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Das Leben wagen: Der Weg zum wahren Glück | Ein Mann erzählt von seinem Weg in die Vollkommenheit des Lebens
From the author of the New York Times #1 bestseller The Untethered Soul comes this thought-provoking, inspirational memoir on the magic that happens when you just let go
Spirituality is meant to bring about harmony and peace. But the diversity of our philosophies, beliefs, concepts, and views about the soul often leads to confusion. To reconcile the noise that clouds spirituality, Michael Singer combines accounts of his own life journey to enlightenment—from his years as a hippie-loner to his success as a computer program engineer to his work in spiritual and humanitarian efforts—with lessons on how to put aside conflicting beliefs, let go of worries, and transform misdirected desires. Singer provides a road map to a new way of living not in the moment, but to exist in a state of perpetual happiness.
Spirituality is meant to bring about harmony and peace. But the diversity of our philosophies, beliefs, concepts, and views about the soul often leads to confusion. To reconcile the noise that clouds spirituality, Michael Singer combines accounts of his own life journey to enlightenment—from his years as a hippie-loner to his success as a computer program engineer to his work in spiritual and humanitarian efforts—with lessons on how to put aside conflicting beliefs, let go of worries, and transform misdirected desires. Singer provides a road map to a new way of living not in the moment, but to exist in a state of perpetual happiness.
322 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 2, 2015
3808 people are currently reading
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About the author
Michael A. Singer
57 books2,867 followersMichael A. Singer is the author of the highly successful The Untethered Soul, which has also been published in Turkey, Brazil (in Portuguese), Switzerland (in German), Spain, Japan, China, the Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, Poland, and Italy.
Singer received a master's degree in economics from the University of Florida in 1971. During his doctoral work, he had a deep inner awakening and went into seclusion to focus on yoga and meditation. In 1975, he founded Temple of the Universe, a now long-established yoga and meditation center where people of any religion or set of beliefs can come together to experience inner peace. Through the years, Singer has made major contributions in the areas of business, the arts, education, healthcare, and environmental protection. He previously authored two books on the integration of Eastern and Western philosophy: The Search for Truth and Three Essays on Universal Law: Karma, Will and Love.
Singer received a master's degree in economics from the University of Florida in 1971. During his doctoral work, he had a deep inner awakening and went into seclusion to focus on yoga and meditation. In 1975, he founded Temple of the Universe, a now long-established yoga and meditation center where people of any religion or set of beliefs can come together to experience inner peace. Through the years, Singer has made major contributions in the areas of business, the arts, education, healthcare, and environmental protection. He previously authored two books on the integration of Eastern and Western philosophy: The Search for Truth and Three Essays on Universal Law: Karma, Will and Love.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,771 reviews
November 29, 2015
I was really torn between giving this a 2-star and a 4-star.
Pros - it's very well written. It's also a powerful concept - of acknowledging the limit of our control, not being committed to a single outcome, but rather being open to where life takes us and letting things unfold as they do. The 2-page "premise" section sums this up beautifully, and the repetition of examples in the book are helpful.
Cons - it's really hard for to relate to someone who has an epiphany at age 22 and then never varies from his vision or convictions. Yes, he tells the story in a way in which you see his personal growth and personal struggle, but the heart of this story is - I committed at age 22 to surrendering to life, and did that the rest of my life and it worked out great. There are no real counterexamples to give this depth - he's obviously not saying yes to everything, he turns down a fulltime teaching position, he must have had countless requests that he turned down, so telling a story of "yes to everything" doesn't seem right. It's also not relatable for me - where is the struggle, the loss of faith, the self doubt, the errors and failures - this image of perfection doesn't inspire, for me it creates doubt or a feeling of inauthentic self description.
I think about it's message a lot, but based on the cons it's hard to go above 3 stars.
Pros - it's very well written. It's also a powerful concept - of acknowledging the limit of our control, not being committed to a single outcome, but rather being open to where life takes us and letting things unfold as they do. The 2-page "premise" section sums this up beautifully, and the repetition of examples in the book are helpful.
Cons - it's really hard for to relate to someone who has an epiphany at age 22 and then never varies from his vision or convictions. Yes, he tells the story in a way in which you see his personal growth and personal struggle, but the heart of this story is - I committed at age 22 to surrendering to life, and did that the rest of my life and it worked out great. There are no real counterexamples to give this depth - he's obviously not saying yes to everything, he turns down a fulltime teaching position, he must have had countless requests that he turned down, so telling a story of "yes to everything" doesn't seem right. It's also not relatable for me - where is the struggle, the loss of faith, the self doubt, the errors and failures - this image of perfection doesn't inspire, for me it creates doubt or a feeling of inauthentic self description.
I think about it's message a lot, but based on the cons it's hard to go above 3 stars.
August 11, 2015
I was hoping for a book that expanded on the wisdom of the Untethered Soul, which I thought was brilliant and life changing. I did enjoy the beginning of the book where Mr. Singer discusses the beginnings of his spiritual seeking and how his life fell into place in so many ways. I loved hearing about the spiritual commune he started and the spiritual teachers that he met and learned from. But I was caught off guard when he began to discuss developing his medical software billing empire. It became a major focus for the majority of this book. What a waste! It just went on and on and had virtually nothing to offer the reader who might be seeking spiritual awakening. If you enjoy hearing about computer software and business development and land acquisition, then this is for you. If you want a book about spiritual development then look elsewhere.
September 24, 2015
Ultimately, this book is about the art of allowing...of radical freedom, really. It's about following your passions and then lining up with whatever circumstances life places before you.
Here are some of my favorite lines:
"The sharp line I had drawn between spiritual and nonspiritual had begun to fade. The energy I experienced while teaching my classes...was the same energy I was dealing with in my yoga and meditations."
"Every time I got into or out of my car, I would slow down my breath and visualize Earth spinning through outer space. Before opening a door, any door, I would remember that I was walking through a door on this tiny planet in the vast emptiness of space."
"My formula for success was very simple: Do whatever is put in front of you with all your heart and soul without regard for personal results. Do the work as though it were given to you by the universe itself--because it was."
"Challenging situations create the force needed to bring about change. The problem is that we generally use all the stirred-up energy intended to bring about change, to resist change. I was learning to sit quietly in the midst of howling winds and wait to see what constructive action was being asked of me."
"When push comes to shove, I don't care what it takes, just free me from myself."
"No matter what, life is going to put us through the changes we need to go through. The question is: Are we willing to use this force for our transformation?"
"The more I let go, the freer I became. It was not my responsibility to find what was binding me; that was life's job. My responsibility was to willingly let go of whatever was brought up within me."
"Once you are willing to let go of yourself, life becomes your friend, your teacher, your secret lover. When life's way becomes your way, all the noise stops, and there is great peace."
