Thich Nhat Hanh "Living Without Stress or Fear": A CD Audiobook Review

Accessibility (5 out of 5)

Thich Nhat Hanh “Living Without Stress or Fear” is a CD set that is accessible for people of all spiritualities and intellectual abilities. Listening to the audiobook in the car, while working, or just relaxing at home is a great way for even the most novice spiritual practitioner to quickly learn a few concepts that can be used. Hanh has a soothing voice that also makes his CDs great to use during stressful driving situations. He talks about the concepts of meditation, living in the moment, and a Higher Power (or God) in ways that even non-religious people or members of non-Buddhist faiths can understand, accept, and apply.

Information (5 out of 5)

Those who want a lot of information on what exactly Zen Buddhism entails should also be pleased with the Thich Nhat Hanh “Living Without Stress or Fear” audiobook. Hanh, who lives as a monk in a southern France monastery, explains how even walking can be meditation. However, people not interested in meditation or Buddhism will still get information that they can apply to their daily lives. Hanh talks about negative and positive “seeds” of emotion in “Living Without Stress or Fear.” People of all faiths can ease their suffering by right action, right speech, and right thought. The information Hanh gives in this CD set can really help people transform stress, fear, and other emotions that create painful feelings.

Value (4 out of 5)

One drawback of the Thich Nhat Hanh “Living Without Stress or Fear” CD set is that it was released in 2009 and thus is still relatively high-priced compared to some of his past audio products or CDs from some other spiritual guides. However, for those who can spend the money, the August 2009 Amazon.com list price of about $44 or the retail price of nearly $70 is well-worth the money. Hanh goes into details about how to do a variety of meditations in addition to his spiritual talks, and this makes it a great addition to a personal spiritual library. As the CD ages on the shelf, it is likely to decline in list price and also become available at many public libraries. The set can also be downloaded digitally for about $50 as of August 2009. Considering there are well over six hours of potentially life-changing material, all the recent list prices really seem worth it for those interested and able to make the modest cash investment.

Product Information

Author/narrator: Thich Nhat Hanh

Full title: “Living Without Stress or Fear: Essential Teachings on the True Source of Happiness”

Format: 6 audio CDs

Time length: 6 hours and 45 minutes

Publisher: Sounds True

List price: $69.95 for CD set, $49.95 digital download (as of August 2009)

Amazon price: $44.07 (as of August 2009)

ISBN: 978-1-59179-725-8

Publication Date: May 2009