariote vende a Jesús de Nazareth a cambio de 30 monedas de plata al sumo sacerdote. Poco después, se arrepiente de sus actos y, antes de suicidarse, arroja las monedas en el tiemplo.
Actualidad. Andreas Fortuny, un modesto guía de viajes de aventura, visita Jerusalén, donde se ha descubierto un testamento escrito por Judas. Paralelamente, una crónica gnóstica describe la trayectoria de los 30 siclos de plata que, tras la muerte de Jesús, fueron pasando de manos, convertidas en talismanes que otorgan la prosperidad y el poder absolutos.
Estimulado por este hallazgo, investigará el recorrido posterior del Legado de Judas, del que se conservan siete monedas que están en manos de las siete familias más poderosas del mundo. Andreas encuentra evidencias de que algunas fortunas inexplicables, como la de Rockefeller, se fraguaron tras hallar una de estas reliquias.
Mientras tanto, una oscura y violenta organización se ha dedicado a robar estos talismanes para trasladar la hegemonía económica de Occidente a Oriente. En medio de una oleada de asesinatos y traiciones, un agente de las altas esferas financieras ha ocultado las monedas en edificios emblemáticos para evitar que el poder cambie de manos.
Andreas se verá empujado a colaborar con una mujer enigmática que se propone la destrucción del legado de Judas para devolver el equilibrio al mundo al borde del colapso...
 
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Natt90 | 1 andere bespreking | Mar 20, 2023 |
Josan pasa las vacaciones de verano con sus padres en un hotel de la costa. Mientras trata de planificar el futuro inmediato, dedica su tiempo a leer libros de filosofía y a interrogarse sobre lodivino y lo humano. Durante una siesta fallida, encuentra bajo el colchón de su cama un diario como los que guardaba su abuela de su infancia. Sobre las tapas de cuero, alguien ha escrito con purpurina plateada: DIARIO DE AROHA.Fascinado con este hallazgo, Josan pasa los días siguientes leyendo el diario de una joven que, a punto de cumplir los dieciocho, dice odiar a sus adinerados padres y todo lo que ellos han dispuesto para su vida. Dentro del diario, Josan encuentra una fotografía. Detrás de ella, Aroha ha escrito: «Búscame y te encontrarás».
 
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Natt90 | Nov 9, 2022 |
Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
 
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fernandie | 10 andere besprekingen | Sep 15, 2022 |
A life changing book based on a research about the centenarians (a person who's 100 years old or more) of village Ogimi in Okinawa, Japan.

The writers composed some factors behind the longevity (long life) of Japanese citizens.

It's simply an amazing book, it helps you to clear your thoughts about health and give you an out tunnel thinking for the life, this book is wonderful for those who want to lead a satisfactory life and want to find their own Ikigai(the true self ) which makes you happy, and there is a perfect Venn diagram that represents what we wanted to do in life. please check out this book and it should be on the recommendation list of every good reader.½
 
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zarmin__waseem | 20 andere besprekingen | Sep 12, 2022 |
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Hector Garcia

Why I picked this book up: A 67 yo Mexican male, max security inmate, told me, “I am broken.” “I am in prison because my daughter told them (the police) that I was hitting her because her lip was bleeding all over and that I had her in the ground which isn’t the truth and later she even admitted it was a lie and now I am serving life in prison. “I am broken and hurting bad, but my daughter went off on me for never being around her, messing around with all the gang stuff and being locked down for years and she blames me and I never knew being away from my family was this bad.” “Really I told her to stop using drugs and to get right for my great granddaughter and homhas selective mutism but she laid into me for not being there in her life because I’ve been locked up for years. Now I am trying to learn about the Japanese concept of Ikigai that is when pottery gets broke and instead of throwing it away like it was ruined but I am learning how to take the broken pieces and make a whole new beautiful new thing from the pieces.” Since he told me about this concept I picked this book up to see what it is about.

Thoughts: Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life is a powerful and well-researched account of the inspiring lives of Japanese supercentenarians (people living beyond the age of 110) from the longest-living community in the world: Okinawa.

