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Spiritual
Book Reviews After September 2011
Reviews
Before
September 2011
Contents
1. The
Divine Romance by Paramhansa Yogananda
2. The
Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
1.
The
Divine Romance by Paramahansa Yogananda
There
are a few books stacked on my night table and this one has a permanent
presence. The Divine Romance
by
Paramahansa Yogananda (1893
to 1952) never fails to deliver uplifting reading. The contents are arranged as
50 articles on individual subjects, though all aspects of practical
spirituality as I call it, or how-to-live each day in the world while
maintaining Divine ideals.
Yogananda writes the Truth using a large
dose of stories with humor. What this does for me is make the lessons stick,
because I can more easily recall a story than remember an esoteric sentence.
By breaking the book up into sections about 9 to 10 pages
each it is easy to read a chapter when you just have a small block of time. Or
if the afternoon is yours, then several stories could be absorbed. I recommend
one or two at a time, though, to keep the lessons fresh in mind.
It is
worthwhile to read a chapter, begin regular meditation, and contemplate the
content during the quiet time with yourself. Then finish the meditation with
appreciation for the Divine insight imparted.
The book is easy to read and not limited to scholarly study,
though any student on the spiritual path would learn many lessons and advance
in consciousness from the lessons.
To give you a taste of the contents some of the titles
include: Finding the Joy in Life; What Is Fate?; The
Spectrum of Spiritual Consciousness; The Unknown Potential of Memory; Do Souls
Reincarnate? Where Are Our Departed Loved Ones? Reflections
on Love.
Additionally, an account of Yogananda’s
remarkable samadhi is included following the
chapters. At the end of the volume is a very complete glossary of spiritual
terms. Scattered throughout are black and white photos of saints and places Yogananda visited. I’ve owned my precious copy of this book
for many years.
The Divine
Romance is the 2nd book in the 3 part series of Yogananda’s essays.
For the sincere seeker I give my highest recommendation, it
is a treasure!
Details:
Paperback: 507
pages; Publisher: Self-Realization Fellowship (November 1, 1986); Language:
English; ISBN-10: 0876122411; ISBN-13: 978-0876122419; Product
Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches.
Review copyright Susan Helene Kramer
2.
The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
Sri Ramakrishna (1836 to1886) was and is a spiritual teacher
for all generations. I came to his teachings in a roundabout way as I loved the
teachings and vibration of his wife and consort, Sri Sarada
Devi. I lived near the Vedanta Temple, perched on a mountain side in Montecito,
California, where I went to visit with the Sarada
convent nuns who ran the bookstore and took care of the grounds of the temple.
The view from the front stoop looks over the Santa Barbara coastline and ocean,
with the smell of the surrounding eucalyptus trees and sage doing their part to
uplift the visitor.
The message I’ve always received from Sri Ramakrishna and Sri
Sarada Devi is practical spirituality. The lessons
I’ve taken from his book, The Gospel of
Sri Ramakrishna, is how to incorporate spirituality at the purest and
highest level into daily living. After all, what good is it to read spiritual
teachings if we can’t figure out how to apply the lessons. Fortunately for me,
when I met my husband the book was already handily installed on his bookshelf.
Here is where the gospel comes to the rescue: the lessons are
given through the interactions of Sri Ramakrishna and his disciples and
visitors. In this way one can assimilate more easily how to act rightly in the
highest manner with others and our world.
The book is divided into 52 chapters and also includes text
to devotional songs, a summary of the Master’s life, a glossary and index.
The serious and scholarly student has plenty of material to
mull over. But, as I and maybe more frequently the case, the devotional student
need only open the book to any page to receive universal spiritual teachings
applicable for all tastes and tempers. It is an ultimate divine reference
manual.
Here is a quote and explanation of one of his songs:
“As is a man’s meditation, so is his feeling of love;
As is a man’s feeling of love, so is his gain;
And faith is the root of all.
If in the Nectar Lake of Mother Kali’s
feet
My mind remains immersed,
Of little use are worship,
oblations, or sacrifice.”
“What is needed is absorption in God - loving Him intensely.
The ‘Nectar Lake’ is the Lake of Immortality. A man sinking in it does not die,
but becomes immortal.” Passage
from page 108.
A must read for spiritual seekers!
Details
- Hardcover: 1062 pages; Publisher:
Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center (June 1, 1985); Language: English; ISBN-10: 0911206019; ISBN-13: 978-0911206012; Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.9 inches
Review copyright Susan Helene Kramer
Ebooks
or Books - click covers
Apple users – these ebooks are available at the iBookstore
through your iTunes account for iPod and iPad
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page created October 1. 2011 | email: susan@susankramer.com
All reviews are copyright Susan Helene Kramer; permission for
reprints required.
I
am an Amazon.com associate