A book is a significant thing in a person's life.

What we strive for determines all our actions and influences work, hobbies, relationships with people and our whole approach to life. This desire pervades everything we do. It fills our life with meaning and helps us move on when we face difficulties.

If you're confused and can't figure out what you really want out of life, ask yourself:

What do I want to achieve?
What inspires me?
What makes me get up in the morning?
What would I like to see more in my life?
What would I like to see less of in my life?

The answers to these questions will help you understand what matters most to you. Let them be the guiding light on your path. Respond to them again from time to time to see if anything has changed.

2. Time

Everyone has jobs and responsibilities. But whether we have enough time or not, often depends on the choice we have made. After all, every time we say “yes” to one thing, we actually refuse something else. Unfortunately, we say yes too often.

Time is a limited resource. And while we can't get back the time we've already spent, we can more consciously choose what to spend it on in the future.

Do not try to occupy every free minute with something. Make time for the activities and people that really matter to you.

Of course, it's not always that easy. Someone works at several jobs, someone raises children or cares for sick relatives. In such situations, it is especially difficult to find free time. Even if we manage to snatch a minute, we feel guilty about wasting this time on ourselves. In addition, often there is simply no energy left, so in our free time we decide to sleep or watch TV.

In this case, you need to try to find at least a little time for yourself and yours. Let it be just half an hour or even five minutes a day.

You can still try to somehow change the current situation. For example, look for an opportunity to work closer to home, reconsider your approach to finances, seek help from loved ones or specialists.

3. Health

We often do not think about our health until some problems appear. We neglect our workouts and then wonder why we have such a hard time climbing stairs. We eat whatever, and then we wonder where the extra weight came from. We don’t care about our mental health, and then we can’t understand why we are stressed all the time.

Remember the following:

We are not designed to sit at the computer all day, so try to move more. Combine any kind of activity - walking, exercising in the gym, yoga.
can be simple and enjoyable. Eat more vegetables and fruits, and take meat as a side dish. Don't force yourself to give up a product completely. Food should bring pleasure, not be a punishment.
Be kind to yourself and be sure to relax. Movement, proper nutrition and rest will help you feel better and experience less stress.

4. Relationships

We are obsessed with being busy all the time, which is why many people don’t have time for relationships. Maybe it's time to slow down a bit and rethink your approach to life.

After all, it is friends, family and close people who make our life rich and fulfilling. Don't forget about it. Try to find time to strengthen relationships with loved ones and pay more attention to them.

From birth, we are surrounded by all kinds of objects created by other people, which perform the most important functions in our lives. But do we think about what impact they really have on us, and how we can use them for our development consciously?

For the first time I thought about my relationship with the world of things while cleaning the house using the konmari method. The two main conclusions that I made as a result of it shocked me a little. First, I realized that in order to live, I actually need a lot less things than I usually have in my property. And secondly, with sadness, I realized that most of the objects that usually surround me do not give me joy. Choosing these or those things, I always focused only on their purely utilitarian function: there is something to wear, shoes, something to eat from, and great! And the cheaper this "equipment" will cost me, the better.

Needless to say, I didn’t particularly appreciate what I had: items quickly went out of order for me, I could easily lose something, I didn’t like to take care of things. Neglecting the physical world, I focused all my attention on subtle matters, usually more engaged in my self-development than the pursuit of material wealth.

Thus, I divided the world into spiritual and material, internal and external, important and insignificant. And if I was ever faced with a choice between them, I invariably chose the first.

I preferred to get a book as a gift rather than a souvenir, instead of a disco, I was more willing to go to the next session of something like that, I spent extra money more often on training than on clothes and shoes ... Most of my goals have always been in the field of self-development, and it was by their achievement that I measured my success, completely losing sight of the fact that without gaining inner integrity at all levels, it is hardly possible in full.

My attitude to things began to change after I deeply perceived Marie Kondo's, if largely Shinto, view of their true nature, which she described in her book Magical Cleaning. In her opinion, all the objects that surround us are alive in some way and they exist for the sole purpose of serving and bringing us joy. Starting to perceive them in this way, gradually I finally had a desire to give them due attention. It became interesting for me to understand how this or that object ended up in my property, what its purpose is for me, and also whether it helps me become better, happier. It turned out that by analyzing this, one can also move forward quite a bit in the matter of self-knowledge. After all, each object is able to tell a lot about its owner, you just have to take it in your hands and listen to the beat of your heart!

