Deep Human Connection: Why We Need It More than Anything Else

by Stephen Cope

“Lovingly crafted, deep, richly engaging, and wise.” —Jack Kornfield “An important resource...for many years to come.” —Sharon Salzberg “...brilliant and utterly engaging.” —Tara Brach This “glorious book” explores the essence of connection through 5 essential types of relationships, “[guiding] us into the infinite mysteries of human attunement” (Bessel van der Kolk, New York Times–bestselling author of The Body Keeps the Score). Do you long to connect more deeply with other human beings? Do you wonder if you’re living up to your human potential to make these deep connections happen—and perhaps missing out on this most compelling aspect of a vital life? In this groundbreaking book, bestselling author Stephen Cope invites us to explore the most important questions in this What is the nature of human connection? Why, precisely, is a capacity to connect deeply so important to the development of our minds, bodies, and spirits? What are the actual mechanisms of connection that we must master during the course of life? How can our lack of connection inhibit our happiness and satisfaction in life? Can we learn to connect more wisely than we do? Cope is well known as a master storyteller, and he seamlessly blends science, scholarship, and storytelling, drawing on poignant stories from his own life as well as the lives of famous figures—from E. M. Forster to Sigmund Freud to Queen Victoria—whose formative relationships shed light on the nature of connection itself. In the process, he lays out in stunning detail the precise mechanisms of human connection, which he distills into five helpful containment, twinship, adversity, mirroring, and conscious partnership. Then he invites us into a remarkably practical reflection on how these forms of connection appear in our own lives, helping us work toward a fuller understanding of deep human connection—and a more satisfying and fruitful life.   Deep Human Connection was originally published as Soul Friends.

Genres: Psychology

275 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 26, 2019

About the author

Stephen Cope is the director of the Kripalu Institute for Extraordinary Living, the largest yoga research institute in the Western world—with a team of scientists affiliated with major medical schools on the East coast, primarily Harvard Medical School. He has been for many years the senior scholar in residence at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox, Massachusetts, and is the author of four best-selling books.

Reviews

[Delphine Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Steven Cope wrote an autobiography of himself and some of his deepest life connections. There were sections of the book that I found highly relatable. I particularly liked his relationship with his grandmother, and as a grandmother myself I really liked that part. I liked also how he included famous close relationships, Eleanor Roosevelt with her mentor, Queen Victoria with Price Albert. It made me reflect on the friendships and meaningful connections we had and have in this life and to cherish them. They are fleeting for one reason or another. I also liked how Cope described the role of grief in his life and it got me thinking about how difficult and challenging navigating it is on a daily basis. Overall, it was a good book. I didn’t like slogging through the psychology-I don’t resonate with it much although it obviously has its place. I also didn’t connect to the author entirely because he is obviously from an entirely socioeconomic class than myself. We connect to people more like ourselves.

[Bruce A. Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

inspired

Thank you Mr. Cope. You inspired me to write the suggested list. Then paragraph why each name was added. Short stories emerged and now a book might be in the works. My own experience of connections that changed the path I was on. Your book lives on…
I highly recommend this read to anyone who is curious about their own journal in this life!