The Ever-Transcending Spirit: The Psychology of Human Relationships, Consciousness, and Development

Rating:
Summary: So many great ideas that you will re-read it many times.
Review: Buying this book was the greatest gift I gave to myself in a long time. I was fascinated when I first read this book and now I find myself reading different parts of it over and over whenever I run into things related to it in my life. It helped me understand why my relationships were not what I expected them to be and what I can do to make them better. It made me more patient, hopeful and optimistic about my life. My life is far from perfect but I definitely have a better grasp of the bigger picture now because of this book. It seems that when anyone reaches a maturity level where they can think about themselves thinking about their own thinking, this becomes an indispensable tool for understanding. Very highly recommended!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book for those who are ready!
Review: For people who are ready for a new stage in life beyond our everyday dualistic understanding of the world, this book is really quite fantastic. For the majority of people who are not ready for it, the contents of this book will not resonate in your hearts. This is also evident from the two-sided reviews of this book. If you are at the right stage, this book will seem very insightful. If you are not, it is just another psychology book. Of course the people who are not ready will deny this but that is how the mind works. We never want to think that we are not ready for something, especially when some other people are. This book explains this brilliantly if you are one of the people who are ready for it. Even if you aren't, it is OK. We are all in a constant process of development and we all develop at our own pace.

Rating:
Summary: ok
Review: I BOUGHT THIS BOOK AFTER READING RECOMENDATIONS FROM OTHER READERS. THE BOOK WAS OK. IT HAD SOME INTERESTING POINTS OF VIEW THAT WERE WORTH READING. THE PROBLEM THAT I HAD WITH THE BOOK WAS THAT IT READ LIKE A PSYCHOLOGY TEXT BOOK. VERY DRY AND SCIENTIFIC WRITING. I KEPT EXPECTING TO SEE A QUIZ AT THE END OF THE CHAPTERS. NOT FOR THE CASUAL READER.

Rating:
Summary: Love this book!
Review: I have never both learned and enjoyed reading a book as much as this one. The writing is a bit dry but the content of this book certainly makes up for it. Since reading "The ever-transcending spirit", I feel that I have a clear sense of purpose in my life as never before. I now feel that I know where I am in my adult psychological development and which direction I want to go. This book is a great contribution to society and should be read by anyone who can appreciate that there are many layers of thought, feelings, consciousness, and communication. I'd like to thank the author for writing such a helpful book! It is truly a treasure!

Rating:
Summary: One of the best of its kind!
Review: I would have to say that this book is the best integration of a variety of fields in psychology as well as other disciplines including developmental psych, therapy, evolution, and consciousness studies, and philosophy. The best thing about it is that it is written in such a way that most people can understand it. If for some reason however, you find nothing original about this book, it is a sign that you did not fully understand the profound messages delivered in the book. There is so much in here that you run the risk of overlooking many important things if you just read it haphazardly. Highly recommended!


Rating:
Summary: Great for those on the path
Review: If you are ready to see into your own insecurities and work on them, then you are ready for this book. If you believe you have no insecurities or do not want to think about your own insecurities, then this book is not for you. I understand that some people may not be ready to face certain things about themselves. For those people, this book may make very little sense to them. Hopefully there will come a time for everyone when they are ready to look at their own insecurities and learn from them. Once that time comes, I recommend you read this book. It will be painful at first but it will also help you find a way to a better existence. Denial and repression allows you to stay somewhat comfortable but it also leaves you in a state of arrested development. There is no need to rush. Just work on one roadblock at a time at your own pace and you will get there in time. This is truly a great great book with many important messages.

Rating:
Summary: You've got to read this!
Review: If you really want to live you life to the fullest, you really have to read this amazing book! Yes, it may not be perfectly complete, yes, it may read like a textbook, but no book is absolutely perfect. The content of this book is absolutely incredible... its makes things makes sense again and you really see the true reason why everyone is doing the things they do (and yes that includes yourself). Even though it helps you see the ugly truth about ourselves in some ways, it really introduces us to a very gentle, caring, forgiving, loving perspective of the world. This is why I love this book. It gives us both sides of the story and puts it together in to one whole picture. You've just got to read it for yourself!

Rating:
Summary: Recommended for those in mid to late life
Review: Personally, I think this book is one of the best of its kind. Like most books though, this book appeals to some people but not others. This is clear even from the wide variety of reviews written about this book. Although people mature at different rates so there will be many exceptions, I would only recommend this book for people who are in their late thirties or older. I don't think this book would have made much sense to me when I was twenty-five. I probably would have stopped reading it after the first twenty pages thinking it was boring new age psychology. If you are at the right stage in your maturation process, this book will most likely help you understand how you can be both a happier and more considerate person. Yes, these things do go together. You will understand if you truly understand this book. Enjoy the ride.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book! Changed my life!
Review: This book was given to me from a friend after I had a nasty divorce and became a cynical, bitter, and depressed person. I started reading this book out of obligation to my friend, but found it so interesting that I kept reading. It made me think about myself, my relationship with my ex and what went wrong. It made me cry but eventually made me see things in a positive light again and also motivated me to change my ways. Since reading this book, I can be more honest with myself since I can understand my true intentions rather than my rationalized ones. I can also see how many people around me rationalize to hide their true intentions not only from others but from themselves. I can see how fear can cripple a person psychologically and destroy their own lives as well as the lives of the people around them. I can also see that we need to use our time as a part of the recovery process and not as an excuse from recovering. The first step toward real freedom is becoming aware of our own fears and insecurities. This book not only taught me these things as self-help cliches but made me understand these things from my heart. Excellent, excellent, excellent book! I now give out copies of this book to others who seem to be at that point in life.

Rating:
Summary: Useful, intelligent, but incomplete
Review: This is a very interesting, intriguing book. It simplifies some ways of viewing interpersonal life. Shows you a judo of sorts that you can use with your interaction with others. Seems to verge on offering much more. But something is missing I think. Almost a great book, but that something that is missing.

Lots of ways you want to use this life outlook to better your own, but there isn't quite enough info here. A very kind hearted view of living with other people. One we need more of in the world. It would greatly improve quality of life if this way of living were more widespread.

Even though I am only giving 3 stars, it is a book everyone should read. I am hopeful that more might be forthcoming from this person in the future.