This is the first book which i read on Sufism and it taught me alot not just about this topic but as well as about life in general. The book teaches you how u can live a quality life. It defines sufism very well and then goes on with each chapter focusing on a different topic like love, prayer etc. Anyone interested in reading something quality rules of life must read this book.

The Sufi practitioner is a mystic. Sufi practices are the mystical practices of Islam. Many of those whom Islam heralds as saints and sages were Sufi masters. For nearly 1500 years, Sufi practices have co-existed with a diversity of other practices and cultures in which Islam has survived and thrived.

'According to many Sufis, the essential truths of Sufism exist in all religions. The foundation for all mysticism includes the outer forms of religious practice, plus a life based on moral and ethical principles. The roots of the tree of religion are founded in religious law.... The branches of the tree are mysticism.... The fruit of the tree is the Truth, or God.'

Edited by James Fadiman and Robert Frager, this book reaches from the very beginnings of Sufi practice to the present, and pulls together materials that are luminous and spirit-provoking, from prayers that have survived a millennium to contemporary poetry. Writers such as Ibn al-Arabi, Ahmad al-Ghazzali, Hafiz, Rumi and Attar fill this book with an enchanting sense of a divine presence in the curiously distant yet all-to-present reality.

Many of the teachings of Sufi are very basic and practical, much moreso than one would think a mystical framework would be. And yet, God is practical in many ways. God particularly expects those with wisdom to impart the wisdom, and this is best done practically for many hearers. Action is the final essential component of wisdom.

The task of the Sufi is to recognise the Truth, to learn and remember it, and secondly, to help others to the Truth as well. As the task evolves, it becomes one process, which infiltrates daily life, worship, and all of existence. Nothing is apart from God. The Sufi strives to recognise this wholeness.

'Oh heart, sit with someone
who knows the heart;
God under the tree
which has fresh blossoms.'
- Rumi

For many of the Sufi, the path to Truth is the path of Love. 'Whatever we wish to know well, we must love.' Yet, there is resistance and fear in this love. Love can transform us, make us unrecognisable even to ourselves, and this is worrisome. Yet God will always know who we are.

Sufi literature also has a humourous aspect to it; the Hodja stories of Turkish collections is illustrated here. These are interesting, because they always illumine more upon closer examination.

'I can see in the dark,' boasted Hodja one day while sitting in a tea shop.
'If that's true,' said his friends, 'why do we sometimes see you carrying a light at night?'
'Well,' he replied, 'I only use that lamp to prevent other people from bumping into me.'

Ultimately the goal of all mystical practice, and perhaps most especially the Sufi, is the experience of knowing God. The paths to God are as numerous as the seekers, the Sufi believe, which is why the path through other religious faith is not discounted. Through prayer, remembrance and service, the Sufi comes to know God, and join with God.

One day a man asked a sheikh how to reach God. 'The ways to God,' the sheikh replied, 'are as many as there are created beings. But the shortest and easiest is to serve others, not to bother others, and to make others happy.' - Abu Sa'id

The call of God is powerful, and Sufi practice is one of the most powerful responses to this call in the world. Sufi are an impatient lot, who long to see God now. May your journey be enlightened by walking some of their paths.

.....to Islamic Mysticism. I first became interested in Sufism when a friend told me she had been following the Sufi path for many years. She is a person who has faced very serious challenges in her life (which I greatly admire) and I wanted to know how she had done so with such poise and equanimity. The answer for her was Sufism.

This book does an excellent job of explaining the Sufi path. Prior to reading this book I knew literally nothing about the subject. Now I understand Sufism to be a deeply personal path and one that is based on love of God, a dedication to service, a search for spiritual knowledge, and uncovering one's pure self. The wisdom of Sufism is learned through art, prayer, poetry, stories, readings and rituals, all of which is guided by a Sufi teacher.

The history of Sufism is traced in this book and the beliefs and path of the faith are thoroughly explained. Discussed are: Sufism's four great books (Jesus' Gospels, the Quran, Moses' Torah and David's Psalms), the Five Pillars of Islam, the four stages of Sufi practice, transforming the self, the importance of a Sufi teacher and much more. After reading this book I feel I have a sound knowledge of the basics of this faith and an understanding of why my friend has found such peace in following it. I highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn about Sufism or who is on a spiritual path that is open to new discoveries.

