THE book I've been looking for: Essential Spirituality

I just started today to read Essential Spirituality: the 7 Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind, that Eric, one of my readers, recommended a couple of weeks ago. What a beautiful book! This is THE book I have been looking for ever since I started this journey... One more book that I thought had to be written, only to discover that it has been written already! Which reminds me that helping diffuse to a wider audience all this precious information is one of my life's purposes.

It basically highlights the 7 common practices that each of the so-called 7 world's "great religions" (i.e. the monotheisms of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and the Asian religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism) have offered, and it is filled with exercises, tools, techniques, stories, and practical advice to help one implement those seven practices into one's life and unleash the promise of post-conventional human maturity: a more fulfilled and satisfying life, more joy, more love, a higher sense of purpose, less suffering, higher ethics, etc.

I'm just at page 28, but I've been underlining with my pencil almost every word that I've read so far. This book is going to be a mess! :-) I can't even start quoting from it. Instead, I place the highest recommendation on this book, and will be ordering a bunch and giving them away to my friends! Thank you Eric for this precious recommendation! Just a quick preview:

The author's description of the "perennial philosophy", i.e. the common core of all religious wisdom across all times and cultures:

1. "There are two realms of reality: the everyday realm, and a far more subtle and profound realm: the realm of consciousness, Spirit, Mind, or Tao
2. Human beings partake of both realms
3. Human beings can recognize their divine spark and the sacred ground that is its source
4. Realizing our spiritual nature is the highest goal and greatest good of human existence."

Now what are the seven practices detailed in the book:

1. "Transform your motivation: reduce craving and find your soul's desire
2. Cultivate emotional wisdom: heal your heart and learn to love
3. Live ethically: feel good by doing good
4. Concentrate and calm your mind
5. Awaken your spiritual vision: see clearly and recognize the sacred in all things
6. Cultivate spiritual intelligence: develop wisdom and understand life
7. Express spirit in action: embrace generosity and the joy of service."

Again, this is a practical guide to accompany one on their spiritual journey with a set of practices and suggestions on how to implement them in our daily lives, drawing from some key spiritual traditions on humankind! A priceless gem!

Comments

[Jim Sorens]

I am starting to think that this New Age babytalk actually makes perfect social sense: as the oil peaks, and American suburbian consumerist lifestyle collapses, the American masses will soon need a replacement abstinence ideology/religion to substitute for their consumerist values.

This will fit well during the oil crisis:
"Transform your motivation: reduce craving and find your soul's desire"

[Annelene]

"New Age babytalk": is it from Dr. Roger Walsch? Or Ken Wilber? Or me? Or Jesus? Or Buddha? Or Mohammed? Or Rumi? Or Lao Tsu? Or Confucius? Or Plato? Or maybe all of us?

Otherwise, you are right, yes it does make a lot of sense (it is actually just natural, the same way the acorn grow into the oak tree) for humanity to grow (spiritually) when it realizes that not doing so will lead to its premature destruction.

Happy journey Jim, and thanks for stopping by!

Annelene

[ebuddha]

Thanks for the tip - I ordered the book yesterday! (Got a good deal at amazon.)

By the way, would you be able to find the rss feed for your blog? I attempted to guess, and typed in a couple of tries - but they didn't work. (With RSS, I can be notified of any new entries on your blog immediately.)

Of course, you might have it on this page, and I've just missed it!

Thanks a bunch!

[Annelene]

OK, thanks for your interest, I added the RSS feed on my blog! (see upper right column)