Thursday, April 30, 2026

How to Boost One's Immune System

How to Boost One's Immune System

1. Daily moderate cross training exercises.
2. Adequate rest, relaxation, and sleep.
3. Proper diet and adequate protein.
4. Vitamin C supplementation.
5. Reduce stress, overdoing, overreaching, overachieving, unrealistic objectives.
6. Maintain cleanliness and sanitary conditions.
7. Adequate water intake.
8. Maintain an upbeat, positive, and realistic attitude.
9. Take all prescribed medicines on schedule.
10. Don't smoke or drink alcohol.
11. Develop and maintain positive social relationships.
12. Stimulate and engage your thinking processes.
13. Use effective vaccines and avoidance tactics to prevent communicable diseases.

There is plenty of evidence that Tai Chi, Yoga, Chi Kung, and Walking all can boost one's immune system. However, claims by advocates of each of these mind-body exercise systems seem to ignore the fact that regular moderate exercise of just about any type will improve functioning of the immune system, combined with the other healthy living practices listed above. I find little evidence that any one mind-body exercise system is "the best." The bottom line, for me, is daily moderate cross training exercises.

Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Text Art: Drunk Driving

Drunk Driving

By Michael P. Garofalo

Text Art and Concrete Poetry

Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Dao De Jing Chapter 16

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Chapter 16

"Attaining perfect emptiness
Remain patient and sincere
The myriad beings arise as one
Through this we observe the return
Of beings in numberless multitudes
Each coming home to its root
Return to the root means serenity
It may be called a return to a higher order
Return to higher order speaks of the enduring
To comprehend the enduring speaks of clarity
To not comprehend the enduring
Is to recklessly create suffering
To comprehend the enduring (is) tolerance
Tolerance becomes justice
Justice becomes sovereignty
Sovereignty becomes celestial
The celestial becomes the path
The path is then continuous
The death of self is nothing to fear"
- Translated by Bradford Hatcher, 2005, Chapter 16

"Bring about emptiness to the extreme.
Guard true stillness.
The ten-thousand things rise together.
I therefore observe their return:
Those ten-thousand plants—each plant—returns
Going back to its root.
Going back to the root is said to be stillness.
This is called returning to life.
Returning to life is called the Constant.
Understanding the Constant is called clarity.
Not understanding the Constant:
Reckless actions—misfortune.
Understanding the Constant, forgive.
Forgive, then be unbiased.
Be unbiased, then be whole.
Be whole, then be Heaven.
Be Heaven, then be Tao.
Be Tao, then be eternal.
Not having a body, there is no danger."
- Translated by Aalar Fex, 2006, Chapter 16

"Empty the self completely; Embrace perfect peace.
Realize that all beings alike go through their processes of activity and life,
and then they return to the original source.
Returning to the source brings peacefulness and stillness.
This stillness is the flow of nature, and signifies that the beings have lived their allotted span of life.
Accepting this brings enlightenment and tranquility,
ignoring this brings confusion and sorrow
If one can accept this flow of nature; one can cherish all things.
Being all-cherishing you become impartial;
Being impartial you become magnanimous;
Being magnanimous you become natural;
Being natural you become one with The Way;
Being one with The Way you become immortal:
Though the body will decay, the Way will not."
- Translated by John Discus, 2002, Chapter 16

致虛極.
守靜篤.
萬物並作.
吾以觀復.
夫物芸芸, 各復歸其根.
歸根曰靜.
是謂復命.
復命曰常.
知常曰明.
不知常, 妄作凶知常容.
容乃公.
公乃王.
王乃天.
天乃道.
道乃久.
沒身不殆.
- Chinese characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 16

zhi xu ji.
shou jing du.
wan wu bing zuo.
wu yi guan fu.
fu wu yun yun, ge fu gui qi gen.  
gui gen yue jing.
shi yue fu ming.
fu ming yue chang.
zhi chang yue ming.
bu zhi chang, wang zuo xiong zhi chang rong.
rong nai gong.
gong nai quan.
quan nai tian.
tian nai dao.
dao nai jiu.
mo shen bu dai.
-  Pinyin translation, Daodejing, Chapter 16

"Effect emptiness to the extreme.
 Keep stillness whole.
 Myriad things act in concert.
 I therefore watch their return.
 All things flourish and each returns to its root.
 Returning to the root is called quietude.
 Quietude is called returning to life.
 Return to life is called constant.
 Knowing this constant is called illumination.
 Acting arbitrarily without knowing the constant is harmful.
 Knowing the constant is receptivity, which is impartial.
 Impartiality is kingship.
 Kingship is Heaven.
 Heaven is Tao
 Tao is eternal.
 Though you lose the body, you do not die."
 -  Translated by Charles Muller, 1891, Chapter 16

"Vacía tu Ego completamente;

Abraza la paz perfecta.
El Mundo se mueve y gira;
Observale regresar a la quietud.
Todas las cosas que florecen
Regresarán a su origen.
Este regreso es pacífico;
Es el camino de la Naturaleza,
Eternamente decayendo y renovandose.
Comprender ésto trae la iluminación,
Ignorar esto lleva a la miseria.

