A Monk's Guide to a Clean House and Mind

(Paperback)

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Description

Cleanliness is next to enlightenment. The Japanese bestseller explains traditional techniques that help cleanse not only your house - but your soul We remove dust to sweep away our worldly desires. We scrub dirt to free ourselves of attachments. We live simply and take time to contemplate the self, mindfully living each moment. It's not just monks that need to live this way. Everyone in today's busy world today needs it. The Zen sect of Buddhism is renowned for the cleanliness of its monks, but cleaning is greatly valued in Japanese Buddhism in general as a way to cultivate the mind. In this book, I introduce everyday cleaning methods typically employed in temples, while sharing what it's like to be a monk in training. This book will improve the condition not just of your own mind, but also the people around you. I hope readers will discover that cleanliness is an opportunity to contemplate oneself.

Reviews

The most unusual self-help book of 2018 ... There is something surprisingly calming about just reading the book, hearing Matsumoto's simple instructions and admiring the clean pen drawings of Japanese sandals and brooms -- Jane Fryer * Daily Mail *
A bestseller in Japan, this charming book offers practical cleaning tips as well as fascinating insights into the Buddhist approach to life, which counters the wastefulness of modern society with a respect for spaces and objects that is deeply humane ... Ideal preparatory reading for the January clean -- PD Smith * Guardian *

Author Bio

Shoukei Matsumoto is a Buddhist monk at the Komyoji Temple in Tokyo, Japan. Since entering the Temple in 2003, his days begin with cleaning. Cleaning is greatly valued in Japanese Buddhism as a way to cultivate the mind. In this book, a bestseller in Japan and Europe, Shoukei Matsumoto offers up the cleaning practices of Buddhist monks, to help us all live simply and mindfully in each moment.