Naikan: Gratitude, Grace, and the Japanese Art of Self-Reflection

(Paperback, Anniversary Edition)

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Naikan is a Japanese word that means 'inside looking' or 'introspection'. A more poetic translation is "seeing oneself with the minds eye."

Drawing on Eastern spiritual and psychological traditions, Naikan is a unique method of self-reflection for cultivating self-awareness, gratitude, empathy, and a path for moving forward in our lives. Naikan began as a spiritual practice in the Buddhist tradition and is now recognised by psychologists as an effective tool for helping people navigate the path of personal relationships, addictions, and other mental health challenges.

This edition commemorates the 20th anniversary of this influential works first publication. Author Gregg Krech, now after 30+ years of teaching Naikan, shares the depth of his experience with essays, parables, poems, quotations, and recommended reflection exercises, and includes new material on relationships, a 7-day practice program, and an updated appendix for counselling professionals.

The unique structure of Naikan illuminates truths that we may otherwise overlook and that can have a dramatic impact on our understanding of life, our relationships, and our daily experience of being alive. More than a philosophy, Naikan is a deep and transformative practice that can open us up to a different understanding of how we have lived and where to go from here.

Reviews

The book's central notion of being mindful of the overlooked gifts we receive daily is illuminating and instructive." Publishers Weekly, 1/15/02

"Naikan: Gratitude, Grace, and the Japanese Art of Self-Reflection is an invaluable resource for anyone who practices everyday spirituality. The author presents plenty of concrete exercises that will spur your soul to attention, kindness, compassion, and, most of all, gratitude. Krech is especially cogent in his emphasis upon the connections that give life meaning and the importance of including inanimate objects in the orbit of our care and genuine love."--Spirituality and Practice

"Cultivating gratitude is among the most powerful and transformative spiritual practices in which you can engage. Gregg Krech's new book, Naikan, focuses on the art of gratitude, offering in a subtly simple, no nonsense, and highly useful style, practical ways to cultivate it in our own lives. This is a book to be read, and an art to lived." -Rabbi Rami Shapiro, author of Proverbs, the Wisdom of Solomon

Author Bio

Gregg Krech is the author of five books on Japanese Psychology, including The Art of Taking Action (2015), which has been an Amazon bestseller for five years. His books have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, and Romanian. Gregg has spoken in international venues to audiences that include mental health professionals, Zen students, hospice volunteers, staff of domestic violence centers, employees of Fortune 500 companies, crisis center staff, Yoga students, Buddhist monks in Thailand, and university students. He has been interviewed on National Public Radio and in numerous magazines including Tricycle, SELF, Counseling Today, and The SUN, where his interview on Naikan was that issues feature story. Gregg was selected to do an on-demand video retreat by Tricycle, a prominent Buddhist magazine. He is a member of the North American Naikan Society and editor of the journal Thirty Thousand Days: A Journal for Purposeful Living. He has been conducting retreats and online courses on Japanese methods of psychology for 33 years at the ToDo Institute in Vermont, where he currently lives, writes, and teaches.