Living in the Presence: A Jewish Mindfulness Guide for Everyday Life

by Benjamin Epstein

In our frantic, fast paced society, we need constant guidance to remind us that we can only find the peace of mind we sorely lack by looking inward. Judaism, like many other spiritual traditions, offers a unique path to cultivating fulfillment and presence of mind. In cultivating peace of mind, we do not aim to achieve transcendence. Rather, our goal is to enter fully into whatever is occurring in our lives and meet it with full presence. But being a better Jew and a happier person are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, they are mutually interdependent. From the moment we wake to the moment we fall asleep, biblical commandments provide us with guidelines that encourage us to be aware of the present moment. A Guide to Jewish Mindfulness provides concise and clear instructions on how to cultivate peace of mind in order to attain a life of greater commitment and inspiration for the present moment.

Genres: Judaism, Jewish, Meditation

192 pages, Hardcover

Published April 1, 2019

Reviews

[Israel Drazin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Benjamin Epstein’s book “Living in the Presence: A Jewish Mindfulness Guide for Everyday Life” is an eye-opening, inspiring, sensible, and very helpful book. Many people will profit by reading this book and following Dr. Epstein’s advice. This includes, among others, people who not only do not smell the roses, they do not even see them. This is like a husband spending six hours preparing a colorful and tasty French Onion soup and placing it before his wife; she fails to notice it and asks, “What are we having for supper?” It is easy to see that this couple will not have a happy life. God, according to the Bible, spent six days preparing a beautiful world for people but many people do not enjoy it. Lots of people ignore the beauty God set before them. To invent a parable, this is like the man who died, appeared before God, God asks him, “Did you enjoy the beauties of the world,” and the man replies, “I was very religious, I spent my life in prayer.” God responded by slapping him across his face.
Dr. Epstein’s book tells us about life. It gives us advice on how to find purpose and meaning in life. It stresses “mindfulness.” Seeing and understanding how we can enjoy today what we hope to obtain in the world to come. He speaks about many subjects during the four parts of his book. Among them are the value of the Sabbath, how to quiet the mind, reflections on various Jewish holidays, on the ways of God, hindrances, patience, joy, on one’s essential nature, and much more.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving Kindness

I found this book by accident looking for one written by another Epstein. Happy accident as they say. Recently I have been interested in knowing the faith and traditions of Jesus to better understand my own roots. The loving kindness on which Judaism was formed was fully expressed in the life of Jesus. There is much more compatibility between Judaism and Christianity than the church teaches. Very inspiring and comforting read!

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too us centered and scripture quotey for me