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  excerpt from Introductory Lectures on Religious Philosophy by Dr. Amir Sabzevary From Chapter 1. Introduction to Religious Philosophy [Lester: So this is a course on religion. What do you mean exactly by “religion,” or by “philosophy”?] There is this wonderful animal called a salmon fish, which of course begins life as a tiny egg. By the sheer force of the water, this egg soon finds itself at the bottom of a river and after a few weeks, the shell opens and out comes a fish. At the bottom of the river, this fish makes lots of friends, buys a house, has children, and has everything that could possibly make it happy. In other words, life is really good for this salmon. Without any warning though, she gets attacked by her own psychology. Don’t ask me how it happens, but one morning the fish says to herself, “I don’t belong here. This is not my home. I have a house, but it’s no longer livable. I have a relationship, in which I feel profoundly alone. I have children, but they’re all like

    Today's book excerpt comes from  Weekly Soul: Fifty-two Meditations on Meaningful, Joyful, and Peaceful Living   by Frederic Craigie . INTRODUCTION   In August, 2004, my friend and psychologist colleague Peter Flournoy, Ph.D., died of cancer at the age of 45. Peter was a remarkable person, an energetic professional, and a gentle soul. He experienced his cancer as a blessing that taught him more about life than he otherwise would have understood. He packed a lot into the last couple of years of his life, ice climbing several times and sea kayaking to Monhegan Island (ten miles off the Maine coast—not for the faint of heart) a month before his death. Peter was also excited about his spiritual life, which was informed particularly by Buddhist philosophy and practice in his last years. His memorial service took place on a glorious summer day. We who attended all received a card with a favorite meditative image of Peter’s and his words:   Life has taught me not to grasp and hold but

  Excerpt from Tips, Tools, and Anecdotes to Help during a Pandemic (Charnas) 5. TOUGH TIMES   Running a therapy group on happiness is one of my favorite job responsibilities. There’s a huge industry focused on happiness. While doing research for the group, I learned that optimism boosts happiness, so we discuss this concept in the group. Like many of the things that make people happy, optimism may be innate, or we may have to mindfully develop the habits and skills that boost this attitude. Here’s my template for optimism:   Be hopeful. Show up. Do your best. Let go. Repeat.   Over the years, I’ve found it’s a winning formula. For more posts by and about Joanna and her books, click HERE . For more book excerpts, click HERE . For more pandemic books that are still relevant, click HERE . the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to submit a proposal .

  Book Excerpt: Nurturing Contentment What makes us happy? I just made a list, and on it, I placed such items as “writing on the beach,” “cooking something interesting,” and “having lunch with Karen.” There are 20 such items—I could certainly come up with more. Plunging a little deeper into my memory, I could add “making love with my husband, Jack” (the last time was in 2010, the year before he died on January 2, 2011.), “vacation in the Keys” (2009), and “camping in upstate New York” (2002). If I think about these things and why they made me happy, I can see that all of them concerned getting in touch with a certain radiance or connection to love, and not just a personal love, although I certainly felt that for my late husband (and still do). I feel love for my friend Karen, and for the beach, cooking, the Keys, and the land in South Kortright, New York, where Jack and I used to camp. (I confess the last few times were in a trailer, not a tent!) But the love I am speaking of goe

Do You Love Me?   Arthur  Yavelberg     "Do you love me?   Most people see such a question and assume it comes from some  starry-eyed  young person, thrilled with emotion but quivering that the feelings are not mutual. Depending on the experiences of the reader, the reactions might range from a nostalgic "How sweet!" to the hardened "How stupid!" to the cynical "How naive!" There might even be the analytical "Once again the Darwinian drive to perpetuate the species rears its ugly head."   As it turns out, the question is posed by a wizened, abjectly poor Jewish farmer to his equally wizened wife of some 25 years.  In the musical, “Fiddler on the Roof,” Tevye and Goldie are contemplating the arranged marriage of the first of their five daughters in the pogrom-ridden, Russian village of  Anatevka   around the turn of the century.  They are wrinkled, rather shapeless, shabbily dressed and, maybe worst of all, just oh so tired by years of peasan