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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Aspects of religions (non-Christian) > Religious experience
When he was only nine years old, Satish Kumar renounced the world
and joined the wandering brotherhood of Jain monks. Dissuaded from
this path by an inner voice at the age of eighteen, he became a
campaigner for land reform, working to turn Gandhi's vision of a
renewed India into reality. Fired by the example of Bertrand
Russell, he undertook a peace pilgrimage, walking from India to
America without any money, through mountains, deserts, storms and
snow. It was an adventure during which he was thrown into jail in
France, faced a loaded gun in America, and delivered packets of
'peace tea' to the leaders of the four nuclear powers. He settled
in England, taking on the editorship of Resurgence magazine, and
becoming the guiding light behind a number of ecological, spiritual
and educational ventures, including Schumacher College.This edition
of Satish Kumar's inspirational autobiography commemorates the
foundation of Schumacher College, with new chapters about the
college and bringing Satish's story up-to-date. Following Indian
tradition, in his fiftieth year he undertook another pilgrimage:
again without any money, he walked to the holy places of Britain -
Glastonbury, Lindisfarne, and Iona. Written with a penetrating
simplicity, No Destination is an exhilarating account of an
extraordinary life.
Is God a delusion? Barrister Charles Taylor examines the evidence
in this very readable book. His findings will be controversial to
some but offer hope and insight to others. We are the only species
unable to live in harmony with our environment and each other. The
asteroid that killed the dinosaurs is nothing compared with our
impact on the Earth. We are currently responsible for "The Sixth
Great Extinction" of wildlife. Religious terrorism is widespread,
though current atrocities are dwarfed by the bloody record of
Christianity. The Middle East is destabilised and to East and West
we have Presidents Putin and Trump. So called 'rational' thinking
and the dominance of our left brains have brought us to the brink
of disaster. We need a spiritual revolution allowing individuals to
reconnect with their right brain, intuition and spirit. Religions
have had their day. They contain key truths, but these truths are
usually obscured by manmade rules constructed to gain wealth and
power. At the other extreme, materialism denies God, the spirit,
free will, consciousness and love. Happily, the facts contradict
this dispiriting left brained faith that we are deluded robots
stumbling through life.
Exploring the diverse factors that persuaded Christopher Columbus
that he could reach the fabled "East" by sailing west, Dante,
Columbus and the Prophetic Tradition considers, first, the impact
of Dante's Divine Comedy and the apocalyptic prophetic tradition
that it reflects, on Columbus's perception both of the cosmos and
the eschatological meaning of his journey to what he called an
'other world.' In so doing, the book considers how affinities
between himself and the exiled poet might have led Columbus to see
himself as a divinely appointed agent of the apocalypse and his
enterprise as the realization of the spiritual journey chronicled
in the Comedy. As part of this study, the book necessarily examines
the cultural space that Dante's poem, its geography, cosmography
and eschatology, enjoyed in late fifteenth century Spain as well as
Columbus's own exposure to it. As it considers how Italian writers
and artists of the late Renaissance and Counter Reformation
received the news of Columbus' 'discovery' and appropriated the
figure of Dante and the pseudo-prophecy of the Comedy to interpret
its significance, the book examines how Tasso, Ariosto, Stradano
and Stigliani, in particular, forge a link between Dante and
Columbus to present the latter as an inheritor of an apostolic
tradition that traces back to the Aeneid. It further highlights the
extent to which Italian writers working in the context of the
Counter Reformation, use a Dantean filter to propagate the notion
of Columbus as a new Paul, that is, a divinely appointed apostle to
the New World, and the Roman Church as the rightful emperor of the
souls encountered there.
Following Alan Watts' acclaimed book on Zen Buddhism The Way of
Zen, he tackles the Chinese philosophy of Tao. The Tao is the way
of man's cooperation with the natural course of the natural world.
Alan Watts takes the reader through the history of Tao and its
interpretations by key thinkers such as Lao-Tzu, author of the Tao
Te Ching. Watts goes on to demonstrate how the ancient and timeless
Chinese wisdom of Tao promotes the idea of following a life lived
according to the natural world and goes against our goal-oriented
ideas by allowing time to quiet our minds and observe the world
rather than imposing ourselves on it. By taking in some of the
lessons of Tao, we can change our attitude to the way we live.
Drawing on ancient and modern sources, Watts treats the Chinese
philosophy of Tao in much the same way as he did Zen Buddhism in
his classic The Way of Zen. Including an introduction to the
Chinese culture that is the foundation of the Tao, this is one of
Alan Watts' best-loved works.
Ayahuasca is a psychoactive substance that has long been associated
with indigenous Amazonian shamanic practices. The recent rise of
the drink's visibility in the media and popular culture, and its
rapidly advancing inroads into international awareness, mean that
the field of ayahuasca is quickly expanding. This expansion brings
with it legal problems, economic inequalities, new forms of ritual
and belief, cultural misunderstandings, and other controversies and
reinventions. In The World Ayahuasca Diaspora, leading scholars,
including established academics and new voices in anthropology,
religious studies, and law fuse case-study ethnographies with
evaluations of relevant legal and anthropological knowledge. They
explore how the substance has impacted indigenous communities, new
urban religiosities, ritual healing, international drug policy,
religious persecution, and recreational drug milieus. This unique
book presents classic and contemporary issues in social science and
the humanities, providing rich material on the bourgeoning
expansion of ayahuasca use around the globe.