Here are some of my favorite lines:
"The sharp line I had drawn between spiritual and nonspiritual had begun to fade. The energy I experienced while teaching my classes...was the same energy I was dealing with in my yoga and meditations."
"Every time I got into or out of my car, I would slow down my breath and visualize Earth spinning through outer space. Before opening a door, any door, I would remember that I was walking through a door on this tiny planet in the vast emptiness of space."
"My formula for success was very simple: Do whatever is put in front of you with all your heart and soul without regard for personal results. Do the work as though it were given to you by the universe itself--because it was."
"Challenging situations create the force needed to bring about change. The problem is that we generally use all the stirred-up energy intended to bring about change, to resist change. I was learning to sit quietly in the midst of howling winds and wait to see what constructive action was being asked of me."
"When push comes to shove, I don't care what it takes, just free me from myself."
"No matter what, life is going to put us through the changes we need to go through. The question is: Are we willing to use this force for our transformation?"
"The more I let go, the freer I became. It was not my responsibility to find what was binding me; that was life's job. My responsibility was to willingly let go of whatever was brought up within me."
"Once you are willing to let go of yourself, life becomes your friend, your teacher, your secret lover. When life's way becomes your way, all the noise stops, and there is great peace."
July 15, 2020
Well, that’s 250 pages of humble bragging.
Summary: Surrendering to life is easy when everything goes your way. Apparently, Mr. Singer had to learn to be OK with surrendering to people repeatedly telling him how awesome he is.
The Surrender Experiment reminds me of nothing of the books I’ve read about Buddhism and yoga. A closer counterpart would be prosperity gospel and the idea that you’re simply not praying hard enough if life isn’t going your way.
Regarding the court case at the end: As an attorney, I don’t buy his version of events. While I love nothing more than criticizing our modern legal system, this tale doesn’t jive with my own experiences and knowledge.
That’s one of the major problems of this book: The unstated inverse of “Michael A. Singer is amazing” is that idiots surround him. He didn’t want to do all of these amazing things, but people kept coming to him because he's the only competent person around. It’s obnoxious.
At the end of the day, Mr. Singer is a baby boomer who was a hippie but turned into a capitalist and is still trying to justify selling out his youthful principles in the name of the almighty dollar. Mr. Singer, own up to it. Surrender to that reality and stop pretending that not wearing a suit makes you alternative.
A final comment (wherein I try and sound less cynical): I don’t disagree with Mr. Singer’s premise. There is something to surrendering to life and not fighting against what happens to us. I know people who have dealt with some truly awful things with grace and compassion and found roses amidst destruction. I just found how he presented his own life lacking.
For a better take on this subject, allow me to suggest Pema Chodron’s Fail, Fail Again, Fail Better, which is based on a graduation speech she gave a few years ago. It’s a much shorter read and better aligned with my own experiences and observations of what it means to honestly surrender to life and ending the belief that surrender is somehow defeat.
Not recommended.
Summary: Surrendering to life is easy when everything goes your way. Apparently, Mr. Singer had to learn to be OK with surrendering to people repeatedly telling him how awesome he is.
The Surrender Experiment reminds me of nothing of the books I’ve read about Buddhism and yoga. A closer counterpart would be prosperity gospel and the idea that you’re simply not praying hard enough if life isn’t going your way.
Regarding the court case at the end: As an attorney, I don’t buy his version of events. While I love nothing more than criticizing our modern legal system, this tale doesn’t jive with my own experiences and knowledge.
That’s one of the major problems of this book: The unstated inverse of “Michael A. Singer is amazing” is that idiots surround him. He didn’t want to do all of these amazing things, but people kept coming to him because he's the only competent person around. It’s obnoxious.
At the end of the day, Mr. Singer is a baby boomer who was a hippie but turned into a capitalist and is still trying to justify selling out his youthful principles in the name of the almighty dollar. Mr. Singer, own up to it. Surrender to that reality and stop pretending that not wearing a suit makes you alternative.
A final comment (wherein I try and sound less cynical): I don’t disagree with Mr. Singer’s premise. There is something to surrendering to life and not fighting against what happens to us. I know people who have dealt with some truly awful things with grace and compassion and found roses amidst destruction. I just found how he presented his own life lacking.
For a better take on this subject, allow me to suggest Pema Chodron’s Fail, Fail Again, Fail Better, which is based on a graduation speech she gave a few years ago. It’s a much shorter read and better aligned with my own experiences and observations of what it means to honestly surrender to life and ending the belief that surrender is somehow defeat.
Not recommended.
February 11, 2016
Let me start off by saying that I love the idea behind this book - the reason I purchased it. I want to better understand how to surrender to life, so my review and rating have nothing to do with the subject matter.
Obviously, this is Singer's story and it is his to tell, but I got absolutely nothing out of this book at all, which *might* have been acceptable if this were a third rate thriller, not a book which was obviously written as an enlightenment tool/read.
While I did not expect to get a "revelation" reading this book, I at least expected to enjoy it or find some tiny nuggets of wisdom and I did not. Frankly, I am wondering if I read the same book as all those people who left positive reviews.
The first part of the book, while idealistic, does not reflect real life - at least not the real life of anyone I know (including myself) so I could ABSOLUTELY NOT identify at all - which makes it very hard to gleam some kind of "wisdom" to apply to my own life.
I am not sure how many of us can live in a van and meditate all the time, instead of you know - living in the real world.
I am also constantly amazed at how this person puts absolutely no effort into being a contributing part of society (other than to spend most of his time in his temple) and yet, everyone wants him and everything is drawn to him.
I think this book was already written a long time ago, by someone who actually left some kind of literary mark on the world and the book was called WALDEN.
You know, maybe the problem is me and that I just did not get the concept or whatever behind this book, but honestly, I am annoyed that I spent the money. More power to those who got something out of this one.
Obviously, this is Singer's story and it is his to tell, but I got absolutely nothing out of this book at all, which *might* have been acceptable if this were a third rate thriller, not a book which was obviously written as an enlightenment tool/read.
While I did not expect to get a "revelation" reading this book, I at least expected to enjoy it or find some tiny nuggets of wisdom and I did not. Frankly, I am wondering if I read the same book as all those people who left positive reviews.
The first part of the book, while idealistic, does not reflect real life - at least not the real life of anyone I know (including myself) so I could ABSOLUTELY NOT identify at all - which makes it very hard to gleam some kind of "wisdom" to apply to my own life.
I am not sure how many of us can live in a van and meditate all the time, instead of you know - living in the real world.
I am also constantly amazed at how this person puts absolutely no effort into being a contributing part of society (other than to spend most of his time in his temple) and yet, everyone wants him and everything is drawn to him.
I think this book was already written a long time ago, by someone who actually left some kind of literary mark on the world and the book was called WALDEN.
You know, maybe the problem is me and that I just did not get the concept or whatever behind this book, but honestly, I am annoyed that I spent the money. More power to those who got something out of this one.