Chapter by chapter, the book walks you through Okinawans’ lifestyles, their mindsets, attitudes, diets, and routines, encouraging you to find your own ikigai. The term can be translated as one’s reason for being, although this is an interpretation since in Japanese it literally means lifetime and everyday life

1. It Made Me Feel Like I Have a Purpose (“Our ikigai is different for all of us, but one
thing we have in common is that we are all searching for meaning.”― Francesco
Miralles and Hector Garcia
2. It Made Me Feel Like I Have a Purpose. (“There is no future, no past. There is only the present.”― Francesco Miralles and Hector Garcia)
3. It Shows That Happiness Lies in Simplicity (“Essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.”
― Francesco Miralles and Hector Garcia
4. It Promotes an Intuitive Approach to Health“The keys to longevity are diet, exercise, finding a purpose in life (an ikigai), and forming strong social ties.”
― Francesco Miralles and Hector Garcia It Made Me Regain My Positivity
5. “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”
― Francesco Miralles and Hector Garcia
Japanese psychologist Michiko Kumano (2017) has said that ikigai is a state of wellbeing that arises from devotion to activities one enjoys, ...

Ikigai (ee-key-guy) is a Japanese concept that combines the terms iki, meaning “alive” or “life,” and gai, meaning “benefit” or “worth.”
When combined, these terms mean that which gives your life worth, meaning, or purpose.
Ikigai is similar to the French term “raison d’etre” or “reason for being.”

The concept of ikigai is said to have evolved from the basic health and wellness principles of traditional Japanese medicine. This medical tradition holds that physical wellbeing is affected by one’s mental–emotional health and sense of purpose in life.
Japanese psychologist Michiko Kumano (2017) has said that ikigai is a state of wellbeing that arises from devotion to activities one enjoys, which also brings a sense of fulfillment.
Michiko further distinguishes ikigai from transitory pleasure (hedonia, in the ancient Greek sense) and aligns it with eudaimonia – the ancient Greek sense of a life well lived, leading to the highest and most lasting form of happiness.
Ikigai also resonates with Cognitive–Behavioral Therapy’s emphasis on pursuing activities that produce enjoyment and a sense of mastery, specifically as a way to alleviate depressive disorder.
Ken Mogi, a neuroscientist and author of Awakening Your Ikigai (2018, p. 3), says that ikigai is an ancient and familiar concept for the Japanese, which can be translated simply as “a reason to get up in the morning” or, more poetically, “waking up to joy.”
Ikigai also appears related to the concept of flow, as described in the work of Hungarian–American psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. For Csikszentmihalyi, flow occurs when you are in your “zone,” as they say of high-performing athletes.
Flow is a string of “best moments” or moments when we are at our best. These best moments “usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limit, in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990).
Flow can be said to occur when you are consistently doing something you love and that you are good at, with the possible added benefit of bringing value to others’ lives. In such a case, flow might be seen as in tune with your ikigai, or activities that give your life meaning and purpose.
It is important to note that ikigai does not typically refer only to one’s personal purpose and fulfillment in life, without regard to others or society at large.
Although it has had some historical shifts in meaning, ikigai has usually been cited as both a personal pursuit and one of benefit to others. In the end, ikigai brings meaning, purpose, and fulfillment to your life, while also contributing to the good of others.
Further, it is said that everyone has an ikigai – their particular intersection of passion, talent, and potential to benefit others. It is only a matter of finding it. The journey to ikigai might require time, deep self-reflection, and effort, but it is one we can all make.
The concept of ikigai as a purpose in life with both personal and social dimensions is captured by the well-known ikigai diagram. This diagram includes overlapping spheres covering:
* What you love
* What you are good at
* What the world needs
* What you can get paid for
*
The Ikigai Diagram: A Philosophical Perspective

Adapted from PositivePsychology.com’s Toolkit, 2020
As this diagram shows, ikigai holds the central position and involves four major spheres of interest and how they might overlap in one’s life. In trying to determine your own personal ikigai with the help of such a diagram, you would fill in each sphere with its appropriate content based on your own experiences, self-knowledge, and understanding of the world.
Some of the content that would go into these spheres might come easily to you. Other content might take more time and self-reflection. In any case, filling in such a diagram can help clarify where you stand in your search for ikigai and how to make any needed adjustments to attain this sometimes elusive way of being.

You Love It
This sphere includes what we do or experience that brings us the most joy in life and makes us feel most alive and fulfilled. What we love in this sense might be sailing, writing poetry, rock climbing, singing in a rock band, reading historical novels, spending leisure time with friends, etc.
What is important is that we allow ourselves to think deeply about what we love, without any concern for whether we are good at it, whether the world needs it, or if we can get paid for doing it.

