Zen Birding

Although this book will appeal most to directly to birdwatchers (birders), the reader interested in contemplative practice will also find some gems here. I liked Chinese proverb that a bird does not sing because it has an answer but because it has a song to sing. It is also intriguing to think that birds never run out of air to fly in! Seven skills of birding are described, including looking, listening and being in the present. And is not recommended to go birding with a monkey mind, but rather to use the practice as a path to spiritual awareness, a reminder to appreciate place and the fleeting moment. The book also reminds us of our connectedness with nature and the quiet moments that I myself have experienced when birdwatching many years ago. The fleeting moment also signifies transience, and I read that half the birds die every year.