Aquel que comprende el camino de la Naturaleza llega a apreciarlo todo;
Apreciandolo todo, se convierte en imparcial;
Siendo imparcial, se convierte en magnánimo;
Siendo magnánimo, se convierte en parte de la Naturaleza;
Siendo parte de la Naturaleza, se hace uno con el Tao;
Siendo uno con el Tao, se alcanza la inmortalidad:
Piensa que el cuerpo perecerá, el Tao no."
- Translated by Antonio Rivas Gonzálvez, 1998, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 16

"To arrive at ultimate quietness
Steadfastly maintain repose.
All creatures together have form;
I see them return again to their root.
The Master creatures come to perfect form,
Continuously they return to their root.
Continuous return to the root is called repose,
Repose is called the law of return,
The law of return is called eternity.
To know eternity is called illumination.
To ignore eternity is to draw misfortune on oneself,
To know eternity is to be great of Soul,
To be great of soul is to be a ruler,
To be a ruler is to be greater than all,
To be greater than all is to be conscious of Life,
To be conscious of Life is to endure.
The body shall disappear but not decay."
- Translated by Isabella Mears, 1916, Chapter 16

Audio Recordings (Podcasts) in English by Mike Garofalo

Here is an audio recording of selected translations from Chapter 16 of the Tao Te Ching. This reading includes translations by Isabella Mears 1916, Charles Muller 1891, John Discus 2002, Bradford Hatcher 2005, Stephen Addis 1993. Reading and recording by Michael P. Garofalo at the Valley Spirit Center in Red Bluff, California. Recorded on December 5, 2016. MP3 format. 12.7 MB.

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter. Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization. Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, a Google Translate drop down menu, and other resources for that Chapter.

Chapter 16, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey

Monday, April 27, 2026

My Original Face: Before and After

The Fireplace Records, Chapter 36

My Original Face: Before and After

I was mulling over the famous Koan from the Sixth Patriarch, Hui-Neng, "What was your original face before you were born?" This question appears in many Zen Koans.

The Mind Door that opened and closed between the inside of After Awakening and the outside of Before Awakening, hung on the hinges of efforts and insights. The Gate swung open and closed, mostly closed but sometimes open, as daily life offered opportunities. Being unborn or reborn swung on the hinges of opportunities with Others.

The terms "inside and outside,' or 'before and after,' were flexible, relative, ambiguous, often changing meaning, tools, open, moving, freely applied.

Before I was born, my original face was six-fold--- the faces of my parents and four grandparents.

Before I was born, my original face was a thousand-fold--- the faces of all my previous Karmic lives for kalpas of time.

Before I was born, my original face was embedded inside invisible DNA strands.

Before I was born, my original face was in water and I was only fleeting feelings.

Before I was born, some say, I had no original face--- I was nothing.

Before I was born, the Redwood tree supported the fog.

Before I was born, some say, I had the same face as my eternal soul.

Before I was reborn, my face was the same face as the dead still-born baby on the table of the morgue.

Before I was reborn, I never thought about or remembered what my original face appeared as.

Before I was reborn, I worried about the appearance of my face, and disliked my acne.

Before I was reborn, I was chained in a dark cave, hidden from the true Forms, awaiting release and the light. Only Plato's face was my face.

Before I was reborn, water flowed uphill, and smoke stayed on the ground.

Before I was reborn, a mother said “Face” and her baby pointed to his ear.

After I was born, my face was reflected four-fold in the distorting mirrors of a San Francisco amusement park.

After I was born, my original face was big, round, homely, with all parts intact--- a loved infant's face.

After I was born, my primary face once had two black eyes and a broken nose from a fist fight in Bandini, East LA.

After I was born, my face changed every decade, and my original face disappeared. My Primary Face remained the same.

After I was born, I was blind and never saw my face, only felt it.

After I was born, my head's shadow disappeared at night.

After I was born, my bearded face appeared in a dusty mirror.

After I was reborn, I looked more at the faces of others.

After I was reborn, I recognized many subtle hidden faces, including my own.

After I was reborn, an Original Face appeared to me immediately, but I did not recognize it.

