Books that changed your life

banned_crab

Ive made a book thread before but it wasnt successful. So please list any book that has changed your entire view on everything that may be able to help me as well.The book doesnt have to be buddhist, choose whatever. Id appreciate a description of the book and why I should read it. Thanks.

Steve_B

Amory Lovins , Soft Energy Path
An overview of the "Negawatt Revolution" containing some profoundly important concepts, with relevance far outside the field of energy management. A dense slow read that left me breathless.

cptshrk

Hermann Hesse's work has change my perspective on life and pushed me to strive for a wholesome one.

ThePensum

Schopenhauer.

Sabre

robot

In 1975 it was Journey to Ixtlan by Carlos Castenada.
Somewhat more recently, the Five Houses of Zen, by Thomas Cleary

Jason

Hm. A few off the top of my head are Food for the Heart; The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha; Notes from Underground, The Double and Other Stories; Meditations; Eugene V. Debs: Citizen and Socialist; assorted dialogues of Plato, especially Symposium, Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo, and Republic; The Brother's Karamazov, The Magic Mountain.

Nirvana

The Art of Loving by Eric Fromm
The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris
The Spiritual Guide by Michael Molinos
The Yogas and Other Works (a compendium of the talks of Swami Vivekananda)
Complete Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
and, not least, the New Testament and the teachings of BuddhA a and Atisha's Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment

Invincible_summer

Welcome Home: Travels in Smalltown Canada, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, The World's Religions, Hardcore Zen, Mutual Aid, the Conquest of Bread, The Myth of Sisyphus (not really a book, but whatever)

Kundo

How To Practise - HHDL
Awakening the Buddha Within - Lama Surya Das
Living Buddha, Living Christ - Thich Nhat Hanh
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying

And the one that keeps me sane - How To Be Sick: A Buddhist Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Cargivers by Toni Bernhard (herself a Buddhist and has been chronically ill for over 11 years)

charirama

Victor Wooten's "The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search For Growth Through Music" is a very good read. It is about letting go and finding and trusting your inner voice.

Victor is a fantastic person and an amazing musician who has music and nature camps for kids in Texas. Part of his book describes some of the spiritual experiences the students have while they are there.

klmeer

Not much of a reader anymore ,too many other distractions ,.Thats why I feel like doing a Henry Thoreau But yes anything by Ajarn Brahm ,also many talks online ,and Joko Becks Everyday Zen is great though I wish it had changed me more .

Tosh

The book called Alcoholics Anonymous but affectionately known as the Big Book. It's archaic, it uses the words, 'God, Creator, He, Father', it was written by middle class Americans, but if you're able to see past all that; it's very very good; very Buddhist even.

The emphasis of the book is on 'action', not beliefs, and the emphasis on the 'actions' is the practise of compassion.

mindatrisk

Conversations with God was a pivotal one for me.

riverflow

Briefly, off the top of my head... these books had a significant impact on my life in one way or another-- in roughly chronological order:

Carl Sagan, Cosmos
1982 - after seeing the TV series when I was 12. I still have much admiration for him, his sense of imagination AND his skepticism.

Henry David Thoreau, Walden
1985 - I first read Walden when I was 15. I return to it (and other writings of Thoreau) from time to time.

Octavio Paz, Sunstone
1993 - In my early 20s, on a whim, I read this book-length mystical poem aloud from cover to cover one night-- it was magical. The poem is one massive run on sentence which circles right back to the beginning, starting over again.

Raymond Carver, "Cathedral" (the short story)
1994 - My favorite Carver story which I read when in a creative writing workshop some 20 years ago. I can't even explain what happens at the end, except that it is so ordinary, yet so transcendently beautiful. I cry every time reading it.

Laozi, Daodejing
1995 - Stephen Mitchell's translation was the first I read, but I prefer Red Pine's. But my first copy was given to me as a gift by a good friend of mine who was a Greek Orthodox priest very much in love with the Daodejing. It was my first introduction to eastern thought (along with reading plenty of Alan Watts).

Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
1998 (?) - My favorite Nietzsche book, very life-affirming. It wasn't what I was expecting at the time. Nietzsche is still one of my favorite writers.

