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Beyond Happiness: The Zen Way to True Contentment Paperback – September 13, 2011

by Ezra Bayda (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 95 ratings
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A Zen teacher explains that true happiness can only be found by dropping our ideas about happiness—and learning to live fully and fearlessly in the moment

Many books have been published in recent years on happiness. Ezra Bayda, a remarkably down-to-earth Zen teacher, believes that the happiness “boom” has been largely a bust for readers. Why? Because it's precisely the pursuit of happiness that keeps us trapped in cycles of dissatisfaction and suffering.

In Beyond Happiness, Bayda draws on Zen teachings to question our conventional notions about what happiness is and where we can find it. Most of us seek happiness in things that are external to us. We imagine that getting more money, a better relationship, or going on a nice vacation will finally make us happy. But Bayda shows us that the deepest and most lasting form of happiness does not rely on external circumstance at all. Bayda offers Zen insights and practices that point readers toward the true sources of lasting happiness: mindfulness, compassion, gratitude, and generosity.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    176 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Shambhala
  4. Publication date
    September 13, 2011
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.45 x 8.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1590309219
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1590309216
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“With compassion and humor, Ezra Bayda has graced us with ways to accept what is and to reside in it fearlessly, giving us a roadmap to enduring happiness and equanimity.”—David Richo, PhD, author of The Five Things We Cannot Change

“A wise and deep-hearted book, a must-read for today’s world.”—Roshi Joan Halifax, Upaya Zen Center

“This book offers an extremely sane, practical, and grounded approach to the larger happiness that lies beyond conventional notions of happiness. Ezra Bayda details simple yet powerful methods both to work with mental and emotional obstacles and to cultivate well-being, and it’s clear that his hard-won insights grow out of his own dedicated inquiry and practice. Highly recommended.”—John Welwood, author of Toward a Psychology of Awakening

“Bayda’s writing is straightforward and his wisdom hard-earned. When he tells us that he himself was ‘born with a fairly low set point for happiness,’ you get the feeling that Bayda understands what it is that gets people stuck and, having learned a few things himself over years of practice, that his only agenda for Beyond Happiness is to help people find their own way. Fortunately for readers, he’s a trustworthy guide.”—Tricycle Magazine

“Bayda’s deep understanding of his topic allows him to keep a conversational tone and tie his wisdom into everyday practices. This book is a genuine attempt to help people to see beyond their daily preoccupations and move towards a path of fulfillment.”—PsychCentral.com

“Good advice from a compassionate teacher”—NewAgeJournal.com


“In a calm, measured prose on slowing down the aggressive, hyperactive mind, Bayda guides the reader through the helpful steps of simple meditation. Those with an open mind about an open mind will be rewarded in reading Beyond Happiness with the most gentle of mentors on the path towards contentment.”—Portland Book Review

About the Author

Ezra Bayda teaches at Zen Center San Diego. He is also the author of Being Zen, At Home in the Muddy Water, Saying Yes to Life (Even the Hard Parts), and Zen Heart. For more information, visit www.zencentersandiego.org.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Shambhala; Reprint edition (September 13, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 176 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1590309219
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1590309216
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.45 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 95 ratings

About the author

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Ezra Bayda

Ezra Bayda

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Ezra Bayda was born in 1944 in Atlantic City, New jersey. He graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in philosophy, and began practicing Zen meditation in 1970, receiving permission to teach in 1995. He taught with his wife and fellow teacher, Elizabeth Hamilton until his retirement in 2019. He now lives and teaches informally in La Jolla, Ca. He is the author of eight books, including his most recent, Skating on Thin Ice.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
95 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Dennis E. Bradford
5.0 out of 5 stars A Gentle Approach to Classic Practice that Works
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2013
Verified Purchase
No practice, no genuine happiness. In this book Mr. Bayda teaches how to practice, which means how to live, in a way that yields genuine happiness. The basic ideas are not new, but the approach is fresh and personal. How may we become genuinely happy? "[S]tay with present-moment reality." It's not difficult in theory, it's just a matter of sticking to "the blue-collar work of practice: the mundane, everyday effort of coming back again and again to staying present with exactly what we are experiencing right now."

Our shared human purpose is simply to wake up to our true nature, which is Being. The most effective way to do that is simply to surrender to what-is right now while dropping all our thoughts and evaluations about it.

This book is short on techniques because they are not what matter. It's long on what does matter, namely, dropping the craving mind with all its goals and developing a real appreciation for life by surrendering to whatever is real in the present moment. The chief idea is to let that reality be our teacher -- and there's nobody who cannot do that.
6 people found this helpful
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Rachel's mom
5.0 out of 5 stars A Book To Be Read And Re-Read
Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2011
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I've read every book Ezra Bayda has written. In my opinion, he gets better with every book, as he gains more experience as a writer and teacher.

Ezra's writing is very clear and specific, and he frequently illustrates his points with an example from his own life experiences. Since these references are frequently amusing, and always warm and personal, they're memorable.

Recently, when I was laid low by intense lower back pain, I remembered a vivid description of how Ezra had dealt with a serious illness in an earlier book, "Being Zen." I pulled that book off my shelf and followed every one of Ezra's suggestions during this frightening and painful time. The experience was one of the most valuable of my life; I found, among other things, that I could be truly happy in the midst of pain. (I highly recommend this book to anyone suffering pain or illness.)

