Essential Spirituality: The 7 Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind - Hardcover

Walsh, Roger N.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471330264 ISBN 13: 9780471330264

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc, 1999

Synopsis

"Essential Spirituality beautifully articulates the benefits of spiritual living in the material world."-Dan Millman, author, Everyday Enlightenment and The Way of the Peaceful Warrior"Deceptively simple. Its power is rooted not only in Dr. Walsh's formidable intellectual capacity to deal effectively with a vast body of religious literature but in his own deep spiritual practices in a multitude of disciplines over many years. An important contribution."-Ram Dass, author, Be Here Now "An absolute masterpiece . . . Essential Spirituality is helpful to both the unseasoned and seasoned seeker. The writing is deep, simple, and clear yet at the same time poetic and musical. A must read."-GERALD G. JAMPOLSKY, M.D. author, Love Is Letting Go of Fear

"Energetic, engaged, and occasionally electrifying. . . . The field of spiritual books has been looking for its own Lewis Thomas or Carl Sagan, and I believe Roger Walsh may be that one."-KEN WILBeR, author, One Taste and A Brief History of Everything

Based on over twenty years of research and spiritual practice, this is a groundbreaking and life-changing book. In his decades of study, Dr. Roger Walsh has discovered that each of the great spiritual traditions has both a common goal and seven common practices to reach that goal: recognizing the sacred and divine that exist both within and around us. Filled with stories, exercises, meditations, myths, prayers, and practical advice, Essential Spirituality shows how you can integrate these seven principles into one truly rewarding way of life in which kindness, love, joy, peace, vision, wisdom, and generosity become an ever-growing part of everything you do.

About this title

Review

Psychiatrist and philosopher Roger Walsh looks at seven common practices of the world's major religions to tease out a guidebook for contemporary spirituality. With gleanings from Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism, Walsh offers seven chapters devoted to enlightenment. For example, "Practice 1" discusses how readers can reduce cravings and find the soul's desire (very relevant in an increasingly materialistic world). Once Walsh has laid out the goals and reasoning behind each practice, he offers an array of exercises, such as how to "Examine the Experience of Craving" or "Reflect on the Cost of Craving." Although this format is overtly self-help, Walsh has brought forth a wise and highly respectable book that integrates some of the best practices that the world's religions can offer. The introduction by the Dalai Lama gives Walsh great praise for helping readers become purer in motivation so that they can lead a more fulfilling life in service to love and compassion. --Gail Hudson

From the Back Cover

Advance Acclaim for Essential Spirituality By Roger Walsh, M.D., PH.D. "Deceptively simple. Its power is rooted not only in Dr. Walsh’s formidable intellectual capacity to effectively deal with a vast body of religious literature but in his own deep spiritual practices in a multitude of disciplines over many years. An important contribution." —Ram Dass, author of Be Here Now "An absolute masterpiece ... Essential Spirituality is helpful to both the unseasoned and seasoned seeker. The writing is deep, simple, and clear yet at the same time poetic and musical. A must read." —Gerald G. Jampolsky, M.D., author of Love Is Letting Go of Fear "Energetic, engaged, and occasionally electrifying...Roger is thoroughly grounded in actual spiritual practices, without which any writing on spiritual topics remains anemic and untrustworthy." —Ken Wilber, author of One Taste and A Brief History of Everything "Groundbreaking...Essential Spirituality is the first book that identifies and brings together the shared practices found in the world’s religions." —Angeles Arrien, Ph.D., author of The Four-Fold Way "I could not imagine a better person to write this book." —Charles Taft, Ph.D., author of Waking Up "A truly groundbreaking and seminal work...an invaluable guidebook for modern spiritual seekers." —Stanislav Grof, M.D., author of Beyond the Brain and The Cosmic Game "Essential Spirituality is as significant as Aldous Huxley’s The Perennial Philosophy and could be one of the most important books of our times. It deals with profound spiritual issues in a very clear and down-to-earth way and provides practical exercises that are simple, straightforward, and effective." —Peter Russell, author of The Global Brain Awakens "A wonderful and practical overview for anyone wanting to begin a spiritual journey." —Philip Moffitt, former editor of Esquire magazine

Edition details

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0471330264
• ISBN 13: 9780471330264
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320