Golf in the Kingdom - Softcover

Murphy, Michael

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140194509 ISBN 13: 9780140194500

Publisher: Penguin Books, 1992

Synopsis

/Murphy/Michael With wit and wisdom, the founder of the Esalen Institute explores the transcendental experience using the metaphor of golf. Originally published in 1973, this "masterpiece on the mysticism of golf" (San Francisco Chronicle) is now back in print f.

About this title

Review:

Esalen Institute founder Michael Murphy's divine meditation on the royal and ancient game defied categorization when it was first published in 1972, and it still does. Instantly hailed as a classic, it is part novel, part philosophy, part myth, part mysticism, part enchantment, part golf instructional, and is altogether unique. This confluence of sports and the supernatural looks at both life and golf from the inside out. The book's central character is a wily Scotsman named Shivas Irons, a golf professional by vocation, and a shaman by design, who Murphy, as participant in his own novel, meets on the links of Burningbush, in 1956 Fife. The story of their round of golf together culminates in a wild night of whiskey and wisdom where their golf quite literally takes on a metaphysical glow as Shivas explains how the swing reflects the soul. It alters not only Murphy's game, it also radically alters his mind and inner vision--and it's truly unforgettable. For a golfer, Golf in the Kingdom is as essential as a set of clubs.

From the Publisher:

A classic tale of sport and mysticism, here in a brand new audio production.

"Michael Murphy was on his way from California to India when he met Shivas Irons on a golfing links he calls Burningbush, in Scotland. They played 18 holes together and had a second go at the devilish 13th hole in the middle of a wild whiskey night--a mythic round that profoundly altered Murphy's game and his vision. . . Murphy's book is going to alter many visions. He's written a mystical tale capable of winning a constituency. I totally believed it and loved it."
--Nancy Weber, The New York Times Book Review

"Golf in the Kingdom is a fascination...[Murphy has] put a lot of fine thoughts together here, most gracefully, and the book should have a long and prosperous life."
--Joseph Campbell

"Golf a mere game? A mirror of life? Something metaphysical and/or mystical? All of the above? Shivas Irons, a magical Scottish golf professional, puts those questions to all of us. Superb."
--C. Grant Spaeth, President, United States Golf Association

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0140194509
• ISBN 13: 9780140194500
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208