Turning Suffering Inside Out: A Zen Approach to Living with Physical and Emotional Pain

Cohen, Darlene

ISBN 10: 1570628173 / ISBN 13: 9781570628177

Published by Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 2002

About this Item

"First Paperback Edition" and "Originally published: Finding a joyful life in the heart of pain, 2000." stated. Number line beginning with 1. Fine wraps/paperback. Only trivial, if any signs of age/wear/previous use. Appears to be inscribed by author on first/half title page: To XXXXXX, I wish you joy! Best, Darlene". Seller Inventory # 105928

Bibliographic Details

Title: Turning Suffering Inside Out: A Zen Approach...

Publisher: Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, Inc.

Publication Date: 2002

Binding: Soft cover

Condition: Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket

Signed: Inscribed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis:

Darlene Cohen discovered the secret to finding happiness in the midst of debilitating pain. She shares her knowledge in her popular workshops and now in this book. Cohen, who has suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for eighteen years, was hobbling painfully to her local Zen center one day, when she made a discovery that changed her life: if she focused on the foot that was in the air rather than the one that was hitting the pavement, her stamina increased enormously. It was the beginning of a completely different approach to the crippling pain that had beset her for so long. As she demonstrates here, this approach can be expanded to all types of pain: physical, psychological, and spiritual.

Cohen--a certified massage and movement therapist and Zen teacher--proposes a radically liberating alternative to the usual desperate search for pain relief: paradoxically, she says, release from suffering lies in paying closer attention to it. When we keep pain at bay, we keep pleasure at bay, too. The two are interdependent, and our ability to experience each is totally dependent on our understanding of the other.

"Enrich your life exponentially," Cohen advises. If your pain is one of the ten things you are aware of, then it constitutes a tenth of your total awareness. Expand your awareness to a hundred things, however, and your pain is only a hundredth of your awareness. With stories, strategies, exercises, and an awareness born of long Zen practice, Cohen shows us how to tap into that enrichment--and how we can lead a satisfying and even joyful life in the very midst of pain.

This book was published in hardcover under the title Finding a Joyful Life in the Heart of Pain.

Review:

"Cohen--a certified massage and movement therapist and Zen teacher--proposes a liberating alternative to the usual desperate search for pain relief."-- Branches of Light

"A practical, down-to-earth, and very wise guide to awakening in the midst of our struggle and difficulties."--Jack Kornfield, author of After the Ecstasy, the Laundry

"Like the Buddha 2,500 years ago, Darlene Cohen tackles the tough questions--pain, suffering, and despair--and teaches us how to transform them with the help of body and mind awareness, exercise, and deepest attunement and intimacy."--Bernie Glassman, author of Infinite Circle and Bearing Witness: A Zen Master's Lessons in Making Peace