These thirty-four powerful essays, based on Taoist and Buddhist thought, constitute a guide to what the author calls “non-volitional living”—the ancient understanding that our efforts to grasp our true nature are futile. Wei Wu Wei explains these venerable spiritual traditions in the context of modern experience, using wit and considerable precision to convey their profound insight into the very nature of existence.

Wei Wu Wei’s unique and fresh interpretation of the ancient teachings opens the reader’s eyes: “Why are you unhappy? Because 99.9 percent of everything you think, and of everything you do, is for yourself—and there isn’t one.” This powerful book rewards by exposing illusions and takes the reader beyond logic to the inexpressible truth of existence.

In poetry, dialogs, epigrams, and essays, Wei Wu Wei addresses our illusions concerning the mind, the self, logic, time, space, and causation. His substantive interpretation of The Heart Sutra—the epitome of Buddhist teachings—conveys the inexpressible truth of existence.