|
The Tao of Pooh (平装)
by Benjamin Hoff
| Category:
Philosophy, Wisdom of life, Self help |
| Market price: ¥ 148.00
MSL price:
¥ 138.00
[ Shop incentives ]
|
| Stock:
Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
Taoism being explained with the help of Pooh and other companions from the Hundred Acre Woods, this book is more about life than philosophy. |
| If you want us to help you with the right titles you're looking for, or to make reading recommendations based on your needs, please contact our consultants. |
|
| |
AllReviews |
1 2   | Total 2 pages 12 items |
|
|
S. Williams (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
Everyone I know loved pooh as a kid. He was ever-happy, ever-satisfied, and ever-peaceful. With the exception of the occasional honey-related fiasco, he seemed to know a thing or two about living. However, as we get older, watching and reading about Pooh and his friends becomes frustrating. Why is your life so simple, Pooh? This world we live in is so hectic, and if we don't periodically step back and breathe, we begin to think that this is how life is supposed to be. When people tell me to relax, or not worry, or spout off clich s like "whatever happens will happen", I can tend to get really mad. How dare you say that?!? Do you know everything I have to get done today? What I usually don't realize, and what they may not realize, is that they are really preaching some of the ancient and wise tenets of Taoism. What I'm really looking for, I suppose, is the formula for a good life. Like most people, I spend a lot of my time trying to find it in work, possessions, getting into college, what have you... But as Pooh teaches through The Tao of Pooh, happiness and contentment lie right in front of me.
The Tao of Pooh approaches the wisdom and (sometimes) backwards philosophy involved in Taoism using understandable scenarios involving Pooh and his pals in the hundred acre wood. For example, Pooh and his friends wander around the forest looking for his home but keep arriving at the same sinkhole, and not his house. He then decides that if they look for the sinkhole, they will surely arrive at his house. This story was meant to show the futility of seeking something out, because what is meant to come to you will.
Each character in The Tao of Pooh represents a frame of mind addressed in Taoism. Eeyore is supposed to characterize giving up, and giving in to suffering and misfortune. From what I've read about the book, this is a poke at Buddhism's "life is suffering." The rabbit and the owl represent the over-intellectuals. Owl seeks out knowledge for the sake of knowledge, of being able to look wise. While they seek to analyze and comprehend everything they do and see, they show the supposed flaws of the rigid analysis and thought process preached in Confucianism. I think the point of their characters is that we're not supposed to understand everything, so we shouldn't try. Although wise, his wisdom extends only to his mind and not to his heart where it counts. In contrast to these characters, Pooh has a rich heart and a life of happiness, because he takes the good with the bad, doesn't struggle to grasp every confusing aspect of life, and knows that above all "life is good".
There is nothing in this book that we've never heard before. However, they're all things that, as people tied to a clock and a palm pilot, we quickly brush off if they're not well stated. The thing that makes this book rather incredible is the way it drives the ideas home using a character we are all comfortable with. The anecdotes in this book are captivating and very effective at showing us the things that make life worth living. This world would be a much better place to live in if everyone followed Pooh's lead - just slowed down and realized how great life truly is. |
|
|
Tom Knapp (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
It's all so simple when you reduce it to the level of Pooh.
It's often hard to understand the nuances of religions and philosophies other than one's own. For many people, the beliefs and rituals of faraway lands - or even of the folks next door - are a jumble of mixed-up oddities. But understanding a people's system of faith is vital to understanding the people.
In the case of the Eastern philosophy known as Taoism, Winnie the Pooh is here to help.
The Tao of Pooh boils the Taoist faith down into simple truths, each using Pooh and his friends to explain them in easy, bite-sized pieces. Some of the examples are original to author Benjamin Hoff's book, while others are lifted directly from the original text by A.A. Milne.
Passages from The House at Pooh Corner blend surprisingly well with the tenets of Chinese philosophy, including religious maxims and excerpts from the writings of Chuang-tse. The result is a charming explanation of faith that even Pooh - a notorious bear of little Brain - can understand, particularly since he exemplifies the Taoist way so perfectly.