January 9, 2021
I enjoyed Singer's "The Untethered Soul" and was hoping for more of the good stuff here.
Boy, was I disappointed.
This book is unbelievably obnoxious.
It’s ostensibly about surrender, yet Singer never finds the time to clarify what he means by the concept. For the most part, he appears to define surrender as saying yes to any opportunities that arise—especially those which he felt resistance towards. At times, however, he considers the rejection of opportunities as the epitome of surrender. That's having your ‘perfect’ cake and eating it too.
He lists things that went well for him throughout his life ad nauseam, attributing them entirely to his capacity to surrender to life's innate perfection. The circular reasoning goes as follows: If it worked out, he was surrendering; if it didn't, he was obviously resisting.
I found myself asking the following: Is there a distinction between inner and outer surrender? What happens when life presents two diametrically opposed opportunities? What qualifies as not being part of the natural flow of life? How exactly does one distinguish the 'flow of life' from the rest? These sorts of questions aren’t examined at all.
Moreover, he has a supremely annoying habit of overusing the most dramatic language. You can't go a few paragraphs without him saying something like “this changed my life forever” “I never could have imagined where this would lead me” “I felt ____ more intensely than I ever had before” “as destiny would have it” etc. It sounds like a 16 year old describing their first time smoking weed, on weed. His tone is consistently pompous and heavy-handed.
And what's the deal with the super short chapters?
There are 56 of them!
Did I practice surrender by finishing this book? Or, conversely, would I have been surrendering if I ditched it?
I wish I had done the latter.
Boy, was I disappointed.
This book is unbelievably obnoxious.
It’s ostensibly about surrender, yet Singer never finds the time to clarify what he means by the concept. For the most part, he appears to define surrender as saying yes to any opportunities that arise—especially those which he felt resistance towards. At times, however, he considers the rejection of opportunities as the epitome of surrender. That's having your ‘perfect’ cake and eating it too.
He lists things that went well for him throughout his life ad nauseam, attributing them entirely to his capacity to surrender to life's innate perfection. The circular reasoning goes as follows: If it worked out, he was surrendering; if it didn't, he was obviously resisting.
I found myself asking the following: Is there a distinction between inner and outer surrender? What happens when life presents two diametrically opposed opportunities? What qualifies as not being part of the natural flow of life? How exactly does one distinguish the 'flow of life' from the rest? These sorts of questions aren’t examined at all.
Moreover, he has a supremely annoying habit of overusing the most dramatic language. You can't go a few paragraphs without him saying something like “this changed my life forever” “I never could have imagined where this would lead me” “I felt ____ more intensely than I ever had before” “as destiny would have it” etc. It sounds like a 16 year old describing their first time smoking weed, on weed. His tone is consistently pompous and heavy-handed.
And what's the deal with the super short chapters?
There are 56 of them!
Did I practice surrender by finishing this book? Or, conversely, would I have been surrendering if I ditched it?
I wish I had done the latter.
February 11, 2020
Woof. Just a guy humble bragging about his superior intellect, privilege and luck. The second half of the book is solely him fumbling to clear his name after being indicted for corruption by the FBI and giving up any premise of “surrender” for “fight against everything for 5 years with $120 million”.
Whatever spirituality lesson exists is just flattened by this guy’s ego. My favorite quote is his take on why his first wife left him: “the sheer strength of my personality and intellect had not given her the room she needed to breathe” 🙄
Whatever spirituality lesson exists is just flattened by this guy’s ego. My favorite quote is his take on why his first wife left him: “the sheer strength of my personality and intellect had not given her the room she needed to breathe” 🙄
December 23, 2015
This one about does it for me on memoirs. While I understand the benefits of meditation on one's health and well-being, Singer's story, as he tells it, seems to imply that embracing full zenness is essential for getting good things in life and being successful. So here's my take:
1. Singer had the advantage of an upper middle class existence at the time that he "discovered" his ideology. No responsibilities, plenty of money to "tune in, drop out", and basically take a sabbatical from the real world. If he had had a child, or been born without a silver spoon in his mouth, he would not have been able to drop out of graduate school - the money would have been too important for his survival.
2. He keeps talking about becoming separate from himself, and observing life as it passes by, tamping down/ignoring his inner voice, as if this was a bad thing. I have never bought that concept. I have always wondered why some say it is such a bad thing to pay attention to your inner voice because I think that voice is important. I have also never understood why it is so important to detach oneself from reality. I am much more comfortable with the notion that we need to learn to live with reality and become comfortable with it, WITHOUT detachment. What Singer seems to be dealing with is anxiety, and yes, meditation can help with that, but so can therapy and medication; meditation isn't the only path.
3. I made it through about 8 chapters, then skipped around on the digital copy, coming upon the story about land across from his temple basically falling into his lap. But, it didn't. The landfill dump that was slated for the land wasn't a great thing, and he did something about it by galvanizing neighbors and appealing to the city council. And, as luck would have it, they voted against issuing a permit. It could have easily gone the other way, with the council voting for it. The land falling into his lap, right across from the temple, and so perfect, was not due in ANY way to his spiritual practice.
4. In the amount of the book I listened to, Singer only once acknowledged the force of luck in how things turned out for him. He starts a statement about some incident with "as fate would have it." And there you go. Fate, luck, chance are big players in our lives, and have nothing to do with our spiritual practice, how much we meditate, how strongly we believe. Just ask all the soldiers on Omaha Beach that never made it through the day, or even out of the water. If we don't acknowledge the work of luck in our lives, we would be forced to believe that some people are more deserving than others of success, wealth, and fortune, and that those who experience misfortune are somehow reaping what they sow. Not always. And that's the paradox of life.
I just got bored with another self-serving tome about someone's discovery being the be all and end all of life. My experience is that clinging to that notion is baloney. Singer is right that life throws you curve balls and how you respond will affect you in many ways. But his response method is not a one size fits all. I guess my DNA just won't fit with eastern philosophy as well as I or anyone else would like it to fit. :-)
Namaste!
1. Singer had the advantage of an upper middle class existence at the time that he "discovered" his ideology. No responsibilities, plenty of money to "tune in, drop out", and basically take a sabbatical from the real world. If he had had a child, or been born without a silver spoon in his mouth, he would not have been able to drop out of graduate school - the money would have been too important for his survival.
2. He keeps talking about becoming separate from himself, and observing life as it passes by, tamping down/ignoring his inner voice, as if this was a bad thing. I have never bought that concept. I have always wondered why some say it is such a bad thing to pay attention to your inner voice because I think that voice is important. I have also never understood why it is so important to detach oneself from reality. I am much more comfortable with the notion that we need to learn to live with reality and become comfortable with it, WITHOUT detachment. What Singer seems to be dealing with is anxiety, and yes, meditation can help with that, but so can therapy and medication; meditation isn't the only path.
