"King, Warrior, Magician, Lover" by Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette

My reading theme this year seems to be "pairs." This is my companion piece to Iron John. A friend lent it to me after we were discussing Robert Bly, and since I'm very interested in Jung, it sounded like a win win.

King, Warrior, Magician, Lover is about the shared archetypes of humans, what Jung referred to as the collective unconscious. These four types show up in stories, myths, and religions for as far back as knowledge of our species reaches, and it is very easy to relate to what the authors are talking about because the archetypes are so relevant.

The argument is quite the same as Iron John's, in that most men are stuck in boy psychology, or in stunted versions of these four archetypes, and the authors point out examples of each. It's because of the lack of positive male models, or Kings, Warriors, Magicians, and Lovers, in present day society, that we have so many problems in the world. Leaders who don't consider the good of everyone, wars fought without conscience, and abusive relationships. Men aren't just "tough guys", and being a man doesn't mean not talking about your feelings, it means lots of things, many which are not obvious because of a lack of initiation.

What the book does is give descriptions of each of the poles of these archetypes and their infantile counterparts, then it gives practical applications on how to access these important archetypes. It's a great book, and actually a great follow-up to Iron John. I'd recommend both, though I'm sure there's plenty of literature out there on these topics to broaden your scope a little. Either way, if you're a man and you are interested in learning and furthering yourself. I highly recommend these books. To borrow a line from one of my favorite radio shows, "They're good for your constitution!"

It's Kinda Like the Eight Ball "Understanding The I-Ching" by Hellmut and Richard Wilhelm

In keeping with my curiosity about Eastern philosophy, the I Ching, or Book of Changes, seemed a logical read. I read another book on the I Ching that I'll not blog, because this one give more of an encompassing view of the I Ching.

The I Ching, or "Book of Changes", is an ancient text that is consulted by tossing yarrow stalks (now coins, using heads or tails to count) that gives advice on life and situations that arise. The responses can be as varied and ambiguous as "Lends grace to the beard on his chin" to "Graceful and moist, constant perseverance brings good fortune." Sounds like fortune cookies, and the responses could even mimic that of the general horoscope, but the I Ching is supposed to go deeper than that.

So deep that some people, like Richard Wilhelm, spend their entire life studying the I Ching and it's responses. Luckily some of his lectures were collected and edited by his son so that people like me, who are just curious, can check it out without the commitment of reading the source text.

While I'm not that into tossing coins in a random fashion and following the advice that corresponds to their numbers, the philosophy and the background of the I Ching is much more my style. I like the messages, I like that there are 64 hexagrams, and that combined they encompass any and every change in the chaotic world. Essentially, the I Ching takes the chaos of the universe and orders it into 64 interrelated categories. It's a fascinating thing to see, and just another extension of the worldview that everything is connected, to which I would very much like to believe.

I've heard Taoism is a major precursor to the I Ching, and I think I'll be looking into that much more in the coming months. It's a fun journey, I highly recommend it. Write me when you get there.

Some Peace and Quiet "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" by Shunryu Suzuki

I've been trying to expand my horizons, philosophically speaking. This year I took a short class on meditation that I really enjoyed, and I've been reading into existentialism and other philosophies and religions. It should come as no surprise to those who know me that Zen would enter at some point.

George Lucas used Zen as the basis for much of the Force in the Star Wars films, so I knew it would agree with me.

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind is a series of talks transcribed by students of Zen Master Shunryu Suzuki on Zen practice, meditation, and mindfulness. It's a fascinating book that offers insights and advice on leading a zen life. No matter what your belief system, if you subscribe to a religion, even the tenets of Zen stand to add a little more to your spirituality. Zen is an outlook more than it is a religion. It is a practice and, more than anything, a philosophy of the world.

Everything is connected, everything affects everything else, and the point of all this is to rise above the everyday tasks and get your head above the clouds, so to speak, so that you can have a clear view of life. Even if Zen isn't for you, it's hard not to find the words here insightful and provocative:

You know how to rest physically. You do not know how to rest mentally. Even though you lie in your bed your mind is still busy; even if you sleep you mind is busy dreaming. Your mind is always in intense activity. This is not so good. We should know how to give up our thinking mind, our busy mind.

It's easy to find those words comforting, because it's the truth. I've heard many great things about meditation, about leading a Zen life, and the class I took on meditation was in the middle of this book, and while the teacher was not teaching Zen, many of the points he made coincided with what I was reading. The benefits are worth it, I think, and this book is a true classic. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to enhance their personal and/or spiritual growth.

Do Ants Have Souls? "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran

The Prophet is one of the ultimate self-help books. It's religion wrapped in philosophy wrapped in how to live and feel about your life. And it's pretty good, so, for the new year, try something different.

Read this.

I was highly skeptical when a friend let me borrow this book to read. I'd heard about this book before, that it's a staple of New Age feelings and a sort of "listen to the Earth" mentality. I imagine dancing in a circle covering myself interpretively with glue. I made a judgment and I was wrong. The book was very insightful.

As a matter of fact, if I had read this book earlier in life, I feel it would have made a much more profound impact on me, but, having passed a particularly impressionistic point in my life, it didn't have as much influence. Another book I read much earlier, The Alchemist, did in its stead. I've often come back to The Alchemist when I needed inspiration or direction or a path to an answer. The Prophet is equally as insightful.

This tiny book revolves around one man's leaving a town (the prophet of the story) where he has resided for some time. Before he leaves, all sorts of townspeople seek his advice on topics ranging from love to loss to work and so on. The Prophet's answers are short and succinct, even at times a little hippy-ish, but they represent just the type of outlook on the world I strive to have. Be happy with what you get, because you won't get anything else. It's important to dream, to strive for something, because that's what we live for.

Pick this book up when you've got a couple of hours. Your life may not change, but your hours certainly will.