Culture and Horticulture: A Philosophy of Gardening by Wolf-Dieter Storl Average Rating: "If you love to grow plants you'll love this book...i personally couldn't put it down...it actually changed my way of life and opened my eyes to the infinite dimensions ascribed to a simple concept...this is definitely a piece of the puzzle...and a solution for a poorly nourished society." Publisher: Steiner Books | More reviews: amazon.com
The Burning Bush : Rudolf Steiner, Anthroposophy and the Holy Scriptures : Terms & Phrases (Smith, Edward Reaugh, Rudolf Steiner, Anthroposophy, and the Holy Scriptures. Terms and Phrases, V. 1.) by Edward Reaugh Smith Average Rating: "The Burning Bush is essential reading for anyone interested in a deeper understanding of the Bible. This large volume is filled with amazing insights. It combines the author's own life-long search for the deeper meaning of the Bible with the discoveries of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), the founder of Anthroposophy (The Wisdom of Man). The book unveils what people have had to believe only through faith. In a series of penetrating essays the author explains such mysteries and seeming contradictions as the accounts of the Nativity, the nature of the second coming, and the meaning of the Burning Bush." Publisher: Steiner Books | More reviews: amazon.com
The Etheric Double (Theosophical Classics Series) by Arthur E. Powell Average Rating: "The Etheric Double, by Arthur Edward Powell, first published in 1925, is well written, clear, comprehensive on the chosen subject and probably completely incomprehensible to modern educated readers. Incomprehensible, not because the writer is obtuse, which he is not, but because the author builds a view of human existence that depends on assumptions none but the most gullible would believe.The author's intention is obviously to make the world a better place for mankind by improving man himself. The method chosen is to explain that there are seven kinds of matter from which man is made. The three most coarse (solid, liquid and gaseous) making up the physical body, and the four more refined (super etheric, etheric, sub atomic and atomic) making up other bodies such as the Etheric Double, the Astral Body, the Mental Body and the Causal Body. Apparently man should be able to improve himself by strengthening and learning how to improve the communication between his several bodies. To give the author credit, the content is a compilation of works by previous students of the occult and is probably a lot easier to read than their works. The only reason I read beyond the first page was because the author was my father. The mystery is: How could my father, who always insisted that logic and commonsense should rule human behavior, how could he have written such balderdash." Publisher: Quest Books | More reviews: amazon.com
Masters of the Seven Rays: Their Past Lives and Reappearance by Phillip Lindsay Average Rating: "This is a really interesting book about the Masters of Wisdom, who guide Humanity in accordance with the Divine Plan. It begins from the cosmic perspective, describing the role and purpose of the Hierarchy and how the energies of the Seven Rays work through them. The author gives the topic a philosophical context by dealing with such questions as karma and free will. And why all of the Masters discussed here are male! There are descriptions of the Masters themselves as they have lived on the Earth over a number of incarnations. These chapters are interesting and easy to read, enlivened by description and anecdote. The book also contains very useful appendices on Astrology and on the Seven Rays; as well as a helpful glossary." Publisher: Apollo Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com
The Key to the Kalevala by Pekka Ervast Average Rating: "Pekka Ervast was a brilliant mystic from Finland who interpreted the Finnish National Epic, the Kalevala, with the "key" of theosophy. His book explains the adventures of the Kalevala's three heroes (who represent emotion, intellect, and will) as windows into the evolutionary struggle of human beings. Integrating these three forces is a challenging process, and their dynamic interplay and ultimate resolution is, amazingly, what we see within the Kalevala if we "read between the lines" with Ervast. There are hundreds of lines of Kalevala poetry in the book, drawing from Eino Friberg's 1988 translation. The deep wellspring of Finnish myth, touching such topics as shamanism, magic, astronomy, cosmology, and wedding rituals, is only recently becoming widely known outside of Finland. This first English translation of Ervast's book is a unique and valuable contribution to understanding the deep wisdom of the ancient Finns. I served as editor on the project and wrote the Introduction for it, and when in 1994 I first received a response from Finland regarding the possibility of translating Ervast's work, I had the sure feeling that the Key to the Kalevala's time had come." Publisher: Blue Dolphin Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com
A Rebirth for Christianity by Alvin Boyd Kuhn Average Rating: "Alvin Kuhn has done a magnificent job in explaining the ancient wisdom and showing its relevance for us today.This book gives a good exposition of his views.Man has two natures, the animal and the divine.Plato and Aristotle and others wrote about the animal soul and the divine soul.The purpose of human life is to develop the divine soul so that it can uplift the animal soul.This is the essence of the ancient wisdom.Kuhn shows how political Christianity turned this teaching upside down.It took the divine soul away from man and placed it in one alleged person, Jesus Christ.This left man empty.Christ was never a person, but a symbol of the divine soul in every human being.Early Christians such as Paul had this teaching, but in the 3rd century the Church became a tool of repression and the true teachings were discarded.Kuhn brings the truth to light again in a much needed message for our times.He