Those around him - Owl, Rabbit, Eeyore, Tigger and of course Piglet - are less serene in their activities in the Hundred Acre Wood. Hoff handily explains why they do not fit the Taoist mold, and how Pooh would have handled similar situations. As he explains on the back cover of the book, "While Eeyore frets, and Piglet hesitates, and Rabbit calculates, and Owl pontificates, Pooh just is." There, a lesson learned and you haven't even opened it yet. You'll learn more when Hoff explains the Taoist concept of P'u, the Uncarved Block, and the many facets of Cottleston Pie.
At the same time, Hoff avoids diminishing his message by dumbing it down. While much of the slim book is written in the childlike prose of a Pooh story, it is still surprisingly deep, thought-provoking and grown-up at its root. By book's end, readers should have a fairly solid understanding of basic Taoist principles and how they relate to contemporary life.
|
|
|
Daniel Hamlow (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
When we were covering Taoism in my World Religions class, I suddenly recalled the Tao of Pooh book my sister-in-law gave me the year I planned to end it all, back in 1995/96. I read it once, was comforted by it, and forgot it all. Years later, after reading Taoism, I instantly felt a light bulb flash in my head... "Oh, so that's what it's all about!" This cute book combines the Taoist philosophy in conjunction with Pooh's interractions with his friends, with Christopher Robin being the kind but serious teacher who tries to teach Pooh about what he represents--Taoism.
In contrasting Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, Confucius is described as a sour-faced man, Buddha as one with a bitter expression, but Lao Tse being the smiling one. Basically, the laws that govern the heavens are the same one that govern earth and man, and that if we go with the flow, we'll be in harmony.
The concepts of wu-wei is also explained. Wu-wei means "not doing" but of doing nothing against the natural flow. Here, it's called the Pooh Way, because Pooh has a "mind that merely sees what's in front of it, and follows the nature of things." In other words, put the round peg in the round hole, the square peg in the square one.
The characters who make up Pooh's friends demonstrate the flaw of knowledge and cleverness, and I was fascinated and sobered by this because their personalities reflect me, and I realize the bad side in knowing too much.
Dig this: Owl, the modern equivalent of a Confusionist, Dessicated Scholar, is described as someone who gains Knowledge for Knowledge's sake, or for the sake of appearing wise. A bit harsh because that's me to some extent. Rabbit is described as someone who gains Knowledge for the sake of appearing Clever, and I had to wince, because to my shame, I fully admit that's also me to some extent. And Eeyore is someone who gains Knowledge for the sake of Complaining. Given my political stance, yes, me too again. And as Pooh says in response to Owl having a brain, "I suppose that that's why he never understands anything." Maybe that's my problem too.
But Pooh, the lucky bear, may not have much of a brain, but he embodies the Simplicity of the Uncarved Block, the Taoist equivalent of John Locke's tabula rasa (blank slate). Basically, Pooh can't describe the Uncarved Block, he just IS it. "That's the nature of the Uncarved Block."
And he's got the right idea in not being a Bisy Backson, or (Busy Back Soon), you know, rush-rush-rush. I wonder why we don't have an American equivalent of a French sidewalk cafe or Chinese teahouse. Now that I'm getting on, maybe I value the message of "You're important. Relax and enjoy yourself."
A cute book on the explanations of Taoism, and how maybe simplicity, wisdom (as opposed to knowledge) and contentment is the best way to go. But it makes me wish that I was a tabula rasa or an Uncarved Block once again. Oh, just to be, not to know or be clever, but just to be. |
|
|
Russ Tags (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
First I have to address the 1 star reviews... were you reading the same book? How did you get all this negitivity from a simple book? Hoff isn't knocking anyone, if you read the book there's a whole section dedicated to the feeling that everyone has a place in life. The "Owls" The "Tiggers" The "Rabbits" ect... he's not saying that these are bad qualities just that too much "Rabbit" or too much "Eeyore" can be bad. It seems to me the people who gave this book a one star are exactly the people who this author is trying to get across too, it's your own pre judgments that don't allow you to enjoy this book.
That being said this is a wonderful book, I've always been a huge Pooh fan and I've always used these characters to describe people. Everyone knows a "Eeyore" and a "Owl" and so on, and in some regards everyone has a "Piglet" part of them or a "Tigger" That's all this book is saying, the sooner you realize it the better. Hoff isn't saying if you’re a "Owl" change because you won't ever be happy. He's saying the sooner you know who you are and accept you for you, the happier you'll be. The sooner you can "Let go" of the things that we all get wrapped up in, the happier you'll be. It's a shame when people can't see that.
|
|
|
J. Rose (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
For those of you who are curious about this book and may be turned off by some of the "negative" comments, allow me to offer my humble opinion. I think that those people who did not like this book or felt it did not explain taoism, just really don't get the point. Taoism most certainly isn't something you seek and seek and then get frustrated at not finding, then angry, and then seek and seek. Taoism seen especially through Pooh's eyes and actions (or should I say "inactions") comes so near the mark to beginning to understand this ancient philosophy of harmonious existence on earth with the earth, and the duality of all things. I highly recommend this book for that open minded, non-judgmental, person open to the concept that indeed anything is possible...too many of us are so grounded in what we "absolutely know to be fact", when in reality anything in this universe is truly possible. Please explore this book on your path. I also highly recommend the companion book to this, The Te of Piglet, which delves ever more into taoism. |
|
|
An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
This elegant and well-written volume by Benjamin Hoff, along with its sequel "The Te of Piglet", is perhaps one of the finest pieces of writing about Taoism in the West. Having just read and enjoyed the original Pooh stories by A.A. Milne, I became intrigued by this book and obtained it. As soon as I opened it I could not find a good point to lay it down. I kept reading and reading until I finished it in a single day. The book was so pleasurable, so well-written, and so intriguing. I kept thinking and imagining all the different concepts of Taoism that this book introduces me to. "Wu Wei" or effortless action; living in harmony with nature; Nowhere and Nothing; the importance of the present; the extreme alienation we in the West create for ourselves by being constantly busy. These are all important issues that relate to my life personally, and I feel I have gained something from reading this book, in addition to spending an enjoyable time reading it.
Those who didn't like this book for some reason are missing the point. The "Tao of Pooh" was never meant to be the definite treatise on Taoism, or the dispassionate comparison of East and West. As a matter of fact, this book is classified under "Humor". In fact, it is this humor of pooh which lends itself so aptly to introducing Taoism. Since reading this book, I became interested in reading the other book by John Tyerman Williams called "Pooh & the Philosophers". What a disaster that turned out to be! See, the defining character of Pooh is that he never really takes himself seriously, which is perfectly in line with the attitude of major Taoist philosophers. Yet Western philosophy thinks of itself as a serious subject, an attitude that is quite un-Pooh-ish, so I don't know what on earth Williams was thinking in using Pooh to illustrate Western philosophy. Anyways, don't buy William's book, buy this! If you like Pooh and feel intrigued with Eastern Philosophy, you will find a pleasurable reading in this masterpiece that was the first to recognize this beautiful match. Beautiful, entertaining, and thought-provoking masterpiece indeed! |
|
|
Daneil Saults (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
One could really take this book as a mixed bag of lessons. In a way, Hoff completely accidentally sets himself up as the ideal example of the opposite of a Taoist viewpoint. His portrayals of Winnie the Pooh as a simple, loving, accepting and calm creature are fairly on the mark. Though a tad simplistic, Pooh is accurately depicted as following several key Taoist virtues that are quite fundamental to such philosophy. At the same time, however, Hoff seems to scream for attention to his "higher learning" and asceticism. Seeming to view himself some type of guru on the subject, he makes a few jabs at Western learning in a painfully typical knee-jerk counterculturism manner. Many authors and artists in the past have attempted to seem profound simply by lashing out at anything conventional. After all, counterintuitive means profound, right? Unfortunately, no. In his rather self-righteous, condemning, and finger-pointing manner, Hoff inadvertently deepens the lessons of the book. In his pretension, he deepens the contrast of the tranquil and nonjudgmental Pooh, setting him up as all the more admirable and showing just what sort of "more enlightened and at peace than thou" thinking this peaceful way of life stands against. |
|
|
Andrew Engle (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
I picked up this book because it seemed so charming. The author took the stories and characters of A.A. Milne and juxtaposed them with the Taoist teachings of people such as Lao Tzu.