But back to Ezra's latest: "Beyond Happiness." I've read this book twice now, from cover-to-cover. I also refer to it when I feel overwhelmed by circumstances and uncertain as to what practice in this moment might be, or as encouragement to persevere. That's what's so special about Ezra's work: after a thorough read, it's great as reference material or an inspirational boost.
21 people found this helpful
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C. Mayfield
4.0 out of 5 stars clear and helpful
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2011
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Ezra Bayda's recent book offers clarity and concise organization. I found it extremely helpful to my practice. As a matter of fact, I finally started the loving-kindness meditation that I had been resisting for a long while.
3 people found this helpful
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vobsister
5.0 out of 5 stars Lucid and helpful
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2013
Verified Purchase
I am a huge fan of Ezra Bayda's. His books are written with tremendous clarity and provide simple instructions that can be put into practice immediately, to very beneficial effect. When I'm stuck in my head, going around and around with the same old worries, it is often a nugget of wisdom from Ezra Bayda that puts me back into the direct, physical experience, with its quality of constant change--it's kind of like magic how things transform when we put our attention in the right place. (Whereas those ancient fears almost seem to be not subject to the law of impermanence!)

In particular, if you have not read his July 2010 Shambhala Sun article "5 Questions That Help Us Wake Up," I highly recommend it. This has helped me through many a period of upheaval or distress, large and small. It's a masterpiece.

Ezra Bayda may actually have ruined me for other authors--right after I read this book, I read another Buddhist author's recent book, and really didn't like it at all. I kept wondering, "But what am I supposed to DO?" Ezra Bayda will tell you, very clearly.
4 people found this helpful
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Kendrick D. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Not just a perspective changer, but a life a changer...
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2015
Verified Purchase
Beyond Happiness: The Zen Way to True Contentment is a powerful book that shows how our definition of happiness is often misconstrued and illusory. It explains how our entitlements (“life is supposed to be a certain way”), beliefs, always remaining in our heads, being caught in our emotions, and our conditioned behaviors obstruct our path to happiness. We are creatures of habit, therefore we gravitate to that which is familiar and comfortable to us. However, it is when we learn or re-member to breathe deep, live in the present moment, just be, surrender to what is, and face the discomforting situations in our lives that change begins to take place. Awareness is often the first step in our healing process. The book contained many profound truths and insights that hit home for me. It has some very practical exercises that will not only be the impetus for change in your perspective, but also a life changer. I highly recommend it.
10 people found this helpful
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Brian
3.0 out of 5 stars Zen Non-Zen Guide to NonPersonal Happiness
Reviewed in the United States on July 19, 2021
<i>Beyond Happines</i> is a systematic treatment of a path to happiness beyond personal happiness. While the author, a Zen teacher, presents this as the "Zen Way," the word Zen is almost absent from the book, as is the word Buddhism. Yet, the teaching is true to Zen, applying the practical psychology inherent in Zen as a practice that does not seek escape in some higher state of consciousness or relationship with a deity, but leads one to realize the natural kindness of the heart in life, a lovingness inherent within the self but often blocked by our hankering to have life be as we want it to be.

I would have appreciated the author differentiating happiness from the more profound experience of what some call joy, others bliss. Happiness is based on happenings, and this the author contests cannot be the ground of lasting, consistent happiness, for it is an expression of the self-seeking to find what is pleasing and reject what is displeasing. The addiction to pleasure provides, he says, temporary happiness as a fleeting state, but it cannot provide a stable happiness. The author rightly equates non-personal happiness with a deep contentment and with equanimity.

I appreciate someone taking the teachings of her or his spiritual path and applying it to a broad readership, inside and outside that path. Bayda succeeds in doing this.
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Very good
Reviewed in India on April 24, 2017
Verified Purchase
What I like about this book is the clarity of thoughts and the way it is organized. Of course his message is very relevant to those seeking peace.
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Sheldon Nicholson
5.0 out of 5 stars I love all of Ezra Bayda's books
Reviewed in Canada on October 13, 2015
Verified Purchase
I love all of Ezra Bayda's books, this one is no exception. He has a way of writing which actually seems to induce awareness of the present moment while you are still reading the book. Even though it is a small book it took me a long time to read, each sentence seemed to deserve a moment of awareness.
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MR G U
5.0 out of 5 stars Spirituality for the Western mind.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 12, 2015
Verified Purchase
This book gives excellent pointers to living in a Contented way.
As long as you seek spiritual enlightenment you will never become spiritually enlightened the same goes for happiness it is not gained from intellect or grasping at it.
However seeking (self inquiry )can put the mind in the right place .
Once the mind is in the right place just staying very quiet and present with no thought ( not intellectualising ) and following the dharma
will work.
One person found this helpful
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JKS
5.0 out of 5 stars have recommended it to friends
Reviewed in Canada on August 26, 2013
Verified Purchase
It's a practical, no-nonsense, tough-love Zen approach to seeing through the BS that keeps you mired in unhappiness. I highly recommend it.
One person found this helpful
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Mr. R. M. Brown
5.0 out of 5 stars True happiness awaits.... If you want it!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 29, 2014
Verified Purchase
Absolutely brilliant! Very clear and concise, this truly is a remarkable book and it details many obvious truths that to be honest with you - just aren't that obvious until pointed out!
One person found this helpful
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