After I was reborn, I paused trying to answer Koan Riddles and laughed at all the clever answers.

Comments, Sources, Observations, Koans, Poems, Quips:

Original Face Koans: GB 23, ENT 2, WWSF 177, ENT 156, ENT 229, DDJ 19, DSE 22,

Refer to my Cloud Hands Blog Posts on the topic of Koans/Stories.

Subject Index to 1,975 Zen Buddhist Koans

Zen Buddhist Koans: Indexes, Bibliography, Commentary, Information

The Daodejing by Laozi

Pulling Onions Over 1,043 One-line Sayings, Quips, Maxims, Humor

Chinese Chan Buddhist and Taoist Stories and Koans

The Fireplace Records (Blog Version) By Michael P. Garofalo

The Fireplace Records (Text Version)

Sunday, April 26, 2026

Text Art: Exhibit 4

Islamic Calligraphy by Mohamed Zakariya

Hypergraphie Infinitesmil by Broutin

Osgard by Margaret Penny

Lettrisme by Lorsakoff

Genius Out of Time by Ibn Muqlah

Concrete Poetry and Text Art Directory and Guide

Exhibits at the Onion Garden

TeXTArt

Graphic Arts: Shape Poems, Concrete Poetry, Lettrisme

Tick-Tock Tractatus, Section 12.6

A Gardener's Sutra on Time

By mpgarofalo

The Tick-Tock Tractatus, Section 12.6

The Tick-Tock Tractatus

Speaking About Time: The Poetic Investigations

By Michael Peter Garofalo, mpgarofalo, .m.p.g.

Sections

1. Time: time-space, movement, measurement

2. Past: memories, habits, fixed, specific, tradition

3. Present: now, here-now, day, duration

4. Future: maybe, planned, anticipated, uncertain

5. Passing: change, cycles, aging, growth, death

6. Beginning: renewal, starting, enthusiasm

7. Psychology: learning, experience, knowing

8. Middle: in progress, half-way, steady, living

9. Language: poetry, philosophy, ordinary

10. Silence: inexpressive, nonsense, illogical

11. Mystical: numinous, profound, intense, insightful,

12. Beauty: art, crafts, music, reading/writing

13. Social: ethics, morality, economics, manners, value

14. Philosophy: ethics, history, analysis, arguments, logic

15. History: landmark events, books/printing, memory

16. Eternity: forever, infinite, unimaginable, death

Preface

Key to Books Cited

Bundled Up Quintains about Time

Additional Notes

12.6

Pulling Onions

By Michael P. Garofalo

Pulling Onions

Speaking of Time: The Poetic Investigations, Part 2
Another Crop of Gardening Thoughts
A Gardener's Sutra on Time, Part 2.1

Red Bluff, California
1998 - 2017
By: .m.p.g.
michael p garofalo

A Gardener's Sutra on Time
by mpgarofalo

A garden recreates itself daily; we seldom
step into the same garden thrice.

The present is made from the past.
Time creeps, walks, runs and flies---
it is all about moving things.
Chaos breaks its own rules to allow Order to play.

How can gardening be considered
a "leisure time" activity?
Always leave extra time for unraveling the hose.

Gardeners turn into the soil their lifetime.
Time may wait for no man,
but seems to muddle and poke
quite slowly for gardeners.

Springtime for birth, Summertime for growth;
and all Seasons for dying.
We don't erase the past, we just build more
and bigger blackboards.

Put the right plant in the right place at the right time in
     the right way - and you won't go wrong.
Winter does not turn into Summer; ash does not turn
     into firewood - on theÂ chopping block of time.
A garden flourishes in the mind's time of last season,
     next season, and now.
Gardening requires no commuting time.
In the right place at the right time,
     tomato worms on tomato vines.

The Onion Garden, a concrete poem by .m.p.g.

Your pocket knife will be its dullest at just the right time.
Gardening is the right sport for a lifetime of pleasures.
Gardening sometimes takes a few hours of a day,
but adds weeks of pleasure to your life.
The time you have wasted on your garden
is what makes it priceless.
One purpose of a garden is to stop time in one place.

Annuals disappear, shrubs perish, trees die, and
     gardeners are buried; death is theÂ flower of time.
In an instant there is nothing - Time produces Nature.
By the time you peel off five layers of reality,
     it's hard to recall the first.
It's a long time between my garden
     and the Pacific Ocean.
Time will tell, but we often fail to listen.

The "eternal truths" are sometimes clearly false.
Gardening teaches us to take our time, slow down,
     and wait in peace.
Gardeners learn to live in worm time,
     bee time, and seed time.
Time will not pass you, but it will follow
     very close behind you.
Preparation and follow up take up
     more time than doing the deed.