3. I made it through about 8 chapters, then skipped around on the digital copy, coming upon the story about land across from his temple basically falling into his lap. But, it didn't. The landfill dump that was slated for the land wasn't a great thing, and he did something about it by galvanizing neighbors and appealing to the city council. And, as luck would have it, they voted against issuing a permit. It could have easily gone the other way, with the council voting for it. The land falling into his lap, right across from the temple, and so perfect, was not due in ANY way to his spiritual practice.
4. In the amount of the book I listened to, Singer only once acknowledged the force of luck in how things turned out for him. He starts a statement about some incident with "as fate would have it." And there you go. Fate, luck, chance are big players in our lives, and have nothing to do with our spiritual practice, how much we meditate, how strongly we believe. Just ask all the soldiers on Omaha Beach that never made it through the day, or even out of the water. If we don't acknowledge the work of luck in our lives, we would be forced to believe that some people are more deserving than others of success, wealth, and fortune, and that those who experience misfortune are somehow reaping what they sow. Not always. And that's the paradox of life.
I just got bored with another self-serving tome about someone's discovery being the be all and end all of life. My experience is that clinging to that notion is baloney. Singer is right that life throws you curve balls and how you respond will affect you in many ways. But his response method is not a one size fits all. I guess my DNA just won't fit with eastern philosophy as well as I or anyone else would like it to fit. :-)
Namaste!
November 23, 2020
I read 49% of this book before I gave up. It's trash. It's a story about how mediocre white men don't even have to try and will still succeed in the United States.
August 13, 2016
Like some other readers, I was excited by the idea of this book--surrendering to the way life unfolds and attempting to step away from the ego and concept of "self" which often gets in our way. But I was a bit disappointed. I wanted more depth, more of an idea of Micky's day to day life--how DOES this surrender concept really work. I also couldn't help but wonder what his wife and child think of it all, what their experience has been. Obviously, this is his story, his version of what "surrendering" to the flow of life looks like--but I was so curious as to how that surrender plays out in the context of family and intimate relationships. There is a great deal of focus on the business success but I was left wanting more.
March 21, 2020
DNF at 31% + some skimming of final chapters to see if it gets better. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t. This book is just the story of the author’s business venture forcefully tied into his whole “let’s surrender to life” experiment. EVERYTHING that happens to this dude seems to be “divine intervention” for him and tied to some spiritual and holy reason. And every event, or thought he has, or meditation session he does, or decision he takes “changes the course of his life forever”. 🙄 It reminds me of the Friends episode when Phoebe dates that guy Parker and he is annoyingly enthusiastic and optimistic about fucking everything. That’s Singer in this book. Also, sooo many situations described by the author are one of those I’ll-take-200-dollars-for-shit-that-never-happened. Like, who the fuck walks into a university lecture theatre shirtless, NOT realising they are half-naked because they’re so engrossed and at peace with their previous mediation session that it simply slipped their mind? Bullshit. The only thing I can agree with this book is the whole thing about surrender and only because it inspired me to ‘surrender’ the book and never pick it up again. How are there people out there who fall for this shit??? 🤯
July 6, 2025
One of the co-founders of the little company I work for gifted me The Surrender Experiment for my birthday this year. He knows I enjoy reading and I asked him for some recommendations for books that can help me grow. I was expecting a business-related book. Instead, I got a true gift in receiving this book.
One of the biggest complaints I see in reviews for The Surrender Experiment is that nobody's life experiences go this smoothly. I beg to differ. In its pages, this book describes some big events that could sideline almost anyone - divorce, and even being accused of fraud by the federal government. The lesson isn't in what happens to the author throughout the book. The lesson is in how he responds to what's happening.
I found it all very inspiring and close to spiritual truths I've always held close to my heart. If you aren't a spiritual person, you may find the message of the book to be easy to dismiss. However, if you have any spiritual inclination, regardless of religion, you may also be inspired by Michael Singer's words as I was. Five stars and a strong desire to read The Untethered Soul by the same author. 💜
One of the biggest complaints I see in reviews for The Surrender Experiment is that nobody's life experiences go this smoothly. I beg to differ. In its pages, this book describes some big events that could sideline almost anyone - divorce, and even being accused of fraud by the federal government. The lesson isn't in what happens to the author throughout the book. The lesson is in how he responds to what's happening.
I found it all very inspiring and close to spiritual truths I've always held close to my heart. If you aren't a spiritual person, you may find the message of the book to be easy to dismiss. However, if you have any spiritual inclination, regardless of religion, you may also be inspired by Michael Singer's words as I was. Five stars and a strong desire to read The Untethered Soul by the same author. 💜
July 4, 2022
Let me be frank, I started taking this book seriously ever since he mentioned Paramahamsa Yogananda, and there are quite a few mentions of him in this book, along with Baba Muktananda and Ma Yogashakti (who I am not familiar with 🙏🏾). Since, I am currently reading Paramahamsa Yoganananda’s works, I felt a personal connect to this book as soon as his name cropped up, and it kept cropping up again and again.
While the author mentions ‘karma yoga’ only once in this book, I felt that how he has chosen to live is pretty much a great example of it. He talks about how everything he does is a dedication to the higher intelligence above and that he trusts it to give him his best life, which to me at this point in life appears to be very freeing.
The book does get repetitive after a while, however, I am in a space where I am very lapping up everything about spirituality, hence this book worked for me.
Quite a few reviews mention the author to be indulging in ‘humble bragging’, if anything I found what he has chosen to do to be a humble tribute to what he says is his guiding light. Maybe I am missing out something here.
Certain phrases such as ‘destruction of self is my ultimate goal’ and so on, did stump me a bit, I would have probably understood the author better if I had read ‘An untethered soul’ first. That was the author’s first book apparently and I came to know this only at the end of the book. Additionally, there is not much on his roles as a husband and a father, maybe the author felt there wasn’t much to be mentioned there once he told us about his wedding and his wife’s pregnancy or maybe he wanted it to be private. Whatever maybe the case, I would have loved to know how he applied his ‘surrender experiment’ in his familial life too.
Overall, a book that I enjoyed reading and gave me something to think about.
While the author mentions ‘karma yoga’ only once in this book, I felt that how he has chosen to live is pretty much a great example of it. He talks about how everything he does is a dedication to the higher intelligence above and that he trusts it to give him his best life, which to me at this point in life appears to be very freeing.
The book does get repetitive after a while, however, I am in a space where I am very lapping up everything about spirituality, hence this book worked for me.
Quite a few reviews mention the author to be indulging in ‘humble bragging’, if anything I found what he has chosen to do to be a humble tribute to what he says is his guiding light. Maybe I am missing out something here.
Certain phrases such as ‘destruction of self is my ultimate goal’ and so on, did stump me a bit, I would have probably understood the author better if I had read ‘An untethered soul’ first. That was the author’s first book apparently and I came to know this only at the end of the book. Additionally, there is not much on his roles as a husband and a father, maybe the author felt there wasn’t much to be mentioned there once he told us about his wedding and his wife’s pregnancy or maybe he wanted it to be private. Whatever maybe the case, I would have loved to know how he applied his ‘surrender experiment’ in his familial life too.
Overall, a book that I enjoyed reading and gave me something to think about.
October 28, 2018
I LOVED Untethered Soul, but this one was so super annoying. The theory is excellent--let go of your desires and ambitions and just go with it. But this is about how he became a millionaire by letting go and he didn't actually let go--he highlights all the interesting coincidences and miracles that happened to him (After the 10th "I would never have imagined that such a thing would happen," you start to wonder whether he has no memory). But he talks about how the business had worries and plans and they worried about their lawsuits and their competitors--what does it mean to surrender? I mean, he fought the case against him, right? He pushed his company to compete against other companies, right? I think what he means is just to be open to new things. Read Untethered Soul. Though I wish I hadn't read this one because now I just don't like him at all.
October 24, 2018
When I started this book it was a little bit hard for me because I couldn't really relate to the author's life. Everything seemed so distant from my reality that I didn't think it had something in there for me.
I'm glad I didn't give up, because Mikey's life story made me reflect a lot about how I've been dealing with my life, about how much I've been fighting against everything around me and how unnecessary and harmful that is.
I feel that something was changing inside of me while I was reading this book and I feel that in both my personal and professional life. I don't know if that's good or bad, but somehow I don't think I should care and that's definitely something I got from this book.
I'm glad I didn't give up, because Mikey's life story made me reflect a lot about how I've been dealing with my life, about how much I've been fighting against everything around me and how unnecessary and harmful that is.
I feel that something was changing inside of me while I was reading this book and I feel that in both my personal and professional life. I don't know if that's good or bad, but somehow I don't think I should care and that's definitely something I got from this book.
May 7, 2019
Gave up on this book. Can’t buy into a belief that all positive thought is credited to the Universe/Spirit/God and every negative thought is blamed on me/my ego.
August 13, 2015
What a fascinating and pretty crazy life story this author had! Really interesting premise about how surrendering to the flow of life's events created a pretty incredible and interesting life for the author. I was a big fan of his prior book and this was a good follow-on book.
A few notes/quotes I highlighted:
* Every day, we give precedence to our mind’s thoughts over the reality unfolding before us. We regularly say things like, “It better not rain today because I’m going camping” or “I better get that raise because I really need the money.” Notice that these bold claims about what should and shouldn’t be happening are not based on scientific evidence; they’re based solely on personal preferences made up in our minds. Without realizing it, we do this with everything in our lives—it’s as though we actually believe that the world around us is supposed to manifest in accordance to our own likes and dislikes. If it doesn’t, surely something is very wrong. This is an extremely difficult way to live, and it is the reason we feel that we are always struggling with life.
* Since most of us only feel good when things are going our way, we are constantly attempting to control everything in our lives.
* There must be another, more sane way to approach life. For example, what would happen if we respected the flow of life and used our free will to participate in what’s unfolding, instead of fighting it? What would be the quality of the life that unfolds? Would it just be random events with no order or meaning, or would the same perfection of order and meaning that manifests in the rest of the universe manifest in the everyday life around us?
* If that inner voice could speak in Spanish and you immediately understood what it was saying, then you were fluent in Spanish. If, however, the Spanish words made no sense to you until you did the mental work of translating them so that the voice would repeat them in English, then you were not fluent in Spanish.
* When my mental voice had something to say, I now had a choice—pay attention to the voice or keep focusing on the inner flow of energy. I eventually realized that if I didn’t want to listen to the mental chatter, all I had to do was slightly increase my concentration on the energy flow to my brow. The thoughts would then pass right by without disturbing me. Letting the thoughts go became a game to me. All of life was a lighter experience than before.
* For example, there was the notion that you have to die to be reborn. That is exactly what I had been trying to do, die of the personal to be reborn in the spiritual. I
* The rules of the experiment were very simple: If life brought events in front of me, I would treat them as if they came to take me beyond myself. If my personal self complained, I would use each opportunity to simply let him go and surrender to what life was presenting me.
* I no longer saw the lower aspect of myself, with all his personal issues and melodramas, as the enemy that had to be destroyed. I looked at him now with a new understanding. I needed to use all these disturbed personal energies for my ascent. It was perfectly clear to me that since he was the problem, he was also the solution.
* “You can come out now." that scared, troubled person in there whom I had been watching and judging was indeed a person. The psyche is a person with feelings and thoughts, hopes, fears, and dreams. He is not to be locked in a room and constantly told to shut up. There are much more constructive ways to deal with these disturbed, self-centered energies.
* I had to learn to surrender more, instead of struggling so much. I had already determined to surrender to life’s flow, even if I couldn’t understand where it was taking me.
* Done properly, yoga is the science of channeling all energies upward until they merge together at the highest point—Oneness.
* The number of tasks life was giving me was out of control, but I was surrendering to it. My morning and evening meditations were my refuge. Throughout the day I took every opportunity to quiet myself and center within.
* My formula for success was very simple: Do whatever is put in front of you with all your heart and soul without regard for personal results. Do the work as though it were given to you by the universe itself—because it was.
* Right from the beginning, I resolved to use the whole situation to finally free myself from whatever was left of that scared person inside who had always held me back. This was my entire journey—liberation at any cost.
* How could I possibly explain the great freedom that comes from realizing to the depth of your being that life knows what it’s doing? Only direct experience can take you there. At some point there’s no more struggle, just the deep peace that comes from surrendering to a perfection that is beyond your comprehension. Eventually, even the mind stops resisting, and the heart loses the tendency to close. The joy, excitement, and freedom are simply too beautiful to give up. Once you are ready to let go of yourself, life becomes your friend, your teacher, your secret lover. When life’s way becomes your way, all the noise stops, and there is a great peace.
A few notes/quotes I highlighted:
* Every day, we give precedence to our mind’s thoughts over the reality unfolding before us. We regularly say things like, “It better not rain today because I’m going camping” or “I better get that raise because I really need the money.” Notice that these bold claims about what should and shouldn’t be happening are not based on scientific evidence; they’re based solely on personal preferences made up in our minds. Without realizing it, we do this with everything in our lives—it’s as though we actually believe that the world around us is supposed to manifest in accordance to our own likes and dislikes. If it doesn’t, surely something is very wrong. This is an extremely difficult way to live, and it is the reason we feel that we are always struggling with life.
* Since most of us only feel good when things are going our way, we are constantly attempting to control everything in our lives.