You Are Great at It
This sphere includes anything you are particularly good at, such as skills you’ve learned, hobbies you’ve pursued, talents you’ve shown since an early age, etc. What you are good at might be, for example, playing the piano, being empathic, public speaking, sports, brain surgery, or painting portraits.
This sphere encompasses talents or capabilities, whether or not you are passionate about them, whether the world needs them, or if you can get paid for them.

The World Needs It
The “world” here might be humanity as a whole, a small community you are in touch with, or anything in between. What the world needs might be based on your impressions or needs expressed by others. The world’s needs might include skilled nursing, clean water, home heating, election day volunteers, or improved police training.
This domain of ikigai connects most explicitly with other people and doing good for them, beyond one’s own needs.

You Are Paid for It
This dimension of the diagram also refers to the world or society at large, in that it involves what someone else is willing to pay you for or “what the market will bear.” You might be passionate about writing poetry or very good at rock climbing, but this does not necessarily mean you can get paid for it.
Whether you can get paid for your passions or talents depends on factors such as the state of the economy, whether your passions/talents are in demand, etc.


It is further noted that according to this diagram:
At the intersection of what you love and what you are good at is your passion.
At the intersection of what you love and what the world needs is your mission.
At the intersection of what the world needs and what you can get paid for is your vocation.
At the intersection of what you are good at and what you can get paid for is your profession.
A “sweet spot” within this ikigai diagram would therefore involve something you are passionate about, that you are also good at, that the world needs now, and for which someone will pay you. For example, if I am passionate about crisis counseling, am also skilled at it, there is a need for it in my world at the time, and I have several job offers in this field, I might say I’ve found my ikigai sweet spot.
There is a healthy debate about whether the diagram discussed above best represents the traditional Japanese concept of ikigai or a Westernized version of it.
Not all the above dimensions are necessarily components of ikigai as traditionally understood by its Japanese adherents (Ikigai Tribe, 2019).
Some adherents will say that one’s ikigai does not have to involve something the world needs, or that you can get paid for, or that is a talent. These adherents hold that ikigai is not a “lofty and formidable goal to achieve” (Ikigai Tribe, 2019). Instead, they believe that the traditional Japanese concept of ikigai is closer to:
“…embracing the joy of little things, being in the here and now, reflecting on past happy memories, and having a frame of mind that one can build a happy and active life.”
(Ikigai Tribe, 2019)
Such a concept of ikigai reportedly has little to do with “professional success or entrepreneurship” (Ikigai Tribe, 2019).
This conception of ikigai sounds close to a Zen Buddhist mentality, emphasizing being active, being in the moment, taking joy in the small occurrences in life, and finding a state of flow in one’s life (Hatwalne, 2020).
Whether the ikigai diagram above is traditional or not, filling it in is arguably a useful task. And whether or not the center of such a diagram would represent your personal “sweet spot” as a lifestyle, it should still be useful to determine what “sweet spot” you might find that combines the basic dimensions of “I am passionate about this; it makes me happy” and “This would allow me to do good for others, as well.”