The Other Side of Haight is a risky novel. Mr. Fadiman dares to bring idealism, sex, and drugs together in a way devoid of current trends of detached irony or moralizing. The author saves his cynicism for the CIA and a series of absurd and malicious experiments that would be much funnier if they weren't true. Throughout the novel, the humor, playfulness and charm make you almost forget that you're considering philosophical and spiritual questions. Mr. Fadiman skillfully addresses universal ideas of growing up and awakening to the world around you. While the novel is obviously set in San Francisco in the 1960's, the themes and scenes spoke to my college experience just over a decade ago.

This book brings it all back for the people who were there and a great education for those who weren't born yet. Bravo!

I don't want to give too much away, but the LSD trips were extremely lucid and compelling. I think that there were many of us who had similar experiences and revelations. At a time when the CIA was trying to find a way to control the mind- their plan backfired and they ended up giving us a way to free our minds. They let the genie out of the bottle.

I particularly loved The Human-Be-In. It is written in vibrant color with many of the actual characters who were there. It all seemed very real. Fadiman was there and it showed.

The words "charming" and "enchanting" kept popping into my head as I read the first few chapters, and they were still appearing as I finished. Within a few chapters I didn't feel like I was reading a novel anymore, as the scenes and the plot seemed to flow effortlessly. I kept reading well beyond when my eyes said it was time for bed, and devoured the whole thing in two sittings.

The transformational scenes were captured wonderfully and magically. The writing and the story and the message lingered with me long after I had closed the last page. I will heartily recommend this to my best friends!

I was assigned to read this book for my AP Psychology class, at first it was really boring to me, I'll be honest. But after a while it started to grow on me, and I began enjoying learning the teachings of Maslow. I agree with Maslow's pyramid of needs, and after reading this book I have began to notice when people's needs arent being met, and how aggitated they will get when trying to achieve the needs that they want. This book will open up a lot of people's eyes and allow people to see things in a different light, if they are willing to get through the very detailed sections of Maslow's ideas. Overall, the book was enjoyable, a little slow because it is basically a giant thesis paper, but still enjoyable and much will be learned from this book.

Maslow pours his wisdom into our minds explaining the core needs of human beings. This is a great book to learn about yourself and the motivations of others.

The book's title and author intrigued me in the first place. I'd heard about Maslow's hierarchy of needs in college. Usually, about half a page or so was dedicated to it in general college psychology textbooks. What a disservice! Dipping one's big toe in the swimming pool is not the same as plunging into it. This book deserves to be plunged into, marked up, highlighted, commented on, thought about, and discussed. It is brilliant, original, fascinating, and readable. I'm not sure how to say it because there is so much, but I would say that what makes it especially unique is its study of psychologically healthy people (Maslow calls them self-actualizing people). This book will turn your brain on. I am not a technically/medically trained person. It took time to read trough Motivation and Personality, mostly because I wanted to stop and think about what it was saying. It's not a rush through kind of book. This book, as well as Dr. Peck's "People of Lie," exposed a whole new layer of the world I live in. I believe it fine tunes perceptions and make one so much more aware and alive.

This text is organized in a way that allows the reader to examine each personality theory in the context in which the theorist lived. The authors provide a historical context and present the antecedents that helped to shape each theorist's own personal growth. Students began to understand how and why psychological theory was shaped during a particular period in history and the disciplines that provide the framework of theory development. Each theorist is presented as a person whose life and experiences contributed to their subjective and objective methods used in the development of their paarticular theory. The reader is encouraged to crtical evaluate the theory and the theorists within an historical context. and to engage in self examination as well. It is an excelent text for students who are beganning to study theorys of personality.

This is the book I found the best among the rest. I have read many books about success and self-help, but this is the one which has a lot of common sense. I think that we can neither escape the pull of gravity nor can we have 4 hands instead of two. This book is exactly about that. How do you know what your limits are ? It is in your best interest to unlearn previously learnt limits and live in harmony with your TRUE limits.