How long is the tao of pooh

The Tao messages of living life with Acceptance and Flow came to her at a time when her own body had betrayed her, and she really needed to let go of things that she cannot control. In our household we refer to this as the book that saved her life. The principles contained in the book continue to guide her journey, in good times and especially in bad times.

Considering the impact the book had on her, it is a wonder that I had not read the whole thing until now. The book reads like a story, but includes information that you might find in a textbook about Eastern and Western philosophy. It was, I believe, the author's intent to make a small quiet observers of the conversation between himself and the characters from Winnie the Pooh. Daniel Hoff pulled it off masterfully, and at times I truly felt like I might have been in the room.

Introducing philosophy in the context of a narrative is not new, but it is not always well done. In this example I believe it was well done. My first impression of Simon Vance when he was introducing the credits was that he was a little bit over the top, and maybe "too" precise to be real.

While other characters in the Hundred Acre Wood cling to faulty knowledge or pursue goals of little value, the simple, humble Pooh goes with the flow and finds contentment. Thus, he exemplifies the concept of pu, living life open to experience, while not being burdened by unnecessary abstractions or desires. Benjamin Hoff writes in whimsical way, imagining himself having conversations with Pooh, Piglet, and others as he works on his manuscript, Pooh characteristically preferring to talk about things that are of direct interest to Pooh, such as honey.

Hoff seems to assume that the reader remembers more of the plot points and humor of A. To attain wisdom, subtract something every day. Always a worthwhile question. Perhaps if the author hadn't taken a no-holds-barred offensive stance against everything apart from Taoism, or if he hadn't torn the characters apart to get them to fit around the characters he needed them to be to get his point across, I might have thought his words were more worthwhile.

But as far as this book is concerned, everything except Taoism is the root of all evil in the world and must be stopped with the principles and application of Taoism, and the beloved characters from Winnie the Pooh were left as casualties in the aftermath.

Learning about Taoism was interesting, and the use of Winnie the Pooh in orchestrating that was creative hence the two stars instead of one , but the entire book was riddled with accusations about every other mode of thought being unambiguously inferior to Taoism without even the consideration to say that there are benefits to them.

Near the end of the book, the author even has the gall to say that being clever or scholarly as opposed to following the way of Tao will bring about the end of the world and that whatever is left to the few people who survive won't be worth looking at; that is a bit of a paraphrase, but only a bit.

The book is aggressively against any sort of knowledge-gathering, any sort of self-advancing effort, and basically anything anti-Tao.

This moral is expressed by manipulating the characters of Winnie the Pooh by stretching their characterizations out of shape. Poor Eeyore was changed into an aggressive, useless, self-aggrandizing monster for no reason than because he's usually a bit blue. And for being the characterizations of cleverness and scholarly knowledge-seeking, Rabbit and Owl are portrayed as hasty and useless respectively.

And Pooh Bear is the Messiah and can do no wrong, even when he's being just as useless as anyone else. The original premise, that Pooh Bear epitomizes Taoist philosophy, may be correct and may be worthwhile, but the slaughter of the rest of the characters just so that they can suit the needs of an extended metaphor is a blatant misuse of them.

The last straw for me was when the author extolled the virtues of a man living over two centuries by following the path of Tao. A philosophy causing substantial enough life changes to prolong the life of someone to nearly twice was the oldest living person at present has lived?

And his life is so much better than he can outrun young men? The author has no incredulity and, after that bit, I can't find it in myself to take anything he says seriously. All in all, it was an interesting premise, but the application just didn't work for me. It points the way to understanding Tao wisdom in simple understandable language. The audio book replaced the tattered paper back copy that I read years ago and have kept in my library.

It is a delighful little story that opened my eyes to how much we are manipulated and misdirected by pretense and nonsense. Take the journey and become more enlightened. Read and re-read this little gem and other Taoist works until what is written is clearly understood. Pooh will thank you for it. Simplicity and clarity. How does this one compare? I did just that. A great audio production! A simple, but beautiful book, and beautifully narrated by Simon Vance. I enjoyed it as an adult, but this would also be suitable for children.

This must become a timeless classic. It was a joy to listen to. Seriously, my new favorite book. I don't remember falling in love with a book this way in quite a while. So put it on my phone and went to walk my dog. As the story went on it just felt like it was jumping all over the place.

One minute one thing is being discussed, then without warning something else is. It frustrated me so I just turned it off and returned it.

An excellent way to deliver wisdom and insight into the Tao, thank you for a wonderful listen. Discovering tao in a wonderful reminiscent format. It's something to listen to time and again. Really lovely. A wonderful story wonderfully narrated. I will relisten to this as it has a wonderful message.

