Eight Million Ways to Happiness
Find your own way to inner peace with the wisdom of Japan
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Published:1st Jan '26
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A wise and joyful journey through Japan's spiritual traditions, and how they can help bring us comfort and happiness today – perfect for readers of Ikigai and Abroad in Japan.
'A timely and moving pilgrimage through Japan's spiritual traditions' RUTH OZEKI, Women’s Prize-winning and Booker Prize-shortlisted author
'A fascinating dive through hidden layers of the Japanese worldview' KATHERINE MAY, author of Wintering
Find your way to happiness with this wise, inspiring journey into the spiritual heart of Japan.
In Eight Million Ways to Happiness, Hiroko Yoda invites readers on a transformative journey into the traditions that shape Japanese life. While millions have found inspiration in ideas like ikigai or The Courage to Be Disliked, Hiroko reveals the deeper traditions that quietly infuse Japan’s culture, drawn from Shinto, Buddhism, and the mountain mysticism of Shugendo.
These aren’t abstract philosophies. They are living practices that integrate so seamlessly with modern secular life, even natives can forget they are there. Reconnecting with them helped Hiroko find light after profound loss – and realise that they offer powerful tools for anyone seeking meaning, connection or peace in their own life.
Through vivid storytelling and immersive experiences – dancing at Shinto shrines, climbing sacred peaks, and meeting mystics – Hiroko shows how Japan’s flexible approach to spirituality helps kindle gratitude, connection and kinship with nature. What emerges are practical insights and gentle guidance to spark joy, find balance, and discover what truly matters.
Whether you're grieving, searching, or simply curious, this book is a reminder: there are millions of ways to be happy. You just have to find yours.
Eight Million Ways to Happiness is a timely and moving pilgrimage through Japan's ancient spiritual traditions. As she navigates the terrain of her own grief in the wake of her mother's death, Hiroko Yoda shows us how we might ease our own suffering and reawaken a profound appreciation of the beauty of the world -- RUTH OZEKI, Booker Prize-shortlisted author of A Tale for the Time Being
In her quest to get to grips with Japan’s spirituality, Yoda trains as a Shino shrine-dancer, hikes up mountains to meet mystics, and consults a fortune teller . . . This is an elegantly written book, full of insights about Japan -- Constance Craig Smith * Mail on Sunday *
A fascinating dive through hidden layers of the Japanese worldview -- KATHERINE MAY, author of Wintering
A welcome new voice . . . Offers a series of personal and highly practical insights into Japanese life and spirituality . . . Hiroko Yoda makes for an excellent guide -- Christopher Harding * New Statesman *
Yoda refuses to dole out a prescription for being happy but shares what she does in her own life. And what’s core to her message is this: happiness is a perspective . . . Which is refreshing when you consider that, in the West, we’re told that happiness comes from ticking off milestones – buying a house, getting married, landing that next big job -- Claire Cohen * Grazia *
A beautiful exploration of Japanese spirituality. With wise insights and meditative personal stories, Yoda inspires us all to be more intimately connected with nature – and with ourselves -- SHUNMYO MASUNO, author of Zen: The Art of Simple Living
Hiroko Yoda dives into Japanese spirituality with an open heart and a lively, questioning mind. What she discovers is religion with a lowercase r: guidance rather than rules, generosity instead of judgement. Please know: No woo-woo spiritual blather here! Yoda's footing in cultural history and talents as a storyteller set this book apart and above -- MARY ROACH, New York Times-bestselling author of Gulp and Stiff
Transcendently intimate. A personal journey of remembrance and healing leads to a heightened exploration of the mystic realms of Japan. Yoda provides insights into Japanese spiritual lore as well as practical lessons in opening yourself to comforting unseen presences that can change your life -- ALFRED BIRNBAUM, translator of Haruki Murakami
ISBN: 9781526672162
Dimensions: 220mm x 144mm x 36mm
Weight: 475g
368 pages