Pooh as western Taoist starts off interestingly enough but halfway through it I came to the realization that it was making me want to just read the actual Milne, who was frankly probably a genius writer. Those were great books with great characters, each with their own type of intelligence.
Then about two thirds through the book, it just becomes insulting. The author is against pretty much anything useful. Rather than believing in the give and take of Ying and Yang (or any other name it may go under) he's against intellectuals who are secretly foolish for trying to figure anything about the world, against people who work hard and care about their jobs or contributions (again that's just foolish), people who enjoy sports or exercise...heck he's against leaving your house or caring about the rest of the world. I understand the idea behind the Busy Backson rant, but is there no middle ground at all?
The idea of the Indian American culture being superior to that of the almighty Puritans is used as an example, which could be built upon in several interesting ways, but instead the author chooses to illustrate how everything that came after was just silliness without supplying a single idea about how it could be done better...yet useful.
At one point he actually uses the example of (paraphrasing here) turning on the T.V. news to hear "`Thirty thousand people were killed today when five jumbo airliners collided over downtown Lose Angeles" “click” Stop worrying about everything and go about life. Listen to the birds chirp, they will tell you more about the world." - wait, we shouldn't care about thirty thousand humans being killed in a horrific accident?
I am in no way an expert on Taoism, but unless everyone who IS finds that idea posing as a representation of their philosophy to be offensive, I want nothing to do with it. It isn't enlightened to go around hating everything while doing nothing. And I'm sure the author realizes this since he spends so much time writing best=selling books.
(A negative review. MSL remarks)
|
|
|
Steve Chernoski (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
Benjamin Hoff's job comparing the lovable characters of the One Hundred Acre Woods to Taoism may be a stretch to some, but I found it delightful and very helpful. First of all, I taught Ancient History including the great world religions to sixth graders (roughly 11-12 year olds). I took some examples from the book and its theme and integrated them into my teaching on China and Taoism. The concepts in many of the great eastern religions: Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Hinduism, etc. can be hard for many in the West to grasp, not to mention adolescents just being introduced to them. The comparisons in this book really allowed my students to absorb the overall theme of Taoism.
The two comparisons I love that Hoff gives:
1) How the Taoist tastes vinegar and unlike the rest, enjoys it because he realizes that everything in life is not sweet (Balance).
2) I also taught a character education class and this theme was particularly helpful: you should seek to live everyday of your life like you are about to open a present. That anticipation and excitement should be driving forces in your life. No matter how bad your day/ week/ month is there should always be a "present" to look forward to on your calendar. And when that event is over, there should be something else to keep in your mind; a new, exciting anticipation. It is a never ending cycle.
You don't have to be a Taoist to appreciate this book. |
|
|
A Kid's review (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-31 00:00>
The Tao of Pooh is a book about Taoism. It takes Winnie the Pooh, and his friends and uses them to describe and explain a few eastern religions. Mostly it centers on Taoism but it also talks about Buddhism, and Confucianism.
Winnie the Pooh (Taoism) is without knowledge to cloud his mind and making things too complicated so he can find solutions that help him in the way he needs them to. He is not clever like Rabbit, who can cause quickly formed and misconceived intentions, he could conceive a solution but since he would have conceived it so quickly he doesn't have time to think if that was what he really wanted to do or if that was right. He isn't over-thought like Owl (Confucianism) which is to make him feel a boundary, to make him feel superior and higher than others, since he is being clouded by knowledge, he can't see the answer for what its good for, only how he can put him self above the others with that answer. Also there is Eeyore who is seeing a negative side to everything, never seeing for what its good for. Clouded by the negatives he can't see what he can use to help him.
I really liked the Tao of Pooh. It showed me a lot about eastern religion. I think that being a Taoist for a day could help everyone relax and feel the natural flow of things. This book showed me a good way to think and I think I might think in that way. |
|
|
|
1 2 | Total 2 pages 12 items |
|
|
|
|
|
|
