Contentment: A Way to True Happiness

by Robert A. Johnson, Jerry M. Ruhl

Simple Gifts of Contentment The forces of modern life urge us to achieve and acquire more, pushing us outward in our quest for contentment. World-renowned Jungian analyst Robert A. Johnson and psychotherapist Jerry M. Ruhl guide us inward, to a deep understanding of true, lasting happiness. Instead of relegating joy and satisfaction to another time, a different place, a better circumstance ("just as soon as I finish this project / land that perfect job / find a new relationship"), Johnson and Ruhl encourage us to negotiate and embrace "what is." Instructive and wise, this gentle guide contains all the tools we need--including illustrative stories, myths, poems, and practical exercises--to seize true contentment in the here and now.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Self Help, Spirituality, Personal Development, Philosophy

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 7, 1999

About the author

Robert A. Johnson is a noted lecturer and Jungian analyst in private practice in San Diego, California. He has studied at the Jung Institute in Switzerland and at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in India.

Reviews

[Mojtaba Shirani · Rating 1 out of 5]

کتاب ضعیفی بود

[Sonya · Rating 3 out of 5]

احساس رضايت مفهوم عميقي است كه هر انساني به طور خودآگاه و ناخودآگاه در جستجوي آن است. اما راه هايي كه فرد براي رسيدن به اين حس طي مي كند، اغلب منجر به ناكامي مي شود. رسانه ها و تبليغات كالاهاي مصرفي و حتي دولتها همه در حال ارائه پيشنهاد هاي مختلف براي ايجاداحساس رضايت در فرد هستند، غافل از اينكه اين حس كاملا دروني است و عوامل بيروني به صورت گذرا و موقتي مي توانند اين حس را ايجاد كنند.
دراين اثر كوتاه نويسنده همراه با مثالي از شاه لير شكسپير به توضيح درك اين موضوع و روانشناسي احساس رضايت مي پردازد.

[Arezu Wishka · Rating 2 out of 5]

احساسی که به کتاب داشتم این بود که اطلاعات داره دسته چندم به دستم می رسه. یعنی منبع حرف های کتاب مجموعه ای از چیزهای دیگه ای بود که توی روانشناسی عمقی و یونگ و... خیلی عمیق تر و بهتر در موردشون دوره دیده بودم. بخش اتصال به نمایشنامه لیر رو خیلی خیلی دوست داشتم اما باقی کتاب همه اش داشتم فکر می کردم اگه اون اطلاعات پیش زمینه رو نداشتم تاثیر کتاب روم خیلی خیلی کمتر بود. در نهایت مجموعه حرف های کتاب خوبه اما ضعیف تر از منابع اصلیش بیان شده.
به نظرم این کتاب سفر قهرمانی جوزف کمپل رو آرکتایپ های یونگ رو با حذف اون داستان های زیبا سعی کرده با یه بیان دیگه بگه.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book came at a very helpful time for me. Noting down 'what is' has taken a load off my mind. Would like to continue doing this for a while to see how it affects my life and ability to handle stressful situations and move ahead.
Projection is a concept I need to explore further. While I understood some basic examples mentioned, I'm curious to understand more and identify as it happens in reality.
One thing the book mentions which is still hard for me is to accept that there is a higher power and to find meaning through this. While I can see the many benefits of this faith, it's something I have started doubting in the last couple of years due to events in my life and observing what goes on around me and in the world. As noted later in the book, I am going to embrace the gift of confusion and hope that it resolves in the future....

Some notes:
Contentment is an inner experience resulting from your level of consciousness.
Contentment grows from the circumstances of life as you find it, in the very place you currently exist.
To realise contentment, it is essential to begin each day by reminding yourself to be just who you are - no more or no less.
Inflation is a distorted sense of who you are.
Deflation is thinking and acting as if you are less than you really are, a feeling of not-enoughness.
Gifts of contentment - Gift of energy, fidelity to the moment, stopping, nature, letting go, ordinariness, forgiveness, confusion, compassion, detachment, spontaneity and more..

