Simple Living: Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich

Acclaimed author and speaker Duane Elgin helps people discover “a way of life that is outwardly simple, inwardly rich.” That’s right — Elgin thinks we can enjoy life more if we have less, want less and consume less.

Elgin distinguishes between “ascetic simplicity” — ritualistic deprivation — and “aesthetic simplicity” —a celebration of simple pleasures. He advocates a new aesthetic that exalts the humble: smaller houses, simple fashions and self-reliance. If we live in fewer rooms, each room can be better organized and more comfortable. If we cook for ourselves, we can train our focus on the wholesome goodness of home-prepared meals and the enduring pleasure of preparing food.

In his book Voluntary Simplicity, Elgin explores in detail the benefits of controlling our desires. Jesus of Nazareth, Gautama Buddha, the Prophet Muhammad, Aristotle, Plato, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Schweitzer, Simone de Beauvoir, Martin Buber, Joseph Campbell, Meister Eckhart, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Elise Boulding, Buckminster Fuller, Soren Kierkegaard, Lao Tzu, Linda Breen Pierce, Charles Mingus, Pablo Picasso, Thomas Aquinas, Henry David Thoreau and Frank Lloyd Wright are all referenced in support of his argument: By managing our desires, we can conserve natural resources, improve the human condition and enhance our enjoyment of life. (To read a sample from Elgin’s book, go to Voluntary Simplicity: Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich.)

We live in a deafening maelstrom of sales pitches. In this world, it’s difficult to pass a day without hearing or seeing a persuasive suggestion that we need to own more and consume more.