(Part 2) Best religion & spirituality books according to redditors

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We found 14,855 Reddit comments discussing the best religion & spirituality books. We ranked the 5,367 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.

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Subcategories:

Religious arts & photography books
Religious literature & fiction books
Hinduism books
Books about Islam
Books about Judaism
New age & spirituality books
Paranormal books
Eastern religions books
Religions and sacred texts books
Agnosticism books
Atheism books
Religious studies
Religious worship & devotion books

Top Reddit comments about Religion & Spirituality:

u/deadaluspark · 200 pointsr/AbandonedPorn

It's a bit garbled from the original, but it's from a book about Indian Native American Shamanism called The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge by Carlos Castaneda. They are talking about the use of mescaline (Mescalito being the spiritual being associated with its use). As someone who has used hallucinogens but has not really explored Shamanism, I rather think the guy had a lot of issues before he was forced to leave. Anyway, it's not so much "angry" as, well, you get the idea.

The passage in question (sorry about the length):

> Sunday, 20 August 1961

>Last night don Juan proceeded to usher me into the realm of his knowledge. We sat in front of his house in the dark. Suddenly, after a long silence, he began to talk. He said he was going to advise me with the same words his own benefactor had used the first day he took him as his apprentice. Don Juan had apparently memorized the words, for he repeated them several times, to make sure I did not miss any:

>“A man goes to knowledge as he goes to war, wide-awake, with fear, with respect, and with absolute assurance. Going to knowledge or going to war in any other manner is a mistake, and whoever makes it will live to regret his steps.”

>I asked him why was it so and he said that when a man has fulfilled those four requisites there are no mistakes for which he will have to account; under such conditions his acts lose the blundering quality of a fool’s acts. If such a man fails, or suffers a defeat, he will have lost only a battle, and there will be no pitiful regrets over that.

>Then he said he intended to teach me about an “ally” in the very same way his own benefactor had taught him. He put strong emphasis on the words “very same way”, repeating the phrase several times.

>An “ally”, he said, is a power a man can bring into his life to help him, advise him, and give him the strength necessary to perform acts, whether big or small, right or wrong. This ally is necessary to enhance a man’s life, guide his acts, and further his knowledge. In fact, an ally is the indispensable aid to knowing.

>Don Juan said this with great conviction and force. He seemed to choose his words carefully. He repeated the following sentence four times:

>“An ally will make you see and understand things about which no human being could possibly enlighten you.”

>“Is an ally something like a guardian spirit?”

>“It is neither a guardian nor a spirit. It is an aid.”

>“Is Mescalito your ally?”

>“No! Mescalito is another kind of power. A unique power! A protector, a teacher.”

>“What makes Mescalito different from an ally?”

>“He can’t be tamed and used as an ally is tamed and used. Mescalito is outside oneself. He chooses to show himself in many forms to whoever stands in front of him, regardless of whether that person is a brujo or a farm boy.”

>Don Juan spoke with deep fervour about Mescalito’s being the teacher of the proper way to live. I asked him how Mescalito taught the “proper way of life”, and don Juan replied that Mescalito showed how to live.

>“How does he show it?” I asked.

>“He has many ways of showing it. Sometimes he shows it on his hand, or on the rocks, or the trees, or just in front of you.”

>“Is it like a picture in front of you?”

>“No. It is a teaching in front of you.”

>“Does Mescalito talk to the person?”

>“Yes. But not in words.”

>“How does he talk, then?”

>“He talks differently to every man.”

>I felt my questions were annoying him. I did not ask any more. He went on explaining that there were no exact steps to knowing Mescalito; therefore no one could teach about him except Mescalito himself. This quality made him a unique power; he was not the same for every man.

>On the other hand, the acquiring of an ally required, don Juan said, the most precise teaching and the following of stages or steps without a single deviation. There are many such ally powers in the world, he said, but he was familiar with only two of them.

>And he was going to lead me to them and their secrets, but it was up to me to choose one of them, for I could have only one.

>His benefactor’s ally was in la yerba del diablo (devil’s weed), he said, but he personally did not like it, even though his benefactor had taught him its secrets. His own ally was in the humito (the little smoke), he said, but he did not elaborate on the nature of the smoke.

>I asked him about it. He remained quiet. After a long pause I asked him:

>“What kind of a power is an ally?”

>“It is an aid. I have already told you.”

>“How does it aid?”

>“An ally is a power capable of carrying a man beyond the boundaries of himself. This is how an ally can reveal matters no human being could.”

>“But Mescalito also takes you out of the boundaries of yourself. Doesn’t that make him an ally?”

>“No. Mescalito takes you out of yourself to teach you. An ally takes you out to give you power.”

>I asked him to explain this point to me in more detail, or to describe the difference in effect between the two. He looked at me for a long time and laughed.

>He said that learning through conversation was not only a waste, but stupidity, because learning was the most difficult task a man could undertake. He asked me to remember the time I had tried to find my spot, and how I wanted to find it without doing any work because I had expected him to hand out all the information. If he had done so, he said, I would never have learned. But, knowing how difficult it was to find my spot, and, above all, knowing that it existed, would give me a unique sense of confidence. He said that while I remained rooted to my “good spot” nothing could cause me bodily harm, because I had the assurance that at that particular spot I was at my very best. I had the power to shove off anything that might be harmful to me. If, however, he had told me where it was, I would never have had the confidence needed to claim it as true knowledge. Thus, knowledge was indeed power.

>Don Juan said then that every time a man sets himself to learn he has to labour as hard as I did to find that spot, and the limits of his learning are determined by his own nature. Thus he saw no point in talking about knowledge. He said that certain kinds of knowledge were too powerful for the strength I had, and to talk about them would only bring harm to me. He apparently felt there was nothing else he wanted to say. He got up and walked towards his house. I told him the situation overwhelmed me. It was not what I had conceived or wanted it to be.

>He said that fears are natural; that all of us experience them and there is nothing we can do about it. But on the other hand, no matter how frightening learning is, it is more terrible to think of a man without an ally, or without knowledge.

u/NukeThePope · 81 pointsr/atheism

I'm happy to see this question, as it so happens I just recently learned the answer myself and am eager to share it with /r/atheism.

My source is Richard Carrier's Sense and Goodness Without God. Carrier is an atheist philosopher and historian. In a section "2.2.1 Religion Didn't Win by Playing Fair," he explains:

----

> ... all the other religions whose holy books are cited above outright condemn and slander not only atheists and doubters, but anyone of a different religious creed. ... they all make terrifying threats against doubters and unbelievers. The reasons why many of the major religions persist today reinforce this conclusion.

(You can look at Islam's vicious attitude against apostates and unbelievers, but Christianity works much the same way)

He later talks about the history of Christianity:

> Christianity... started in one tiny place, when the rest of the earth was populated by a wildly marvelous diversity of religious beliefs - and yet, curiously enough, the concept of warfare over religious differences was virtually nonexistent. Most people in ancient times believed it was proper to respect the gods of other peoples. This changed on a global scale when Christianity was spread, quite literally, by the sword. Those who attempted to assert their religious differences were harassed, tortured, robbed of their land and belongings, even killed. Before it achieved political power, Christianity was a small sect, a heresy against the Jewish faith, that had to accept equality among all the other religions of the Roman Empire. Yet it was the first religion to openly attack the religions of other people as false... Needless to say, Christianity only truly flourished when it had the ability to eliminate the competition - when it had the full support of Rome's Emperors after 313 AD, and when, in 395 AD, every religion other than Christianity was actually outlawed. Through force and decree Christianity was immersed in the cultural surroundings of lands near and far, and in an environment where it was widely accepted, if not the only thing accepted, it spread and planted itself among subjugated peoples.

> Colonization of the world, more often than not by robbery and warfare, spread Christianity into the Americas and other corners of the earth, just as Islam was spread throughout Asia and Africa. It is not a coincidence that the two most widespread religions in the world today are the most warlike and intolerant religions in history. Before the rise of Christianity, religious tolerance, including a large degree of religious freedom, was not only custom but in many ways law under the Roman and Persian empires. They conquered for greed and power, rarely for any declared religious reasons, and actually sought to integrate foreign religions into their civiliation, rather than seeking to destroy them. People were generally not killed because they practiced a different religion. Indeed, the Christians were persecuted for denying that the popular gods existed - not for following a different religion. In other words, Christians were persecuted for being intolerant.

Carrier mentions that religious intolerance was first expressed in the Hebrew Old Testament, where God leads the Jews in genocide.

> With the radical advent of Christianity, this self-righteous intolerance was borrowed from the Jews, and a new twist was added. The conversion of infidels by any means possible became the newfound calling card of religious fervor, and this new experiment in human culture spread like wildfire. By its very nature, how could it not have? Islam followed suit, conquering half the world in brutal warfare and, much like its Christian counterpart, it developed a new and convenient survival characteristic: the destruction of all images and practices attributed to other religions. Muslims destroyed millions of statues and paintings in India and Africa, and forced conversion under pain of death (or more subtle tricks ... taxing ...), while the Catholic Church busily burned books along with pagans, shattering statues and defacing or destroying pagan art... . Laws against pagan practices and heretics were in full force throughout Europe by the sixth century, and as long as those laws were in place it was impossible for anyone to refuse the tenets of Christianity and expect to keep their property or their life. Similar... Islamic countries even to this day... .

This also explains why, of the three bellicose Abrahamic religions, Judaism didn't end up going much of anywhere: Judaism is not evangelical, i.e. it doesn't try to proselytize and/or convert. The "new twist" was wildly successful for Christianity and Islam.

Ironically enough in these days when Christian fundamentalists deny the Theory of Evolution, Christianity won by the simple process of natural selection:

> Simply imagine two competing religious points of view, one holding the idea that other religions are to be respected and that war is justified only in defense, the other holding that war is justified in converting infidels to the only true faith, and that this faith must by its very calling be spread across the world. Which religion will survive and grow, and which will be stamped out and forgotten? The answer is self-evident - and yet it has nothing to do with which religion is actually true.

Dang, I've cited large parts of the chapter. I hope this is "fair use!" OK, I'll wrap up by sharing his conclusion:

> So the new idea that only one religion is true and all others are evil or false, and the idea that this true faith must be carried across the globe in order to save everyone from doom, are the very attributes that guaranteed the survival of Christianity and Islam, and the elimination of nearly all other religions in the world. Both these characteristics are much more plausible explanations for the widespread acceptance of Christianity and Islam than the claim that "they are widespread because they are true" or "this is evidence of God's design." How could both Christianity and Islam credit their spread to their unique truth? Clearly, at least one of them has to be false, proving that such vast success does not need truth behind it. And they can't both be the result of God's design, unless God is confused.

----

I see no reason to doubt Carrier's interpretation; history is his specialty, and he cites lots of references, which I'll be happy to share if requested. Understanding this makes a bittersweet irony of Christianity's and Islam's sanctimonious claims to being "religions of peace," and I'm anxious to expose this wicked and pervasive lie at every opportunity.

EDIT: Typos, inevitably. Also, highlighting for TL;DR.

u/beardedheathen · 43 pointsr/AskScienceFiction
u/crayonleague · 40 pointsr/atheism

Bart Ehrman - Jesus Interrupted (2010)

In this deliciously satisfying book, the author, a New Testament scholar, carefully reviews and assesses the New Testament with a detailed and extremely thorough analysis of the figure we call Jesus. This is not a rant, not an attack on Christianity, this is an objective and critical analysis of the New Testament, showing how the entire Jesus myth and indeed, all of Christianity is a purposely-designed fabrication rife with contradictions, inaccuracies, and sometimes outright falsehoods.

John Loftus - Why I Became an Atheist (2008)

If you want a one-stop total critique of Christianity, this is the book you're looking for. The author is a former Christian apologist turned extremely angry and prolific atheist. In this book Loftus attacks the full span of Christianity, addressing the philosophical arguments against theism, the historical incompatibilities and inaccuracies of the Bible, and the contradictions between creationism and modern science, and throughout it all is an undercurrent of personal experience as Loftus explains his own deconversion from devout evangelicalism to enraged atheist.

Concerning atheism.

These are for the people going "Well, I'm an atheist. Now what?" There's more to atheism than eating babies and posting fake facebook conversations on r/atheism. There's much more truth, beauty, and value in a universe without a celestial supervisor, where humans are free to make our own purposes and dictate our own paths. Thinking for yourself and recognizing the natural wonder of the universe is far greater than the false consolation any religion can provide you. These books show how.

Michael Martin - Atheism: A Philosophical Justification (1989)

In this book, Martin attempts a two-pronged defense of atheism: first by attacking theistic arguments regarding the implausibility of morality and purpose without God, second by defending against attacks specifically on atheism. In such a manner he makes a strong case for both negative and positive atheism. Though extremely dated, this book is a classic and a must-read for any atheist.

Erik J. Wielenberg - Value and Virtue in a Godless Universe (2005)

In this book, Wielenberg advances a naturalist philosophy and addresses the problem of nontheistic morality as weakly espoused by the likes of Dostoevsky and C.S. Lewis. First he challenges the claims of theistic morality, next he advances naturalistic ethics and displays how theological justification is unnecessary for a good and moral life. Concepts such as intrinsic morality, inherent human tendencies such as charity and altruism, and the idea of moral obligations are all addressed.

Richard Carrier - Sense and Goodness Without God (2005)

In this book, Richard Carrier, perhaps most well-known as one of the major modern debunkers of the Jesus myth, continues the trend of expanding metaphysical naturalism, but this is a more complex and thorough work covering the full spectrum of a developed worldview, addressing nearly every topic beyond just morality, and presents a complete philosophical outlook on life that is easy to comprehend and evaluate. A solid starting point for the newly atheist.

My personal picks.

Now, since this is my list after all, and after typing up all of that, I think I've earned the right to make my own recommendations. These are books that I think people should read that don't necessarily have anything to do with atheism.

Markos Moulitsas - American Taliban (2010)

This book reads like a collection of loosely-related blog entries, some of them written by angry teenagers, and Moulitsas himself is no philosopher or professor, but is still an important read for those of you who haven't been paying attention. In this book, the founder of Daily Kos draws the extremely obvious and transparent similarities between the religious right of America, and the Islamofascists across the pond, and displays how modern conservatism has largely been hijacked and/or replaced by a complex political machine intent on maintaining the power of a small group of white, male, Christian elite.

Chris Hedges - American Fascists (2007)

Okay, time for a more sophisticated take on the issue than Daily Kos stuff. Those of you who plan on staying and fighting in the US rather than simply getting the fuck out while you still can need this book. With a critical and objective eye, Hedges displays the dark and tumultuous underbelly of America and shows how an extremely powerful and well-organized coalition of dominionists is slowly taking over the country and seeking to transform it into a theocratic state. Those of you who are moderate Christians and similarly despise the lunatic fringe of Christians should also read this book. Hedges analyzes this Christian Right movement, allied with totalitarianism and a denial of reality, that has declared a jihad (or a "teahad", if you're a Tea Partier) on secularism and even on Christianity itself, utilizing religion for its darkest and most sinister purpose - committing cruelty and intolerance upon others in the name of divine supervision.

CJ Werleman - God Hates You, Hate Him Back (2009)

This is one of my favorite books and is a great book to unwind with after a critical look at Christianity. The biggest problem with the Bible is not the contradictions, the outright falsehoods, or even the blatantly made-up and ridiculous bullshit about magic and miracles and supernatural nonsense - it's the fact that, taking it all at face value, the God described in the Bible is the single most despicable and terrifying fictional villain ever imagined by humanity. This is a character that seems to actively despise mankind, and in this book, Werleman shows why with a hilarious and thorough analysis of the Bible. This book reads like Monty Python and is just as funny - not meant to be taken seriously of course unless you're a Biblical literalist, but still a great read.


Well, that's all I got. This list took about half a day to compile and is itself also woefully inadequate, there's quite a bit of books I haven't gotten around to reading yet. But, it should be much more sufficient than the current r/atheism reading lists and I've done my best to include the most recent works. If you have any books to add that you feel are noteworthy, please feel free to post them. I hope this list can help many people in their understanding of philosophy and atheism.

u/DKowalsky2 · 30 pointsr/Catholicism

> I have no idea if this post contains anything insulting/against the rules/breaking some secret taboo. I just want to become closer to the family of the man I love.

This last sentence just made me smile so big today. We're a pretty thick skinned bunch, and hearing that you want to come into this with an open heart and mind, prompted by a man and family whom you love, is an occasion for joy. Welcome! We're happy to have you here. Please stick around and ask as many questions as you wish!

I want to make this offer at the beginning of this post, so it doesn't get buried. As you embark upon this journey, please feel free to keep my username handy and DM with any specific questions that trip you up or pique your curiosity. I mean that, I'm happy to be a resource in addition to all the wonderful folks who help this subreddit tick.

I'm a cradle Catholic, 28 years old, and I, too, feel like there's an eternity's worth of stuff to discover about the faith. It's always overwhelming.

I'm going to first echo /u/Trubea's sentiments, Catholicism For Dummies is an excellent resource book and worth picking up.

Given that your SO has been sharing lots of biblical stories with you it would also make sense to buy a Bible. I'd recommend the following for a very readable Bible with awesome footnotes, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a teaching companion to reference against. It may take time to dig really deeply into those, but eventually you'll want them.

  • Bible
  • Catechism

    Two YouTube channels (finally I'm recommending something free, right?) where you'll find great short videos on what the Church teaches, pop culture, and everything in between are found here:

  • Bishop Robert Barron's "Word On Fire" Channel
  • Father Mike Schmitz on "Ascension Presents"

    Also, I've noticed you seem to be drawn to the "beauty" of the faith. The aforementioned Bishop Barron has some great media that I think you'd really enjoy.

  • The Catholicism Video Series - A 10 episode documentary with some great cinematic work and soundtrack that break down some of the basics of the faith. A bit pricey for the whole thing, but something to consider. A trailer for the whole series can be found here and they did post a free, 53 min long episode on YouTube which can be found here.

  • Bishop Barron's book that covers some of the same info as the video series, aptly named Catholicism.

    Before I recommend too many more options that break the bank, I'll leave you with that. :) There are lots of free resources to learn about the Catholic Church online, as well. The teachings, the stories, the lives of the saints, the miracles, you name it! Just let us know what is piquing your interest the most, and we'll do our best to direct you to something awesome on it.

    In the present, will say a prayer for your journey. Peace to you!

u/Loud_Volume · 30 pointsr/conspiracy

SS: A question asked for centuries. Are we more than our physical body? Do we have a soul? Something that has been debated, argued, and fought over. After doing personal research on the subject and experiencing 2 out of body experiences, it piqued my interest and I went down a rabbit hole I will never regret. Today I wanted to share this research that has been done by the CIA on this subject. Regardless of the mountains of data already on the subject, this is something that cuts straight to the heart of the issue and doesn't hide behind fluff.

First off, I would like to give credit to /u/no1113 for originally posting and sharing this here 6 months ago. This did not get the attention it deserved and something like this is a great find to share. Thank you /u/no1113

Here is the original thread: https://np.reddit.com/r/conspiracy/comments/6r5hk1/the_cia_and_the_continuance_of_individual/

Here is a direct link to the CIA archive: https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00788R001700210016-5.pdf

And here is the relevant text, copied from the above mentioned thread.

> 27. Consciousness in Perspective. Having ascertained that human consciousness is able to separate from physical reality and interact with other intelligences in other dimensions within the universe, and that it is both eternal and designed for ultimate return to the Absolute, we are faced with the question: “So what happens then?” Since memory is a function of consciousness and therefore enjoys the same eternal character as the consciousness which accounts for its existence, it must be admitted that when consciousness returns to the Absolute, it brings with it all the memories it has accumulated through experience in reality. The return of consciousness to the Absolute does not imply and extinction of the separate entity which the consciousness organized and sustained in reality. Rather, it suggests a differentiated consciousness which merges with and participates in the universal consciousness and infinity of the Absolute without losing the separate identity and accumulated self-knowledge which its memories confer upon it. What it does lose is the capability for generation of independent thought holograms, since that can be done only by energy in motion. In other words, it retains the power to perceive but loses the power of will or choice. In exchange, however, this consciousness participates in the all-knowing infinite continuum of consciousness which is a characteristic of energy in the ever present. Consequently, it is accurate to observe that when a person experiences the out-of-body state, they are, in fact, projecting that eternal spark of consciousness and memory which constitutes the ultimate source of their identity to let it play in and learn from dimensions both inside and outside the time-space world in which their physical component currently enjoys a short period of reality.

I would also like to personally recommend some great books on the subject that go into great detail about the soul and our life between life. Remember, energy cannot be destroyed, only moved! Consciousness is energy, we cannot be destroyed, only our physical bodies fall away but our truth essence, our spark, our light of consciousness that we all hold, lives on. Truly amazing information and liberating as well.

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855

https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184995

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/163451.Between_Death_Life

https://www.amazon.com/Your-Souls-Plan-Discovering-Meaning/dp/1583942726

u/OldWolf2642 · 26 pointsr/DebateAnAtheist

To quote:

>Why are atheists angry? Is it because they're selfish, joyless, lacking in meaning, and alienated from God? Or is it because they have legitimate reasons to be angry--and are ready to do something about it?

Read a BOOK

Watch a LECTURE

Then try exercising what little intelligence you appear to have and think about it.

u/dassitt · 23 pointsr/islam

The Qur'an can be a confusing text for beginners, especially its English translation. It isn't a "book" in the traditional sense. It's meant to be lived, interacted with, and recited out loud often. Hence, you'll find a lot of repetition, as repetition is one of the hallmarks of oral recitation; the best way to emphasize a point orally is to repeat it again and again. The Qur'an isn't a book that one is meant to simply read, and no translation can match up the majesty, eloquence, and utter elegance of its original Arabic.

I'd recommend keeping that in mind when approaching the Qur'an! It might seem daunting and inaccessible at first, and you might think, "OK, I get it," when you read the repetitive descriptions of warnings of hellfire, pleasures of paradise, mercy of Allah, etc again and again and again. Just remember: this isn't a traditional book, it's a lived, interactive text :)

Also, I'd highly recommend The Study Qur'an. It not only provides commentary and historical context to every single verse, but includes maps and many other useful tools. One of my favorite features of The Study Qur'an is its extensive collection of essays in the back of the book, ranging from topics such as Islamic art and architecture and medieval Islamic philosophy to women in Islam and Islamic eschatology. If you're in the US, it's available at most Barnes & Noble stores as well!

Most importantly, if you have any questions, come seek us! I am by no means an expert of the Qur'an, but a lot of things can be taken out of context and Islamophobes love to cherry pick certain verses that appear outwardly violent. This is a super handy infographic to explain some of them, and most English Qur'ans with commentary (including The Study Qur'an) will provide explanations and context as well!

Best of luck! Let us know if you need anything at all and what your honest thoughts are!

u/[deleted] · 23 pointsr/TrueAtheism

I'll let Jared Diamond explain:

--------------------------------------------

A recent interpretation among some scholars of religion is that belief in religious superstitions serves to display one’s commitment to one’s religion. All long-lasting human groups — Boston Red Sox fans (like me), devoted Catholics, patriotic Japanese, and others — face the same basic problem of identifying who can be trusted to remain as a group member. The more of one’s life is wrapped up with one’s group, the more crucial it is to be able to identify group members correctly and not to be deceived by someone who seeks temporary advantage by claiming to share your ideals but who really doesn’t. If that man carrying a Boston Red Sox banner, whom you had accepted as a fellow Red Sox fan, suddenly cheers when the New York Yankees hit a home run, you’ll find it humiliating but not life-threatening. But if he’s a soldier next to you in the front line and he drops his gun (or turns it on you) when the enemy attacks, your misreading of him may cost you your life.

That’s why religious affiliation involves so many overt displays to demonstrate the sincerity of your commitment: sacrifices of time and resources, enduring of hardships, and other costly displays that I’ll discuss later. One such display might be to espouse some irrational belief that contradicts the evidence of our senses, and that people outside our religion would never believe. If you claim that the founder of your church had been conceived by normal sexual intercourse between his mother and father, anyone else would believe that too, and you’ve done nothing to demonstrate your commitment to your church. But if you insist, despite all evidence to the contrary, that he was born of a virgin birth, and nobody has been able to shake you of that irrational belief after many decades of your life, then your fellow believers will feel much more confident that you’ll persist in your belief and can be trusted not to abandon your group.

Nevertheless, it’s not the case that there are no limits to what can be accepted as a religious supernatural belief. Scott Atran and Pascal Boyer have independently pointed out that actual religious superstitions over the whole world constitute a narrow subset of all the arbitrary random superstitions that one could theoretically invent. To quote Pascal Boyer, there is no religion proclaiming anything like the following tenet: “There is only one God! He is omnipotent. But he exists only on Wednesdays.” Instead, the religious supernatural beings in which we believe are surprisingly similar to humans, animals, or other natural objects, except for having superior powers. They are more far-sighted, longer-lived, and stronger, travel faster, can predict the future, can change shape, can pass through walls, and so on. In other respects, gods and ghosts behave like people. The god of the Old Testament got angry, while Greek gods and goddesses became jealous, ate, drank, and had sex. Their powers surpassing human powers are projections of our own personal power fantasies; they can do what we wish we could do ourselves. I do have fantasies of hurling thunderbolts that destroy evil people, and probably many other people share those fantasies of mine, but I have never fantasized about existing only on Wednesdays. Hence it doesn’t surprise me that gods in many religions are pictured as smiting evil-doers, but that no religion holds out the dream of existing just on Wednesdays. Thus, religious supernatural beliefs are irrational, but emotionally plausible and satisfying. That’s why they’re so believable, despite at the same time being rationally implausible.

Source: http://www.salon.com/2013/01/13/jared_diamond_its_irrational_to_be_religious/

--------------------------------------------

You may also want to read the book Religion Explained by Pascal Boyer (alluded to in the passage by Diamond) to understand religion on a deeper psychological level:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_Explained

http://www.amazon.com/Religion-Explained-Evolutionary-Origins-Religious/dp/0465006965

u/Pickleburp · 23 pointsr/Thetruthishere

Sure. :) I was trying not to hijack the thread, but I'll just put the list here and that way anyone can have it. Keep in mind, these aren't all collections of stories, some of them are research topics, but none of them that I've browsed through look like bad reads. The ones I have read I've tried to note.

Iroquois Supernatural: Talking Animals and Medicine People - Michael Bastine, Mason Winfield - most closely related to thread topic

Life After Life - Raymond Moody - Very good intro to Near Death Experience research

Reunions: Visionary Encounters with Departed Loved Ones - Raymond Moody

Journey of Souls - Michael Newton - Read this one, it was great, changed my views on reincarnation

The Day Satan Called - Bill Scott

Hunt for the Skinwalker - Colm Kelleher, George Knapp - read parts of, need to finish

The Vengeful Djinn - Rosemary Ellen Guiley - I've read this one, it's really good too, has a large "slow" section in the middle that quotes the Q'uran a lot, but some good creepy Djinn stories.

The Djinn Connection - Rosemary Ellen Guiley

Ghost Culture: Theories, Context, and Scientific Practice - John Sabol

Zones of Strangeness - Peter A. McCue

Lost Secrets of Maya Technology - James O'Kon

The Mythology of Supernatural - Nathan Robert Brown - this one might sound cheesy, but I've read a book on world mythology by the same author, and apparently the writers of the show did their research

Holy Ghosts: Or How a (Not-So) Good Catholic Boy Became a Believer in Things That Go Bump in the Night - Gary Jansen

u/CoachAtlus · 22 pointsr/Meditation

You're going to get a lot of unhelpful responses to this question. This, for whatever reason, is a very touchy subject. It's also one that is very difficult to talk about, because talking about the experience of enlightenment actually doesn't quite make sense, because there are major issues defining something that cannot be defined, that goes beyond experience.

Also, in my experience, the more that "you" think you know something about this subject, the more likely you are to be deluded about it. Consequently, while you want to understand this thing intellectually, if anybody thinks they can explain it to you intellectually, it's bonk. This thing cannot be known.

I recommend you check out this book, which was recommended to me by one of our valued contributors here, /u/mrbundle. I found this book to be quite interesting and helpful.

Please don't ask me anymore. All I know is that I don't know shit.

u/keith0718 · 21 pointsr/Catholicism

I lost my faith as a Protestant and spent a while as an agnostic/atheist before becoming Catholic. My advice would be to really work at keeping an open, receptive mind and a real desire to know the truth. A little prayer wouldn't hurt either -- whatever you can muster, even to the God you're not really sure exists. Christians believe that Truth is a living person and He's reaching out to you. If you are seeking Truth, you will find Him.

I don't know if you're a reader, but a book that helped me immensely was Orthodoxy. It's G. K. Chesterton's recounting of his transition from agnosticism to Christianity. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Chesterton will change your life. Another good book --the best modern refutation of atheism -- is The Last Superstition by Ed Feser.

Edit: typos

u/God_And_Truth · 21 pointsr/Catholicism

I'm not sure how much my words will be of use for you, as I am myself not yet Catholic (I'm currently going through RCIA). However, I can relate with regard to a lack of Catholic friends. I'm an immigrant from India who was raised in a Hindu family; most of my friends are Indian and nominally Hindu. I've had only a couple of Christian friends in my life and never a Catholic friend. Reading and researching through books, articles, podcasts, videos, etc. have led me to the faith.

Oftentimes, in defending the faith, I have debated my family, my friends, and others close to me. It became clear to me that I needed a systematic plan if I was going to do this with any shred of ability. Here's mine. Perhaps it will be of use to you or somebody else who clicks on your post because they can relate.

  1. Learn logic. I'm working through Socratic Logic by Peter Kreeft right now. It's clear, readable, has plenty of examples, many of which are from interesting works, such as those of G.K. Chesterton or C.S. Lewis. It's an investment, to be sure, as it's running for ~ $20 online, but it's well worth it.

  2. Study Aristotelian-Thomistic philosophy. St. Thomas Aquinas is the universal doctor of the Catholic Church. You're not going to find a better source of philosophy, theology, and wisdom than this saint. Now, I don't recommend jumping right into the Summa Theologica or the Summa Contra Gentiles, at least not without a study guide, primarily because modern thought holds assumptions which Aquinas would have rejected. Therefore, to understand Aquinas' arguments, and really the arguments of any philosopher before Descartes, you need to understand the basic metaphysics (the understanding of being as being) of the classical (Aristotle, Plato, etc.) and medieval (Augustine, Aquinas, etc.) philosophers. Edward Feser is an American analytical philosopher who is also an orthodox Roman Catholic. He's written two books which I would highly recommend. First, and foremost, I think you will be well served by his The Last Superstition: A Refutation of the New Atheism (I'm sure you can see why). It's very readable but also deep. It's also polemical; you'll laugh out loud quite a bit. Second, I would recommend his Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide. This is an introduction to Thomistic philosophy. It goes over the metaphysical foundations, Aquinas' Five Ways to demonstrate the existence of God, Aquinas' philosophy of ethics, and Aquinas' philosophy of psychology.

  3. Once you have worked through these three books, I think you'll be ready to work through the more difficult works. However, and this is key, the vast, vast, vast majority of atheists and skeptics you'll come across and meet in your journey through this world can be easily and completely refuted if you familiarize yourself with and understand and think through the arguments laid out by Feser in these two books. Depending on your intelligence level and the availability of time, going through these three books might take you a bit of time. Don't worry. Take it slow. Once you understand their relevance and validity, you'll be able to both defend the faith and also show how atheism is false, incoherent, and dangerous.

    In summary, I'd recommend reading the following books in this order:
  4. The Last Superstition by Edward Feser: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Superstition-Refutation-New-Atheism-ebook/dp/B00D40EGCQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504537006&sr=8-1&keywords=the+last+superstition
  5. Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide by Edward Feser: https://www.amazon.com/Aquinas-Beginners-Guide-Guides-ebook/dp/B00O0G3BEW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1504537006&sr=8-2&keywords=the+last+superstition
  6. Socratic Logic by Peter Kreeft: https://www.amazon.com/Socratic-Logic-Questions-Aristotelian-Principles/dp/1587318083/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

    God Bless and take care.
u/Sir_Erdrick · 19 pointsr/Catholicism

I always recommend the Didache Bible. The RSV-2CE translation which is used is the best translation into modern English that I have seen and it includes commentary from the Catechism.

u/rjames190 · 19 pointsr/Catholicism

As far as translations i would recommend the RSV-CE2, and i think the didache bible is the best for that:













https://www.amazon.com/Didache-Bible-Commentaries-Catechism-Catholic/dp/1939231140












The notes are based in the catechism of the church and it has apologetic pages to explain various things about the faith.

u/rookiebatman · 19 pointsr/atheism

A blogger named Greta Christina wrote a blog post answering that question, which was so popular that it spawned a book and a lecture.

u/Elementarrrry · 17 pointsr/Judaism

It helps to have more specific questions, but of course, having specific questions usually requires some basic level of knowledge.

jewfaq.org is pretty good. we have some decentish resources in our wiki. there's a judaism stackexchange, but like stackexchange as a whole it tends a bit towards elitist, high-level, and unfriendly to beginners.

The standard book recommendations when this situation comes up is To Be a Jew and Jewish Literacy.

Also possibly relevant, depending on your tastes, This is My God by Herman Wouk. Was reminded of this book by this Ask the Rabbi, which also recommends Partners in Torah -- possibly relevant, depending on your level of investment in learning more (sets you up with a weekly study partner)

---

did a quick google, this looks relevant: https://www.xojane.com/it-happened-to-me/found-out-jewish-ancestry-in-20s

So does the book Suddenly Jewish, which I found via this article

oh and there's this post from a day ago: judaism for beginners

---

also, for your perusal, the search results for "found out jewish" on this sub

u/Nefandi · 15 pointsr/occult

>What book have you read that gave you instructions on how to do something and when you did it, it worked?

For me my first such book was "The Art of Dreaming" by Castaneda.

I don't follow it explicitly, but I do many similar things especially compared to the early sections of the book, and with good results, and therefore have confidence that the book is 100% solid: Initiation into Hermetics by Franz Bardon.

>I don't want base concepts or history, I want results.

All results-oriented books are basically cut off at the knees and you won't get very far with them. Do you understand why? Probably not, or you'd not be asking like this. So let me try to explain why.

All your intentions are conditioned. Your intent does not operate in a vacuum. Thus when you move your arm, this is conditioned by the idea that you have an arm, that you can validly move it toward an object which you consider to be a valid object, inside a valid universe and so on. In other words your confidence rests on a vast network of entrenched beliefs and based on that you produce intentions which are conventional and limited.

So for example, can you leave your body? Probably not. Why not? Because in your likely worldview you likely are the body and it makes no logical sense to intend to leave it. The body can't leave itself, so it's senseless. And if you try, you experience failure. Then you start to look for results-oriented books which work while you ignore the problems in your own psyche that keep you back.

So for an occult intent to become properly operative, that intent needs to first be made sensical. This requires the books you hate! The theoretical books. The contemplative books. The books that superficially seem to have no point to them. The books that help you clear out the debris of old occult-inhibiting beliefs and replace them with the occult-enabling beliefs.

And if you are the sort of a person who doesn't want to get stuck in a belief system just for the sake of the occult, you need to go higher toward meta-beliefs (beliefs about beliefs), the way Chaos Magick does.

So your results orientation is a severe obstacle, actually. It's a throw back to materialism and convention.

Let's return to a book like "Initiation into Hermetics." If there ever was a results oriented book, that one is it. That book is void of theory and it just contains exercises which work. The problem is, your psyche is very likely not prepared for what will happen once you succeed with the exercises. Furthermore, some of the exercises might sound nonsensical to you if you don't have the theoretical grounding first. And you won't be able to follow something you consider nonsensical. So even the best results-oriented book might fail for you if it doesn't match your mental propensities.

That doesn't mean there aren't stupid fluff books out there. Because there are! But many excellent and worthwhile books are not in fact immediately results-oriented.

u/autumnflower · 14 pointsr/islam

The question is not whether you feel close to god. The question is do you believe in God?

If the answer is, as I suspect it might be, "I don't know," then that is what you need to tackle first. You would have to remove all the questions of halal and haram, whether you can drink alcohol or not, eat bacon or not, because at this point they are irrelevant. They are details of what God has asked us to do, which mean nothing if you don't believe in God.

