A Consideration of Kabbalah/Qabalah Texts, Part 1

August 11, 2017

This three-part article consists of my eighteen Amazon.com reviews of Kabbalah/Qabalah texts. The reviews are in reverse chronological order, with the latest reviews first.

Informationally Interesting, Exegetically Flawed
[“The Hermetic Kabbalah,” Colin Low, 3 Stars]

Colin A. Low, author of the “The Hermetic Kabbalah,” is a serious scholar who has devoted decades of his life to studying Kabbalah (both the Jewish and the non-Jewish, or occult and New Age, traditions). Moreover, he is an excellent writer who seamlessly and agreeably communicates his knowledge and insights. But, unfortunately, this does not translate into an impressive explication of the Kabbalah.

Don’t get me wrong: Low provides plenty of interesting and worthwhile information in this text. But this is overshadowed by his failure to grok and proficiently elaborate the Kabbalah. And this failure pertains to both the mystical-ecstatical and the theosophical-occult Kabbalahs.

Regarding the mystical-ecstatical Kabbalah, the “higher” Kabbalah, he has virtually nothing to say.… Read the full article

Jesus 2.0 Meets His Teacher 

July 16, 2017
[This is an excerpt from my mind-blowing novel "Kill Jesus:The Shocking Return of the Chosen One," which is available in Kindle and paperback and Amazon.com.https://www.amazon.com/Kill-Jesus-Shocking-Re…/…/ref=sr_1_2…]


Later that evening, after the discussion group broke up, Jack followed Mary to Mother Mary’s. As exhausted as he was from the day’s events, he wished he could postpone the meeting for another day, when he would be sharper, but there’s no time like the present, as the saying goes, and besides, he was curious about Mother Mary — what she would say about his hands… and what she could tell him about Mary.

Mother Mary lived in a large, elegant Victorian house with an intricate Zen garden in the front yard. Jack admired the artfully manicured topiary as he followed Mary inside. As they entered the main room, the temple, he sensed a unique presence, a heavy, yet peaceful silence that evoked feelings of reverence that he hadn’t experienced in a long while.

Mother Mary was seated in a throne-like chair at the head of the room. She was slim, attractive, about forty years old and dressed in a white hooded robe that covered her entire body.
Read the full article

Updating My Spiritual Reading List, Category 9, Miscellaneous

June 28, 2017
In my two nonfiction books (“Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity”), I provide a Spiritual Reading List (of Highly Recommended and Recommended texts in the “Great Traditions”). I made a few changes to the List between “Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity,” and there will be more changes to the List in my forthcoming book “The Power of Now Meditation Guide” (which should be published later this year).

My Spiritual Reading List is divided into nine categories – Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism (Original), Buddhism (Tibetan), Buddhism (Zen), Christianity, Judaism, and Gnosticism, Daism, Hinduism (Yoga), Kashmir Shaivism, and Miscellaneous. In a nine-part series, I will, in turn, consider each category and provide its latest edition.

Herewith is the ninth category, Miscellaneous, followed by my consideration.

Miscellaneous

Highly Recommended

The First and Last Freedom, J. Krishnamurti. (“Must” reading for all mystics. If you appreciate this book and want to read more Krishnamurti, get his multivolume Commentaries on Living.)… Read the full article

Updating My Spiritual Reading List, Category 8, Kashmir Shaivism

June 24, 2017
In my two nonfiction books (“Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity”), I provide a Spiritual Reading List (of Highly Recommended and Recommended texts in the “Great Traditions”). I made a few changes to the List between “Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity,” and there will be more changes to the List in my forthcoming book “The Power of Now Meditation Guide” (which should be published later this year).

My Spiritual Reading List is divided into nine categories – Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism (Original), Buddhism (Tibetan), Buddhism (Zen), Christianity, Judaism, and Gnosticism, Daism, Hinduism (Yoga), Kashmir Shaivism, and Miscellaneous. In a nine-part series, I will, in turn, consider each category and provide its latest edition.

Herewith is the eighth category, Kashmir Shaivism, followed by my consideration.

Kashmir Shaivism

Highly Recommended

Pratyabhijnahrdayam: The Secret of Self-Recognition, Jaideva Singh. (The basic introductory handbook to the abstruse philosophical system of recognition. Not for the intellectually challenged.)… Read the full article

Updating My Spiritual Reading List, Category 7, Hinduism (Yoga)

June 20, 2017

In my two nonfiction books (“Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity”), I provide a Spiritual Reading List (of Highly Recommended and Recommended texts in the “Great Traditions”). I made a few changes to the List between “Beyond the Power of Now” and “Electrical Christianity,” and there will be more changes to the List in my forthcoming book “The Power of Now Meditation Guide” (which should be published later this year).

My Spiritual Reading List is divided into nine categories – Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism (Original), Buddhism (Tibetan), Buddhism (Zen), Christianity, Judaism, and Gnosticism, Daism, Hinduism (Yoga), Kashmir Shaivism, and Miscellaneous. In a nine-part series, I will, in turn, consider each category and provide its latest edition.

Herewith is the seventh category, Hinduism (Yoga), followed by my consideration.… Read the full article