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Recommended Reading "Playing Ball on Running Water"
"Playing Ball on Running Water" by David K. Reynolds is a book that advocates conscious living. Reynolds takes the tradition of Morita psychotherapy and adapts it to Western life. Japanese psychiatrist Shoma Morita developed Morita psychotherapy in the early part of the twentieth century. He was chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Jikei University School of Medicine and was influenced by the psychological principles of Zen Buddhism. His method was initially developed as a treatment for a type of “anxiety neurosis” called “shinkeishitsu.” In the latter part of this century the applications of Morita therapy have broadened, both in Japan and North America. The fundamental tenant of Morita therapy is to live life by engaging it with an awareness of your naturally fluid emotional state, acceptance, as opposed to fear, of that fluidity and a reality-focused vision of the self in the context of society. Reynolds's book places its emphasis on learning to develop an acceptance of the current state of being, as opposed to directly trying to manipulate it, as is a more common approach in therapies that involve cognitive restructuring. Many readers familiar with Dialectical Behavioral Therapy will certainly notice the parallels between Morita therapy and concepts such as “Wise Mind”, “Emotional Mind” and “Mindfulness.” As well, Radical Behaviorists will notice parallels between this and Steve Hayes’s work on “acceptance.” Brian M. Pilgrim, Ph.D. NMVAHCS
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FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Brian Pilgrim,
Ph.D.
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