A Course in Metaphysics in a fun story form
598175
This trilogy is a fun form to learn and put together a great deal of metaphysical information.
I recommend it to anyone interested in metaphysics -- or, if you're a skeptic, you can read it as fantasy and have an enjoyable read as well.
3045437
There is no finer "first book" in realist metaphysics than Pierre-Marie Emonet's "The Dearest Freshness Deep Down Things."  Emonet was a student of Jacques Maritain.  In this thick, little book he explores the common ground of metaphysics and poetry through rich illustrations.  Being is their shared subject matter, and they work together on the reader like a see-saw.  A person is apt to come away with a better understanding of being than if he/she had read more technical works with their often painful or numbing details - and which can actually discourage a new student of this profound subject matter.  On the contrary, this book "pulls you in" and it can change you in the process.  You will never see a flower, a tree, or another person in quite the same way.  That is because both of you will be richer, deeper.  Most especially, you will come away with a first grasp of "existence," the cornerstone of Thomistic metaphysics.  You will also be prepared to read more advanced works of other teachers, such as W. Norris Clarke (especially The One and The Many), Etienne Gilson, Jacques Maritain, and Joseph Owens.  In a nutshell, this is a work of great intellectual beauty.  Its elegant, powerful simplicity and the progression of the little chapters can fill you with joy.  Read it and the two companion volumes prayerfully.
1826331
All in all, I found this book to be flat-out enjoyable.
But before I mention that, I'd like to address some of the elements that the previous reviewer brought up. This book is divided between four characters, each of who are written (in an excellent, albiet sometimes unbelievably extreme manner) to correspond with their atypical standard kabbalistic standing. In fact, to explain this, there's even a small diagram at the very beggining of the book that demonstraits this.
Characters come across not as steriotypes, but instead as being firm characterisations of their personality archtypes. Jensen writes these characters to focus not only on giving them believable personalities, but to epitomise the concepts in kabbalistic mythos. Although, I suppose this is easy to not understand...
And as for the comments on gay characters.. Ermm, I'm gay, and wasn't at all insulted. So I don't know what the previous reviewer was talking about with that.
Now, about the book itself. This book is an excellent exploration of hypothetical philosophy, with a vague concept of physics passed across two. The idea of physics and philosophy being one and the same is not new, it's been tackled before, but not in such a manner. Here, said philosophy takes the form of kabbalism, a form of conceptual mystical-science of jewish descent.
From this, the reader is presented (via the character of the scientist and the militant) with the idea that the philosophical concept of good and evil may be, in fact, a physical force - an equation. At the same time, two other characters (the hedonist and the religious-scholar) explore the storyline behind this discovery - the character of Kobinski, a polish jew and kabbalist scholar imprisoned in Auschwitz, who disapeared under mysterious circumstances. Through mysticism and science, both the teachings of the kabbalist scholar and the discovery of the equation lead to the sudden and unexpected journey into four other universes - four seperate heavens and hells for the characters.
It's a facinating book, and should be looked upon for it's theoretical concepts as much as it's literary merit.
3473251
This is one of the most interesting and valuable course I have found. It draws upon the consensus of a great body of science and studies to provide often un-intuitive looks at how the mind works. One finishes the course with a desire to hear it again, and a certain humility with which to consider our own thinking.
2220946
Philosophical conversationalists, Dimitri and Tasso, have been ordained by Cathcart and Klein to guide us through a brilliantly written tome-free survey of philosophy as viewed through the lens of a 21st century skeptic.

 Plato and a Platypus opens the doors to the various schools of philosophy employing whimsical contemporary illustrations that at once surprise and inform the reader.  There are startlingly delightful cartoons, too.  Each page offers up an intro to a serious speech, an ice-breaker for a cocktail party, or an intellectual game for a baby shower.  The reader is at once compelled to both keep reading and to cut away to share a passage with a friend.  (That's what literate people do when tweaked; they read to one another. I suggest it be limited to people over the age of 6, though my 5-year-old grandson became intrigued when I shared a tongue-in-cheek segment.)  Yet, this book is far from one big joke.  It is a scholarly work, complete with timeline and glossary, both of which are laced with humor that belie the academic content.  It would be a rational text for many a college class.  Critical thinking comes to mind.  So do religion, ethics, math, logic, pragmatism, and English composition.

If you buy one, buy two.  This little reader is the perfect gift book for celebrations and simple pleasures.  It is ideal for the friendly neighborhood philosopher.  It is also a fine open-anywhere for moments when you want to think deeply without the weight of war or taxes.  It is a definite buy and keep book.  Highly recommended.

La Vergne Rosow
Author, Accessing the Classics: Great Reads for Adults, Teens, and English Language Learners
3285289
A wonderful read!  A great place to start your metaphysical journey, or also a great addition to ones library.  Simple but deep truths are contained herein.
3981932
Lipton is a cell biologist whose "study of cells turned [him] into a spiritual person." This is a highly readable science book, defining how beliefs control behavior and gene activity, and consequently the unfolding of our lives. It's a fun learning tool that doesn't dig too deeply, with an uplifting message.

Belief truly is biological. One interesting topic that Lipton addresses is the placebo effect. It "is quickly glossed over in medical schools so that students can get to the real tools of modern medicine like drugs and surgery. This is a giant mistake. The placebo affect should be a major topic of study in medical school." Of course, Lipton is a realist; he realizes placebo pills are a threat to the pharmaceutical industry, as well as the scalpel holders, and Lipton is not one to mince words.

It should be pointed out that this is no dry textbook; it borders in places on metaphysical and holistic speculation. But the book is so darn fun. In this light, do not ignore the epilogue; it's the best part of the book, where Lipton deals with speculative conclusions regarding our "me-ness" and the power of the mind that transformed him into a bubbly, optimistic believer. His "aha" moment was the realization that every protein in our bodies is a physical/electromagnetic complement to something in the environment ... that environment being the universe, or to many, God.  As we are inextricably intertwined with the divine, survival of the fittest turns out to mean survival of the most loving.
4131814
In his book, Delight in God, Andy Sears invites you as his friend to listen to the story of his life. He also encourages you to take a good look at your own life situation to see if there are things that you could challenge or change in the same way as he has done. As his road map, the writer is using A Course in Miracles which helped him to transform his life into something beyond his beliefs once he started to open up to its divine message.
I like this book because of the openness and honesty with which it describes  the transformation of a typical human life: the search for happiness in this world, the experiences of deceptions and suffering, the devastation when the dream collapses, followed by a call for help, all of which is necessary before something new - the Alternative - can take over and transform the life. Andy gives us a description of how this happened to him and he does it not only with openness and honesty, but also with a childlike playfulness and good humor. The book contains not only quite a few well chosen quotations from A Course in Miracles and other spiritual books, but also from several children's books.
In the second part of the book, you are invited to listen to and take part in a discussion between the author (representing himself and his personal experiences) and his two imaginary friends, Dig (representing the knowledge of the Light - Delight In God!) and Curious (representing an ordinary human's earthly, closed mind). It is a funny, sometimes surprising, often instructive reading based on the principles of A Course in Miracles.
The book can serve as an introduction to A Course in Miracles or as a means to use this one life's example as an encouragement for your own life's transformation. At the end, the author encourages the reader to write his own story, in order to expose hidden fears and start the healing process of forgiveness.
3769881
Having only read a handful of metaphysical texts in this life, I took on Ancient Wisdom for a New Age with a bit of hesitation regarding my ability to both understand and relate to the information presented.  I am happy to report that not only is the book universal enough for the layman to understand, but also engrossing enough to hold his/her attention throughout.  Some of the information is more esoteric but most can be practically applied to everyday life.
 I particularly like the framework in which the information is conveyed.  A conversation between a motivated student and his/her teacher proves to be a really effective way to present big ideas.  It certainly helped me contextualize what I was reading.
 This book would be a solid addition to both consistent readers of metaphysical texts and those looking to branch out and discover new things.
2843544
Memoirs of a Master is a collection of 20 short stories, written by Geoffrey and Linda Hoppe, companions and channelers of Adamus Saint-Germain who now comes to us from angelic realms. This book, filled with warm humour, compassion and wisdom, is written from the viewpoint of Master Adamus who gently guides his students through many roadblocks and obstacles to Realization or Enlightenment.

Memoirs of a Master is dedicated to the Master and student within each of us. The Master is our wise inner voice, always present and compassionate, already within although often unheard. The student is the eager learner, the doubtful human, and ultimately, the Master and the student are the same, in this book as in life.

The outer context of the stories is often the ancient mystery school where the Master is teacher and student apprentice. This appeals for sure to many of those who feel drawn to mystery schools. Master and student meet and discuss many issues humans tend to have on their journey to mastery: abundance and lack of it; physical illness, mental chaos, confusion, hopelessness; stuck energies and limited vision; threatening life situations; temptations to take fast-track shortcuts; victim games; multidimensional realities; lies that people tell themselves, and much more.

These stories guide us to integrate our divinity with our humanness. Many metaphors help us form a new perspective on our life and problems. By presenting advice in story form there is no pressure to accept it but the reader is free to decide whether to change her consciousness based on this new perspective. Should she feel that the story is not relevant, nothing is lost, and she might find out the new meaning at a later date.

I truly loved metaphors in this book. One of them is The Mothership, representing the soul being, inspired by our intergalactic origins. Imagine a big Mothership, hovering above your reality, and it sent down all the little pod spaceships... suddenly, the Mothership realizes its time to landIts time to come home. And the funny thing is that YOU, in this lifetime  this little space pod that is energetically the closest, the most bonded with the Mothership  is the first to return. And then its you who take the lead. Another example of the many beautiful metaphors is the fire breathing dragon that once tormented you day and night but now sleeps peacefully beside the fireplace.

The park bench, pictured on the cover and at the end of every chapter, felt like a very appropriate place for the Masters and students meeting. For the Master, it had become the timeless place where aspects of his past and future lifetimes would come for counsel. Sitting there with the Master, the reader easily learns the core content of aspects. On the bench the Master shares his wisdom, the student shares her issues, and both share their human experiences. It was on the park bench where the Master had his profound Realization, awareness of his awareness that came to him like a breath, easy and graceful, when he was simply present and allowing.

In this book many of Adamus Saint-Germains teachings are presented in summarised form. For anyone who is already familiar with them, the book serves as a valuable reminder of his core teachings, and for anyone who does not know them yet, the book might serve as a doorway to totally new worlds. If you open up and allow! But how to get out of all human limitations? Youd better read the book.
748558
Although this was intended as a textbook I read it for pleasure and enjoyed it.  The author pulls arguments from a many different philosophers and uses plenty of modern examples.
110148
A weird combination of sci-fi, philosophy, and mysticism... but it works!
4534329
'Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals' is as the title suggests.  It is metaphysical in spirit and philosophical in style.  The subject is one of many of Iris Murdoch's themes. Mostly she likes to help us find meaning in our lives by elevating our moral sensibility.  She does that quite well. However, her style is not for everyone as it is heavy to read. One must decide the topic has relevance or that it has intellectual worthiness to engage in it's minute and often ponderous arguments in favor of her thesis.  Good people lead spiritually more gratifying lives than, well, the opposite, I guess.  That would be those who are not so good. But then there are good people and there are the really 'Good' people.  The really good are those who have transcended their contradictory inclinations for the path set out by Murdoch.  Murdoch's thesis is that 'Good', is above being, non-personal, non-contingent, not a particular thing among other things'.  For Murdoch, moral consciousness and reality testing are synonymous.  In a world where pretense is often the sine qua non of one's existence, healing our vision is a lifelong journey.  Why not take this fine book along as your guide?  I have, and I'm  a better person for it.  So I imagine!
4734962
I have personally studied and practiced many principles of metaphysics, loosely named "The New Age" and the authors of this book are well informed about its uses, powers and misuses of these concepts as they have based this story on the concepts of "positive thinking" and "Law of Attraction.  One concept that they added, which is not usually present for the ordinary student of metaphysics is a machine that can identify how the brain is affected.

In this story, Michael James Walker, a billionaire and a powerful figure in the corporate world, was being held in the brig at the Charleston Naval Weapons Station, after having escaped twice before from Homeland Security.  Penelope Spence Drayton, a former investigative reporter who  won a Pulitzer price at the age of twenty-three, married, more or less gave up newspaper reporting and raised three children, was contacted by Mark Hatchet, Editor of the Washington Post because he was an old friend and classmate.  He offered her a job of investigative reporting on a hush-hush job, covered up, which the President, Homeland Security, CIA, NSA and House and Senate Leadership asked them not to pursue.  Penelope, not having anything better to do and being intrigued, threw herself right in the middle of the situation.  She managed to talk personally to Senator Horn, a deeply religious man, who felt that this "Hermes Project" was blasphemous and intended to stop it and cancel it totally.  At such time, it would no longer be top secret.

Through the years, Penelope had practiced deep meditation and yoga and developed her intuition and psychic abilities to the point that she often saw visions, which turned out to be true.  Senator Horn got Penelope in to see Michael, and Michael by using his well developed psychic powers was able to walk out of the prison with Penelope.  He was aware that Penelope, on her own, had reached an aspect of enlightenment.

The story is a page turner in that the government was always chasing after Michael. Michael never completely explained what the Hermes Project was to Penelope, except that it led to enlightenment, and there was a definite attraction between Michael and Penelope.  Money to open doors, hire employees who were psychic and believed in the project were facets of Michael's ability to succeed until Penelope finally met Doctor Altman who was the scientist who developed the brain machine, working with Michael.  Throughout the story there were many explanations of these two powerful laws of metaphysics, although what Michael speculated could happen through wrong use of such energies might be subject to extremely intelligent discussions.  There may be a little disappointment for some readers because the romance might not be as scintillating as some may desire, but it is a fascinating story to read.
4113654
This book contains an excellent collection of essays on metaphysics, though it is not for the casual reader of philosophy.  This book seems to be aimed primarily at philosophy professors and graduate students.  Anyone without a deep and abiding interest in philosophy should not purchase this book.  It is not light reading, but as a general study of metaphysics it is excellent.
4589888
Appropriate as either and adjunctive reader with or introduction to the metaphysics and mysticism (Forgiveness) of A Course In Miracles aka ACIM.
2985157
Alexander Marchand's thoroughly enjoyable book is like ACIM 'Cliff Notes' in comic book form. It's loaded with superb visual humor and metaphors, and remarkable depth and insight disguised as a VERY fun read. For those that want in-depth non-dual metaphysics in a graphically engaging format (including some very cool glyphs for concepts we can all relate to), this one is a total page-turner. I couldn't put it down. Try it, you'll like it! You might even find you are less interested in polishing a less-than-satisfactory substitute for what we all really want. (You'll just have to read the book to figure what that hilarious reference was about. :-)
- Bruce Rawles, author of The Geometry Code: Universal Symbolic Mirrors of Natural Laws Within Us; Friendly Reminders of Inclusion to Forgive the Dreamer of Separation