* There must be another, more sane way to approach life. For example, what would happen if we respected the flow of life and used our free will to participate in what’s unfolding, instead of fighting it? What would be the quality of the life that unfolds? Would it just be random events with no order or meaning, or would the same perfection of order and meaning that manifests in the rest of the universe manifest in the everyday life around us?
* If that inner voice could speak in Spanish and you immediately understood what it was saying, then you were fluent in Spanish. If, however, the Spanish words made no sense to you until you did the mental work of translating them so that the voice would repeat them in English, then you were not fluent in Spanish.
* When my mental voice had something to say, I now had a choice—pay attention to the voice or keep focusing on the inner flow of energy. I eventually realized that if I didn’t want to listen to the mental chatter, all I had to do was slightly increase my concentration on the energy flow to my brow. The thoughts would then pass right by without disturbing me. Letting the thoughts go became a game to me. All of life was a lighter experience than before.
* For example, there was the notion that you have to die to be reborn. That is exactly what I had been trying to do, die of the personal to be reborn in the spiritual. I
* The rules of the experiment were very simple: If life brought events in front of me, I would treat them as if they came to take me beyond myself. If my personal self complained, I would use each opportunity to simply let him go and surrender to what life was presenting me.
* I no longer saw the lower aspect of myself, with all his personal issues and melodramas, as the enemy that had to be destroyed. I looked at him now with a new understanding. I needed to use all these disturbed personal energies for my ascent. It was perfectly clear to me that since he was the problem, he was also the solution.
* “You can come out now." that scared, troubled person in there whom I had been watching and judging was indeed a person. The psyche is a person with feelings and thoughts, hopes, fears, and dreams. He is not to be locked in a room and constantly told to shut up. There are much more constructive ways to deal with these disturbed, self-centered energies.
* I had to learn to surrender more, instead of struggling so much. I had already determined to surrender to life’s flow, even if I couldn’t understand where it was taking me.
* Done properly, yoga is the science of channeling all energies upward until they merge together at the highest point—Oneness.
* The number of tasks life was giving me was out of control, but I was surrendering to it. My morning and evening meditations were my refuge. Throughout the day I took every opportunity to quiet myself and center within.
* My formula for success was very simple: Do whatever is put in front of you with all your heart and soul without regard for personal results. Do the work as though it were given to you by the universe itself—because it was.
* Right from the beginning, I resolved to use the whole situation to finally free myself from whatever was left of that scared person inside who had always held me back. This was my entire journey—liberation at any cost.
* How could I possibly explain the great freedom that comes from realizing to the depth of your being that life knows what it’s doing? Only direct experience can take you there. At some point there’s no more struggle, just the deep peace that comes from surrendering to a perfection that is beyond your comprehension. Eventually, even the mind stops resisting, and the heart loses the tendency to close. The joy, excitement, and freedom are simply too beautiful to give up. Once you are ready to let go of yourself, life becomes your friend, your teacher, your secret lover. When life’s way becomes your way, all the noise stops, and there is a great peace.
June 19, 2019
This is one of the most boring memoirs I've ever read.
If you're looking for wisdom/help on how YOU can surrender/practice meditation, this is probably not the book for you.
This book is a long, yawning narrative of Singer's life, mostly him babbling on about how he started meditating and surrendering. The entire time I kept thinking "get on with it already" and "what is the point? why are you telling me this anecdote?" By "part 3" which is some 18 chapters in, we still hadn't gotten anywhere.
I meditate and practice surrender regularly, and I usually enjoy hearing others' experiences or from "zen masters" --- this comes back to my biggest complaint with memoirs. For a memoir to be successful, it doesn't need much. You don't have to be CEO, a billionaire, a celebrity, or climb Kilamajaro in one day. All you have to do is #1 be honest/vulnerable then say "this is what happened, here's what I did, here's how it worked out for me, here's what I learned and some things I do"
DNF around 50%
The cover promised "with lessons on how to put aside conflicting beliefs, let go of worries, and transform misdirected desires. Singer provides a road map to a new way of living not in the moment, but to exist in a state of perpetual happiness." and I didn't see any of that, even when I skipped towards later parts in the book. It was all accounts of his whatever-blah-blah-boring. If there are "lessons" they are not obvious, the reader has to glean them from between the lines... unless they are at the very end of the book (I DNF).
If you're looking for wisdom/help on how YOU can surrender/practice meditation, this is probably not the book for you.
This book is a long, yawning narrative of Singer's life, mostly him babbling on about how he started meditating and surrendering. The entire time I kept thinking "get on with it already" and "what is the point? why are you telling me this anecdote?" By "part 3" which is some 18 chapters in, we still hadn't gotten anywhere.
I meditate and practice surrender regularly, and I usually enjoy hearing others' experiences or from "zen masters" --- this comes back to my biggest complaint with memoirs. For a memoir to be successful, it doesn't need much. You don't have to be CEO, a billionaire, a celebrity, or climb Kilamajaro in one day. All you have to do is #1 be honest/vulnerable then say "this is what happened, here's what I did, here's how it worked out for me, here's what I learned and some things I do"
DNF around 50%
The cover promised "with lessons on how to put aside conflicting beliefs, let go of worries, and transform misdirected desires. Singer provides a road map to a new way of living not in the moment, but to exist in a state of perpetual happiness." and I didn't see any of that, even when I skipped towards later parts in the book. It was all accounts of his whatever-blah-blah-boring. If there are "lessons" they are not obvious, the reader has to glean them from between the lines... unless they are at the very end of the book (I DNF).
September 17, 2023
Booktube Review: https://youtube.com/watch?v=3KJc4rayZ...
That deeper level of letting go of myself
I have read The Untethered Soul and Living Untethered a few months ago. I thought I was already letting life be life, but this book just showed me the deeper level of letting life be life. Now letting life be my friend, my teacher, my secret lover. Letting life’s way becomes my way to stop all the noise, and just joyfully experience great peace.
That deeper level of letting go of myself
I have read The Untethered Soul and Living Untethered a few months ago. I thought I was already letting life be life, but this book just showed me the deeper level of letting life be life. Now letting life be my friend, my teacher, my secret lover. Letting life’s way becomes my way to stop all the noise, and just joyfully experience great peace.
October 24, 2016
This book is just way, way, way too weird to review.
June 1, 2023
After being rather critical of Mr. Singer’s Untethered Soul, I wasn’t as eager getting to this. I must say I was pleasantly surprised and joyful to read such expounded discourse on what the Indian philosophies would call renunciation.
Essentially the Surrender Experiment is a book about surrendering yourself to nature, allowing the world to happen to you as much as you happen to it. Letting go of one’s ego and trusting that what is meant to be will happen. Coming from a place of understanding that there are some things in life that are beyond our control and so we gracefully, give up trying to change them. Allowing ourselves the freedom to base our mental health, emotional stability, and happiness on something more substantial.