Pooh is a very wise bear indeed. I have been reading Winne the Pooh to my daughter while also reading a lot of self development and philosophy books for myself lately. I could see the themes coming up in Winnie the Pooh and my daughter loves the stories - how happy Pooh is, how grumpy Eeyore is and angry Rabbit is and so on. This is a fantastic book to explain to us adults why we should be more like Pooh. Enjoy the simple things in life and you will love life like Pooh bear.

Loved it! It was recommended reading for a yoga teacher training, gentle wisdom shared simply. Beautifully narrated. A lovely little book of wisdom told in the most delightful way. It may me want to read the Winnie the Pooh collection again.

What a pleasure it was. Loved this book so much. I can't believe I haven't heard of Benjamin Hoff before, now I will search for more of his stuff, it really is first class. It is more a excuse for westerners misinterpreting eastern philosophy in overly simplified form. It has the worst of both worlds. The vagueness of easy coupled with futile attempts to solidify the abstract.

A torture listening to it. It opened my mind and reminded of the things that are through the mind of a child, which is rare for we forget sometimes the simple things in life are sometimes the most important.

I agree wholeheartedly that maintaining the sense of wonder we have about the world as children is important, especially now that we have so many claims on our valuable free time. And I find that so unfortunate. Furthermore, there is a smug tone to his critique of clever people.

Somewhere along the way, between his descriptions of Tao and Te and pu and wei wu wei, Hoff seems to lose the value of empathy. The human mind is a wonderful thing and is capable of entertaining more than one thought per day. This is why The Tao of Pooh is more frustrating than it should be: there is little middle ground here. Hoff makes so many valid critiques about our Western society and its overemphasis on being busy, being industrious, being clever.

He presents a great overview of some of the key tenets of Taoism. Nothing could possibly go wrong…. This message, while vapidly reassuring, is not helpful. In reality, we are flawed creatures. No single philosophy can ever offer the perfect solace or the best way to live.

We should instead be aware of when we are Eeyoring and when we are Pigleting, examine why we do those things, and see if that causes problems for us. But stumbling through life without any awareness of history, underlying knowledge of the world around us, or ability analyze and think critically, is not the solution.

View all 3 comments. Oct 04, Naomi rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: people who like bears and ancient eastern philosophy. Shelves: on-my-bookshelf. I really enjoyed this book. It was a quick read, kept me entertained, and I feel like I actually grasped the general concepts of Taoism. That was accomplishing a lot because sometimes my borderline ADD brain can't focus on religion and philosophy books. It's not like I don't want to know. I do want to know. But it can't be helped what my brain does and does not respond to.

Winnie the Pooh and funniness are two things my brain inevitably responds to. So intertwining those things with philosophy i I really enjoyed this book.

So intertwining those things with philosophy is pretty much nearly perfect to me. Thanks, Anthony, for passing it along. I'd like to continue the tradition and pass this book along to someone else who would appreciate its wisdom. Feb 21, Bosh rated it did not like it. What should be a charming and thoughtful analysis of Pooh Bear through a Taoist lens ends up being a rambling polemic by a bitter man who obviously has a ways to go before he achieves inner peace.

While he does use Pooh and company as a jumping off point, Hoff ends up spending much of the book railing against business people, lawyers, academics, and everyone else he deems a "Busy Backson".

Even scientists are Busy Backsons, because their discoveries only lead to more questions. Hoff's ideal is a What should be a charming and thoughtful analysis of Pooh Bear through a Taoist lens ends up being a rambling polemic by a bitter man who obviously has a ways to go before he achieves inner peace. Hoff's ideal is a world where everyone sits around tending their garden he's a gardener free of desire, ambition, and intellectual curiosity.

Hoff's interpretation of Pooh is one where all the other characters are severely flawed and serve only to emphasize Pooh's purity - a complete misreading, in my opinion. However, this seems to mirror Hoff's opinion of himself as an oasis a sea of Busy Backsons.

Ironically, Hoff's writing not to mention his website is generally angry and bitter. I probably have more inner peace than this guy. Hoff is an unsuccessful artist who uses Eastern mysticism to rationalize his own failed ambitions and condemn people he doesn't like. In the process, he defames a beloved bear. I know very little about Taoism but I hope it's a more intelligent philosophy than it comes across as here.

View all 7 comments. What a briljant little book full of life lessons and a course to a happy way of viewing life. Lovely in it's simplicity about such a complex subject as overal happiness. In my top 3 of all-time favorite books! Aug 02, Riku Sayuj rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorites. Wonderful book! Must read for anyone interested in Taoism or even in plain simple living.

