Product Description

"Beautifully articulates the benefits of spiritual living in a material world."—Dan Millman, author of The Way of the Peaceful Warrior

One of the world′s leading spiritual scholars reveals a powerful new way of life

Based on twenty–five years of study, research, and spiritual practice, and selected by One Spirit Book Club, Essential Spirituality is an accessible, practical book that shows readers how they can incorporate the seven practices common to all of the world′s major religions into their daily lives. In the bestselling tradition of Care of the Soul and The Art of Happiness, Essential Spirituality integrates the spiritual principles of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Taoism, providing dozens of practical daily exercises and reflections to help increase spiritual intelligence.

Roger Walsh, MD, PhD (Tiburon, CA), is a professor of psychiatry, philosophy, and anthropology at the University of California at Irvine.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #727841 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Comparative religion and similar academic disciplines have for years put religions side by side to study the common factors in their beliefs and practices, their myths and rituals, as well as their differences. It is very rare to find a book which does the same for spirituality, the inner heart of religion which makes it personal, special, deep and warm, meaningful and fulfilling to individual believers.

In Essential Spirituality Roger Walsh draws on the major world religions to do exactly this. He finds that all religions have teachings on reducing craving, cultivating emotional wisdom, living ethically, calming the mind, awakening spiritual vision, developing spiritual intelligence and expressing spirit in action through the joy of service. He quotes throughout from the wisdom of the Buddha, Lao Tsu, Jesus and others to present-day teachers.

The heart of the book is the exercises, from dozens of straightforward meditations and simple visualisations to simply aiming to think kindly of people for a few hours at a time. This is a very practical book. The emphasis throughout is perhaps closer to Buddhism than to other religions, in the concentration on right thought and right action and on compassion; but as Walsh demonstrates, the ethical teachings of the world religions are very similar.

For anyone seeking to deepen their spirituality, this is one of the most useable, valuable and important books in the field, and is strongly recommended. --David V. Barrett

Synopsis
"Beautifully articulates the benefits of spiritual living in a material world."-Dan Millman, author of The Way of the Peaceful WarriorOne of the world's leading spiritual scholars reveals a powerful new way of lifeBased on twenty-five years of study, research, and spiritual practice, and selected by One Spirit Book Club, Essential Spirituality is an accessible, practical book that shows readers how they can incorporate the seven practices common to all of the world's major religions into their daily lives. In the bestselling tradition of Care of the Soul and The Art of Happiness, Essential Spirituality integrates the spiritual principles of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Taoism, providing dozens of practical daily exercises and reflections to help increase spiritual intelligence.Roger Walsh, MD, PhD (Tiburon, CA), is a professor of psychiatry, philosophy, and anthropology at the University of California at Irvine.

From the Inside Flap
Essential Spirituality "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 of One Taste Based on over twenty years of research and spiritual practice, written by a man who is both a spiritual practitioner and award–winning scientist, this is a groundbreaking and life–changing book For the first time, Essential Spirituality shows how you can apply the seven practices central to all the world’s major religions in your daily life. 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. Going beyond Care of the Soul, Essential Spirituality integrates the spiritual principles of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Taoism 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. Filled with stories, exercises, meditations, myths, case histories, prayers, and practical advice, this extraordinary book has the power to change your life now. "An engaging, inspiring synthesis of the core insights of humanity’s spiritual traditions. This is a rare gem of a book—a unique treasure distilled from a quarter century of deep spiritual practice and intellectual inquiry. Essential Spirituality is a book to live with and work with, filled with simple though powerful exercises that invite people to discover for themselves the truths about which Roger Walsh writes so beautifully and lovingly." —Duane Elgin, author of Voluntary Simplicity

Customer Reviews

An excellent introduction to spirituality
For me, this was an eye-opening book. As my first dip into the topic, I was half expecting something choc-full of religious preaching, but the book has been skillfully written on a much more practical, modern level. It helps you to understand what the main world religions are actually going on about, something that bypassed me completely during 20-odd years of Catholicism. Lots of useful exercises, which, when you incorporate them into your daily life, will change it for the better forever. Highly recommended.