Thus, I realized, for example, that most of the things in my house do not correspond to my age, or my worldview, and even more so my desires. Not paying due attention to the world of things, out of habit I bought basically the same thing as 20 years ago, as if there had not been in my life this entire period of growing up, becoming, and developing. At least, the things in my possession did not express this in any way. As a result, by the end of the cleaning, I said goodbye to a lot of items whose purpose was fulfilled for me a long time ago, and began to be more conscious in acquiring new things. So, I began to discover new brands of clothes and shoes that more suited my style and mood, as well as lingerie and homewear stores that corresponded to the changed attitude towards myself. I will not hide, even in them it is still difficult for me not to be guided in my choice mainly by the price of this or that product. But by reminding myself every time that I am not just buying a thing, but, in fact, thanks to this I am learning to better understand myself, my desires, my taste, my priorities, I manage to slowly change my usual strategies.

Sometimes I go to very expensive stores - porcelain, furs, jewelry, branded clothing and listen to my feelings. At these moments, many conflicting beliefs rise in me, from the children's series “I don’t deserve to have anything like this” - “The world should give me all this”, until I manage to get somewhere on the thin line between them called adulthood. Then I approach the shop windows with trepidation, look at or touch truly valuable, exclusive things, admiring their beauty and quality, soberly assessing how much I really need and desire them.

After all, if we regard all this luxury not as an obligatory attribute of prestige, a certain status, a way to fill internal voids or compensate for something not received in another way, but consider it as the result of someone's skill, talent, and even love for one's work expressed in a material form, to people, to life in general, then things really seem to take on a soul, and from the mere idea of their life in their environment, goosebumps run through the skin, so powerful vibrations from them begin to be felt. The same as when looking at the original of a favorite painting or when entering a beautiful cathedral. How much more powerful and brighter life is experienced in these moments, how much more attentive and clear the consciousness becomes, how much deeper and stronger the connection with one’s own beautiful essence in all respects is felt! Only for the sake of this it is worth striving to be able to possess expensive high-quality things, or rather, to become such a person whose inner wealth will naturally be embodied in beautiful objects of the environment.

Another significant change in my attitude to the world of things concerns the conscious perception of various objects on a symbolic level. Although I have used them intuitively before as a way to express certain changes that have taken place inside me outside. Sometimes the images that came to me in some kind of directed meditation then materialized by themselves in my real life, reminding me of this or that transformation, consolidating it or indicating that the desired change had really happened. So, once, while working to reveal my femininity, an image of a rather impartial vase came to me - with a broken neck, scratched and, frankly, unsightly. What was my surprise when, after a while, I “accidentally” fashioned exactly the same vase at my first master class in pottery, only it looked much more elegant and beautiful. I still keep it as a symbol of my reborn femininity, “sculpted” with my own hands.

In general, from my own experience I want to say that it is very useful to study the personal symbols of certain desired states or achievements, because such things can become a good magnet for attracting them into your life. For example, back in the early 00s, I thought about what kind of object symbolizes wealth for me and realized that these were not gold bars and suitcases of foreign banknotes at all, but ... a bank card, which was not yet in wide circulation at that time, and I never had her. I remember I asked for an expired card from one of my friends and put it in my wallet. I don’t know if it was a coincidence or a pattern, but soon after that I inherited an apartment, which I sold and for some time lived on this in a big way.

A little later, when I decided to become a journalist, having neither special education nor work experience for this, the first thing I did, on some kind of intuition, went to a stationery store and bought ... a plastic suitcase and an organizer for writing accessories, symbolizing for me journalistic work. As a result, I never used either subject for its intended purpose, but very soon received my first order for an article, and then for a book.

By the way, the same way I got married for the first time. As soon as I met my future husband, I immediately wanted to buy myself the simplest veil, as a symbol of the long-awaited wedding with my loved one. Now it’s funny for me to remember how in the evenings I tried it on alone with me, but still I can’t help but pay tribute to my innate ability to get what I want with the help of things that symbolize it.

However, the relationship in this action can also be the opposite: reaching one or another desired state or position, we very easily appear (literally, appear) things that can correspond to it. So, I used to think that if I fully accepted and loved myself, I would definitely have a natural fur coat and diamond jewelry. But, of course, the acquisition of these things has always seemed to me something unattainable, as well as sincere self-love. But, oddly enough, as soon as I worked out the issue of self-acceptance to a sufficient extent, I miraculously got both a fur coat and diamonds, which I got almost for free. These are the cunning interconnections of internal and external, spiritual and material, imaginary and manifested, I discovered in my life.

