Author: Shunya Pragya
Publisher: Shunya Pragya
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 314
Book Description
Dive-in to Rise Above your Made-up Mind. In today's hyper-connected world, the key challenge is that we live dis-connected with ourselves existentially. Our living experience is driven by a cosmetic self, always busy in responding to the demands of outer world culture, resulting in a tense condition of being. The modern idea of relaxation is going to a bar, beach house, clubbing, eating out, shopping, or therapy sessions; instead of connecting inside, where the trouble is seeded and sprouts from. Truly, the healing is required at our ground being level in a direct and meaningful way. We need real life-enriching experiences than mere accumulations of popular bandages to tranquilize us tentatively. The Book, O Beloved- Being, Becoming, and Beyond offers a crisp and clear approach for everyone, a surgical self-exploration to access the pure field of consciousness and live in sync with our ground being, which is always available to us but forgotten. The above goal is achieved through the twenty-one light and lucid topics organized into four sections, namely as Nature of Being, Harmony in Becoming, Going Beyond, and lastly, the fourth section provides a practical toolset of mindfulness meditation. Each topic is full of poetry, philosophy, vivid imagery, and excellent illustrations to keep up the interest and gently unlock the mental knots. The purpose is not to reform oneself into something extraordinary like a superhuman, psychic, enlightened person or an intellectual, etc. but to restore the Being into its inmost natural state while living outwardly, in a day to day reality. Finally, the last cherry on the cake is the conclusion chapter, which shows that there is no finality but continuity. So, one must keep going on and on. This book will transform you quickly if you consume it slowly! May you live Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous!
O Beloved: Being, Becoming and Beyond
Author: Shunya Pragya
Publisher: Shunya Pragya
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 314
Book Description
Dive-in to Rise Above your Made-up Mind. In today's hyper-connected world, the key challenge is that we live dis-connected with ourselves existentially. Our living experience is driven by a cosmetic self, always busy in responding to the demands of outer world culture, resulting in a tense condition of being. The modern idea of relaxation is going to a bar, beach house, clubbing, eating out, shopping, or therapy sessions; instead of connecting inside, where the trouble is seeded and sprouts from. Truly, the healing is required at our ground being level in a direct and meaningful way. We need real life-enriching experiences than mere accumulations of popular bandages to tranquilize us tentatively. The Book, O Beloved- Being, Becoming, and Beyond offers a crisp and clear approach for everyone, a surgical self-exploration to access the pure field of consciousness and live in sync with our ground being, which is always available to us but forgotten. The above goal is achieved through the twenty-one light and lucid topics organized into four sections, namely as Nature of Being, Harmony in Becoming, Going Beyond, and lastly, the fourth section provides a practical toolset of mindfulness meditation. Each topic is full of poetry, philosophy, vivid imagery, and excellent illustrations to keep up the interest and gently unlock the mental knots. The purpose is not to reform oneself into something extraordinary like a superhuman, psychic, enlightened person or an intellectual, etc. but to restore the Being into its inmost natural state while living outwardly, in a day to day reality. Finally, the last cherry on the cake is the conclusion chapter, which shows that there is no finality but continuity. So, one must keep going on and on. This book will transform you quickly if you consume it slowly! May you live Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous!