From the Taoist point of view, the natural result of this harmonious way of living is happiness. Calculus and Economics are a couple of examples My rating: 5 of 5 stars A copy of The Tao of Pooh was provided to me by Tantor Media for review purposes. Calculus and Economics are a couple of examples. But the one shining example is Philosophy. My freshman year of college I signed up for Philosophy but I knew right from the start I was going to have difficulty. Most people would have stuck it out and studied super hard, but I?

Timed it just right and booked it out of there when the teacher's back was turned to the class. I am a coward. So suffice it to say, Philosophy and I don't have a good track record. But if my Philosophy professor spoke of Philosophy and maybe incorporated some Pooh-isms into his lecture as Benjamin Hoff does in 'The Tao of Pooh' I think I would have lasted more than 10 minutes. Winnie the Pooh symbolizes the Taoist ideal of a still and calm mind and his ability to accomplish tasks "effortlessly" and is a true personification of the Taoist foundation.

At heart 'The Tao of Pooh' manages to be a simplified and practical introduction into the ideals of Taoism and how to go about incorporating them into your daily lives in order to change things for the better.

You can only spend it, but you can spend it wisely or foolishly. This production was nominated for an Audie in the Solo Narration—Male category and is in my opinion completely deserving of the nomination. This is the second listen in about as many months.

This may be my new go-to in stressful situations. Because I obviously find waayyyy too much happiness in those things. That would be a shame, for this charming book portrays the principles of Taoism through the story of Winnie the Pooh - and the other characters - in such a way that it makes the reader stop… and think about life. Benjamin Hoff shows, through the adventures of Pooh and his companions, that a happier, more contented life is not such a distant or unachievable concept; it is just a question of changing the way we look at things.

Pooh just is. Dec 26, Chad Santos rated it it was amazing. The Zen, the Tao, the beautifully simplicity of a quiet, accepting mind. Sorry Tyler On premise alone, this book opens with great momentum. In the first 21 pages, Hoff successfully illustrates his idea that A. Milne's character, Winnie the Pooh, is a great literary embodiment of the teachings of Lao-tse. Well done. Directing attention to the parallels between Eastern and Western philosophy is not an altogether original idea.

Fritjof Capra accomplishes the very same thing with greater skill, detail and poetry in his book, The Tao of Physics. Hoff's arguments are s Sorry Tyler On premise alone, this book opens with great momentum. Hoff's arguments are simple-minded which, in itself, is fitting for a book on Taoism. Except that Hoff is so abrasive and condescending towards every other character in the acre woods.

Hoff is particularly offensive in his analysis of the wise "Owl" who he uses as a stereotype for scholars. Broad inaccurate generalizations follow.

He implies that every scholar is too focused on technical minutia to understand what happens in a meadow at dusk In my opinion he has broken the allegory when he begins using A. Milne's quotations out of context as facts to support his argument. Benjamin Hoff is a silly, petty hypocrite who needs to reassess his own dogma. It's sad because he has taken two beautiful things and combined them to examine the faults of lifestyles that differ from his own.

View all 8 comments. Jul 14, [Shai] Bibliophage rated it liked it Shelves: books-read This is my first time to read a book about Taoism and I thought that teachings in Buddhism have similarities with Taoism. I don't know if it's because of how the author writes or it is just that Buddhism and Taoism are different after all.

The author attempts to interpret Taoism teachings by using fable but I think it's not that effective because it just made some confusion in some parts. Hoff tried to explain Taoism in what he thought is the most coherent way he knows but it just complicates his This is my first time to read a book about Taoism and I thought that teachings in Buddhism have similarities with Taoism.

Hoff tried to explain Taoism in what he thought is the most coherent way he knows but it just complicates his way of describing something that we are not familiar with. View all 4 comments. This is my favorite book to give as a gift. From the forward: "What's this you're writing? It is a book I can pick up no matter what my mood and find a passage in it to smile about.

Funny thing, after reading it and I have many times , I develop this strange habit of looking at people and deciding if they are an Owl, Rabbit, Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore or Pooh and finding it easier to deal with them Jan 13, aPriL does feral sometimes rated it did not like it Shelves: bizarre-wtf , mostly-conversations-and-ideas , twisted-me-peculiar , philosophy.