[Mily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Small wonder of a book.
I enjoy reading Robert Johnson - a Jungian analyst.
At first this book seems a bit simple - but once he launches into King Lear - you know he's really onto something quite deep. Highly recommended for those interested in Jungian analysis or living a life of contentment. In other words, just about anyone.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve just reread this book six years after my first reading and I like it even more. It’s a small book, a quick read, with a lot of wisdom packed in those pages. There’s an excellent discussion of Shakespeare’s King Lear who learns contentment which is nothing more and nothing less than accepting what is both in ourselves and in the world.

[Marele Venter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dankie dat jy my aan die outeur bekend gestel het, Rinda Blom.

[Jinan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most excellent. Speaks of what contentment is from a depth analytical perspective, and spiritual perspective; whilst tying it with a analogous classic King Lear, by Shakespeare.

I found quote interesting the discussions about the paradoxical relationships between struggle, and chasing happiness; running from suffering and accepting joy. Modern taoist alchemy hmm..

Ideas of projection was lightly touched on; how our own internal sufferings is blamed on external factors or people, which leads to non-solution actions till it is realized so.

[Jeff Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Utilising 'King Lear' to promote the concepts of Jung was very clever.
The concept of 'Projection' particularly grabbed my attention as it took literally seconds to recognise the many blown out of proportion situations i have been involved in. I also was impressed with the traffic light example of Projection.
Who hasn't sworn that the light turned red just for them? There were lots of little quotes and stories that resonated, but got a little lost around the 'I' versus 'ego'.
Finally, the real treasure of this book was the 'Gifts' putlined in Part 4.

I can see that this book would be extremely helpful to those who are truely seeking help. Contentment could easily be around the corner if we accept 'what is'

[Rubina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt the book started well enough. In the first one-third of the book, Johnson explained how we so often think we will be content just as soon as something, someone, some situation happens, and then we try to reproduce the conditions that led to the contentment. However, reality doesn not always go the way we want so instead of having a "just as soon as" mentality, we should affirm reality as it is. From the middle of the book, Johnson starts to site examples from King Lear and that's where it fell apart for me.
Overall, the book offers a few nuggets of insight but nothing new or exciting.

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the more simple suggestions in this book by Robert Johnson. It is written at a more basic level than some of his other titles I've read. He does use King Lear to illustrate how we may better find contentment with what we have and are, rather than falling victim to the more is better mentality.

[Calvin Lawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was enlightening!

I believe that this book should be heavily promoted across the United States! We need to learn how to accept what is and love the moment. I highly recommend this read.

[Elise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book changed my life.

[Abbas Madani · Rating 3 out of 5]

عنوان کتاب بعلاوه نویسنده مرا جذب کرد ،بنظرم یا نویسنده در بسیاری موارد نارسا نوشته یا مترجم بدترجمه کرده حتی در موضوع خضر و موسی داستان غلط نوشته شده،اما از نظر بررسی ابعاد و جوانب مختلف بوجود اورنده احساس رضایت در زندگی کتاب قابل توصیه ای است،نکته ای که در ان تاکید شده اینست که منبع احساس رضایت از درون انسان است و نه خارج از او ،بنابراین نباید باتفاقات اینده و خازج از خودت برای بدست اوردن احساس رضایت امید بست و اینکه اگر چنین بشود یا فلان گردد و .... من راضی خواهم شد،شاید همگان تجربه کرده ایم که چنین و چنان شد ولی راضی نگردیدیم،نکته دیگر راضی بودن بانچه هست و توصیه باینکه تلاش بکنید ولی فکر نکنید تمام فاکتورهای نتیجه در دست شماست لذا بقول خیام " گر اندکی نه بوفق رضاست خرده مگیر" و یا جمله ای که در دعای کمیل است که خدایا مرا همواره بقسمتی که برایم تعیین کردی راضی و قانع کن،که باز بمعنی عدم تلاش نیست،باید تا حد ممکن تلاش کرد ولی انوقت به نتیجه راضی بود ولی باز میتوان برای رضایت دیگر تلاش نمود و از هر نتیجه جدید راضی بود.