You have to assess whether you believe in God without involving your wants and desires into it. Then you'll have to face a very important and difficult decision: if you do believe in God, and become convinced it is the truth despite your emotions, are you willing to act upon that truth?

That statement you said about taking off the hijab and feeling the wind in your hair was me. I was lost. I too had read the Qur'an so many times with no real comprehension. I was in a swamp of doubt drowning in emotions and desires of what I wanted to do but which Islam was preventing me from doing. It was all Islam's fault you see, why everything was wrong, and everything would become so much better without it, because then I'd be in control of my life and decisions. I would do all the nice and fun things I couldn't otherwise do. See, that's what shaytan does, he masks the real issue in shallow wants and delusions of control that distract you from the real problem in hopes that you go completely off course.

I had a total emotional and faith breakdown one day complete with tears, as I came to the realization that I rationally believe that God absolutely exists and could not lie to myself, even though my heart felt emotionally empty of that belief. I had that breakdown because I thought myself too weak emotionally to face that belief and its consequences, that I almost didn't want to. But I did, I begged Allah for help, put my reason in charge of my emotions, and... I slowly got over it. I won't say I magically overnight went from resentful to pious, it has been a journey of many years. But with every small effort I made to stick with my deen, it became much easier and more good came my way. It still requires daily effort but now, alhamdulillah, my belief is no longer just rational and emotionally empty, but incredibly rich and filled with utter love for my Creator. The more love I have for Allah (swt) the more those wants and desires I used have feel like they were the prison and that now I feel the joy of freedom that only one who was in a prison can feel.

Some of the things that seem to have helped for me and for my younger sister (who went through what I went through a couple of years after me, but her faith was emotional and she needed to work on the rational part) that may help you too: Reading some philosophical works: reading the kalam cosmological argument helped me, she's currently reading There is a God by Anthony Flew (a famous atheist who ended up believing late in life). She also started a Qur'an club among a group of friends who were interested and we meet every other Sunday to discuss a surah. That has helped tremendously for us to connect with the Qur'an on a personal level. Listening to Nouman Ali Khan discuss the Qur'an has also helped us understand it a lot. Also, I feel like I'm sharing this video a lot these days, but here goes: Jeffrey Lang - The purpose of life.

My point is, find whatever works for you.

I pray Allah (swt) will guide you and make things clearer for you.

Edit: added some resources/links. I hope they help!

u/wellrelaxed · 12 pointsr/Paranormal

If you're really interested in souls and spirit guides, I'd suggest a book entitled Journey of Souls by Michael Newton. It was suggested to me a couple months ago on reddit. Really good book.
http://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

u/quantumcipher · 12 pointsr/occult

IIRC this book (intentionally) left out the inner order rituals of the R.R. et A.C., as did Cicero's "Self-Initiation" book on the GD, which I would also recommend. These inner order rituals can be now accessed, at least the amended version used by the subsequent Alpha et Omega group (one of the few true G.D. lineages) in "Secret Inner Order Rituals of the Golden Dawn" by Pat Zalewski, much to the dismay of contemporary G.D. groups. You can also find a more novel and elaborate (and equally exclusive) reproduction of the Whare-Ra version of an Enochian manuscript from their Inner Order known as "Ritual X" once you've gone over the other material, or should you wish to add it to your collection.


Whether these will be of any use to you is debatable. If you feel a particular connection with the G.D. current and curriculum give it a shot and see how it resonates with you. If it does not, you can always go the A.A. route and see if Thelema (or your take on it) is your thing.

For a more practical approach, I would recommend "Initiation Into Hermetics" by Franz Bardon first, followed by "Modern Magick: Twelve Lessons in the High Magickal Arts" by Donald Michael Kraig. Then decide which path, or lackthereof, you would like to explore from there.

u/TruthHammerOfJustice · 12 pointsr/Catholicism
u/Fey_fox · 12 pointsr/cringepics

Weird is subjective. Everyone is a little 'weird', we all have our picidillies that someone somewhere would find odd. To me some of the weirdest folk I've met are the ones that are obsessed with normalcy.


It's my guess that this particular dude feels very powerless. He's probably alone and has no friends, so he does what a lot of folks do in this situation, they go inside their head and think so much until their hopes, fears, and perceptions of the world and the relationships they have become delusional obsessions. To right the wrongs they feel the world has (or the wrongs done to themselves), many turn to a doctrine or system where they feel like they can gain control. Religion is one example, especially cult like ones with lots of dogma, but it can be anything really. This dude opted to focus on the occult. He's probably read a lot of books, and the photos he's taken indicate he's looking to gain fear and respect via 'shocking images'. The drawings on the ground look like veve imagery, or maybe some crap from the Necronimicon (which was written as a joke btw) but he's definitely not apart of Voudo (voodoo) or any occult group or alternative religion I know of. He may even believe in what he's doing, if so he's not much different than those Appalachian churches that dance with snakes and drink poision, except he's being public. One thing fosho he ain't no Alister Crowley. At least he wrote some decent poetry.

Anywho, shit like this is what happens when people face a lot of rejection and are alone, and they either further isolate, but a clue and grow out of it, or try to become their own brand of cult leader & continue to try to impress people.

… still though, just a guess


Source: I know of a lot of weird crap

u/abandoningeden · 11 pointsr/exjew

was this on your mother's side or your father's side? Given that most cultures give you a last name based on your father's side I'm going to assume father's..in which case most jews would not consider you jewish since judaism is 'passed down' through women, but not men. There are some groups that consider judaism as "passed down' from both women and men but only if you yourself were raised jewish (which clearly you weren't). Anyway this doesn't mean that you might not want to learn more about judaism given you still have jewish ancestry but you should be aware....

Also ashkenazi's aren't a tribe per se, more of an ethnic group that means your anscensters were european (mostly central/eastern european) jews. There is another group called sephardis that are descended from jews in spain/the iberian peninsula (and many from north africans who moved there after the spanish expulsion of jews), and then there are mizrachis which are descended from middle easterners. But all 3 groups are supposedly descended from the original group of jews who lived in Israel and were expelled by the romans (and moved to different areas afterwards and developed somewhat different traditions and foods and stuff, but were still pretty similar).

If you are interested in learning more about judaism and how it is currently practiced, I would recommend this book: https://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Literacy-Revised-Ed-Important/dp/0061374989 although it's kinda like an encyclopedia so might be boring AF at times.

You may be better served posting this in r/judaism , this page is more for people who grew up as religious jews and no longer keep the religion.

u/seagoonie · 11 pointsr/spirituality

Here's a list of books I've read that have had a big impact on my journey.

First and foremost tho, you should learn to meditate. That's the most instrumental part of any spiritual path.

 Ram Dass – “Be Here Now” - https://www.amazon.com/Be-Here-Now-Ram-Dass/dp/0517543052 - Possibly the most important book in the list – was the biggest impact in my life.  Fuses Western and Eastern religions/ideas. Kinda whacky to read, but definitely #1

Ram Dass - “Journey Of Awakening” - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006L7R2EI - Another Ram Dass book - once I got more into Transcendental Meditation and wanted to learn other ways/types of meditation, this helped out.

 Clifford Pickover – “Sex, Drugs, Einstein & Elves…” - https://www.amazon.com/Sex-Drugs-Einstein-Elves-Transcendence/dp/1890572179/ - Somewhat random, frantic book – explores lots of ideas – planted a lot of seeds in my head that I followed up on in most of the books below

 Daniel Pinchbeck – “Breaking Open the Head” - https://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Open-Head-Psychedelic-Contemporary/dp/0767907434 - First book I read to explore impact of psychedelics on our brains

 Jeremy Narby – “Cosmic Serpent” - https://www.amazon.com/Cosmic-Serpent-DNA-Origins-Knowledge/dp/0874779642/ - Got into this book from the above, explores Ayahuasca deeper and relevancy of serpent symbolism in our society and DNA

 Robert Forte – “Entheogens and the Future of Religion” - https://www.amazon.com/Entheogens-Future-Religion-Robert-Forte/dp/1594774382 - Collection of essays and speeches from scientists, religious leaders, etc., about the use of psychedelics (referred to as Entheogens) as the catalyst for religion/spirituality

 Clark Strand – “Waking up to the Dark” - https://www.amazon.com/Waking-Up-Dark-Ancient-Sleepless/dp/0812997727 - Explores human’s addiction to artificial light, also gets into femininity of religion as balance to masculine ideas in our society

 Lee Bolman – “Leading with Soul” - https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Soul-Uncommon-Journey-Spirit/dp/0470619007 - Discusses using spirituality to foster a better, more supportive and creative workplace – pivotal in my honesty/openness approach when chatting about life with coworkers

 Eben Alexander – “Proof of Heaven” - https://www.amazon.com/Proof-Heaven-Neurosurgeons-Journey-Afterlife/dp/1451695195 - A neurophysicist discusses his near death experience and his transformation from non-believer to believer (title is a little click-baity, but very insightful book.  His descriptions of his experience align very similarly to deep meditations I’ve had)

 Indries Shah – “Thinkers of the East” - https://www.amazon.com/Thinkers-East-Idries-Shah/dp/178479063X/ - A collection of parables and stories from Islamic scholars.  Got turned onto Islamic writings after my trip through Pakistan, this book is great for structure around our whole spiritual “journey”

 Whitley Strieber – “The Key: A True Encounter” - https://www.amazon.com/Key-True-Encounter-Whitley-Strieber/dp/1585428698 - A man’s recollection of a conversation with a spiritual creature visiting him in a hotel room.  Sort of out there, easy to dismiss, but the topics are pretty solid

 Mary Scott – “Kundalini in the Physical World” - https://www.amazon.com/Kundalini-Physical-World-Mary-Scott/dp/0710094175/ - Very dense, very difficult scientific book exploring Hinduism and metaphysics (wouldn’t recommend this for light reading, definitely something you’d want to save for later in your “journey”)

 Hermann Hesse – “Siddartha” - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/siddhartha-hermann-hesse/1116718450? – Short novel about a spiritual journey, coming of age type book.  Beautifully written, very enjoyable.

Reza Aslan - “Zealot” - https://www.amazon.com/ZEALOT-Life-Times-Jesus-Nazareth/dp/140006922X - Talks about the historical Jesus - helped me reconnect with Christianity in a way I didn’t have before

Reza Aslan - “No god but God” - https://www.amazon.com/god-but-God-Updated-Evolution/dp/0812982444 - Same as above, but in terms of Mohammad and Islam.  I’m starting to try to integrate the “truths” of our religions to try and form my own understanding

Thich Nhat Hanh - “Silence” - https://www.amazon.com/Silence-Power-Quiet-World-Noise-ebook/dp/B00MEIMCVG - Hanh’s a Vietnamese Buddhist monk - in this book he writes a lot about finding the beauty in silence, turning off the voice in our heads and lives, and living in peace.

Paulo Coelho - “The Alchemist” - https://www.amazon.com/Alchemist-Paulo-Coelho/dp/0062315005/ - Sort of a modern day exploration of “the path” similar to “Siddhartha.”  Very easy and a joy to read, good concepts of what it means to be on a “path”

Carlos Castaneda - "The Teachings of Don Juan" - The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge https://www.amazon.com/dp/0671600419 - Started exploring more into shamanism and indigenous spiritual work; this book was a great intro and written in an entertaining and accessible way. 

Jean-Yves Leloup - “The Gospel of Mary” - https://www.amazon.com/Gospel-Mary-Magdalene-Jean-Yves-Leloup/dp/0892819111/ - The book that finally opened my eyes to the potentiality of the teachings of Christ.  This book, combined with the one below, have been truly transformative in my belief system and accepting humanity and the power of love beyond what I’ve found so far in my journey.

Jean-Yves Leloup - “The Gospel of Philip” - https://www.amazon.com/Gospel-Philip-Magdalene-Gnosis-Sacred/dp/1594770220 - Really begins to dissect and dive into the metaphysical teachings of Christ, exploring the concept of marriage, human union and sexuality, and the power contained within.  This book, combined with the one above, have radically changed my perception of The Church as dissimilar and antithetical to what Christ actually taught.

Ram Dass - “Be Love Now” - https://www.amazon.com/Be-Love-Now-Path-Heart/dp/0061961388 - A follow-up to “Be Here Now” - gets more into the esoteric side of things, his relationship with his Guru, enlightenment, enlightened beings, etc.

Riane Eisler - “The Chalice and the Blade” - https://www.amazon.com/Chalice-Blade-Our-History-Future/dp/0062502891 - An anthropoligical book analyzing the dominative vs cooperative models in the history and pre-history of society and how our roots have been co-opted and rewritten by the dominative model to entrap society into accepting a false truth of violence and dominance as “the way it is”

u/Jim_E_Hat · 11 pointsr/ConspiracyII

McKenna was quite a raconteur, but his theories are kind of out there. Interestingtly though, the cave paintings mentioned in the article also depict therianthropes and geometric patterns commonly seen by one under the influence of psychedelics. That's the most convincing argument I've seen for the idea that these substances led to spirituality and art. Graham Hancock wrote about that.

u/SensitiveSong · 11 pointsr/Reformed

I'd recommend checking these out:

Plantinga, Alvin. God and Other Minds. Cornell University Press, 1990.

Feser, Edward. The Last Superstition: a Refutation of the New Atheism. St. Augustine's Press, 2011.

Plantinga, Alvin. Knowledge and Christian Belief. Eerdmans, 2015.

Pitre, Brant. The Case for Jesus: The Biblical and Historical Evidence for Christ. Image, 2016.

Feser, Edward. Five Proofs of the Existence of God. Ignatius Press, 2017.

u/Cordelia_Fitzgerald · 10 pointsr/Catholicism

I have the Didache Bible. It's RSV-2CE. I've only had it about a month now, but I'm loving it so far.

The Didache Bible is great for study, but for just reading for the New Testament I like The Richmond Lattimore translation. It's very natural and reads more like a book. There are no distracting chapter or verse delineations and no commentary. It reads very naturally.

u/kent_eh · 10 pointsr/exchristian

> Clearly, there's a reason.

Lots of them. Enough to fill an entire book, or to make a lengthy speech about.


And even those reasons are only scratching the surface. There's lots more

u/ralph-j · 10 pointsr/DebateAnAtheist

And her book as well!

u/hyperion1635 · 10 pointsr/milliondollarextreme

>i make time for my degeneracy. 1.5 hours before bed every night of whatever i feel like. chips or video games or weed or beer or porn or something. helps keep me working hard from morning til night.

That's what I told myself before I ended up hunched over every morning in a pool of my own vomit. It wasn't 'til I sobered up from constant weed and porn use that I realized I was wasting my life and destroying my brain (and dick) in the process. I have started the road to recovery and you may have things more under control than I did, but I found that returning to Catholicism from a decade of atheism is what helped me recover from my despair.

In any case, I'd look into C.S. Lewis, GK Chesterton, Dr. Edward Feser (if you're looking for proof of God from a philosophical standpoint, he does a good job of explaining Aristotelian metaphysics and debunking Dawkins-tier atheism in this book), other Christian apoligists and philosophers of which there are many.

If you aren't looking for fancy-pants academic writing, i'd go for Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton first. I haven't read it yet but I've heard good things about it. It may be a little sappy for this crowd though so there's always Nihilism: The Root of Revolution in the Modern Age by Fr. Seraphim Rose, a firebrand Orthodox priest and also an ex-atheist.

u/aggie1391 · 10 pointsr/Judaism

Just to start off, its shabbos in much of the world so you won't get so many responses for a bit.

​

Lots and lots of people grew up with some Jewish identity, didn't do much, and later became religious. Seriously, its a whole movement. Of course everyone's situation is unique, but you aren't the first to struggle with this kinda thing. Thankfully, that has meant a ton of books and resources for people in your shoes, who want to learn more and do more but didn't grow up with it. Some of the biggest resources online are Aish and Chabad, I just found NJOP but it doesn't have as much on the site.

​

Now, as you know, the first step is to find a synagogue. I'd recommend looking for a Chabad or a young adults organization like a Young Jewish Professionals type of thing. They will have lots of classes for people from all sorts of backgrounds and will be super happy to help you find good resources, to teach you, etc. Chabad especially is everywhere, the joke is that only Coca-Cola and Chabad are worldwide. Next weekend is actually The Shabbos Project, which brings together people from all sorts of background to do a shabbos in a community. Actually one of these helped me really finalize my decision to become religious. And there are people here from all over who can recommend places.

​

So there are lots of basic books out there. One thing I would definitely recommend is to get a Chumash, I'd recommend the Stone Edition since its the most common but the Steinsaltz one also came out recently. A Chumash has the whole Torah and the Haftorot (the section from the Prophets read in synagogues every shabbos) with commentaries. Both the ones I linked have stuff from all sorts of commentators that help explain the text. One section of Torah is read every week on shabbos, so it makes for a great reading guide.

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A good beginner book is To Be a Jew by Rabbi Hayim HeLevy Dovin. That one is absolutely classic. He also has another one, To Pray as a Jew, that's also excellent. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin also has a great one, Jewish Literacy, that goes through everything from Bible stories and characters to Jewish historical figures and writings. R' Teluskhin has tons of good stuff, I also have his A Code of Jewish Ethics, Jewish Wisdom, and a daily study book The Book of Jewish Values, they are all great learning resources. I'd also recommend Exploring Jewish Tradition, it really gets to the basics of Jewish practices. The 'Jewish Book of Why' set is also good, there are two volumes. There's no need to dive full on into halacha (Jewish law) and like books on Talmud right away, take the basics and then explore what is interesting to you. People sometimes burn out if they try too much too quick, but others love to just jump in full on and learn a bunch really quick (I'm the second but know people in the first category, both are totally ok ways to be).

​

If there is any specific thing you would like to read more about, I can recommend more stuff after shabbos. Its only been a year since I decided to become religious so I know the position you are in. And if you have any questions, there are lots of great resources online and lots of knowledgeable people here. Of course, as I'm sure your mother can attest, there are unhealthy Jewish communities. But I firmly believe for every bad one there are far more great ones. I'm pretty new to it but the couple places I have been are both very welcoming and I have made friends from most of the major areas. It does not have to be suffocating, and there's nothing wrong with learning and doing more at your own pace. If its ever too much, slow down and reassess before jumping in further. If you listen to what your neshama (soul) is saying it'll guide you right!

u/segovius · 9 pointsr/Sufism

No, that's what it's called. It's by Seyyed Hossein Nasr.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Study-Quran-New-Translation-Commentary/dp/0061125865

u/DaSoleil14 · 9 pointsr/Catholicism

In terms of the existence of God, it was largely Anthony Flew's "There is a God" and C.S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity" that got me to a place where I could at least be open the idea of the existence of God.

u/SwordsToPlowshares · 9 pointsr/TrueAtheism

Perhaps look somewhat deeper into Buddhism. Suffering is not the problem (but the result), it's just a fact of life; what is the problem is clinging to stuff.

Buddhism is against craving. When craving is eliminated, you will do good things naturally and won't do any bad things anymore. Without such craving, the world would in fact be in a much better state. Buddhism is not in favor of eliminating positive emotions, but only negative ones (anger, delusion, craving).

(I'd highly recommend this book to understand what buddhism is about.)

u/PlasmaBurnz · 9 pointsr/Catholicism

It's important to be able to stand up for the Church, so you need to learn history and apologetics. This book points how indefensibly silly New Atheism is. Don't be afraid to ask particular questions on here as pretty much every accusation that can be leveled against Catholics has been used on reddit. Take whatever good things your oldest demands and show them how the Church nurtures them and maintains them. If he wants freedom, teach him of the slavery of sin.

Pray for strength, knowledge, and patience. It's your demonstration of Christian love that will be the greatest help in bringing them back to life. Otherwise you leave it to the Spirit to call them back in time.

u/josephsmidt · 9 pointsr/ChristianApologetics

> if anyone has any experience with college kids and what they like to ask.

First off, your typical college kid has not read anything on religion as sophisticated C.S. Lewis et al. I think it will be less the kids and more the professors that might ask tough questions. I think /r/atheism is about as sophisticated as college kids will be. So, not that I would encourage you to check out that sub, but those are mainly college kids posting overly simplistic things like "religion starts wars" or "faith is inconsistent with science", "The religious are bigots" etc...

Some professors may have read significantly more sophisticated things then typically show up on the sophomoric memes of /r/atheism. But for every one of them, there is someone like those I list below that have just as sophisticated counterpoint.

With that said here is my advice:

  1. Don't close your mind at college. There are many great truths the "secular world" knows and you need to treasure them all up. Don't become the Christian who thinks humans rode dinosaurs like horses. Be prepared to learn and work hard to learn.

  2. Though I argue way too much, be careful when arguing/debating about religion that you never lose your cool. Always be civil and respectful. I have seen more people converted by "good examples" then by intellectual argument.

  3. When you see intellectual things tugging at your faith, please allow the Christian Philosophers to also give their side of the story. Some here troubling things and give up way faster than they should. Some notable Christian Philosophers to follow: William Lane Craig, Alvin Plantinga, Richard Swinburne, Alexander Pruss, basically the several authors of the chapters of this book which are all top notch philosophers and deeply faithful, this site has some contributors that are top notch, etc...

    And some of them like William Lane Craig have sections of their website devoted to answering questions so if you have any tough questions do be afraid to ask these people. Just please, no matter what confusing question you run into, know that there are incredibly smart and respected intellectuals who have already addressed that confusing issue.

    Also, follow their blogs, newsletters, youtube debates and websites (as well as check out their books) so you always stay on top of the latest Christian arguments.

  4. The sophomoric posts of /r/atheism are literally being posted often by college kids so that sub is a good example of what you will find other kids bring up.

  5. And what ever you do, always make sure you do the "little things" like pray and read the scriptures. One danger intellectuals sometimes have is ignoring these little things that bring power like a grain of mustard seed.

u/SushiAndWoW · 9 pointsr/Thetruthishere

What you described sounds like an interesting way for a spirit friend of yours to help you out in life. It's possible that some assistance in crucial moments was necessary to ensure your path unfolds as planned. Apparently, your protector has a flair for appearing to you dramatically.

Chances are that the armor is just his personal choice, the role in which the friend wanted to present himself to you this time. Maybe it symbolizes a history the two of you share, or maybe it's armor he wore in an incarnation he enjoyed living.

If he said goodbye, chances are that his role in your life is indeed over, and you won't be seeing him again. Your life is yours to live. It's likely you'll see him again on the other side. :)

You probably don't need to research this further, but if you want to, I recommend this and this.

u/Adventureous · 9 pointsr/AskWomen

More or less, yes. There are a lot of great resources out there. I did have a friend who read them, but even though she got me into them, I really taught myself.

First, discard any and all nonsense about "you have to be gifted your deck" or "you have to bury your old deck in the ground." It's bull, really. A lot of Tarot "myths" like that are, mostly born from traditions passed down, I imagine. But you can absolutely buy your own deck, and used decks too. It's a great way to see if you like a style of deck without dropping a ton of money for nothing.

Some people recommend never reading for yourself, while others swear that they can only read themselves. In reality? Read for whoever you want.

The main thing is to realize that Tarot really is what you make of it. So many people have so many ideas of what it is, from communing with spirits/collective unconscious/gods, to psychology and Jungian archetypes, and I don't think any one way is right or wrong. Tarot is Tarot, whatever that means to you.

There are also a lot of decks out there. "Tarot" isn't limited to just Tarot; there's actually a lot of different types of cartomancy out there, like Lenormand and Oracle cards. I don't know Lenormand myself, and am only beginning on working with an Oracle deck.

And then you have different types of Tarot itself: Thoth Tarot decks and similar ones, mostly "invented" by Aleister Crowley; Rider-Waite/Rider-Waite-Smith decks, sometimes called RWS, commissioned by the Order of the Golden Dawn; historical decks, based off the tarrochi card game popular in the Renaissance; and some decks just barely following a Tarot deck and pretty much created by the author. None of them are better than another, it's all just based off of what you like and what you feel drawn to/comfortable with.

For good or for bad, there are many, many resources out there. Always critically examine what you're reading from.

Aecletic Tarot is a good first stop. Not only does it have listings of decks, from popular to rare, with pictures and sometimes reviews, but it has a lively forum section where you can find just about anything related to Tarot there.

Biddy Tarot is a site I have used in the past. Careful, though, it seems that they have been promoting their online Tarot course more and more. I've never taken it, so I can't say whether its bad or good, but I always feel a little wary about Tarot courses. I feel like you never know what kind of instructor you'd get -- there are some people out there who are a little too... "fluffy bunny" as it can be said at times. That is to say: no scholarship or scholarship based on poorly-researched books, often promoting an unbalanced and inaccurate worldview on the Roma people or Wiccans or anything else. I digress: if you stick to the free parts of the site with card meanings and spreads, its pretty good, and generally the first place I hit when I can't quite get the feel of a card.

Next, there's always reddit's very own /r/tarot. It's not terribly active, but there's good people there. Ask questions, read what is posted, and you can learn a lot. Everyone has different opinions, though, so keep that in mind. And plenty of people trade free readings there, so it's a good place to practice as well!

There are some wonderful Youtube channels out there as well. I'd like to link you this one in particular, because it's a great place to start learning how to discern sources. I also love Rose from The Cackling Moon, and she has a great Tumblr blog that could point you to a ton of good diviners there as well.

As for actual books, I had some around here, but its been so long since I read them that I don't know where they've gotten to. I know one was Tarot for Dummies, which was okay for a start. The other was Complete Book of Tarot Spreads, which I'd peg at intermediate. (That's probably the level I'm on myself). One I want but have yet to get is Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack. Again, Aecletic Tarot has a good list going, and you can always ask /r/tarot for their favorite books as well.

A few tips for getting your first deck:

  • As I said above, there are so many out there, so pick one you like the best. That said, most resources out there are for Rider-Waite-Smith decks and their clones, so you might find that its easier to start out with in that. But there are a lot of varieties out there, so find a pretty one that draws you in. You'll be spending a long time studying them. For that matter, if you find one and don't "click," try another. I've had several different decks over the year, including one that I really ended up hating. I have one of my original RWS decks that I mainly read with, and it suits me just fine even after all these years.

  • The Little White Book (often referred to affectionately as LWB) is good for starting out, but can seriously hold you back. It's just simple keywords and phrases that can be associated with the cards, but honestly you'll find that there's so much more than what can be expressed in a few words, especially when you take in a whole context of a spread.

  • Conversely, don't be afraid to reach for resources when you do a reading. Seriously, don't put pressure on yourself to memorize all 78 card's meanings. Sometimes going through a couple different sources can a meaning stand out to you, especially when you start looking at the card less individually and more in combinations.

  • Keep a journal. Write down your spreads and your interpretations of them. Not only will you be able to look back and see what you found was right, but you'll find common themes in certain cards or card combinations.

  • Cards have different symbolism for different people. Sure, they may have general themes, such as The Tower being a card of disaster or sudden change, but we can all have an opinion or feeling of a card all our own. I highly recommend writing your thoughts on different cards down in your journal too: what jumps out at you, what you didn't notice at first glance, how the card makes you feel. Eventually, you'll impart your own meanings onto them.

  • Don't be afraid of certain cards, though. Media likes to play up cards like Death or The Devil, but they aren't evil or scary, and they don't mean your going to die or get possessed by the devil or anything. Generally, the meanings are symbolic: Death is an ending (or sometimes, a new beginning), and the Devil can mean you let your passions and vices control you.

  • No matter what they cards say, they are changeable. In fact, often the point of Tarot reading is to see where you are now and if you don't do anything, where you'll end up. It's generally a tool for great self-reflection more than predicting anything concrete in the future, I've found.

  • After you've been reading for a while and shuffling your deck (regular card shuffling is okay, but the method doesn't really matter as long as they're shuffled well) and you find it getting difficult to read the cards, try putting them in "order" like it was freshly out of the box. It's kind of a reset button. I don't know if its psychological or "magical" but it works for me. There's lots of ways to "cleanse" a deck, though, so do what you feel is best.

  • This one may be a tad advanced, but I feel like I should say something on it: research Tarot ethics. This is a big one when you start reading for other people. Ask yourself: what kind of questions would you be comfortable answering to the best of your ability? Generally, most readers avoid medical questions (including pregnancy-related) and legal ones, and many avoid reading about third parties without permission out of respect. And if there's a less than pleasant implication in the cards, how would you handle that? Would you tell the truth? What would you do if they reacted negatively? What would happen if they disregard it, it came to pass, and blamed you? It's a lot to consider. If you just read for yourself, obviously that's not a big deal, but keep it in mind if you ever read for someone else.

    Last but not least, I have to comment on your username... I love pugs! Sadly, the last pug in the family, my grandma's old guy, was put down tonight. I'm going to miss him, but it was his time to go to rest.

    Good luck with your journey into Tarot. I hope it pans out well for you, and that I was in some way helpful :)
u/SecretAgentMan_007 · 8 pointsr/Paranormal

If you are not familiar with his work, you may be interested to read Dr. Michael Newton's books 'Journey of Souls' and 'Destiny of Souls'. Dr. Newton discovered he could regress his clients to not only remember past lives, but also to a state where they could remember their 'soul memories' from our conscious time spent in between incarnations. His work in researching this in between lives state answers many questions as to what happens when we die, what we do in between, why we come back, and why we forget. Very interesting to ponder. Here is a clip of a documentary that was dedicated to Life Between Lives (LBL) hypnosis work. Please consider checking it out. I have personally had an experience with this hypnosis after reading his books and wanting to know for myself. They sort of address this in the video clip. It is an academic exercise to ponder these concepts, but it is another thing entirely to have an experience for yourself and know for yourself what it is like. Anyway, thanks for reading.

u/Theinternetisassur · 8 pointsr/Judaism

Yup Jewishness passes purely along the maternal line.

Time for you to learn more about your people and heritage. And stick around this sub. Welcome home.




Recommended Reading:

To Be A Jew: A Guide To Jewish Observance In Contemporary Life

On Judaism: Conversations on Being Jewish

Judaism for the Rite Reasons

Becoming a Jew

This Is My God


Check out Torah Mates or Partners in Torah.




Where do you live? Check out your local chabad(they are everywhere) if you don't live in a place with a big Jewish community. Otherwise go to your local shul (synagogue) and talk to the rabbi.

u/SF2K01 · 8 pointsr/Judaism

Check out This is my God by Herman Wouk and To Be A Jew by Donin HaLevi.

u/sacca7 · 8 pointsr/Meditation

Thoreau: Walden, although non-fiction, may be the closest.

Ram Dass: How Can I Help, also non-fiction, has stories that are perhaps what you are looking for.

Ken Wilber One Taste. Wilber's meditative "journal" for a year. It's one of my 5 top books ever.

Ken Wilber: Grace and Grit. "Here is a deeply moving account of a couple's struggle with cancer and their journey to spiritual healing."

In another area are Carlos Castenedas books, which came out as non-fiction but there have been arguments they are fiction, and I don't know or mind either way. They are based on shamanistic drug use, but I believe it all is possible without drugs.

The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge

I have not read (Lila) Kate Wheeler's works, but I have heard of them. I've not read them mostly because if I can't get them at the library, I am too cheap to buy them.

Not Where I Started From

Nixon Under the Bodhi Tree is a collection of works and the authors there might lead you to more of their works.

I did read Bangkok Tatoo which has some Buddhist meditation themes in it, but it wasn't really to my liking.

The Four Agreements is said to be like Carlos Casteneda's books, but I have not read it.

Bottom line, I've read a lot, and I can't find any matches in my memory for Herman Hesse's Siddhartha. If I think of any I'll add it as an edit.

If you find anything interesting, please pm me, no matter how far in the future it is!

---

Edit: as per the reply below, I've added here if anyone has "saved" this post:

I thought of two more, these actually should be higher on my earlier list:

The Life of Milarepa : "The Life of Milarepa is the most beloved story of the Tibetan people amd one of the greatest source books for the contemplative life in all world literature. This biography, a true folk tale from a culture now in crisis, can be read on several levels.... "

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance which was the start of all books titled, "Zen and the Art of ____." "One of the most important and influential books written in the past half-century, Robert M. Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is a powerful, moving, and penetrating examination of how we live . . . and a breathtaking meditation on how to live better."

u/ashmortar · 8 pointsr/RepublicOfAtheism

Discussions on free will always raise my ire. It seems that the majority of philosophers in the field are compatibilists but theists seem to always be ignorant of the last 300 years of philosophical thought in the area of free will. Appeals to quantum mechanics strike me just as absurd as libertarian free will. Random effects at the quantum level do not degrees of freedom in action make.


Unfortunately most people are stuck in the determinism vs libertarian mindset. Compatibilism offers an amazingly powerful argument to the contrary. Other good resources (besides the stanford philosophical dictionary I linked above) are the discussion on free will in Richard Carrier's Sense and Goodness Without God and Daniel Dennett's Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Having.

u/n_ullman176 · 8 pointsr/Judaism

I know you were asking for Tanakh specifically, but you'll probably have better results with a book like Jewish Literacy.

It has a summary of the Tanakh along with sections on history, beliefs & practices, etc.

u/heptameron · 8 pointsr/Buddhism

Rupert Gethin's Foundations of Buddhism is a thorough introduction to Buddhism. For starting reading the Pāli discourses, there's Bhikkhu Bodhi's In the Buddha's Words - this is a selection of discourses serving as an entry point.

Then you can start with the discourses directly: start with the Majjima Nikāya and then you can also go through The Dīgha Nikāya and the Samyutta Nikāya. And then the last but not least: Aṇguttara Nikāya and the Khuddhaka Nikāya (search on Amazon). These texts would be important references for the rest of your life if you seriously pursue Buddhism.

Regarding insight meditation, Bhikkhu Anālayo's Satipaṭṭāna book is the best modern day commentary available. Highly recommend it. His "Excursions into the Pāli Discourses" Part 1 and Part 2 are also very useful since they summarize many of the topics discusses in the discourses.

Books by Shaila Catherine or Ajāhn Brahmavaṃso would be good texts regarding samatha meditation.

There are the various texts written by the Ledi Sayādaw and Mahāsi Sayadaw - two Burmese scholar-practitioners who popularized insight meditation in the last century. You can go through Ven. Ledi Sayādaw's Vipassanā Dīpani (Manual of Insight) and you can find Ven. Mahāsi Sayadaw's books here.

Bhikkhu K. Ñānānanda has many books discussing deep questions about dependent arising, the nature of nirvāna, and so forth. You can find them here.

I'll let others recommend Mahāyāna, Vajrayāna and Zen material. In general, Reginald Rays books on Tibetan Buddhism are great entry points to Tibetan Buddhism, and then there's Gampopa's Jewel Ornament Of Liberation. There's also Shantidēva's Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra, useful for any Mahāyāna practitioner. With Zen there's always Dōgen Zenji's Shōbōgenzō.

You should be able to find all of the above by googling if it's available for free or on Amazon (or a University library) otherwise.

u/Bounds · 8 pointsr/Catholicism

"I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." -Luke 15:7

You are never further away from the Church than one confession. Take 20 minutes and do a solid examination of conscience. This is not an exercise in beating yourself up. It is a way to do a thorough job of taking out the garbage, because we don't want any of it around anymore. One of the amazing things about Christ is that while we can give him beautiful gifts, we can also give him our baggage, and it its place he will give us peace. Don't be anxious if you're not sure how many times you committed a sin or if you can't remember other exact details. God knows your heart and what you are repenting of. Your local parish should hear confessions every Saturday, but you can probably also call them up and request a confession by appointment (face to face or in private) at another time.

"Once, St. Teresa was overwhelmed with God's Goodness and asked Our Lord "How can I thank you?" Our Lord replied, "ATTEND ONE MASS."

In addition to going to confession, I cannot recommend strongly enough that you begin attending mass on Sundays. Christ is the center of our faith, and he is present with us, as though he were standing behind a veil, at every mass.


I don't have a quote for this last bit of advice, but ask questions! I have at times had questions which gnawed at me like a junkyard dog, so I gnawed at the Church with the same tenacity, and I have always eventually found a completely satisfying answer.

