Reading as spiritual therapy and journey of self-discovery

Women face increasing challenges in today’s ever-changing society, so it is important to ask how they can live independent, happy lives.  Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited’s SHKP Reading Club staged Women’s Well-being Reading Seminar series to coincide with International Women’s Day in March, with Su Hei and Janet Lau as guest speakers.  Both talked about reading and personal experience; exploring diverse topics such as the relationship between reading and women, female independence, self-expression and the joy of attaining inner peace.

Su Hei is a noted writer and therapist who helps readers solve different problems in life with her writing and personal experience.  Her Reading．Tranquility．Self-cultivation seminar explained that only tranquility can bolster the spirit in the face of complex reality and anxiety in a fast-paced society, and that reading is a way to relax.  She also described how the works of Haruki Murakami, Shakespeare, Nietzsche, Yukio Mishima and Cecilia Hsiu Ya Chang played an influential role in her growth and writing career.  She additionally demonstrated sound therapy to calm and sooth the minds of the audience.

Janet Lau was one of the first mindfulness yoga teachers, and she explained in her Reading Your Body, Mind and Soul seminar that city dwellers often lack self-awareness and so have difficulty overcoming anger to the point where serenity is out of reach.  She believes in mindfulness yoga as a way of helping people find tranquility and their true desires through movement and breathing.  She recommended several worthwhile books to the audience, including Tuesdays with Morrie that made her contemplate life and its meaning and develop a habit of reading.  Another was Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames, which helped her find her sources of anger and control happiness on a higher plane.  She believes that reading and yoga are complementary and enable women to live happily.

The SHKP Reading Club will continue presenting seminars in April and May with guests including Spencer Chou, the founder of Taipei Boven Magazine Library, and Craig Au-Yeung Ying Chai, the curator of Taste Library.  It will additionally stage a series of activities in celebration of World Book Day.  Anyone who would like to join for free membership can go towww.shkpreadingclub.com or check the latest information on the Club’s Facebook page.