Fyodor Doestoevsky, Crime and Punishment
2007 - I don't read much fiction, but this is the greatest novel I've ever read. The characters are so rich and vivid-- and sometimes contradictory in the way that human beings so often can be! It's interesting to see a protagonist who is at the same time the antagonist.

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of Understanding
2011 - Thay's brief commentary on the Heart Sutra. This is the book that finally helped make emptiness click for me.

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching
2011 - One of the best summaries of Mahayana practice. A great resource too!

Seneca, Letters
2012 - Definitely part of my "desert island" collection. Highly quotable and inspiring. Its because of his imperfections that only makes me admire Seneca all the more.

Thich Nhat Hanh, For a Future to be Possible
2013 - Thay's helpful book on the Five Mindfulness Trainings.

The Lotus Sutra
2013 - I like Gene Reeves' translation, but I also have Burton Watson's and I've gotten a few various commentaries on it. My favorite of the sutras. As much as I enjoy complex philosophical texts (and am less inclined toward fiction reading), the Lotus Sutra's boundless optimism expressed in parables speaks deeply to me. I can understand why this sutra is one of the most popular in Mahayana practice.

TheEccentric

The New Meditation Hand Book, Joyful Path of Good Fortune and Modern Buddhism volume 1 by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso.

bookworm

The Dark Tower by Stephen King, the series really helped me to open up my imagination

vinlyn

bookworm said:

The Dark Tower by Stephen King, the series really help me to open up my imagination

Interesting perspective. Although I long ago tired of Stephen King, after reading everything he was putting out, the imagination aspect is so important. I see the same thing when I watch certain films, particularly those by Spielberg.

Nirvana

riverflow said:

Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra
1998 (?) - My favorite Nietzsche book, very life-affirming. It wasn't what I was expecting at the time.

Ja, I'd add Also Sprach to my list of mind-enhancers, too. Nonetheless, I think we need leave that most amoral man behind. Kindness was not a calling-card for him, nor was nonjudgmental awareness. A powerful, evocative writer, though he was, it's mainly the surreal, illusion of the mountaintop that I recall from him: nothing genuine, nothing real or dear.

bookworm

vinlyn said:

bookworm said:

The Dark Tower by Stephen King, the series really help me to open up my imagination

Interesting perspective. Although I long ago tired of Stephen King, after reading everything he was putting out, the imagination aspect is so important. I see the same thing when I watch certain films, particularly those by Spielberg.

Thanks Vinlyn and i agree the imagination aspect is important too it helped me to keep an open mind about things

riverflow

Nirvana said:

Ja, I'd add Also Sprach to my list of mind-enhancers, too. Nonetheless, I think we need leave that most amoral man behind. Kindness was not a calling-card for him, nor was nonjudgmental awareness. A powerful, evocative writer, though he was, it's mainly the surreal, illusion of the mountaintop that I recall from him: nothing genuine, nothing real or dear.

I think considering the historical context in which Nietzsche wrote was incredibly important-- and atheists such as Dawkins or Dennett have nothing on him-- because Nietzsche's target wasn't God so much as it was metaphysics ("God" was his shorthand for metaphysics). His rhetoric can be offputting, but its just rhetoric. That's the tricky part of reading Nietzsche, and what makes him so thought provoking-- he was no mere ideologue and he can never be taken at face value.

His observations on the dead end of metaphysics inherited from Plato are still very relevant-- and this mattered to him not merely to deconstruct Christianity, but to affirm life, to bring it BACK from the platonic ideal that had become part of western Christian thought-- and which had turned into a spiritual dead end. Of course, it could be argued that Nietzsche's alternative was a dead end too-- but his critique of the otherworldly ideal I think have much merit.

As far as those who read him irresponsibly as a prop for their own nihilistic notions-- well, people have read the Bible just as irresponsibly too...