Publisher: Shunya Pragya
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 314
Book Description
Dive-in to Rise Above your Made-up Mind. In today's hyper-connected world, the key challenge is that we live dis-connected with ourselves existentially. Our living experience is driven by a cosmetic self, always busy in responding to the demands of outer world culture, resulting in a tense condition of being. The modern idea of relaxation is going to a bar, beach house, clubbing, eating out, shopping, or therapy sessions; instead of connecting inside, where the trouble is seeded and sprouts from. Truly, the healing is required at our ground being level in a direct and meaningful way. We need real life-enriching experiences than mere accumulations of popular bandages to tranquilize us tentatively. The Book, O Beloved- Being, Becoming, and Beyond offers a crisp and clear approach for everyone, a surgical self-exploration to access the pure field of consciousness and live in sync with our ground being, which is always available to us but forgotten. The above goal is achieved through the twenty-one light and lucid topics organized into four sections, namely as Nature of Being, Harmony in Becoming, Going Beyond, and lastly, the fourth section provides a practical toolset of mindfulness meditation. Each topic is full of poetry, philosophy, vivid imagery, and excellent illustrations to keep up the interest and gently unlock the mental knots. The purpose is not to reform oneself into something extraordinary like a superhuman, psychic, enlightened person or an intellectual, etc. but to restore the Being into its inmost natural state while living outwardly, in a day to day reality. Finally, the last cherry on the cake is the conclusion chapter, which shows that there is no finality but continuity. So, one must keep going on and on. This book will transform you quickly if you consume it slowly! May you live Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous!
Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved
Author: Gregory Orr
Publisher: Copper Canyon Press
ISBN: 1619320649
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 218
Book Description
“The heart of Orr’s poetry, now as ever, is the enigmatic image . . . mystical, carnal, reflective, wry.”—San Francisco Review This book-length sequence of ecstatic, visionary lyrics recalls Rumi in its search for the beloved and its passionate belief in the healing qualities of art and beauty. Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved is an incantatory celebration of the “Book,” an imaginary and self-gathering anthology of all the lyrics—both poems and songs—ever written. Each poem highlights a distinct aspect of the human condition, and together the poems explore love, loss, restoration, the beauty of the world, the beauty of the beloved, and the mystery of poetry. The purpose and power of the Book is to help us live by reconnecting us to the world and to our emotional lives. I put the beloved In a wooden coffin. The fire ate his body; The flames devoured her. I put the beloved In a poem or song. Tucked it between Two pages of the Book. How bright the flames. All of me burning, All of me on fire And still whole. There is nothing quite like this book—an “active anthology” in the best sense—where individuals find the poems and songs that will sustain them. Or the poems find them. Gregory Orr is the author of eight books of poetry, four volumes of criticism, and a memoir. He has received numerous awards for his work, most recently the Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Orr has taught at the University of Virginia since 1975 and was, for many years, the poetry editor of The Virginia Quarterly Review. He lives with his family in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Publisher: Copper Canyon Press
ISBN: 1619320649
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 218
Book Description
“The heart of Orr’s poetry, now as ever, is the enigmatic image . . . mystical, carnal, reflective, wry.”—San Francisco Review This book-length sequence of ecstatic, visionary lyrics recalls Rumi in its search for the beloved and its passionate belief in the healing qualities of art and beauty. Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved is an incantatory celebration of the “Book,” an imaginary and self-gathering anthology of all the lyrics—both poems and songs—ever written. Each poem highlights a distinct aspect of the human condition, and together the poems explore love, loss, restoration, the beauty of the world, the beauty of the beloved, and the mystery of poetry. The purpose and power of the Book is to help us live by reconnecting us to the world and to our emotional lives. I put the beloved In a wooden coffin. The fire ate his body; The flames devoured her. I put the beloved In a poem or song. Tucked it between Two pages of the Book. How bright the flames. All of me burning, All of me on fire And still whole. There is nothing quite like this book—an “active anthology” in the best sense—where individuals find the poems and songs that will sustain them. Or the poems find them. Gregory Orr is the author of eight books of poetry, four volumes of criticism, and a memoir. He has received numerous awards for his work, most recently the Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Orr has taught at the University of Virginia since 1975 and was, for many years, the poetry editor of The Virginia Quarterly Review. He lives with his family in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Beloved
Author: Toni Morrison
Publisher: Everyman's Library
ISBN: 0307264882
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 362
Book Description
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Toni Morrison’s Beloved is a spellbinding and dazzlingly innovative portrait of a woman haunted by the past. One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has borne the unthinkable and not gone mad, yet she is still held captive by memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. Meanwhile Sethe’s house has long been troubled by the angry, destructive ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. Sethe works at beating back the past, but it makes itself heard and felt incessantly in her memory and in the lives of those around her. When a mysterious teenage girl arrives, calling herself Beloved, Sethe’s terrible secret explodes into the present. Combining the visionary power of legend with the unassailable truth of history, Morrison’s unforgettable novel is one of the great and enduring works of American literature.
