Friday, December 19, 2003


interesting reading leads ineluctably to coffee

and today finds me reading tantra: the path of ecstasy by yrec's georg feuerstein, the famed scholar of indian civilization.

thus the book is somewhat scholarly, even tho' georg himself has had a tantric tibetan buddhist (vajrayana) practice for a long time. he keeps his own experience out of it, and just offers an accessible overview of the history and theory of tantra.

since i muddled through swami lakshmanjoo's serious kashimir shaivism: the secret supreme all by my lonesome previously, there isn't too much that's unfamiliar to me.

most people would probably be well-advised however to read georg's book first, because swami's tome is a tough trek, as i wrote at the time.

so hard it sent me straight to a cup of comforting gillies deluxe dark 2, actually. but after i finish this, i may find the courage to tackle the swami's second book.

i recommend georg's book for the yoga student, because the asana sadhana (practice) -- that is, standing around in a room doing poses -- is a tantric sadhana, and if you spend several hours a week doing it, it's helpful to understand something about the endeavor beyond its value as exercise.

a lot of people who know me are constantly astonished at why i read books like this, since i am a well-known skeptical materialist. i mean, beauty physics is "mystical" enough for me!

but i'm also interested in folklore, narrative, the poetry and mythology of how people understand themselves. the tantric literature is as fine an example of this as african folktales -- it's a sophisticated metaphor, and interesting document of human consciousness.

this is the sort of intellectual inquiry coffee leads on to, don'cha know? but seriously, if you're still looking for a holiday gift for your favorite yoga student, georg's tantra book would be wonderful.

on the other hand, if you're still looking for a holiday gift for your favorite coffee lover, consider a donation to a coffee charity: coffeekids, cup for education, grounds for health, or the lutheran coffee project. . .

posted by fortune | 8:15 AM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 0 comments