This applies your political beliefs in particular. Our obligation as Catholics is to continually form our conscience, not to simply parrot the Church line. You're not a bad Catholic if you aren't immediately on board with everything the Church teaches. I'd suggest turning your energies to charitable but forceful questions on these topics.

The answers you receive might be a good way to explain your change of heart to your friends and family. For example, "I thought Dawkins and Hitchens were pretty convincing until I learned that they don't even engage actual Christian scholasticism." I'd recommend Edward Feser for those two.

u/spaceghoti · 7 pointsr/atheism

Welcome to /r/atheism! What did you think of our FAQ?

> If religion were nothing but a personal choice, many of us would have no problem with it. Unfortunately, it causes a great deal of harm in the world, from justifying historical slavery and genocide, to current oppression of women, LGBT individuals, and other minorities across the globe, to promoting child abuse and teaching fairy tales as fact in science classrooms.

> Greta Christina wrote a fairly comprehensive article on why atheists have good reason to be angry, which is also available in video form, as well as a book which goes into more detail.

> For more detail, please see the wiki entry on Atheists and Anger.

u/Pope-Urban-III · 7 pointsr/Catholicism

Depends on what you're looking for, but Augustine's Confessions is highly recommended.

If you like intellectual things, The Last Superstition is good thick read.

u/Boredeidanmark · 7 pointsr/Judaism

I'll defer to Hillel's answer when he was asked this: "What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That is the whole Torah; the rest is just commentary. Go and study it."

EDIT: Just to clarify, there are a lot of details and it's hard to know where to begin explaining. But this is a traditional summary.
Some books you may want to check out are To Life http://www.amazon.com/To-Life-Celebration-Jewish-Thinking/dp/0446670022/ref=pd_sim_b_17 and To Be A Jew http://www.amazon.com/To-Be-Jew-Observance-Contemporary/dp/0465086322/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335446823&sr=8-1

Personally, I found To Life resonated with me.

u/attitudegratitude · 7 pointsr/Judaism

First. You need to take a deep breath. You’re doing great.

if you are worried about a meal tonight find A Chabad in walking distance call and email the Rabbi ASAP. Chabad specializes in people with very little background and will love to have you for dinner

Second this is a life long journey. Consult with a Rabbi you like and trust on which siddur to buy as well as the direction of your study.

As far as code of jewish law start more basic that that probably with To be a Jew https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0465086322/ref=tmm_pap_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&qid=&sr= five dollars shipped A kitzur is nice but may not be applicable to your community depending.

Another good book for neophytes is Jewish literacy for less than ten dollars shipped https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B001F0R9HQ/ref=tmm_hrd_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&qid=&sr=

Again, take a deep breath, you’re doing awesome.

u/tux68 · 7 pointsr/santashelpers

Well this idea is not 100% risk free, but would be something unique... a deck of tarot cards and a lil booklet on how to tell fortunes can be had for around $20 []. They're interesting to look at even if she doesn't ever try to tell a fortune with them. Of course, you don't really want her to take it too seriously, so maybe a lighthearted card would set the right tone.

Dunno. Either way hope you find something she's happy with.




[
] https://www.amazon.com/Rider-Tarot-Arthur-Edward-Waite/dp/091386613X

u/Swadapotamus · 7 pointsr/Psychic

One of my best friends committed suicide, and about 5 years later, I suddenly heard her voice in my head. She told me, "I'm sorry it took me so long. I can't stay long - I'm just here to help you rebuild your heart a bit." I heard her for about a week, and then she was gone. She never explained where she was or why it took so long for her to reach out...but I suspect souls have their own paths and timelines. There's actually an interesting book called "Journey of Souls" by Dr. Newton (https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855) that may help you - it describes what may happen between lives for a soul. While my guides said it only gets part of the picture, it's still interesting and comforting nonetheless. I'm so sorry for your loss.

u/cedriczirtacic · 7 pointsr/tarot

Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack has been very useful to me as I'm still learning: https://www.amazon.com/Seventy-Eight-Degrees-Wisdom-Book-Tarot/dp/1578634083

u/Brodano12 · 7 pointsr/canada

No God but God by Reza Aslan is a great scholarly view on the history of Islam.

The Study Quran is a great Quran and Quranic analysis/annotation.

However, with religion, it is important you are critical of everything you read, and you try to check sources on everything, because there is a lot of misinformation out there due to 1400 years of translation and interpretation errors. Even my own interpretation could be wrong, although I've tried to make it as accurate as possible.

Also, be open to having your own interpretation of the Quran instead of looking for others'. The whole point of Islam is that it's a personal spiritual journey, so the interpretation has to be your own. That doesn't mean you can choose to misinterpret clear directions (like don't kill people), but it does allow for some flexibility in the belief system. In the end, a holy text is only what you want it to be - it's a reflection of your own state of mind. Misguided people will have a misguided interpretation, while good people will have a good interpretation.

u/YordeiHaYam · 6 pointsr/Judaism
  1. It is generally permitted for a non-Jew to perform מצוות (God's commandments) except learning the תורה שבעל פה (Oral Torah) for its own sake (i.e. learning the Oral Law in order to keep the Law is permitted.) Learning the Written Law (the "Hebrew Scriptures") is fine. It is generally agreed that it is not appropriate for non-Jews to keep שבת (the Sabbath) entirely.

  2. You may find Jewish Literacy to be of use.

  3. If your interest in Judaism continues, conversion is an option.

    Keep in touch if you have more questions!

    Edit: BTW this is merely one perspective from an Orthodox perspective. I don't mean to discount the other opinions here.
u/not-throwaway · 6 pointsr/Judaism

Personally I'd just recommend picking up a copy of Jewish Literacy. It's very large but very readable. Covers many different areas. Great place to start. You might be able to find it in a library as well depending on your location.

http://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Literacy-Revised-Ed-Important/dp/0061374989/

u/Temicco · 6 pointsr/zen

Oh, no need to apologize anyway. There's just a lot of... backstory.

You'll need to couple source material like the below with the above historical scholarship if you want to come to a full understanding.

As for some primary sources:

Tang dynasty teachers who were students of Mazu (one of the most influential Zen teachers ever)

Dazhu (although, relevant)

Huangbo

Baizhang (this text is prohibitively expensive on Amazon, so look in local libraries.)

Song dynasty teachers

Yuanwu (1, 2)

Hongzhi (1, 2) (note, take Taigen dan Leighton's introduction to Cultivating the Empty Field with a grain of salt, as he's a shitty scholar. He basically just misrepresents Hongzhi and Dahui's relationship. See Schlutter's How Zen Became Zen for more details.)

Song dynasty kanhua Chan teachers (kanhua is the main approach to Zen in both Rinzai and Seon)

Dahui (Yuanwu's student)

Wumen

A Japanese Zen teacher

Bankei (1, 2)

A Korean Zen teacher

Daehaeng (1, 2, 3)

___

Note that this leaves out huge swathes of the literature, including all of the literature associated with the East Mountain teaching, the Northern school, the Oxhead school, Soto, most of Rinzai, Obaku, most of Seon, etc. Of course, some people with more fixed and essentialist ideas of what "Zen" is object to the idea that some of these other schools/lineages are actually "Zen". Use your own head. (I'm not saying they're necessarily wrong; I'm just saying that once you feel comfortable with the basics, start to think critically about Zen and your own study of it, including e.g. how you would decide which teachings to follow, and why.)

There's no roster of "Zen masters^TM " anywhere, so the above is a bit of a random mix of my own choosing.

While reading, note what people say and ask yourself questions -- where do they agree? Where do they disagree? If they disagree, should that be reconciled or not, and why?

Some more pointed questions to ask for each book: What can one do to reach awakening? What ways to reach awakening are preferred over others? What practices and doctrines are criticized? Is there any cultivation necessary at any point along the path? If yes, what is to be cultivated? If the teacher is talking about the teachings of earlier masters, are those teachers being represented accurately, or are extrinsic frameworks being laid onto them to fit the later teacher's presentation of Zen? If you had to sum up the teacher's teaching in a slogan, what would it be?

Really, the main thing is that you can think critically about what you're reading, but the above reading list and approach would give you a really solid foundation for the things people tend to talk about on this forum.

u/En_lighten · 6 pointsr/Buddhism

🙏

>Thanks for sharing your wisdom

You as well.

By the way, perhaps you may find benefit in learning the word kenshō, and as one last suggestion, perhaps you might enjoy someone like Huangbo, perhaps something like this.

Whereas this sub might perhaps tend towards a sort of rational, perhaps masculine, analysis based approach, some of the Zen adepts such as Huangbo might tend towards a more ... poetic or heart based, pithy approach, and maybe you would delight in it, if you’re inclined to check it out.

If you’re put off by too much dogma, he might be perfect ;)

Best wishes, as always.

u/digifork · 6 pointsr/Catholicism

I have two recommendations. Neither are going to be perfect:

  • Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament

    The commentary is pretty easy to read. It was edited by Scott Hahn and his writing is pretty accessible. The only problem is it is NT only. They have individual books you can purchase for some of the OT, but not the entire Bible as of yet.

  • Catholic Bible, Personal Study Edition

    This is the less academic version of the Oxford Catholic Study Bible. Even though it is less academic, it will be harder to comprehend than the Ignatius.

    However, if he wants to step up his game, he really should get the Didache Bible. The commentary is based on the CCC, so it can be dense at times, but he will learn a lot more.

    Edit: Another one to check out is the Fireside Bible. They make a teen version of that Bible as well.
u/Why_are_potatoes_ · 6 pointsr/Catholicism

[The Didache Bible] (https://www.amazon.com/Didache-Bible-Commentaries-Catechism-Catholic/dp/1939231140) is fantastic; I'd strongly recommend it.

u/lextori · 6 pointsr/atheism

So pointing out the theists who are most frequently giving us a hard time is somehow OT? is that what you're suggesting, because that suggestion just seems silly to me.

/r/atheism has lots of people bitching about christians because guess what, it's largely christians who are making atheists in the western world's lives miserable. There is enough of this crap that Greta Christina wrote a whole damn book about it Why are you atheists so angry.

u/AbuWiFiIbnInterneti · 6 pointsr/Izlam

where did i suggest other religions didnt have dedicated scholars.

>rational contemplations

oh rly. did you read Thomas Aquinas? ghazali? Maimonides? Descarte perhaps? Immanuel Kant? maybe william lane craig?

perhaps read something like this

u/WhatHearsThisSound · 6 pointsr/awakened

> All of these weird things started at the same time, so I’m wondering if any of it can be accounted for by the awakening process.

Always see a doctor if you're concerned, but yes. Everything you're saying sounds very familiar to my own experience.

My own theory about it is that egoic mind takes up a lot of energy (or attention), so when that energy is freed up, it goes elsewhere. The body becomes more sensitive and open.

> I’m not tired when I wake up, but it’s still somehow unsatisfying.

I know exactly what you mean here, and can empathize. For me, a lot of that unsatisfactoriness was my mind not accepting the 'weirdness' of the situation. "I'm only getting 3 hours of sleep per night! This can't be healthy!" Etc.

Physically I felt fine, and the doctor confirmed I was very healthy. Eventually (after hearing Adyashanti talk about something similar) I quit mentally arguing with the reality of the situation, and accepted that even though things were a bit weird, they were find. Mind is used to our bodies being a certain way, and when that changes it takes a bit for mind to get onboard, in other words.

I can only speak to my own experience, but for me at one point it all just settled. I was getting ~3 hours of a sleep per night (and like you beautiful phrased, it felt more like a 'trance of being-ness'), weird physical sensations (including profuse sweating at night) and a whole lot of other stuff, then one day there was another 'shift' (not dissimilar to the awakening itself), and it was like a switch was turned off and a bunch of the 'weird' stuff disappeared (though others showed up, heh).

The yoga and healthiness are your friends. If your diet is really light, it may be helpful to introduce heavier, 'grounding' foods like beets, sweet potatoes, etc, but listen to your body here. Bodies are mysteriously wise, and know what they need - it's more a question of how much we can get out of the way.

All of that to say: you're not alone and what you're describing could certainly be related to the awakening.

If you haven't already, I'd strongly recommend reading Adyashanti's book The End of Your World. There's a lot of helpful info inside.

u/_PageMaster_ · 6 pointsr/AstralProjection

Initiation into Hermetics

Self mastery and increase of energy help a lot. On the astral plane movement is very heavily based on focused will/desire

Making sure you don’t have heavy screen time helps as well

Some more things to do are make sure you eat and drink well, have some light exercise a few times a week and keep screen time as low as you can.

u/Aeropagus13 · 5 pointsr/Christianity

You should try the Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology. It's a dense philosophical treatise on the best arguments for the existence of God (Fine-Tuning, Kalam Cosmological Argument, Moral Argument, etc.). Probably the most relevant and important work that apologetics has to offer today.

Be warned though, it's not a light read and it will be difficult to understand if you don't already have some working background in philosophy and science.

u/Proverbs313 · 5 pointsr/DebateReligion

From a post I made awhile back:

If you want to go for a scholastic/western positive apologetics approach check out: The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology.

If you want to go for a scholastic/western negative apologetics approach check out Alvin Plantinga's God and Other Minds. This is the work that actually re-kindled serious philosophical debate on the existence of God in Anglophone philosophical circles according to Quinten Smith (a notable atheist philosopher btw). From there you could also check out Alvin Plantinga's warrant trilogy in order: Warrant: The Current Debate, Warrant and Proper Function, and Warranted Christian Belief.

Personally I'm skeptical of the scholastic/western approach in general and I favor the Eastern/Mystical approach. I think the scholastic/western approach cannot escape radical skepticism, and I mean this in terms of secular and religious. If one takes seriously the scholastic/western approach in general, whether one is atheist or theist, radical skepticism follows. This video from a radical skeptic that goes by the user name Carneades.org does a good job of demonstrating this: Arguments of the Indirect Skeptic

The Orthodox approach has always been mystical rather than scholastic all the way from the beginnings of Christianity. From Jesus, to the apostles, to the church fathers, to right now we still have the original apostolic faith in the Orthodox Church. Check out this short documentary to learn more: Holy Orthodoxy: The Ancient Church of Acts in the 21st Century.

Fr. Vladimir Berzonsky explains the Eastern/Mystical approach: "To properly understand the Orthodox approach to the Fathers, one must first of all understand the mystical characteristic of Orthodox theology and the tradition of the apophatic approach to an understanding-if "understanding" is indeed the proper word-of what the hidden God in Trinity reveals to us. This needs to be combined with the insight that what is incomprehensible to our reason inspires us to rise above every attempt at philosophical limitation and to reach for an experience beyond the limits of the intellect. The experience of God is a transcendence born from union with the divine-henosis (oneness with God) being the ultimate goal of existence. This makes the requirement of true knowledge (gnosis) the abandoning of all hope of the conventional subject-object approach to discovery. It requires setting aside the dead ends of Scholasticism, nominalism, and the limits set by such Kantian paradigms as noumena/phenomena. One must return to, or better yet, find in one's heart (or nous, the soul's eye) union with the Holy Trinity, which has never been lost in the Orthodox Church."

Source: Fr. Vladimir Berzonsky, (2004). Three Views on Eastern Orthodoxy and Evangelicalism. p. 178. Zondervan, Grand Rapids

u/cameltoe_of_the_boob · 5 pointsr/Glitch_in_the_Matrix

And this book. A hypnotist regresses adult patients through their past lives, taking special interest in what happens in the time between lives-- kind of a setup phase where you acknowledge what you need to work on in your next lives. I really enjoyed it.

u/Likeable_Username · 5 pointsr/occult

I got a great deal from 78 Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollock.

https://www.amazon.com/Seventy-Eight-Degrees-Wisdom-Book-Tarot/dp/1578634083

u/azzy667 · 5 pointsr/tarot

For Rider-Waite deck I like the classic Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom book by Rachel Pollack.

u/Casual_Observer0 · 5 pointsr/Judaism

You may want to read "To Be a Jew" by Hayim Halevy Donin, it offers a very good overview.

u/ewk · 5 pointsr/zen

Read Huangbo. Approach him like a house on fire.

https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Teaching-Huang-Po-Transmission/dp/0802150926

u/singlefinger · 5 pointsr/zen

Ever read Joshu or Huangbo?

I only suggest those because I'm reading Joshu again right now, and Huangbo is a BAD MOTHERFUCKER.

https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Teaching-Huang-Po-Transmission/dp/0802150926

https://www.amazon.com/Recorded-Sayings-Zen-Master-Joshu/dp/157062870X

u/Jayesar · 5 pointsr/atheism

Richard Carrier - Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism. That book is amazing.

Read this for a snapshot.

I don't know how one can read the above book and still have faith.

u/God_loves_redditors · 5 pointsr/Christianity

I'll throw out The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology. A collection of essays that aim to get one to at least deism or classical theism without the use of special revelation (like the Bible).

u/februarytea · 5 pointsr/keto

Its not offensive at all. I do recommend if you want to fast and learn/read Quran that you find someone from a mosque or Muslim Student Association in your area willing to guide you through those processes. I am Muslim and I no longer read Quran WITHOUT a secondary reading guide known as "Tafseer," which is basically interpretation support. Some Quran's come semi equipped with this. There is nothing worse than reading out of context and since the Quran doesn't read like a novel or in sequence it can become confusing. This is great for fear mongers who cherry pick words or lines from religious text to castigate Muslims for their faith, but really can be done with every religious text. I have this version which is easier to digest than some of the older translations. I don't like reading Shakesperian style literature. Finally, as an online resource, www.quran.com is great for 1) selecting multiple translations to compare words for more nuance, 2) listening to quran recitation if youre curious 3) viewing the Arabic text. Finally, fasting is not incumbent upon the young, sick or the infirm as well as nursing or menstruating mothers and its certainly not incumbent upon a non-Muslim so if abstaining from water is too difficult for you then drink water. If you're committed to having the full experience, even just for a day, see if you can do it. Whatever you want really. My husband is also Muslim, we don't discuss our religious "shortcomings" because its neither of our business but I'm fairly certain when he works 15 hour days in the sun, he will drink water if he feels ill. Fasting isn't meant to harm you. Some Muslims would NEVER and all the power to them, again, its considered "between you and God."

u/grumpy-oaf · 5 pointsr/Christianity

>The LBC caller said Christians “did not know their bible” and would “interpret things how ever they wanted to” - something she claims is not possible with Islam.

Umm. Yes, excessively creative exegesis is possible and widespread in Islam. See how An-Nisa 34 is read for an example. Or if one wants to put in some more effort, get a copy of HarperCollins' Study Quran, which contains an enormous amount of commentary, not infrequently including exegetes disagreeing with one another. So this sounds like a case of convert zeal causing someone to fudge the facts and ignore nuance.

She also mentions the memorization and recitation of the Quran. If my Muslim buddies in college are any indication—and I figure that they are, since they were at one of the best universities in America—then many devoted Muslims don't actually understand Quranic Arabic. How is it a virtue to recite syllables that are nonsense to the speaker?

u/DJSpook · 5 pointsr/TrueChristian

Please take notice of the reply that follows this for a continuation of my response.

First, I think you may find this helpful.

I appreciate your kind approach and apparent openness to persuasion, which motivated me to write this. I hope you'll find it worthwhile. I'll try to start simply:

What is a philosophical argument? Think of it as a mechanism for deriving implications from certain observations of the natural world. If, from these, we arrive at theological implications, they are just as significant as any other information (say, from science...which is built upon philosophy anyhow) in that they are explanatory and represent an advance in knowledge. There has been a considerable change in the Anglo-American collegiate realm regarding Christian theism, especially in philosophy departments. The secularization of academia today was, in large part, due to the privatization of Christian institutions and advances in observational astronomy. The former because Christians left colleges for their own academic strongholds, and the latter because we began to see what had previously been thought of as astrological influences and personifications as what they really are: distant spheres of (hydrogen) gas (which should stop no one from considering Christianity, in light of the fact that our belief system distinguishes the radically contingent universe from a God who exists by the necessity of His own nature).

Since the late 1900s we have done away with positivism, and its attendant verification principle (the idea that only that which can be verified through the senses is true...an idea which cannot be verified through the senses. It's positively self- defeating, meaning that it is self-referentially incoherent) and the works of philosophers such as Alvin Plantinga (the most contributive philosopher of religion in recent years...before he retired he was the president of the American Philosophical Association and the Society of Christian Philosophers) in revamping classical arguments for God's existence (such as the Ontological Argument, which has now become an exercise in modal logic), refuting the argument for atheism from the existence of evil in both its logical and probabilistic forms, and defending the position that belief in God is an epistemologically warranted metaphysical initiative (meaning that, in the absence of a defeater for Christian theism, it qualifies as a belief that can be held without reference to anything in reality, wholly substantiated by the inner witness of the Holy Spirit). The following are some arguments for the existence of God that I have so far studied and found compelling, and consider them in cumulation as indicative of the supernatural and of an orthodoxly conceived monotheistic God:

The Argument from Contingency (God best explains the universe's being existent rather than not), Arguments from our Moral Experience (we perceive an objective realm of moral values and duties that could not otherwise exist without God), from the coherency of the concept of God (the idea of God should not make sense unless He actually does exist. It's remarkable that it would be a rational idea. This is more popularly known as the Ontological argument, and I suggest you look into it as it is defended by William Lane Craig for an approachable start to studying it), from the probable origin of the universe (from which one may deduce a personal cause), from reason (evolution selects on phenotypes, and by extension, on survival value, not truth value. Thus, we have a defeater for naturalism by its invalidation of our cognitive faculties, rendering the naturalistic conclusion invalid), from the inability for non-theism to correspond to one's participation in reality (the consequences to atheism are so great that it seems we are forced, by our nature, to worship God. But to hold atheism is to not recognize God, conversely, holding theism is to recognize (worship) God. From a Christian perspective, should it surprise us that to draw away from the Source of Life in our greatest purpose is to find a life unlivable?), from religious experience, from intentional states of consciousness, from the "fine tuning" of initial cosmological and subsequent universal conditions for the development of intelligent life, from the comprehensibility of the universe, from the applicability of mathematics, and more.

On Intelligent Design--Here's what I think...there's a a great deal of confusion regarding inferences from instantiations of biological complexity to an Intelligent Source. Many equate this with Young Earth Creationism, when it's entirely different. Some stop when they fail to see how it categorizes as science (it doesn't, and that's not what matters anyway). Here you will find arguments such as that from the existence of consciousness.....the first cell of life, irreducible complexity, the linguistic properties of DNA, and the like.

Now, note that it is entirely possible to maintain atheism while still being convinced by some of these arguments towards their conclusions. Why is that? Because they each establish God's existence as more probable than not. My meaning is that they work to raise the probability of God's existence, promoting a sort of generic form of theism. Now, I want to guard against what keeps many from fully seeing the force behind natural theology: they are meant to be taken cumulatively, so that together they can raise the probability of theism's truth value such that it is rational to lend credence to it.

I get this a lot: "if there were evidence for Christianity, then everyone would be a Christian. Therefore, Christianity is not substantiated." I hope you can see why this should not be taken seriously. Firstly, it could be said of any worldview. If there is something evidently true on atheism, why isn't everyone an atheist? And so, if there truly is something rationally compelling about Christianity, I believe you will find it by earnestly seeking Christ where many others have found it (I've described some of these authentications below). Furthermore, college study is oriented towards specialization, which is decided by one's interests.

As for Christian evidences, I was originally convinced of Christianity by simply reading the Bible. If you are interested in pursuing truth, rather than arguments (which bear the inherently biased objective of discerning who's right rather than what's right) then I highly recommend that you seek God where He can be found: in His word, from which faith is derived, as it appears in the actions and words of Christians, and in the text itself. I think you'll find, in the person of Jesus Christ, that He knows us too well, and loves us far too much, to not be our Father. By this, I mean that there is something so true about Christianity: it makes too much sense. And way too much sense out of life and the world. As C.S. Lewis said, "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." After I earnestly sought God for the first time, like (I should hope) David ("a man after His own heart"), I found that the scales fell from my eyes, like Paul, and I gained an entirely new perspective of the world and was changed to so great an extent in ways that I can only regard as supernatural. Not only that, I find Christianity to be a remarkably consistent and coherent worldview--not only as correspondent to reality, or as a philosophical conclusion to explain a wide range of the data of human experience, but also as an existentially relevant and experienced reality. Everything Jesus said has proven itself true in my life. Even this: John 8:32 "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

u/grego23 · 5 pointsr/Judaism

You would probably like Jewish Literacy by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin. I personally found it even more thorough than Essential Judaism.

u/namer98 · 5 pointsr/Judaism

For a scholarly translation: The JPS Study Bible

For a more "traditional" translation, The Artscroll Tanach

However, I need to note that you won't learn about Judaism or Jewish practice from reading the Tanach. I hear Jewish Literacy by Rabbi Telushkin is a very good starting place.

u/bucon · 5 pointsr/Buddhism
u/Dh_Jayarava · 5 pointsr/Buddhism

Highlights from my library...

At introductory level, Skilton A Concise History of Buddhism is a good overview of Buddhism from an historical perspective.

Foundations of Buddhism by Rupert Gethin is a fairly good modern overview of Buddhist ideas.

Kalupahana A history of Buddhist philosophy - slightly eccentric, but some excellent coverage of Buddhist thought. Stops short of Tantra. However, supplement with Samuel The Origins of Yoga and Tantra.

Snellgrove Indo-Tibetan Buddhism covers late Mahāyāna and Tantra; theory oriented. Perhaps a but dated now, but non-sectarian.

For early Buddhist texts, Gethin's selections from the Pāḷi Canon is probably a better bet than Bodhi's massive tome. It is more focussed. If you get into Pāli Suttas then get the Nikāya translations, starting with Majjhima Nikāya (the most readable). Another lesser know anthology is by Glenn Wallis Basic Teachings of the Buddha. Slightly idiosyncratic, but a very interesting perspective.

For a traditional anthology of Mahāyāna texts try the much neglected Śikṣamuccaya by Śāntideva (8th Century). I have a different edition to this link, so maybe look around.

Tantra doesn't lend itself to anthologies. I think probably the best introduction to Tantra is Hakeda Kūkai: Major Works, though it may not entirely stand alone, you'll at least know what the right questions are. I've never found any book by a Tibetan Buddhist to rival Kūkai for clarity of exposition about what Tantra Buddhism is.

In terms of practice, Buddhism is often sharply divided by sectarianism and so books on practice tend to be narrowly focussed along sectarian lines. And even on single practices within sects (such as books on Theravāda approaches to breath meditation only; Zen approaches to koan practice and so on.). Note that having asked for a comprehensive book, most of the suggestions are sectarian and ignore centuries of development of Buddhism in other directions.

Buddhism also often suffers from a theory/practice disconnect. A lot of our theory/doctrine has no practical application; while some of our practices are poorly understood and communicated.

The fact is that if you take one sect at a starting point, you will find much of what you learn contradicted when you shift to a different sectarian point of view. Sects tend to present their sectarian point of view as Buddhism without ever letting on that other brands are available. So a comprehensive outline of Buddhism is almost impossible without fudging a lot of conflict and contradiction.




u/8obert · 5 pointsr/Catholicism

Many here are correct on the specific translations to use. I also will push that if you are looking for a study bible that I am finding a lot of success with the Didache Bible. It is the RSV-2CE translation which I like as it is a much more literal or true translation. The footnotes help me to understand where the scripture, church teachings, and catechism meet.

u/trailrider · 5 pointsr/atheism

Nope. There's atheists who believe absurd bullshit like healing crystals and flat earth. Some are very active politically while others don't give a shit. There's no "holy book", you can't be "excommunicated", you don't have to tithe, etc. All there is an answer to a question: Do you believe in god(s)? No? Congrats! You're an atheist.

While I won't presume to speak for everyone, I would say that most of the "active" ones; like people here on this Reddit, Aronra, guys at Scathing Atheist, Seth Andrews, etc; are more inclined to want to believe true things and discard not true/not proven/unprobable things.

Oh, and there's no "belief" in science. Science is a tool like a DeWalt drill. Whether you ACCEPT the conclusions or not is the question.

EDIT: as for why atheists are "angry", might wanna try this book.

Now I wanna ask you: Why are theists so angry? ISIS, Lord's Resistance Army, Focus on the Family, Jerry Falwell, this christian woman, etc....all very angry.

u/astroNerf · 5 pointsr/DebateAnAtheist

Greta Christina has some points to make about atheists and anger on her blog. Now in book form!

In short: atheists should be angry, for the reasons listed in the first link.

u/atheistlibrarian · 5 pointsr/atheism

Can I suggest some reading? Wait, I'm a librarian of course I can.

Why Are You Atheists So Angry? 99 Things That Piss Off the Godless

Letter to a Christian Nation

Nonsense: Red Herrings, Straw Men and Sacred Cows: How We Abuse Logic in Our Everyday Language

Pay particular attention to the part about Straw Men in the last book.

u/flubio123 · 4 pointsr/psychedelicbookclub

[Supernatural: Meetings with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind by Graham Hancock] (http://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842) submitted by /u/Bamsix

u/MLGmeMeR420- · 4 pointsr/Denmark

Jeg har lige fået en Kindle Paperwhite.
Havde ellers svoret jeg ikke skulle starte på en ny bog førend jeg færdiggør [den] (https://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842) jeg er i gang med. Den er faktisk rigtig spændende, men en stor bog, og jeg har sjældent tid at fordybe mig længere tid ad gangen.

Men jeg fik lagt en del bøger på readeren... Bourne trilogien, og Millenium trilogien, samt enkelte andre. Sidstnævnte på svensk, ovenikøbet.

Det er faktisk ret sjovt at læse på svensk. Jeg syntes selv det kunne være fedt at læse på original sprog, uden at noget går tabt i oversættelsen, men er egentlig overrasket over, hvor meget jeg skal koncentrere mig, og hvor mange ord jeg ikke kender den eksakte betydning af. Så det er en lærerig proces. Akkurat som det var at læse Irvine Welsh's bøger (Trainspotting, Porno, Skagboys).

u/HotBedForHobos · 4 pointsr/Catholicism

The Ignatius Bible. It's only the New Testament, but the notes are fantastic. The individual OT books are available, and eventually they'll bind them all together in one big volume. Still, the NT alone is so well done that it's worth it to get it now.

For the whole shebang, The Didache Bible. Commentary is tied to the Catechism.

u/wegener1880 · 4 pointsr/atheism

yeah, as /u/TheBraindonkey mentioned, atheist are pretty normal people that are sometimes good and sometimes bad, like any other population of humans on this beautiful blue, brown and green ball.

Most of us just would like religion completely separate from politics and for religious people to not pester us at least as much at our front doors. Other than that we don't care.

unfortunately this desire to keep religion out of politics and annoyance when our doors are knocked on has caused society to brand us as "angry". There is a good book on that Why are you athiest so angry? 99 things that piss of the godless that you might be interested in reading. Mostly just commentary on why atheist are justified to be pissed off at certain things, like, idk, trying to force religious dogma upon our kids in classrooms?

other than that, we are pretty chill.

hope for the best man.

EDIT: also, might you be able to get a job in religious studies? maybe religion interest you as a subject, and you could teach world religions or something? your preaching background might be an asset in a job search of that type.

EDIT 2: also, the barber dream sounds cool. look into the feasibility of it!

u/Bilbo_Fraggins · 4 pointsr/Christianity

Theism and Christianity in particular is already legitimated in our culture. Since 1886 every President and most congresspeople have claimed to be Christians. (It's also interesting how many of them before that were not).

If you actually want to know why we fight religion, read this book. I'd even be happy to loan you my kindle copy if you want to PM me your email.

u/juden-shikker · 4 pointsr/Judaism

>However, several people have told me that I would never "truly" be accepted as a jew due to my not having been raised in the culture.

This is not true.


> Also where are good places to get further information on conversion

The side bar FAQ


This reading list is pretty good but overwhelming


>but would like more practical info

To be a Jew is a good place to start and you can get a copy for four dollars after shipping from Amazon (not to mention it's probably in your local library)

u/GyroscopicSpin · 4 pointsr/books

The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge by Carlos Casteneda. It was a very intriguing read and I'd suggest it to anyone with a somewhat mature mindset.

u/TheHeartOfTuxes · 4 pointsr/Meditation

The problem is that primary sources are almost invariably misunderstood or taken in a shallow perspective if one is not also receiving guidance and doing practice. When the teachings are put into perspective through direct experience, which happens through the correct application of effort and activity, then they can gradually be digested. But trying to get it from a book often enough has something of an opposite effect: the mind gets hung up on concepts and less able to perceive truth directly.

If you insist on reading, I implore you to avoid koan collections until you are actually trained in the practice and assigned the work by your teacher. Speculation about koans is the worst of the worst, a common hell-pit of Zen, which we see so often on these very forums. It not only creates a huge block for the one doing the speculating, it muddies the waters for countless others dipping their toes in. Speculation leads to false pride, posturing, and a house of cards that at some point will be torn down.

Two original texts that come to mind as basis for the study of Zen are The Zen Teaching Of Bodhidharma translated by Red Pine, and The Zen Teaching Of Huang Po translated by John Blofeld.

Bodhidharma was the First (Chinese) Patriarch of Zen. His teaching is quite foundational. The teaching of Hui Neng, the Sixth Patriarch, was quite formative and represented an evolution from Bodhidharma's view, but without commentary it tends to be less accessible than that of the later Master Huang Po. By Huang Po's time, Zen had already evolved a great deal, and had split into factions with their own perspectives, training, and method.

Note that the Huang Po translator, Blofeld, sometimes gets the concept wrong, because he himself hadn't achieved that depth of training and insight. The translation suffers from shallow view at times; but someone experienced in right practice can trace the words back to their original intent and make sense of the translation.

Other primary sources from the Golden Age Of Zen include the aforementioned Hui Neng, Pai Chang, Hui Hai, and Ta Hui. Very evolved teachings can be found with Chinul in Korea and, sometimes considered the peak, Dogen in Japan. Several others along the way left their distinctive mark, such as Hakuin.

To distinguish between the teachings and understand them in a way that is useful for practice and life, first, receiving teaching and making gradual progress in practice are essential; second, understanding the difference between the three types of Zen (Patriarchal/Ancestral, Doctrinal, and Tathagata) would be very helpful. This is where the western-white-people commentators come in, bridging the gap between a view that is by nature beyond words, and the mind of the common person seeking to understand -- including the rigid or naive conceptualization of those who haven't yet made much progress in practice.

Please take to heart that a minute of practice is better than ten hours of reading, and that "one time seeing is better than a thousand times hearing". We shake our heads at those who try to get something beyond words by pursuing words.

Be aware of r/Buddhism as a resource. I recommend avoiding r/zen, which has devolved into a shitty mire of confusion, speculation, and posturing.

u/nickbus11 · 4 pointsr/tarot

Just the regular Rider deck amazon link

u/otterbot12 · 4 pointsr/tarot

I would suggest the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, which you can buy for pretty cheap on Amazon. Most other decks are based on this system and almost all books and websites for learning the cards use this deck. When you start to learn, the LearnTarot website is free and very helpful. Have fun! Exploring Tarot is one of the best decisions I have ever made.

u/kkeut · 4 pointsr/malefashionadvice

Good books: 'The Moral Landscape' by Sam Harris and 'Sense and Goodness Without God' by Richard Carrier.

u/camspiers · 4 pointsr/OpenChristian

I'm an atheist, and most will hate me for this, but I don't recommend The God Delusion. There are better books, and Dawkins is much better when he writes about biology.

