The Zen of Hollywood: Using the Ancient Wisdom in Modern Movies to Create a Life Worthy of the Big Screen. Authentic Living.

Irrespective of our individual life goals, we all just want to be happy. But how can we get there? Fortunately, life contains inherent intelligence designed to guide us to our very dreams. This intelligence has been expressed by the world's wisdom traditions as a series of truths which David calls "universal life principles." He has assembled what he considers to be the most important life principles—in a series of books called A Manual for Life—which serve as a foundation for the life of greater meaning, joy, and happiness which we all desire and deserve. Truth can be found anywhere, including Hollywood. What makes some of the films out of Hollywood so magical is that they contain these fundamental life principles. We are basically seeing the truth of ourselves on the big screen being reflected back to us, and then we become inspired—sometimes enough to change our lives for the better. Drawing on his background in psychology and spirituality, David analyzes some of Hollywood's most beloved and popular films, extracting the wisdom contained within as it applies to these critical life principles, and explaining it all in an easy-to-understand manner. He then gives exercises so that we can internalize these truths, put them into practice, and make real strides in improving our lives. In this first book titled Authentic Living, David dives into the excellent films The Truman Show (1998) and Troy (2004) to expound upon the wisdom they contain regarding the most important quality we can ever inhabit: authenticity. There is no more important endeavor than discovering and living from our true identity because once we do, everything else in our lives falls into place. David illustrates how to do exactly that through his analysis of, first, The Truman Show—a film which focuses on breaking free from the fearful beliefs and social conditioning we all have been subjected to—and, second, Troy—a film that highlights our self-concept called the ego as well as its selfish and destructive tendencies that can result when we identify with it. Life is ultimately about learning, growing, and evolving. Why not do it in a fun, entertaining, and inspiring way?