The book uses stories from Winnie-the-Pooh to illustrate basic Tao philosophy in what Hoff hopes is a cute and instructive manner, and maybe winsomely attractive enough to convince us, gentle reader. However, instead I felt as if I was being asked to live my life with the confidence and supposed mentality of a trust-fund recipient of a major fortu ''The Tao of Pooh' by Benjamin Hoff left me feeling a bit as if I was being reprimanded for being a reader who sometimes spends time examining my life.

However, instead I felt as if I was being asked to live my life with the confidence and supposed mentality of a trust-fund recipient of a major fortune! Live on air and watch birds! Life can be simple if one doesn't chase down food, shelter and things! Be true to yourself - at least, if that self is complacent about working at staying alive and healthy.

Don't worry, be happy! I felt the Tao philosophy might work if I could photosynthesize light and water into food like plants do. Plus, there are a lot of assumptions about knowledge and intellectualism, and their linkages to, or rather, lack of, compassion and genuine happiness. Perhaps I am being too literal, gentle reader. Listening to birds does sooth my inner nature. Until my stomach growls. Hoff's answer is to sing, "Sing ho for the life of a bear!

Living in continuity with one's inner self will bring fame and fortune naturally in accordance with your inner nature, if one empties oneself of all needs, and thus make discontent impossible? Don't fuss yourself over necessities or wants? The things we need are already there? Desperation is from wanting or needing life's necessities? Well, yes. I actually need food, water, clothes. So far in my life, satisfying hunger doesn't mean I usually equate satisfying my hunger with self-respect or lack of same.

The process of a journey isn't any more necessary than the end of a journey, teaches Hoff. The Great Nothing is Something. Empty mind wins nothing, which is the success of living Tao, because the mind is not stuffed full of cleverness and knowledge. Music is the silence between notes. Emptiness is the fulfilment of existence.

Emptiness is Wisdom. Lack of awareness of body and senses will find the Way, the Source, to be Awake and clear-minded. Like a child, empty of everything Hoff sees Pooh as meeting the perfection of Tao because he has nothing inside and outside. Nothing there, there. Nothing which is Something, of course, under Tao beliefs. Not is Cool. I prefer A. Milne's version of Pooh rather than Hoff's version of Pooh.

View all 13 comments. Apr 25, Cammie rated it liked it. The Tao of Pooh is a much more palatable explanation of Taoism than I've ever read in any humanities book. I'm not recalling when I last read about Taoism now that I actually think about it. Benjamin Hoff creates the perfect allegory to explain this Eastern philosophy.

However, Pooh's life and philosophy might be a little too simplistic for reality. I did like the author's explanation of the book in the forward when he says to Pooh that the book is about how to stay happy and calm in all circum The Tao of Pooh is a much more palatable explanation of Taoism than I've ever read in any humanities book.

I did like the author's explanation of the book in the forward when he says to Pooh that the book is about how to stay happy and calm in all circumstances. The Stone Cutter story in Chapter 7 was incredible to explain that we really should not wish to have or be what other are or have. What an incredible lesson this story teaches! One final quote that I found quite memorable: "To attain knowledge, add things every day; to attain wisdom, remove things every day. I personally think this is a fantastic method of teaching Taoist principals to any layman.

I was unknowing of Taoism at first, but this book, with it's characterized examples, has given me a great food for thought on the subject.

On a side note, I love how Hoff writes as if he's talking to Pooh Bear directly. And maybe he is? He certainly channeled the character very well. The Way that can be spoken of is not the one we tread. These are Lao-Tse's opening words.

The great mistake of course is that we do speak of it, and write of it, and attempt to pontificate upon the nature of all things as though an understanding of the Way entailed an understanding of all things. It is rather that an understanding of the Way encompasses all things. To understand, to judge, to see the faults in one and not the other is a common mistake in the interpretation of various Buddhist an The Way that can be spoken of is not the one we tread.

To understand, to judge, to see the faults in one and not the other is a common mistake in the interpretation of various Buddhist and Taoist texts. In The Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff makes the partisan effort to promote the Way as something that ironically defeats science and many other branches of human endeavor with the cleverness he condones them for.

When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those of the Uncarved Block: Life is Fun. The Confusionist, Dessicated Scholar is one who studies Knowledge for the sake of Knowledge, and who keeps what he learns to himself or to his own small group, writing pompous and pretentious papers that no one else can understand, rather than working for the enlightenment of others.

That hits a bit too close to home. People who don't see situations for what they are often struggle against difficulties that aren't there and create difficulties in the process.

Or turn small difficulties into large ones. As the Chinese saying puts it, "Painting legs on the snake. Alas, there are some passages that make one think Benjamin Hoff is a bit on the crazy side.