Publisher: Everyman's Library
ISBN: 0307264882
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 362
Book Description
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Toni Morrison’s Beloved is a spellbinding and dazzlingly innovative portrait of a woman haunted by the past. One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has borne the unthinkable and not gone mad, yet she is still held captive by memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. Meanwhile Sethe’s house has long been troubled by the angry, destructive ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. Sethe works at beating back the past, but it makes itself heard and felt incessantly in her memory and in the lives of those around her. When a mysterious teenage girl arrives, calling herself Beloved, Sethe’s terrible secret explodes into the present. Combining the visionary power of legend with the unassailable truth of history, Morrison’s unforgettable novel is one of the great and enduring works of American literature.
The Grasp That Reaches beyond the Grave
Author: Venetria K. Patton
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438447388
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 229
Book Description
The Grasp That Reaches beyond the Grave investigates the treatment of the ancestor figure in Toni Cade Bambara's The Salt Eaters, Paule Marshall's Praisesong for the Widow, Phyllis Alesia Perry's Stigmata and A Sunday in June, Toni Morrison's Beloved, Tananarive Due's The Between, and Julie Dash's film, Daughters of the Dust in order to understand how they draw on African cosmology and the interrelationship of ancestors, elders, and children to promote healing within the African American community. Venetria K. Patton suggests that the experience of slavery with its concomitant view of black women as "natally dead" has impacted African American women writers' emphasis on elders and ancestors as they seek means to counteract notions of black women as somehow disconnected from the progeny of their wombs. This misperception is in part addressed via a rich kinship system, which includes the living and the dead. Patton notes an uncanny connection between depictions of elder, ancestor, and child figures in these texts and Kongo cosmology. These references suggest that these works are examples of Africanisms or African retentions, which continue to impact African American culture.
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438447388
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 229
Book Description
The Grasp That Reaches beyond the Grave investigates the treatment of the ancestor figure in Toni Cade Bambara's The Salt Eaters, Paule Marshall's Praisesong for the Widow, Phyllis Alesia Perry's Stigmata and A Sunday in June, Toni Morrison's Beloved, Tananarive Due's The Between, and Julie Dash's film, Daughters of the Dust in order to understand how they draw on African cosmology and the interrelationship of ancestors, elders, and children to promote healing within the African American community. Venetria K. Patton suggests that the experience of slavery with its concomitant view of black women as "natally dead" has impacted African American women writers' emphasis on elders and ancestors as they seek means to counteract notions of black women as somehow disconnected from the progeny of their wombs. This misperception is in part addressed via a rich kinship system, which includes the living and the dead. Patton notes an uncanny connection between depictions of elder, ancestor, and child figures in these texts and Kongo cosmology. These references suggest that these works are examples of Africanisms or African retentions, which continue to impact African American culture.
Beyond Just Tryin' to Live 40 Devotional Readings from the Sermons of Rev. Dr. Henry Dobbs Pope
Author: Rhonda Broyles
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1387359908
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 166
Book Description
On a cold, winter day on a busy street in Washington, D.C., Rhonda Hinkle Broyles was stopped in her tracks by "Just Tryin to Live" scrawled in the concrete of a curb. That inspired her passion: "You are heard. You are loved. There is hope." Those messages were spoken profoundly to all who encountered the sermons of the late Rev. Dr. Henry Dobbs Pope. Find some of those sermons condensed in these 40 devotionals, along with reflections by Rhonda on how Henry's words encourage us all in life's joys and challenges. From personal experience, Rhonda offers insightful messages on the joys and challenges along the journey of life. During times when she, too, felt like she was just tryin' to live, a portion of her help came from hearing Henry Pope speak his sermons. With this book, anchored in those sermons, join her in an exercise of moving Beyond Just Tryin' to Live.