3 Examples of Living According to Ikigai

The famous Japanese sushi chef Jiro Ono provides an apt illustration of ikigai, conceived as devotion to a pursuit that brings a sense of fulfillment or accomplishment.
Chef Ono has devoted his life to innovating and perfecting sushi-making techniques. He runs a small, exclusive 10-seat sushi restaurant in Tokyo, Japan.
Chef Ono has achieved the highest Michelin restaurant guide rating of three stars and is widely considered the most accomplished sushi chef globally. In Jiro Dreams of Sushi (Gelb, Iwashina, Pellegrini, & Ono, 2012), the award-winning documentary about his life and work, Chef Ono states:
“You have to fall in love with your work… dedicate your life to mastering your skill… I’ll keep trying to reach the top, but no one knows where the top is.”
(Age of Ideas, 2020)
This is a good illustration of ikigai as a devotion to what one loves, an effort toward mastery and accomplishment, and a never-ending journey that also brings a sense of fulfillment.
Interestingly, Chef Ono does not only manage the preparation of sushi in his restaurant. Due to its small size and open layout, he can observe up close his customers’ tasting and reactions to a meal and is known to modify the sushi based on such reactions.
Central to Chef Ono’s ikigai, one might say, would be pursuing excellence in sushi preparation and sharing this excellence with those who love sushi and fine dining.
Other individuals who can be said to exemplify finding ikigai include the world-famous primatologist, Jane Goodall.
Goodall has had a passion for animals, and especially primates, from an early age. In her early 20s, she pursued her passion for primates by writing to the anthropologist Louis Leakey. Leakey thought the study of present-day great apes would provide clues about the behavior of his primary interest: early human ancestors.
With Leakey’s help, Goodall started her lifelong study of apes in the wild. She became highly skilled at working closely with apes, documenting their intelligence and social interactions. She also became an animal rights advocate who has helped save apes and other animals from harmful experiments and the destruction of their habitats.
In this way, Goodall has pursued her passion, become skilled in this field, filled the world’s need for knowledge/protection of primates, and earned a living doing all this by publishing books on ape behavior and earning speaking fees.
One might say that central to her ikigai is connecting with, learning about, and advocating for the great apes, and through this connection, linking up in positive ways with all living things.
Another example of someone having found their ikigai, or fulfilling purpose in life, can be seen in surfer and wildlife advocate Dave Rastovich. Rastovich is a highly acclaimed “free” surfer with generous sponsorships but no contest involvement. He founded Surfers for Cetaceans, an organization devoted to protecting cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises, and whales) and all marine life.
Through his love of surfing and the ocean, Rastovich grew to admire the many dolphins who came to ride waves with him in Byron Bay, Australia. Rastovich has clearly experienced a particular type of flow with his surfing. Through it, he came to appreciate the lives of cetaceans in particular.
His ikigai might be said to lie in the pursuit of flow states in surfing and ensuring that other living creatures like cetaceans get to experience their own flow states, rather than being hunted, held in aquariums, or trapped in fishing nets.

A fillable ikigai diagram is one of the three free downloads in the PositivePsychology.com Toolkit. This diagram allows you to fill in what you love, what you are great at, what you believe the world needs, and what you can get paid for.
We hope that you will gain further insight into your purpose in life and motivation for pursuing it in filling out the diagram.

A Take-Home Message
Searching for ikigai, one’s reason for being or waking each morning joyfully, is arguably what many people are doing already, whether consciously or not. Even though the conceptions of ikigai can vary, as we have seen, there is general agreement that finding this motivating purpose in life is associated with greater fulfillment and happiness.
There are basic human drives to pursue our passions, develop our talents, help others, and make a living. Simultaneously, it is not always clear where these drives might coalesce in a path that leads to a fulfilling life. This is where reflection and self-study come in.
We hope this article has inspired you to reflect on your own ikigai and to pursue it using an ikigai diagram or your own form of self-reflection. Don’t forget to download our three Meaning and Valued Living Exercises for free.

In my gut I have felt the monetizing of a transcendent quality of one’s inner being abrasive and discordant..Life and our purpose do not gravitate around what we can take to the bank and I think all that is broken in society and government Why I finished this read: Okinawans view ikigai as a way to describe the 'why' behind their daily life. They have a reason to get up in the morning, which means they have something to live for. Ikigai is the philosophy that blissfully keeps them busy until the end of their days. Other cultures follow a path that society has created for us.Apr

Why I finished this read: Camus’ philosophy of absurdism, living in the now, how to live in the present and Marcus Aurelius’ how to stop worrying (Stoicism) and mindfulness I am getting into so I wanted to finish it.

I rated this 4 out I’d 5 stars.
 
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DrT | 20 andere besprekingen | Mar 15, 2022 |
My take on this in summary: Self-discipline is of utmost importance and single filed mind is the best to be fully productive as opposed to multi-tasking. We may have many ikigai's but doing it one at a time, fully focus at each one and diligently is the best. Too many distractions in life such as soc-med will disrupt our concentration so to tone down our mind and hone our skill by doing meditation and ritual of sorts like a simple exercise, yoga, qigong and tai chi to name a few.

You can read my full review here:
http://www.sholee.net/2020/04/mpov-ikigai.html
 
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Sholee | 20 andere besprekingen | Sep 9, 2021 |
This could have been a good book, but the authors would need to go and spend a substantial amount of time living with these old folks. Apart from a few quotes there was very little detailed information about the Japanese town in which people live so long. There were a few takeaways, but nothing particularly new or surprising. Which is a pity really, because some proper travel writing about the village combined with an insight into Japanese philosophy and with a scientific reflection could be a decent read.
 
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KittyCatrinCat | 20 andere besprekingen | Aug 29, 2021 |
Picked up the book to learn about Ikigai. The book, however, is a collection of various practices in Japanese culture. The book is helpful, nonetheless, with plenty of useful information and a glimpse into the culture of Japan.
 