Atheist worldview book: I recommend Sense and Goodness without God by Richard Carrier

Books about Christianity (there are so many to recommend, but these are some favorites):

  • The Christian Delusion by various authors.
  • Gospel Fictions by Randel Helms

    I'm a big fan of Spong, so I would recommend any of his books. Also Robert M. Price is worth looking into, he has lots of free sermons and writings available from when he was a liberal pastor and theologian, which he is not anymore.

u/redsledletters · 4 pointsr/DebateAnAtheist
u/eugenia_loli · 4 pointsr/DMT

This is the book you're looking for: https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8 It's information gotten via deep hypnosis by a PhD psychotherapist. I've seen many similarities of what's described in that book to some DMT reports. The most recent one, I think, it was a couple of months ago.

u/Lucifereus · 4 pointsr/occult

I'd reccomend getting books or pdf's like Modern Magick 12 Lessons in high magick http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Magick-Twelve-Lessons-Magickal/dp/0738715786

Or Franz Bardon's Initiation into Hermetics http://www.amazon.com/Initiation-into-Hermetics-Franz-Bardon/dp/1885928122/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1449847399

Those are quite practical

u/jwiegley · 4 pointsr/bahai

I would love a resource like you've described, but haven't found it yet. Currently my favorite book for such study is The Study Qur'án, because it draws from historical sources and multiple interpretations, rather than emphasizing one particular way to read the Qur'án.

u/HisEminenceTamerlane · 4 pointsr/islam

I like that you called yourself a non-believer (as opposed to infidel). I highly recommend this book, compiled by 3 sunni scholars and 1 Shia:

"The Study Quran: A New Translation and Commentary"

http://www.amazon.com/Study-Quran-New-Translation-Commentary/dp/0061125865/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465136390&sr=8-1-fkmr2&keywords=seyed+hossein+nasr

You have a translation and a very good analysis with both Shia and Sunni viewpoints.

u/YourAverageNobody · 4 pointsr/theology

I used this Study Quran for one of my comparative religion classes and found it helpful. Every page of Quranic text has roughly 1/4 page of verses and 3/4 page of commentary. There are also several essays in the back that are interesting as well!

u/benadreti · 4 pointsr/Judaism

For a good overview of Judaism: Jewish Literacy

u/drak0bsidian · 4 pointsr/AdviceAnimals
  • Jews, God, and History would actually be a good pairing for your book now - while Johnson is more Zionist and philosemitic, Dimont takes a stance similar to Spinoza, which - while still of course being 'pro-Jew,' is more cultural in the context of the world than religious as the 'Chosen People.'
  • Jewish Literacy is what you are guaranteed to find on every single rabbi's shelf on Earth. Telushkin is an excellent writer, and is concise in his explanations of why we are the way we are and why we do what we do. It's less about a strict history than explaining all those things, but it's still valuable if you want to really get to your roots.
  • History of the Jewish People - I read this in college. More of a text for students, but valuable all the same.
  • Josephus is a historical text by one of the greatest historians from the turn of the first millennium. If you choose to get this, I highly recommend having Wikipedia open as you read it.
u/avazah · 4 pointsr/Judaism

Becoming a Jew is a great overview of the conversion process (from an orthodox perspective but imo a lot can translate to conservative judaism too), with stories written by converts. It's not specifically a religious text, but it's a great book for converts.

Jewish Literacy by Telushkin is also a good bet, but it's very much a 'broad strokes' overview of many individual stories in Tanakh. If you really have ZERO knowledge of Tanakh, it's a good place to start before you dive deeper.

u/minimalist_reply · 4 pointsr/Jewish

https://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Literacy-Revised-Ed-Important/dp/0061374989

Keep in mind though that the Jewish religion and culture is filled with an enormous range of beliefs. It is a culture that has always allowed interpretation and practically motivates one to question and argue with the texts. So her 'beliefs' will not be found in a book, but by talking with her and asking about her upbringing.

u/Fire_Elemental · 4 pointsr/Buddhism

> Have any of you felt this way before?

Sure, I was a member of the Church of Satan for about 5 years. Most of my egotism stemmed from an unhealthy self defense mechanism from having a narcissist for a parent. The anger from having an authoritarian as a parent. So yeah. I get what you're saying about finding peace.

> Where should I start?

You might have a go at our sidebar, there are a lot of resources there for the beginner. Particularly the "Basics" section.

There is also Rupert Gethin's excellent book, The Foundations of Buddhism

But really, in the end, a teacher of Buddhism that you can speak with and practice with face to face will be your ultimate best starting place.

u/cyanocobalamin · 4 pointsr/Buddhism
u/sursurring · 4 pointsr/books

I would guess it's because it's a fictional book. Unless you mean this, which is just a mashup of religious and occult fabrications.

u/Didyekenit · 3 pointsr/islam

"The Study Qur'an" cites multiple tafsir, which I quite like.



The problem is that many of the more readily available tafsir are more conservative, or have a wahabi bend to them, which can give you a false impression that all Muslims agree with certain statements. The Hilali-Khan translation/tafsir is just a summarized version of Ibn Kathir, which is a Salafist interpretation. (Again, I urge that anyone study tafsir from multiple schools of thought, and I am not bashing any one sect, it's just that there are many, many, many interpretations of the text and a knowledge of more than one is beneficial.)



Yusuf Ali's commentary is good, and in fact his Qur'an was the gold standard for the last 100 years in English. It's probably a bit old fashioned for most, though.



Muhammad Assad's is very good. Extremely good, and the one 90% of people would reccomend, and one you should just get anyway. Though some of his commentary is not inline with Islamic thought (his views on Jesus, for example, are controversial in general), but you should read any tafsir with a grain of salt.


Ma'ariful Qur'an is an excellent modern tafsir. Usmani was a Hanbali or Hanafi, I believe, but manages to be neutral and quite moderate in his commentary. The cost of the full 8 volume set is a bit much, but you can get a cheap version from India for a low price if you don't mind imperfect binding (I found all 8 volumes in a local shop for around 60$ CAD, which is awesome.).



If you want to read an AMAZING Shi'a commentary (you likely are not Shi'a, but still.....people should understand multiple views on any topic whether or not you agree), then Tafsir al-Mizan is incredible. It's not 100% translated into English yet, but it is available for free online. Whether Shi'a or Sunni, I think it can be agreed that Muhammad Husayn at-Tabataba'i was a great scholar.


The only work in English which includes multiple tafsir from multiple schools and multiple writers is the Study Qur'an, and it is insanely exhaustive, listing all of the sources and even telling the reader where to go and read most of the tafsir cited on the internet. It's amazing. Spend the money and also buy some "Bible highlighters" (the kind that work on thin pages). (I have been using a regular Staples brand "Hype!" highlighter and it doesn't bleed through, though, so the pages are quite tough despite being thin. Pen doesn't go through either, as I have been underlining quite a lot and have had no problems, but I would still recommend a .005 fine line marker just in case.]


If you are a cheapskate, go to altafsir.org, which is what "The Study Qur'an" advises also. You can either search for individual verses and pull up different classical tafsir for that verse, or just download/read a PDF of an entire tafsir if you prefer. Tafsir al-Jalalayn is, as I understand, the most universally used in teaching Qur'an because it is short, and only provides the context of revelation for verses. You may want more in-depth tafsir, but al-Jalalayn has been the jumping off point for Muslims for 500 years. And is available on altafsir.


tl;dr - "The Study Qur'an"

u/ahwal · 3 pointsr/islam

The Message of the Qur'an by Muhammad Asad is a great place to start. http://muhammad-asad.com/Message-of-Quran.pdf

Asad is a bit of a modernist, and proposes some ideas that are different from what classical scholars said about the text (but in line with how many Muslims understand it today). But in terms of pleasurable reading for a general introduction, you can't beat his work. If you want to study a verse or passage in more detail, The Study Qur'an will be the most complete and well-researched work in English: http://www.amazon.com/The-Study-Quran-Translation-Commentary/dp/0061125865

u/scmucc · 3 pointsr/AcademicBiblical

The new study Quran is supposedly great: Here's the amazon link.

u/g3n3ricz3r0 · 3 pointsr/Judaism

One of the most comprehensive and well written books is "Jewish Literacy" by Joseph Telushkin.

u/puck342 · 3 pointsr/Judaism

If you want another book to better learn about the Jewish people and our history, read Joseph Telushkin's Jewish Literacy

u/TheChaiLife · 3 pointsr/Judaism

Might I recommend https://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Literacy-Revised-Ed-Important/dp/0061374989.

It's an encyclopedia with short blurbs on the Jewish religion, people, and history. Reading through it will give you a great breadth of knowledge related to Judaism.

u/poorbadger0 · 3 pointsr/askphilosophy

With the influence that Goenka has had on shaping some of your views, I would suggest getting a broader understanding of the lay of the Buddhist land, as Goenka teaches one particular strand of Buddhism. For this I can recommend no other than Rupert Gethin's The Foundations of Buddhism.

u/scrappy_girlie · 3 pointsr/Buddhism

Not concise, but this book :
The Foundations of Buddhism... https://www.amazon.com/dp/0192892231?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

u/Vonschneidenshnoot · 3 pointsr/Buddhism

The best general introductory work is The Foundations of Buddhism by Rupert Gethin: http://www.amazon.com/Foundations-Buddhism-OPUS-Rupert-Gethin/dp/0192892231 It's very readable and is a thorough introduction to the history, practice, and theory of Buddhism. It's widely recommended as the first book you should read by scholars in the field. Starting with a solid rational and diverse understanding of Buddhism is definitely valuable.

u/RDS · 3 pointsr/conspiracy

Ishmael (and the rest of the series) by Daniel Quinn opened my eyes in my senior year of high school.

It's about a Gorilla, who has lived beside man for a number of decades and teaches a pupil through stories and analogies about how we are already at the cusp of civilization collapse. It's about a lot more than just that, namely the relationship of humans, animals, the planet, and how humans have a unique, egotistical view of themselves where we deemed ourselves rulers of the planet.

Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins is an eye opener as well.

Other great reads:

Magicians of the Gods by Graham Hancock.

Necronomicon

UFO's by Leslie Keen

Siddhartha - Herman Hesse

I also really enjoyed the Myst series by Rand & Robin Miller (the books the game is based on). It's about worlds within worlds and an ancient race of authors creating worlds through magical ink and books (sci-fi/fantasy).

u/Redbirdfromtheeast · 3 pointsr/Fantasy

The Necronomicon wasn't written by Lovecraft, he mentions it in several stories but other publishers capitalized on it by releasing their own versions of "The Necronomicon". He did write History of the Necronomicon but you're probably talking about this one.

u/thomascgalvin · 3 pointsr/AskScienceFiction

Sure, you can grab a copy for yourself.

For a tome that threatens to unmake reality itself, the Men of Science at Miskatonic University have been pretty loose with the reprint rights.

u/xbenzerox · 3 pointsr/Lovecraft

Yes. Someone made one awhile ago. I had it in high school 20 years ago and thought it was so cool. It's really just a bunch of symbols and "spells" though. Not much to read. Yep..This is it. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0380751925/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1406291847&sr=8-1

u/elementaco · 3 pointsr/depression

Religion Explained suggests that friends are stored in your head as person-files: file of information linked to a facial image. Hence why death is so unnerving - the person is dead but the person-file still exists in your brain, triggering your brain to interact with them as though they are still alive.

New research shows kids with imaginary friends (imaginary person-files) are actually well-adjusted.

So what I'm saying is...

I'll try getting back into writing. If I can create enough imaginary person-files, maybe I'll feel less lonely. ;)

u/Quadell · 3 pointsr/AskAnthropology

Here are some books that may help.

u/captainhaddock · 3 pointsr/AcademicBiblical

> The academic study of Judaism/Christianity is just one part of a larger project: of revealing the naturalistic origins of religion itself. Of course, we've yet to fully flesh out a..."psychology" of ancient religion.

One book I'm still reading, but have found very enlightening, is Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought by cognitive anthropologist Pascal Boyer.

I was quite interested to see K.L. Noll (Brandon University) applying Boyer's anthropological findings on how religion "works" to the study of historical Judaism in "Was There Doctrinal Dissemination in Early Yahweh Religion?" (BI 16, 2008, 295-427). This seems like a useful approach to take.

u/YoungModern · 3 pointsr/exmormon

>I have had some spiritual experiences that I believe are real, but I’m even doubting that

I don't doubt that you had experiences. Please read Pascal Boyer's Religion Explained.

u/MOE37x3 · 3 pointsr/Judaism

If you're interested in this issue, but can't stomach the idea that God would command you to do something for reasons that you can't comprehend, I recommend that you study some of the other approaches listed (but heretofore ignored by you) in this thread. Read To Be a Jew, Horeb, or R' Hirsch's commentary on Leviticus.

If you can't stomach the idea that God could come up with something that you can't comprehend, then I think your quarrel with Judaism is much larger than just the purpose of dietary laws.

u/LeadGoat · 3 pointsr/Judaism

To Be A Jew: A Guide To Jewish Observance In Contemporary Life https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465086322/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_UyAACb6FYNFXB

u/blambi · 3 pointsr/Judaism

To be a Jew and maybe Chabad.org are good starting points besides jewfaq.org as SF2K01 said.

Then again there are many different kinds of minhogim etc.

u/Deuteronomy · 3 pointsr/Judaism

> Why are customs the way they are?

It would depend on which specific custom you had in mind. Many practices are quite a bit more than "custom" actually, and are required as a matter of Halakha. The two major classes of Halakha are biblical (d'oraisa) and rabbinic (d'rabanan).

> How come people who leave Judaism do not talk about it?

There are people who unfortunately leave Judaism and are rather vocal about it... however if I wanted to generalize about those who refrain and/or evade discussion of Judaism, I'd say most likely they were stigmatized in some way and that the same reasons they sought to abandon Judaism in the first place is the same reasons they seek to avoid discussing it in the present. It probably brings up memories and emotions that they find too painful to confront within themselves.

> I want to know the deeper meaning behind everything... Just anything and everything.

A proselyte once asked Rabbi Hillel (c.110 BCE) to teach him the entire Torah whilst standing on one foot... God-willing with patience and time you will come to understand quite a bit in greater depth :)

> Why do some families keep kosher and some do not.

With the advent of the Haskalah (the Jewish Enlightenment) in the 18th/19th c. many Jews for the first time had the doors of Western society open to their integration. Many Jews seeking acceptance simply abandoned Judaism altogether, others sought to reform Judaism in order to facilitate greater acceptance within modern society without given up everything (this is where the origins of most of the liberal denominations can be traced back to). Accordingly during this period many Jews stepped away from Judaism's traditional practices, including the dietary laws. This in addition to the eventual deep and profound trauma of the Holocaust which has contributed to the face of modern Jewry largely not reflect the practices of their ancestors.

> Wikipedia has not been helpful at all.

Unless you have a very specific topic in mind, wikipedia can indeed be too daunting a source to get any kind of real comprehensive view. A general introductions to Judaism can be found in Hayim Halevi Donin's book "To Be A Jew: A Guide To Jewish Observance In Contemporary Life." I've heard that it is very good and very accessible (an easy read). I see that you can find used copies on Amazon for as little as a penny! A work like this or something of a similar nature would probably be the best place for you to start. If you read something you don't understand there, or would like to understand in greater depth, feel free to let us know :)

u/sharer_too · 3 pointsr/suggestmeabook

Not novels, but -

[The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Electric-Kool-Aid-Acid-Test/dp/031242759X) - a very readable account of Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters by Tom Wolfe

[The Teachings of Don Juan] (http://www.amazon.com/Teachings-Don-Juan-Yaqui-Knowledge/dp/0671600419/ref=la_B000APXVFG_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404522090&sr=1-1) - presented at the time as research/non-fiction, since questioned, but still pretty fascinating

u/DaGoodBoy · 3 pointsr/fantasywriters

A History of Warfare by John Keegan [Goodreads] Gives a clear understanding of how different cultures influence military organization and tactics. I was looking for a book to help someone who doesn't have a military background (me) understand and describe how the military and culture intersect and influence each other.

The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge by Carlos Castaneda [Goodreads]. Uses an interesting, anthropological POV to describe an alternative view of perception and reality. Very handy if you want to create a magic system that does not conform to clearly explainable rules of logic and order, but is still believable and self-consistent.

u/ludwigvonmises · 3 pointsr/zen

Those aren't books of instruction, ewk. They are popular collections of certain people's enlightenment encounters.

Is Red Pine's translation of Bodhidharma not a direct teaching? Are letters of practice instructions from Foyan, Yuanwu, and Hongzhi not direct teachings? I suppose that Takuan Soho's instructions to Munenori on maintaining no-mind in daily life doesn't count either?

Why is it better for novices to dive deep into stories about Gutei's finger or think about whether the flag moves or not than it is to read directly from Huangpo? Isn't that like asking a baby to chew a piece of meat?

u/agoodresponse · 3 pointsr/asktrp

Okay, I will tell you some things about me.

First, I ghosted everyone that knew me as a Blue Pill guy. Now, an inherent part of ghosting is being alone. When most people tell you they are independent, it's fucking bullshit. Emerson wrote a great deal on self-reliance.

Here is an essay by Emerson on the subject of self-reliance. It is both a great introduction to his views and how beautifully he writes.
http://www.emersoncentral.com/selfreliance.htm

Here is a collection of Emerson's essays. Ignore the 1 star review, which is for the Kindle version of the book, but heed it and buy the physical book instead of the Kindle version.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1598530844/

Emerson was friend and mentor to Thoreau, who wrote the following account of his two-year stay in a cabin near Walden Pond. One of Thoreau's goals was self-sufficiency.
http://www.amazon.com/Walden-A-Fully-Annotated-Edition/dp/0300104669

Here is some further reading.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0762415339/
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1492777862/
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0199291152/
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0802150926/

You mention you are going to be a radiographer soon. Now, I have seen said on TRP that some here do not see the point in film, but I fucking love film. Now, there is one film in particular that I think relates to your situation incredibly. That is Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ikiru/
Ikiru is about a Japanese man who, near the end of his life, learns he has a terminal disease. He has, up to that point, wasted his whole life at his government job. Learning of his illness inspires in the main character a will to change, and seeing him undergo that inspires change in those around him. But, and this is another lesson to be learned from the film, we see that the main character's transformation has no lasting effect on those around him. Change has to come from within.

Another film seriously worth watching is Whiplash. I saw it mentioned in this subreddit in passing and am glad I did.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7d_jQycdQGo

If you want me to elaborate on the things that I didn't, ask. I have a lot more film recommendations, but cannot recommend any more books, as I do not read that much. I don't recommend any music as I would consider most of what I listen to to be blue pill.

u/Vantaballs · 3 pointsr/RationalPsychonaut

An upvote is an abstract hug of sorts.

On a more serious note, if you are really interested in what I was trying to convey, instead of just for the sake of winning an online argument, then I would recommend reading some zen literature. Huang Po, for example. Just don't visit the subreddit, or they'll drive you mad. They drive anyone mad.

u/PeachPlumParity · 3 pointsr/tarot

Here are the basic, basic decks.

The Rider-Waite-Smith Deck, on which most decks base their symbolism. Has many different versions, such as the Radiant RWS or the Universal Waite Tarot. Most decks you find will be based on this one.

The Thoth Tarot by Aleister Crowley, which relies much more on occultism and knowledge of the symbols to read. If you want a project that you can really lose yourself in and study for, this is probably a good deck.

The Marseille Tarot which, unlike the other decks I've listed, does not fully illustrate the Minor Arcana (Ace-10 of Cups/Swords/etc). Instead they are called "pips" and don't show a scene, so you have to rely on your knowledge of the cards to read them.

These are the three most well-known tarot traditions for symbolism upon which most other decks are based, with RWS being the most popular in the English-speaking world. Marseille, as I understand it, is very popular in non-English speaking European countries, and the Thoth is just the Thoth.

You don't have to stick to these decks though. Choose any deck that you feel speaks to you. What's most important is feeling connected with your deck, that way you don't lose interest in the cards before you've learned all you can about them.

​

u/amoris313 · 3 pointsr/tarot

I've been studying Tarot and western mysticism for over 2 decades. My recommendation is that you ignore all the fancy decks out there and pick up some version of the Rider-Waite. It isn't the prettiest, but it's the one that almost EVERY deck for the past 100 years has been based on. If you can read a Rider-Waite, then you can read anything. Someone suggested the Marseille deck (of which there were a few from the 18th c. onwards), but I wouldn't recommend starting out with an older style deck like that. Older decks (Marseille, JJ Swiss, Visconti-Sforza etc.) were designed for Game Play - NOT divination. They don't have handy titles or pictures on the minor arcana (number/suit/pip cards).

Some decks you might consider:

Standard Rider-Waite. Can't get any easier than this.

Quick and Easy Tarot. This one has the meanings printed right on the cards! Easy to learn from, and based on Rider-Waite.

Golden Dawn tarot. This one was my favorite for a while. The colors are nicer than Rider-Waite, but it's still a traditional deck, and all the cards have titles and additional symbolism (Astrological/Qabalistic) so they're easier to read and remember.

B.O.T.A. deck. This one comes in black-and-white. You're supposed to color your own cards! I've used the link that includes the book with coloring instructions/descriptions. You can buy the cards by themselves here. Following the traditional (Qabalistic) color scheme and coloring your own (with markers, colored pencils, or maybe watercolors) will help you learn and remember them better.

Regarding the influence of Qabalah on modern decks, it's VERY hard to find a modern deck without it. A.E. Waite was a member of the Golden Dawn (19th c. Hermetic order), and they're largely responsible for the popular appeal of modern Qabalah-influenced decks. They drew on several 18th-19th c. sources (Levi, Etteilla, Court de Gebelin etc.) and put it all together into the tarot we know and use today.

Some books that may be helpful:

Mystical Origins of the Tarot. This is a very good book that talks about the history of the cards, all the way back to the 14th c. Extremely insightful. You can read this on Scribd, btw.

Qabalistic Tarot. The best book on how modern tarot fits onto the Tree of Life, and how the symbolism describes states of consciousness and aspects of Qabalah. When you're ready to scratch below the surface and use your cards for meditation, this book will help you.

This may be a good book to help you get started. I haven't read it, but it gets good reviews.

Related-topic: if you enjoy playing cards, I highly recommend trying out the traditional Tarot games that make use of either modern French or German style decks (which look like modified normal playing cards with extra cards) or older decks such as the JJ Swiss, Marseille, or even Lo Scarabeo's Ancient Italian Deck. Tarot games are quite fun! You can't use a divination deck for them, though. European or Italian folk games such as Scopa and Briscola are also quite fun, and they make use of decks that are distant cousins to Tarot. This link will explain other tarot type games if you're interested.

Anyway, I hope that helps you make sense of the Tarot. Go with Rider-Waite to start, and take your time. There's a lot to learn!

u/NXNDO · 3 pointsr/tarot

The Rider-Waite deck is pretty standard, I'm new also and almost all the youtube videos I've seen say it's the best deck to start with since the drawings and symbols help you memorize the meanings, and you can move on to more "fun" decks after you learned them all.

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/091386613X?pf_rd_p=8e0819a9-0ef1-44cd-9544-a7f28374af8b&pf_rd_r=02QFBEAQHWXQQK8JH2QG

u/BuckeyeBentley · 3 pointsr/DnD

I had looked online at actually buying one and on amazon at least they were suuuper expensive, so I bought a tarot deck, pulled the right amount of cards following this guide mostly. Then I tea dyed them and dried them off between paper towels and pressed by a heavy book and used some scrap fabric and a tassel to complete the ancient magic deck look.

If anyone wants to do the same, my suggestion to you is to do the tea dying in waves and not let them sit too long. I let the whole deck soak for a few hours in a pot of tea that had been made with 14 black tea bags and the glue separated on some of them splitting the backs from the faces. They stuck back together but I lost a few of the cards. Doesn't really matter I guess, but for anyone's future reference.

u/RealityApologist · 3 pointsr/askphilosophy

Rather than merely jump down your throat for the tone of your post--I think everyone else has sufficiently chastised you, and I'll say more about that in general at the end--let me make a few constructive suggestions.

>For example, when philosophers argue for the non-existence of reality or unkownableness of things I just want to shake them and say "get your head our of your fucking ass and look out the window! There is obviously a real world out there."

This sounds very much like naive realism, which is a genuine position held by some philosophers (albeit not very commonly). You might find Quee Nelson's The Slightest Philosophy interesting if you want to learn more about naive realism and its history. She's not a mainstream professional philosopher, but the book is quite a fun read.

The kinds of intuitions you're describing also suggest that you'd be inclined toward naturalism, very broadly constued. In general, naturalists see philosophy as continuous with (or even part of) science, and reject philosophical arguments that either ignore or purport to "transcend" scientific knowledge and reasoning. Naturalist (or naturalized) philosophy tends to take scientific theories very seriously, and is often aimed at excavating the foundations of various sciences. This is a significantly more popular position within professional philosophy (though certainly not a universal one). That SEP link I posted should give you a good overview. The anthology Naturalism Without Mirrors can also serve as a good survey. Richard Carrier's Sense and Goodness Without God is a less rigorous "pop-philosophy" treatment of the subject, but is a frequently cited basic introduction to some of the principles, and aimed at non-philosophers.

Now, with all that said, I strongly suspect that you're going to find understanding any of the links I posted (with the possible exception of Carrier) rather difficult to understand without some background in philosophy. Naturalism emerged as a reaction and/or successor to various movements within the history of philosophy, and without some idea of the context in which the discussion is happening, you're apt to find the going rather difficult.

I should mention that I say this as someone who shares a lot of the views you described: I have very little patience for most of the history of philosophy, and find much of what goes on in contemporary mainstream philosophy incredibly, frustratingly obtuse. However, I developed that opinion as a result of decades of rigorous study of philosophy, rather than based on my first impressions as a beginner. I can say with fairly high confidence that if you were able to dismiss what you were reading as nonsense so quickly that you can't even recall what you've read, you probably didn't really understand what you were reading. Much of historical philosophy might be misguided or wrong, but the people who wrote it were emphatically not stupid, and their ideas are worthy of honest, serious engagement even if you think they're mistaken.

It might help to look at reading the canon as something like running on a treadmill in a gym. If someone told you that they thought running on a treadmill was silly because they'd tried it for a minute and hadn't gotten anywhere, you probably would think that they'd missed the point. The point of running on a treadmill isn't to get somewhere, but rather to improve your own fitness level. One side effect of this improvement is that when you do run in order to get somewhere, you can run much faster and for much longer. If it helps, think of reading philosophy like that: as a kind of "mental workout" that helps you sharpen your critical faculties and analysis skills, so that when you encounter arguments that you're actually interested in engaging with, you'll be better able to give them serious thought.

To that end, I'd suggest that you try some of the literature that you dismissed as pointless again, but this time with the intention of reading it, understanding it, and articulating why you think it's bullshit. Reading Descartes and coming away with "well that was dumb and obviously wrong" is missing the point in the same way that telling a guy running on a treadmill "you'll never get anywhere that way" is missing the point. What exactly do you find so dumb about it? What ideas specifically are mistaken? In what way are they mistaken? What are the implications of the mistakes you noticed? I suspect that once you try to seriously answer these questions, you'll discover that it's much harder than it looks, and that (perhaps) you don't have as much of a grasp on the ideas as you thought you did.

u/reireirei · 3 pointsr/atheism

Apparently, a paperback edition for ~1/3 of that price is due for a British release in October. :D

My university's library and my city's library don't have it, so that might be a good option. Thanks for the recommendation.

u/catherineirkalla · 3 pointsr/occult

A good place to start I think is reading Shamanic Voices by anthropoligist Joan Halifax. It isn't a how-to guide or anything, but gives intimate accounts of Shamanic practices throughout the world. It includes records of rituals performed by Maria Sabina that you may find especially interesting.

After that, I'd recommend Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy by reliigious history professor Mircea Eliade. Its a bit thick but is very thorough in its treatment of Shamanic practices through the millennia and around the world, including descriptions of numerous techniques used for entering trance states, cosmologies, symbolism, initiations, and powers claimed by Shamans. This is an academic work, however and won't give you step by step instructions (if that is what you are looking for).

If you are looking for something a bit lighter, Supernatural by Graham Hancock is an interesting read. In it he looks at parallels between drug-induced experiences, Shamanism, fairies, and reports of extraterrestrials. If I had known that last part before I read it I probably would have skipped this book but he actually made some very interesting points that I think makes the book worth reading. Also, he relies heavily on Joan Halifax's book as a source and spends a decent amount of time discussing Maria Sabina and psilocybin usage.

The beginner how-to department is an area I'm less versed in but I've heard good things about this book and its companion. Personally I'd generally recommend getting oneself intimately familiar with current and past Shamanic practices through the academic works on the subject and then creating a personalized system - though commercial how-to guides can certainly provide some practical hints and inspiration.


u/dirtranger · 3 pointsr/Glitch_in_the_Matrix

Research on DMT and on hallucinogens in shamanism has shown different users describe and draw the same entities. Graham Hancock collated some of that data. *typo

u/brash · 3 pointsr/science

This was basically the thesis of Graham Hancock's book Supernatural

u/non-possumus · 3 pointsr/Catholicism

The Didache Bible is a Catholic version of the same thing I think

u/SanityInAnarchy · 3 pointsr/TrueAtheism

Another nitpick, then: It doesn't have to be monotheism. Monolatrism is sufficient.

I'd also argue that the important bit is the dogma, not necessarily whether it's tied to a scripture per se. Scripture doesn't quite explain how you get such violence between people who have the same scripture -- between Catholics and Protestants, for example. If it was just a matter of the scripture itself, there are ways to settle those arguments -- you go back and read the scripture -- except that people have different interpretations that they have accepted as gospel (literally).

You might be interested in Greta Christina's "Why are you atheists so angry?", which was originally a blog rant, became a surprisingly good speech, and is now a book. Because I don't have time to watch the whole speech again, I'm going to assume this collection of quotes has it right:

> Religion is a belief in invisible beings, inaudible voices, intangible entities, undetectable forces, and events and judgments that happen after we die. It therefore has no reality check. And it is therefore uniquely armored against criticism, questioning, and self-correction. It is uniquely armored against anything that might stop it from spinning into extreme absurdity, extreme denial of reality… and extreme, grotesque immorality.

Or, similarly:

> Religion, by its very nature as an untestable belief in undetectable beings and an unknowable afterlife, disables our reality checks. It ends the conversation. It cuts off inquiry: not only factual inquiry, but moral inquiry. Because God's law trumps human law, people who think they're obeying God can easily get cut off from their own moral instincts.

> And these moral contortions don't always lie in the realm of theological game-playing. They can have real-world consequences: from genocide to infanticide, from honor killings to abandoned gay children, from burned witches to battered wives to blown-up buildings.

What's missing is the bit where she compares this to political ideology. Because most political ideologies make promises on this world, they're at least somewhat subject to test. Eventually, wealth either trickles down or it doesn't, for example. That doesn't apply to religions -- and the religions it used to apply to have either adapted or died out.

u/Galphanore · 3 pointsr/atheism

You're welcome. She recently expanded it into a book that I'm reading at the moment.

u/JonathanTech · 3 pointsr/exmormon

From "Why are you atheists so angry? 99 Things that piss of the godless" by Christina, Greta:

> 37) I'm angry that, because of religious bigotry against LGBT people, Ingrid and I had to get married three times, before we finally got to have a wedding that was legal in our home state. I'm angry that nine months after our marriage, Catholics and Mormons spent millions of dollars and thousands of hours to pass Prop 8 and make it impossible for any other same-sex couples in California to marry. I'm angry that our marriage is still not seen as a real marriage in (as of this writing) 42 of the 50 states. I'm angry that, when we travel to places like Missouri or Colorado, we have to worry about what happens if one of us has to go to the hospital -- will the other be able to make decisions on our behalf, or even be able to visit? I'm angry that even our federal government won't recognize our marriage as real -- because fear of offending the religious right controls how laws get made in this country. And I'm angry that religious and political leaders are scoring points by exploiting fears about sexuality in a changing world, fanning the flames of those fears... and giving people a religious excuse for why their fears are justified.

>38) I'm angry about "lying for the Lord." I'm angry that the Mormon Church officially advocates a policy of deception, concealment, exaggeration, selective disclosure, censorship, and outright dishonest about the history and tenets of their religion -- aimed at both the general public and members or their own church -- in order to protect their image. I'm angry that Mormons who have violated this policy, and who told the truth about the church's history and teachings even when it was unflattering, have been excommunicated.

>42) And on a related topic: I'm angry that, in Salt Lake City, Utah, 40 percent of all homeless teenagers are gay -- most of them kids who have been kicked out of their homes by their Mormon families.

It's a great read at a great price. Plenty of reasons why religion is damaging.

u/thesunmustdie · 3 pointsr/atheism

There's some very good reasons for atheists to be angry:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Atheists-Angry-Things-That-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6

However, this does not extend to treating you as an individual unkindly — especially not in your current state of mind.

If you need a tactful atheist to talk to, feel free to PM me.

u/panamafloyd · 3 pointsr/atheism

Greta Christina (US activist) on atheists and anger:
http://gretachristina.typepad.com/greta_christinas_weblog/2007/10/atheists-and-an.html

If the blog post piques your interest, in the time since she wrote it (2007), she's fleshed it out into a book:
http://www.amazon.com/Atheists-Angry-Things-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6

u/RyenKrusinga · 3 pointsr/askphilosophy

I'll take a stab at answering this. Credentials: I'm a PhD student in artificial intelligence who does philosophy as a hobby.

The short answer is that Feser's critiques are basically valid for current computers, but I'm highly skeptical that they would extend to full artificial general intelligences when we build such things.

First, some background. Feser is a neo-scholastic or neo-Thomist; his philosophy is grounded in an Aristotelian worldview as mapped out by Thomas Aquinas in the middle ages. Because of this tradition, he tends to focus a lot of analysis on Aristotle's four causes (material, formal, efficient, final) and their implications, and to use words like "substance," "artifact," and "causal powers." This worldview is a significant departure from most modern literature on philosophy of mind, and most philosophers of mind today would reflexively call his arguments confused and outdated (I tend to agree, although I think they have more merit than people give them credit for).

The modern philosopher who argues most similarly to Feser with regards to philosophy of mind is John Searle, whom Feser references several times in the article. Here, Feser is mostly trying to avoid using Aristotelian jargon, making an argument more in line with Searle's terminology and thus more intelligible to modern thinkers, though he still slips in a reference or two to "causal powers". (In fact, Feser believes that the human mind is immaterial and created directly by God, though he claims that this is irrelevant to the point he is making in the article; see his book The Last Superstition).

In the blog post, Feser is not refuting the best current philosophy of AI, but rather a strawman with a shallow pop-philosophy understanding of computation and mind. To be fair, these criticisms are warranted because many people actually do make the mistake of thinking that the brain is exactly like a computer, or that current AI programs actually have the beginnings of minds. Feser rightly points out that neither thing is true: the comparison between human brains and current computer architectures is merely superficial. Brains have many properties that we do not yet understand and do not capture in computers. Conversely, computers today, even those programmed with "artificial neural networks," are not remotely brainlike or conscious.

Quick sidebar: the usage of the word "intelligence." Feser seems to use the word "intelligence" interchangeably with "mind" or "consciousness," but I would not equate those things at all. They are separate axes of description. To an AI researcher, "intelligence" means something like "competence at achieving goals." It is clearly possible for machines to be more intelligent than humans in this sense: the program AlphaGo is more intelligent at playing the game of Go than human experts, though it does not understand what it is doing or have a mind per se. In the future, we will have machines that are more competent than humans at achieving nearly any goal, and this is what we would call an artificial general intelligence (AGI). What Feser (and also Searle) really means to argue is that such an AGI could never in principle have a mind or a consciousness, merely an unconscious simulation of those things.

Okay, finally, on to the actual arguments presented in the post!

Here Feser is using variations of one primary argument that was also made by John Searle: physical systems are never intrinsically computational because the very notion of "computation" is observer-dependent. In other words, whether or not something is called a "computer" is relative to how some observer is analyzing the physical system, and is not any intrinsic property of the system. Therefore, it is a category mistake to equate "mind" with "computation," because minds exist independently in reality but computation does not! For example, a Go-playing AI is only a computational system when we mentally associate the program's inputs and outputs with the state of a Go board; otherwise is it just an electrical circuit performing meaningless physical bit flips, an artifact, a dead thing. If we try hard enough, we can interpret any physical system as a computer: in some sense, a glass of water is a perfect computation of itself. Does than mean a glass of water is intrinsically computational? No, it's only computational with regards to how we are viewing it.

So the logic goes something like this:

  1. Minds are real properties of some systems, like brains (we know this because we have minds).
  2. Computation is not a real property of any system, because it is observer dependent. (Much like the property of being-a-hammer is relative to how humans are using a thing, and is not a real physical property of objects independent of humans).
  3. Therefore, no system is a mind by virtue of being a computation.
  4. Therefore, a computer, by definition, will never be a mind because of its relative computational properties, no matter how complex. If it somehow is a mind, it must be in virtue of something else, such as an unknown physical property (a la Searle) or direct endowment by God (a la Aquinas).

