Bøger af Alan W. Watts

Philosopher Alan Watts reexamines humanity's place in the natural world-and the relation between body and spirit-in the light of Chinese Taoism. Western thought and culture have coalesced around a series of constructed ideas-that human beings stand separate from a nature that must be controlled; that the mind is somehow superior to the body; that all sexuality entails a seduction-that in some way underlie our exploitation of the earth, our distrust of emotion, and our loneliness and reluctance to love. Here, Watts fundamentally challenges these assumptions, drawing on the precepts of Taoism to present an alternative vision of man and the universe-one in which the distinctions between self and other, spirit and matter give way to a more holistic way of seeing.

In his definitive introduction to Zen Buddhism, Alan Watts explains the principles and practices of this ancient religion to Western readers. With a rare combination of freshness and lucidity, he delves into the origins and history of Zen to explain what it means for the world today with incredible clarity. Watts saw Zen as "one of the most precious gifts of Asia to the world," and in The Way of Zen he gives this gift to readers everywhere."Perhaps the foremost interpreter of Eastern disciplines for the contemporary West, Watts had the rare gift of 'writing beautifully the unwritable.'"-Los Angeles Times

Just as groundbreaking today as it was when it first appeared, Behold the Spirit is philosopher Alan Watts's timeless argument for the place of mystical religion in today's world. Drawing on his experiences as a former priest, Watts skillfully explains how the intuition of Eastern religion can be incorporated into the doctrines of Western Christianity.