These aren't New Age fads so much as ways to rediscover the wisdom of an earlier age. He reflects that this is perhaps the reason why many people - even those with no religious commitment - seem to be turning to yoga, or meditation, or seeking silent retreats. Source: I absolutely love travel quotes, don't yous. The desire to achieve stillness, leads the conversation towards the energetic, spiritual and physical practices to aid a person to stillness, in whatever form. Pico iyer is the author of 15 books, translated into 23 languages, including the art of stillness and, most recently, autumn light and a beginner's guide to japan. Barry, John and Berni describe their idea of what stillness is, and share examples of where it has shown up in their lives. Iyer also draws on his own experiences as a travel writer who chooses to spend most of his time in rural Japan - to explore why advances in technology are making us more likely to retreat. Mike shares a quote from Pico Iyer’s The Art of Stillness. in molecular biology who left a promising scientific career to become a Tibetan monk, to revered singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, who traded the pleasures of the senses for several years of living the near-silent life of meditation as a Zen monk. In The Art of Stillness, Iyer investigate the lives of people who have made a life seeking stillness: from Matthieu Ricard, a Frenchman with a Ph.D. Why would a man who seems able to go everywhere and do anything - like the international heartthrob and Rock n Roll Hall of Famer Leonard Cohen - choose to. Why might a lifelong traveler like Pico Iyer, who has journeyed from Easter Island to Ethiopia, Cuba to Kathmandu, think that sitting quietly in a room might be the ultimate adventure? A follow up to Pico Iyers essay 'The Joy of Quiet,' The Art of Stillness considers the unexpected adventure of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug. Lawrences novella, in my tiny cell in boarding. Chaos Stillness Inside It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. Ultimately, Iyer shows that, in this age of constant movement and connectedness, perhaps staying in one place is a more exciting prospect, and a greater necessity than ever before.” I can still remember the afternoon, on my 15th birthday, when I opened up The Virgin and the Gypsy, D.H. Why might a lifelong traveler like Pico Iyer, who has journeyed from Easter Island to Ethiopia, Cuba to Kathmandu, think that sitting quietly in a room might be. “ The Art of Stillness paints a picture of why so many - from Marcel Proust to Mahatma Ghandi to Emily Dickinson - have found richness in stillness. A follow up to Pico Iyers essay 'The Joy of Quiet,' The Art of Stillness considers the unexpected adventure of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug.