Westerns Books

Once again, William Johnstone has shown that he can turn the tide of this series so as to not make it boring for anyone. In keeping with the times, everyone else has raised their heads in defiance to the rebels, why not the ...? Raines and his people are pitted against the remnants of Khamsin's "Holy" forces, and the new .... Along with everyone else who is out to stop him. However, Raines has discovered something new... It seems that reports were wrong, deliberately misleading the people to believe that a lot more was destroyed than there really was. Oddly enough, the final chapter has a tear-jerking moment for anyone who is truly an American!

This book is number 8 in the series and let me tell you folks that it is a great slash'em up and die book. While some of the characters are the same I am sure that if you have read this far in the series you have to agree that it is a hell of a good story.

The Ashes series has 33 books so far and all are wonderful. Infact you not only will get hooked but waiting for the next is hard. Ben Rains is a super star trying to put the world right after postwar anarchy. His adventures go from the USA to Europe and beyond. He gets in trouble where ever he goes and you feel like you are right beside him. All Americans need to read this series and clean up America. His problem solving would work today. Trapped in the Ashes is set in New York City where mutant cannibals (night people) have taken over and he needs to clean them out and save the few normal people who are hiding within. Great clean adventure.

Ben and his rebels are trapped in New York. Khamsin has arrived, along with Sister Voleta, to see to it that Ben Raines breathes no more. With the night People and the other two seemingly having Ben and his people trapped, ben makes a decision that will weigh upon his mind forever - do they lie down and die, or do they do the unthinkable and destroy the great city of New York? A brilliant strategic move helps to make his decision for him, resulting in the most amazing turn of events that will have you reeling! It seems that as soon as Ben's back is against the wall, help comes from the oddest of places. Perhaps the rumors about Ben Raines are true.......

I was brought to this kindle version of the Tao Te Ching from the text only version of the Jane English translation. This version is *not* that translation. It's likely a translation that can be found for free on the net. Whispernet was down when I tried to send a sample so I opted to go ahead and purchase it because it was linked as if it were the kindlized version of the translation that I know I like (I used to own it but wore the paperback out). So, I'm out the money and I can't figure out how to ask amazon to take back this misrepresented product. Buyer beware!

I've seen translations that say God instead of Tao, ones that are extremely wordy and overly spiritual, ones that make it seem very political and not spiritual at all. But this translation seems to have a balance between the five fingers of the Tao, is very direct without losing the paradoxical nature of the teachings. Highly recommended.

Sample the taoic tradition and a nice price so your wallet
doesn't go thru samsara.

a good beginning, though not in itself the answer. this book points one toward the way. the way is within oneself. this book if practiced will show you your ego... perhaps for the first time (as in my case), very effectively and therefore it is extremely valuable. the psychology of the Tao Teh Ching is profound, but still i say only a pointer. this book and way is best followed when one begins to see that many of the answers lie deep within oneself.

i personally am not convinced by the interpretations behing the i ching. for example heaven is female, not male and earth is male. however, regardless of this, if one seeks ones own inner alchemy one will progress along the way. the way is largely within you, though there are outer pointers along it. the words of others, meditation, life in general.

i have said this before and i will stick to it. the female (broken line) is rightfully above the male (solid line). a solid base is required. in taoism there is often a weaker base with a solid summit. this is frankly wrong. the female should be above.

the aphorisms in the way are a great start. i see many cross overs between taoism and chan buddhism. regard for emptiness for example, but once emptiness has been attained a seed of new self should be sown in it. (a tiny white pearl).

the taoist inner alchemy is simple, refine the heart matter into fine gold. sow love in your hearts, this fire will purify your inner gold. the mind tends the heart. but perhaps this is too simple...

the time comes when one sees the tiny white pearl glowing within oneself, but after this comes the shadow of the tiny black pearl... where great purity is found great evil will come... both to protect the good and to undermine it (which it cannot thoroughly do). he who is the tiny white pearl possesses the tiny black pearl. the tiny white pearl is the cosmic collecting of purity and goodness, its shadow the tiny black pearl is a concentration of evil, contained in its effect by the tiny white pearl. only supreme good can to some degee contain/limit supreme evil.

