In Pocket Peace, Allan Lokos, founder and guiding teacher of the Community Meditation Center located on New York City’s upper west side, offers some practical advice for those of us who are seeking to create more balance in our lives.
It’s no newsflash that living in modern times can be a challenge to the development of our spiritual selves. The truth of the matter, however, is that there have always been daunting challenges to developing a strong spiritual practice. Early Buddhists recognized this by creating the “Paramis,” or “Perfection Practices.” In this book, Lokos re-investigates the Buddhist “Paramis” and builds on them by offering effective “pocket practices” that we can use to better ourselves and have a greater understanding of the world around us.
I began reading this book during a transitional moment in my life and found it to be a welcome source of wisdom and re-assurance. When the book arrived in the mail, I was in the process of moving into a different apartment, had just gone through a difficult break-up, and was transitioning from seven months of joblessness into a full-time kitchen job. I found Lokos’ third chapter, entitled, “Relinquishing” to be timely medicine as I began a new life in a new home.
