Rating: 
Summary: Indispensable Gem!
Review: here we have a comprehensive review of the world's primal spiritual traditions packed into one book. like a glittering gem of many facets, the great Truths are examined and compared and illuminated. mr huxley's brilliant insights make this a rare and beautiful book of wisdom. its a guide for the sincere, a treat for the curious, and a true spiritual classic. mr huxley points out that these truths are not self evident to the worldly philosopher or skeptic. these truths only become self evident and experiencial to those who fulfill the necessary conditions, he says you will realize these truths for yourself when you become pure in heart, poor in spirit, and truly humbly seek to know God. i own hundreds of "spiritual" books and there are very few as great as this one. it's definitely in my top ten. buy it, read it, give it away. then buy another copy and read it again. the New York Times was right on in calling this book, "the masterpiece of all anthologies."
Rating: 
Summary: Unsound, and getting a bit long in the tooth
Review: Aldous Huxley wrote some terrific books (e.g., "The Devils of Loudon") but this isn't one of them.Basically, Huxley presents the old Baha'i idea that "all the great world religions are the same thing, at the end of the day." The "same thing" which he seizes on is the Hindu idea that the soul (atma) is the same as the divine (atman). The words may not be exactly right but the idea is quite old. However, difficulties arise. If this "perennial philosophy" accurately represents all world religions, then (by brute force of logic) it represents Buddhism, Christianity, and Judaism. Now, Buddhism is quite clear on NOT recognizing any sort of permanent "self" or "soul." Buddhist teachers try to tread a middle path between "annihilationism" and "eternalism" with regards to the soul, but such a middle path is extremely different from Christianity (eternal soul bound for glory or the fire below) and Judaism, which simply does not accept any concept of the afterlife. If there is a "ground of all being" for Buddhism, it would probably be "nibbana" or "nirvana" -- but it is clearly incorrect to speak of this as some sort of God, especially some sort of "creator-God" such as we find in the Old Testament. There are many more difficulties like the ones I have just listed. The major religions of the world do NOT all boil down to "just the same thing." Christianity knows nothing at all of Dharma, a concept without which Buddhism would collapse, and Buddhism very definitely knows nothing about baptism and the forgiveness of sins, central Christian ideas. So, at the end of it all, the "perennial philosophy" winds up looking like "Aldous Huxley's religion," and the question is, would you accept a religion from such a poor religious scholar? Up to you!
Rating: 
Summary: Without Peer!
Review: Certainly this work is representative of a stage in Huxley's spiritual career. At the time both he and Gerald Manley Hall were in a very "Manichean" phase and, as the above New Yorker blurb suggests Huxley was at this time very "otherworldly". After his experiences with LSD and his encounters with Krishnamurti, Huxley returned to life. Read this book as a precursor to Huxley's mature statements, but
do follow up with a read of his post-psychedelic writings, such as "Doors of Perception", etc to be found in "Moksha".
Rating:
Summary: beyond genius! must be experienced...
Review: dear reader and spiritual seeker, here you have a comprehensive review of the primal spiritual traditions packed into one book. but more than that, its a guide for the sincere, a treat for the curious, and a true spiritual classic that will out live all who read this review. mr huxley points out that these truths are not self evident to the worldly philosopher or skeptic. these truths only become self evident and experiencial to those who fulfill the necessary conditions, i.e. you will realize these truths for yourself when you become pure in heart, poor in spirit, and truly humbly seek to know God. i own hundreds of "spiritual" books and have read thousands, this one is definitely in my top ten. buy it, read it, give it away. then buy another copy and read it again. the New York Times was right on in calling this book, "the masterpiece of all anthologies."
Rating:
Summary: Wisdom of the ages in summary form.
Review: Huxley was clearly a man with great vision, undoubtedly ahead of his time. This book notes the crucial points of world religion/philosophy in terms understandable to both Eastern and Western minds. It will become essential reading to the student of philosophy/world religion and a work valued for centuries to come. The author points out the key elements of the human condition and the proper path to follow for ultimate salvation. Huxley shows us the way, the burden is now ours to understand. I highly recommend this book as a must reading for anyone.
Rating:
Summary: The answer!...for this reader, at least!
Review: I am ordering this book again after losing my first copy on the bus. Whoever picked it up is welcome to it; I'm happy for anyone whose life this book is lucky enough to enrich. One reviewer picked on the fact that Eastern & Western religions are totally incompatible & have nothing in common. This misses the point of the book; the DOGMA of Eastern & Western religion are indeed incompatible, which (as Huxley aptly demonstrates) is exactly the problem with organized religion. In fact, the dogma of nearly all religions tend to exclude each other, making religion just another worldly argument. Worldly arguments are not supposed to be the point of religion; the point of religion is to enlighten (or "save") the faithful. No dogma or beliefs can do this; however, all religions have an element that touches on how it may be done. Huxley ties these common threads together into an elegant tapestry for the dogma-weary seeker after truth to contemplate. To use myself as an example, I am not interested in achieving full enlightenment just yet; there are many worldly things I wish to do yet. One can become as balanced as one wishes to be. For those interested in such things, I recommend this book very highly. Also, I recommend "Island", a Huxley novel I regularly buy used copies of & give away for free!
Rating:
Summary: Indispensable Gem!
Review: I feel some of the more critical reviewers posting here coming from a very glib place. Maybe 'old man Huxley' is too stuffy (too Victorian?) for the modern, confident, e-informed seeker. I love this book because I know the context of the man's life and where it came from. Discover Huxley! His flaws are obvious, sure, but nothing in comparison to the difficulties he overcame and the giant leap he provided to the thinkers of his generation (and the seekers of the next!) For me the value of this book is in the rich, generous treasure-chest of quotes provided, and finally, for its unusually clear distinction between what is 'psychic' what is 'mystical' and what is 'spiritual.'
Rating:
Summary: A Lifetime guidebook
Review: I first read this book 43 years ago. It impressed me because in those years, for me, everything was separate. Since I first read this book, (at least six times since then) I am now convinced that the mystical experience is identical, no matter which particular way you choose. I highly recommend this book to every soul who is uncertain about which way to go to find IT. You will learn that IT is everywhere no matter the path YOU choose. All religious and transcendental experience point the same way and Huxley proves it in his work; a transcendental and enlightening insight on this subject. This book is a must for the seeker, as well as for the enlightened, as a documented proof of the oneness of the Universal Truth.
Rating:
Summary: A piercing spiritual insight
Review: I found this book quite accidentally as the last thing on the floor of an aquantances apartment as I was helping him move, and it has totally changed my life. Never before have I come across anything that so eloquently brought together the pure essences of the worlds major religions in their pure and simple truth.This book is bound to upset any adherents to one certain religion, as it uncovers the binding truths of them all. It is no Bible, no Koran, no Torah, no Bhagavad Gita, and yet it is all of them and more. It makes no steadfast claims or demands as many religious/spiritual books tend to do. It gently unfolds its spiritual message in a simple and awe inspiring way. I could not recommend this book highly enough to anyone seeking a spiritual truth. I myself did not know I was, and it showed me more than I could have ever hoped to have seen.
Rating:
Summary: Timeless wisdom
Review: I was given this book by my grandmother, who had purchased it in to 50's. At first I found the content and the author's writing style frustrating, but I found that as I let the words drift by, I was left with pure ideas, pure content. With this book, Huxley acheives a subtlety of presentation that many authors will never achieve. He concisely summarises and presents the theological and spiritual fundaments of the major religions in a way that is accessible to the devoted reader. It has a very different feel to some of his other works like Brave New World and The Doors of Perception. I liked it, but I think that you need to approach the book with a little patience.
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