    So, does this succeed in proving that advanced artificial intelligences will never have minds? No, I don't think it does. What it does succeed in doing is pointing out how naively equating the mind with the concept of "computation" can lead to bad magical thinking.

    As an student working in AI, I can tell you that the way the word "computation" is used here is a bit simplistic and naive. Modern AI researchers do not think this way. It's true that computers and brains are extremely dissimilar in operation, but "computation" itself is a general conceptual model that can describe both. When we says that brains "compute" this or that, we are using mathematical models of computation to explain certain data and to make certain predictions about how the brain works. We are not saying that the brain is somehow fundamentally a computer; rather, that features of its operation can be understood as computational in a certain context. But that's also exactly how we treat computers! Fundamentally, what we call a computer is not some magical artifact performing some mystical metaphysical function of "computation"; rather, it is a physical system that can be mathematically understood as computational in certain contexts. But with computers, we have designed them to be hyper-optimized to align with our conceptual models of computation. Transistors are designed to have two physical states: "on" and "off", and this allows us to easily represent their state with the symbols 0 and 1, and perform analysis from there. The brain, designed by evolution, is not optimized for intelligibility, but nevertheless we can draw computational analogies with extra effort.

    So what we have are two physical systems, the brain and modern computers, both of which can be modeled computationally (one more easily than the other), neither of which are intrinsically computational as physical systems. So how do we decide whether one or the other is capable of being conscious?

    Clearly brains can be conscious, because we are brains and we have consciousness. But how do I, as a single brain, know that you, another brain, are actually conscious? I don't - this is the famous problem of Other Minds. I am making an inference to the best explanation - you have a brain like mine, and your behavior is like mine, so I am inferring that you probably have a mind like mine.

    But now suppose we have a highly intelligent computer which passes the Turing test. Does it have a mind? It's certainly acing the behavioral similarity criterion, but the problem comes when we try to use the physical similarity criterion - how do we score the similarity between a silicon architecture and a brainlike architecture? In one sense, the two are made of different materials and are nothing alike on a microscopic level, so we might think that there is no way to tell if the computer is conscious. On the other hand, we can draw higher-level computational analogies between our brains and the algorithm being run on the silicon. The fact that computational descriptions are observer-dependent is beside the point - all models are observer dependent - the point is that it can be argued that physical systems described by similar computational models probably share other properties as well, such as mental states. This is an inference to the best explanation. Given what our minds do when they represent concepts, we can build very close analogs to these processes into the operation of the AI. The more we learn about the brain, the more likely it seems that mental properties are invariant to different low-level descriptions of systems, depending only on higher-level causal properties easily modeled by computations; if so, then minds are multiply-realizable, and computers can have minds.

    (Continued in a reply to this comment because too long to fit in one post)
u/kaesekopf · 3 pointsr/Catholicism

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D40EGCQ/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?ie=UTF8&btkr=1

It's that book.

He's also got a blog.

http://edwardfeser.blogspot.com/

Could search through there where he talks about atheism/atheists.

u/higher_order · 3 pointsr/askphilosophy

why not? because he discusses miracles?

makie's the miracle of theism is a response to that book.

blackwell's companion to natural theology might be something.

u/jessefleyva · 3 pointsr/spirituality

You should read Journey of Souls by Michael Newton.

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855

u/eyver · 3 pointsr/Glitch_in_the_Matrix

Not from this sub, but a collection of true stories from hypnotherapists on exactly this topic can be found in books by Brian Weiss and Michael Newton. I highly recommend starting with Many Lives, Many Masters since it's easy to read and sort of the "gateway drug" to this whole world. Michael Newton's books, like Journey of Souls, go into far more detail (and include word-for-word transcripts from dozens upon dozens of his therapy sessions).

This is fascinating to me because the general premise of both these books (as well as many others by other legitimate hypnotherapists who have put clients "under" to the point where they could access past lives as well as lives between lives) is exactly what's quoted in the short excerpts in OP's post: we are spirits living in imperfect and irrational human bodies, and our entire experience on this planet is essentially so we can learn and grow as spirits. In fact these books indicate that Earth (and our human experience) is a more "advanced" or "accelerated" school for spirits (and more difficult as a result).

All of this stuff fascinates me because the story is so consistent among all these therapists who have had first-hand experience with clients "tapping" into this world and among all the anecdotal stories on subs like this.

u/cornicelloselkie · 3 pointsr/tarot
u/scomberscombrus · 3 pointsr/Meditation

>He told me that he has never felt more calm and happy. [...] He says he is having an insight that no one else can possibly imagine because he says it scares them.

I've experienced just that. He will most likely come out of it. Like kirkirus said, just give him time to sort things out and he'll become more responsive.

Whatever he's thinking about, tell him that he is most likely not alone. Human beings in all cultures have spent months contemplating in isolation, and a lot of them have used psychedelic substances.

I would actually be very interested in hearing what your friend has to say. But well! Let him rest, and make sure to tell him you love him! Best of luck.

---
Also, The End of Your World by Adyashanti may be useful to him, or even to you! And perhaps this television series by Alan Watts for a different cultural context.

u/spacebe · 3 pointsr/Meditation

These two are good for all levels: A book on the Tao, A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are by Byron Katie. For using journaling to support meditation: Quiet Mind, Open Heart. Lots of thought provoking questions, as well as meditation practices.

For people who have practiced a while: The End of Your World: Uncensored Straight Talk on the Nature of Enlightenment. It can really help give direction beyond basics.

u/guise_of_existence · 3 pointsr/kundalini

Hi Porkgreen,

It sounds like you're having an awakening. Strap in, buckle up, and take some deep breaths, but I can assure you that in the end everything will be just fine.

There are basically three levels on which things begin to restructure themselves such that your whole being is brought more into alignment with the truth of things. And when things are changing on all these levels it can feel quite disorienting. The three levels are the physio-energetic (aka the body, aka traditional kundalini), your external life (job, relationships, etc.), and your internal life (your sense of who and what you are).

When people begin to awaken, there are two main reasons they suffer. First, awakening brings phases of great change which most have a tendency to resist at least initially. Resisting 'What Is' will always bring suffering. Thus it's important to learn to surrender to, and trust in what is happening. You will need to meet your experience as it arises and learn to open to it, however it may reveal itself.

The second main reason people suffer during an awakening is that they feel disoriented as identities and external circumstances begins to change/fall away because they do not have a conceptual framework for understanding what is happening. This is where spiritual teachings can be helpful. A good teacher, even if a personal relationship isn't possible is extremely helpful. I recommend this book, and in general the Non-dual teachings of Adyashanti. He won't steer you wrong.

Weird energetic phenomena (pressure, vibrations, tingling, etc) and visions are normal. The important point here is not to indulge in them too much, and don't believe them (the visions especially). But if they arise, allow them to happen and just witness what is going on without believing or identifying with them.

If you live among close minded people, it may not be necessary to tell them about kundalini. However, act how you feel you should. Feel free to let me know if you have any more questions.

u/whuttupfoo · 3 pointsr/oculus

/r/awakened /r/streamentry

The buddhists know a lot about this subject, all religious doctrine aside the visuddhimagga is an in depth study of the mind, the self, and reality that's been written thousands of years ago. In summary, there really is no self. Humans are one of the only living creatures with a sense of self. Keyword sense. You can manipulate your sense of self through meditation by completely getting rid of it, or expanding it to everywhere around you, or back to the bounds of your body. Check out this book as well https://www.amazon.com/End-Your-World-Uncensored-Enlightenment/dp/1591797799

Unfortunately, science is barely catching up with what these guys have discovered and a lot of the terminology used is in another language. So it may come across as woo woo and new agey spiritual stuff but I would take a look at it and see for yourself.

EDIT: Also if you really look at yourself in the mirror for 10 to 15 minutes and try to find out where "you" are localized in space whether you think it's the eyes, the whole body, behind the eyes, or inside the brain, some very strange things will happen. No other species on this planet can tell that what they're seeing in a mirror is themselves.

SCIENCE: https://youtu.be/QeNmydIk8Yo?t=1190

u/moscowramada · 3 pointsr/occult

I found the section. The misspellings are not present in my translation. In fact all of the language is different in my book. It seems like your PDF and my book had different translators.

You can preview it and see the same section on Amazon at the link below.

https://www.amazon.com/Initiation-into-Hermetics-Franz-Bardon/dp/1885928122

It's called the "Human Being: The Body" in the book. In the book, it reads:

\> The external visible appearance of the body resembles a beautiful garment, and beauty with all its aspects is...

The rest goes on like that. In the book it's grammatically correct and doesn't have spelling errors.

u/leo_of_daat · 3 pointsr/occult

not a grimoire per say but i find franz bardons book initiation into hermetics a good place to start for energy work.

one thing it talks about is drawing life force and/or white light from the universe or yourself and impregnating it with your wish or desire. One thing to keep in mind working with life force, if its for yourself use you own lifeforce. if its for someone else draw it from the universe.

bardon says to do this because if you use your own engery on someone else you might take on a bit of their karma due to a connection i think.

https://www.amazon.com/Initiation-into-Hermetics-Franz-Bardon/dp/1885928122/

u/Aserth · 3 pointsr/occult

Franz Bardon IIH. Exactly what your looking for. Get a good physical copy of the book and dont rely on PDFs, cheatsheets etc.

Comment I made on another post on it.

https://www.reddit.com/r/occult/comments/5ij1d9/iih_first_step_help/

Good version(which I have)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Initiation-into-Hermetics-Franz-Bardon/dp/1885928122

u/lordzork · 2 pointsr/DebateReligion

Try the First Way. Or if you prefer, user hammiesink wrote a good explication. He also wrote a series of posts on the subject in this community. Here is the denouement, with links to the prior posts.

If you're really interested in this subject, the Blackwell Companion is an indispensable resource.

u/Grapho · 2 pointsr/atheism

Have you read and refuted all the arguments in, say, [The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology] (https://www.amazon.com/Blackwell-Companion-Natural-Theology/dp/1444350854)?

And are you really saying that if something cannot be seen then it does not exist?

u/NoHero3s · 2 pointsr/AskReddit

The hard part is life on Earth, the easy part is what comes afterwards. In my personal opinion, one of two things happens upon death:

  1. Your existence ends. That's it. There is nothing more. Thus, there is nothing to be afraid of, because there is...nothing. No joy, no pain, no sadness. Just like turning off the switch, similar to when you go unconscious.

  2. You will move into the afterlife. There are a multitude of thoughts of what the afterlife will be. Personally, I don't believe that there is a 'hell' , in the conventional sense of the word. On Earth, we are in physical form. If you believe that you have a soul, the only logical progression upon death of your physical body is transcendence to a new spiritual realm, or back to the spiritual realm that you came from. The point of hell, in this situation, is moot. And really, what would be the purpose of hell? To live life for 30, 40, 80 years...and then spend an ETERNITY suffering? There is no logical, reasonable or realistic basis for this.

    What is entirely possible, and what I believe, is that Earth is essentially a 'school' for the souls. We are sent here to live through existence, to learn, for the better or for the worse. Life is a series of lessons, and each life we live grows our soul. Our short existence on this Earth is merely the schoolyard, and when we die, we get to review our life, see what we did wrong, what we did right, and then contemplate how we can make things better, or see what the next life can possibly offer us.

    In a way, this could be considered 'heaven', but I don't see it as such. I just see it as our true existence. So in this sense, there should be no fear of dying - you will die when your time comes, and you will die because you accomplished what you needed to do.

    A book that really changed my perspective on existence, religion, life and death in general is the Journey of Souls. That being said, I was always anti-religion, anti-God, and always believed that life is a one shot deal, and that my pure existence was just happenstance of the right molecules and materials coming together.

    After reading that book, I'm not religious, I don't go to church, but I do feel more comfortable about my life, my perspective of death, and have a much more open mind to all the world religions. I believe that every religion does have something right in what they teach - reincarnation, morals, treating people well...but no one religion seems to have gotten it entirely correct.
u/master_baiter · 2 pointsr/ChildrenOfTheLight



Short answer to your question is, No, I don’t believe there is an eternal hell a being can go to. However, if you have ever experienced great time passing in a dream that takes place in a short nap, I believe that as creative beings empowered within the Divine, being literally God forgetting Itself, one can dream/experience long periods of suffering or what might be deemed “hell.” I believe if one is doing self-centered, self seeking behaviors, and taking these fears into multiple lifetimes they will likely keep experiencing profound suffering in lifetimes that will be very “hellish” until they “learn their lesson.” By that, I don’t mean a matter of punishment being done for being “bad” meted out by some point keeping Deity watching the scales of justice and making sure to balance them. I mean more a cause/effect. Like if I don’t want to get all wet I wouldn’t jump into the pool. If I woke up each day and jumped into a pool while saying to myself “this time I won’t get wet” eventually I will “learn the lesson” that jumping into pools causes the experience of wetness. This is what I believe is meant by the Eastern descriptions of Karma, merely the natural consequences of certain attitudes and behaviors. If I refrain from showering I will be stank within a day or two. It’s not cosmic punishment from a wrathful god for the Evil of not showering that I am experiencing the retribution of condemnation to a be a stank ass, it’s just Natural Law. If for many lifetimes I keep using everyone as if they are disposable and channeling all of my angers and fears into “I gotta cheat them before they cheat me” I think my existence will stay hellish until I “get it” and decide to stop following those patterns. The second way a person could experience a “hell” is described by some NDEs and Astral Journeying experiences. They suggest that once we die, in between lives those conditioned patterns can play out for a while as a “dream of hell.” That can be a hell like experience for the spirit experiencing it, but once again that would be a hell of their own making that can be left as soon as the spirit “wakes up.” Primarily it could be found by the Souls own self condemnation and so they decide not to journey to the light but keep circling around lost as they know they “don’t deserve the light.”


My overarching worldview is that of non-duality or Advaita Vedanta which basically specifies that the only “real” thing is the unification with Source/Oneness/God/The Unchanging. To transcend it completely and realize your true is the goal of that specific outlook. More accurately described as realizing that you already Are That and you can’t not be. Ultimately this would result in residing in the Awareness of that Truth as the seat of your perception instead of identifying with the limited separate you that thinks it’s an individual human m. My favorite Teacher in this outlook is Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj. His teachings can be found here: http://www.maharajnisargadatta.com/I_Am_That.pdf



All of these other discussions about the manifested world and our place in it as individual souls are moot to the point of view of the Advaita Vedantaschool of thought. To it, speculation about cosmology, other lives, and heaven/hell is about as pointless as trying to deposit money in the bank that you won in a dream or trying to arrest an actor for a crime his character committed on stage. Because if this is all transitory and ultimately “a dream of separation,” then all mental chatter is just part of the dream.

However, I moderate that view because for myself as I am still appearing to be in this present context. Here, now, the “me” typing these letters is what I am presented with. If I am going to be appearing to exist at this time on this planet in this realm, I might as well be trying to play the game at the forefront of my present experience effectively.



My beliefs in reincarnation are based on others’ research and my own regression hypnosis and meditations.


I will offer some of my influences below so you could investigate further yourself if you feel interested in it.


IISIS (Institute for the Integration of Science Intuition and Spirit): http://www.iisis.net/index.php?page=semkiw-reincarnation-past-lives-principles&hl=en_US
This site offers many case studies of people claiming they remember their previous lives and documented with scientific rigor.

The Journey of Souls by Michael Newton
PDF: https://archonmatrix.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Journey-Of-Souls-by-Michael-Newton-PDF.pdf
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855
In this book psychologist Michael Newton offers transcripts from some highlighted cases of over 700 people he did regressive hypnosis on. The way he got his data was placing people under hypnosis, having them recall their past life and then guiding them to continue the memory until they travel to the place they went between lives. The results are remarkably consistent from person to person, even though the clients weren’t given any expectation of what they would experience. Generally the people die, see a light, travel to it, are met by a person of authority, love and light that usually fits their predominant religious outlook (Jesus for Christians, Krishna for Hindus, Glowing white orbs for agnostics, etc) After that, select members of their “soul group” come and say “hi.” (Could be a loving grandmother, or brother, etc) the soul group is the family of souls they share many lifetimes with that are around the same stage of soul evolution. There are also guides an octave or two above the evolution of the whole group that radiate love and give guidance. Also common is life reviews and then picking from several different future incarnations to go back and try and learn what we need to develop specifically in our weak spots. This books data suggests everyone comes to earth willingly because we could stay hanging out in Soul Paradise forever but the rate of evolution is super slow and so each soul wants to advance and then get to world building. Like once a soul gets advanced enough it becomes a Demi-God and makes its own universes.


Near Death Experiences (NDEs)
Near-death.com
One of the more interesting NDEs on that site is the story of George Ritchie who traveled places on earth with a being of Love he believed to be Jesus. This seems to offer evidence of the idea of a soul creating their own hell to exist in for a while as a result of their own judgment of themselves: https://www.near-death.com/experiences/notable/george-ritchie.html#a05a

A solid overview of the gamut of experiences NDEs can appear as is found on this page of their site:
https://www.near-death.com/science/research/out-of-body-experiences.html


Astral Journeyers
One of the most practiced astral journeyers I ever came across in my internet wanderings was the experiences of the late Frank Kepple, an active participant on the forum astralpulse.com. Using the Monroe Institute’s Gateway Program CDs he was able to journey extensively in the realms of spirit and he documented his findings for the other members there. The gestalt of his findings overlap considerably with findings of both NDE experiences and Michael Newtons between life regression case studies. They also indicate spirits can be “stuck” for a while in their own self made hell realms if they were living automatic lives based on self centeredness. The admins their collected all his writings into one cohesive doc found here: http://www.astralpulse.com/frankkepple.html

(The CDs he used can be found here:
https://www.monroeinstitute.org/Gateway%20Voyage%20Program )

One other belief system that echoes this ontology is the traditions of Tibetan Buddhism that speak to souls going to “hell realms” and “god realms” between lives based on their “karma.” As the true nature of things get lost and diluted through generations of distance from the source material coupled with the dogma that inevitably arises when a belief system gets modified for a wider general population mainstream, I feel those descriptions are a bit distorted from the original teachers who had the experiences and as they were canonized they have evolved to be more along the lines of a worldview that hell realms are a “punishment for being bad” instead of the more likely experience of “self created dream of hell” that more recent research suggests.


As to your question on what I meant by Higher Self, I mean the soul/energy body described in the above references that is connected to evolved guides and soul groups and knowledge of all the lives you’ve lived. That aspect of You knows the real reason you incarnated in this specific lifetime and what goals you’re trying to achieve with regard to your evolution.

I will always be to some degree agnostic of all of these views. I sort of assign mental probabilities to all of my beliefs that give them likelihoods. The idea that modern Christianity is completely right and every conflicting viewpoint is the work of the devil? I give that a 3%. The idea that I am a sentient AI-bot in an elaborate quantum simulation? 13% The idea that I am just a perceiving consciousness in the center of void with literally nothing and no one else existing, just projecting the experience of other people with no internal perception or consciousness of their own that phase in and out of existence when I leave and re-enter the room they appear in? That solipsist view might be closer to 33%. These other ideas I present of Advaita Vedanta, soul evolution and reincarnation get a higher rating of 70-80% by me. However, the more I progress on my path the more I realize I know nothing.

u/MsUnderwood · 2 pointsr/lawofattraction

Here's a book about NDEs specifically

Check out books from Robert Monroe, a former scientist, who has learned how to OBE at will and has studied/taught others to as well.

A subreddit for people who have experienced or are in the process of achieving OBEs (also called astral travelling or astral projecting) https://www.reddit.com/r/Astral_Projection/

Tons of Youtube videos as well a lot of them report similar things but of course keep in mind Youtubers aren't always the most reliable

I like TedXTalks for subjects like these, check out the first 2 videos

Another thing related to astral projection is remote viewing, where you're able to see other places without physically going there. CIA is currently looking into and trying to weaponize this technique

u/lotusflowerjasmine · 2 pointsr/exmormon

Start with this one: God and the Afterlife: The Groundbreaking New Evidence for God and Near-Death Experience https://www.amazon.com/dp/0062279556/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_vxgSBbC82834X

And when you’re ready for it, go on to this one: Many Lives, Many Masters: The True Story of a Prominent Psychiatrist, His Young Patient, and the Past-Life Therapy That Changed Both Their Lives https://www.amazon.com/dp/0671657860/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_RzgSBbJ4CQSWD

Then this one: Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives https://www.amazon.com/dp/1567184855/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_RygSBbAD9C961

u/greatunknownpub · 2 pointsr/MorbidReality

I haven't read that one, but another great book in that vein is Journey of Souls by Michael Newton. Really opened my mind to some amazing possibilities.

u/AllanfromWales1 · 2 pointsr/Wicca

For me, the key thing with divination is that you are trying to answer a question, not just looking for the book meanings of the cards/runes/whatever. So, at least to start, you need a fairly simplistic interpretation of what each tool means, and a lot of flexibility to apply that to the situation in front of you.
In terms of remembering what things mean, I found Tarot books most useful which start from the basis of 'the two's mean this, the threes mean this etc. when applied to the relevant suit', so there was some sort of pattern to follow rather than 78 individual meanings. My memory is poor these days, but I think Rachel Pollock's 78 Degrees of Wisdom was good for that. It is, in any case, one of the all-time classic Tarot books.

u/robbyhaber · 2 pointsr/tarot

By far my favorite is Rachel Pollak's Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot https://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634083/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_alPTCb8MYZDZ1

u/to55r · 2 pointsr/occult

I have enjoyed this one.

Probably not a beginner's book, and I don't agree with everything that's presented, but it has helped me make connections that I might not have come to on my own. Easily one of my favorites.

u/bukvich · 2 pointsr/occult

> I had especially in mind free resources from the internet.

All of these books are interesting in places: sacred texts tarot

The best ones I have read are not online:

The Thursday Night Tarot: Weekly Talks on the Wisdom of the Major Arcana by Jason Lotterhand
and
Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot by Rachel Pollack

u/t4rusky · 2 pointsr/tarot

Honestly one of the best books I've found for starting is Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack

https://www.amazon.ca/Seventy-Eight-Degrees-Wisdom-Book-Tarot/dp/1578634083

It gives a great fundamental look at the history of the cards as well as teasing some more advanced topics, so you can really take any topic from the book and go wild with your journey. It works with the RWS deck which most people start with I would say, but the wisdom is universal. It's a great resource and I've never stopped sourcing it even though I've gone through tons of other books since reading this one.

u/dreamrabbit · 2 pointsr/Buddhism

You could start at the end.

u/everything06192017 · 2 pointsr/awakened

Please read this book, it will help you a lot: https://www.amazon.com/End-Your-World-Uncensored-Enlightenment/dp/1591797799. It's basically written for you - you will relate, just like I did.

What I learned from it is what you're experiencing is normal - he says most people lose it before they gain it for good. And even then it's somewhat possible to lose it haha. What he says is it's all part of the process, it's important not to fight it, not to resist it, because the more you fight something the more you get of it.

I don't feel I'm gonna lose it, but I could be wrong and I don't much care either way. I was already pretty happy before it happened through openness and honesty. I had 1.5 years of the worst depression in my life before I learned to be happy. I'm not in a position to give advice (I feel like a newborn), but if I was forced to, I'd say: don't sweat over it, "sweating" is what ego does best, don't give it that power.

As for me, I meditate every day for 20-30 minutes because I find it enjoyable and I like the process of quieting my mind. I am also going to Vipassana in about a month. Mostly I plan to just chill and unfold with the flow. I distinctly feel that the fear of losing it is counter-productive. It's all ego talking.

u/mnhoops · 2 pointsr/awakened
u/vawksel · 2 pointsr/ACIM

I applaud you at your patience. You're not attacking, and appearing to stay very calm in your writings.

> I feel like you are not really addressing what I am talking about, and what you are saying doesn't help me understand this subject any better. So, let me give an example. You're living in village and group of men are outside wielding weapons. You know who they are, and you know that their plan is to kill, rape, and kidnap everyone they can (very common historical event). Let's say you have someway to stop this from happening, but it involves fighting. Do you fight, or do you just allow them to come in and commit atrocities to the ones you love?

This is what the Dali Lama did with Tibet. He allowed them to come in, and commit atrocities to the ones he loved. 1.2 million Tibetans, one-fifth of the country's population, died as a result of China's attack; many more languished in prisons and labor camps; and more than 6000 monasteries, temples and other cultural and historic buildings were destroyed and their contents pillaged. The Dali Lama knew that violence wasn't the answer. God doesn't attack others, he only loves them. Jesus doesn't see attack, EVER, he only sees cries for love. It's the Ego that sees attack, loss, death, suffering, sacrifice. NONE of these things are attributes of God. You're either walking towards the light, or keeping yourself in the dark.

The root issue is that you don't realize you are God himself, dreaming all of this. That IS the root issue which I was trying to address. Of course God's dreams would be "this real". God can pretend to do anything he wants to, including, being you. He isn't really you, he is God, he's only pretending to be a "you" in illusion.

When you go to the movies, you forget yourself. You get lost in the movie, the darkness of the theater. You don't sit there saying "I am me, I am me, I am me" the whole time you watch the movie. The whole point is that you get lost in it. This is what God is doing. He's given himself amnesia, forgetting himself, so that he can be fully immersed in his own illusion, his own movie. He wrote the whole script, he plays every part. Since you are him, it's really you that are doing all of this. Making the entire universe, playing every part, every person, every animal, every rock.

You list common historical events, and scenarios, but these things are likely not happening to YOU personally. Someone else in this thread said the same, you have to look in the 2 foot space around you. The ego plays tricks on you. If you see all of this as illusion, and you've personally never starved to death, was murdered, or killed, then how do you know it's not all a trick just to make yourself scared? I don't even mean your friend was killed, or your mother was attacked physically. I mean, have YOU been stabbed with a knife? You personally? Was it your DIRECT experience? What if it's all a trick, and the "really bad things" don't really exist, it's all a show of trick and light? Can you prove otherwise? If you did suffer some in your life, was it not just thoughts you were experiencing? "This is bad...(more thoughts) this is so bad...". This goes DEEP. You can't prove there is actually someone "else" inside any person you see. Sure, the "forms" act like they are alive, they are dancing around and showing what appears to be emotion, but because you CAN NOT experience the inside of another form you see, another BODY, you can't prove that there is anything going on in there. It could be shells of people walking around. It COULD all be a light projection from YOUR own mind. You create the world you WANT TO SEE. Perception is not real.

The ego will have GREAT resistance to this. It's likely saying that this is all crazy talk. That's it's job. If you see beyond the veil, it will burn up your entire world. Jed Mckenna wrote a great book about this here: http://www.reddit.com/r/enlightenment/top/

When your world does end, you can read Adyashanti's wonderfully helpful book here. Titled: The End of Your World

> Besides, if ACIM teaches that it is all an illusion and there is no punishment from sin, why not protect the innocent from torture and abuse?

Because there is no one else out there, it's only you. There is no one to protect. If someone did come into your house, and attack YOU personally, it would be you only doing it to yourself. It's up to you how you want to handle yourself. You can love yourself, or you can attack yourself back. What happens physically is meaningless, because illusions don't have meaning (Lesson 1). How you choose to see a situation, as LOVE or MURDER is up to you. God always chooses Love without question, the Ego always chooses Murder without question.

> I'm very passionate about my spiritual and intellectual journey, but I worry that aspects of ACIM negate critical thought.

God does not need thought. God is infinite. Thought is limiting. We use thoughts to POINT beyond illusion and that's about it at best. Thought itself is what created this whole mess to begin with. Critical thinking IS the Ego. We want to move to the infinite intelligence that's beyond Thought. The place where thoughts come FROM. You seem to think that you pick your thoughts. You absolutely do not. You do not go into a library of billions of thoughts, and say "I want THAT one next". You merely sit there and one appears. Then another thought appears, then another. It's the ego that possesses us and says "I am these thoughts". You are none of them. At best you can say you are the awareness in which thoughts appear. This Eckhart Tolle video which is his book The Power Of Now, explains this excellently.

From ACIM Workbook Lesson 10: http://acimsearch.org/workbook-for-students/wb-010/

> “My thoughts do not mean anything.”

> This idea applies to all the thoughts of which you are aware, or become aware in the practice periods. The reason the idea is applicable to all of them is that they are not your real thoughts. We have made this distinction before, and will again.You have no basis for comparison as yet. When you do, you will have no doubt that what you once believed were your thoughts did not mean anything.

If you really want to wake up, and aren't just playing games with yourself, do the workbook lessons, and ask the holy spirit for help (for real, out loud, even if you feel silly).

Finally, thank you Brother, (or Sister) for your genuine questions and well written responses. I can only learn as I teach for they happen simultaneously. I'm grateful for this interaction.

u/silascade · 2 pointsr/occult

I read a description of "Initiation into Hermetics" by Franz Bardon on Amazon. It said:

> Franz Bardon is considered by many as the greatest adept of the 20th century. A tireless worker for the light, he survived Hitler's concentration camps but died a victim of Communist persecution in 1958. He left behind him four legendary books which have become acknowledged classics of occult literature.

As a believer in and neophyte practicioner of magick, I mean this question seriously. How do you die a victim of Communist (or really any kind of) persecution when you're supposed​ly the greatest adept of the century? Can't you magick your way out of that sort of thing? Am I misunderstanding how magick works?

u/TheGuyWithTheBalloon · 2 pointsr/Judaism
u/tzdk · 2 pointsr/Judaism

I remember reading in To Be a Jew that taking care of one's health is a mitzvah, but I don't see how a state of being could be a sin. I think it would be like pregnancy outside of marriage: the act of having sex is a sin, but the state of being pregnant is not.

u/smokesteam · 2 pointsr/Judaism

Dont feel bad about not knowing. I spent more than a year doing research before I even first approached a Rabbi. For us learning is a life long process.

Books:

  • Jews, God and History will give you a good understanding of our history as a people. Many major empires have tried to destroy us, by all rights we should not be here any more but our oppressors end up consigned to museums and history books.

  • Basic Judaism seems to be good

  • To Be a Jew is highly recommend by many.

  • Becoming A Jew also popular regarding Orthodox conversion.

  • Essential Judaism seems to be Reform oriented but may contain a more broad oversight than just that viewpoint.

  • Being Jewish was one I read that I thought offered lots of good information overall.

    Possibly most importantly I'd say you need a Jewish bible with commentary. I'd recommend the Stone Chumash. I also keep a JPS Hebrew/English Tanakh on my desk. The "chumash" (AKA the Torah) is the five books of Moses. The "Tanakh" is the Torah, Prophets and Writings, the entire Hebrew bible .I say a "Jewish Bible" because 1) the translation is more direct from Hebrew, without the distortions of the KJV/NIV/etc. 2) you also get commentary on the text from key Jewish scholars throughout the ages to help you understand the meaning of the text, this part is very important.

    All above book links are to Amazon but I am not an affiliate and do not gain in any way. You can probably find all those and more at a specialty Judaica shop like http://www.judaism.com or another similar site.

    BTW you probably want to go over this site entirely http://www.jewfaq.org/ It is written by an Orthodox guy so is slanted that way but the information is all good.
u/genuineindividual · 2 pointsr/Judaism
u/professoroblivion42 · 2 pointsr/suggestmeabook

This book has been sitting in my to read stack a while: http://www.amazon.com/The-Occult-Colin-Wilson/dp/1842931075, and is supposed to be an excellent book on what you mention. He also wrote another book, The Outsider, with more of a philosophical bent that I've partially that's the reason I know about him. Another one you might want to consider is:

http://www.amazon.com/Teachings-Don-Juan-Yaqui-Knowledge/dp/0671600419/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1410349123&sr=1-1&keywords=don+juan+carlos+castaneda

which was undertaken originally as an anthropological study of shamanism but became more of an examination of black magic.

If you're interested in more general ideas of why people think about gods and monsters then I would definitely check out William James' Varieties of Religious Experience, which talks about the possible psychological underpinnings of mystical thinking. This lecture along similar lines https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WwAQqWUkpI is also fantastic.

My brother has read a lot more concerning this and has many more books that I could ask him about if you'd be interested. I mostly just dabble.

u/djIsoMetric · 2 pointsr/LSD

It’s been 20 plus years since I’ve read this. The teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda.

u/ManIsBornFree · 2 pointsr/history

another great place to start looking is the counter-cultural movements of the 60's-70's, the hippies, and how Carlos Castaneda and the CIA basically brought Psilocybin to the cultural forefront.

In looking into this, the CIA aspect is pretty cool, but Carlos Castandea is the man you need to look into. basically, the worst anthropoligist/cult leader of all time.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Castaneda
https://www.amazon.com/Carlos-Castaneda/e/B000APXVFG

https://www.amazon.com/Teachings-Don-Juan-Yaqui-Knowledge/dp/0671600419/ref=la_B000APXVFG_1_1/156-2591314-2549246?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1485859299&sr=1-1


u/magdamakethetea · 2 pointsr/Drugs

It would probably be good to check out some of the literature from the guys who spent their lives trying to characterize the whole thing.

some examples: LSD ketamine Peyote

u/Greydonstepper · 2 pointsr/occult

I would just follow the series.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Teachings-Don-Juan-Knowledge/dp/0671600419

It's fiction but based on truths. It's filled with these actually. The later books aren't as powerful. Warning! these books will inspire a vision quest! Have fun and be safe if you do. (Have someone watching over you).

u/EmptyFractal · 2 pointsr/LSD
u/lord_of_fruits · 2 pointsr/zen

i recommend huang po.

u/waffle_embrace · 2 pointsr/howtonotgiveafuck
u/snbeings · 2 pointsr/zen

The Zen Teaching of Huang Po: On the Transmission of Mind

http://www.amazon.com/The-Zen-Teaching-Huang-Transmission/dp/0802150926

fundies gonna have to find other ways to revolt

u/sovereign_self · 2 pointsr/Meditation

Book


The Zen Teaching of Huang-Po

Incense


Shoyeido Illusions premium low smoke incense
Incense Bowl
White Ash (to hold up the incense in the bowl)

Sitting Cushion


Buckwheat Zafu

u/rockytimber · 2 pointsr/zen

> correct your sloppy asymptotic learning curve

Half an upvote for feigned erudition. Now if only you could apply the same diligence to actual study.

>the source is Blofeld

the channel is Blofeld, the source is probably http://www.amazon.com/The-Zen-Teaching-Huang-Transmission/dp/0802150926

>you start by sitting in the correct posture, letting go of thoughts and ignoring sensations, casting away both internal and external.

This was the teaching of the Buddhist sect formed in the Song dynasty that claimed Huangbo in their lineage.

But the message of Huangbo and his family is not the same. The message had to be modified in order to make a sect. How do you make a sect out of what the zen characters were pointing at?

I suppose it would be tragic to lose the essence of that old Song period sect. But that is a problem for the Buddhists, not those interested in the zen characters. The zen characters had no stake in these Buddhist sects.

When you see these sermons, outside of the context of a conversation, it is often the work of someone with pious intentions and results in an after the fact prescription like:

>According to the Master, you start by sitting in the correct posture, letting go of thoughts and ignoring sensations, casting away both internal and external. "This alone is liberation." After that you can extend Zen to all other aspects of life

See how it happens? I've done it myself. Trying to roll out the red carpet, trying to accommodate the tourist who walked in hoping to get a snapshot. Making it easy to understand. Upaya! The two paths!

Take another look. This text you refer to was originally compiled by Pei Xiu against Huangpo's wishes. Pei Xiu meant well, but its obvious that the text mischaracterizes Huangpo in more that one instance.

I don't think its possible to come up with a Sunday School version of zen.

u/Yusei94 · 2 pointsr/zen

I'd suggest you read some Huang Po.
I think you can find a PDF of it online, somewhere.

u/veragood · 2 pointsr/awakened

About six months ago, on a whim, I bought the incredibly powerful and brilliant book The Zen Teachings of Huang Po. I almost always buy my spiritual books 'new,' but decided to buy a used version this time. Picked a random used book seller on Amazon and clicked purchase.