shows that the Bible is not to be taken literally, but should be understood symbolically.The ancient wisdom is right there in the Bible , in symbolic language.Some examples: the virgin is the constellation Virgo;the star in the east is Sirius and the "three wise men" are the three stars in the belt of Orion the Hunter;the Christ was put in a manger, a feed trough, to be spiritual "food" for our animal nature.The raising of Lazarus is a retelling of the raising of Osiris in ancient Egypt.The name Lazarus comes from Osiris.The Bible life of the Christ is not history, but a retelling of the life of the divine soul in man.Christians burnt all the books containing the ancient wisdom to try and hide the truth from mankind.When the divine soul comes into matter it dies and then is reborn in humans.This explains the crucifixion and the resurrection, which do not make any sense when taken literally.All Kuhn's books are worth reading for those interested in religion and philosophy.This book gives a concise introduction to his ideas.If taken up, these ideas can change the world." Publisher: Quest Books | More reviews: amazon.com
The Voice of the Silence, Centenary Edition by H. P. Blavatsky Average Rating: "This book contains some high level lessons given to seekers who are really engaged in the path of truth and duty. H.P. Blavatsky had written this book from what she had learned by heart when she was studying in Himalayan places.The first lesson makes us understand Maya's illusory structure and dangers that it creates on our path. You should learn how to recognize them and deafeat them, then you'll begin to listen to the voice of silence which is the voice of your inner master. Second lesson teaches us about two different paths: heart one and eye one. Third and last lesson is about seven gates to Nirvana and describes us the weapons we should gather or create before fighting dangers we will encounter at each gate. But main lesson is that we should never give up. So if you think that your path is the one of duty for yourself but even more for mankind, this book is for you!" Publisher: Quest Books | More reviews: amazon.com
On Spiritual Unity: A Slavophile Reader (Library of Russian Philosophy.) (Library of Russian Philosophy.) by Ivan Vasilevich Kireevskii Average Rating: This unique volume gathers together for the first time the religious and philosophical writings of the founders of Russian religious philosophy, Aleksei Khomiakov and Ivan Kireevsky. Both began their intellectual careers in the literary world during the 1820s. Khomiakov was for many years best known as a poet of the Pushkin school, while Kireevsky was well known as an original literary critic. The texts collected here make available to Western readers two of Russia's great gifts to world thought: the philosophical concepts of sobornost (community, universality, wholeness, ecumenicity) and integral knowledge, which overcomes the subject/object dichotomy, making sobornost possible. Based on the primacy of the heart, the spiritual wholeness of the human being, and the cognitive will, integral knowing moves beyond rationality to union with the object of knowledge in knowing. On Spiritual Unity provides not only a fascinating introduction to Russian religious philosophy, but more than that a profound, meditative text for anyone concerned with human and spiritual unity. Also included in this collection are two responses to Slavophile ideas by the prominent Russian philosophers Pavel Florensky and Nikolai Berdiaev. Publisher: Lindisfarne Books | More reviews: amazon.com
Theosophia: Hidden Dimensions of Christianity by Arthur Versluis Average Rating: "Arthur Versluis has penned a book which will open doors for anyone seeking a more meaningful experience of the essence of Christianity. The writing is masterful, compelling, convincing, and inspiring. Not to be confused with the theosophical movement of Blavansky, Besant, etc., Dr. Versluis' "Theosophia" takes the reader through a journey of esoteric Christian thought. The work of Jacob Boehme is perhaps the most significant "eye-opener" here, for it is in this study that one may begin to appreciate the "inner dimensions" inherent in the Christian faith, allowing the seeker to remain faithful to doctrinal elements of Christianity while not succumbing to "new age" so-called theologies. For this reader, a totally new world was unveiled thanks to the author's perceptions of gnosis." Publisher: Lindisfarne Books | More reviews: amazon.com
A Way of Self-Knowledge: And the Threshold of the Spiritual World by Rudolf Steiner Average Rating: "Steiner's writing voice feels candid and deeply wise, yet also intimate and conversational. I particularly love the eight meditations of Part One, but the aphorisms of Part Two are also amazing. Steiner is a master at finding ordinary language to describe extraordinary states of consciousness. He makes meditative states of mind accessible by making you conscious of your own consciousness and what it can do. In fact it's his mission to take esotericism out of the exotic and into modern language and modern life. Steiner revered the human ability to turn our souls toward spirit and he insisted that a person who meditates can still stay firmly connected to everyday tasks and joys. His precise, modest desciptions will help newcomers start meditating and will confirm what experienced meditators have noticed and perhaps wondered about. Reading Steiner is like meeting a completely unassuming yet deeply able and wise expert who makes himself available and tells you just what you need to know. Steiner was and is a foremost Western esotericist. If you're familiar with his classic, How To Know Higher Worlds, you'll recognize the shorter A Way of Knowledge as a sister volume. I predict that this little gem of a handbook will become a beloved companion for many who want to develop and enrich their relationship to the spiritual in life. " Publisher: Steiner Books | More reviews: amazon.com
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