Life Poetry

Ryokan (1758–1831) is, along with Dogen and Hakuin, one of the three giants of Zen in Japan. But unlike his two renowned colleagues, Ryokan was a societal dropout, living mostly as a hermit and a beggar. He was never head of a monastery or temple. He liked playing with children. He had no dharma heir. Even so, people recognized the depth of his realization, and he was sought out by people of all walks of life for the teaching to be experienced in just being around him.

Rumi has been described as "the most popular poet" in the United States. Rumi's popularity has gone beyond national and ethnic borders. He is considered to be one of the greatest classical poets, by the speakers of Persian language in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan. His poetry is still read worldwide today and has been translated into a wide variety of languages including Turkish, Persian, Russian, Asian, English, and Spanish languages.

The author's original music compositions accompany each poem—a feature exclusive to the audio edition. Instant National Bestseller From TikTok star and author of I Hope You Remember—which John Stamos called a “gift to the world”—Josie Balka comes this evocative collection of over...

Have you ever thought of yourself as a “vessel of love?” This image speaks to what I envision for the elderhood years. The vast life experiences of the past provided countless opportunities for our love to grow and mature. The persons we have known, what we have done or had done to us, the beliefs stretching our minds and hearts, what we gained and what we shed, the results of our choices and decisions, our deliberate participation in the evolving history of the world―all this and more we bring with us into the final decades.

Hafiz's Little Book of Life is a lush collection of more than 250 selections from his lifework (his divan). Alongside a Quran, a copy of his divan can be found in average homes in Iran—where stars can be heard singing his poetry on the radio, and lines from his poems are quoted on the street. His poetry is sure to strike a chord in the hearts of readers everywhere. This vital collection of mystical poetry focuses on the issues we encounter in everyday life. Each brief poem may be savored as an oasis of clarity in the hurried literacy of our time, or the entire book enjoyed in one sitting.

There are times when one wants to be alone, or in the company of the chosen few. Poetry is the perfect companion of that person who wants his or her spirit to be lifted up. Soul stirring poetry is rare and it is a great companion of a sensitive soul. A great poet or poetess brings out a worldly experience in such a positive manner that the reader get submerged in that blissful world that poet creates. Here is a small attempt to collect the sensitive poetry that would bring cheer to the sensitive soul who wants to experience the bliss that can be only generated by the calmed emotions of ...

Sometimes the silent whispers in our heads get so loud we start to believe the noise is real. I have been there, and the whispers almost convinced me that I should not be alive. In that darkness, I took to writing poetry and little positive notes to find light and hope. I had to convince my mind that it gets better. Nothing remains forever, not even the bad days and the sad moments. In this book, I try to make sense of my emotions and navigate the darkness through words. If you find yourself today in the same dark spot, may these poems and little notes give you a reason each day to live, ...

Hailed as one of “Oprah’s Ultimate Favorite Things,” Mark Nepo’s bestselling “thinking person’s devotional” of inspirational stories and essays is now available from S&S Audio. In this work, Mark Nepo invites listeners to explore their own inner core through the stories of ordinary...

You gotta know the rules to play the game. Ball is life. Take it to the hoop. Soar. What can we imagine for ourselves? What if we were the star players, moving and grooving through the game of life? What if we had our own rules of the game to help us get what we want, what we aspire to, what will enrich our lives? The Playbook is intended to provide inspiration for kids ages 10 and up to help them succeed on and off the court.

From Madonna to Deepak Chopra, celebrities have been recording and embracing Rumi's poetry for the past two decades, creating a resurgence of interest in this 13th century Sufi mystic. This beautiful collection of 196 of his poems, previously unavailable in English and now translated by native Persian speakers Maryam Mafi and Azima Melita Kolin, will appeal to Rumi lovers everywhere who want a guidebook for their inner journey.

Poetry is not a puzzle for experts. It is a human skill. If you can breathe, you already have the first instrument. Poems That Breathe is a practical field guide for readers and writers who want poems that feel alive on the tongue and honest on the page. It treats poetry as presence, not performance. You will learn how breath shapes line breaks, how silence gives meaning, and how to build poems that stay clear without becoming flat. This book trains you to write with grounded images, clean sound, and purpose that holds up even when no one is watching. It also helps you avoid the common ...

From the bestselling author Judith Viorst comes a witty and poignant exploration of the joys and sorrows of life’s twilight years—one that leaves us laughing, pondering, and grateful for the moments we have left. In a career that has spanned more than fifty years, Judith Viorst has...

Diane's writings are a genuine mental vacation. You actually forget all your troubles while listening to her writings. That is a gift for our times. Her listeners say many of her stories/poems have them laughing out loud, and, yes, tears arrive at poignant moments. A common response is, "I felt as if I was right in your story!"

Poetry Rx presents 50 great poems as seen through the eyes of a renowned psychiatrist and New York Times best seller. In this book, you will find insights into love, sorrow, ecstasy, and everything in between: love in the moment or for a lifetime; love that is fulfilling or addictive; when to break up and how to survive when someone breaks up with you.

A poetic portrait of faith, futility, and the joy of this mortal life. In this astoundingly unique audiobook, best-selling author N. D. Wilson reminds each of us that to truly live, we must recognize that we are dying. Every second we create more of our past. Then, we must see the future. We stand in the now. God says create. Live. Choose. Shape the past. Etch your life in stone, and what you make will be forever.

I want you to know that I see you. I want you to know that even if no one else does, even if you are a ghost in this bookshop, or just the static floating across the screen of your computer, wherever you’re reading this, I see you. I see you in the dark and I see you in the grey. I see you as a story, as words I have spoken or may yet speak. Maybe only in a memory or a dream. I see your hands and your arms and your body and your legs and your face and I see what you have been and what you will be.

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,for through him God created everything. . . . He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. —Colossians 1:15–17 Like a vast, ever-growing Tree of Life, Christ—the expression of Divine love—expands endlessly throughout the universe. This is the perspective of ancient Celtic spirituality, and it is this concept that Ray Simpson reveals in his poem-prayers. Inspired by the traditional Celtic style of prayer, he gives words to our individual ...

A 6-Week Artist’s Way Program Julia Cameron has been teaching the world about creativity since her seminal book, The Artist’s Way, first broke open the conversation around art. Now, in Write for Life, she turns to one of the subjects closest to her heart: the art and practice of writing...

From the founding member of Sonic Youth, a passionate memoir tracing the author's life and art—from his teen years as a music obsessive in small-town Connecticut, to the formation of his legendary rock group, to thirty years of creation, experimentation, and wonder "Downtown scientists rejoice!...

The first monument of real Christianity among the Saxons was the Heliand, an epic on the life of Christ in Old Saxon alliterative verse, dating from about 830. The original work attempted to make the newly imposed Christian religion intelligible to the warlike Saxons. The Heliand, extant in four manuscripts, and the fragmentary Old Saxon Genesis, are all that remain of Old Saxon poetry. This poetic harmony of the Gospels employs modern English alliterative verse couplets, in a complex structure of 75 cantos, to generate a vigorous retelling of the story of the Christ in a swaggering, epic ...