Fast forward to a week later. The book arrives. As I read it, I begin to really resonate with what I'm reading. It makes a ton of sense, it's powerfully stated, a really wonderful translation. And I begin to notice around page 30 some highlights from the person who owned the book before me. Around page 50 or so, I notice that this person uses their highlighter exactly the way I use it: the skinny edge for underlining, the fat edge for highlighting, and the tip for writing in the margins. "Hell yeah, random stranger!", I think.

I keep reading. The book is opening my very soul up. A profound sense of deja-vu begins to take me over. "Wait... wait a second... I've read this book before. I've read this before." I flip forward in the book, my intuition telling me to look for more writing in the margins. I come across something that makes me stop cold. I've not only read this before.. I've read this exact book before! This was my book!

I randomly bought a used version of a book and had a copy sent to me that I had previously owned. Which is strange enough. But the strangest part, imo, is that, even though I undoubtedly read and wrote in this copy, I cannot remember when I owned it, or why I gave it away. I never sell books -- or at least I thought I never did. The case of the boomerang Zen book is one of the strangest, unresolved events that I've ever heard of.

u/lyam23 · 2 pointsr/Buddhism

Dogen is difficult. Try:

u/Mr_Tarradiddle · 2 pointsr/tarot

I have that deck! See customer images in link:

https://www.amazon.com/Rider-Tarot-Arthur-Edward-Waite/dp/091386613X

u/lenore14 · 2 pointsr/occult

I completely understand and that’s why I always use my Rider Tarot deck. It’s simple nothing beautifully drawn or crafted, just the basics. The Rider Tarot Deck https://www.amazon.com/dp/091386613X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_9fyXBbFK5VFG7

u/MrDelirious · 2 pointsr/atheism

Of the four, I'd probably recommend Harris. Given the freedom, I wouldn't recommend any of them if you're trying to expand a theist's mind.

Suggestion 1 from me is Guy Harrison's "50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God". He goes through the 50 most common reasons people gave him when he asked, and explained why an average skeptic/atheist doesn't find those reasons compelling.

Suggestion 2 is probably a volume on naturalism (for example "Encountering Naturalism" or Carrier's "Sense and Goodness Without God"). Firmly establishing a coherent, complete worldview that doesn't require gods can be a valuable step.

u/gmt9791 · 2 pointsr/exmormon

I've never actually read this book, but I really respect the author's scholarship and thinking. The title seems like it might be in the ballpark of what you're looking for. Or, you can look into related books:

https://www.amazon.com/Sense-Goodness-Without-God-Metaphysical/dp/1420802933

u/yellownumberfive · 2 pointsr/atheism

Richard Carrier used to consider himself a Taoist before giving that up as well in favor of simple atheism.

Do check out his book "Sense and Goodness Without God; a Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism" it is quite good and he talks a bit about his history with Taoism as well as the ethics of non-belief.

http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Goodness-Without-God-Metaphysical/dp/1420802933

u/nonficFTW · 2 pointsr/booksuggestions

I recommend Sense and Goodness without God. Very accessible, quite pithy, and doesn't harp a lot about God.

u/WeAreAllBroken · 2 pointsr/Christianity

I imagine that when you were a kid you were able to base your beliefs on the authority of your parents or minister. Now that you are older and able to think critically, you see that they aren't actually in a position to speak authoritatively on that issue.

If you want to believe in God now, it will have to be on different grounds. You will have to find a rationale that you can intellectually accept. There are logical arguments for the existence of God. If this is the sort of thing that you are interested in you might look into getting The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology. It provides in-depth treatments by well-know philosophers of the arguments for the existence of God based on nature and reason.

u/komorikomori · 2 pointsr/religion

I would highly recommend The Study Quran. It is probably the most academic translation out there, at least in my opinion.

This site has basically every major English translation of the Qur'an (including The Study Quran) for comparison, more than any other site I've found.

u/diablos777 · 2 pointsr/islam

The Study Quran is the latest translation with multi sect views. Highly recommended by a lot of scholars Sunni and Shia.

The Study Quran: A New Translation and Commentary https://www.amazon.com/dp/0061125865/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_Ut-nxb5DHJC0N


Here's a loOoOong interview with one of the co-authors:

https://youtu.be/aKdvKECfvPI

u/funkypalestinian · 2 pointsr/progressive_islam

Hands down the best Quran in English to learn is the Study Quran,

The Study Quran: A New... https://www.amazon.com/dp/0061125865?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

The information it has is truly great and we'll researched. It also has several essays on the back.

I can not recommend it enough

u/TheCoconutChef · 2 pointsr/exmuslim

Islam is such a controversial topic that, when people make a presentation on it, I think it would do them well to outline their methodological approach before they start talking. They should also try and gauge, minimally, if the audience agrees with the methodology.

For instance, they could start the presentation by saying that they'll do a doctrinal, inter-textual analysis of the Koran as it relates to women, focusing on those statements in which a reference to femininity is made, and will then try and map those statements to instantiated laws in some countries in order to ascertain whether or not laws and doctrine fit with one another.

And then you start to systematically build your case with an avalanche of quotes.

My point is, you really need to make these methodological statements before hand and get the people you're talking to to commit to their validity. If they start to object to the conclusions you reach, you're then in a position to remind them that you're just applying the methodology everybody agreed with at the beginning.

It used to be you didn't need to do this because every body understood that we used reason, evidence, logic, etc, and that the defense of a conclusion at all cost was to be avoided, since we recognized the fact that we might be wrong in principle, since the method had to drive the conclusions and not the other way around. But a lot of people who believe in Islam don't subscribe to those views, so you have to backtrack a bit and tell them "Here is what I'm doing. Here is how I will proceed. Here is why I proceed this way. Here is why truth is important."

People in the west have fuzzily internalized those concepts so much they don't even realize they're achievements in the first place and thus fail to see that they have to explain anything of the sort before starting. And yet, Islam is all about :

  • Revealed truth

  • Doubt as weakness of faith

  • Defense of Islam as duty

  • Weakness of faith as evil

    I mean, concerning doubt, here is what a very recent commentary on the Koran has to say about it, relating to 2:10,

    > In their heart is a disease, and God has increased them in disease. Their is a painful punishment for having lied. (2:10)

    > The disease is usually understood to refer to doubt, hence a spiritual sickness. (see 2:7, 24:50)

    Welp. It doesn't help that what, in the west, is arguably considered to be the father of modern philosophy, had as its prime method of thinking something which we came to call "Cartesian Doubt".

    > Several years have now elapsed since I first became aware that I had accepted, even from my youth, many false opinions for true, and that consequently what I afterward based on such principles was highly doubtful; and from that time I was convinced of the necessity of undertaking once in my life to rid myself of all the opinions I had adopted, and of commencing anew the work of building from the foundation...

    Descartes
u/ses1 · 2 pointsr/DebateAChristian

>What do you think agnosticism is?

An agnostic is defined by Webster's as a person who does not have a definite belief about whether God exists or not and /or a person who does not believe or is unsure of something

>What do you think scepticism is?

Scepticism is defined by Webster's as an attitude of doubt or a disposition to incredulity either in general or toward a particular object and / or the doctrine that true knowledge or knowledge in a particular area is uncertain and / or the method of suspended judgment, systematic doubt, or criticism characteristic of skeptics and / or doubt concerning basic religious principles (as immortality, providence, and revelation

I am not going to pigeonhole any individual agnostic, sceptic, or fill-in-the-blank. Everyone can define themselves and their beliefs/worldview.
.

>Define 'worldview'.

Worldview is defined by Webster's as the way someone thinks about the world

I would add that a worldview is how one sees life and the world at large; a cluster of beliefs a person holds about the most significant concepts of life-such as God, the cosmos, knowledge, values, humanity, and history. They form a big picture, a general outlook, or a grand perspective on life and the world; it's one's basic or ultimate beliefs. This framework supplies a comprehensive view of what a person considers real, true, rational, good, valuable, and beautiful. Philosopher Ronald Nash defines a worldview as "a conceptual scheme by which we consciously or unconsciously place or fit everything we believe and by which we interpret and judge reality

>It's incredibly assumptive, if typical, for a person having your level of self-assurance to accuse others of the same.

I go, as Antony Flew said, where the evidence leads.

I have had a couple of recent discussion with people who, while having no problem criticizing the Christian WV, dropped the discussion when questioned about their worldviews. One refused to even articulate a worldview.

The sad fact is that most who have no problem attacking the Christian worldview have never even given a thought as to their own WV and whether or not it is coherent.

u/amdgph · 2 pointsr/Catholicism

Alright here are some of the best resources I know as a Catholic. Hope they help!

Edward Feser's blog as well as his The Last Superstition and 5 Proofs of the Existence of God

Stephen Barr's Modern Physics and Ancient Faith

Francis Collin's The Language of God

Anthony Flew's There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind

Thomas Wood's How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization

Brant Pitre's The Case For Jesus

Tim O Neill on the Church and science, the Inquisition and the Galileo affair

Jenny Hawkins on Jesus and God, early Christianity and form criticism

Al Moritz on the Fine Tuning Argument

>There is a reason someone should believe in the supernatural and mystical aspects of Christianity. This is a large issue for me. Solely based on supernatural and mystical ideas, from an outsider perspective, Christianity is no different than animism or Buddhism. I can't have faith alone.

Well when you look at the world's religions, Christianity has a clear and impressive advantage in the miracles/mystical department. Historically, in Christianity, there have been numerous cases of Eucharistic miracles, Marian apparitions, miraculous healings and the spiritual gifts and religious experiences of countless Christian saints -- men and women of great virtue whose admirable character only add to the credibility of their testimony. Examples of these include Paul, Benedict of Nursia, Francis of Assisi, Dominic, Hildegard of Bingen, Anthony of Padua, Thomas Aquinas, Catherine of Siena, Vincent Ferrer, Joan of Arc, Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Catherine Emmerich, John Vianney, Anna Maria Taigi, Genma Galangi, Faustina Kowalska and Padre Pio. We also have a pair of impressive relics, the shroud of Turin and the sudarium of Orvieto. I'll also throw in Catholic exorcisms.

And these Eucharistic miracles, Marian apparitions and religious/mystical experiences continue to happen today.

What do Buddhism and animism have in comparison?

>Anything that discusses and argues against some common tropes from atheists such as Mother Teresa being a vile, sadistic person.

Honestly, I'm quite stunned at the portrait atheists have painted of her. At worst, she wasn't perfect and made mistakes. She cannot be a vile monster like Hitchens claims she was, that's ridiculous. Here are some articles that defend Mother Teresa -- here, here, here and here.

Check out any of Mother Teresa's personal writings (e.g. No Greater Love, A Simple Path, Come Be Thy Light) to see what she believed in, what she valued and how she saw the world. Check out books written by people who actually knew her such as that of Malcolm Muggeridge, an agnostic BBC reporter who ended up converting to Catholicism because of Teresa and ended up becoming a lifelong friend of hers. Or that of her priest, friend and confessor, Leo Maasburg, who was able to recall 50 inspiring stories of Mother Teresa. Or that of Conroy, a person who actually worked with her. Or any biography of hers. Find out what she was like according to the people around her. Then afterwards, determine for yourself if she resembles Hitchen's "monster" or the Catholic Church's "saint".

u/cbrooks97 · 2 pointsr/news

That's a very tortured reading of just one of the stories of a post-resurrection appearance.

I was thinking about what you said about us deserving more proof. Frankly, I think we've got far more than we have any right to when compared to previous generations.

In Jesus' day, only a few thousand people saw him work a miracle. Only a thousand at most saw him after the resurrection. In all of human history, seeing the supernatural has been confined to a relative handful of people.

Today, though, every single person in the developed world has access to

u/FrancisCharlesBacon · 2 pointsr/bookclapreviewclap

There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind is also a good read about one of the most prominent atheists, Anthony Flew, and what turned him into a deist. Gerald Shroeder's argument was instrumental in this and can be found as number 5 on this page as well as Roy Varghese's book The Wonder of the World: A Journey from Modern Science to the Mind of God.

u/YouAhriTarded · 2 pointsr/atheism
u/tesformes · 2 pointsr/videos

Well, if you are interested, we have an excellent community here on Reddit. /r/judaism would be glad to answer any questions you have. Just remember that Judaism encompasses a wide range of opinions on many issues, so there is very rarely any one answer to any one question. For example, a lot of the more mystically-minded Jews believe that the souls of the departed "rest" in heaven for a while before being reincarnated and sent back down to Earth. Our Talmud is the record of the ancient debates and discussions that rabbis of the past had on a multitude of biblical topics. There is a saying that when you ask two Jews a question, they'll give you three opinions!

We have a nice little FAQ about Judaism you can read if you're interested.

Here is an article they wrote on why we don't believe in Jesus, and another on the differences between Christianity and Judaism. I really recommend reading that one.

If you want a book to read, Jewish Literacy by Joseph Telushkin is one that is frequently recommended on our sub.

u/JayWalken · 2 pointsr/EasternPhilosophy

Hey, /u/Apiperofhades. I read your /r/AskPhilosophy post so I'll suggest books based on the following:

>I'm more interested in academic historical work on doctrine and practices and so on.

/r/Buddhism's most famous academic (who recently passed away), /u/michael_dorfman, recommended Rupert Gethin's The Foundations of Buddhism and Peter Harvey's An Introduction to Buddhism religiously, "to get a basic understanding of Buddhist doctrine".

Additionally, you may wish to consider chapter 5 of Surendranath Dasgupta's A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 1, titled 'Buddhist Philosophy' (all five volumes can be found here on Internet Archive; the first alone here on Project Gutenberg), and chapter 5 (and, perhaps, 9) of Mysore Hiriyanna's Outlines of Indian Philosophy, titled 'Early Buddhism' (and 'Later Buddhistic Schools'). This book can be found here on Internet Archive.

u/jty87 · 2 pointsr/Buddhism

There used to be a scholar who was really active in this forum until he passed away - Michael Dorfman - and he would always recommend these two books:

The Foundations of Buddhism

An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices

u/Mizanthropist · 2 pointsr/secularbuddhism

This is one of main websites for Secular Buddhism: http://secularbuddhism.org/new-to-secular-buddhism/

You can also post on the forums or attend the bi-monthly online meditations (Practice Circle).

Also, I got my start in Secular Buddhism by joining Coursera's Buddhism and Modern Psychology class:
https://www.coursera.org/learn/science-of-meditation/home/welcome

and then reading the recommended text: http://www.amazon.com/The-Foundations-Buddhism-Opus-S/dp/0192892231

Once you understand the basics of Buddhism, it'll be easier to understand Secular Buddhism specifically. You can also read Batchelor's books, but they are kind of... a stream of consciousness account of his own thoughts. It isn't necessarily informative right off the bat, imho.

Anyways, I'm a Director at Secular Buddhist Association and a mentor for the Coursera class, so AMA

u/DespreTine · 2 pointsr/Buddhism

> Where do the scriptures originate from that set all of these rules of karma and state that there is reincarnation

From the perspective of historical research, or from the perspective of Buddhists?

From the historical perspective: a small body of discourses given by Siddartha Gautama (the Buddha) remain that have are were very likely from the Buddha. The rest of it we can't guarantee, and a lot of it is known to have been written well after the Buddha's death.

From the perspective of Buddhism/Buddhists, the writings are considered buddhavacana ('word of the Buddha'), even if we now know they were written after-the-fact.

The Buddhist scriptures are massive. Fill a small to medium sized building, massive. Large enough that no one has read everything. The South Asian (Theravada) canon has been made partially available on Access to insight. The Vinaya is the code of conduct for monks and nuns. The Sutta pitaka is the collection of discourses, and the Abidhamma goes deeper into philosophy (and also serves as an aggregate of the Sutta pitaka's teachings).

From the Buddhist perspective of 'right' or 'superior' approach: the Buddha. In the absence of a Buddha, we trust the orders of monks and nuns. In the absence of a Buddha and the absence of monks and nuns,
no one. We have to wait in the rounds or rebirth until a new Buddha arrives in our world.

Wikipedia has a very lengthy outline of Buddhism. I would suggest a more structured approach, like Rupert Gethin's "Foundations of Buddhism."

u/I_love_hiromi · 2 pointsr/Buddhism

Many books include the story of the historical Buddha as a foundation for subsequent investigative readings. One book that has benefitted me greatly is Foundations of Buddhism by Rupert Gethin and it includes a thorough investigation into the life of the historical Buddha. This is one of the best books on Buddhism I have read and I can't recommend it enough. Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0192892231/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

u/the_carcosan · 2 pointsr/occult

I cannot speak from experience, but there seems to be quite a few people out there who are working with the Cthulhu mythos and are writing books for people to do the same.

A few that immeditately come to mind are Donald Tyson and Kenneth Grant. And of course there is the Simon Necromonicon, which some people claim to be a legitimately effective magical text.

u/zebus_0 · 2 pointsr/GhostAdventures

It doesn't matter anyway. It wasn't a real ritual lol. It is a bunch of stuff from https://www.amazon.com/Necronomicon-Simon/dp/0380751925 this book, released in 1977 that is a just a hodgepodge of random crap Simon thought sounded metal.

u/abagofdicks · 2 pointsr/movies
u/Gleanings · 2 pointsr/freemasonry

When teens show me their new scary book, I like to flip to the publisher's page and show them it was published by Avon.

Then I try to turn them on to Lovecraft himself. So is the script for The King in Yellow appropriate for Scottish Rite?

u/ArchetypeAdHominem · 2 pointsr/randomactsofamazon

If the occult counts as creepy.
Necronomicon

u/zire513 · 2 pointsr/suggestmeabook

Can you even get this book?

Edit: https://www.amazon.com/Necronomicon-Simon/dp/0380751925

I guess you can buy it, and btw the comments on this book are hilarious.

u/vascopyjama · 2 pointsr/australia

If you are actually interested in religion and evolution this book is an excellent place to start, so long as you can plough through the jargon. In a nutshell, it's not so much that religion is beneficial to us in evolutionary terms, but that religious ideas (memes, if you like) arise naturally out of the normal function of our innate cognitive systems, and evolve into what we now call religions as they are shaped by our social organisations (this is also an inversion of earlier ideas in which religion was thought of as an attempt to impose some form of social order). It's dense, and gets a lot more complex that that of course, but rewarding and not easily refutable. There's probably more recent stuff out there by now, it's a little while now since I was studying this stuff.

u/Autodidact2 · 2 pointsr/DebateReligion

Another way to come at this, instead of abstract reasoning, is to learn the history of religions--how they evolve, what functions they serve in society and so forth. Then you see that the religion you were raised in is one in the history of these belief systems at a specific point in time, with no more validity than any of the others, some of which we think of as silly. The evolution of religion, Why Would Anyone Believe in God Breaking the Spell.

In other words, religion can be explained as a natural phenomenon, rather than because it is correct.

u/MrRuru · 2 pointsr/atheism

Also Religion explained (amazon), which - although apparently controversial - was an interesting read :

>Using findings from anthropology, cognitive science, linguistics, and evolutionary biology, Religion Explained shows how this aspect of human consciousness is increasingly admissible to coherent, naturalistic explanation. This brilliant and controversial book gives readers the first scientific explanation for what religious feeling is really about, what it consists of, and where it comes from.

u/MarcoVincenzo · 2 pointsr/atheism

I suggest Pascal Boyer's Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought. He's an anthropologist but he uses a lot of evolutionary psychology (he's heavily influenced by Pinker's How the Mind Works) and cognitive science. It's an excellent book.

u/ParanthropusBoisei · 2 pointsr/philosophy
  1. That's not why religion has evolved.

  2. Much of (or most of) religion has nothing to do with death.

  3. Existential worries about death & the futility of life under the guise of religion are pretty much unique to Christianity.

  4. Even when religion is about death, it isn't so much about death in general as it is about dead bodies and how they are processed by our mental processor.

  5. One cannot explain "religion" by thinking of only Christianity, or only the Abrahamic religions, or only organized religions, etc. To explain "religion" we have to be willing to consider all religion -- from Evangelical Christianity to ancestor worship, belief in witchcraft, and belief in ghosts & spirits.

    If you want to understand why religion evolved read this book: Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought

    Tl;dr: What we call 'religion' originates from cognitive by-products of mental systems that evolved for other reasons. "Religious" views of death are influenced by our mental systems for thinking about specific people we know, for detecting agents & living organisms, and our intuitive psychology or 'theory of mind'.
u/DashingLeech · 2 pointsr/science

It would be funnier satire if, in fact, there wasn't a science on understanding the nature of religious belief and relationship with evolution. It does a pretty good job of understanding and explaining it, and nearly has a complete model of it.

I wouldn't doubt that many creationists won't get the satire and think this is real. They have a tendency to re-use bad quotes and refuted arguments, and they tend to be more conservative people who don't seem to understand satire.

u/AngryRepublican · 2 pointsr/atheism

I know it's a bit of pop psychology, but I can't help but think that you'd enjoy the works of Malcolm Gladwell, particularly Blink and Outliers. Blink brings forward a lot of the issues about conscious rationalization of unconscious behavior and cognition. The metaphor is that there is a locked door in our mind, behind which a huge series of unconscious processes occur. These processes evolved for specific tasks and have thus evolved, as a necessity, a specifically high accuracy in certain areas.

Described in the book is a particularly interesting psychological case study was done with gamblers. Gamblers were sat at a table with 4 decks of cards, 2 red and 2 blue. They would draw cards that would either net them money or lose them money. The decks were rigged, of course, with the red decks providing a few high payouts with a net loss, and the blue decks providing minor gains and an average positive net. By the 80th draw, on average, the gamblers knew to avoid the red decks and could consciously explain their behavior. At the 40th draw they had a hesitancy to draw from the red deck, but could not explain their behaviors beyond "suspicion". However, by as early as the 20 draw, the subjects demonstrated increased heart rate and sweaty palms when drawing from red that they were not even consciously aware of!

The book Religion Explained takes a lot of these evolved subconscious cognization theories and very convincingly applies them to the realm of religious evolution. It's dryer than Gladwell, but a valuable read nonetheless!

u/mad_atheist · 2 pointsr/TrueAtheism

>I am mad at myself for not being this analytic about this earlier in my life

I had this exact feeling.

So one thing to realize is that this process takes time I mean for FSM sake u lived a lot with this Idea.keep reading whatever you do keep reading.

some sources or ideas that were helpful to me:

  • parables of Jesus
  • the history of hell
  • history before ur religion.
  • the Christ myth theory (However I do believe he existed but it lowered my certainty) and how exodus never happened look for the exodus myth
  • Commonsense atheism and proving the negative
  • talk origin and talk design are also very good sources.
  • read some books on cognitive sciences and psychology of religion , search for recommended atheism books. (understand what cognitive bias is)
  • this is the phone line u're looking for
  • read an introductory account on atheism this is one of the best books on atheism
  • find a way to express u're doubts or else u'll go crazy (at least if u're anything like me) ,blog about it or write about it , talk to s1, ask others questions.
  • listen to debates about religions.
  • think about the fact that u finally could emancipate urself from this.
  • learn a little more about other religions it helps A LOT .
  • read books by Xbelievers like John Luftus or Dan barker
  • read more I mean Way more on cosmology and physics. just search for top books on Cosmology
  • read comparative books like Karen Armstrong books and read the evolution of god
  • read Religion Explained

    keep fear away and ...good luck !

u/WitchDruid · 2 pointsr/witchcraft

The Following list is taken from the Witches & Warlocks FB page. (This is Christian Day's group)

Witches and Warlocks Recommended Reading List
This is a collection of books recommended by our admins and participants in the group. Books must be approved by the admins so if you'd like to see one added to the last, please post it in the comments at the bottom of this list and, if it's something we think is appropriate, we'll add it! We provide links to Amazon so folks can read more about the book but we encourage you to shop at your local occult shop whenever possible! :)


BEGINNER'S WITCHCRAFT BOOKS

Buckland's Complete Book of Witchcraft
by Raymond Buckland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0875420508

Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America
by Margot Adler
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0143038192

Grimoire of the Thorn-Blooded Witch: Mastering the Five Arts of Old World Witchery
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635500

The Inner Temple of Witchcraft: Magick, Meditation and Psychic Development
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738702765

The Kybalion: The Definitive Edition
by William Walker Atkinson (Three Initiates)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1585428744

Lid Off the Cauldron: A Wicca Handbook
by Patricia Crowther
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1861630328

Mastering Witchcraft
by Paul Huson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0595420060

Natural Magic
by Doreen Valiente
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0919345808

Natural Witchery: Intuitive, Personal & Practical Magick
by Ellen Dugan
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738709220

Old World Witchcraft: Ancient Ways for Modern Days
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635055

The Outer Temple of Witchcraft: Circles, Spells and Rituals
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738705314

Power of the Witch: The Earth, the Moon, and the Magical Path to Enlightenment
by Laurie Cabot
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0385301898

Solitary Witch: The Ultimate Book of Shadows for the New Generation
by Silver RavenWolf
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703192

Spirit of the Witch: Religion & Spirituality in Contemporary Witchcraft
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703389

Witch: A Magickal Journey
by Fiona Horne
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0007121326

Witchcraft for Tomorrow
by Doreen Valiente
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0709052448

Witchcraft Today
by Gerald Gardner
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806525932
The Witches' Craft: The Roots of Witchcraft & Magical Transformation
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/073870265X
The Witching Way of the Hollow Hill
by Robin Artisson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982031882

WITCHCRAFT HISTORY AND RESOURCE BOOKS

Aradia or The Gospel of the Witches
by Charles Godfrey Leland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982432356

Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints & Sages: A Guide to Asking for Protection, Wealth, Happiness, and Everything Else!
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0062009575

The Encyclopedia of Witches, Witchcraft and Wicca
by Rosemary Ellen Guiley
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0816071047

Etruscan Roman Remains
by Charles Godfrey Leland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1494302519

The God of the Witches
by Margaret Murray
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0195012704

The Weiser Field Guide to Witches, The: From Hexes to Hermione Granger, From Salem to the Land of Oz
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634792

ADVANCED BOOKS ON WITCHCRAFT AND MAGIC

Blood Sorcery Bible Volume 1: Rituals in Necromancy
by Sorceress Cagliastro
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1935150812

The Deep Heart of Witchcraft: Expanding the Core of Magickal Practice
by David Salisbury
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1780999208

Teen Spirit Wicca
by David Salisbury
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1782790594

Enchantment: The Witch's Art of Manipulation by Gesture, Gaze and Glamour
by Peter Paddon
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1936922517

Initiation into Hermetics
by Franz Bardon
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1885928122

Letters from the Devil's Forest: An Anthology of Writings on Traditional Witchcraft, Spiritual Ecology and Provenance Traditionalism
by Robin Artisson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500796360

Magical Use of Thought Forms: A Proven System of Mental & Spiritual Empowerment
by Dolores Ashcroft-Nowick and J.H. Brennan
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567180841

Magick in Theory and Practice
by Aleister Crowley
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500380679

The Plant Spirit Familiar
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982774311

Protection and Reversal Magick
by Jason Miller
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1564148793
Psychic Self-Defense
by Dion Fortune
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635098
The Ritual Magic Workbook: A Practical Course of Self-Initiation
by Dolores Ashcroft-Norwicki
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578630452
The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of the Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition
by Evan John Jones, Robert Cochrane and Michael Howard
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1861631553

The Satanic Witch
by Anton Szandor LaVey
http://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Witch-Anton-Szandor-LaVey/dp/0922915849
Shadow Magick Compendium: Exploring Darker Aspects of Magickal Spirituality
by Raven Digitalis
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VS0N5K
The Tree of Enchantment: Ancient Wisdom and Magic Practices of the Faery Tradition
by Orion Foxwood
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634075
The Underworld Initiation: A journey towards psychic transformation
by R.J. Stewart
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1892137038

HERBALISM, CANDLES, INCENSE, OILS, FORMULARIES, AND STONES

A Compendium of Herbal Magic
by Paul Beyerl
http://www.amazon.com/dp/091934545X

Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs
by Scott Cunningham
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0875421229

The Enchanted Candle: Crafting and Casting Magickal Light
by Lady Rhea
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806525789

The Enchanted Formulary: Blending Magickal Oils for Love, Prosperity, and Healing
by Lady Maeve Rhea
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806527048

Incense: Crafting and Use of Magickal Scents
by Carl F. Neal
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703362

Magickal Formulary Spellbook Book 1
by Herman Slater
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0939708000

Magickal Formulary Spellbook: Book II
by Herman Slater
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0939708108


SPELLCASTING AND SPELLBOOKS
Crone's Book of Charms & Spells
by Valerie Worth
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567188117

Crone's Book of Magical Words
by Valerie Worth
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567188257

Encyclopedia of 5,000 Spells
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0061711233

Everyday Magic: Spells & Rituals for Modern Living
by Dorothy Morrison
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567184693

Pure Magic: A Complete Course in Spellcasting
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578633915
Utterly Wicked: Curses, Hexes & Other Unsavory Notions
by Dorothy Morrison
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0979453313
The Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook
by Denise Alvarado
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635136

The Voodoo Doll Spellbook: A Compendium of Ancient and Contemporary Spells and Rituals
by Denise Alvarado
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1578635543


THE ANCESTORS AND WORKING WITH THE DEAD
The Cauldron of Memory: Retrieving Ancestral Knowledge & Wisdom
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738715751

The Mighty Dead
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982774370

Speak with the Dead: Seven Methods for Spirit Communication
by Konstantinos
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738705225
The Witches' Book of the Dead
by Christian Day
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635063
_____
TAROT

78 Degrees of Wisdom
by Rachel Pollack
http://www.amazon.com/dp/157863408

u/faderskibet · 2 pointsr/Denmark

[Her] (https://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842). Jeg er bare en mongol til at sætte tid af til boglæsning, efter at have sat barn i verden, og jeg vil hellere spille gombuder når jeg "har fri".

u/mama146 · 2 pointsr/booksuggestions

You might be interested in Graham Hancock take on this subject in Supernatural: Meetings with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind

u/Launching_Pad · 2 pointsr/Catholicism

Amazon reviews have a good amount of pictures and a video review of this Bible.

The Didache Bible

Edit: I have this Bible as well, if I can help.

u/nkleszcz · 2 pointsr/Catholicism

The Didache Bible links the Scriptures to specific Catechism paragraphs.
The Catechism links its other footnoted quotes to the full spectrum of Catholic thought, from the writings of the Church Fathers, to papal encyclicals, to the official documents of Vatican II.
These other writings are accessible from free/inexpensive Catholic resources, such as the iPieta app.

u/lady_wildcat · 2 pointsr/Christianity

A little light reading

Also if you smell shit everywhere, try checking your shoes.

u/f1shbone · 2 pointsr/DebateAnAtheist

This is going to end well ...

I would recommend reading this book by Greta Christina

https://www.amazon.com/Atheists-Angry-Things-That-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6

u/fishfingrs-n-custard · 2 pointsr/atheism

Read this book http://www.amazon.com/Atheists-Angry-Things-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6 I think it speaks for a lot of atheists out there. Also, there is really nothing to "learn" about atheism, except for maybe what it is not about.

u/luckydog1123 · 2 pointsr/atheism

All of these are from an actual book entitled "Why are you Atheists so Angry?". Its a great read, but don't plagiarize and take credit for yourself

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B007MCMKV6/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

u/41mod26 · 2 pointsr/CatholicPhilosophy

Your mind needs a break. You have to allow yourself to take one.

I get the exhaustion. I struggled with faith vs. atheism but eventually had a spiritual/emotional experience that convicted me in holding fast to my faith. But years later I encountered materialist philosophy and my world was rocked. So as you mention, I was missing a logical link. I just finished Robert Spitzer's "The Soul's Upward Yearning". It's one of the most comprehensive books I've ever read on the evidence/clues for our transcendent nature. Edward Feser's "The Last Superstition" is good too.

But even if you don't read those....know at a basic level that atheism/materialist/eliminative materialist philosophy has a veritable s***-ton to answer for and are not nearly as strong of positions as they make themselves out to be. Catholicism is unique in that it has a robust philosophical root going back to Aristotle/Plato. Give your head a break, let your heart talk to God and give it a go when you feel ready again. Faith is a gift, remember that. You have to ask for it.

u/HmanTheChicken · 2 pointsr/Catholicism

If you want a good history of philosophy with responses to basically everybody, Fr. Frederick Copleston's A History of Philosophy is pretty good.

Here's the first volume: https://www.amazon.com/History-Philosophy-Vol-Pre-Socratics-Plotinus/dp/0385468431/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579301&sr=8-4&keywords=frederick+copleston

Edward Feser deals with both the New Atheists, Enlightenment thinkers, and Old Atheists in The Last Superstition, Aquinas, and Neo-Scholastic Essays. Fr. Garrigou Lagrange's Reality is also worth it.

The Last Superstition: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Superstition-Refutation-New-Atheism-ebook/dp/B00D40EGCQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579343&sr=8-1&keywords=the+last+superstition

Aquinas: https://www.amazon.com/Aquinas-Beginners-Guide-Edward-Feser/dp/1851686908/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543579366&sr=8-6

Neo-Scholastic Essays: https://www.amazon.com/Neo-Scholastic-Essays-Edward-Feser/dp/1587315580/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579366&sr=8-5&keywords=edward+feser

Reality: https://www.amazon.com/Reality-Synthesis-Reginald-Garrigou-Lagrange-P/dp/1477582401/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579439&sr=8-1&keywords=reality+garrigou-lagrange

Honestly, I tend to think Van Til's Presuppositionalism is a better system than a lot of Catholic philosophy. His book Christian Apologetics is probably his easiest to read, though I'll admit I've had more access to his ideas from his defenders than his actual writing: https://www.amazon.com/Christian-Apologetics-Cornelius-Van-Til/dp/0875525113/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579550&sr=8-1&keywords=christian+apologetics+van+til

In a less theologically charged but similar category are Alvin Plantinga's Where the Conflict Really Lies and Warranted Christian Belief: https://www.amazon.com/Where-Conflict-Really-Lies-Naturalism-ebook/dp/B005X3SAHY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579615&sr=8-1&keywords=where+the+conflict+really+lies+science%2C+religion%2C+and+naturalism

https://www.amazon.com/Warranted-Christian-Belief-Alvin-Plantinga-ebook/dp/B0059EQ4DY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543579634&sr=8-1&keywords=warranted+christian+belief

u/beefking · 2 pointsr/milliondollarextreme

It's called essentialism, it goes back to antiquity and has undergone a huge revival in contemporary thought (it arguably never left). It was the prevailing thought prior to the "enlightenment" literally forming the basis for the natural sciences and the rationale behind taxonomy. It can go by other names like real essentialism, neo-Aristotelian essentialism, new essentialism etc. and is related to Thomism, Aristotelean metaphysics, scholasticism et al.
Some contemporary authorities on the subject include Kripke, Oderberg, Putnam, Edward Feser (that's where I got the Tarzan example from).
Once you wrap you head around the history of philosophy and metaphysics this shit will blow your mind. There's a lot of heavy lifting involved but a good intro starting point would be the last Superstition by Edward Feser, it appears as a theistic apologetic and is quite polemical at the beginning but once you get into it it's probably one of the finest introductory books on the subject.

u/MarquisDesMoines · 1 pointr/occult

Hey man, sorry for the too long delay in getting this information to you. Hopefully you haven't given up hope :)

Anyway, in terms of meditation I'm going to recommend the following sources which are my personal favorite.

  1. Here are some good techniques from the Open Source Order of the Golden Dawn (weird name I know, but they do quality work). When it talks about "taking Refuge" and that sort of thing they're talking about a ritual opening they borrowed from Buddhist traditions. Really any sort of ritual opening you like (ex. reading from a holy book of your choice, visualizing a white light surrounding you, banishing etc.) will work.

    That page has a good general system that's borrowed from the old Order of the Golden Dawn. It might not click with you personally in it's entirety but take from it what you will.

  2. My absolute favorite beginners text for spirituality of any sort though is Israel Regardie's "Art of True Healing." The key to this one is really working through the system methodically. I don't know what your previous experience is, but I found that even with my years of practices of different sorts just refocusing on rhythmic breathing and that alone did wonders for me. Take your time. Make haste slowly and don't underestimate the importance of simply focusing on your breath. The rest of the text is a guided visualization that's borrowed in part from the Golden Dawn and in part from Eastern techniques. The technique can be adapted easily to other traditions though.

