(Part 2) Best products from r/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”

Thank you for your courage and taking the time to write this all out; you are on an incredible journey.

I have always believed that life was like school; if we don't learn the lesson in this life, we have to come back and repeat the "grade" next "year". I'm certain your intuition is telling you important things right now, most notably that this life has the potential to turn out in a similar fashion to a previous one if you are unable to find the insights and wisdom you need to push past the particular obstacles facing you this time.

It sounds as though your Mom needs healing just as much as you do, but you have absolutely no control over her spiritual process. The best you can do for yourself and your whole family is to become a trailblazer leading the way to a happier life, and it most certainly can be done. We are not doomed to repeat past mistakes, that is just the "autopilot" mode running in the background until we wake up and take the wheel.

It sounds as if it would be very beneficial for you to specifically focus on healing, shifting your focus and attention from anxiety and feeling like you already know the future (it's really not written in stone) to how you will heal and release the pain you are carrying. The pain we carry not only accumulated in this life, but also in the lives of our ancestors and this can get passed down to us as well, so when we begin to focus on our own healing, we can also pay respect to our ancestors by acknowledging their suffering and sending them love and peaceful thoughts (this includes your mother).

While anxiety may be an unavoidable part of BPD, we can make our own anxiety worse by obsessively focusing on it. When we shift the focus to healing, the anxiety doesn't necessarily go away but we are no longer giving it ultimate power in our lives. As we form this habit more and more, anxiety slowly fades in prominence. It is healing, not anxiety, that gives us feelings of peace and enjoyment in life, so if you do want more peace and enjoyment, and to find a new path forward, then it seems that moving your focus toward healing will be a helpful way to feel better on some level.

I'll recommend several books and hopefully at least one will spark your interest. You might be able to get a few of them from the library if you don't want to buy them, and most are on Amazon/Kindle to read on your phone.

The Celestine Prophecy, James Redfield: this is an easy read that gives people more insight into the underlying energy exchange happening in our personal/family relationships as well as the interplay between ourselves and our religion (in this case, Catholicism). There is a "control" paradigm clearly on display here, and I sense those very same undercurrents happening around you as well, so this is an easy read that brings those ideas more into focus so that you can move to the next book...

The Empowerment Dynamic: The Power of TED, David Emerald: one of the single most important books a person can read when they are struggling with relationships. In every conflict, we can identify one of three roles being played out; a Victim, a Persecutor, or a Rescuer. A person can even swap between several roles in the course of one argument, moving from the aggressive persecutor to the slighted victim the moment someone stands up to their bullying behavior. It's so incredibly important to be able to identify this behavior in real time so that you can stop responding to it in the same old habitual ways. This book illustrates how to shift your perspective so that you no longer have to have those arguments. The most important point here is that you don't read this book to have an idea of how to change others; you read this book to have an idea how you relate to others, and in many cases, others begin to relate to you differently because your behavior changed, but you did not specifically change them (nor should you try).

The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz: this is a beautifully simple little book that encapsulates four principles of Tol'tec wisdom, which mesh well with any other religion.

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Sacred Contracts, Caroline Myss: this one will really speak to your spiritual path and your spiritual connection with others, and why we reincarnate back into similar situations so that we can ultimately resolve chronic spiritual issues.

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The Pocket Thich Nhat Hanh, Thich Nhat Hanh: powerful, simple stories from a beloved Zen Buddhist monk. Comforting, illuminating, loving and compassionate.

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Sending you love and support, wishing you peace.

the hard part about it is that there's positive things mixed up with negative things. so you're left figuring out what's what--or maybe you're not. Are you her boyfriend? I get the sense you wish you were, or it's something like that, even if you're a same sex best friend. It sounds like it may be you who needs to let go.

But without being there to fully assess the situation, I would bet it's exactly what you called it: "some sort of shortcut with dealing with a lot of personal issues." It's not that the spiritual stuff doesn't have immense truth. But all to often people new to "the path" use "the path" as a way to avoid facing their real problems. And it definitely can be dangerous. But it also can be just the outlet they need. Sometimes people need a positive outlet whatever that is, to be obsessed about it, etc, if that takes them away from their problem. One of their primary problems before usually is that they are obsessed with their problem. Maybe later she can circle back and examine it (rather than avoid it) with new eyes.

Spirituality at its core is all about questioning your own motivations and intentions. I urge you to do just that, not just hers. If you're able to be open and honest with your intentions, you may be lucky (though its not a guarantee) and it rubs off on her and she gets honest about hers. But either way, you first. Make sure your intentions are straight.