In his New York Times bestselling memoir, Symptoms of
Withdrawal, Christopher Kennedy Lawford chronicled his deep descent
into near-fatal drug and alcohol addiction, and his subsequent
hard-won journey back to sobriety, which he has maintained for more
than twenty years. The overwhelming response his book received
impressed upon Lawford the number of people struggling to find
their own way back from addiction and the need to share their
stories. The histories gathered here are the recollections of lives
snatched back from the brink of a precipice so wide and deep it
threatened to engulf them.
Moments of Clarity includes stories from men and women, young
and old, across all barriers of celebrity, color, and class.
Represented in these pages are the singer and the actress, the
writer and the anchorman, the man from the movie screen and the
woman who lives down the street. This book brings together a myriad
of different moments, all with the common understanding of where
these men and women have been and where they must go. As they
bravely share their stories, they shed light not only on their own
experiences but also on the journey we all take as human beings who
are trying to make sense of our world.
This little volume (the result of meditation and experience) is not
intended as an exhaustive treatise on the much written upon subject
of the power of thought. It is suggestiive rather athan
explanatory, its object being to stimulate men and women to the
discovery and perception of the truth that...'they themselves are
makers of themselves' by virtue of the thoughts which they choose
and encourage; that mind is the master weaver, both of the inner
garment of character and the outer garment of circumstance, and
that, as they may have hitherto woven in ignorance and pain they
may now weave in enlightenment and happiness.
Ibn al-'Arabi (d. 1240) was one of the towering figures of Islamic
intellectual history, and among Sufis still bears the title of
al-shaykh al-akbar, or "the greatest master." Ibn al-'Arabi and
Islamic Intellectual Culture traces the history of the concept of
"oneness of being" (wahdat al-wujud) in the school of Ibn al-
'Arabi, in order to explore the relationship between mysticism and
philosophy in Islamic intellectual life. It examines how the
conceptual language used by early mystical writers became
increasingly engaged over time with the broader Islamic
intellectual culture, eventually becoming integrated with the
latter's common philosophical and theological vocabulary. It
focuses on four successive generations of thinkers (Sadr al-Din
al-Qunawi, Mu'ayyad al-Din al-Jandi, 'Abd al-Razzaq al-Kashani, and
Dawud al-Qaysari), and examines how these "philosopher-mystics"
refined and developed the ideas of Ibn al-'Arabi. Through a close
analysis of texts, the book clearly traces the crystallization of
an influential school of thought in Islamic history and its place
in the broader intellectual culture. Offering an exploration of the
development of Sufi expression and thought, this book will be a
valuable resource for students and scholars of Islamic thought,
philosophy, and mysticism.
The NIV Lucado Encouraging Word Bible is designed to encourage
believers along their journey with the Lord. Max Lucado’s warm,
conversational style ensures that the marginal notes, short articles,
and various study tools meet you where you are, providing encouragement
and insight. This Bible will strengthen you as you follow the included
reading plan and incorporate this Bible into your daily devotional
life. The 30-day study guide will help you jumpstart this practice.
This Bible will help you as a believer, and with Pastor Lucado’s gentle
yet powerful notes, it’s a beautiful gift for your non-believing
friends and family who could use some encouragement with Scripture.
Features include:
- Fully redesigned and expanded Bible from Max Lucado (based
on the Life Lessons Bible)
- 98 new “People of the Word” articles encourage believers
through the lessons learned by people throughout the Bible
- 691 “For Your Journey” marginal notes mix masterful
storytelling with biblical context to lead you into a deeper walk with
the Lord
- 115 “Jesus Through the Bible,” and “Growing in Christ”
articles provide both inspiration and practical lessons to build you up
- 30-day personal or group Bible study enriches your
knowledge of the Bible
- “God Cares for You” and “Growing Up Spiritually” verses are
subject-specific and provide another resource in your study of the Bible
- “Where to turn when . . . ” Scripture reference list means
you can always find a biblical answer to the challenges you face
- Dotted margin space for journaling or taking notes
- Bible book introductions contain a brief outline of the
book and an introduction written by Max Lucado
- Bible reading plan
- Full-color maps
- Clear and readable NIV Comfort Print® 9-point type size
The headlines are filled with the politics of Islam, but there
is another side to the world's fastest-growing religion. Sufism is
the poetry and mysticism of Islam. This mystical movement from the
early ninth century rejects worship motivated by the desire for
heavenly reward or the fear of punishment, insisting rather on the
love of God as the only valid form of adoration. Sufism has made
significant contributions to Islamic civilization in music and
philosophy, dance and literature. The Sufi poet Rumi is the
bestselling poet in America. But in recent centuries Sufism has
been a target for some extremist Islamic movements as well as many
modernists. The Garden of Truth presents the beliefs and vision of
the mystical heart of Islam, along with a history of Sufi saints
and schools of thought.