Springtime flows in our veins.
Silence - never misquoted, sometimes misunderstood,
     often meaningful.
Leave enough time for some pointless behavior
     to reveal your deeper desires.
The seed idea for "God" is springtime.
Things always go downhill, fall apart, wear out...
     the arrow of Time pierces everything.

Time prevents too much from happening at once.
A million years and a second have the same
     feeling for the dead gardener.
All metaphors aside - only living beings rise up in the Springtime;
     dead beings stay quite lie down dead.
Any gardener who is not using the scientific method
     will waste time and money.
Take the time to melt into the Details.

Time is rooted in Place.
Most of the time, we just borrow from the past.
Sometimes the present alters our interpretation of the past;
most often the past surrounds and infects the present.
Time is on your side when you are young.
Leisure can open a window to the breezes of insights,
and a clear view of the Trees of Time.

Harvesting Onions 2006
Red Bluff, California
.m.p.g.

We get things done when there is little time left.
Our cash limits and time constraints both prune our gardens.
The second hand of time ticks on---
measuring our past, time after time.
Beings are Becomings---for the time-being.

Perfection can be the opponent of betterment.
Without vagueness we are bored with literalness.
Borderline cases are where events become really interesting.
I may not be able to precisely define religious nonsense,
but I know it when I hear it.

A coastline may be impossible to measure,
     but is still beautiful.
You can’t slowly boil the frog unless
     it can’t jump out of the pot.
A “heap” of something desired becomes an issue
     when the price is discussed.
Gratefully, shit happens!
The ten thousand things are more enchanting
     than the Silent One.

Walking needs earth, space, and the walker.
Sometimes, just one 'thing' is critical
because twenty other 'things' are just so.
Gardening is a kind of deadheading---
keeping us from going to seed.
Don't interfere, be still, and listen to the litanies of bees.

Tooth and nail, and the stench of a dead animal on the wind.
When life gives you onions, it stinks.
A rake is spaces held together by steel.
In the student's mind there are few possibilities,
in the teacher's mind there are many;
but only time to realize very few.

Mother Nature is always pregnant.
Time creeps, walks, runs and flies -
it is all about moving things.
Dogmatists are less useful than dogs.
Take life with a grain of salt, and a icy margarita.
The best things in life are more expensive than you think.

Rather than "love mankind," I'd rather admire a few good people.
Some flourish when crowded together, others don't.
Garbage In, Compost Out.
It is more about You and Now, rather than Them and Back Then.

While gardening the borders between work
and play become blurred.
When gardening, look up more often.
Just the right words can be worth more
than a thousand pictures.
Death's door is always unlocked.
A flower needs roots; beauty a society of minds.

A callused palm and dirty fingernails precede a Green Thumb.
A working hypothesis is far better than a belief.
Only two percent of all insects are harmful.
Why are they all in my garden?

Create your own garden, the god's certainly won't.

{{{ Karen Garofalo, Red Bluff, CA, 1999-2016.
We purchased $300 to $400 every year
on trees and shrubs; and we planted them
mostly in January or February. We sold our
house and property to two working women
with four children. I hope these children had
wonderful memoriers of growing up in the
gardens and orchards that Karen and I made
before April of 2017 . }}}

The Spirit of Gardening

That something is eternal is unverifiable.

Most laws of Gardening are merely local ordinances.

Too save some time, don’t let them get a foot in the door.
Some slippery slopes are actually improvements or fun.
Butterflies and bees flapping their wings don’t actually
create hurricanes, but we are very thankful they facilitate
the emergence of fruits in the billions.
Without metaphors we can barely speak.

Just because you reject the big request, don’t be
     fooled into accepting the smaller request.
Finding a middle ground for agreement may
     be just half of a solution, and the wrong solution.
Sometimes the wisdom of the crowd is quite unwise and unfair.

Chaos breaks its own rules to allow Order to play.

Failures, disorder and death are the
     Grim Reaper of Entropy at work.
Somehow, someway, everything gets eaten up, someday.
The meaning is lost in the saying - a nature mystic's dilemma.
Vigorous gardening might help more than a psychiatrist's couch.
A gardener is no farmer, he is much too impractical.

No garden lasts for long - neither will you.

Shade, in the summer, is as precious as a glass of water.
A wise gardener knows when to stop.
Gardens are demanding pets.
Unclench your fist to give a hand.
The little choices day after day are the biggest issue.

Gardening is but one battle against Chaos.
When life gives you onions, you ain't making lemonade.
Many friendships are sustained by a mutual
hatred of another person or group.
Read until you go to seed.
What you see depends on when you look.