Of course, having been carried away by various spiritual teachings for many years, I have often thought about such ideas that are often found in them, such as “the external is equal to the internal”, “all things in the world are interconnected”, “the cognizer and the cognizable are one”, but I fully felt them meaning only when it has accepted the outer world of material objects as a natural addition and continuation of its inner world. Thanks to this, changes took place in my life that, perhaps, would have been impossible for me otherwise. For example,

having started to better listen to my desire to possess this or that thing, it became easier for me to make decisions in other areas of life: relationships, work, travel. It was as if I felt inside myself a certain indicator - mine / not mine, like / dislike, useful / useless, which I try to focus on now always and in everything.
by turning more of my attention to the external world of things, it became easier for me to be in the moment here and now. Every time I touch this or that object, I seem to be grounded thanks to it, completely immersing myself in the physical sensations that it causes in me.
having surrounded myself with pleasing things, I began to perceive my own life even more positively, to enjoy its simple little things more often, such as a cup of delicious herbal tea, the touch of a warm bathrobe after a shower, or the fluttering of a candle flame at dinner with a person dear to me, which undoubtedly enriches it and makes even brighter and richer.
as I begin to acquire things that correspond to my new self-perception, I become more and more firmly established in it. Self-love, confidence, inner strength, joy - all these inner states now find their material confirmations for me, which, moreover, become reliable anchors for the future for them.
having ceased to separate myself from the outside world, I began to receive more various material benefits from it, the necessary funds for which began to come to me much easier. Money in general has acquired a completely new meaning for me: now I perceive it as a great tool for creating a joyful conscious life, and they reciprocate me!

If you're confused and can't figure out what you really want out of life, ask yourself:

What do I want to achieve?
What inspires me?
What makes me get up in the morning?
What would I like to see more in my life?
What would I like to see less of in my life?

The answers to these questions will help you understand what matters most to you. Let them be the guiding light on your path. Respond to them again from time to time to see if anything has changed.

2. Time

Time is a limited resource. And while we can't get back the time we've already spent, we can more consciously choose what to spend it on in the future.

Do not try to occupy every free minute with something. Make time for the activities and people that really matter to you.

In this case, you need to try to find at least a little time for yourself and yours. Let it be just half an hour or even five minutes a day.

You can still try to somehow change the current situation. For example, look for an opportunity to work closer to home, reconsider your approach to finances, seek help from loved ones or specialists.

3. Health

Remember the following:

We are not designed to sit at the computer all day, so try to move more. Combine any kind of activity - walking, exercising in the gym, yoga.
can be simple and enjoyable. Eat more vegetables and fruits, and take meat as a side dish. Don't force yourself to give up a product completely. Food should bring pleasure, not be a punishment.
Be kind to yourself and be sure to relax. Movement, proper nutrition and rest will help you feel better and experience less stress.

4. Relationships

We are obsessed with being busy all the time, which is why many people don’t have time for relationships. Maybe it's time to slow down a bit and rethink your approach to life.

These shelves are carefully monitored, they are dusted daily, and once a week a general cleaning is carried out throughout the entire room. Perhaps this is all that happens in modern libraries. Books have already forgotten about the touch of the readers' hands, knights and princesses are bored between the lines, dragons roar in annoyance, because they have no one else to tell their stories. A book is not just a stack of printed pages, but a whole universe that wants to be known.

Meaning of the word

The lexical meaning of the word "book" is defined differently in dictionaries, but its basic meaning does not change from this. For greater clarity, it is worth giving a few popular values (see table).

	What dictionary defines it?	Definition
	Dictionary of Efremova	A book is a printed publication that consists of pages bound together that contain a significant amount of information.
	Ozhegov's dictionary	Literary work that consists of many chapters
	encyclopedic Dictionary	A non-periodical publication that consists of bound sheets of printed matter exceeding 48 pages
	business vocabulary	The meaning of the word "book" in the business dictionary is defined as a list of accounting registers
	Dictionary of symbolism	Here the book is defined as a symbol of the universe, which carries wisdom and revelation.
	Dictionary Ushakov	A printed work or manuscript with text or drawings, the pages of which are connected
	Dictionary Dahl	Pages of paper bound in one binding should be called a book.

As can be seen from the material presented in the table, a book is a piece of paper containing printed, written or drawn information that is entertaining, informational or otherwise.

What is a book?

Generally, a book is considered a hardcover printed matter that consists of more than 50 pages. However, a book can also be called works of science or literature, which are intended for printing, as separate publications.

Particular attention should be paid to children's periodicals. They differ in an unconventional form, in addition, they can be represented by separate cards or sheets that are brought together using an external element (box, spring, etc.).

Another type of book can be called an e-book. In the last ten years, it has gained unprecedented popularity. Electronic versions of printed publications are easy to use. They can be read from a computer screen, phone or special devices. Do not lag behind electronic publications and audiobooks. Progress has reached the point that books can now not only be read, but also listened to.

