9780060893880
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Care of the Soul audiobook

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Care of the Soul Audiobook Summary

#1 New York Times Bestseller * More than 1.5 Million Copies Sold

Thomas Moore’s now classic work provides a powerful spiritual message for our troubled times.

In Care of the Soul readers are presented with a revolutionary approach to thinking about daily life–everyday activities, events, problems and creative opportunities–and a therapeutic lifestyle is proposed that focuses on looking more deeply into emotional problems and learning how to sense sacredness in even ordinary things.

Basing his writing on the ancient model of “care of the soul”–which provided a religious context for viewing the everyday events of life–Moore brings “care of the soul” into the 21st century. Promising to deepen and broaden the reader’s perspective on his or her own life experiences, Moore draws on his own life as a therapist practicing “care of the soul,” as well as his studies of the world’s religions and his work in music and art, to create this inspirational guide that examines the connections between spirituality and the problems of individuals and society.

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Care of the Soul Audiobook Narrator

Peter Thomas is the narrator of Care of the Soul audiobook that was written by Thomas Moore

Peter Thomas is a distinguished and versatile narrator, whose voice can be heard on Nova and in innumerable commercials.

About the Author(s) of Care of the Soul

Thomas Moore is the author of Care of the Soul

Care of the Soul Full Details

Narrator Peter Thomas
Length 3 hours 3 minutes
Author Thomas Moore
Category
Publisher HarperAudio
Release date September 27, 2005
ISBN 9780060893880

Subjects

The publisher of the Care of the Soul is HarperAudio. includes the following subjects: The BISAC Subject Code is General, Personal Growth, Self-Help

Additional info

The publisher of the Care of the Soul is HarperAudio. The imprint is HarperAudio. It is supplied by HarperAudio. The ISBN-13 is 9780060893880.

Global Availability

This book is only available in the United States.

Goodreads Reviews

Keriann

May 11, 2007

The chapter "Gifts of Depression" is phenomenal. One cannot feel true happiness until they've felt true pain. Our society today is so focused on the quick-fix in order to 'feel' happy, that we don't allow people to go through the NORMAL ups and downs of life. It is NORMAL to hurt, and cry, and feel pain. By going through those emotions we are able to move on to greater happiness. I would not give up the pain in my life for anything in this world. Nothing.

Candace

April 17, 2008

SECOND REVIEW, MARCH 2008:There will be many revisions of this review because I will probably have to read and re-read this book for my entire life just to fully absorb it.Freaking Thomas Moore. He grabs my soul where no other nonfiction spiritual author has managed. The other night, I craved some spiritual comfort (don’t' even talk to me about opening my bible right now! :), and his words jumped from the pages and balmed my broken soul. Let me share some of my favorite passages from the last chapter i read:On page 258, he just finishes a story about a nun who "lost her faith." To sum up he says something profound. "There is a Job-like mystery in human suffering and loss that can't be comprehended with reason. It can only be lived in faith. Suffering forces our attention towards places we wound normally neglect. The nun's attention had long been focused on her spiritual practice, but then she was forced to look at her own heart without any spiritual props or lenses. She had to learn that faith comes not only from the spiritual life and high revelations, it also comes as an emanation from the depths, a starkly impersonal reality from the most personal place...we have to arrive at that difficult point where we don't know what is going on or what we can do. That precise point is an opening to true faith."On page 260, "This is the goal of the soul path - to FEEL EXISTENCE; not to overcome life's struggles and anxieties, but to know life first hand - to exist fully in context."on page 262, after embracing your soul work..."Then your soul, cared for in courage, will be so solid, so weathered and mysterious, that divinity will emanate from your very being. You will have the spiritual radiance of the holy fool who has dared to live as it presents itself and to unfold personality with its heavy yet creative dose of imperfection."FIRST REVIEW, MARCH 2007:Being a student of classical literature, I have very rarely found nonfiction that can speak in the same language to which I am accustomed. This book is deeply profound and challenging--perhaps the most evocative approach to psychology, philosophy, and mythology that I have ever encountered. It is especially helpful to those who enjoy literature. It is artistic and aesthetic, yet still very, very helpful for practical use and everyday living. I have found myself challenged deeply towards personal and spiritual fulfillment, and have been recommending the book to everyone that I know. My husband and I read it together and are continuing to sift through its richness. No other book has been able to so completely shift my spiritual and psychological paradigm effectively. This is a must read.

etherealfire

August 28, 2019

Another book I had forgotten that I'd read until I saw it on my feed via a GR friend who just rated it. Read this in the early nineties.

Rachel

February 22, 2008

Ok, the title sounds cheesy, but this is basically the best book of all time. It has absolutely informed my approach to my life, my friends', and my clinical work. Basically, Moore addresses what he terms our culture's overly "hygenic" approach to mental health - the idea that we need to clean up and get rid of undesirable parts of ourselves. Having been educated in theology, psychology, and musicology, Moore is in a good position to advocate for a polytheistic approach. He does not mean that literally, in terms of accepting multiple deities, but rather uses examples and Greek myths to show that all parts of ourselves are important and deserve listening and care. Instead of repressing undesirable parts of ourselves, Moore advocates honoring symptoms as voices of soul. If something is bothering us, we may need to listen to parts of ourselves that have been hidden. Moore also explains that not everything needs to be resolved, and that it is often appropriate to welcome perspectives within ourselves that have very different needs. It is in caring for our multiple needs and complex, contrasting parts that we can honor different parts of soul and facilitate comprehensive care.

Hussam

May 23, 2017

It takes the reader to great depths within the realm of their soul. There are no words that may describe what this great book can offer to someone in the midst of their suffering, as it provides healing that comes with a deep understanding. Such outlook could replenish contentment and restore warmth to someone's life with a reason. Thomas Moore had valuable information to share. He also contributed significant knowledge that enriches both the mind and soul. Highly recommended!

Lcbogota

March 19, 2009

Although this book was presented to me as "not a self-help book," it really is. The most important point that this book made for me was the value of accepting contradictions, why we accept or reject certain behaviors/characteristics. All behaviors exist on a continuum, and the actions that we pursue change in response to our circumstances and maturity. These behaviors may be opposites and they would appear to contradict each other, but we draw on these characteristics and use them as they are needed in life. At their extreme they do harm; in moderation they allow us to flourish as individuals and coexist in society with others:Creation - destructionGentleness - aggressionSolitude - social contactSelf-love - humilityNeed for approval - no regard for the views of anotherBeing adrift - being anchoredOpeness/freedom - order/limitPossessive attachment - dispersion of desire Forgiveness - VengeanceQuotable quote: p. 254 "But the real trust of faith would be to decide whether to trust someone, knowing that betrayal is inevitable because life and personality are never without shadow. The vulnerability that faith demands could then be matched by an equal trust in oneself, the feeling that one can survive the pain of betrayal."Soul has a preference for details and particulars, intimacy and involvement, attachment and rootedness.Also a need for retreat.Idealism and romanticizing deny the darker elements of doubt, hopelessness, and emptiness.If you are not of the Christian persuasion, you probably want to avoid the last section of the book, the rest provides insights that anyone can use, regardless of their religious affiliation or non-affiliation. Personally I found this book useful to me. It came at just the right moment and it helped me to ask and consider the answers to questions about different aspects of my life.

Robin

March 17, 2020

Great audiobook. I do want to buy a hard cover for my own library so I can go back and ponder various sections....

Miriam

September 20, 2011

This is such an amazing book that really helped me shift my perspective of the healing journey. In one of many metaphors that stuck with me, he describes the soul journey as a following the path of a labyrinth rather than a climbing up a mountain, reaching a spiritual peak. There's a place for those spiritual ascents, too, but Moore always brings our attention back to our ordinary broken humanness--which is where we can find true nourishment. I will be referencing this book again and again.

Rosalinda

June 26, 2019

I deeply savored this book while reading it. I highlighted many sentences & copied much of its wisdom into a journal. I know I’ll revisit this book; I consider it a mini bible on the care of my soul & will refer to it when I feel a part of me slipping into the daily dust of routine.

Mommalibrarian

December 14, 2013

I read Care of the Soul because it belonged to one of my daughters and she left it at my house. I almost quit multiple times and had large periods of time in which I did not touch it. Somewhere during one of these breaks I read Freud & Jung by Stevens also left by my daughter. F&J contains the barest outline of their thought. The section on Jung gave me some insight into what the COTS author was trying to explain. Couple of things - Soul is not the same as ego, intellect or even spirit to the author. The author is not a proponent of religion except as it is nourishes soul. He talks about the poverty of soul that is characteristic of most homeless, criminal, and delinquent persons. Schools and commerce/jobs emphasize ego and intellect and totally neglect soul. RFT had an article on investigation of some psychedelic potion which might be of use in treatment of addiction and other mental illness such as depression. Knowing if the treatment works is based on pre and post measurement of quality of life, emotional regulations, outlook and hopefulness, empowerment, and mindfulness. The COTS point of view p.283 "To take care of the soul we will need to give up our limited ideas of what psychology is, our attempts to gain rational control over our moods and emotions, our illusion that our consciousness is the only sign of soul in the universe, and our desire for dominance over nature and fabricated things. We have to expose ourselves to beauty, risking the irrationality it stirs up and the interference it can place in the way of our march toward technological progress ... we only encounter soul in intractable problems and deep-seated neuroses."Soetsu Yanagi - Beauty as that which gives unlimited scope to imagination.My mind strayed to the "homeless, criminal or delinquent and how the idea of Beauty might be made real to them.Is this Beauty a luxury when many people just need to get through their day with as little collateral damage as possible? Is this strange idea of caring for the soul just so much psychobabble? Nothing was clear to me at the beginning of the book. There wass extensive blathering about Odysseus as father and Demeter as mother - myths to guide our soul building. Completely weird, incomprehensible and useless. I am not sure at what point the book turned around for me but by the end I was glad I read it. Restarting from the beginning I was again to put off by the myth explanations.

Colleen

October 29, 2007

This is the sort of book that I'll keep near my tissue box for the rest of my life, not because it made me cry. Rather, when I cry, I'll go for a tissue, see Thomas Moore's brilliant book, and feel better, hopefully. I'll give myself time to brood, time to weep, and time to allow my soul to grow. There's a chapter in here for nearly every modern major problem. I'll be memorizing the ones on jealousy and depression. Sex, relationships, love, careers, and money are covered, plus more. What a bargain. And Moore navigates these rough seas with such grace. It was a joy to read.The only slow part for me was the opening chapter. It takes a hundred pages or so for me to get the rhythm of most authors. In this case, Moore was not only introducing himself stylistically. He was also defining the terms in his piece, and setting up the historical precedent for the care of the soul. Fascinating, but heady, stuff.I heartily recommend this book for all of my family and friends. After all, you'll be feeling its influence through my actions and attitudes regardless of whether you actually pick it up.

Vicky

October 30, 2008

It took me some time to finish this book, but it was worth the effort. Here is an important book that teaches you how to accept the everyday life, to understand yourself and not be afraid to fail, to be sad, to be ordinary. To care for your soul is to appreciate the everyday moments, to feel the sadness and happiness in small things, to know how to be quiet, to contemplate. The author, who was brought up as a Roman catholic, has an education in theology and now works as a psychoanalyst. He talks about ancient philosophers and their art of living; there are a lot of references to other religions in a book as well. To care for your soul – is the main purpose of any of us, we can find soul in nature, in animals and even in our homes. It is all about how we appreciate our life. The ego works on our careers, wealth and prestige, but we have to allow the soul to be sad, even depressed and not to succeed. I want to buy this book and read it again in a future.

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