If your intentions are straight, and your coming fully from a place of concern--why not immerse yourself and learn what she's learning. Here's your reading to do list:

-Robert Monroe (the grandfather of out-of-body experiences). Read his first book: Journeys out of Body

https://www.amazon.com/Journeys-Out-Body-Out-Body/dp/0385008619

-Drunvalo (The Ancient Secret of the Flower of Life). This is likely stuff she's into. Along with stuff from the Spirit Science Videos (they pretty much borrowed Drunvalo's whole speel). Here's the youtube playlist of their animations that made them famous: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmN2RL4VJsE&list=PL2C2FBAB7E002EE3E

-if you really want to get into it read Thomas Campbell's My Big Toe (Theory of Everything). Read the first book.


I could list a million more out-of-body experience slash astral projection authors. There literally is millions of people experiencing mystical states my friend, and tens of thousands writing books about it. Basically your dream nature (i.e. where you invent whole realities in your head while you sleep) is closer to your true nature than what you experience here on planet earth on a daily basis. That is to say you're a sort of imagination machine. That's what all these authors are saying. There's a whole movement around this stuff. Immerse yourself if you really care. Otherwise, you're a dilettante feigning concern for ulterior motives. Your friend is on to something big here.

Thomas Campbell pioneers a concept called "Open Minded Skepticism." In western secular culture, we're too skeptical. It destroys our ability to imagine, to tap into our true spiritual imagination capabilities that you experience every night when you sleep. However, some people like I think your friend here are too "open minded." According to Thomas Campbell--and from my own experience--this conversely is problematic because it leads people to feel as though they know things they did not experience for themselves, which kills any real motivation to ask questions and figure things out on their own. In short, these people that think they know everything about spirituality can become know-it-alls, doing it for the wrong reasons, and miss what they really should be learning. So you need a balance (as with everything). You need to be open minded, but you need to be skeptical until you verify possibilities through your own experience. I.e. your own experience out of body, in mystical states, etc.

You seem like the more rational one. In Drunvalo's Ancient Secret of the Flower Life, he champions a concept of "Left Brain vs Right Brain" and the idea that male thinking is the more rational left brain side whereas female thinking is the more imaginative intuitive heartfelt right brain side. Specifically what he champions is that we western scientific secular people need to use logic to convince the left brain that what the right brain intuits is true. You need to spiritual logic to convince yourself to live in your heart. Our logical minds need to consciously understand the consciousness system we are living in, in order to live up to our true more intuitive imaginative nature.

Again, you're an imagination machine, with more powers than we currently feel and know we are capable of. According to Campbell (who by the way worked at Robert Monroe's consciousness exploration facility), we are baby consciousness in a petri dish called "planet earth" designed specifically so we can grow ourselves into higher/greater consciousness. So we live in an experiment. It's an experiment that is trying to grow us. It's also trying to get better at growing us. It's a virtual reality. And outside of this reality is more virtual realities, and so on. That's how consciousness works. Like in Men in Black when you zoom out and see one reality inside another. Got it!

So your job is to convince your left brain that a shred of any of this is true by doing your homework and reading what the many who've gone before you have said. I invite you to amazon.com. Good luck!

It looks like you are asking the right questions. It's normal to feel overwhelmed with this.

>Happines is when you let go of your ego,when you make peace with being computer with no free will,making peace with the fact that we are not gods but insignificant blink in the grand universe that doesnt matter to anybody.

Why do you think that dropping the ego will make you happy, isn't happiness is a charasteristic of the ego?

I think a more realistic goal would be to feel peace, to be ok with whatever happens. If you were happy all the time it would eventually be torture. Like having your favorite meal everyday.

>I want to make choice between good and evil

If the person is simply a computer running some software, then the choice is not yours to make. Why worry?

This is very hard to explain in a single comment, and without feedback (like a conversation). But the key question here is: What am I?

To me, it feels like your pain comes from not knowing yourself. There are many ways to start the journey into yourself, depending on your background, you might find some easier than others.

If have a philosophical/scientific background, Alan Watts might help you. Out of Your Mind, Become What You Are, and The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are are all great reads, it doesn't matter which one you pick, they are all pretty similar.

Alternatively, Mooji might help you with his extreme simplicity and straight-to-the-point style of writing/talking. Vaster Than Sky, Greater Than Space: What You Are Before You Became is a great book for starting out your spiritual journey, although it will require an open mind.

There are many other alternatives, but I think those are good starting points. I know linking some books is not the best way to help out but I feel like I would only confuse you more if I keep talking so, Alan and Mooji can do a better job than me in that regard.

If you have any questions though, feel free to ask/DM me.

