The Art of Stillness and the Adventure of Going Nowhere Pico Iyer

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This book has a calming effect for the reader. Iyer used certain people of note to expound on the benefits of staying still so that one can go deep. Examples are Dalai Lama, Leonard Cohen and Matthieu Ricard, who abandoned a high flying job in search of inner peace.

Iyer's however could do better to include what happened to those who after searching deep within themselves return back to the hustle and bustle of the world. It is not the author's intention but the afterglow of retreating into inner self could be better shared with his readers.

In any case, the benefit after reading Stillness is that I have become a fan of Leonard Cohen's poetry. It shows that one does not need to be able to sing in order to have good music. Perhaps Cohen's experience of looking for himself enhanced his poetry and lifted him to fame.

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