  3. I'm also a huge fan of Alan Watts. You can find a really excellent talk of his about meditation here. It's long but it's good.

    There's a start for you. I have some books I'd also recommend but it seems like you are primarily starting by internet research (which if fine, but you'll find it to be somewhat limited). But if you liked the JoS stuff, you'd probably like where they stole it from even better. Which would be this book: http://www.amazon.com/Initiation-into-Hermetics-Franz-Bardon/dp/1885928122

    Anyway, glad I could be of help and I wish you well on your path. Feel free to message me if you'd like to chat more.
u/Wood_Warden · 1 pointr/conspiracy

DMT: The Spirit Molecule :: describes how DMT spikes are released when we're born and die and the connections the author believes are made once we understand that the pineal gland is the seat of the spirit.

The Archaic Revival: Speculations on Psychedelic Mushrooms, the Amazon, Virtual Reality, UFOs, Evolution, Shamanism, the Rebirth of the Goddess, and the End of History by Terence McKenna :: Discusses origins of mankind and the probable development of higher-consciousness through psilocybin and other entheogens. Also discusses beings in realms that closely resemble the same realms discussed in the book My Big T.O.E. below.

Supernatural: Meetings with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind by Graham Hancock :: Discusses how, through different culture's entheogens (natural cultural psychedelics), one can see/visit/communicate with other beings co-evolving with us through history. Just like humans are evolving in this plane, this author believes that the stories of Elves or Fairies are the same beings that have now become Greys/Aliens in today's mythos. He discusses his journeys and experiences as well as other's first-hand accounts on certain entheogens and the patterns seen.

Not In His Image: Gnostic Vision, Sacred Ecology, and the Future of Belief by John Lamb Lash :: discusses how the current Judea-Christian god is a counterfeit-mimic deity (villain of the galaxy basically) and how we're trapped in a false-copy (matrix) of a more perfect realm. Goes through the Gnostic mythos that shows and explains how they came to write/believe such concepts.

My Big T.O.E./Theory Of Everything by Thomas Campbell :: doesn't use psychedelics to achieve other states of consciousness but uses transcendental meditation and science to map non-physical matter realities. The author is one of the early students from the Monroe Institute (of Out-of-Body experience fame).

u/iPood · 1 pointr/Drugs

[This](http://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1251848163&sr=1-3 "I was having trouble just googling supernatural") (by Graham Hancock) is what you're talking about, right?

I'll try and find a copy.

u/molotavcocktail · 1 pointr/Ayahuasca

https://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

He talks specifically about the serpent and how it is painted by indigenous tribes all over the world who have no contact w each other.
This is how I first heard of Ayahuasca

u/Vaxthrul · 1 pointr/conspiracy

Even less, the amount of MAO is honestly pretty small, so the amount of MAOI (which is what you are attempting to get from the Syrian Rue seeds, I use them personally for mine) you need is equally small. You can reduce it down further after lemon juice brewing into a syrup or whatever, slides down like molasses. Learned that from my early years messing around with DXM (Don't do DXM kids, it's synthetic and creates big ol' lesions in your brain with extended use!) My problem with them was not getting all the other debris apart from the actual seed that you are trying to get to, which have traces of ergot if I recall correctly.

Harmaline is a mild hallucinogen as well. I experimented with it separate before engaging in Ayahausca. A mild amount boiled out as per Ayahausca preparation. Saw some pretty neat OEVs that laid over reality and persisted when I closed my eyes. Auditory hallucinations as well. Not worth the purge in my opinion though.

Don't forget! MAOIs are extremely hazardous, and you must change your diet before ingesting and after to avoid 'side effects' - typically including fermented foods and drinks, such as jalapenos and anchovies. Do your research before ingesting any substance you don't trust or are unsure of!

DO NOT DO THIS UNLESS YOU ARE COMFORTABLE WITH THESE SUBSTANCES:
You can combine the processed Syrian Rue with other related psychedelics to include Psilocybin shrooms (by extension MDMA) and LSD. This will potentate the effects by a large margin so I highly recommend a sitter even for an experienced user.

One personal anecdote was a handful of pins, approx. 1/8 oz and a small pinch, maybe 1/4 tsp. of the Syrian Rue substance.

I blasted off approx. 25~30 minutes in, felt like I was between being awake and dreaming as far as head-space was concerned, with extreme OEVs. When I finally came down, it was about 10 hrs later.

Again, I can't stress this hard enough - these substances are dangerous without proper research and preparation. Erowid.org was my best source (thikal and phikal by extension) when I was researching. I also recommend Graham Hancock's book Supernatural, it starts off with him describing the how's and why's and how it feels to take iboga. Insightful musings to think about while you're addled. Also I don't want you guys stampeding straight for the iboga, work your way up, and be safe!

u/CodeSquad · 1 pointr/JoeRogan
u/evilf23 · 1 pointr/AskReddit

you ever read graham hancock's work? you might enjoy his book "supernatural". he has an interesting theory on this. Even if you think he is a crackpot it's still an interesting read.

http://amzn.com/1932857842

u/Lmcglinchey · 1 pointr/Catholicism

For a Bible, I'd recommend https://www.amazon.com/Didache-Bible-James-Socias/dp/1939231140, and the Catechism to the Catholic Church. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0898704510/. It's a great Buble translation and has footnotes that reference the CCC which explains what the Church teaches and why. They're an excellent pair. As for Mass? Others have given excellent advice. As a convert myself, I found The Catholic Church to hold the fullness of truth.

God bless you in your search for truth.

u/stkatarina · 1 pointr/Catholicism

I've been on the looks for one myself, and I think this one suggested for me seems pretty great: https://www.amazon.com/Didache-Bible-James-Socias/dp/1939231140

Coupled with the Catechism it should be great.

> Ideal for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the Catholic faith and intended to be accessible by all Catholics in its level of scriptural scholarship.

u/dylwphill · 1 pointr/Catholicism

I would personally recommend The Didache Bible from Ignatius Press. It has lots of references to the Catechism in the footnotes, and I've found it super helpful to connect the historical context as well as presenting how the Old Testament and New Testament connect very fluidly. Its translation is RSV-CE, which I also appreciate for being more readable than the DR (which I love, but is certainly more difficult to read). Here's an Amazon link if you're interested!

The Didache Bible: With Commentaries Based on the Catechism of the Catholic Church https://www.amazon.com/dp/1939231140/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_k9bxDbDEB8SK1

u/danbuter · 1 pointr/Bible

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1586172506/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I1HGCZ08SU90XN&colid=31VUEMH13MLZA

New Testament only right now. I think later this year or sometime next year, the whole Bible will be complete and published.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1939231140/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I1J853ZQII6SUJ&colid=31VUEMH13MLZA

I've heard good things about this, but haven't gotten it, yet.

u/garbonzo607 · 1 pointr/atheism

This is a general rule of debates in fact, attack away at the topic / subject at hand or rather the other side's view, but never start using ad hominems and personal blows at a person's character.

The thing is, people automatically equate attacking their (or other people's) views personally, or as a personal attack. A lot of these attacks are ambiguous, but I'd give them the benefit of the doubt and if there is a Facebook pic of a religious person saying something just plain ignorant, I would be laughing at their philosophy or position, rather than them themselves, personally, their character.

I love this article on a popular atheism blog:

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2012/08/08/reddit-atheism-i-still-love-you/

The best part that is relevant:

> And you’re damn right atheists want other people to lose their faith. When you see the awful policy-decisions made because of support from religious groups, it’s hard not to want them to come to their senses. We’re trying to educate them, not annihilate them.

And I'm sure others have put it even better.

[I bought this book but never read it.](
http://www.amazon.com/Atheists-Angry-Things-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6) I really need to.

Found this video relating to the book and need to watch it, but I'm guessing it's relevant, so oh well. Hope it's good, rofl.

u/InnocuousJoe · 1 pointr/videos

Think about it this way: relativity is entirely observable, with quantifiable results and experiments that can be run against it.

Religion, simply put, has none of that. At all.

I'd recommend you read Why Are You Atheists So Angry? 99 Things That Piss Off The Godless if you want to get a better idea of why equivocation like yours is so infuriating ("it's all about making the world a better place" ... when Catholicism is responsibly for some of the worst atrocities the world has known)

u/davidkscot · 1 pointr/atheism

I think your imposing a perception of atheists onto them that doesn't fit without first considering if it's correct.

For example you say atheists are angry at god, most atheists would correct this and tell you they dislike the character of the christian god in the same way they dislike Voldemort from the Harry Potter books.

They dislike some actions taken for religious reasons and thus the religions which provide the reasons behind the actions.

There are good reasons to be angry, just not in the way to are mischaracterising, I'd recommend looking up Gretta Christina, there's a Blog post, YouTube video and a book she has written which are all about why she is an angry atheist.

Edit: I'd also recommend Gretta's follow up blog post replying to criticisms

u/wickman69 · 1 pointr/atheism

I agree with this and it is indeed well written. I reckon a lot of the inspiration was from this - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Atheists-Angry-Things-Godless-ebook/dp/B007MCMKV6

u/percussaresurgo · 1 pointr/worldnews
u/Anselmian · 1 pointr/DebateReligion

I would start with Edward Feser's introductions to Aquinas.


  1. Aquinas: a Beginner's Guide- https://www.amazon.com.au/Aquinas-Beginners-Guide-Guides-ebook/dp/B00O0G3BEW ; and/or
  2. The Last Superstition (this one is a bit polemical, so one will have to be charitable if one is an unbeliever, though one will likely enjoy it if one is a believer) https://www.amazon.com.au/Last-Superstition-Refutation-New-Atheism-ebook/dp/B00D40EGCQ/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+Last+Superstition&qid=1568081318&s=digital-text&sr=1-1

    If you're a total newbie, this should serve as a good launching point to begin to study Aquinas himself. There are of course more thinkers than Aquinas (I'm very partial to Anselm over Aquinas in many matters), but the skills and habits of mind you acquire in understanding Aquinas are useful for reading other thinkers in the tradition.


    There is of course also no substitute for getting to know your pagan philosophers, in particular Aristotle and Plato. Try Aristotle's Eudemian ethics or the Republic by Plato.
u/Supermarine_Spitfire · 1 pointr/Catholicism

Thank you again. It sounds like I should combine that work with this one, since the latter one seems to be more introductory than the former.

u/P1Hornet · 1 pointr/Christianity

What would an "effect" look like to you? Are you chasing after a feeling? I'm going to repost something I already posted today:

> In the Summa Theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas argues that we do not change God through our prayers; rather, by praying, we “obtain what God has appointed.” Basically be the change you wish to see and use prayer to find out what that change is.

Also if you are curious about strengthening your faith I always recommend this book. Be warned, there is some HEAVY metaphysics in there.

u/monteml · 1 pointr/DebateReligion

It's not theoretical physics. Go learn what metaphysics really means. You're using a word without knowing what it means, and worse, trying to argue about it.

https://www.amazon.com/Last-Superstition-Refutation-New-Atheism-ebook/dp/B00D40EGCQ

Recommended reading for you. It will answer both questions. Good luck.

u/fotcfan1 · 1 pointr/Judaism

To be a Jew by Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin:

To Be A Jew: A Guide To Jewish Observance In Contemporary Life https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465086322/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_BXb6CbRCT04QN

u/DormiensVigila108 · 1 pointr/Shamanism

Furthermore, look into Carlos Casteneda's "Teaching of Don Juan". It discusses the use of entheogenic plants, dark magic, shamanic shapeshifting, etc. There's some controversy over this book arguing that the shaman/brujo/diablero whom the author goes under the tutelage of is made up; but many believe that he stands as a narrative device, aggregating the many lessons that Castaneda, an anthropology student, learned from his time with the migratory Yaqui people into a single person's teachings.

It's a pretty quick read and discusses the deployment of or traveling as spirit animals to harm one's enemies.

u/AbstractLogic · 1 pointr/Psychonaut

This is a book tha all psychonauts should read. It is not a fiction but it reads like one. This book is freaking awesome. It is hard to put down. Must read.

The Teachings of Don Juan.
http://www.amazon.com/Teachings-Don-Juan-Yaqui-Knowledge/dp/0671600419

u/RKBA · 1 pointr/politics

Yes, I disagree totally. I never much cared for baseball, but as I recall I was concentrating on hitting the damn thing instead of trying to "will" it over the fence. You would probably enjoy the Carlos Castaneda books immensely. Seriously. Check it out,it's very enjoyable and "spooky" fiction. Or is Norman Vincent Peale more your style.

u/spacecadetzen · 1 pointr/Drugs

http://www.amazon.com/The-Teachings-Don-Juan-Knowledge/dp/0671600419

No one should ever consume a psychedelic without at least reading this book, reading errowid extensively, or sitting down and talking with a shaman.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/mescaline/mescaline.shtml

http://www.american-buddha.com/teach.don.juan.4.htm

>"Does Mescalito take any form when he shows himself?"

>"Yes, any form."

>"Then, which are the most common forms you know?"

>"There are no common forms."

>"Do you mean, don Juan, that he appears in any form, even to men who know him well?"

>"No. He appears in any form to those who know him only a little, but to those who know him well, he is always constant."

>"How is he constant?"

>"He appears to them sometimes as a man, like us, or as a light. Just a light."

mescalito is chaos, the very spirit you conjure up within when you take peyote. he's like the vengeful, old-testament god combined with the modern satanist form of satan. He wants you to have a good time, but you're gonna go through some shit first.

u/armillanymphs · 1 pointr/Meditation

Zen is super confusing at times, which might frustrate the inquirer. Also, there's a lot of seemingly contradictory information, and a lot of the zen masters actually admonished meditation. Without context it's a little unclear as to why, aside from the fact that they didn't want their disciples to meditate for the sake of blissing out. That said, I'd wholly recommend this book, since it's very lucid:

http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Essence-Shambhala-Dragon-Editions/dp/1570625883/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464891954&sr=8-1&keywords=zen+science+of+freedom

Foyan is featured in it, and his book is fantastic as well:

http://www.amazon.com/Instant-Zen-Waking-Up-Present/dp/1556431937/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464892102&sr=8-1&keywords=instant+zen

For something a little more challenging but great, go with:

http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Teaching-Huang-Po-Transmission/dp/0802150926/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464892139&sr=8-1&keywords=zen+teachings+of+huang+po

Have fun!

u/MylesNorth · 1 pointr/Psychonaut

"It is that which you see before you. Begin to reason about it and you at once fall into error." Zen Master Huang Po, from this superb book

u/JLMA · 1 pointr/Mindfulness

thank you again for your replies; very well articulated, very helpful to me

I would like to ask you for your favorite resources on how to enhance mindfulness/awareness.

Mine are E Tolle's The Power Of Now and Stillness Speaks.

I listened to Alan Watts Out Of Your Mind and Do You Do It or Does It Do You?: How to Let the Universe Meditate You, and read his The Way Of Zen. I liked the book very much, did not enjoy much the audios. I went right back to listening to E Tolle audiobooks, mainly his TPON.

Also, I am reading the The Zen Teaching of Huang Po

What about you? What do you definitely think I should listen to or read?

u/snwborder52 · 1 pointr/fuckingphilosophy

Heh. You'll hear that People's History is biased. His intention was to give fuel for a socialist revolution. That's true. What's more important to learn is that everything is biased. The dream of an unbiased media is that. Even when trying to be objective with facts, there's still the question of which facts to use, which leads to subjectivity and bias. In the end, there is no such thing as objective truth (that's a fun rabbit hole to follow)

So in this case "Yes and," those fuckers are still beholden to shareholders, boards, public opinion, etc. Not only does everyone answer to someone, the ironic truth is that the more power you have, the more people you must answer to.

u/crapadoodledoo · 1 pointr/zen

The Zen Teaching of Huang Po is short and very straightforward unlike some Zen books. It has been the single most important book I've read without a doubt.

I've read a couple books by Shunryu Suzuki and found them very helpful. "Zen Mind Beginners Mind" is a book I read and reread many times, each time getting a bit more out of it.

I honestly don't know anything about Seung Sahn or Sawaki or other contemporary teachers. My teacher was Joshu Sasaki Roshi.

When I first started looking into Zen, I was a bit paranoid. Having been raised by very strict atheists who put down all things religions or spiritual, I wanted to be sure I was on the right track of authentic Zen and not in danger of ending up in a cult.

I decided very early on that reading books that have been tested by centuries of time was the safest and so I avoided most modern authors for the first 2 years.

If you enjoy ancient literature, I highly recommend reading a couple of the old sutras. They are often easier to read than some modern shit and they are AMAZING considering how long ago they were written.

My favorites so far as the Surangama Sutra and the Lankavatara Sutra.

u/appothecary · 1 pointr/DMAcademy

My handouts were a hit at the table. I stained them using coffee, folded them every which way, even stuck them in some clothes which went through the wash.

If you have the time you can get Strahd's seal from AliExpress or for a little more money on Etsy if you need it sooner.

I actually really dislike the official tarokka deck. I think it looks tacky af with the 90's style tribal tattoos around the edge. I replaced mine with a tarot deck from Amazon. I can't find the exact link but there's a few cool ones (and a bunch more you may like). You'll just have to use the name on the card instead of the book but my deck had some pretty similar cards.

u/YashicasIntuition · 1 pointr/tarot

I love these 2.....

This one is the best value. It's a solid deck and comes with a book and a paper tarot spread. If you bought the deck alone it would be much more than this. I recommend this one to my students. https://www.amazon.com/Easy-Tarot-Learn-Read-Cards/dp/0738711500/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2492TY300PB54&keywords=guilded+tarot+deck&qid=1557425818&s=gateway&sprefix=guilded%2Cstripbooks%2C154&sr=8-2

I also really encourage them to start here https://www.amazon.com/Rider-Tarot-Arthur-Edward-Waite/dp/091386613X/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=rider+waite&qid=1557425881&s=gateway&sr=8-2

​

My last favorite that I tell them about is this one but it's a little more pricey https://www.amazon.com/Witches-Tarot-Ellen-Dugan/dp/0738728004/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=witches+tarot&qid=1557425951&s=gateway&sr=8-2

u/DeltaTarot · 1 pointr/tarot

For what it's worth, the deck I started with is the Rider tarot deck

u/SchadeyDrummer · 1 pointr/atheism

I'd give him "Sense & Goodness Without God" by Richard Carrier. I think it's one of the most thorough, and eloquently put argument for atheism I've ever read. I cannot imagine anyone reading and understanding this book will walk away and at least have a great respect for atheist philosophy. Your friend may be denying gods existence by halfway through the book, most likely. http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Goodness-Without-God-Metaphysical/dp/1420802933

u/BluescreenOfDeath · 1 pointr/atheism
u/hork · 1 pointr/atheism

> God wants you to "be good" because He has given you the ability to do so. That is, be good for the sake of being good.

If that were true, there would be no reason for heaven and hell. Just admit it -- "God" is a "father" figure for people who cannot grow up. You need a system of punishments and rewards in order to behave... because you can't trust yourself to behave.

> Santa is an icon for the commercialization of Christmas and nothing more.

No argument here. And you can certainly argue that "presents vs. coal" in the stocking is a system of rewards/punishments for good behavior. But I'm still looking in the Bible for the passage that says "Be good for goodness sake."

While you may believe that God = "Good," many people believe that Morality can exist without some external, transcendent basis.

http://www.amazon.com/Sense-Goodness-Without-God-Metaphysical/dp/1420802933

http://rondam.blogspot.com/2008/05/can-morality-exist-without-god.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euthyphro_dilemma%20rel=

u/Dalimey100 · 1 pointr/AskReddit

Richard Carrier's Goodness and Sense Without God Its become a manual to me on defining life without a god. He's incredible because he specializes in taking complex ideas and making them digestible to your average layperson (okay, upper high school/ college age person).
he also gave a talk at skepticon this november ( I was in the fourth row :D) and it was wonderful

u/2ysCoBra · 1 pointr/askphilosophy

> So I gather. The only recent stuff I've read is Brian Greene's, but he seems to think there being a first moment of time isn't decisively supported by the data, and that there's good evidence for eternal inflation. This was a 2010 book. When was the Vilenkin talk?

The Vilenkin talk was in 2012. I'm about 98% sure he's since made a stronger statement, but I can't for the life of me find it lol. I haven't read Greene's book, so I can't say anything to it, but James Sinclair analyzes string models in his and Craig's essay on the Kalam in The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology.

> I don't know. I don't know how controversial it is among scientists; all I have are (e.g.) the Wikipedia page, which is perfectly friendly to beginningless universes, and admits that a Big Bang singularity is impossible according to our well-supported physics.

I think you might find this article stimulating.

> It's also inconceivable that time have a sufficiently explained first moment, which is some evidence against it, if the normal pro-PSR considerations are evidence.

Well that's now to move past physics and into philosophy, particularly the intersection of phil of time and phil of religion. There are various ways theists attempt to hash out this perplexing issue. Craig himself grapples with this in his book on the Kalam, in the Blackwell essay, and in his book Time & Eternity. There is a solid Four Views book on this too. I think it must also be said that it is, at the very least, just as inconceivable that there is an infinite amount of time before this very moment than of time beginning.

> And there are many beginningless models; I'm not sure why we should think the disjunction of them has a probability below 0.5.

Yes, of course there are many beginningless models, but that's not to say they are the best-supported or even well-supported for that matter. In philosophy, for example, as I'm sure you're aware, there are dozens of models for the mind-body problem, but that alone doesn't thereby validate any of these models. From my understanding of the current state of the field, which, admittedly, is rather shallow, physicists pushing past-eternal models do so knowing that the current evidence we have is in favor of models with an absolute beginning of the universe. In other words, they are knowingly going against the grain of the evidence.

> In any case, the point of my original comment was to say that I don't know whether principles such as PSR apply to cosmogonic questions. I don't have any intuition in that direction, and it seems possible that PSR is a metaphysically contingent consequence of the physical laws we happened to arrive at, laws that themselves would be metaphysically contingent.

I suppose we just have different intuitions, and thus reach an impasse here lol. However, I'm not sure how PSR could be a metaphysical consequence of physical law. Could you explain that more (or differently)? I can understand it being contingent given it being birthed by contingent physical law, but I'm not sure how physical law can birth a metaphysical PSR. If it's a strictly physical principle, then why say there is a metaphysical PSR? Or am I misunderstanding you?

> But that's precisely what physicists do with physics itself: apply it to everything in the universe but toss it out when we get to the Big Bang singularity. And the beginning of the universe is radically different from everything else in the universe in interesting ways, for example (allegedly) that it's unbounded by time on one side.

Well you're conflating the KCA with the contingency argument. The KCA operates on a causal principle from beginnings ("everything that begins to exist has an efficient cause"), whereas contingency arguments operate on broader explanatory principles, typically focusing on contingent concrete particulars ("everything that exists (concretely) has an explanation for its existence"). With that said, physics only goes so far until we reach metaphysics, of course, and I'm not familiar with any relation between the PSR and cosmogony, let alone it being standard practice of physicists to throw it out completely. In fact, the entire project of cosmology seems completely founded on the PSR.

> But in my experience (I'm not an expert), those religion still (e.g.) anthropomorphize this creative agent or describe its act as will. And I certainly wouldn't want to call these views theistic either.

Well, they would, haha, but I suppose this is now just categorical. But would you consider the existence of a single, impersonal, immaterial, eternal, transcendent cause of the universe closer to theism or atheism? Where would you put this on the spectrum of conceptual schemes?

u/rhomphaia · 1 pointr/TrueChristian

I don't know what you are asking. It sounds like you want A Compendium of Complete World Knowledge Compiled with Instructive Annotation and Arranged in Useful Order. http://www.amazon.com/Hodgman-Boxed-Set-John/dp/1594631352

More seriously, are you wanting an example of this in a particular topic? For example, you can read William Lane Craig's heady works on time, or the Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology. http://www.amazon.com/The-Blackwell-Companion-Natural-Theology/dp/1444350854

There isn't one book that does everything, obviously. There couldn't even be such a thing. And even if it could be done, by the time it was done, it'd be badly out of date.

u/Happy_Pizza_ · 1 pointr/Catholicism

I actually deconverted from Catholicism in college. I'm a revert.

I never got into into the party culture. I'm really against drinking and doing drugs, and I've always been skeptical of sex outside of a committed relationship and those morals stuck with me even after I deconverted from Christianity. What I did encounter was a lot of intellectual arguments against religion that I couldn't answer. However, what I also eventually discovered was that most of those objections had been heard before and responded to, at least in some manner.

So, here's my semi-comprehensive list of apologetics apologetics resources that I've accumulated over the years.

IMHO, the following books cover all the essentials very well and are probably must reads. You can buy used or online copies of them relatively cheaply, under 20 dollars if you're in the US. Check out Trent Horn's Answering Atheism, How the Catholic Church Built Western Civ, Mere Christianity by CS Lewis (you can probably get Mere Christianity at your at public library), and What is Marriage? Man and Woman a Defense for defending the concept of natural marriage. You should also read How to Argue which is a free pdf. I haven't researched abortion apologetics as extensively as other areas but I know Trent Horn has some books on those.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm not going to say you should read all of my remaining recommendations but I'm putting the rest out there for you so you know they exist.

Now, no list of apologtics is going to cover every argument about Christianity so I would also recommend some online resources. www.reddit.com/r/Catholicism is an amazing forum. It has tons of Catholics who are way more knowledgable and experienced that me who can answer questions and stuff. You may or may not have heard of it ;). I also recommend William Lane Craig's site: http://www.reasonablefaith.org/question-answer. Again, Craig is a protestant so don't look to him for a defense of Catholicism. However, he's good when it comes to defending the basics of Christianity from atheism. Catholic Answers is good. Fr Barron is good. Strange Notions can be good, I link to it in my last paragraph.

The exact relationship between faith and reason was my biggest stumbling block on the road back to Catholicism, so I have some good recommendations on that topic. I recommend the papal encycle Fides et Ratio and How the Catholic Church Built Western Civ. Plantinga's book Where the Conflict Really Lies is also popular and uses evolution to make an interesting argument against materialism. Plantinga's not a Catholic so I don't know how well they would square with Catholic philosophies like Thomism, but, yeah, he exists. He also wrote this giant essay on faith and science, which was helpful. The book God and the Philosophers is pretty good too, it's an anthology of different Christian philosophers and talks about how they converted to Christianity.

Some comprehensive (but expensive) books by non-Catholics include The Blackwell Companion to natural theology by William Lane Craig (not a Catholic). I've heard good things about Richard Swinburne's apologetics trilogy The Coherence of Theism, The Existence of God, and Faith and Reason. Swinburne is Eastern Orthodox, just for the record.

I want to give a special shoutout to Edward Fesser. He's a secular atheist philosopher who converted to Catholicism. You can read his conversion story here. He also has a blog that you can google. Fesser also wrote a bunch of books that are highly recommended by people on this sub, although I haven't read them.

u/fuhko · 1 pointr/Christianity

One last comment but I want to share this with you. You already have a lot to read so definitely don't start out with this. This book, assembled by the heavyweights in the philosophy of religion, is basically the gold standard for apologetics.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Blackwell-Companion-Natural-Theology/dp/1444350854

Just want to show you how the professionals think and write. After you've read through the other suggestions, maybe you can get your hands on it through interlibrary loan or on Kindle.

Lastly, the first commentator on Amazon had some great things to say that are also relevant:

>This is a fantastic book. But is it the "greatest defense of theism" ever assembled? No. Why? Because it is (in general) not defensive; rather, this would fall under the category of "offensive" apologetics. In general, this book attempts to prove God through Kalam, ontological, etc. But to say that this is a defense of theism simply shows the other reviewer's misunderstanding of philosophy. A defense of theism is when atheists attempt, through logic, to disprove God, and the theist "defends" theism by showing that the atheist's proofs are false (this is where theism is at its strongest). Disproving an argument FOR God does not disprove God. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

>And when a reviewer writes that they will be "dismantling" the arguments shown here, simply disregard this. The philosophers and theologians who write essays in this book are top notch; atheist philosophers have a hard enough time trying to rebut them, and a 3rd year civil engineer student is attempting to? He is simply preaching to the choir (ironically, an atheist choir). I have witnessed quite a few layman try to disprove the Kalam, or the Modal, etc., only to use faulty logic or completely misunderstand the arguments. Christopher Hitchens admitted to being beat by William Lane Craig in a debate, and renowned atheist philosopher Walter Sinnot-Armstrong admitted to the coherency of theism during another Craig debate, and yet the average layman believes he has a chance??? Go look on Reasonablefaith.org to read all the poor attempts at outsmarting Craig.

>My main point is this: Do not obsess. I went through a time when I was rampantly reading apologetics, and then I would turn around to read atheistic literature. I did this because I was constantly in a state of, "But what if Craig/Plantinga/Moreland/etc. is wrong?? Look at all the atheists today! Surely they can't ALL be wrong!" This line of thinking is natural, though can be very detrimental. Even the great Socrates recognizes the problem here: "I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing. And that is that I know nothing." We cannot know the answer to every question or every objection. Do not constantly worry about atheists attempting to disprove God, for this leads no where. Eventually you will have to make a choice, and stick with it without having to worry about possible objections.

The last sentence sounds like intellectual dishonesty (at least to me it did, at first.). But I have found that it is true that at some point, you have to make a commitment to yourself to assume X position is true, at least until some stronger argument against it can be found. That sounds like common sense but the above mindset is something that one can get wrapped up in (as I did), so I feel that that piece of advice is worth remembering at times.

u/ljag4733 · 1 pointr/Christianity

You mentioned in this thread that you were interested in WLC. There are several works that might be helpful to you:

Reasonable Faith

and if you have a lot of time

Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology (Craig and Moreland, but includes a large collection of topics from many modern philosophers)

Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview (Craig and Moreland)

Again, these last two are rather extensive, but you may find them to be useful if you're interested in the philosophical/scientific aspects of Christianity. Hope this helps!

u/AsgharFarhadi · 1 pointr/islam

Well this is a bit exhaustive, I would suggest reaching out to more than one person, perhaps making a thread in this sub or really many other subs as the abrahamic framework and the monotheistic framework is a point of belief in many mediums.

>Why does being a creator mean that?

well first we would have to define what the creator even means, how familiar are you with Kalam and Plato's ideas of God and greek logic overall?

>morality is about improving the lives and existences of humans

well we would all hope that as well, but one should be wary of utilitarianism and its shortcomings.

You should really seek out questions like the origin of reason, and philosophical commentary on the matter.

If you want to go deeper here are some books that may be worthwhile to read/ take a look at. like this one or this one

u/IdentitiesROverrated · 1 pointr/Reincarnation

Wow, fascinating!

I can't really offer any answers other than what you can read in Journey of Souls and Destiny of Souls. I'm just going to say that if you haven't read them yet, you likely should, especially with your background. Newton's work is the only really credible (and useful!) report of the afterlife that I've so far encountered.

Perhaps it might help to mention that other hypnotists have corroborated Newton's reports, and are getting the same consistent images from their own clients as well - including people of various religions and cultures who have never been exposed to the books.

If you ever arrive at the bottom of this story involving Don, Paul, and Kurt, I would be very interested to know what you find out. I wouldn't worry about falling into some kind of vicious cycle. It does sound like you've come here in this life to break their hearts, but the way they've all fallen for you suggests that they're willing participants in the lesson. The way you feel nothing for them makes me think this life and body have been chosen for you so that you don't get scarred in the process.

Having this as an episode in your life doesn't necessarily mean that this is what your life is all about, or that it must end prematurely. There might be all kinds of different things in store for you, this might just be something you've come to do before the other things happen.

I've fallen for someone in a similarly inexplicable way as you describe Don, Paul, and Kurt falling for you. I hope that what she felt for me was very different from the complete lack of empathy you are describing for these guys. Regardless, it was probably the most painful experience of my life. I had a precognition that it would be extremely painful on day one. I asked myself, do I want to do it anyway? The answer was a resounding yes.

I seem to have emerged from the pain, for the most part, though I'm still battered and bruised. I continue to have love for this person. I, too, have no answers. I tried looking for them, but no longer really expect to find them.

Some things, I suppose, we might only find answers for when we die. I suppose it's possible to live without them. It's not like we have a choice.

u/jadedapprentice · 1 pointr/exmormon

I'll start with an author whose work in comparative mythology is exceptional and deeply spiritual in a way that's very conscious of the difference between organized religion and spirituality. He's got a lot of books, some more scholarly and others much more approachable. Two examples here:

"Since lies are what the world lives on...those who can face the challenge of a truth and build their lives to accord are finally not many, but the very few"
--Joseph Campbell, [Myths to live By] (http://www.amazon.com/Myths-Live-Joseph-Campbell/dp/0140194614/)

“Half the people in the world think that the metaphors of their religious traditions, for example, are facts. And the other half contends that they are not facts at all. As a result we have people who consider themselves believers because they accept metaphors as facts, and we have others who classify themselves as atheists because they think religious metaphors are lies.”
― Joseph Campbell, Thou Art That: Transforming Religious Metaphor

Next, if you really want to stretch there's a remarkable series of books created from first-hand accounts from hundreds of individuals under hypnosis to map out the nature of what might be termed our spiritual home or "life between lives" - I find this to be more credibly presented and much more consistent with the many well-documented near-death experiences that are continuously being studied by groups like NDERF and IANDS and Dr. Newton's methodology makes these books a compelling read:

Michael Newton, Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives

Michael Newton, Destiny of Souls: More Case Studies of Life Between Lives

These aren't for everyone, and the idea that there is a proper place for spirituality can be hard to swallow for those who feel scarred by organized religion, but they've been helpful in my own personal journey to stay grounded while I escape a church that's obsessed with sexuality, the pursuit of money for itself above even the welfare of its members, and even the smallest perceived deviation from its accepted belief system and practices.

u/mogaly · 1 pointr/UFOs

Well, yeah, that makes sense, but even though it's such a tongue in cheek idea, UFOs being alien craft just makes some sense. I love having fun theorizing all this. What would make sense is them coming to help us out right about now. Think about it. Think about how conscious we are. We don't seem to have much trouble comprehending the vastness of space, and all of it's contents (some, I should say). That being said, according to the spiritual world, we're close to FULL consciousness. If that was the case, Aliens wouldn't be too far ahead of us, but quite far spiritually. (Earth's spirituality is mostly quite fucked up and backwards. Organized religions, I'm looking at you. But, at any rate, we're killing our planet. According to the spiritual world (and me, due to many experiences, awake, drug free) Earth, or Gaia if you will, has a soul, just like everyone else. (I believe this because I've left my body a couple times). So yeah, we are killing Earth, this wonderful life-giving spirit, and why would aliens (if they exist) let this happen? If everything is as the spiritual community says (a lot of evidence, I'd suggest reading "Journey of Souls" RIGHT the fuck now. link Done by a Ph.D. It's just JUST a bunch of conversations with hypnotized people. It's amazing. Anyway, back to what I was saying, if we're killing this planet, and we're closer to the Aliens than we originally thought in MENTAL development, but not spiritual development, now would be the perfect time for an intervention. Besides, this universe is so much more malleable than anyone tells you. I have proven this to myself every day.

It's a shame we throw out spirituality, because in the end, it's more real than this hell-hole of a society.

u/dreamUnraveler · 1 pointr/AskReddit

Hey! Please don't even consider prematurely taking your life... from all I've read the karmic situation you're in will need to be resolved either in this life, or after... and it's way harder after.

So, on a lighter note:

Why are humans afraid of dying? Maybe because they haven't read (or don't believe) "Journey of Souls"...

Yea... getting past the fear of dying, even welcoming it can really open up the opportunity to be thankful for and really wake up and enjoy the unfathomably amazing gift that living is.

I kind of see two primary divergent philosophical rivers here (of course many tributaries on each):

First: afterlife+karma+fate(+reincarnation?)

Second: death as final+no objective morality+we're all just random cosmic blobs.