Beauty is the Mistress, the gardener her slave.

One's "true self" is changing and elusive.
A little of this and a little of that, and some exceptions -
these are the facts.
Does a plum tree with no fruit have Buddha Nature? Whack!

Pulling Onions by Mike Garofalo
Over 1,000 random quips, one-liners, aphroisms, sayings,
bullets, onions, and "insights" from an old gardener.

Speaking of Time: The Poetic Investigations, Part 2

The History of Gardening
A Timeline From Ancient Times to 2000

The Spirit of Gardening

Months and Seasons

The Green Way

Speaking of Time: The Poetic Investigations, Part 1

Saturday, April 25, 2026

Dào Dé Jing en Español

Tao Te Ching en Español

Dao De Jing (Tao Te Ching) in Spanish

Daodejing 81 Website

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Dao De Jing by Laozi
Concordance, Selected Translations, Bibliography, Commentaries

Compilation and Indexing by Michael P. Garofalo

For Each of the 81 Chapters:

25 English Translations
5 Spanish Translations
Chinese Characters
Pinyin & Wade-Giles
Concordance
Bibliography & Links
Directory
Commentary
Chapter Indexes

Daodejing 81 Website

Concordance to the Tao Te Ching

Daodejing 81 Website

English Language Versions of the Tao Te Ching - Translator's Index

Spanish Language Versions of the Dao De Jing

Chapter Index to the Tao Te Ching

Thematic Index to the Tao Te Ching

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Bibliography

An Old Philosopher's Notebooks

Cloud Hands Blog Posts About the Daodejing

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Tao Te Ching Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Tao Te ChingChapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Subject Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

Daodejing 81 Website

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 25 or more different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 or more Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.

Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.

An electronic Concordance for all 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching is provided.

Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, a Google Translate drop down menu, and other resources for that Chapter.

Chapter 7, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Concordance for the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Daodejing 81 Website

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Time, Poetry, Participating: The Tick-Tock Tractatus. By mpgarofalo.

The Tick-Tock Tractatus

Speaking About Time: The Poetic Investigations

By Michael Peter Garofalo, mpgarofalo, .m.p.g.

Sections

1. Time: time-space, movement, measurement

2. Past: memories, habits, fixed, specific, tradition

3. Present: now, here-now, day, duration

4. Future: maybe, planned, anticipated, uncertain

5. Passing: change, cycles, aging, growth, death

6. Beginning: renewal, starting, enthusiasm

7. Psychology: learning, experience, knowing

8. Middle: in progress, half-way, steady, living

9. Language: poetry, philosophy, ordinary

10. Silence: inexpressive, nonsense, illogical

11. Mystical: numinous, profound, intense, insightful,

12. Beauty: art, crafts, music, reading/writing

13. Social: ethics, morality, economics, manners, value

14. Philosophy: ethics, history, analysis, arguments, logic

15. History: landmark events, books/printing, memory

16. Eternity: forever, infinite, unimaginable, death

Preface

Key to Books Cited

Bundled Up Quintains about Time

Additional Notes

Friday, April 24, 2026

Getting the Life You Want

Happiness Activities

1. Expressing Gratitude
2. Cultivating Optimism
3. Avoiding Over-Thinking and Social Comparisons
4. Practicing Acts of Kindness
5. Nurturing Social Relationships
6. Developing Strategies for Coping
7. Learning to Forgive
8. Increasing Flow Expectations
9. Savoring Life's Joys
10. Committing to Your Goals
11. Practicing Spirituality
12. Taking Care of Your Body (Psychological Methods)
13. Taking Care of Your Body (Physical Activity)
14. Taking Care of Your Body (Acting Like a Happy Person)
15. The Hows Behind Sustainable Happiness: Positive Emotions,
Optimal Timing and Variety, Social Support, Motivation, Effort,
Commitment, and Habit.

The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want By Sonja Lyubomirsky. New York, Penguin Books, 2008. Index, extensive notes, appendix, 366 pages. ISBN: 978-1594201486. Ms. Lyubomirsky, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology at the University of California at Riverside, and a leader in the field of positive psychology.

Professor Lyubomirsky analyzes what determines happiness. Her research indicates that "happiness" is determined approximately 50% by our internal biological "Set Point", 10% by our circumstances in life, and 40% by our intentional activity. Her explanations and suggestions are clear, reasonable, and grounded in psychological research. Gaining effective use of our intentional activities is the focus of this book. "This much happiness - up to 40% - is within your power to change."

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Virtues and a Good Life

An Old Philosopher's Notebooks

Pleasure

Reading

Epicureanism