[Anoop Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a short but very powerful and enlightening book for me. I heartily recommend it to all and even think it would be useful as a global high school text to prepare kids for life in today's cut throat capitalist world.

I read this almost simultaneously with Inner Work, a book of the author's on dream analysis. The message of both became powerful because what my dreams were telling me about me matched along with what I read in Contentment as it followed.

I felt the aspect of trying to link it with King Lear detracted from the book somewhat. An unnecessary gimmick to add for a message that stands on its own but I'll stick by the 5 star rating since that is really a subjective element and other readers, indeed, felt Lear added to the message.

[Daniel Wolpin · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be read and reread

Robert A. Johnson was a master at expressing complex esoteric ideas so simply that anyone can gain understanding. I have read nearly all his books and plan to read the the couple I have not. This particular work has helped in confirming my own perspective on what is important in life. Contentment is there at the top. I will definitely read this again after some time has passed.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice quick read that can help shine light on daily habits or practices that are draining our ability to feel content. It was too much for me with the references to Shakespeare that I am not familiar with, so the comparison was lost on me, but otherwise I found a lot of the content to be enlightening, accessible, and with phrases/reminders around finding joy, contentment, and gratitude in our lives that I've incorporated into my weekly mindfulness practices.

[Shaarzad_ · Rating 3 out of 5]

کتاب خوب و کم حجمی برای یاداوری مسائل مهمی که شاید توی زندگی شلوغ روزمره امروز یادمون بره
البته دیدگاهی که کتاب درباره عشق (عشق رو به ولتاژ بالای برق تشبیه کرده بود ) داشت رو نمی‌پذیرم . اگر جای مترجم بودم در پی‌نوشت نظرم رو به عنوان یک شرقی که با داستان هایی مثل لیلی و مجنون بزرگ شده می‌نوشتم (طبق کتاب دوست داشتن ارزش بیشتری نسب به عشق داره)

[Joe Bubel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compacted full of meaning. Amazing.

[Shadi Servat · Rating 5 out of 5]

کلی سرنخ میداد. رسیدن به هرکدام سالها شاید زمان ببره. اما اگر بهش برسیم میتونیم زندگی زیباتری داشته باشیم. مثل یک جزوه جلسات تراپی بود

[Arjo · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Shima Mahmoudi · Rating 5 out of 5]

رابرت الکس جانسون از نویسنده های مورد علاقه منه. من این کتاب رو از بنیاد فرهنگ زندگی عیدی گرفتم. اما کل سال توی کتابخونه م بود تا بالاخره اواخر اسفند صدام زد که بخونمش.
واقعا رضایت یک مساله درونیه
وقتی میخوای جهان رو کنترل کنی چون میسر نیست درونت غرق اضطراب میشه و نارضایتی
باید بپذیری که رها بودن و در لحظه بودن موهبتی داره که کنترل کردن نداره
توی کتاب بخش بخشش با ذکر داستان مخصوصا از شکسپیر خیلی خوب حرفها برات جا میفته
مخصوصا در این روزهای کرونایی برام این بخش جالب بود که میگفت گاهی یه اتفاق در ظاهر فاجعه ست ولی هدفی نهفته پشتشه که برای تو فعلا قابل درک نیست.
و انتهای کتاب با توصیه هایی که در مورد موهبت ها داشت غووووووغا کرد و من واقعا نیاز داشتم این حرفها رو بشنوم. مخصوصا در مورد موهبت درنگ و موهبت طبیعت.
بین تمام کتابهای بنیاد، کتابهایی که نویسنده ش رابرت الکس جانسونه برای من عزیزترن، قلمش برام خیلی جذابه و اینکه از مسائلی صحبت می کنه که در زندگیم مشهوده.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read.