The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff

Completion Date: 05.03.2010
Rating: <3
Number of Pages: 158

Most Memorable Quote:

"When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those of the Uncarved Block: Life is Fun." -- I love this quote because it describes, in essence, if you look at each part of that quote, the whole theme of the book. It's a very eloquent way of saying that life really isn't as complicated as it is generally made out to be.

I absolutely loved this book; it is definitely in my top 3 favorite books of all time. It's exceptionally different from most books that I've ever read.

Taoism is a very seldom understood way of life. Many find that the only ones that can fully understand or explain it are those old Chinese philosophers who often seem too distant and impossible to relate to. Benjamin Hoff took the task to explain some fundamentals of Taoism through the beloved and well-known Pooh Bear and all his friends in the 100-acre woods.

In this book, everything from the basics of what Taoism is to the principle of the Uncarved block is explained in terms that I could relate to exceptionally well. I discovered that, whereas it's a beautiful belief system, etched with simplicity and harmony with the Universe, I would suck as a Taoist. A quote from the book simply made me giggle, as it explained me so well:

"The surest way to become Tense, Awkward, and Confused is to develop a mind that tries too hard - one that thinks too much."

That...is me. I think. And I think. And I over think. And I over think my over thinking. And honestly, you will never meet some one more tense, I'm almost incapable of relaxing; awkward, I suck at making conversation and being around people; and confused, I'm pretty sure my mind is permanently boggled by things like religion, politics, and boys; and I can definitely see that it's my need to think about things through and through that's to blame. I would love to be a Taoist, but my very nature seems to be against it.

The point in all this rambling about how much I would suck as a Taoist is that I have a lot that I can learn and take from a book like this. Whereas I can't call myself a Taoist, I can attempt to apply Taoist principles to my life to make myself happy, and a book that can help me understand how to do so in simpler terms is a great book.

"Do you really want to be happy? You can begin by being appreciative of who you are and what you've got."

Knowledge, and wisdom, and skepticism isn't everything in the world. It's important to stop and smell the roses every now and then, and not get all caught up and stressed over things that are going on. According to Taoism, the pieces will fall where they may and worrying about it serves no one. Sometimes, every now and then, you don't need to figure everything out and you need to just accept things for what they are.

"Now, scholars can be very useful and necessary, in their own dull and unamusing way. They provide a lot of information. It's just that there is Something More, and that Something More is what life is really all about."

I loved this book so much. It was just so...good. Read it.


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