Nirvana

Well, Sir, you cannot take away from him the unearthing of the awesome Apollonian/Dionysian dialectic or poles in Western aesthetics. Nor could anyone else in his time quite write without any footnotes being needed. Speaking of footnotes, though, The Walter Kaufman translations are invaluable for those of us who haven't yet mastered German, in that they help communicate the genius of the content.

riverflow

Yeah, it was through Kaufman that I finally got round to reading him. Amazing that it took much of his work in the 1950s (!!!!!) before Nietzsche's work was really examined in the US.

vinlyn

bookworm said:

vinlyn said:

bookworm said:

The Dark Tower by Stephen King, the series really help me to open up my imagination

Interesting perspective. Although I long ago tired of Stephen King, after reading everything he was putting out, the imagination aspect is so important. I see the same thing when I watch certain films, particularly those by Spielberg.

Thanks Vinlyn and i agree the imagination aspect is important too it helped me to keep an open mind about things

Yes! I think it helps one in real life with out of the box thinking...which can lead to interesting insights.

Jason

Jason said:

Hm. A few off the top of my head are Food for the Heart; The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha; Notes from Underground, The Double and Other Stories; Meditations; Eugene V. Debs: Citizen and Socialist; assorted dialogues of Plato, especially Symposium, Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo, and Republic; The Brother's Karamazov, The Magic Mountain.

Now that I have some more time, I can offer a few words about why I recommended these books.

I recommended Food for the Heart and The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha because these two books really inspired me and are what got me interested in Theravada Buddhism, as well as exploring monastic life. Definitely changed me and the way I approached life.

I recommended Notes from Underground, The Double and Other Stories because Dostoyevsky is one of my favourite authors and I love the way he delves into the depths of the human psyche — both the beautiful and the ugly — and doesn't shy away from what he sees. Notes From Underground in particular speaks to me in a way that no other piece of literature ever has, although it's hard to explain why. Probably because I have a lot in common with the 'Underground Man.'

I recommended Meditations because this book not only introduced me to Stoic philosophy, but it prompted me to take my civic duties more seriously as well. It made me more aware of my role in the world and inspired me to emerge from my apolitical shell.

I recommended Eugene V. Debs: Citizen and Socialist because it really opened my eyes about the history of the American labour movement and how little I knew about it. It also got me interested in learning more about socialism and prompted me to become more politically and socially active (i.e., not just filling out a ballot ever couple of years). Eugene Debs was an incredible person, and I think more people should know about him.

I recommended Plato's dialogues because they're relatively easy to read for philosophical texts yet they still give you a lot to think about. I really enjoyed them and found them worth reading. In addition, Plato's arguably the foundation for most of Western philosophy, and I actually found a lot in common between Plato and the Buddha.

I recommended The Brother's Karamazov because it's my favourite Dostoyevsky novel and it really touched me. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Last but not least, I recommended The Magic Mountain because I found it to be a rather thought-provoking book. It reminds me of The Brothers Karamazov in a way, particularly its deeply philosophical, political, and psychological themes, which are often explored through casual conversation and other mundane happenstances. It's also rather long and touches upon a host of topics, most of which I found intriguing. It also inspired this rambling nonsense.

There are a lot more I could probably list, but these have definitely changed my views in some way.

lobster

I prefer comics or the film version, these days . . .
Probably one of the most traumatic, dramatic comics was one I read depicting the horrors a young boy experienced after surviving Hiroshima and the aftermath. Can not remember the name. Terrible. Shocking.
This might be it
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barefoot_Gen

Books . . . probably the number of reads is a good indication . . . might be time for me to read the Tao Te Ching again . . .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao_Te_Ching

banned_crab

any other good ajahn brahmin books?

Gui

The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus

hermitwin

the power of positive thinking
by Norman Vincent peale .

and giant steps by anthony robbins .

hermitwin

By ajahn brahm,

http://www.dhammatalks.net/Books11/Ajahn_Brahm-Mindfulness_Bliss_and_Beyond-Chapters1-5.pdf


and

http://www.hawaii.edu/hivandaids/The Basic Method of Meditation.pdf

vinlyn

hermitwin said:

the power of positive thinking
by Norman Vincent peale .

Yes, he was excellent, and at one time I liked some of Robert Schuller's work, as well.

Chaz

Hero With A Thousand Faces - Joseph Campbell

lamaramadingdong

http://www.amazon.com/Orbiting-Giant-Hairball-Corporate-Surviving/dp/0670879835

It's a business book that is really about life.

Jeffrey

The Jewel Ornament of Liberation.

Progressive Stages of Meditation on Emptiness

On the Road

horsebones

When the chocolate runs out.
It's a small book that doesn't look like much of a read, but it took me a long time to get through. It focuses on dealing with the spectrum of desire, and is laid out in bite sized paragraphs with even shorter summaries of the meaning. It's very hard to get past a section and its summary without spending a lot of time in contemplation. This is why it probably took me so long to get through.

Chenrezig lord of love
Explains deity worship/meditation in a very clear way, and does a great job in teaching why all beings should be shown love and compassion.

What a plant knows
I'm currently reading this and also taking the online Coursera course. I find plants fascinating and this book does a really good job of explaining how they work right down to a cellular level. Understanding and connecting with nature (something plants are a big part of), helps you with your practice and your well-being.

Wisdom23

Oddly enough ' change your thoughts, change your life' Dr Wayne Dyer. This book is on Taoism rather than Buddhism but still a very enlightening read. O

Nirvana

Jeffrey said:

The Jewel Ornament of Liberation.

Progressive Stages of Meditation on Emptiness

On the Road

Anything by Kerouac. He even wrote a life of the Buddha: WAKE UP

zenmyste

Not a book, but last year i came across a Koan that completely spoke to me and changed my life..All my worries in life just melted away 'right there and then' and still to this day i feel a changed content happy man!

The Koan was;

Two sisters crossed the road, which is the older sister??

I still smile whenever I read it!

Chaz

zenmyste said:

Not a book, but last year i came across a Koan that completely spoke to me and changed my life..All my worries in life just melted away 'right there and then' and still to this day i feel a changed content happy man!

The Koan was;

Two sisters crossed the road, which is the older sister??

I still smile whenever I read it!

Funny how that works, isn't it?

I don't mean "ha-ha" funny, either.

ThePensum

The Duty of Genius - Ray Monk. A biography of Wittgenstein.

lobster

I wrote a small book under my dervish name but I would recommend the writing, not the reading
ISBN 1 85652 153 2

I found the books of Idries Shah useful on the dervish path . . .
Nowadays I prefer a large catalogue (to sit on)
. . . come to think of it . . . on the head might help with deportment/posture . . . maybe I will try that :om:

uzeb

Zen Physics by David Darling

DharmaMcBum

The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac. A good look at someone moving from layman to a more in depth view of Buddhism. While walking through modern(ish) life and it's problems. If nothing else a really good story and way of writing. From my perspective anway.

Dandelion

'The Land of Far Beyond', by Enid Blyton.

Copied and posted from this site: http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/book-details.php?id=358 I quote "The Land of Far-Beyond is loosely modelled on John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress (1678). Both are allegories, or narratives with a moral meaning. They revolve around a journey that is spiritual as well as physical — a journey from sin to salvation."

It's very beautiful

rohit

Rich Dad Poor Dad - by Robert Kiyosaki

Dandelion

zenmyste said:

Not a book, but last year i came across a Koan that completely spoke to me and changed my life..All my worries in life just melted away 'right there and then' and still to this day i feel a changed content happy man!

The Koan was;

Two sisters crossed the road, which is the older sister??

I still smile whenever I read it!

Arrrggghhh KOANS!!!!

My head is going 'who knows, the older sister is the one that was born first, regardless of who crossed the road first' haha

MaryAnne

My mind says "Why does it matter which is older? Oh, right, it doesn't."

DairyLama

If you're ever feeling a bit sorry for yourself, this is a book which will put things into perspective:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cruel_Sea_(novel)

Cujo

"The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle
"The Moral Animal" by Robert Wright

AllbuddhaBound

Self-Compassion - A Healthier Way Of Relating To Yourself by Kristin Neff. A book that teaches people to begin caring for themselves. This book was very transformative for me and my work. People do not seem to be aware how they treat themselves with contempt, and this, in turn makes them depressed, angry or self-destructive. It shakes you up and shows you that the lies we have been raised with are at the root of our own demise.

JosephW

Buddha Walks Into A Bar and Dharma Road did it for me, I was convinced....

No really though those are cool books but... the book that I read that I really enjoyed was

TNH - The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching

He is a really good author, a very valuable book to me, $15 was a steal for a book that changed my life.