The Joy of Book Reading

In this Internet age, videos and news can be accessed instantly. Having a question? Just search it in Google. Such instant gratificaiton of curisority seems to make book obsolete. After all, there is Wikipedia where authorative and objective knowledge about any subject is available. There are answers.com and about.com where you can get in-depth answers to complext issues.

Nevertheless, I find reading books deeply satisfying. A book, particularly non-fiction book, is someone’s deep and systematic insight on an issue. Reading a book is getting free access to the fruits of hard labor. We are able to gain knowledge from someone else who has devoted his time and life energy to find answers. We are able to learn from others’ experience. Such experience cut aross thousands of years’ human history, moved across different contients, and happened in different cultures. Being able to access all of these in books greatly enrichs our knowledge and broadens our view.

Book reading is a meditation process itself. In this process, you are totally immerse in the world of that book. You are insulated from your environment, your concern, or your frustrations. You enter into a world where you feel enriched, uplifted and empowered. The new knowledge gives you a sense of empowerment. Another person’s thoughts are now passed to your brain, and his experience becomes yous.

The magic of books will never go away, no matter how fast the Internet develops. Books deliver knowledge in a concentrate dose, comparing to the shallow skimming in news or magazine articles. Reading a book makes us calm, focused and centered. Why not reading one book a day? Why not spending at least one hour a day on reading? This time will be well spent and will have high payoff.