The Wisdom of the Overself: The Path to Self-Realization and Philosophic Insight, Volume 2

By Paul Brunton and Dr Paul Brunton

Book Overview

Inspired by Paul Brunton's years spent with sages in Asia, The Wisdom of the Overself and its companion volume The Hidden Teaching Beyond Yoga were written at the request of these remarkable teachers, who recognized that Brunton had a significant role to play in the transmission of traditional wisdom to the West. Here is a profound re-creation of these teachings, brought to life and made accessible by Brunton's insights. In print since the 1940s, Brunton's works are considered to be among the most comprehensive, clear, and practical guides on the path to enlightenment.

Brunton unfolds the grand vision for human development by investigating consciousness as the source of all experience; how to move from ego-centered life to the transcendent reality; the interplay of karma, free will, and grace; the nature of evil and suffering; how to awaken intuition and penetrative insight; the passage through death to rebirth; and psychic experiences and mystic visions. He also provides seven ultramystic exercises to open the door to higher consciousness, including a healing meditation on the sun; practices for transforming the future, dream, and sleep; and a meditation on the timeless self. These techniques lead to the deepest spiritual realizations--to the true Wisdom of the Overself.

This new edition has been updated to incorporate Brunton's final revisions. It includes a new foreword plus supplementary reading material selected from the author's archives by the Paul Brunton Philosophic Foundation.

Contents
Foreword by the Paul Brunton Philosophic Foundation
1. Prefatory
2. The Meaning of Mentalism
3. The Birth of the Universe
4. Studies in Dreams
5. The Metaphysics of Sleep
6. The Secret of the I
7. The Scorpion of Death
8. The Immortal Overself
9. The Shadows of Evil and Suffering
10. The War and the World
11. The World-Mind
12. The Unveiling of Reality
13. Initiation into Mystical Experience
14. The Yoga of the Discerning Mind
15. The Mystical Phenomena of Meditation
16. Some Fruits of Philosophy
Appendix: Additional Resources from The Notebooks of Paul Brunton, Compiled by the Paul Brunton Philosophic Foundation Editors

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1583949143
• ISBN13: 9781583949146
• Release Date: May 2015
• Publisher: North Atlantic Books
• Length: 456 Pages
• Weight: 1.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.0" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

True Knowledge of the SELF

Brunton explains the Overself as the meeting point of the Universal mind and the individual consciousness. Like a ray is to the Sun, the Individual consciousness is to the Overself...the infinite mind at the background of all that is. This book will bring Buddhism and Hinduism into your understanding like no other work. Profound, deep and full of understanding that can be used every day. It was a pleasing and very uplifting read.

Not For The Fainthearted

This book is one of the greatest works of the 20th century. As a person who was highly scientific and possessed a clear understanding of Einstein's Theory of Relativity and of Quantum Theory, the conventional ideas of God as presented in western and some eastern religions could not satisfy me. I had started to think that I would never really believe in an Intelligent God, just impersonal "intelligent nature". Until I read this book. Like Albert Einstein, I was bothered by the existence of the Cosmos itself: why it should be here at all. This book gave me the answer to my deepest and most troubling questions about God and the world. Now I understand clearly why the laws of the Universe are the way they are: Intricate and intelligent. After reading and truly assimilating the ideas in Paul Brunton's book, I now know why matter and energy has to be one entity as proven by Einstein's Relativity Theory. I also now understand why the Uncertainty Principle of Quantum Theory has to be the way it is. This book clearly shows how everything has to be an expression of One All-Encompassing Principle (God) that is inherently intelligent, but not God as the arbitrary creator in Geneses in the Bible. It shows how the cosmos is not a huge material thing, as formerly thought of in nineteenth century Newtonian physics but is really a vast, dynamic, mental expression existing in a Cosmic Mind. I'm a scientifically minded person to whom God has become real and experience able, thanks to this book. If you have covered the prerequisites: some advances in meditation, and have intelligently questioned the nature of matter and reality, then you are ready to read this book.

The most profound metaphysical experience

Nothing I have read even came close to expounding and yes EXPLAINING the most profound mysteries of life-the true meaning and purpose of "EVIL". Why in a PERFECT world there must be suffering etc. Rare and exciting insights. A gold mine of spiritual thought.

Life Changing

I am not a philosopher nor do I claim to know a great deal of this subject but I have begun my quest for spiritual and philosophical guidance about two years ago at the age of 19. I was raised a Christian but have recently read scriptures of all the major religions and even some that are not so major. I completely agree with the perennial philosophy that all religions underline the one universal truth, but I still sought more understanding of life and of our true selves. This book gave me that oppurtunity. It explains the most fascinating concept that I have ever heard, that I now believe, which is mentalism. I could not explain it so I will not try but it is almost unbelievable. The book explains mentalism and how the universe is mentally constructed by not only God (the World-Mind) but also ourselves. He explains many of life's questions like he knows for sure which made me a little skeptical but I can not say they are false without sufficient knowledge which I am searching for as we speak. This book is a must read for any philosophy student, mystic, or even contemporary Christian.