Are your children jumpy, restless, and bored? Are you? Containment is challenging for everyone, especially kids. Calm is hard to find. So, I offer you “Monkey King,” a story that, in wild leaps of imagination, illuminates the perils of hyperactivity and the rewards of meditation—and storytelling, too.
In this beloved ancient Chinese myth, a maddening monkey causes so much trouble in Heaven and on Earth, that the goddesses and gods try to transform him into some other—any other—form. But even fifty days in an alchemical oven that burns at white-hot heat cannot do the trick!
The tale of Monkey King makes a striking connection, too, between storytelling and meditation, with its peachy rewards. My hope is that all of us, children and adults alike, will be inspired by Monkey to watch our own hearts and minds at play, and to practice meditation alone or together, “for a while each day, at least.”
Years ago, by good fortune, I belonged to a meditation group led by Jack Kornfield. At first, I suffered from ‘Monkey Mind’—feeling jumpy, restless, and bored! A circle of friends and Jack’s serene wisdom and humor helped me to open, finally. From that one time—and then more often—a deep calm would arise, a calm that I never knew existed. Now, in this ragged time, every day that I meditate is a better day. I hope the same for you!
Eric Wu of Chinatown Alleyway Tours, wrote, “Oh, the story of Monkey King is so wonderfully told! This tale is very fun for kids because they relate to Monkey King—always restless, jumpy, and bored! A good story takes so much heart and soul and work to put together, so I’m very grateful you shared this!”
Please enjoy more stories on my six audio storybooks of world wonder tales, all with Sara’s music:
- The Girl Who Said No!
- Cloud Spinner and The Hungry Serpent
- The Woman Whose Eyes Could Fly
- SparkCatchers
- Heaven’s A Garden In the Heart
All are available for download at Amazon.
And please enjoy reading the story of “Monkey King” in my new illustrated storybook, Spider Grandmother’s Web of Wonders. A delight for all ages, it’s perfect for children, parents, grandparents, gardeners, and teachers to read alone or read aloud. And it’s available everywhere, online and in bookstores.
#heaven #audiobooks #meditation #storytelling
And here’s something extra from Matt Beagle at Audible.com: “We asked Beatrice to record stories told live for our Audible project, Story Party. With over eight hours of stories to choose from, we start the collection with one by Beatrice since she has the perfect voice and performance style to help one get lost in the stories.”