For the sake of completeness, I'll give it a shot at replying to your original questions:

What is choice? An illusion created by mind. You could see it as inverse-rationalization of what just happened. Like, when you have to pick whether you want to eat A or B, and cant decide, you spend a few minutes with it and then... you make a completely sporadic choice!

Who makes it? It's simply a matter of action/reaction, it was made for you by your environment and conditioning.

Who regrets it? Mind.

What are we humans? Humans are not separate from the rest of the universe. Form and Name are big lies.

Does it even matter? It matters if you pay attention to mind. Mattering only exists in Mind's realm. Nothing matters if there isn't someone to worry about it.

Relate to you for a sec, was an atheist during high school, I'm a die hard rationalist, I have to have things be broken down into science terms. So with an open mind I studied ontology, phenomenology, metaphysics, biophotonics, theology, etc....until I could see the rationalization of what all the spirit culture stuff was about, haha. Now I'm writing books about the spiritual sciences.

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Spirit is the animating life principle that gives vitality. Think of an athlete who has great spirit. You don't think about him in a mystic way in that example. Spirituality is learning how to increase your life force, that raw energy that makes you want to live life. As you do so it naturally enhances your capacity to develop empathy, thus healing society by taking care of yourself.

I'd like to mention one need not play with the pitter patter of New Age culture nor Ancient Knowledge to cultivate awareness of spirit. It can help, but it is not necessary. If you look at spirituality to start as merely a good way to begin elevating your psyche before you know it you will be down the rabbit hole enough to understand what the fuss is all about.

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For more info check out my website https://www.enrichyourjourney.org/ I also do 1 minute daily meditation videos on my instagram @enrichyourjourney

If you're really interested I also just launched a guided meditation journal that only requires 10minutes of "work" a day to start exploring your awakening journey and finding innerpeace. https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Masters-Guide-Nirvana-Awakening-ebook/dp/B07GMSKVDK/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1537576565&sr=1-1&keywords=Zen+Master%27s+Guide+To+Nirvana

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Hope you find what you are looking for OP

There are only three types of relationships. Where there is optimal harmony, it is called soulmates. Where there is push and pull in various levels and stages it is karmic relationships. Twin flames can have both types of dynamics, it all depends and twin flames aren't always meant to be romantic partners or lovers. You HAVE to check out this book. It will save you from much frustration and give you much better understanding. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1937217167/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_xUAwCbC2N7ETA

I am currently listening (taking) this class. It is by the gentlemen who wrote "Untethered Soul". It explains all the subconscious pieces and SO much more. I highly recommend the book and the class. It explains exactly why things like "I don't deserve to be happy" are there and how to release them.

Don't stop! :)

You are most likely in a period of equanimity. Practice over long periods of time increases periods like this. Sometimes things are good. Sometimes they aren't. If things become difficult, STILL don't stop - instead examine your dissatisfaction. Ask yourself if dissatisfaction exists when your mind is quiet. Note that dissatisfaction, as well as happiness are transient object. REAL joy arises when there is no holding on to being one or the other.

Reading dharma is good. It helps to get some idea of what you are looking for. Try:

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Skill-Buddhist-Meditation-Concentration/dp/1626252939/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1439255113&sr=8-1&keywords=the+art+and+skill+of+buddhist+meditation

Or:

https://www.amazon.com/Untethered-Soul-Journey-Beyond-Yourself/dp/1572245379/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1522796945&sr=1-1&keywords=untethered+soul

Bows.

Please enjoy and share our conversation about the subjects of my new book: https://www.amazon.com/Three-Principles-Oneness-Embodying-Perspective/dp/0764358138

The Psychedelic Experience by Timothy Leary and Ram Dass

http://www.holybooks.com/wp-content/uploads/Timothy-Leary-The-Psychedelic-Experience-The-Tibetan-Book-Of-The-Dead.pdf

I AM THAT by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

https://www.amazon.com/I-Am-That-Nisargadatta-Maharaj/dp/0893860468

Be as You Are By Ramana Maharshi

https://www.amazon.com/Be-As-You-Are-Teachings/dp/0140190627/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1526748482&sr=1-1&keywords=be+as+you+are

The Way of The Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman

https://www.amazon.com/Way-Peaceful-Warrior-Changes-Lives/dp/1932073205/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1526748504&sr=1-4&keywords=the+way+of+the+peaceful+warrior

Yes that is in their first Book and the first Book is all you need for transmuting the energy you are speaking of and the book is called I am the Word channeled by Paul Selig. Here's a link:

https://www.amazon.com/Am-Word-Consciousness-Transitioning-Mastery/dp/1585427934/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=i+am+the+word&qid=1563743548&s=gateway&sr=8-1

https://paulselig.com/books/