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1387359908
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 166
Book Description
On a cold, winter day on a busy street in Washington, D.C., Rhonda Hinkle Broyles was stopped in her tracks by "Just Tryin to Live" scrawled in the concrete of a curb. That inspired her passion: "You are heard. You are loved. There is hope." Those messages were spoken profoundly to all who encountered the sermons of the late Rev. Dr. Henry Dobbs Pope. Find some of those sermons condensed in these 40 devotionals, along with reflections by Rhonda on how Henry's words encourage us all in life's joys and challenges. From personal experience, Rhonda offers insightful messages on the joys and challenges along the journey of life. During times when she, too, felt like she was just tryin' to live, a portion of her help came from hearing Henry Pope speak his sermons. With this book, anchored in those sermons, join her in an exercise of moving Beyond Just Tryin' to Live.
The New Yearbook for Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy
Author: Timothy Burns
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429590318
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 376
Book Description
Volume XVII Part 1: Phenomenology, Idealism, and Intersubjectivity: A Festschrift in Celebration of Dermot Moran’s Sixty-Fifth Birthday Part 2: The Imagination: Kant’s Phenomenological Legacy Aim and Scope: The New Yearbook for Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy provides an annual international forum for phenomenological research in the spirit of Husserl's groundbreaking work and the extension of this work by such figures as Scheler, Heidegger, Sartre, Levinas, Merleau-Ponty and Gadamer. Contributors: Andreea Smaranda Aldea, Lilian Alweiss, Timothy Burns, Steven Crowell, Maxime Doyon, Augustin Dumont, Richard Kearney, Mette Lebech, Samantha Matherne, Timothy Mooney, Thomas Nenon, Matthew Ratcliffe, Alessandro Salice, Daniele De Santis, Andrea Staiti, Anthony J. Steinbock, Michela Summa, Thomas Szanto, Emiliano Trizio, and Nicolas de Warren. Submissions: Manuscripts, prepared for blind review, should be submitted to the Editors ([email protected] and [email protected]) electronically via e-mail attachments.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429590318
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 376
Book Description
Volume XVII Part 1: Phenomenology, Idealism, and Intersubjectivity: A Festschrift in Celebration of Dermot Moran’s Sixty-Fifth Birthday Part 2: The Imagination: Kant’s Phenomenological Legacy Aim and Scope: The New Yearbook for Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy provides an annual international forum for phenomenological research in the spirit of Husserl's groundbreaking work and the extension of this work by such figures as Scheler, Heidegger, Sartre, Levinas, Merleau-Ponty and Gadamer. Contributors: Andreea Smaranda Aldea, Lilian Alweiss, Timothy Burns, Steven Crowell, Maxime Doyon, Augustin Dumont, Richard Kearney, Mette Lebech, Samantha Matherne, Timothy Mooney, Thomas Nenon, Matthew Ratcliffe, Alessandro Salice, Daniele De Santis, Andrea Staiti, Anthony J. Steinbock, Michela Summa, Thomas Szanto, Emiliano Trizio, and Nicolas de Warren. Submissions: Manuscripts, prepared for blind review, should be submitted to the Editors ([email protected] and [email protected]) electronically via e-mail attachments.
