con. Posted February 13, 2021 (edited) I'm late to the Party. Traffic was awful. On 3.3.2020 at 6:19 PM, silent thunder said: Revisiting one of the more influential books of my younger life. Reading this book in college made me want to learn Russian, to read it in the original. “In the end they will lay their freedom at our feet, and say to us, “Make us your slaves, but feed us.”” Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov Me too. A friend suggested it in a library and I went through his work like there was nothing else in the World. Probably the most beautiful rainy November that ever happened to me in July. Found this years later, I don't know why. Have you read it? On 10.2.2020 at 12:01 AM, Taomeow said: That was a Birthday Present I gave last Year. And here are two books that wait here to be read: Patrick Harpur on Sören Kierkegaard? Sounds good to me. On how Victorian age People would arrange different Flowers to give specific messages. It's basicaly a Word for a Plant. I hope it will help me to get to know a few Plants I'll meet next Spring a little better. Edited February 13, 2021 by con. 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted March 17, 2021 Just finished another book I enjoyed It's a fast paced thriller that plays with the nature of memory and reality. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sketch Posted March 17, 2021 (edited) I'm still reading books about Catalhoyuk, an archeological site in Anatolia. This one starts out with a lot about the dig team, it gets a bit "romance among the ruins" at times, which is fun.I got a hold of a 2005 hardback copy, and it's full of old fashioned woodcut style illustrations. Charming in the extreme. Edited March 17, 2021 by Sketch 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted March 22, 2021 Just finished The Magician of Lhasa, another thriller with heavy spiritual content, this time in the form of Tibetan Buddhism. I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it an inspiration for my own practice. Highly recommended, especially for Dharma practitioners and anyone who enjoyed Alexandra David-Neel’s books or Thomas Shor’s A Step Away from Paradise. https://images.app.goo.gl/9JkMBxdF3mCGZZA27 2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
con. Posted March 31, 2021 My book of the Year. So far. The Wild Twin, as I understood it, means the part or parts of us that were lost in the process of civilisation. What would an initiation into adulthood have given us? What attitude to keep at heart if the Underworld (or Otherworld or whatever) is something we're already in, we just didn't recognise it yet? With this questions in the background the author tells and interprets two stories. "The Lindworm" and "Tatterhood". I will link the first one below, but it was the second one that really got to me. I'm certain there is somebody here that needs to hear that second story, if only for admiration. Whoever that is, she or he should buy the book. Give the man his well earned money. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7-uZSIUSpU (All my interpretation, of course. For all I know it might be a complex metaphor for sport fishing.) 2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manitou Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) What a beautiful story. As a little girl, I grew up loving East of the Sun and West of the Moon. The same sort of story, where a girl falls in love with a monster and then fixes him. I read this book over a bunch of times. Only problem with doing that is that it sets a template in a little girl. It sure did in me. I've been putting men in a bowl of milk and scrubbing them with a wire brush ever since. Edited March 31, 2021 by manitou 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted March 31, 2021 I'm currently reading The Overstory by Richard Powers. I'm not very far into the book but I am completely blown away by Powers' vision and his masterful command of the written word. His style reminds me a bit of Salman Rushdie. This is a book that may take me a while to read, it is one to relish and absorb rather than finish, at least it seems that way so far. Wow! Just finished this book and it affected me far more deeply than most books I’ve read. I’m in awe of Powers’ intelligence and humanity. I may read it again... 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
con. Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) 45 minutes ago, manitou said: Only problem with doing that is that it sets a template in a little girl. It sure did in me. I've been putting men in a bowl of milk and scrubbing them with a wire brush ever since. Fair point. For me she is scrubbing a part of herself. Her Wild Twin so to say. I guess that brings us back to that point about initiation? About when and in what setting to tell this story. 45 minutes ago, manitou said: As a little girl, I grew up loving East of the Sun and West of the Moon. The same sort of story, where a girl falls in love with a monster and then fixes him. I read this book over a bunch of times. I liked that one too. There is beautifully edition illustrated by Kay Nielsen. Like this: Edited March 31, 2021 by con. 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manitou Posted March 31, 2021 LOL. Scrubbing her Wild Twin is fine when you're older. It's a little more literal when you're 6. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sketch Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) Always looking for stray bits of the Silver John saga. Underrated weird fiction pitting a pure hearted folk singer against occult evildoers so of course I love these. Edited March 31, 2021 by Sketch 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sketch Posted April 30, 2021 The new Murderbot has landed. "Fugitive Telemetry". Like candy with a prize. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sketch Posted April 30, 2021 Murderbot did not take long. Next up, Archeologist Genevieve von Petzinger on the symbols found in ice age rock art. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rocala Posted June 2, 2021 I am really enjoying this at the moment. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toni Posted June 2, 2021 I am reading a classic of western thought: Spinoza's Ethics 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sketch Posted June 2, 2021 I'm just finished Ada Hoffmann's " The Outside", trippy space opera stuff, candy. Book two is not out yet. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rocala Posted June 6, 2021 On 6/2/2021 at 4:27 PM, Sketch said: I'm just finished Ada Hoffmann's " The Outside", trippy space opera stuff, I have not previously come across this writer but a little research has me intrigued. She is now on my ridiculously long reading list. Thanks Sketch 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RobB Posted June 18, 2021 William Blake Vs The World is a great read. The author, John Higgs, has also written books on Leary and the KLF. It has a lot about Blake's personal mythology and the nature and role of the divine imagination. The Moore book only arrived today but is bound to be an adventure! 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted July 6, 2021 Voice of the Fire was wonderful! Very different but reminded me a bit of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TranquilTurmoil Posted July 9, 2021 Hey bums. I am an occasional lover of literature, but my intellect and requisite knowledge sometimes doesn't quite always work with certain types of fiction. I bought the aforementioned Overstory some months back and didnt get very far. I did enjoy The Alchemist a year ago as my first foray into spiritual fiction, and I was moved "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" which I bonded over with my dad, as well as the first book of the Mistborn trilogy at my friends reccomendation. However, since then I've been in a fiction funk and have foregone all things not explicitly Dharma or Tao. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestion on cultivating wise intention or enthusiam for reading, Then book suggestions always help. I think reading could be a good healing modality and also help me cultivate emotional independence as i spend a lot of time in solitude. Thanks. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
silent thunder Posted August 2, 2021 Literally fell off the shelf into my left hand. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
manitou Posted August 3, 2021 On 7/9/2021 at 12:57 PM, TranquilTurmoil said: Hey bums. I am an occasional lover of literature, but my intellect and requisite knowledge sometimes doesn't quite always work with certain types of fiction. I bought the aforementioned Overstory some months back and didnt get very far. I did enjoy The Alchemist a year ago as my first foray into spiritual fiction, and I was moved "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" which I bonded over with my dad, as well as the first book of the Mistborn trilogy at my friends reccomendation. However, since then I've been in a fiction funk and have foregone all things not explicitly Dharma or Tao. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestion on cultivating wise intention or enthusiam for reading, Then book suggestions always help. I think reading could be a good healing modality and also help me cultivate emotional independence as i spend a lot of time in solitude. Thanks. You're as far as intellect can take you, when it comes to metaphysics. Why not try achieving mastery at something, like growing mums or something? Bonsai trees? Woodwork? Artist? I've been focused on the artist within during this lockdown, and it's broadened my dimension. I am seeing nature more vividly. It gets me out of the drag of time. This zen-like state is about being the creator. Find something you love to do and get really good at it. Us solitude folks have to develop lots of facets. I did a watercolor today. OMG, today is a great day. That's how it makes me feel. Every bit as good as meditation, but with physical productivity as a bonus. 4 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
liminal_luke Posted September 25, 2021 (edited) On 9/7/2021 at 2:57 PM, TranquilTurmoil said: I was wondering if anyone had any suggestion on cultivating wise intention or enthusiam for reading, The suggestion that comes to my mind is to read what you want, what you´re naturally drawn to rather than what somebody else thinks is good. Reading can be for fun and need not be a virtuous or educational activity. Read if you want to read and if you find you don´t want to read that´s fine too. There´s lots of other things to do. Edited September 25, 2021 by liminal_luke 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
el_tortugo Posted September 25, 2021 On 8/4/2017 at 6:59 PM, 9th said: It doesn't matter what one reveals or what one keeps to oneself. Everything we do, everything we are, rests on our personal power. If we have enough of it, one word uttered to us might be sufficient to change the course of our lives. But if we don't have enough personal power, the most magnificent piece of wisdom can be revealed to us and that revelation won't make a damn bit of difference. - Castaneda This one is interesting and along similar lines: A War Of Witches: A Journey Into The Underworld Of The Contemporary Aztecs by Timothy J. Knab https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/586401.A_War_of_Witches_ 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gentlewind Posted September 26, 2021 I have read a number of life changing books this year: The Untethered Soul and The Surrender Experiment by Michael A Singer. Check them out on Amazon. Autobiography of A Yogi by Sri Yogananda. Again check it out on Amazon. A mind blowing book! All three I highly recommend. Blessings All, gentlewind 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
el_tortugo Posted September 26, 2021 26 minutes ago, gentlewind said: Autobiography of A Yogi by Sri Yogananda. Again check it out on Amazon. A mind blowing book! Autobiography of a Yogi! This was one of the first books I read on eastern philosophy or religion. I recently listened to the audio version. Great book. It in fact jump started me back to practice. This pandemic has got me tripping out and nostalgic, reviewing life and revisiting all sorts of things. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
