Nourishment for the Spirit

by Maximus 81 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Eusebius Hieronymus

  Marilyn, the full title of the book is
  "The Dancing Wu Li Masters: An Overview of the New Physics"

  Not about channeling. Metatron in a post above says it caused him to think about pantheism. For those who are mystified by the title:

  At an Esalen Institute meeting in 1976, tai chi master Al Huang said that the Chinese word for physics is Wu Li, "patterns of organic energy." Gary Zukav and the others present developed the idea of physics as the dance of the Wu Li Masters--the teachers of physical essence. Zukav explains the concept further:

  The Wu Li Master dances with his student. The Wu Li Master does not teach, but the student learns. The Wu Li Master always begins at the center, the heart of the matter .... This book deals not with knowledge, which is always past tense anyway, but with imagination, which is physics come alive, which is Wu Li .... Most people believe that physicists are explaining the world. Some physicists even believe that, but the Wu Li Masters know that they are only dancing with it.

  The "new physics" of Zukav's 1979 book comprises quantum theory, particle physics, and relativity. Even as these theories age they haven't percolated all that far into the collective consciousness; they're too far removed from mundane human experience not to need introduction.

  It was an early introduction (that I did not pay enough attention to then) to the most profound and mind-altering insights of 20th-century science.

  Didn't want to see anyone turned off this exceptional book recommended by several above because of thinking it is linked to channeling. (Hate the old "you said, quote ... weird ... unbelievable," so I'll do it this way. Not to have a precise memory for old book titles is more than understandable.)

  Best,
  Jerry
  Who appreciates the Wu Li masters now in his life
• 

  TR

  After the borg and all the JW related books, I went on a legal fiction spree that continues to this day. David Baldacci, Grisham, Steve Martini.

  I love the adventures had with "Dirk Pitt" as told by Clive Cussler.

  But My favorite is John D. MacDonald and his "Travis McGee" series. Sadly, MacDonald passed away several years ago, but his books are still in print.

  TR

  "I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every
  form of tyranny over the mind of man." --Thomas Jefferson*
• 

  Mulan

  Thanks for the clarification. Maybe I am thinking of a different book.

  Marilyn (a.k.a. Mulan)
• 

  Introspection

  I did read the Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra some time ago.. Didn't read the Dancing Wu Li Masters, though I guess it's on the same subject anyway. For some reason I don't remember it being too interesting though, maybe I liked the movie (Mind Walk) better than the book, though I guess it's based on another one of Capra's books. Can someone who has read both talk about it?

  "It is not so much that you use your mind wrongly--you usually don't use it at all. It uses you. This is the disease." -Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now
• 

  Farkel

  Hi Maximus,

  I've noted that posters as well as yourself have mentioned books that deal with different stuff than the books that impressed me the most.

  You said:

  : I'm going to ask your help in this thread. What book or books have you read that have really enlightened or intrigued you? And could you comment on what you gleaned from them? A long list of names and titles is easy; kernels of truth are more rare. Aim for the latter.

  "Games People Play" by Dr. Eric Berne

  "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand: life is full of dickheads and people who are great and unacknowledged

  "Democracy in America" by Alex De Toqueville

  "Initiation" by Elisabeth Haich: explains the Bible better than anything I've seen so far.

  "Winning Through Intimidation" by Robert Ringer: people will screw you. Get used to it.

  "Looking Out for Number One" by Robert Ringer: self-love is not bad. It's actually healthy. As a former dub, I loved this one. Former dubs can understand why.

  "Megatrends" by Tom Peters (not sure he wrote this one)

  "Chariots of the Gods" by Eric Von Donekan (sp?) Showed me a lot about crackpots and what they can get away with while spouting crap.

  "Eaters of the Dead" by Michael Crichten: Showed me that great writing can arise from spoof and fun. And I loved the surprise at the end!

  "The Dialogues" by Plato: this showed me that Sacrates could mess up anyone who presented a bad argument, stick his tongue out at them, smile the whole time, treat them like gentlemen and still make their arguments and themselves look like total idiots. I should re-read this one and soon.

  Any and everything by Lawerence Saunders: showed me that fiction is not so bad after all. It can be very engrossing when well-written.

  "My Young Years" by Arthur Rubenstein: showed me that incredible talent and even genius is not devoid of human foibles and screw-ups. Also showed me that true greatness is admitting follies and mistakes and then moving on to more greatness. I dearly miss that man and his music.

  "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu: showed me that war, business and even everyday life have so much in common that it is scary.

  "Tao Te Ching" by Lao-tse (and many others, no doubt): showed me that life is much simpler than I had ever imagined it could be. I keep forgetting that part.

  "Shogun" by James Clavell: this was a big epiphany for me. It showed me that our Western way of looking at life and death was only ONE way of looking at life and death. My eyes were probably opened more out of reading that book than they did out of reading a thousand Watchtowers and Awakes!.