in short... no human can be perfect, since his perfection will draw imperfection, of this i am certain. if one perceives oneself to be perfect because one has attained the tiny white pearl - is to not have seen the tiny black pearl which the white pearl draws along. no man can be perfect, in a sense he is in a sense he isnt. an is with an isnt is not pure.

the tiny white pearl shines in the darkness, the tiny black pearl is darker than the darkness. these are not ying and yang, these are good and evil.

conclusion (in prayer):-
"dear Father in heaven i pray that you protect the world and all from the tiny black pearl, and make up for the insufficencies and evils that exist, by your grace and love, thank you lord that your grace is sufficient for me, please bless all who read these words. may they fall in love upon your grace. make all of us perfect in your good time. amen."

love, from snow-flake. xxx

Of the many translations of the Tao Te Ching I've read, this is the one I consider to be the finest. It's not scholarly (for that Ellen M. Chen's version is worth looking at), it's not artificially modern (as are the versions by Ursula Le Guin or Stephen Mitchell), it's just a simple clean presentation of the text with a short, but useful, introduction and end notes to flesh out each verse. The introduction and end notes have a decidedly Judeo-Christian slant, which might turn off some readers who want their Tao Te Ching with a purely Eastern flavour, but the translation itself is clear and apparently faithful to the original text.

The book also includes a very handy bibliography that describes the strengths of other available versions.

The other version that I'd strongly recommend is Witter Bynner's "The Way of Life According To Lao Tzu," which is more of an interpretation rather than a straight translation.

This helped my Western Civilizations Class schoolwork so much. It's very educating on ancient history

I'm not really sure what this book's purpose was really. It's not a great book, but it's not horrible. A lot of areas of history are seemingly skipped over completely and some are very in depth for no real reason at all. I found myself using other sources online to help myself grasp the more interesting areas of history that this book would only dedicate a mere paragraph to.

I'm so glad I bought this book! It's a great insight on the music business and personal observations.

Loved reading this book! He is a unique person - not afraid to say anything. I'm sharing this book with many friends who all have enjoyed it as well. He is a fascinating person - wish he had email so I could write him a note.....He says what he thinks and lives it as well. Good read. Way to go Trace!

A very well written book by a down to earth country boy made good. He cut no corners and did not wash over his faults. We would have a much better democratically elected republic if more people thought about life the way this man does.

This book was excellent. I couldn't put it down. His ideas are exactly what I've been thinking and wish the Presidential Candidates would talk about. Trace proves that country people AREN'T ignorant and that hard work pays off in the end. This book is refreshing since the media and the Candidates avoid the truth of our nation.

Trace is a true man. Works hard for his family, stands by his beliefs (even when they aren't popular), and has values that make America BETTER. This book gives us an excellent glimpse into the music business. Plus, it is an inspiration for those who work hard despite the challenges and ups and downs of life.

He has some good ideas and points in the book. A guy who actually tells the truth and stands by his beliefs, that is the kind of President we need. Americans should be demanding this but we aren't. We just believe what the Candidates say instead of questioning them when they keep flip-flopping on the issues. Trace will you run for President?

Plus, his focus is his family. Who can argue with that!! I would recommend this book to anyone, even if you don't agree with all of his political views.

I stumbled across this book while looking for Trace's music. I had no idea he had written a book. Based on the summary and excerpts on the main Amazon page, I was intrigued enough that I had to read it. I was pleasantly surprised! No one likes to be underestimated, but I'm sure Trace is always hearing people say that they're surprised at how well-spoken and smart he is. He's a self-proclaimed history buff and he seems to really keep up on current affairs, too.
Though Trace is a conservative and I'm pretty liberal, I still respect the opinions he expresses because they seem to be well researched. He's wise enough to know that his party, the Republican party, has serious issues. The subject of the war in Iraq comes up frequently throughout the book, and Trace has strong opinions about what has been done wrong in the way we've handled it so far.
Though the book doesn't really claim to be an autobiography, rather a collection of Trace's observations and opinions, I really liked the little stories about his life. Those were my favorite part. If you love Trace's music and want to learn how his music career progressed, that is covered in here, too. And if you're like me, you won't even mind if his opinions and yours don't always gel.

Though I don't practice Yoga, just Qi-Gong. I find this book very informative and a must have to read for those not know much or history of the spirituality of Yoga. All the different Yoga, beliefs, and what you may not know of any of the Yoga you might had/is practicing.