Essentially the Surrender Experiment is a book about surrendering yourself to nature, allowing the world to happen to you as much as you happen to it. Letting go of one’s ego and trusting that what is meant to be will happen. Coming from a place of understanding that there are some things in life that are beyond our control and so we gracefully, give up trying to change them. Allowing ourselves the freedom to base our mental health, emotional stability, and happiness on something more substantial.
March 9, 2019
An enjoyable and inspiring read that slowly devolves into the chronicles of a top-tier businessman who's into meditation and letting go but not enough to stop reminding us (and himself) he's surprised to have found himself at that level even though he's just a ponytail woodhippy.
I appreciate the message, and Michael's attitude and some events are conveyed in a convincing manner - enough to make me want to nudge more towards surrender in my day to day life - but on the whole, it's very incomplete. It feels as though Michael exposes us to his life in a very selective manner, where it would have been much more appealing if he had shown us some of the negatives of this attitude.
Or were there no negatives? No edge cases? No people wanting things that were appalling to him, or simply not right for the time? No people coming to him with requests for all his money once he became famous, or random women (or men) propositioning him? Perhaps his kids asking something very immature or downright dumb?
The only example we get is him choosing to stop teaching despite being asked, a decision he waved off without exploring how it, at least partially, negates his surrenderful attitude. Apparently there are some likes and dislikes still and they govern his life quite a bit. :)
A major issue I have with the book is that despite Michael realizing at some point it's an exercise in torture and futility to suffocate "the voice" and the self, he still talks about "eroding" it more and more. Eastern wisdom teaches us that the "self" or any of its components are not to be negated or destroyed; rather seen through for what they are. And while that may weaken their effect in many situations, these parts surrendering to the love and harmony inherent in non-attachment, that's not the attitude I glean from Michael's words.
Generally speaking, to anyone interested in this path of surrendering to life, the universe, and everything, and letting go of the compulsions of the self, the Buddhist path offers a much more complete manual. Instead of simply "surrendering to what's present" - a seemingly simple-enough formula, until tested against reality - there is a toolbox of practices and attitudes to adopt that leads to where Michael is pointing himself, and the reader, at. The person isn't required to simply say "yes" to everything or do the opposite of his immediate response, but rather use their ever-growing wisdom to choose the action that they believe will lead to liberation for themselves and others.
I appreciate the message, and Michael's attitude and some events are conveyed in a convincing manner - enough to make me want to nudge more towards surrender in my day to day life - but on the whole, it's very incomplete. It feels as though Michael exposes us to his life in a very selective manner, where it would have been much more appealing if he had shown us some of the negatives of this attitude.
Or were there no negatives? No edge cases? No people wanting things that were appalling to him, or simply not right for the time? No people coming to him with requests for all his money once he became famous, or random women (or men) propositioning him? Perhaps his kids asking something very immature or downright dumb?
The only example we get is him choosing to stop teaching despite being asked, a decision he waved off without exploring how it, at least partially, negates his surrenderful attitude. Apparently there are some likes and dislikes still and they govern his life quite a bit. :)
A major issue I have with the book is that despite Michael realizing at some point it's an exercise in torture and futility to suffocate "the voice" and the self, he still talks about "eroding" it more and more. Eastern wisdom teaches us that the "self" or any of its components are not to be negated or destroyed; rather seen through for what they are. And while that may weaken their effect in many situations, these parts surrendering to the love and harmony inherent in non-attachment, that's not the attitude I glean from Michael's words.
Generally speaking, to anyone interested in this path of surrendering to life, the universe, and everything, and letting go of the compulsions of the self, the Buddhist path offers a much more complete manual. Instead of simply "surrendering to what's present" - a seemingly simple-enough formula, until tested against reality - there is a toolbox of practices and attitudes to adopt that leads to where Michael is pointing himself, and the reader, at. The person isn't required to simply say "yes" to everything or do the opposite of his immediate response, but rather use their ever-growing wisdom to choose the action that they believe will lead to liberation for themselves and others.
February 3, 2021
For someone who has built their entire life's narrative out of meditation and surrendering to the will of nature, Michael Singer sure does have a big ego.
In fact, this book is stuffed full of small unnecessary comments about how brilliant and extra-special he is, even despite the experiment needing that not to be the case. How he was amazingly clever at school without any extra work needed, how he could write algorithms so much better than anyone else all in one go.
It's not that these details are unbelievable; it's that they are unimportant to the story, and even in contradiction to it. And what is the motivation for including such superfluous self-aggrandising comments?
With these small but plentiful offhand comments, Michael Singer lost my trust. And this meant I don't know if I believe that he is as spiritually enlightened as he says he is, if he is as good a person as he implies he is, if he is as honest as he should be. I have no reason to believe he wasn't guilty of the fraud he was accused of, and I have no reason to be assured that this whole book isn't systemically selective and the literary incarnation of confirmation bias.
On the other hand, this was a book that had an important message that I needed to receive right now—that may end up guiding many of my decisions in the future. And the repetitive examples worked well to illustrate the point.
In fact, this book is stuffed full of small unnecessary comments about how brilliant and extra-special he is, even despite the experiment needing that not to be the case. How he was amazingly clever at school without any extra work needed, how he could write algorithms so much better than anyone else all in one go.
It's not that these details are unbelievable; it's that they are unimportant to the story, and even in contradiction to it. And what is the motivation for including such superfluous self-aggrandising comments?
With these small but plentiful offhand comments, Michael Singer lost my trust. And this meant I don't know if I believe that he is as spiritually enlightened as he says he is, if he is as good a person as he implies he is, if he is as honest as he should be. I have no reason to believe he wasn't guilty of the fraud he was accused of, and I have no reason to be assured that this whole book isn't systemically selective and the literary incarnation of confirmation bias.
On the other hand, this was a book that had an important message that I needed to receive right now—that may end up guiding many of my decisions in the future. And the repetitive examples worked well to illustrate the point.
April 9, 2019
This book ebbs and flows in sometimes awkward increments, but the overall message and story are quite incredible. It is a wonderful reminder of how little control we have and how much we torture ourselves with the illusion of control. Written from the heart it is a worthwhile read. Highly recommend!
August 20, 2019
I really loved “The Untethered Soul” and thought this would be the author’s journey to have written such a beautiful book,but....
This book was Michael Singer’s brag book. He has an spiritual awakening at the age of 22 and by surrendering preferences builds a life that he would have never dreamed of. I feel most of have lives we never thought we’d have. Life is full of surprises some good, some not but we learn, survive and hopefully grow from these events. Michael Singer’s story was not spiritually inspiring at all. If I wanted a book on how to build an empire with an evil employee set out to ruin your life then this is what I would have picked up to read.
