Untangled - by Koshin Paley Ellison (Hardcover)

About the Book

"We live in a shallow "junk" pleasure-seeking culture, searching for connection in the wrong places, keeping our restlessness and anxiety at bay with unfulfilling distractions. The results of our junk pleasure culture are obvious: hundreds of articles have been published about the rise of loneliness and its detrimental effects on our mental, emotional, and physical health. Even those of us who have succeeded in the ways that society encourages-getting married, making money, and acquiring status-often feel unanchored, disengaged, and empty. What we want is to live a life of true pleasure-a life infused with meaning, marked by genuine relationship, and aligned with what matters most to us. How do we create a life of true pleasure, one that is worth living? Untangled is a welcoming guidebook to finding expansive ease and joy through what is traditionally called the Eightfold Path, one of Buddhism's foundational teachings. Psychotherapist and Zen teacher Koshin Paley Ellison walks readers through this time-tested map for transformation and lasting happiness. Following the eight roads creates profound change inside and out, from everyday interactions to our most intimate relationships (especially the one with ourselves). With his signature mix of storytelling and unexpected humor, Koshin uses anecdotes from his own life as a young gay kid dealing with abuse and discrimination as well as tales and teachings from Eastern and Western wisdom traditions to introduce mainstream readers to the eight roads for the first time and rejuvenate it for those already familiar. It is an ancient cure that's up to the challenge of addressing the dysfunction of our times"--

Book Synopsis

This accessible guide for walking Buddhism's eightfold path is the perfect way to combat loneliness, disconnection, and depression-true happiness is not as unattainable as it may seem.

Loneliness is on the rise, with detrimental effects on our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. How do we look past the surface, to discover a life filled with meaningful connection and genuine relationships? Untangled is a welcoming guidebook to finding expansive ease and true joy through the eightfold path-one of Buddhism's foundational teachings.

Psychotherapist and Zen teacher Koshin Paley Ellison compassionately walks readers down these eight roads, leading them to discover true joy. Combining teachings from both Eastern and Western traditions, Paley Ellison equips readers with the tools needed to make profound change, inside and out. Infused with Paley Ellison's own anecdotes of his own life, this guide will help you transform your relationships and offers a path for social healing.

Review Quotes

"Reading Untangled, I felt as if Koshin Paley Ellison was sitting right next to me: telling his stories, sharing his friendliness, offering his down to earth wisdom. This is an indispensable new guidebook to Buddhism's eightfold path."--Susan Cain, #1 New York Times bestselling author of BITTERSWEET and QUIET

"Buddhist monk Paley Ellison (Wholehearted) delivers an outstanding guide to the essentials of Buddhist practice."

"Paley Ellison's candid anecdotes show the principles in action and his passion comes through on every page. Additionally, his theology manages to be accessible without oversimplifying. This walks the walk."--Publishers Weekly

"Koshin is a visionary spiritual leader who brings together the medicine for fear--bridging the divide between our values and our actions. He gives us the soulful prescription and the companioning needed for integration of personal awareness, social healing and global connectedness."--Van Jones, Founder of Dream Corps

"Koshin is one of my most important teachers and friends. He's also very funny and courageously candid about his own personal history and personality quirks. If you're looking for somebody to teach you how to do life better, Koshin is an ace."--Dan Harris, author, 10% Happier

"Koshin Paley Ellison engages us from a life of hard-earned wisdom, showing us a way out of our countless tangles to a path to freedom."--Daniel Goleman, author, Emotional Intelligence

"Leave it to a monk to write an unusually thoughtful book about how to stop being controlled by your emotions--and start learning to observe, embrace, and harness them."--Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of THINK AGAIN and host of the TED podcast WorkLife

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave when we believe our own thoughts! Koshin Paley Ellison shares his wisdom and passion in Untangled. Written with truth, humor, sometimes revealing pain, always manifesting compassion, Untangled is a gem." --Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Change

"With humor, compassion and the knowingness of decades of practice, Koshin Paley Ellison continues to be one of our wisest guides. Untangled is an honest, accessible, funny, loving, slapping-you-around-a-bit roadmap to help us face that which we want to turn from, and hold that which feels impossible...together."--Priya Parker, author, The Art of Gathering

About the Author

Dr. Koshin Paley Ellison, MFA, LMSW, DMIN, has devoted his life to the study and application of psychotherapy and Buddhism in service of addressing cultural ills. An author, Zen teacher, Jungian psychotherapist, and certified chaplaincy educator, he and his husband Robert Chodo Campbell founded the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.