Light from Beyond
Author: Patience Worth (Spirit)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 304
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 304
Book Description
J. Krishnamurti: A Life of Compassion beyond Boundaries
Author: Roshen Dalal
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9389109655
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
Among the most famous visionaries of our times, J. Krishnamurti (1895–1986) continues to transform thought, lifestyles, and education across continents more than three decades after his death. In this new biography, tracing the nine long decades of his life, from his growing-up years, his relationships to his writings and talks, Roshen Dalal provides a much-needed corrective – an objective and balanced view of his legacy. Adopted by Theosophists at the age of fourteen, and proclaimed a world teacher and messiah, in 1929, Krishnamurti dissolved the Order of the Star created for him and went on to develop his own philosophy. What is it about his ideas that draws the following of generations of people? Delivered to a divided world then, what makes his message so relevant now? While his ideas on education are idealistic, why do they continue to be everlasting in their contribution and appeal? Krishnamurti’s vision is of a world without boundaries or wars, a world where compassion and goodness predominate, and his message is that such a world can be arrived at only through individual transformation.B24 There is no direct path to transformation, yet through intense perception and understanding, it is possible to achieve this goal. Carefully reconstructing the events and extracting the essence of his talks, Dalal dispels several myths, explains his teachings, and reveals the underlying theosophical and occult influence in Krishnamurti’s life. Here is the most complete biography yet, of one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century.
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9389109655
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
Among the most famous visionaries of our times, J. Krishnamurti (1895–1986) continues to transform thought, lifestyles, and education across continents more than three decades after his death. In this new biography, tracing the nine long decades of his life, from his growing-up years, his relationships to his writings and talks, Roshen Dalal provides a much-needed corrective – an objective and balanced view of his legacy. Adopted by Theosophists at the age of fourteen, and proclaimed a world teacher and messiah, in 1929, Krishnamurti dissolved the Order of the Star created for him and went on to develop his own philosophy. What is it about his ideas that draws the following of generations of people? Delivered to a divided world then, what makes his message so relevant now? While his ideas on education are idealistic, why do they continue to be everlasting in their contribution and appeal? Krishnamurti’s vision is of a world without boundaries or wars, a world where compassion and goodness predominate, and his message is that such a world can be arrived at only through individual transformation.B24 There is no direct path to transformation, yet through intense perception and understanding, it is possible to achieve this goal. Carefully reconstructing the events and extracting the essence of his talks, Dalal dispels several myths, explains his teachings, and reveals the underlying theosophical and occult influence in Krishnamurti’s life. Here is the most complete biography yet, of one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century.
Books and Beyond [4 volumes]
Author: Kenneth Womack
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313071578
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 1333
Book Description
There's a strong interest in reading for pleasure or self-improvement in America, as shown by the popularity of Harry Potter, and book clubs, including Oprah Winfrey's. Although recent government reports show a decline in recreational reading, the same reports show a strong correlation between interest in reading and academic acheivement. This set provides a snapshot of the current state of popular American literature, including various types and genres. The volume presents alphabetically arranged entries on more than 70 diverse literary categories, such as cyberpunk, fantasy literature, flash fiction, GLBTQ literature, graphic novels, manga and anime, and zines. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and provides a definition of the genre, an overview of its history, a look at trends and themes, a discussion of how the literary form engages contemporary issues, a review of the genre's reception, a discussion of authors and works, and suggestions for further reading. Sidebars provide fascinating details, and the set closes with a selected, general bibliography. Reading in America for pleasure and knowledge continues to be popular, even while other media compete for attention. While students continue to read many of the standard classics, new genres have emerged. These have captured the attention of general readers and are also playing a critical role in the language arts classroom. This book maps the state of popular literature and reading in America today, including the growth of new genres, such as cyberpunk, zines, flash fiction, GLBTQ literature, and other topics. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and provides a definition of the genre, an overview of its history, a look at trends and themes, a discussion of how the literary form engages contemporary issues, a review of the genre's critical reception, a discussion of authors and works, and suggestions for further reading. Sidebars provide fascinating details, and the set closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students will find this book a valuable guide to what they're reading today and will appreciate its illumination of popular culture and contemporary social issues.
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313071578
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 1333
Book Description
There's a strong interest in reading for pleasure or self-improvement in America, as shown by the popularity of Harry Potter, and book clubs, including Oprah Winfrey's. Although recent government reports show a decline in recreational reading, the same reports show a strong correlation between interest in reading and academic acheivement. This set provides a snapshot of the current state of popular American literature, including various types and genres. The volume presents alphabetically arranged entries on more than 70 diverse literary categories, such as cyberpunk, fantasy literature, flash fiction, GLBTQ literature, graphic novels, manga and anime, and zines. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and provides a definition of the genre, an overview of its history, a look at trends and themes, a discussion of how the literary form engages contemporary issues, a review of the genre's reception, a discussion of authors and works, and suggestions for further reading. Sidebars provide fascinating details, and the set closes with a selected, general bibliography. Reading in America for pleasure and knowledge continues to be popular, even while other media compete for attention. While students continue to read many of the standard classics, new genres have emerged. These have captured the attention of general readers and are also playing a critical role in the language arts classroom. This book maps the state of popular literature and reading in America today, including the growth of new genres, such as cyberpunk, zines, flash fiction, GLBTQ literature, and other topics. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and provides a definition of the genre, an overview of its history, a look at trends and themes, a discussion of how the literary form engages contemporary issues, a review of the genre's critical reception, a discussion of authors and works, and suggestions for further reading. Sidebars provide fascinating details, and the set closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students will find this book a valuable guide to what they're reading today and will appreciate its illumination of popular culture and contemporary social issues.
The Gift of Beauty and the Passion of Being
Author: William Desmond
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1498241549
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 357
Book Description
This book gathers a set of reflections on the gift of beauty and the passion of being. There is something surprising about beauty that we receive and that moves the passion of being in us. The book takes issue with an ambiguous attitude to beauty among some who proclaim their advanced aesthetic authenticity. Beauty seems bland and lacks the more visceral thrill of the ugly, indeed the excremental. We crave what disrupts and provokes us, not what gives delight or even consoles. By contrast, attention is given to how beauty arouses enigmatic joy in us, and we enjoy an elemental rapport with it as other. Surprised by beauty, our breath is taken away, but we are more truly there with the beautiful when we are taken outside of ourselves. We are first receivers of the gift of surprise and only then perceivers and conceivers. My attention to the passion of being stresses a patience, a receptivity to what is other. What happens is not first our construction. There is something given, something awakening, something delighting, something energizing, something of invitation to transcendence. The theme is amplified in diverse reflections: on life and its transient beauty; on soul music and its relation to self; on the shine on things given in creation; on beauty and Schopenhauer's dark origin; on creativity and the dynamis in Paul Weiss's creative ventures; on redemption in Romanticism in the thought of Stanley Cavell; on theater as a between or metaxu; on redeeming laughter and its connection with the passion of being.
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1498241549
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 357
Book Description
This book gathers a set of reflections on the gift of beauty and the passion of being. There is something surprising about beauty that we receive and that moves the passion of being in us. The book takes issue with an ambiguous attitude to beauty among some who proclaim their advanced aesthetic authenticity. Beauty seems bland and lacks the more visceral thrill of the ugly, indeed the excremental. We crave what disrupts and provokes us, not what gives delight or even consoles. By contrast, attention is given to how beauty arouses enigmatic joy in us, and we enjoy an elemental rapport with it as other. Surprised by beauty, our breath is taken away, but we are more truly there with the beautiful when we are taken outside of ourselves. We are first receivers of the gift of surprise and only then perceivers and conceivers. My attention to the passion of being stresses a patience, a receptivity to what is other. What happens is not first our construction. There is something given, something awakening, something delighting, something energizing, something of invitation to transcendence. The theme is amplified in diverse reflections: on life and its transient beauty; on soul music and its relation to self; on the shine on things given in creation; on beauty and Schopenhauer's dark origin; on creativity and the dynamis in Paul Weiss's creative ventures; on redemption in Romanticism in the thought of Stanley Cavell; on theater as a between or metaxu; on redeeming laughter and its connection with the passion of being.