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abhijeetkumar | 20 andere besprekingen | Aug 22, 2021 |
You ever have the feeling that the person you're talking to is either completely insane or weirdly brilliant? This ambiguity is often cleared up when you find out just how high they are (so high right now, dude), but every once in a while there's always that hobo who seems like he has a much better idea of what's actually going on than you do, and he looks perfectly thrilled right where he is.
That's kind of how I feel about the main character. He's constantly running from event to event, plucking with strings that seem to connect them but don't, only to find out later there's a thick web of cable supporting the whole enterprise. The only cogent summary I can offer is "lonely guy starts to meet the world, except the world is full of all the people you've actually met and try to pretend you're not friends (with even though you hang out with that guy all the time)."

Reading this book feels like trying to navigate the stairs when you're drunk. Not like just trying to clamber your way down the concrete steps outside the dance bar in the middle of February, where you feel warm (because liquor) but there's a thick sheet of ice coating the left half of the stairs, and you're seizing the railing like you're onboard the Titanic trying to fight your way past some Irish dudes to the bow before it slips and carries you down into the North Atlantic. More like the first time you ever had alcohol and you managed to put away two Zimas and you were walking down an extremely narrow, steeply sloped staircase and you slipped a little bit and your arm automatically went out to try to stabilize yourself and you wound up putting your elbow through the wall?

Except it's more of a love story.
 
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kaitwallas | 10 andere besprekingen | May 21, 2021 |
Sekretet japoneze për një jetë të gjatë dhe të lumtur. Sillni kuptim dhe hare ditëve tuaja me udhërrëfyes ikigain.
 
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BibliotekaFeniks | 20 andere besprekingen | Feb 17, 2021 |
Part explanation and part how-to, this easy-to-follow book gives its readers a look into the lives of a community of people on Okinawa who are credited with being some of the longest-lived people on Earth. The authors share stories, comments, and scientific findings as well as the food, work, movement exercises, and beliefs that these super-centarians make use of every single day---ways of living that they believe have allowed them to live such happy, long lives. Just using the spiritually based movement practices described and illustrated in the second half of the book will go far in helping readers to enter the flow as they find their own ikigai; their particular way to invite in happiness.
 
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064 | 20 andere besprekingen | Dec 25, 2020 |
Ikigai, formed with the Chinese characters for "obvious" and "blindingly". Get a little exercise, don't eat too much and have something to live for. Not a secret. There, I saved you the time you'd waste to read this vapid puff piece.
 
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Paul_S | 20 andere besprekingen | Dec 23, 2020 |
Hmmm....challenging one to quantify and explain. It is heartwarming, but deceptive: such a small book has a lot of depth and philosophy in it. It's very "meta" and I'm not sure I understood the half of it, but it was an enjoyable read. The name of the book is actually the name of a chapter the main character, Samuel de Juan is writing, but simultaneously living. He explains this to his love interest from childhood, Gabriela, whom he is currently trying to win and woo after meeting up with her randomly: [love in lowercase is] when some small act of kindness sets off a chain of events that comes around again the the form of multiplied love. Then, even if you want to return to where you started, it's too late, because this love in lowercase has wiped away all traces of the path back to where you were before." (161). See what I mean? The book is quirky and clever and the most straightforward way to explain the narrative line is that Samuel leads a pretty solitary existence until a cat, (whom he names Mishima) wanders into his apartment and sparks off a chain reaction of introducing him to various other typically solitary characters: Titus, the gruff old man from upstairs is an editor and a closet philosopher and learning of Samuel's role as an academic teaching German literature at a Spanish university, he ropes him into completing the book mentioned above. An errand for Titus is what puts Gabriela in Samuel's path and in staking out a spot to try to find her again, Samuel befriends Valdemar a paranoid physicist who has written a treatise on the moon. In meeting Valdemar consistently at a cafe, Samuel observes and eventually meets Ruben an engineer vacationing in Spain. Underlying all these serendipitous meetings is the idea that things happen for a reason, and the trick is to keep reading to find out.
 
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CarrieWuj | 10 andere besprekingen | Oct 24, 2020 |
This was a disjointed assembly of tips on living well, circling the concept but never really getting there. Disappointing.
 
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AnnaWaffles | 20 andere besprekingen | Aug 28, 2020 |
Google it. Quicker and more to the point.
 
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expatb | 20 andere besprekingen | Jul 16, 2020 |
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