Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant!, 24 Jan 2005
What can i say, this book is truly brilliant. Watts identifies the destructive ways in which the majority of human race seem to lead their lives: attempting to achieve security which does not exist, and pointlessly chasing it faster and faster in the attempt. While this outlook may seem pessimistic it is rather the opposite. Watts is pointing to another way to live, the discovery of our true selves, it's just we have forgotten our true nature, which has been clouded by the worship of consumerism, materialism and scientific thought. 'Belief clings on, but faith lets go'. Watts suggests that we need to release our burdens of life before we will find our way again. And he is right. My favourite part in the book is where Watts explores the use of language and 'describing' things.
"What is this? This is a rose. But 'a rose' is a noise. What is a noise? A noise is an impact of air waves on the ear drum. Then a rose is an impact on the eardrum? No, a rose is aroseis a rose..." This attitude to everyday life is present throughout the book and simply makes you think about the way you lead your life. I keep reading this book over and over again and finding i understand more each time. This book will help you to find your way again.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Timely...and timeless., 14 Jun 1998
By A Customer
Each time I pick up my latest copy of this book I find a new, seemingly self-evident truth. My first copy, which I received in 1972 from my girlfriend, opened my eyes to the futility of chasing headlong after so-called "security." Watts blends eastern and western thought and cultural habits, and shows ever-so-clearly that this chase is futile, indeed an oxymoron: the chase is doomed to be eternal, only in giving up the chase can we reach the prize (or, more precisely, can it reach us).I've given copies to so many friends over the years, but as I write these words it still graces the bookshelf beside me. I treasure it highly, and read passages from it often, 26 years later.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Belief clings, but faith lets go.", 24 Jun 1999
By A Customer
One of my favorite books of all time. I've reread it more times than any other, but never without reaching new insights and finding new inspiration. It's filled with wisdom like the following: "[I]t is a serious misapplication of psychology to make the presence or absence of neurosis the touchstone of truth, and to argue that if a man's philosophy makes him neurotic, it must be wrong. 'Most atheists and agnostics are neurotic, whereas most simple Catholics are happy and at peace with themselves. Therefore the views of the former are false, and of the latter true.' Even if the observation is correct, the reasoning based on it is absurd. It is as if to say, 'You say there is a fire in the basement. You are upset about it. Because you are upset, there is obviously no fire." Watts talks about the many subtle proprieties of life in which we are all engaged but which we seldom discuss. Then, the instant you read them, you feel as if your own thoughts had been read aloud. I can't recommend this book highly enough.
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