Listmania!
A Brief List of Epiphanies
Artificial Paradises: Baudelaire's Classic Work on Opium and WineArtificial Paradises: Baudelaire's Classic Work on Opium and Wine by Charles Baudelaire
Buy new: £3.44 / Used from: £3.30
Ah, Baudelaire...
Why Work?: Arguments for the Leisure SocietyWhy Work?: Arguments for the Leisure Society by Bertrand Russell
Buy new: £5.95 / Used from: £2.50
Why work? Bertrand Russell explains how you've been duped...
The Doors of Perception: And Heaven and HellThe Doors of Perception: And Heaven and Hell by Aldous Huxley
Buy new: £2.60 / Used from: £2.53
A classic work on psychedelic experience and a fascinating look at art, music, philosophy and psychology - touches on everything, from Zen to Vermeer
Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of KnowledgeCosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge by Jeremy Narby
Buy new: £2.97 / Used from: £2.70
Given its paradigm busting implications, this book is wonderfully balanced and pragmatic. One to read before passing judgement...
The Body of Myth: Mythology, Shamanic Trance and the Sacred Geography of the BodyThe Body of Myth: Mythology, Shamanic Trance and the Sacred Geography of the Body by J.Nigro Sansonese
Buy new: £12.53 / Used from: £9.75
Takes Joseph Campbell to a whole new level. For anybody with an interest in meditation, myth, Jung etc. this eccentric but brilliant work offers a thoroughly convincing hypothesis as to myth's origins
The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nagarjuna's "Mulamadhyamakakarika"The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nagarjuna's "Mulamadhyamakakarika" by Nagarjuna
Buy new: £11.39 / Used from: £6.81
One of the key texts for Tibetan Buddhism, expounding the teaching of emptiness - the commentary brings in relevant connections with Western traditions. You needn't be Buddhist to love this.
The Precious Treasury on the Basic Space of Phenomena (Klon-Chen-Pa Dri-Med-Od-Zer, Seven Treasuries Series.)The Precious Treasury on the Basic Space of Phenomena (Klon-Chen-Pa Dri-Med-Od-Zer, Seven Treasuries Series.) by Longchen Rabjam
Buy used from: £92.25
Stunningly beautiful, lucid, poetic, and indeed profound - a key work in the Dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Buddhism
Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi (Tuttle Library of Enlightenment)Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi (Tuttle Library of Enlightenment) by Daniel Leighton
Buy used from: £47.81
Beautiful practice verses from the 14th century Ch'an (Zen) master of the Song Dynasty
DNA and the I Ching: The Tao of LifeDNA and the I Ching: The Tao of Life by Johnson Yan
Buy new: £6.09 / Used from: £4.48
Certainly worth a look after reading The Cosmic Serpent and The Body of Myth
The Antipodes of the Mind: Charting the Phenomenology of the Ayahuasca ExperienceThe Antipodes of the Mind: Charting the Phenomenology of the Ayahuasca Experience by Benny Shanon
Buy new: £26.60 / Used from: £18.00
A very close look at the Ayahuasca experience from an academic perspective; engagingly personal too.
Introduction to the Middle Way: Chandrakirti's Madhyamakavatara with Commentary by Jamgön MiphamIntroduction to the Middle Way: Chandrakirti's Madhyamakavatara with Commentary by Jamgön Mipham by Chandrakirti
Buy new: £10.35 / Used from: £11.53
A nice clear translation of Chandrakirti's classic verses on emptiness, with a commentary put together from notes of the great Lama Mipham
Precious Treasury of the Way of Abiding (The Seven Treasuries Ser.)Precious Treasury of the Way of Abiding (The Seven Treasuries Ser.) by Longchen Rabjam
More beautiful and incisive writing from the great Dzogchen master Longchen Rabjampa
Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master DogenMoon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen by Dogen
Buy new: £4.80 / Used from: £11.72
It takes time and practice to tune in to Dogen. His writing may seem elliptical, but it will, with familiarity, reveal itself to be brilliant, focused and illuminating.
Wising Up the Marks: The Amodern William BurroughsWising Up the Marks: The Amodern William Burroughs by TM Murphy
Buy new: £15.43 / Used from: £6.84
Ever thought the writer William Burroughs was a load of rubbish? This work will convince you otherwise - truly gets to what the great man's writing is all about.
The Politics of Social Ecology: Libertarian MunicipalismThe Politics of Social Ecology: Libertarian Municipalism by Janet Biehl
Buy used from: £7.89
An introduction to the writings of American anarchist Murray Bookchin (Social Ecology.)
The Reflexive Nature of Awareness (Rang Rig): Tibetan Madhyamaka Defence (RoutledgeCurzon Critical Studies in Buddhism)The Reflexive Nature of Awareness (Rang Rig): Tibetan Madhyamaka Defence (RoutledgeCurzon Critical Studies in Buddhism) by Paul Williams
Buy new: £80.75 / Used from: £42.50
A closer look at Mipham and Madhyamaka
Forest GardeningForest Gardening by Robert Hart
Buy new: £7.67 / Used from: £10.00
Why not grow a Forest Garden instead?
How to Make a Forest GardenHow to Make a Forest Garden by Patrick Whitefield
Buy new: £9.90 / Used from: £9.77
More tips...
Riddley WalkerRiddley Walker by Russell Hoban
Buy new: £4.19 / Used from: £1.50
A marvellous magical work - real literature; forget Lord of the Rings, this is the bee's knees...
Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart (A Herder & Herder Book)Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart (A Herder & Herder Book) by McGinn
Buy new: £16.98 / Used from: £15.98
A great work on the awesome Christian mystic - Eckhart will appeal even to people who don't see much to rave about in Christianity
Contemporary Film Theory (Longman Critical Readers)Contemporary Film Theory (Longman Critical Readers)
Buy new: £27.05 / Used from: £0.33
Watch too much and feel clever...
The Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early BuddhismThe Selfless Mind: Personality, Consciousness and Nirvana in Early Buddhism by Peter Harvey
Buy new: £19.94 / Used from: £17.49
Great scholarly work on Nirvana
The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Four Parts (The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy)The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Four Parts (The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy) by Douglas Adams
Buy new: £6.99 / Used from: £0.01
At the very least read the first one...