How to Let Things Go: 99 Tips from a Zen Buddhist Monk to Relinquish Control and Free Yourself Up for What Matters
by Shunmyo Masuno
Penguin Life, 2024, 224 pp., $26.00, hardcover
Take life’s challenges day by day with the help of Shunmyo Masuno, an internationally best-selling author, Soto Zen monk, professor, and garden designer. How to Let Things Go contains ninety-nine practical tips for easing attachment to the people, places, and things that captivate our attention. Masuno’s voice shines through his advice, which is often simply put and charmingly straightforward. Rooted in Zen teachings, this book’s accessible format and worldly focus make it a great choice for readers of all backgrounds.
First Aid Kit for the Mind: Breaking the Cycle of Habitual Behaviors
By Valerie (Vimalasara) Mason-John
Windhorse Publications, 2024, 176 pp., $17.95, paper
Award-winning author and addiction recovery coach Valerie Mason-John offers an insightful pocket-size guide to breaking free from habitual behaviors that hinder spiritual progress. Drawing on Buddhist teachings, cognitive-behavioral tools, and personal experience, Mason-John presents techniques and exercises for identifying triggers, building emotional resilience, and reconnecting with our bodies. With a sharp eye for everyday challenges, Mason-John has penned an excellent companion for anyone seeking balance and freedom from self-limiting patterns.
Vajrayāna and the Culmination of the Path
By The Dalai Lama and Thubthen Chodron
Wisdom Publications, 2024, 464 pp., $44.95, hardcover
This is the tenth and final volume of the Library of Wisdom and Compassion, a multivolume series on the Buddha’s path to awakening taught by His Holiness the Dalai Lama with assistance from Thubten Chodron, the founder and abbess of Sravasti Abbey. In this informative explication, the Dalai Lama demystifies the complexities of the Vajrayana path in a comprehensive and easy-to-understand manner. Emphasizing the need to address unrealistic claims about Vajrayana practices, His Holiness states, “It is very important as modern Buddhist practitioners that we debunk misconceptions.”
Scholar’s Corner
Pursuing Morality: Buddhism and Everyday Ethics in Southeastern Myanmar
by Justine Chambers
University of Chicago Press, 2024, 304 pp., $40.00, paper
Justine Chambers explores the Plong ethnic minority’s pursuit of moral living while facing shifting generational ties and military rule and shares how Buddhist ideas and practices circulate within families and between generations. Morality is a negotiated and contested process that depends on gender, age, and community status; and profound social changes have intensified debates about what it means to cultivate a moral Buddhist self. Pursuing Morality speaks to Buddhists beyond the borders of Myanmar, to everyone navigating a path through the complex and sometimes contradictory moral standards of their own cultures and spiritual communities.
What We’re Rereading
The Gift of Work
By Tarthang Tulku
Originally published in 1978 as Skillful Means, this perennial favorite reimagines work not as a burden but as a daily opportunity for growth and happiness. Relying on the principles of skillful means, Tarthang Tulku provides guidance on transforming workplace challenges into moments of self-discovery. The Gift of Work teaches us to realign our inner creativity and freedom with our daily lives through exercises on managing time with wisdom and performing tasks with care. This book inspires a shift in perspective—seeing work as a chance to contribute meaningfully to the world while awakening our potential. For Tarthang Tulku, even the most mundane tasks can become a source of insight, satisfaction, and lasting joy.
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