Despite the fact that quite a few people have seen and communicated with earth angles and nature spirits, and that more than one spiritual community has grown luscious fruits and vegetables by cooperating with them and following their instructions, descriptions of these beings are generally dismissed as "fairy tales. Like this part with microwaves: The latest Popular Radiation devices is the Microwave Oven, which bombards food with high-frequency electromagnetic radiation, irritating it until it heats up.

This sort of Perversion of Nature is perfectly safe, authorities insist- if it weren't, the Wonderful Machines wouldn't be on the market. Maybe the authorities are correct this time, just for once.

On the other hand, maybe they're not. So he's angry at microwaves for being Perversions of Nature I adore how that's Capitalised. He's angry at them for heating up food too quickly. But that's not even my biggest problem with these books.

My biggest complaint is this: I feel like I haven't learned much. And I actually really wanted to. Maybe i am an Owl? I don't feel enlightened much either. Am I a Piglet? Am I an Eeyore? Mar 16, Zebici rated it really liked it Shelves: Good book to read and consider. You can only spend it. I think, therefore I am Confused. Things just happen in the right way, at the right time. At least they do when you let them Why ruin it? But you can spend it wisely or foolishly.

The power-hungry wanted their followers to believe that heaven was a place to which some people -and only people - went after death, a place that could be reached by those who had the approval of their organisations. There is something in each of us that wants us to be Unhappy. It exaggerates problems that are already there. Without difficulties, life would be like a stream without rocks and curves - about as interesting as concrete.

Without problems, there can be no personal growth, no group achievement, no progress for humanity. But what matters about problems is what one does with them. They are instead the sorts of things that come to us where we are, if we let them - if we stop trying too hard and just let things happen as they need to. It just goes around them. And as it does, it sings. Feb 25, Rebeca Ravara rated it really liked it Shelves: philosophy.

Apr 11, Bree Taylor rated it really liked it Shelves: spiritual , nonfiction , belief-mindset , I finished the Tao of Pooh and was incredibly uplifted and ready to give this book five stars.

I texted the person who gifted it to me and shared my amazement and how much I loved this book. And then I read the Te of Piglet. Which was less spiritual and childlike and more a collection of quotes from spiritual leaders and Winnie the Pooh than anything else.

I struggled to find a common thread other than "industrialism is bad and the western world has killed the planet. It's a tough omnibus to review. Tao of Pooh - 5 stars. Te of Piglet - 3 stars rounded up from 2. Mar 29, Patsy rated it it was amazing Shelves: non-fiction , favorites. This is a fun and encouraging book! Benjamin Hoff has great insights about positivity, spirituality, and how to better care for our environment.

I am not sure this would give you enough solid information about this book, but being a lover of all the Pooh characters, I found it funny, delightful, and profound for myself. Jan 20, Kait Logsdon rated it really liked it. This was a great book! The Tao of Pooh was definitely my favorite of the two parts. What kept me from 5 stars was the end section of The Te of Piglet.

I was very zen throughout most of the book, and even though I AGREE with what the author was saying about politics and the state of the American people, it felt angry and carelessly added. It pulled me out of a peaceful, contemplative state, into a nervous, irritated one. I wish it had been left out, or maybe made into a smaller article. It just f This was a great book! It just felt like a chance for the author to rant rather than talk about Pooh Bear and Taoism. It was very Eeyore of him.

Apr 26, Alyssa rated it it was ok. I really enjoyed The Tao of Pooh and recommended it to several people — but I'll be embarrassed if they read The Te of Piglet on my recommendation. While the first book was probably simplistic, it did convey some very useful ideas in a delightful way. The second book, however, was apparently Hoff's s twitter account of angst and failure to empathize with anyone who wasn't him.

Jul 09, Lai Thu rated it it was amazing. Some concepts are arguable, of course unavoidable for a kinda-philosophy book, but for the most parts its still peaceful and calm. The great Philosopher Winnie the Pooh never fails to comfort me, and the book to me deserves a solid 5-star. Apr 16, Sjors rated it it was amazing.

This is a wonderfull book. We learn the true wisdom of the world through the stories of a silly old Bear and his friends. Everyone could benefit from reading this. It really gives you something to think about. Jun 02, Cat Elise rated it it was amazing. My holy bible.

Apr 15, Gigliola rated it it was amazing. Beautiful book! There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one ». Readers also enjoyed. Self Help. About Benjamin Hoff.

Benjamin Hoff. Hoff grew up in the Portland, Oregon neighborhood of Sylvan, where he acquired a fondness of the natural world that has been highly influential in his writing.