BootsnAll Travel Community

Hey all!

It is a strage thing this reading habit of mine. I am 23 and before 3 years ago I had never shown an interest in reading. Three years ago I was ready to take my first extended trip (5 months), and it was to New Zealand. Before I left, my mom gave me a book titled: The Way of the Peaceful Warior. It is truely a great and inspiring book. Since then, I have reads countless books, but the ones that truely interest me are the ones found in the New Age section of book stores. A few books that I would highly recomend are: The Celestine Prophecy, The Sacred Journey of the Peaceful Warior, anything by Rosemary Aleta, The Sai Prophecy (the best book that I have ever read), and The Alchemist. Now I am at a point where I am struggling to find a book that truely takes hold of me, excites me, and changes my life even in a small way. Any recomendations?

Peace, my fellow travelers

The Alchemist was wonderful...a freind of mine gave me the illustrated version..beautiful. One of the books that I liked was one called "Soulmountain"..written by a chinese author who won the nobel prize for lit..forgetting his name. It was a book about self discovery while travelling in china.

i have an aversion to new age books but i adored the alchemist and i've promised myself i'd read it once a year. maybe i shouldn't be so snotty about new age literature, eh?

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Herman Hesse has written several thought provoking books.

Written in the 30's, he was big once again in the 60's.

I'm curious what the current generation of seekers have read by him?

some titles I recall....Siddartha...Damien...Narcissis and Goldman = [one of my favorites]...

'Zen and the art of motorcycle maintanance'is a great book, it can be a tough read, as it deals with some complex philosophical theory,but it really gets you thinking. Like the Achelmist it is about a physical and spiritual journey. Well worth the effort of reading it.

what did Herman Hesse write?

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i'm a big fan of the Peacefull Warrior books and 'Siddhartha' was a book i hated in high school when i read it, but makes loads more sense now.

"Ishmael" - Daniel Quinn (my all time favorite)

"Zen and the Art of Anything" - Hal French

"God's Debris" - Scott Adams

"It's a Lifestyle"
- me

Oh my god! You have to read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle.

I'm not a big self-help fan, but this book is so well written and will change the way you think. He basically explains how we are NOT our mind and that for most of us we are controlled by our mind, rather than using our mind effectively.
When you find yourself thinking about the past and future he tells you to stop and take in what is happening RIGHT NOW.

It is quite mind-blowing and changed my life when I was in Oz. It made me feel so relieved that I wasn't mad and someone else understood that just being is more effective than using our brains.
As soon as I read it, I emailed everyone I knew and urged them to buy it - even my ex boyfriend!

This probs don't make much sense... but if you liked The Celestine Prophecies, then you'll love this.

I started reading The Power of Now about a year ago, but I found it too instructional and abstract. I do however totally agree with the message in the book. I have heard that the book on tape can be even more helpful.

I've got the bug and... ouch it's biting my left nu...Ahh damn gotta go!!

I am a new age book freak so I have read many of them.

I would highly recommend Herman Hess to anyone he one of my favorites.
Siddhartha changed my life and the way I think.
A road less traveled is a good book By M Scott Peck I think
The ones that walk away from Ohmaloss is a good story. For the non conformer

Old hippy I still read Herman Hess
The prophecy by Kihal Gibbern not spelled the best!
The mists of Avalon, good girl power book, I liked it too
The four Agreements, good but not my stile

If you like Nature look for black elk speaks, or The Natural Way, native spirituality is on the rite track if you ask me. After I was finished felt so connected to nature agene, felt it’s pulse in me. Well hope these reads you like!

I've been reading this book called 'The Mist Filled Path- Celtic Wisdom for Exiles, Wanderers and Seekers'
It's by Frank MacEowen
I have actually had to put it down cause I will start to well up and get all misty. this guy is amazing and I already bought his second book so I can start reading it as soon as I get done with this one. He talks a lot of nature and shamanism and I'm just gonna stop there and let y'all discover it on your own iph you choose to.

i love these type of books, some of my faverates are:

The Prophet -- by Kahlil Gibran

Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit -- by Daniel Quinn

The Alchemist -- by Paulo Coelho

Tao Te Ching
by Stephen Mitchell (Foreword), Lao-Tzu (Author)
{this is the best translation i have found, i have mabey ten translations}

The Gospel According to Jesus: A New Translation and Guide to His Essential Teachings for Believers and Unbelievers
by Stephen Mitchell

The Celestine Prophecy -- by James Redfield

a few of these have already been mentioned but every one should check out the tao if nothing else. life changing, honestly.

also my mom has been trying to get me read the ayn rand books like The Fountainhead.
any one else like these books?

o Kalvis i heard the The Sai Prophecy was horable from a few ppl.... i guess ill have to get it and make my own oppinion now

I love Ayn Rand's books - Fountainhead is about the individual, Atlas Shrugged extends her philosophy to society.

It's not really new-age stuff, though - she's definitely pushing her philosophy. I would also add that the books are rather depressing if you really think about what she's saying..esp Atlas Shrugged. Fountainhead is a 'lighter' read.

I loved ´Steppenwolf´ and ´Damien´, but ´Narcissus and Goldmund´ absolutely blew my mind, so much that when I reached the end I started crying and bought my plane ticket to South America. In my opinion, ´The Alchemist´ was good but overrated, and ´Ishmael´ was too bloated by its own self-importance to be life-changing, as was ´The Story of B´ (it´s sequel). Though there not "new-age" in any regards, ´The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man´ (Joyce) and ´Thus Spoke Zarathustra´ are life-altering mind-fuckers. Great books.

I loved Thoreau´s ´Walden´, but the majority of people who´ve read it absolutely despise it, I think one has to be in great awe of little natural wonders to get anything out of it.

Y'know, it's not exactly Walden that I despise, it's more Thoreau. It's a bit rich, don't you think, to write about going back to nature and living in your own little hut when really you spend nearly every night having dinner with your mates and living just a couple of miles from the center of town?

Oh I definately know what you mean, and I totally agree. I think that Thoreau´s absolutely full of himself as well, so whenever I read "Walden" I imagine it´s some crazy hermit who´s writing it and ignore the parts where he talk about interacting with other people. I like the nature parts of it indefinately more. It´s something I would like to do some day, except farther out and without friends. It´d be fun.

I went through a phase where I read of lot of those new-agey books and other eastern and western spiritual philosophy. Looking back, some of the ones I used to like I now consider New Age fluffy, touchy-feely crap. I will throw in the names Dan Millman, "The Celestine Prophesy," and "Ismael." Want to know why? Read Trungpa's "Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism," which is think is a great book to read in the light of modern Western spirituality.

The knock-out, to the heart book that has wisdom that cuts to the core of most ancient spirituality, I will agree with other readers here, is Tolle's "The Power of Now."

Kalvis posted:
"Now I am at a point where I am struggling to find a book that truely takes hold of me, excites me, and changes my life even in a small way. Any recomendations?"

-and I think this is the one.

J
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