What does it consist of

If we talk about the classic variation of an ordinary paper book, then its structure changes depending on the purpose, however, each copy consists of several mandatory parts:

The "face", or dust jacket, is the paper cover that is applied to the binding.
Binding - a "lid" made of hard material (usually cardboard) into which book sheets are glued.
The cover is usually a soft or semi-hard page of a book that contains the title of the work and its author.
Endpaper - sheets of paper that are located between the binding and the main text block.
The spine is the place where the pages of a book are hemmed.
Title page - it contains the title of the book and the name of the author.
Abstract - a brief description of the content of the book.
Introduction.
Book block.
Glossary - subject index.
Content and literature.

Books in ancient times

If you look at history, you can see that books had many different formats before they became what they are now. The most ancient way of transferring knowledge is oral speech. It wasn't until ancient civilizations invented writing that people began looking for materials to write on:

Tablets. Convenient and reliable writing medium. As a rule, clay or wax tablets were used. Moreover, the clay ones consisted entirely of this material, and the wax ones were wooden planks that were covered with a layer of wax.
Scrolls. They were first invented in ancient Egypt (2400 BC). Then all the records were made on sheets of papyrus, and in order to make them more convenient to store, they were glued together and formed scrolls. Later, a similar method of storing information spread to the Roman and Hellenic kingdoms.
Codes. In the 5th century, it was generally accepted that book, scroll, and codex were not different names for the same element. A book is a single scroll of information, while a codex is a collection of books (i.e. scrolls). In the modern sense, the codex is the prototype of the first book.

A bit from the Middle Ages

Time passed and the books improved. With the help of ink and a reed pen, the first handwritten books were created in the scriptoriums. First, the parchment was drawn with a vulture so that the lines were even, and then the letters were applied. The first books were written exclusively in black ink. A little later, pictures began to appear in them, and the capital letter of each paragraph was highlighted in red.

Parchment was very expensive, so it was often reused. The inscriptions were erased with special solutions, the parchment was dried and put back into use. In the period of the early Middle Ages, thus, many books from the time of Antiquity were destroyed. But what is interesting, when the Middle Ages came to an end, the books that were written by churchmen were destroyed and works of ancient literature were copied over them.

Later, woodcut printing was invented, that is, a plate with letters was cut out of wood, dipped in ink and several book pages could be copied. Everything that was related to books and was created in the world before December 31, 1500, is commonly called incunabula, that is, a cradle.

From century to century

The value of the book in human development is hard to miss. And the background to the creation of books was not in vain. From century to century, from era to era, people tried to pass on information to future generations. It was for this that writing was invented, parchment, papyrus, ink and, ultimately, printing were invented.

Each generation brought something new to the development of the book craft. Someone passed on knowledge, and someone wrote it down. And a modern person must understand: a book is not pages with letters, but an achievement of centuries-old development. This is a thing that connects generations and makes a person think, teaches him and gives advice.

Children's books

For the first time the book appears in a person's life in deep childhood. I wonder what is the meaning of books for children?

Children's journalism is considered an independent area of literary creativity. It often happens that the books read to a child in early childhood determine his views and value system for life. Books "come from childhood" form the character, educate and educate the child. In addition, the love of reading is a healthy habit that needs to be instilled as early as possible.

Children's literature helps to understand the world. There is always a lot to think about in a book. In addition, they develop speech and creative inclinations. In short, the book is an indispensable attribute of a full and comprehensive development.

Not all children

And it is useful not only in childhood. The value of a book in a person's life does not diminish, even when he grows up, and you can talk about the benefits of books forever. The main priorities that the book world offers to the consumer can be expressed in the following theses:

Books directly affect the enrichment of speech and vocabulary.
Learn to think in pictures.
They give answers to questions.
Develop thinking.
Provide a wide range of information.
They learn to empathize with others, to understand what a person who is in a certain situation feels.
Forced to think about the problems of ethics and morality.
They help to understand that one question can have several correct answers.
Stories about other people make the reader more tolerant of their surroundings.
Reading has been scientifically proven to relieve depression.
And books significantly enrich the cultural environment of the planet, allowing people from other countries to learn about each other.

From writer to reader

The famous English writer Neil Gaiman once answered the question of what the meaning of the book is. He said that reading fiction is the most important thing in life, which performs two important functions.

First, it is addictive. Find out what happens next, the need to turn the page, the desire to read everything to the end. Drink history to the last drop, the last word. Even if it will be hard, the thirst for knowledge will persistently itch until it can be quenched. Thanks to this addiction, a person learns many new words, begins to look at the world differently and even thinks a little differently.