I would have preferred if he talked more about his relationships with his wife, daughter and long-term employees who must be completely devoted to him but it was sadly about money. I also believe Mr Singer is brilliant and most of us are not blessed with his IQ. “When I got computer home, I buried myself in learning programming commands and seeing what they could do. Everything was so natural to me. It wasn’t like I was learning something new; it was like I was remembering something I had always known.” Happens to me every time a bring a new computer home. Mr Singer would have been successful at anything he set his heart out to do. Sadly, this book focused on his company’s growth and not his soul.
This book was Michael Singer’s brag book. He has an spiritual awakening at the age of 22 and by surrendering preferences builds a life that he would have never dreamed of. I feel most of have lives we never thought we’d have. Life is full of surprises some good, some not but we learn, survive and hopefully grow from these events. Michael Singer’s story was not spiritually inspiring at all. If I wanted a book on how to build an empire with an evil employee set out to ruin your life then this is what I would have picked up to read.
I would have preferred if he talked more about his relationships with his wife, daughter and long-term employees who must be completely devoted to him but it was sadly about money. I also believe Mr Singer is brilliant and most of us are not blessed with his IQ. “When I got computer home, I buried myself in learning programming commands and seeing what they could do. Everything was so natural to me. It wasn’t like I was learning something new; it was like I was remembering something I had always known.” Happens to me every time a bring a new computer home. Mr Singer would have been successful at anything he set his heart out to do. Sadly, this book focused on his company’s growth and not his soul.
October 20, 2020
As I half expected from my friend's passionate commendation, this book trots out the same banal trope as Coelho's alchemist: be pure of heart and the universe will grant your heart's desire. And so much more.
Try telling that to a parent grieving the loss of their child.
There is nothing nuanced about this writing. Surrender must be selective, informed. But there are no critical reflections, no vulnerability, no intellectual development or growth as the pages drone on.
And of course, the rewards of purity are financial... the American dream/cliché!
Try telling that to a parent grieving the loss of their child.
There is nothing nuanced about this writing. Surrender must be selective, informed. But there are no critical reflections, no vulnerability, no intellectual development or growth as the pages drone on.
And of course, the rewards of purity are financial... the American dream/cliché!
November 3, 2024
This book came to me at the right time, when I was asking the way of submission for a while, and I was asking God to show me how to get out of the way and not seek to control things that are out of my control. And I had also started meditating for a while and was trying to make room for it in my morning schedule. God knows how much this book encouraged and persuade me to do morning meditation, and I learned how to be just a little more in harmony with life and open the way for me to receive God's blessings and mercy. May I be committed in this way. Amen
June 7, 2015
Going with the flow
Incredible life story of what it means to let go and go with the flow, to trust life and to fully experience what life brings. It's filled with example after example of surrendering to life and being amazed at what unfolds. Untethered Soul defined the "inner" dynamics, understanding the internal, Surrender Experiment, puts that internal knowledge into practice with the outer world, life.
Incredible life story of what it means to let go and go with the flow, to trust life and to fully experience what life brings. It's filled with example after example of surrendering to life and being amazed at what unfolds. Untethered Soul defined the "inner" dynamics, understanding the internal, Surrender Experiment, puts that internal knowledge into practice with the outer world, life.
October 16, 2024
This is one of the best mindset shifting biographies I have read till now. It has changed the way I look at life and the experiment in this book is worth trying in our own lives which I definitely will. I will be coming back to this book again and again.
July 25, 2022
7/25/2022 update
So it's been 5 years since the first reading and I read the book again as a part of a book club. This time it's leaving a very different impression on me. It doesn't feel like Michael Singer bragging about his amazing life, instead I was touched by his equanimity and humbleness facing situations where I'd be screaming no at the top of my lungs. I respect him for saying yes over and over again when his ego doesn't want to.
I've been taught to strive for success and nothing comes easy. It brings an ego-booster when I succeed but heartbreaks when I fail. What if my inner freedom soars above external circumstances?
I still have 2 questions though:
1. He said yes to his community college teaching job w/o preparation and the course flowed out of his mouth. He did not study for his qualifying exam but miraculously picked up on the right questions the day before. But he had to work day and night for his company for decades. He wasn't striving in the first two instances and he pulled them off, so why was building a company so much harder (from my perspective)? He says treat every task in front of you as if it's a gift from the universe, because it is. So why didn't he prepare for his qualifying exam or teaching job with eagerness?
2. He overrode his fight-or-flight response when he was approached by unknown strangers in Mexico, so why did he fight against the dumpster? Is preserving the land a higher cause than preserving life therefore he was entitled to act?
----------------------------------------------------------------
2017 Review
Wait, if he's so open to the flow of life, why did he fight AGAINST the plan to build a dumpster next to his land? Maybe something even more amazing would flower out of the dumpster! Why was he so narrow-minded when it came to his own property?
He really sounded like the pastors back in my church-going days who constantly praised the Lord because a stash of money always miraculously showed up in moments of need. Well, he wouldn't be writing this book if the money did not show up, and for each one of Michael Singer there are a thousand others who did not get the money.
I can look back on my life and point to all the big moments and say "damn I was really lucky." I don't need to tell myself that all these amazing things happened to me because of my higher consciousness of being and superior receptivity to the flow of life.
So it's been 5 years since the first reading and I read the book again as a part of a book club. This time it's leaving a very different impression on me. It doesn't feel like Michael Singer bragging about his amazing life, instead I was touched by his equanimity and humbleness facing situations where I'd be screaming no at the top of my lungs. I respect him for saying yes over and over again when his ego doesn't want to.
I've been taught to strive for success and nothing comes easy. It brings an ego-booster when I succeed but heartbreaks when I fail. What if my inner freedom soars above external circumstances?
I still have 2 questions though:
1. He said yes to his community college teaching job w/o preparation and the course flowed out of his mouth. He did not study for his qualifying exam but miraculously picked up on the right questions the day before. But he had to work day and night for his company for decades. He wasn't striving in the first two instances and he pulled them off, so why was building a company so much harder (from my perspective)? He says treat every task in front of you as if it's a gift from the universe, because it is. So why didn't he prepare for his qualifying exam or teaching job with eagerness?
2. He overrode his fight-or-flight response when he was approached by unknown strangers in Mexico, so why did he fight against the dumpster? Is preserving the land a higher cause than preserving life therefore he was entitled to act?
----------------------------------------------------------------
2017 Review
Wait, if he's so open to the flow of life, why did he fight AGAINST the plan to build a dumpster next to his land? Maybe something even more amazing would flower out of the dumpster! Why was he so narrow-minded when it came to his own property?
He really sounded like the pastors back in my church-going days who constantly praised the Lord because a stash of money always miraculously showed up in moments of need. Well, he wouldn't be writing this book if the money did not show up, and for each one of Michael Singer there are a thousand others who did not get the money.
I can look back on my life and point to all the big moments and say "damn I was really lucky." I don't need to tell myself that all these amazing things happened to me because of my higher consciousness of being and superior receptivity to the flow of life.
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