This book is amazing! I learned so much that no one is really about to talk about in a yoga class. The history of yoga was only scratching the surface, but it was still so much to absorb. This is a powerful book.

This book gave me a clearer understanding of Yoga. My greatest compliment is that it sustained my interest enough to read the book to the end. I enjoyed the humanistic tone of the book, and the simple ordering and structure of topics which brought clarity to a potentially overwhelming subject. I look forward very much to reading more of Georg Feuerstein's books.

When looking for books on Yoga, I had no idea where to start and I didn't want to read some...American trying to cash in book. I saw this book and it seemed real. Wow, I'm glad this is the first book I read on Yoga. Georg Feurstein fully knows and understands the essence of Yoga. The book touches on everything from the history of Yoga to a Yogi's diet. I like how Feurstein always refers back to the old Sanskrit texts of Yogi practices. However, if you are looking for a book where you actually do the postures then look for another book because this book doesn't satisfy that. You should read all you can about Yoga before attempting it, I know my presumptions on Yoga have been changed from reading this book.

I'm in training to become a Yoga teacher. This is a book I will come back over and over again to share information with my students when I start teaching.

[months later...] in retrospect, looking at "the names" though a challenging and exiting read, this book is only worth one star. dionysius is clearly a neoplatonist. he believes that god is everything and that in him are found "all opposites", sun, rain, stars etc etc. no, the one true god is not. He is 'that' i am. not this i am. i would very much doubt that the great intellect that fabricated the teaching in this book would have been given a second peek in the first century church. true is true, false is false and this is false. and im sorry. i have to eat my own words (above), this is not the work of the true areophagite.

it is amazing that the 'great' Thomas Aquinas was taken in by this man. quoted more than 1500 times by him in his writings.

snow-flake xxx

As these sort of works go, Pseudo Dionysius's works definitely add depth and help sort out passages of the bible and practices within the Christian faith.

I recommend skipping the introductory material in the beginning of this edition and simply reading Pseudo Dionysius's books and letters first. Then you can go back to the introductory material. I say this only because I like to skip any and all introductory material in any book I read because these essays were never included in original versions.

I am grateful for this series (Classics of Western Spirituality) and while the 'Ecclesiastical Hierarchy' book within this collection has more to do with those seeking the vocation, there are observations and such that will open the lay person's mind to new ideas.

Sometime at around the 5th or 6th century A.D., a Christian monk sat down and penned several works on 'mystical' theology. Passing himself off as the famous Athenian convert to Christianity who heard St Paul in Athens, the works of this monk became the foundations upon which later great Christian mystics such as Meister Eckhart, the author of the Cloud of Unknowning, St John of Cross, Nicholas of Cusa, St Bonaventure, Richard of St Victor, and many others would base their 'ascents' to God.

The two most important works on the Corpus are the 'Mystical Theology' and 'The Divine Names.' Probably using the language and concepts of Neo-Platonism and in particular of Proclus along with ideas he got from reading Gregory of Nyssa, Denys expounds the 'via negativa' apprach to God.

In the mystical theology Denys outlines how Moses ascended to God through a dark 'cloud of unknowing' and reached the ineffable Godhead who is beyond all concepts, ideas and words. In the view of Denys, even in a 'clear' vision of God we do not get a clear vision of God but rather only see a 'dazzling darkness' which is above and beyond every possible concept and idea we could have of God, or any name we can apply to God. Denys seems very keen to protect the mystery of God's transcendant being, which even when 'naked' and exposed by stripping it of all concepts and ideas and names, is still completely hidden by virtue of its transcendance.

Denys explores these ideas further in 'The Divine Names', a very important work both in mysticism and theology. Denys talks of what names can be said to apply to God and he also discusses how God's goodness 'flows out' of itself to create the universe and all beings (which he calls theophanies) and which return back to God in a circular procession. This little work would have a profound effect on many of Christendom's most creative and innovative thinkers, from Scotus Eriugena, Maximus Confessor, Thomas Aquinas, St John of Cross, St Bonaventure, Robert Grosseteste and Nicholas of Cusa. Its influence still continues to this day and seems to be undergoing a kind of renaissance amoung theologians such as Von Balthasar, Karl Rahner and Valdimir Lossky.

