We must cultivate all three intelligences for our overall health: critical intelligence, emotional intelligence and spiritual intelligence. If one fails to the wayside, it slows the growth of other two.
Haemin Sumin
I picked up this book while I was travelling a lot by trains. As it’s common in the Netherlands that trains cancel and you suddenly have an hour on your hands. I like to spend that time strolling through book stores and exploring latest book displays and cute stationary. Consequently, one such evening I came across this book and was looking for something light to read that my sleepy head won’t mind during a train ride after an exhausting day! I flipped through the pages and I saw a few quotes and said to myself why not? It’s better than endlessly scrolling through my phone. I didn’t have much expectations from this book and just wanted it keep me company on my train rides. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised! 🙂
About the Author
Haemin Sunim is a South Korean teacher and a Seon Buddhist teacher. He’s educated at Berkley, Harvard and Princeton University. He completed his formal monastic training from Haein Monastery in South Korea. He is also the founder of the School of Broken Hearts. Haemin Sumin currently resides in Seoul and has announced that he’s quitting his public activities and returning to Zen Buddhism education institution.
Star Rating
5 stars
Summary
we prefer right words to the wrong words, we prefer honest words to the right words, we prefer real acts to the honest words.
Haemin Sumin
The things you can see only when you slow down is a book about just that. Haemin Sumin has shared his life experiences, advice and wisdom through 8 chapter in this book. Focused on life, love, relationships, mindfulness and spirituality the book has teachings with real life examples and simple language. The simplicity is the best part.
What I liked about the book
Dream big but start small. A small adjustment can have a big effect on your life.
Haemin Sumin
Calmness
It’s a wonderful collection of aphorisms. It talks about life in general and what we forget in our day to day. It’s calm and serene words help you connect with your inner self and keep you grounded. As I said before I picked it up during a time of hectic office schedule and extensive travel. It was only fitting that the first chapter is about Rest. 🙂 Any quote I read it seemed an obvious fact yet a gentle reminder I got just in time.
Religion in a meaningful way
A spiritual leader is a finger pointing at the moon. If the finger attempts to become the moon, this can lead to a grave sin.
Haemin Sumin
The moment we utter the word religion it becomes a controversial topic. Since I was a kid, I have believed religion to be a very personal thing. Something I can relate to has been mentioned in Bhagwat Geeta – My dharma can be very different from your dharma. Dharma also changes depending on the circumstances. It cannot be a blanket statement. I was happy to see the essence of spirituality captured in the teachings with examples from multiple religious beliefs.
Artwork
Love, not righteous words, can change people’s lives.
Haemin Sumin
Along with the simple yet wise words what adds to your reading experience is the beautiful artwork throughout the book. The artist is Young-Cheol Lee from Korea. His paintings are admired for their idyllic quality.
Final thoughts
Don’t try to make it perfect. Instead make it interesting!
An interior designer’s advice
There are those books that you need to dive into, they require a dedicated sitting to comprehend and make a connection. Some are those that are page turners and it takes an effort to keep them down. A few are that you can finish in a day or pick up anytime to just flip through and rediscover or remind yourself of why you liked it. I like them all. 🙂 This one falls into the latter category. Something to just keep at your desk when you are too busy and want a five minute break from it all. Just reading one quote from it will put you into a calmer state of mind. Hope you enjoy reading it.
Until next week. Ciao!
