Reading Archives (Author)

Conscious Simplicity

Duane Elgin

Here are three major ways that I see the idea of simplicity presented in today’s popular media: 1) Crude or Regressive Simplicity: The mainstream media often shows simplicity as a path o...

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41K reads, 28 comments

Make Death Your Ally

Duane Elgin

Death is an important ally for appreciating life. I am not referring to a morbid preoccupation with death. Rather, I mean the felt awareness of our finitude as physical beings -- an honest recognition...

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47K reads, 24 comments

The Nature of Knowing That We Know

Duane Elgin

  The word "consciousness" literally means "that with which we know." It has also been termed the "knowing faculty". To live more consciously means to be more consc...

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14K reads, 7 comments

Voluntary Simplicity

Duane Elgin

There is no special virtue to the phrase "voluntary simplicity"--it is merely a label and a somewhat awkward label at that. Still, it does acknowledge explicitly that simpler living integrates both i...

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5K reads, 6 comments