Letters To A Spiritual Seeker - Hardcover

Thoreau, Henry David; Dean, Bradley P.; Blake, Harrison G.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0393059413 ISBN 13: 9780393059410

Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc, 2004

Synopsis

Fifty letters, comprising a correspondence of some fifteen years between the literary master and his friend, Harrison Blake, convey the writer's thoughts on God and spirituality, offering insight into such topics as the possibilities and limitations of human spirituality, the role of vocation in developing a spiritual life, and the importance of a direct relationship with God. 20,000 first printing.

About this title

About the Author:

Bradley P. Dean, an independent scholar living in West Peterborough, New Hampshire, has written extensively on Thoreau's life and writings and has edited two of Thoreau's previously unpublished book-length manuscripts.

From Booklist:

Thoreau's indelible writings on nature, liberty, justice, solitude, and simplicity are infused with spirituality, and, indeed, his entire quest to live an honorable life is a spiritual one, although he didn't overtly characterize it as such. He did, however, directly address matters of the spirit in a remarkable set of 50 letters written to Harrison Gray Otis Blake, an ex-Unitarian minister who initiated their 13-year correspondence in 1848 in his only extant letter. Dean, the Thoreau scholar who rescued Thoreau's magnificent and forgotten Wild Fruits (1999), now gathers together for the first time the American sage's still stirring and relevant spiritual musings and expertly sets them within biographical and historical contexts. Here Thoreau explicates his inclusive view of spirituality born of his intense attentiveness to nature and deep study of both Eastern and Western religious traditions. Here Thoreau, who has a knack for turning everyday activities into striking metaphors, analogies, and allegories, muses provocatively on work, contemplation, and responsibility. With quotable lines on every page, this is an important and affecting addition to the Thoreau shelf. Donna Seaman
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About this edition

• Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0393059413
• ISBN 13: 9780393059410
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 266