Second, reading generates empathy. When a person watches TV, he simply watches the characters from the side, but when he reads, he can be "in the shoes" of the main character. Live his story, see the world through his eyes, understand how he feels.

This is the meaning of the modern book - the opportunity to expand your horizon and become a little better.

Each book is an indispensable thing in a person's life. And few people know that many interesting facts and stories are associated with them:

Today, the total number of books is about 130 million copies.
The most non-standard book in the world is The Divine Comedy, which was written by G. Chelani on a sheet of 80x60 centimeters. The work consisted of 14 thousand verses, which could be easily read, but if you look at this work from afar, you could see a map of Italy.
The largest fee in the history of literature was received by the poet Oppian. The Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius ordered a poem about fishing and hunting from him and paid for each line with a gold coin. As a result, the author received 20,000 coins of pure gold.
The Codex Leicester (Leonardo da Vinci) is considered one of the most expensive books in the world. The treatise describes the knowledge of the famous scientific thinker about the earth, water and celestial bodies. The text is printed in mirror type, and the cost of the original copy is $24 million.
Most read books in the world: The Bible (1st), Mao Zedong quotes (2nd) and The Lord of the Rings (3rd).

Final word

There are always many stories associated with books. There are specimens that are unique in their kind, but unknown. There are books whose value can be compared with the annual GDP of some countries. And there are quite ordinary specimens that peacefully stand on the shelves. And do not underestimate the value of the book: a person who loves to read is easy to recognize in the crowd. His speech is always pleasant and polite, he can support any conversation, is loyal to others and knows for sure that a bright future awaits him.

The lexical meaning (book) means that the sheets of information are connected by one binding. But as practice shows, something unknown is hidden behind each such binding. A world that can connect the reader to the past or send them into the future. A universe where you can live hundreds of lives and thousands of destinies. And even though modern libraries are already empty, this does not mean at all that mankind has stopped reading. Yes, now everyone can find another, more exciting activity. But if no one read books, there would be no need to answer the question: what is a book and what is its role in human life?

How often in our lives have we been able to understand another person and then forgive them? Probably a lot of times. And here it’s not about the comedic character of a security guard from a popular show. The ability to forgive is one of the main components of the human psyche. First of all, you need to learn to forgive yourself. Since it can be very difficult to understand and forgive other people, having learned to forgive and criticize ourselves less, we will be able to understand and forgive others in the future. People who don't make mistakes just don't exist. We all live in this world to learn, but there is no learning without mistakes. The main thing is that you don't need to focus on it. Mistakes made are past mistakes that cannot be changed. So why think about what you can't fix? You must try to understand the other person. Why did he make an irreparable mistake. Get into his position. Ask yourself: “What would I do in this case?”. Perhaps understanding his act will help to forgive him faster.

2. Respect the choice of a loved one

Sometimes it hurts to watch how your loved ones are unhappy. Immediately there is a desire to help, to give practical, in your opinion, advice. And in response - a wall of silence. And this makes it even worse for you, because no one pays attention to your sincere desire to help. However, this is not necessary. You can not amuse your vanity, and teach others how to live. Even if you are one hundred percent right, this is just your opinion and understanding of life. Every person has the right to live the way he wants. And if he chose to live the way he lives, you must respect this choice.

3. Admit your guilt

To admit one's guilt is not just to say something to a loved one to make him shine with joy. Verbal confessions of one's guilt alone are not enough to correct one's mistake. In order for there to be no difficulties in the future in human relations, analyzing one's own guilt and expressing it in front of the person to whom you did bad is not enough. Only great aspirations towards better mutual understanding and friendliness, awareness of the mistake made and efforts not to make it again in the future, can be fully considered an admission of guilt.

4. Do not develop a conflict because every quarrel alienates people from each other

If you have a quarrel with your loved one, you need to avoid it, because every quarrel only alienates people from each other. There are several basic rules, adhering to which, you can not develop brewing conflicts:

First you just need to cool down. It is advisable to simply leave the room under any pretext, and be in solitude. Recall your wonderful vacation in Odessa. If this is any problem that needs to be solved, put it off until the next day. Having rested and calmed down with a clearer mind, you can return to solving the problem.
Under no circumstances should you be offended and God forbid to go to abuse. This will not solve the problem, but only aggravate the situation.

You should never allow other people to solve internal problems with a loved one. And most importantly, violence must be avoided.

5. Do not insult a loved one

As mentioned above, in no case should you offend a loved one. After all, insult destroys respect. Without respect, love turns into an ordinary physical desire. And a loved one ceases to be a loved one, turning simply into a favorite toy, an object of physical satisfaction.