思想改变世界TED系列 安静的力量

by Pico Iyer

29岁的时候，皮克·耶尔过上了一个普通人梦寐以求的生活：在曼哈顿一栋摩天大楼的25层上班，和一群志趣相投的人共事；工作内容精彩无比，是为《时代》周刊报道国际时事；而且没有什么家庭负担，可以随心所欲地到世界各地旅行。忙碌的生活让他感到兴奋，但是内心深处却迷失了自己的方向。于是，耶尔决定逃离这样的梦幻生活，放弃稳定的工作，搬到未知世界，也就是他心目中的“止境”，体会一种静止的力量。都市的生活总是让人晕头转向，但耶尔发现止境能够让人找到自己真正的方向，从而把世界看得更加清楚，对世界爱得更深。
在《安静的力量》一书中，皮克·耶尔分享了许多与我们常识相悖的观点。他认为每个人在骨子里，其实都需要一个留白的空间，一个停顿，就像一段音乐正是有了休止符才能让人产生共鸣。但是，这本书不是冥想指导书，也不是宗教宣传小册子，而是倡导了一种生活方式，也就是关掉电脑、抛开手机、逃离都市喧嚣，通过长时间静坐，进入内心世界。而这种生活方式是包括谷歌在内很多互联网公司都在推崇的生活和工作方式。

Paperback

Published April 1, 2016

About the author

Pico Iyer is a British-born essayist and novelist of Indian descent. As an acclaimed travel writer, he began his career documenting a neglected aspect of travel -- the sometimes surreal disconnect between local tradition and imported global pop culture. Since then, he has written ten books, exploring also the cultural consequences of isolation, whether writing about the exiled spiritual leaders of Tibet or the embargoed society of Cuba.

Iyer’s latest focus is on yet another overlooked aspect of travel: how can it help us regain our sense of stillness and focus in a world where our devices and digital networks increasing distract us? As he says: "Almost everybody I know has this sense of overdosing on information and getting dizzy living at post-human speeds. Nearly everybody I know does something to try to remove herself to clear her head and to have enough time and space to think. ... All of us instinctively feel that something inside us is crying out for more spaciousness and stillness to offset the exhilarations of this movement and the fun and diversion of the modern world."