In the year 1330 an officer at the Japanese imperial palace retired to become a Buddhist monk.

His name was Yoshida Kenkō, and here are 18 pearls of wisdom from his famous Tsurezuregusa, the Essays in Idleness.

In a distracting world, here's a different way to think...

1. On the futility of placing hopes in the future

4. Not waiting to make important decisions

10. How one lazy choice leads to a life of negligence

11. On the uselessness of too much talking

12. On the "right moment" and the certainty of death

13. On the burden of obligation, and the power of letting go

16. On the joy of true friends (and how hard they are to find)