  "Hawaii" by James A. Michner: awesome history and very revealing about man's inhumanity to man in the name of religion and in the name of God and Christ. Showed me that compassion and forgiveness can come from "pagans" and "heathens" and in fact is more likely to come from them than from those "Christians" who are trying to "save" their happy lives and functioning cultures. As someone who has spent many trips and many months in Hawaii and who has studied their language and culture, this book was very important in my life.

  "Carribean" by James A. Michner: showed me that even great authors shoud know when to quit.

  There are many more, Max. I've just mentioned a few. The collected works of Alfred E. Neumann should also be mentioned. He was very wise, too. Also, I'm very fond of the collected works of Fred Hall. He alone helps keep me to have some semblance of sanity, or at least to know that if I'm crazy, there are a whole lot worse people out there. Kudos to You Know in that area, too.

  Oh, the book "From Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained" was a very important book in my life, too, but for much different reasons than the ones I just mentioned.

  Farkel
• 

  waiting

  Howdy Farkel,

  "The Dialogues" by Plato: this showed me that Sacrates could mess up anyone who presented a bad argument, stick his tongue out at them, smile the whole time, treat them like gentlemen and still make their arguments and themselves look like total idiots. I should re-read this one and soon.

  And this would be one reason that you're not leaving is a welcome sight.

  Perhaps others, like myself, would do well in doing some of reading off your Recommended Reading List.

  For a book which seems timeless to me in how we interact with each other: To Kill A Mockingbird. Doesn't seem that long, just pages of fascination. It still remains my all-time favorite.

  waiting
• 

  fodeja

  Dostoevsky, The Grand Inquisitor ( http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0023406003/ )

  A short dialogue between Jesus and the senile grand inquisitor, taken from Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov". Simply brilliant.

  Those who liked "Siddharta" by Hermann Hesse may also want to look into his "Demian", which is somewhat similar in spirit. It's almost like another perspective of the same theme.

  f.
• 

  Mommie Dark

  I like books that assist in paradigm shifting. Most of my recommendations are fiction and not very 'intellectually taxing' but they offer unique viewpoints, and thus expanded my horizons somehow.

  THe Dispossessed by Ursula K LeGuin: this book first showed me the elegant possibility of life without central government. She depicts a physicist who puts personal ethical responsibility and genuine conscience above politicking. It's simply a wonderful book.

  Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
  Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

  Kurt takes on the end of the world (CC) and the firebombing of Dresden by US military in WW2 (S5). The man is a genius. Even his 'worst' books are worth reading, but he never wrote a a 'bad' book IMO.

  Animal House & 1984 by Orwell. MM-mm-mm...Big Brother is in Brooklyn...

  Towing Jehovah by Robert Morrow: another fiction that helped me view the god thingy from a whole new perspective.

  any novel by Tom Robbins will puncture icons and dissect ideologies, while giving you some of the most genuinely therapeutic bellylaughs you'll ever want. Wanna live forever? Details found in Jitterbug Perfume (but I warn you, you gotta love to dance and you gotta smell great!).

  any translation of the Tao is worth reading. Savor it like a stick of hard candy, slow and with attention to the flavor.

  I'm not going to trot out all the scholarly tomes I've read in the last ten years; those who already posted have done a wonderful job of outlining a serious reading list for those who need that. I just want to recommend that any serious 'seeker after truth' might want to begin by making a baseline of knowledge by reading various 'sacred texts' from all possible sources before studying the commentary of 'experts' on said texts. Comparing the Upanishads, the Tao, the Bible, Koran, etc can be enlightening without ever reading a word of commentary. After the comparisons, commentary may illuminate. REMEMBER: KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.
• 

  Maximus

  I'm regularly asked to recommend a good book that takes a fresh look at Christianity, without all the baggage. "Books at the beginning of the thread are too heavy, not so accessible." I understand.

  Try Alister McGrath's "The Unknown God: Searching for Spiritual Fulfillment." (Eerdmans, 1999.)

  Someone has saved me the trouble of reviewing it:

  "So what is it that really satisfies us?" On the first page McGrath walks us into this central question of our lives and proceeds to answer it by taking the reader through a kind of primer to the Christian faith. The chapters are quite brief, and while containing references to philosophers and theologians ranging from Plato and Augustine to Kierkegaard and Karl Barth, its style is quite simple and direct. A member of the Oxford University faculty of theology and the author of numerous works, McGrath clearly knows his material; but what's most striking about this book is not so much the answer to its primary question as the presentation.

  The book's short chapters are punctuated by beautiful color illustrations (paintings by Raphael, Rubens, and many other artists, as well as photographs) and highlighted quotations from Christian writers.

  These features make the pages extremely "user-friendly," much like what you might expect to find on a multimedia CD-ROM display. Checking in at under 125 pages, the combination of brevity and this design makes this a gret book for someone with little knowledge of Christianity. All that's required is the spiritual hunger.
• 

  Anchor

  Finally, an oasis in the desert.

  This is a bit like getting a drink of water from a fire hose, but I'm so parched I can use it.

  Anchor