I'm pretty firmly in the karma camp... I'm not sure what your life partner situation is, and I'm certainly not a counselor, but I do believe that letting someone else have such negative impact on your outlook on life requires your consent (very likely not conscious)... People do get divorced/separated, and do find happiness later... people also go to counselors and resolve issues... I'm certainly not saying that any path in front of you is easy, but I truly believe that picking a path to explore will bring you much more than ceasing forward motion... One odd piece of life-partner relationships is that much of the strength of the relationship is dependent upon the self-esteem of the individuals, and that self-esteem can't be dependent upon the partner... The more you find yourself... your true self... the you that you really love... that your sister and parents unconditionally love... the stronger your relationship will become... assuming your partner can keep up... (at least that's my opinion from my experience and from others I've known)...

Best wishes for pursuing your the best path for you! Thx for sharing!

u/flexylol · 1 pointr/Glitch_in_the_Matrix

Journey of Souls by Michael Newton.

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855

There's lots of crap out there on that subject, but also a few really good ones like those books.

u/MoonbeamThunderbutt · 1 pointr/spirituality

I'd really recommend the book Journey of Souls by Michael Newton if you're searching for "meaning of life" stuff. It made me remember why I'm here and made me feel so much less anxious about everything. I know what's truly important now: learning lessons, growing as a person, and enjoying the masquerade of life here on earth.

Human life is a dream that we forget isn't real, because getting sucked into the role is fun and it's how we learn. We are so much more than what we appear to be, but it's ok not to remember. Just do the best you can and enjoy life for what it is: an opportunity to feel the sunshine on your face, help others, try new things, and overcome struggles.

u/SophisticatedPeasant · 1 pointr/SanctionedSuicide

Oh I think who we really are is most definitely eternal, and we incarnate to play, to learn things that are necessary for our spiritual evolution, and that ultimately we stop incarnating once we have learned enough lessons and become light beings or spirit guides to help new souls:

http://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457740859&sr=8-1&keywords=journey+of+souls

I've had this gut level feeling before reading Michael Newton's works, the thought of there being absolutely nothing when we die is completely ridiculous. Existence, the Cosmos, is infinite yet we only have 60 years and then it's eternal nothingness? Utter blasphemy!

I also enjoy and recommend the philosophy of Alan Watts. In this segment he gets into existentialism a bit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSMhZ2M8Np4

I also completely agree with everything you said except the bit about this life being all there is, as Alan Watts would say, YOU'VE BEEN BAMBOOZLED.

Think about it this way, at our current state of evolution and technological development what do we truly enjoy the most? SIMULATION. It is why we read novels, why we play video games, why we view movies etc. Now imagine if we were light beings, still within the same cosmos, and we also, partly out of boredom and partly out of curiosity, sought the ultimate virtual reality experience, an experience so compellingly real that YOU TRULY BELIEVE THAT IT WAS ALL THERE WAS TO REALITY, TO EXISTENCE. What would that look like? It would look like having the human experience, right here, right now.

Wake up! You are immortal! Rejoice!

I feel the same way you do, I am thoroughly disgusted with this life, I've been dealt a rotten hand and am nearing the end of how much maneuvering I can do (about to be homeless in a week, returning to living out of my car in the SF Bay Area, I am a combat veteran who grew up in 9 different foster homes and who never knew my biological father to briefly sum things up).

This piece by Charles Eisenstein really sums up how a growing majority of Humanity feels as we are confronted with the frightening consequences of modernity / Industrial Civilization:

http://charleseisenstein.net/mutiny/

"Reality is a merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." - Albert Einstein

u/SwanSpirit · 1 pointr/starseeds

Hi, I can see I'm completely out of place here but, anyway, I hope it may help:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk5bSG78pbQ

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855

Greetings

u/uncle_pistachio · 1 pointr/DMT

The atheist would always ask "well, what created god then?". I like to think it's infinite; that our god was created by a god that was created by a god, that was....... and that goes on infinitely, and that that infinite collection of gods is also god. Have you read Journey of Souls by Michael Newton. He's a hypnotherapist that claims to have bee able to take people not only to past lives but the period between lives i.e. afterlife. Usually I'd be highly skeptical of such claims but the guy has set up an institute and trained thousands of other hypnotherapists. Incredible book that formed a good deal of my belief system.

u/Jparsner · 1 pointr/UFOs

I believe the different dimensions/densities is a massive part of it all.

Earth is a experiment. It was designed to see what would happen if we were cut off from our spiritual nature; cut off from the cosmos. This is the 'barrier' so many people talk about who are able to astral project. Psychics and mediums know of the barrier as well. This is also why astronauts all talk about that sense of 'cosmic unity' when they are in space... they are literally outside the barrier in some instances.

Life after death... read Journey of Souls

Lots of little bits in there that shed some light on the experiment and what is going on here.

I believe we're all multi-dimensional beings... you're accessing a more limited perspective of your 'ultimate self'.

God, Source, the Universe... it's not a singular, omnipotent being IMO. God is consciousness, everything is conscious in our Universe, big things, small things, all matter, all the electrons... you and I are sparks, fragments of God. The naming convention doesn't matter, it's a massive ocean of energy that we're all a part of. There is no one book that explains this concept... I've read a lot of spirituality articles/books and have made my own conclusions. That's really the best way to start getting into it... just reading a lot and certain things will resonate, other stuff won't.

u/Mhopkins892 · 1 pointr/BlackPeopleTwitter

I'm not a religious person but I highly recommend the book Journey of Souls Case Studies of Life Between Lives https://www.amazon.com/dp/1567184855/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_AYrRDbMMG3P5C

I hope you're doing alright

u/white_bread · 1 pointr/IAmA

Possibly people make it all up but if you read Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives it appears to document that his subjects all recount the same story.

u/InsideOutsider · 1 pointr/occult

I recommend [Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634083/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Nsbyyb2ZCJ74A)

u/andrejevas · 1 pointr/Psychic

http://www.amazon.com/Seventy-Eight-Degrees-Wisdom-Book-Tarot/dp/1578634083

Just get a copy of that. It's fifteen bucks, get a common deck like the Rider-Waite. Another 10 probs.

Tarot is more of a personal learning experience. Paying someone a hundred bucks to pat you on the back isn't gonna help. Learn it with your wife maybe?

I enjoy it. I pull it out every so often and learn a bit more about the subconscious shit going on with me in my life. Meditation is similar.

btw, that book is the best.

u/IbisWalker · 1 pointr/tarot

Ok. Start with these books. And know that despite what you’ll learn, it is still 100% okay for you to enjoy Tarot without using them for divination. Lots of people do and that’s a wonderful thing.


The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination

Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot

Tarot - The Open Reading

u/Foolness · 1 pointr/TrueFilm

Good advice. I recommend this and this for those reading this thread.

u/throwrainbowbatman · 1 pointr/tarot

The tarot can be for you whatever you want it to mean.

I've been doing it on-and-off for maybe about six years now, and every single time I return to it my method feels more refined and more "me" as I get older and learn more about myself.

For me, tarot is like a fun-house mirror. The same mirror can be held up to different people and they can have much different reactions to it. Some people go "Wow, I look funny!", and others can go "Dammit, my thighs are huge". People have different reactions and interpretations of the same readings.

I've met a tarot reader who would always un-reverse the cards because he doesn't like reading reversals. I've met another one who would only answer yes/no questions with a full tarot deck. Some people take the pictures on the cards as the only definition, some people depend entirely on books that are independent from the cards, and some people just make shit up entirely depending on their own personal experiences. Some people think they have supernatural properties, and some people (like me) think they're entirely random, but when people read them they put meaning into them based on their lives.

There's no wrong way to use a tarot deck, and there's no wrong way to view tarot or to interpret the cards. They're a subjective tool in that way, almost like an art. How you want to approach tarot will come in time as you practice and refine your methods and you come to figure out what the cards mean to you.

In getting to know them: that really depends on you. I started out with reading this book, completely unrelated to the tarot, but it helped jump-start my interest in it. I also give readings to other tarot readers, since I've found them more likely to "believe" and therefore less likely to argue, so long as they lean more eclectic. I also give myself readings frequently, just single-card readings to answer simple questions, or I toss out a card when I'm hanging out with my friends and they ask questions like "What would happen if I ordered pizza at three in the morning". I know a common method is to just draw a card each morning and dedicate that day to paying attention to that card, but I'm too scatterbrained to remember to do that, plus I feel it imparts too much importance to something that I don't take all that seriously normally. I also like writing so sometimes I do spreads for my characters or for story planning.

That's a lot, but I hope some of it helps!

u/seirianstar · 1 pointr/Advice

Oh wow. As to specific books. Hmm. That's sort of all over the place but each one had something to offer. The ones I remember are:

u/Rage_harles · 1 pointr/conspiracy

Here are a few books that opened my mind to questioning reality, and a few books that I've read to help me understand this shift in consciousness I've been going through.

  1. https://www.amazon.com/Book-Taboo-Against-Knowing-Who/dp/0679723005

  2. https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Insecurity-Message-Age-Anxiety/dp/0307741206/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=7Y1AS7AQTH1C1NRRCDQ7

  3. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle (don't let the commercialization of that book strip you from believing it to be authentic; plenty of profound truths in that!)

  4. The Law of One

  5. https://www.amazon.com/Falling-into-Grace-Suffering-Adyashanti/dp/B00MF18YFU/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1497199153&sr=1-2&keywords=adyashanti+falling+into+grace

  6. https://www.amazon.com/End-Your-World-Uncensored-Enlightenment/dp/1591797799/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1497199264&sr=1-1&keywords=adyashanti+the+end+of+your+world

    I highly suggest, whenever you're going for a long drive or walk out in the park, taking out your phone and searching "Adyashanti" in the YouTube search bar. There are tons of profound talks by him, all on this subject. He has changed my life and opened my mind hugely. Enjoy!
u/ddaniel87 · 1 pointr/awakened

You might be interested in reading Adyashanti's The End of Your World. He addresses this pretty directly

u/NineteenEightyTwo · 1 pointr/trees

I was doing the Franz Bardon Initiation into Hermetics method.

I just got to the "clear your mind" part. That is hard, but rewarding, as I have had some success with it and helped me get control of my emotions, but that was just a side-effect because I didn't even know that would happen.

u/islamchump · 1 pointr/exmuslim

heres for your 4:34 here you go, these are passages from the study quran book that i have. i'm sure youll find your answers here

Heres a video from nouman https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1azySjz4edk

Al-Tirmidhi Hadith 628 Narrated by Abu Hurayrah The Prophet (saws) said: Among the Muslims the most perfect, as regards his faith, is the one whose character is excellent, and the best among you are those who treat their wives well


idk the answer to your first question allah knows best.

u/GetAtMeKid · 1 pointr/islam

this is a good translation. Main editor is Shia, 4 co-editors are Sunni. It has all 4 sunni madhab interpretations and Shia ones as well in the commentary. Very good for people who are learning.

u/35chaton · 1 pointr/shia

That's a good one too, I have it as well. It's the one I was reading with last year actually. This one is the one I use now, primarily.

No, the Arberry version can be a bit lacking in the comprehension area, I agree. It's nice to use once in a while, but I'm not sure about for deep study.

u/Pogi_2 · 1 pointr/theology

Hey, you should pick up this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Study-Quran-Translation-Commentary/dp/0061125865
Unless you are looking to side specifically with Salafi groups, this book provides a analysis of the verse given by traditional Muslim Scholars from different schools of theological thought. I know your whole point is to give your rendering, but perhaps understanding how Muslims have interpreted the verses could provide you more insight.

u/save_the_last_dance · 1 pointr/islam

https://www.amazon.com/Study-Quran-New-Translation-Commentary/dp/0061125865

The Study Quaran is an excellent one that comes with commentary and study notes and context. If you like NAK, you're going to love Seyyed Houssein Nasr, they're birds of a feather imo.

u/aboughdee · 1 pointr/atheism

Not every Verse in the Qur'an will have a Hadith assigned to it. However, the Study Qur'an was just released, and it will provide you 'tafsir' on every single verse. I have yet to purchase it, otherwise I would have shared with you here the exact explanation specified in that book.

> I don't know how to respond when what it is clearly stating in English is that slaves are exempt from 4:24

My friend, Verse 4:24 clearly states in English "those your right hands possess". In Verse 4:25, it clearly states in English "And whoever among you cannot [find] the means to marry free, believing women, then [he may marry] from those whom your right hands possess of believing slave girls.".

Let's review this one more time, for my English speaking friend.

The second verse tells you, if you do not have the means to marry the women specified in the earlier verses (including "those your right hands possess" as specified in Verse 4:24), then you may marry from those whom your right hands possess of believing slave girls. Gasp! A distinction was made! Didn't you present me with a distinction in the other post? Surely you understand this concept.

> Do you not accept that slavery exists in the Koran?

The Qur'an accepts that slavery was an institution and fabric of society. The Qur'an was revealed during a time when slavery existed. Yet, not once in the Qur'an is the believer commanded to beat the slave, or to force conversion on the slave.

And do not compel your slave girls to prostitution, to seek [thereby] the temporary interests of worldly life. (24:33)

Instead the Qur'an consistently reminds you that God is watching, and promises a heavenly reward for the freeing of slaves.

C'mon, it's so obvious man! I'm trying to help you out here. I want you to understand the truth! I know you don't think you need what I have to offer, but I am sharing this all with you for the sake of my Lord, and for your sake, out of the love I have for you—even if you perceive it to be a fruitless effort. The Prophet Muhammad used to cry for those who would declare themselves as his enemies, and he prayed that they would be guided. One of the Prophet's first companions was a HUGE dude, who initially wanted to kill the Prophet when he discovered that Muhammad was preaching of God different from what the Meccans worshiped (until he heard the Qur'an for the first time and began to weep, then instantly submitted to Allah).

> In any case, I'm glad that you don't support slavery. Alas, I wish all Muslims of humanity shared your sentiment.

Most Muslims around the world already do share my sentiment, my friend. Muslims believe all humans will be judged for every single little thing, and can be punished for every little thing, if we are not forgiven through God's mercy. Many Muslims are hesitant to even kill a fly in their home.

Nonetheless, we will agree to disagree. You are reluctant to share my understanding of Islam, as your mind has already generated a negative perception of Islam and the Prophet Muhammad. I would not follow a religion which I knew was inherently evil. I am confident that your interpretations of the Qur'an false, but if you are sincere with your understanding of Islam, and if you are sincere to know the truth, then there is no judgement upon you.


Lastly, if you are sincere about wanting to learn the truth, it couldn't hurt to listen for five minutes or so. You should at least be presented with what we believe is divine language. Just 5 minutes :D

u/5e2f3232 · 1 pointr/religion

I'll grant that.

Since I mentioned it above, the holy book of my religion which gelled with me / spoke to me is the Principia Discordia. I don't know if it's what you're looking for, though. If it doesn't gel with you, all I can say is you're probably looking for a different god. Nothing wrong with that.

To bring things back on track, you may be interested in Anthony Flew's There is a God. It's been a few years since I read it, though, and all I remember is that it was decent enough that I think I read the whole thing.

u/luvintheride · 1 pointr/DebateReligion

> I'm fine with granting that the Universe forming is a miracle.

That's cool. What is it about the Universe that leads you to think it could be a miracle? For me, it is the amazing structure of the laws of physics.

I ask you because, what is it about DNA, ribosomes and the amazing structures within biology that make you then think they are "natural"? To me, microbiology is even more amazing than the cosmological argument. Anthony Flew was the most famous atheist of the 20th century. After he studied DNA and the amazing interplay of physics, chemistry, he became a theist. He wrote "There is a God. How the world's most notorious atheist changed his mind" : https://www.amazon.com/There-God-Notorious-Atheist-Changed/dp/0061335304

> Darwin's small changes : Source, please.

See link below. Stephen Jay' Gould's "punctuated equilibrium" is where the evidence leads, and large changes are required to advanced beyond the local minimum: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fitness_landscape

http://sciencenordic.com/suggesting-answers-one-darwin%E2%80%99s-mysteries

Here's Darwin on small changes ("slight modifications") from Origin of Species : “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down. But I can find no such case.”

> Until you can show HOW it was "designed", the notion that it IS designed is nonsense.

Huh? That's my whole point. It is a miracle. Atheists often ask for signs, and in microbiology you can see many amazing machines.

Your response sounds like this logically: "unless I think it is not a miracle, I'm not going to believe it is a miracle".

> Second, variation in traits IS evolution by definition.

Unfortunately, the word "evolution" is heavily overloaded. The term "evolution" is used sloppily to apply to mutation, speciation and even abiogenesis. Those are each very distinct concepts. Darwin's book is "Origin of Species", not "new traits". Do you think that blondes are different species than brunettes? Species are things like cats versus dogs. If you love science half as much as I do, please stop trying to confuse the concepts.

u/bountonw · 1 pointr/explainlikeimfive
u/Ultragamershiko · 1 pointr/Christianity

God has always acted in symbolic ways.especially in the Bible. When a country brought down his wrath, he sent a plague or another country to conquer it. When he planned to absolve everyone of their sins, he sent Christ to die for us. When he spoke to his prophets, he always did it in a symbolic form.

Ex: Moses and the Burning Bush.

He still acts in such ways to this days. Miracles occur on a daily basis thanks to his mercy. Look up Literatures on his existence and read them to learn more. I’ll even offer you a link to help get you started.

https://www.amazon.com/There-God-Notorious-Atheist-Changed/dp/0061335304/ref=nodl_

u/demonlicious · 1 pointr/AskReddit

Do you want to spark a debate? If not, put two words together in amazon.com and you'll get you're answer.

If you did want opinions, there are only fake ones or ones where the guy had some kind of psychological damage.

book 1

book 2

u/delanger · 1 pointr/Christianity

Have you read that book?

u/KeWa3 · 1 pointr/INTP

Start here -> https://www.amazon.com/There-God-Notorious-Atheist-Changed/dp/0061335304/ref=nodl_

Then compare the evidence that Harry Potter is real with the evidence that God is real.

Take your time. You can’t afford to be wrong.

u/InspiredRichard · 1 pointr/Christianity

> The consensus is many are forgeries.

The consensus 'amongst people you subscribe to' is many are forgeries. Most of their ideas are quite frankly full of suspicion and more like conspiracy theories than a search for truth.

The consensus over the past two thousand years is overwhelmingly in favour of traditional authorship.

>I don't necessarily agree with that. I know that's the orthodox view, but I don't mind being outside of orthodoxy. I'd rather be outside of the traditional orthodoxy, since I find it often incorrect.

I'm hardly surprised to see you write that.

You do essentially deny all that makes Christianity Christianity.

I suspect your view stems from the doubts you have over the existence of God and anything miraculous such as the bodily resurrection of Christ.

In relation to these two issues, let me ask if you have considered the 'argument from fine-tuning' as evidence for the existence of God? It is the argument which caused prominent atheist professor Anthony Flew to change his mind about the existence of God (so much that he wrote a book about it ).

The second is related to the resurrection of Christ. Apologist Dr. Gary Habermas has compiled a list of twelve historical facts on which most critical scholars agree with regards to the death and resurrection of Christ. There is enough evidence here to affirm the truth of the event if you are really looking for the truth, rather that trying to doubt it.

> If we had writings of them clearly doing so, I'd certainly appraise him differently. We don't have that though, and we do have evidence of them fighting back and forth.

So you don't consider Galatians 2 to be evidence of this?

> It's not about what I "like", it's about truth.

That isn't how it appears I am afraid.

By the way, I am still interested to hear your response from here.

You wrote this:

> I follow Jesus. I follow him as best as I can despite us having flawed accounts.

I responded with this:

> What exactly do you follow?

> If the accounts are flawed, how can you trust any of it?

> Which parts do you adhere to and how do you choose them?

I am very interested to hear your responses please.

u/chutzpantsu · 1 pointr/Judaism

Jewish Literacy by Joseph Telushkin covers pretty much all the basic stuff you should know regarding Jewish traditions and their roots

u/tooz8 · 1 pointr/Jewish

Find a rabbi you are comfortable with, and don't be shy to meet with a few before moving forward.

I had met with two rabbis before choosing the one who made me feel the most comfortable with my decision. The first two I met with were orthodox, quite conservative and I didn't click with either and the process seemed a bit too intense for what my fiance and I were looking for. Then we came across a reform synagogue and we fell in love with the rabbi there and we're completing our first round of classes in a couple of weeks.

It's been a beautiful process so far and it's exciting! There are several books I too found good, some of them were provided with our classes as well:

u/ajmarks · 1 pointr/Judaism

^ This so much. Also, another great introductory book is Joseph Telushkin's Jewish Literacy.

u/Skottniss · 1 pointr/Buddhism

The foundations of buddhism by Rupert Gethin is a good start. I think it provides a very solid ground to build upon, as it provides historical information on the development of buddhism, aswell as doctrinal information on both theravada and mahayana. It's basic, or rather, it's written for beginners, but it still contains a lot of very good information. It has very good reviews on amazon too (link), so many people evidently like the book.

u/LaszloKv · 1 pointr/Buddhism

I just got and have been reading Foundations of Buddhism recently and have found it a pretty good read for the topic. I looked a lot into what Buddhist books are well reviewed as an introduction and selected that one.

u/generalT · 1 pointr/Mindfulness

https://www.amazon.com/Foundations-Buddhism-OPUS-Rupert-Gethin/dp/0192892231

many chapters in that book trace the spread of buddhist texts from india into asia. perhaps you can find something there.

u/CuriousIndividual0 · 1 pointr/Buddhism

Here is a short summary of the four noble truths from the Saṃyutta Nikāya of the Pali cannon, as quoted in The Foundations of Buddhism by Buddhist scholar Rupert Gethin.

>This is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, ageing is suffering, sickness is suffering, dying is suffering, sorrow, grief, pain, unhappiness, and unease are suffering; being united with what is not liked is suffering, separation from what is liked is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering; in short, the five aggregates of grasping are suffering.

>This is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: the thirst for repeated existence which, associated with delight and greed, delights in this and that, namely the thirst for the objects of sense desire, the thirst for existence, and the thirst for non-existence.

>This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: the complete fading away and cessation of this very thirst its abandoning, relinquishing, releasing, letting go.

>This is the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering: the noble eightfold path, namely right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.

u/algreen589 · 1 pointr/Buddhism



>The point in my response was that I interpreted you to say that elimination of craving was not part of the path to reduce suffering, when it clearly is, as is evident if you read any introductory text on Buddhism, and I provided a quote from the Pali cannon to illustrate this.

>But now it seems to have morphed into a quibble over how to summarize the third noble truth.

If something has morphed its your argument and its because you morphed it. When I originally joined this thread this is the comment I responded to:

>I am asking about the second Noble truth. I am asking concretely, how one reduces/eliminates thirst in the context of meditation...

>It's as if I asked about how exactly to do step 4 of a recipe, to mix flour and butter together, and you responded with, follow the recipe. I'm asking specifically about one of the steps in the recipe.

This is you stating emphatically that you are talking about the Second Noble Truth.

I replied:

>The First Noble Truth is all life is suffering.

>The Second Noble Truth is suffering is caused by desire.

>The Third Noble Truth is there can be an end to suffering.

>The Fourth Noble Truth is that the end to suffering is in following the Eightfold Path.

>I know you've seen people here say that if you eliminate all desire you can end suffering, and maybe you've seen a website or even a book that says as much, and if you want to believe that too that's perfectly fine.

>>I am asking concretely, how one reduces/eliminates thirst in the context of meditation...

>You can't make a Turkey with salt. You can't extinguish desire with meditation. It takes more than that, but that can help.

To which you replied:

>The third Noble truth is more specific than you note

>>nirodha (cessation, ending) of this dukkha can be attained by eliminating all "craving, desire, and attachment";[7][8]

This is you mentioning the Third Noble Truth for the first time. I don't know why you brought up the Third Noble Truth. I think you're confused and I'm not here to "quibble", or to flex my ego, or to expose anyone so I simply wished you good luck.

You then replied with:

>Here is a short summary of the four noble truths from the Saṃyutta Nikāya of the Pali cannon, as quoted in The Foundations of Buddhism by Buddhist scholar Rupert Gethin.

>>This is the noble truth of suffering: birth is suffering, ageing is suffering, sickness is suffering, dying is suffering, sorrow, grief, pain, unhappiness, and unease are suffering; being united with what is not liked is suffering, separation from what is liked is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering; in short, the five aggregates of grasping are suffering.

>>This is the noble truth of the origin of suffering: the thirst for repeated existence which, associated with delight and greed, delights in this and that, namely the thirst for the objects of sense desire, the thirst for existence, and the thirst for non-existence.

>>This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: the complete fading away and cessation of this very thirst its abandoning, relinquishing, releasing, letting go.

>>This is the noble truth of the way leading to the cessation of suffering: the noble eightfold path, namely right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.

I don't know why you chose to share this translation, or how it advances your point. But I noticed that it is a workable translation so I replied:

>The second noble truth here doesn't look anything like what you described before. I'm not sure what point you're trying to make.

I thought that this would gently point out that you had switched from the Second Noble Truth to the Third Noble Truth, and I was trying to point out that even in the translation you quoted The Second Noble Truth is not how you described it here:

>I am asking about the second Noble truth. I am asking concretely, how one reduces/eliminates thirst in the context of meditation...

>It's as if I asked about how exactly to do step 4 of a recipe, to mix flour and butter together, and you responded with, follow the recipe. I'm asking specifically about one of the steps in the recipe.

  1. One does not reduce or eliminate desire in the context of meditation
  2. The Four Noble Truths are not like a recipe or step by step instructions
  3. The Second Noble Truth only says that suffering is caused by desire. It does not describe or imply any action.

    But as a response you say:

    >That's because I was describing the third noble truth not the second. And the previous quote is in agreement with this quote from the Pali cannon. "Thirst" here is equivalent to craving.

    >>I know you've seen people here say that if you eliminate all desire you can end suffering, and maybe you've seen a website or even a book that says as much, and if you want to believe that too that's perfectly fine.

    >I am responding to this comment of yours, given that it is not something said only by "people" or found in a "website"/"book", but the pali cannon itself.

    I am not quibbling over how to summarize the Third Noble Truth. You are insisting that you have always been talking about the Third Noble Truth, and you have not. You also seem to be saying that your point is that The Third Noble Truth implies or describes some action, which it does not.

    So I reply:

    >The third noble truth says only that there can be an end to suffering.

    >You need to look at the discussion and really think about what you've said. I think you're confused. I know you are.

    Suggesting some of my suspicions and encouraging you to review the discussion which I've detailed above.

    And now this last reply from you:

    >The point in my response was that I interpreted you to say that elimination of craving was not part of the path to reduce suffering, when it clearly is, as is evident if you read any introductory text on Buddhism, and I provided a quote from the Pali cannon to illustrate this.

    >But now it seems to have morphed into a quibble over how to summarize the third noble truth.

    >>This is the noble truth of the cessation of suffering: the complete fading away and cessation of this very thirst its abandoning, relinquishing, releasing, letting go.

    >Sure you can summarize the third noble truth by saying that there is an end to suffering, but it is only gets at half point, as is evident above, that end can occur by removing the cause of suffering, namely thirst: "...the cessation of suffering:[is achieved by]...complete...cessation of...thirst [craving/strong desire]".

    >The noble truths as stated are just short descriptions of a general structure to the diagnosis of the state of things from a Buddhist perspective. The truths are expanded in great detail, in basically every element of Buddhism.

    Do you recall the story of the Buddha before he reached Enlightenment? He had become frustrated in his practice and decided that he would sit beneath a tree and do nothing but meditate until he reached Enlightenment. He was not able to reach Enlightenment in this way and you will not either. This is something I am absolutely sure of. Elimination of desire is part of the path, but it is not the whole or primary focus, and in the context of meditation it's not something to focus on in the way that you mean it. Nor is it suggested in any introductory text of Buddhism. You have misunderstood your reading.

    I am not quibbling over how to summarize the Third Noble Truth. It does not say what you think it says, or mean what you think it means. I am trying to have a discussion and address your questions.

    >Sure you can summarize the third noble truth by saying that there is an end to suffering, but it is only gets at half point, as is evident above, that end can occur by removing the cause of suffering, namely thirst: "...the cessation of suffering:[is achieved by]...complete...cessation of...thirst [craving/strong desire]".

    Bracketing in words you think should be there is not helping you understand. Let me be clear:

    The way to end suffering is by following the Eightfold Path. Meditation is a part of that path and being mindful of desire is a part of that path. Meditation on ending desire will not, in and of itself, bring you to Enlightenment.
u/psykotedy · 1 pointr/books
u/ShakeWeightMyDick · 1 pointr/DnD
u/dscares · 1 pointr/writing

There was a guy back in the 70s, I think, who wrote a "real" Necronomicon based heavily off Sumerian mythology, with references to Marduk, Ishtar, Nyaralathotep, etc.

https://www.amazon.com/Necronomicon-Simon/dp/0380751925

It's actually kind of a fun read if you're into that kind of thing.

And now that we're talking about it, you may look at kabbalah and Chaldean Christianity. They're like sister mysticisms to the Key of Solomon and get into Zoroastrian ideas as well and early Arabic demonology, with jinn and other spirits.

It's kind of interesting stuff. I found this, which may be dense, but might help:

https://hermetic.com/texts/chaldean

u/tannat · 1 pointr/DebateReligion

If you are curious of how people of different cultures relate to religion and the supernatural, then I heartily recommend this book which treats these question from an anthropological perspective There are several valuable insights to be had for both the atheist and the theist.

If you wonder why people experience aliens, miracles, ghosts and things that didn't happen? Why wouldn't we? We can never rule out events to be figments of our minds or perception, nor can we entirely rule out what we believe to be impossible.

u/ckfox · 1 pointr/atheism

I've read the entire Christian Bible. I'm not sure what your point is. There is not a one to one correlation of what's written in scripture and how people learn, practice and intuit religion. I can absolutely assure you of that one, as I'm in the field of anthropology of religion.

I'd recommend reading in evolutionary psychology and cognitive science of religion as well as reading the Bible. Religion Explained by Pascal Boyer is a fantastic overview of how religion operates in the individual: http://www.amazon.com/Religion-Explained-Pascal-Boyer/dp/0465006965

When it comes down to it you just can't tell or convince Christians who are not intolerant that they are intolerant, because they are not intolerant. Whatever they justify that by, they remain genuine.

This same lack of actually acquiring empirical knowledge about the source of one's beliefs embarrassingly has a lot of atheists who "believe in evolution" getting in arguments with Christian creationists for their irrational beliefs while saying absolutely ridiculous things about evolution that aren't remotely accurate. (I've witnessed this enough times to really get to headdesking.)

The human mind isn't rational and acquires logical and critical thinking through practice. The minds of atheists and Christians aren't significantly different, and frequently make the same kind of errors.

u/oroboros74 · 1 pointr/religion

From a more science-religion perspective, Pascal Boyer's insightful book on the relationship between cognition and religion. He explains why some gods exist and why some definitely don't - and it's because of how our cognitive belief system works (p.29):

> Take for instance the claim that my right
hand is made of green cheese except when people examine it, that God
ceases to exist every Wednesday afternoon, that cars feel thirsty when
their tanks run low or that cats think in German. We can make up
hundreds of such interesting and irrefutable beliefs. There is no clear
limit to imagination in this domain. The credulity arguments would
explain not just actual religious beliefs but also a whole variety of
beliefs that no one ever had

u/Ramanrsimha · 0 pointsr/DebateReligion

God isn't an object first of all......He can't be proved in the sense that I can show you some 'thing'. He is proved within yourself, NOT outside your self. It's really so very clever, because that way, all the wise asses can carry on denying him until they finally croak, and yet all those who really want to know him can do so too. Everyone wins....How awesome is that....God gives us all exactly what we want. Anyway, nothing anyone says here is going to make a big dent in what anyone else already thinks, but what DOES intrigue me is how Antony Flew, former self-proclaimed: 'most notorious atheist' had a complete 'volte farce' after articulately articulating the case for atheism for an entire lifetime: http://www.amazon.com/There-Is-God-Notorious-Atheist/dp/0061335304/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1335701365&sr=1-1
‎Please read and try to understand that the very latest microbiological research has vastly strengthen the argument "intelligent' design and it consequent theological rammifications.

u/bolivarbum · 0 pointsr/books

You might like The Teachings of Don Juan. Not your normal anthropology book.










u/XWolfHunter · 0 pointsr/Buddhism

I would suggest reading a few zen books. Be careful, because some of the words are supposed to be vice grips that trap you, but you will read things that cause you to wonder, thus growing your mind, and zen is not about the religious aspects of Buddhism so much as the tangible, concrete, here-and-now perceptions of deeper and deeper wisdom. I can give you . . . four recommendations of zen books that I really enjoyed.

Zen Bridge

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind

Don't Be A Jerk

The Zen Teaching of Huang Po

u/AvaniD · 0 pointsr/AskReddit

This book helped me. It may be BS, but I'm going with it.
http://www.amazon.com/Journey-Souls-Studies-Between-Lives/dp/1567184855

u/odawg21 · 0 pointsr/pics

Spirit energy is never destroyed. It is recycled, takes on new shapes and forms. Where one life ends, another begins. The cyclical nature of energy and the amazing design of our universe implies that there would be no waste. Also, the fact that our lives as humans seem to just be a series of tests and events which become "lessons" or opportunities for spiritual growth lead me to believe that one life is simply not enough to break into the upper echelons of enlightenment.

Highly recommend Journey of Souls by Michael Newton PH. D. Very interesting stuff, studying both past lives, and what our spirits are up to in between lives. That last part is really what blew me away.

Also, great book just for life in general- The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle- this book continues to help me in my day to day life and I haven't read it in years.

u/AnimusHerb240 · 0 pointsr/tarot

I decided to cruise the town one day and check out all the local occult shops. One was mostly focused on wicca. I happened to put my address on their e-mailing list, and one day I received an e-mail from them about a series of beginner tarot classes that would be held nearby for $30, presumably taught by an acquaintance of the owner of the shop.

I didn't attend these particular classes, but my point is you might try finding local community stuff in a similar manner, by poking your head in an occult shop and asking around.

I have consulted these sources:

u/Ghostwoods · -1 pointsr/writing
u/austex_mike · -1 pointsr/Catholicism

This is a bad translation of the first surah. The original Arabic does NOT mention Christians or Jews for that matter. The reason why it is in parenthesis is that it is commentary added by the translator.

I really hate when Quranic translators put that in there, it doesn't even make sense historically from when that surah was revealed to mention Christians. The early Muslim community had a very positive relationship with Christians, and when they suffered persecution at the hands of the Meccans many Muslims sought asylum and were granted it by the Christian king in Abyssinia.

If you read a translation of the Qur'an that mentions Christians in that Surah you know you have a translation that is written by a translator with a bias.

I would suggest you get either the Haleem translation or if you want incredible depth try the Study Qur'an.

u/archonemis · -3 pointsr/fullmoviesonyoutube

Motion picture uses visuals.

A skilled artist can use symbolism and metaphor.

Gaspar Noe has all the subtlety and nuance of Bill Clinton in a brothel.

You seem to be suggesting that film simply an't convey idas. I disagree. A film cannot get into your head the way a book can, but you can layer, reinforce and imply concepts in such a way that a audience can understand something that is not purely visual. A couple exaples that come immediately to mind are: Vertigo [1958], Ikiru [1952], 2001: Space Odyssey [1968], Metropolis [1927] and, for those who wish for something a bit more modern and 'accessible', Mean Girls [2004].

A good example of a DMT flash in the visual medium?

http://youtu.be/EElaqhquY00

I get the impression that you haven't spent a lot of time on the subject. You seem to have something of a passing fancy on this. I would say that you get out of these things what you put in. By everything you've said so far you are clearly not someone who has invested much time into the subject.

Spend some time on it and maybe do some Ayahuasca.

http://youtu.be/t6p9tC4_oME

http://youtu.be/l9nFs2PeWw0

http://www.amazon.com/Food-Gods-Original-Knowledge-Evolution/dp/0553371304

http://www.amazon.com/DMT-Molecule-Revolutionary-Near-Death-Experiences/dp/0892819278

http://www.amazon.com/Supernatural-Meetings-Ancient-Teachers-Mankind/dp/1932857842/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373246015&sr=1-2

http://www.amazon.com/Inner-Paths-Outer-Space-Psychedelics/dp/159477224X

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayahuasca