The Power of Chowa: Finding Your Inner Strength Through the Japanese Concept of Balance and Harmony

by Akemi Tanaka

Overview

For fans of Hygge and Lagom comes this inspiring guide, illustrated with beautiful artwork, that introduces the Japanese wisdom of chowa—the search for balance—to help us find harmony and peace in every area of our lives.

 The Japanese wisdom of chowa offers a fresh approach to being, showing us how to create space and symmetry at work, at home, and in our relationships. Chowa is an ancient philosophy and set of practices that enable us to discover what matters most in our individual lives, and help us transform our way of thinking about ourselves and others.

 By harnessing the power of chowa, we can learn to ignore the ephemera, focus on the important things, and cultivate a steady state of equilibrium and calm that gives us the confidence and fortitude to handle any challenge we may face. Following the practical steps in this empowering book, we can better balance our priorities and relationships and find inner strength and flexibility in times of change and stress.

 With The Power of Chowa, curious seekers can achieve wellness, happiness, and contentment every day.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063007482
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/16/2020
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,055,467
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Akemi Tanaka is descended from a family of samurai who fought alongside the fifteenth-century warrior-poet Ota Dokan. She grew up in Japan, but now lives in London with her English husband. Akemi is an established cultural communicator on Japan, regularly leading cultural study tours back to her homeland, and giving presentations at schools, universities, and cultural centers. Akemi founded the charity Aid For Japan and was recently given an award by the British government in recognition of her charity work for the orphans of the 2011 tsunami. She is also an expert in tea ceremony, for which she dresses in high traditional costume, and demonstrates this ancient art as a master class in mindfulness and gratitude.

Table of Contents

Foreword xi

Introduction 1

Part 1 Finding Your Own Balance

1 Opening Doors 11

How to practice small daily acts to achieve natural harmony in the home

2 Playing Our Part 33

How to find our balance as we manage our family roles and responsibilities

3 Balancing the Books 51

How to keep track of our spending and reward ourselves (and others) with the money we save

4 Finding Our Style 62

How to adapt our personal style for any time, place, or occasion

Part 2 Living in Harmony with Others

5 Listening to Others and Knowing Ourselves 91

How to manage our emotions to improve our relationships with everyone (including ourselves)

6 Learning to Learn, and Teaching Our Teachers 109

How to apply our learning, learn from experience, and put our knowledge into practice

7 Bringing Balance to the Way We Work 127

How to forge harmonious partnerships and achieve real change in the workplace

8 Making Bigger Changes 146

How we can bring about positive changes in the world

Part 3 Balancing What's Most Important

9 Food Harmony 163

How eating the Japanese way can help bring balance to our diets, pave the way for a long and healthy life, and allow us to eat more sustainably

10 Finding Our Balance with Nature 179

How we can become more in tune with nature, better understand our place within it, and tackle climate change

11 Sharing a Love That Lasts 195

How to forge a stronger, more loving relationship

12 Treasuring Every Meeting 211

What the ancient art of the tea ceremony can teach about death, disaster, and moving on

Afterword 235

Acknowledgments 241

References 243

Notes 247

Index 257