The works which follow are somewhat weaker in both literary and theological merit. The Celestial heirarchy and the Ecclesiastical Heirarchy are attempts to fuse Neo-Platonic symbolism and angelology with Christian angelology and liturgical symbolism. His letters are somewhat edifying and refer a lot to lost works, however they were probably not written to the people he addresses them to since modern scholarship has shown Denys lived long after the New Testament was formulated canonically, and all the Apostles were long dead.

However, these weaknesses do not detract from the theological brilliance of Denys, who manages to fuse the better aspects of Neo-Platonic Philosophy with the deepest and most profound Christian theology and mysticism, without leaping to the frenzied visions of the Gnostics, nor reducing God to anthropomorphism. His spirituality is very ethereal at times and while his excesses can mislead the contemplative into over-valuing the spiritual world over the material, it should be remembered Denys also stresses God's infinite and ineffable beauty which is radiated in his glory and goodness, which makes the created universe and all beings (human and angelic) beautiful as well. He has a positive view of the incarnation and of the world, and in my view still represents one of the best mystical theologies in the Christian tradition, and in terms of world religious philosophy, offers one of the most inspiring visions of the Absolute.

St Dionysios the Great was a Disciple of St. Paul, and was probably the first Bishop of Athens. He is of enourmous importance to our Theology, and his teachings on the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy are as relevant today as in the late 1st century. Skip the introduction and foot notes. They were made by a secular outsider who clearly is totally unfamiliar with the Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom and the Sacramental life of the Church..

"It would be a challenging project, but a fascinating one, to write the history of Western Christian spirituality in the late patristic and medieval periods primarily or even exclusively on the basis of those neglected writings that are identified in successive volumes of J. P. Migne's Patrologia Latina and Patrologia Graeca as 'spurious' or as 'dubious,' together with the purportedly authentic writings that in fact belong in the same categories." So Jaroslav Pelikan begins his introduction - it is the first of three introductions - to the complete works of Pseudo-Dionysius. That there should be three introductory essays detailing the history and reception of the Dionysian corpus simply goes to show how utterly important these writings are, despite the fact that we do not know (or perhaps we simply do not believe?) who wrote them. It is perfectly accurate to write that above any other writings of the Patristic period, these writings are the most influential mystical writings of not only the early Church, but of all Christian history.

It is currently believed that the writer who called himself Dionysius the Aeropagite (St. Paul's first convert) was a monk from Syria in the fifth or sixth century. Most of his writings have been lost (or, if one wishes to be suspicious about it, were never really written in the first place), but those that remain - The Divine Names, The Mystical Theology, The Celestial Hierarchy, The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy and ten Letters - have all been translated and copiously annotated in the present volume.

Dionysius is best known for his understanding that theological language exists to be surpassed by "a mystical silence" that is at the height of all theological contemplation: union with God. The belief that doxology is overflown by the God that our language points and reaches out to is central to Dionysius' worldview. However, there is are two essential connections that one must make here. First, because our language - which is "cataphatic" (that is, it affirms something) - is surpassed by God, apophaticism (language that denies something) is truer of God than cataphaticism. Second - and this is the more important point - God is also beyond apophaticism. Thus, cataphatically I say "God is good", apophatically I follow with "God is not good", and find myself pushed to affirm that "God is beyond goodness as I understand goodness to be". Dionysius refuses to allow us to drown in apophatic quietism and pushes us to let God "overflow" our theological language (and he uses the image of overflowing frequently).

Central to Dionysius' paradigm is the liturgy as a participation with the heavenly choirs of angels; in short, liturgy as mystical. Such liturgy is inspired by God - the theologian is the one who is given inspired visions of God - and the purpose of worship is ascent to Christ. Some have claimed that Dionysius is fundamentally deficient in his trinitarian theology, but if one understands his understanding of Jesus as the divine mediatory and the Holy Spirit as the one who inspire (as in St. Paul), then what emerges is not an underveloped theology, but a theology that sees that activity of the whole Trinity as foundational to our experience of God in worship, lifting us to see God's own face in a "dazzling darkness" - not because of absence, but because of the overflowing light of the Godhead which blinds our natural eyes just as it inspires desire within us.

These writings are theologically dense, to put it simply. Yet, they are profound. For those that are well-versed in the doctrines of the Incarnation and Trinity, they will find these writings to be a helpful next step in understanding better the functions of theological language, especially within the liturgical context.