Many appreciate Richard P. Feynman’s contributions totwentieth-century physics, but few realize how engaged he was withthe world around him—how deeply and thoughtfully he considered thereligious, political, and social issues of his day. Now, awonderful book—based on a previously unpublished, three-part publiclecture he gave at the University of Washington in 1963—shows usthis other side of Feynman, as he expounds on the inherent conflictbetween science and religion, people’s distrust of politicians, andour universal fascination with flying saucers, faith healing, andmental telepathy. Here we see Feynman in top form: nearly burstinginto a Navajo war chant, then pressing for an overhaul of theEnglish language (if you want to know why Johnny can’t read, justlook at the spelling of “friend”); and, finally, ruminating on thedeath of his first wife from tuberculosis. This is quintessentialFeynman—reflective, amusing, and ever enlightening.
For many of us, life seems like a puzzle with pieces missing. Weform plans and then change them; we choose one path, then another,trying to find the right mate and career, hoping we’ve made theright decision and that it will all work out. At some point, we mayeven ask the important questions: What is the purpose of my life?How shall I spend it? This book provides some answers to finally bring your lifeinto sharper focus. First, we have to understand that we are hereto fulfill not one but four fundamental purposes: Learning Life’s Lessons Finding Your Career and Calling Fulfilling Your Hidden Life Path Attending to This Arising Moment The Four Purposes of Life was born from Dan Millman’sdecades-long search to make sense of life. He distills decades ofexperience into a concise map of the journey — the full scope ofwhat we’re each here to accomplish here on planet Earth. You will learn: the higher purpose of daily life twelve required l
Outrageously funny, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . . has been a breakout bestseller ever since authors—and born vaudevillians—Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein did their schtick on NPR’s Weekend Edition. Lively, original, and powerfully informative, Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar . . . is a not-so-reverent crash course through the great philosophical thinkers and traditions, from Existentialism (What do Hegel and Bette Midler have in common?) to Logic (Sherlock Holmes never deduced anything). Philosophy 101 for those who like to take the heavy stuff lightly, this is a joy to read—and finally, it all makes sense!
Use human means as though divine ones did not exist, and usedivine means as though there were no human ones. So wrote theJesuit scholar Baltazar Gracian some 300 years ago, in a book thatwill be compared to Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Machiavelli's ThePrince. A new translation of long lost wisdom on livingsuccessfully yet responsibly.
'Lacan's work marks a crucial moment in the history of psychoanalysis, a moment which will perhaps prove as significant as Freud's original discovery of the unconscious.' - Colin MacCabe 'Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Georges Bataille had often urged Lacan to publish the text of his seminars: the influence of his teaching can be observed in works by Maurice Blanchot and Michel Foucault... in Roland Barthes's studies on semiology and Louis Althusser's "reading" of Marx. But it can be felt still more basically [in] the current revival of interest in psychoanalysis... the desire for a return to origins which is a common factor in so many avenues of modern thought.' - The Times Literary Supplement Ecrits is the essential source for anyone who seeks to understand this seminal thinker and his influence on contemporary thought and culture.
In On the Nature of the Psyche Jung presents a masterly overview of his theories of the unconscious, and its relation to the conscious mind. Jung's discovery of the 'collective unconscious', a psychic inheritance common to all humankind, transformed the understanding of the self and the way we interpret the world. In On the Nature of the Psyche Jung describes this remarkable theory in his own words, and presents a masterly overview of his theories of the unconscious, and its relation to the conscious mind. Also contained in this collection is On Psychic Energy , where Jung defends his interpretation of the libido, a key factor in the breakdown of his relations with Freud. For anyone seeking to understand Jung's insights into the human mind, this volume is essential reading.
Written during the golden age of Chinese philosophy, andcomposed partly in prose and partly in verse, the Tao TeChing is surely the most terse and economical of the world’sgreat religious texts. In a series of short, profound chapters itelucidates the idea of the Tao, or the Way–an idea that in itsethical, practical, and spiritual dimensions has become essentialto the life of China’s enormously powerful civilization. In theprocess of this elucidation, Lao-tzu both clarifies and deepensthose central religious mysteries around which our life on earthrevolves.
