Books

These books that have influenced me deeply in my approach to life and my understanding of the world in which we live. Not all of these are for everyone - and indeed a number of them will certainly not be many people's cup of tea. I hope you enjoy poking around here to see if something grabs your a fancy. Key books are at the top with pictures. Other less influential, but still valuable books a below as links.

Books That Have Changed My Life:

Life Divine, Sri Auorbindo (1985)
The Life Divine explores for the Modern mind the great streams of Indian metaphysical thought, reconciling the truths behind each and form this synthesis extends in terms of consciousness the concept of evolution. This work has transformed the way many in the west understand the nature of reality. A truly important and profound book.



Process and Reality, Alfred North Whitehead (1978)
I first read Whitehead in college and it has shaped the way I understand life and the nature of reality since. Whitehead's efforts to to revive the remnants of Idealism in the age of the new physics are profound. While it is a difficult read, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. (Note: Because of the difficulty, some suggest reading Sherburne's commentary instead.)



Brief History of Everything, Ken Wilber (2007)
An altogether friendly and accessible account of men and women's place in a universe of sex, soul, and spirit, written by an author of whom New York Times reporter Tony Schwartz says: "No one has described the path to wisdom better than Ken Wilber." Wilber examines the course of evolution as the unfolding manifestation of Spirit, from matter to life to mind, including the higher stages of spiritual development where Spirit becomes conscious of itself.

Upanishads, Juan Mascaro (editor) (1965)
The Principal Upanishads form a series of philosophical discourses between teacher and student that question the inner meaning of the world. Composed beginning around the eighth century BCE, the Upanisads have been central to the development of Hinduism, exploring its central doctrines: rebirth, karma, overcoming death, and achieving detachment, equilibrium, and spiritual bliss.






Other Books That Have Shaped My Thinking

At this point, these are in no particular order.

• Sociology of Philosophies, Randall Collins (1998)
• Ever-Present Origin, Jean Gebser (1986)
• Integral Spirituality, Ken Wilber (2007)
• Three Pillars of Zen, Philip Kapleau (1989)
• Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way, Nagarjuna, (trans. by Jay L. Garfield)
• Peace Is Every Step, Thich Nhat Hahn (1992)
• Gospel of Mark & Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew
• Integral Yoga, Sri Aurobindo (1993)
• Adventures in Ideas, Alfred North Whitehead (1967)
• Toward a Psychology of Being, Abraham Maslow (1998)
• Tao Te Ching, Lao Tzu (trans. Stephen Marshal) (2006)
• Flow, Michael Csikszentmihalyi (2002)
• Be As You Are: The Teachings of Ramana Maharshi, Ramana Maharshi (edited by David Goodman) (1992)
• Who Dies? An Investigation of Conscious Living and Dying, Sephen Levine (2002)
• Walden; or a Life in the Woods, Henry David Thoreau (1995)
• Ordinary People as Monks and Mystics, Marsha Sinetar (2007)
• Science and Sanity, Alfred Korzybski (1995)
• The Radiance of Being, Allan Combs (2002)
• I am That, Nisargadatta Maharaj (1990)
• In Over Our Heads: The Demands of Modern Life, Robert Kegan (1998)
• The Evolving Self: Problem and Process in Human Development, Robert Kegan (1982)