In a world threatened by religious wars, depleting natural
resources, a crumbling ecosystem, and alienation and isolation,
what has happened to our humanity? Who are we and what are we doing
here? The Sufi path offers a journey toward truth, to a knowledge
that transcends our mundane concerns, selfish desires, and fears.
In Sufism we find a wisdom that brings peace and a relationship
with God that nurtures the best in us and in others.
Noted scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr helps you learn the secret
wisdom tradition of Islam and enter what the ancient mystics call
the "garden of truth." Here, liberate your mind, experience peace,
discover your purpose, fall in love with the Divine, and find your
true, best self.
Whether you are a businessperson, a homemaker, a student, or a head of state, author Myles Munroe explains how you can make your dreams and hopes a living reality. Your success is not dependent on the state of the economy or what the job market is like. You do not need to be hindered by the limited perceptions of others or by a lack of resources. Discover time-tested principles that will enable you to fulfill your vision no matter who you are or where you come from. You were not meant for a mundane or mediocre life. You do not exist just to earn a paycheck. Revive your passion for living. Pursue your dream. Discover your vision--and find your true life.
Practical Wisdom in Management is the first in-depth case-study
book to explore how practical wisdom from spiritual and
philosophical traditions inspires corporate culture and leadership.
The outcome of the Practical Wisdom Initiative, between The Academy
of Business in Society (ABIS) and Yale University Center for Faith
and Culture, it seeks to construct a bridge between the worlds of
management and the spiritual and philosophical traditions. Covering
ten major worldwide religions, Theodore Malloch provides an
overview of the practical wisdom of the major faith traditions for
management. It includes case studies of over twenty multinational
corporations focusing on their values, spiritual inspiration and
business strategy. It features case studies on corporations
including: Ascension Health; Michelin; DANONE Group, Walmart; TOMS;
Marriott; HSBC; Four Seasons; Guangzhou Eversunny Trading and
Toyota. It is essential reading for business leaders, researchers
and students of business ethics and spirituality courses and
includes full teaching guidance.
Now fully updated for 2023! This Village to Village Guide to the
Camino de Santiago is a comprehensive guidebook to walking the Way
of Saint James, from Saint-Jean-Pied-de- Port to Santiago de
Compostela (the Camino Frances), and also the Camino Finisterre to
Muxia and Finisterre. This Camino guidebook includes full-color
detailed topographical stage maps of each day's walk with free GPS
files online; 135 detailed stage, city and town maps (now easier to
read); essential practical information on transport, accommodations
and services. It includes detailed listings of pilgrim hostels
(albergues) and private accommodations in each town, including
prices, amenities, number of beds, contact information, open dates,
and more. There are regional introductions to the different areas
along the Camino including information about traditional foods,
flora and fauna, and local culture plus overviews of dozens of
medieval pilgrim sites, with information about the historical
context of the pilgrimage. All the information you need to embark
on this epic pilgrimage wal in a lightweight, attractive book.
God created us to be curious. We innately wonder about the world,
one another, ourselves, and our Creator. But fear of the unknown,
cultural taboos, technology, or even church leaders can smother our
curiosity. Popular writer Lore Ferguson Wilbert has belonged to
Christian communities that discouraged curiosity. The point of the
Christian life was to have the right answers, and asking questions
reflected a wavering faith. But Wilbert came to discover that the
Bible is a permission slip to anyone who wants to ask questions.
Reflecting her own theological trajectory toward a more
contemplative, expansive faith, Wilbert invites readers to foster
curiosity as a spiritual habit. This book explores questions God
asks us, questions we ask God, and questions we ask each other.
Christianity is not about knowing good answers, says Wilbert, but
about asking good questions--ones that foster deeper intimacy with
God and others. A Curious Faith invites readers to go beyond pat
answers and embrace curiosity, rather than certainty, as a hallmark
of authentic faith. Foreword by Seth Haines.
This unique guide to psychology presents Western readers with an
islamic concept of personality--the source from which the Enneagram
and other Sufi theories of personality were derived.
When Sarah and Tom Arthur were appointed to a suburban church after
three years in an urban Christian community, they faced a unique
challenge: how to translate the practices of "radical" faith into
their new context. Together with their friends and fellow church
members Erin and Dave Wasinger, the Arthurs embarked on a yearlong
experiment to implement twelve small practices of radical
faith--not waiting until they were out of debt or the kids were out
of diapers or God sent them elsewhere, but right now. This book is
Sarah and Erin's story, told with humor, theological reflection,
and practical insight, exploring such practices as simplicity,
hospitality, accountability, sustainability, and social
justice--but, most of all, discernment. Along the way readers will
consider how God might be calling them to embark on their own year
of small but radical changes, right where God has planted them.
Each chapter includes discussion questions and suggested readings.
Foreword by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. For more information, visit
[www.YearofSmallThings.com](http://www.YearofSmallThings.com).
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