Books >> Health, Mind & Body

But in those areas I do know something about, I have found his work to be as accurate, as luminous and as brilliant as anything I have read. For example, I think he does a better job of summarizing the importance and weaknesses of the work of Immanuel Kant than Arthur Schopenhauer did, and he didn't do such a bad job. His descriptions of meditative states are congruent with my own experiences and with the described experiences of the many writers on that subject with which I am familiar. So he has earned so far a high degree of credibility with me.

The Atman Project attempts to integrate the work of developmental psychology with pre-egoic, pre-rational structures of consciousness with the experience of the mystical traditions with post-egoic, post-rational structures, to form a picture of how the individual evolves from structure to structure "up" the hierarchy, or "holarchy" in Wilber language, of these stages. There is a discussion of how "Spirit" "involves" itself downward through these structures and creates the imperative to evolve back up through them to Self-realization.

This book was an early work of Wilber's, and though seminal to his thinking, in many ways does not accurately (or at least completely) reflect his current thought system. He states as much himself in later works. I therefore do not recommend it as an introduction to Wilber, but would instead recommend a later work, such as "A Brief History of Everything" or perhaps "The Essential Ken Wilber" for that purpose. And that is why I only give it three stars instead of the five stars I would give to the other six Wilber works I have read so far. However, the more committed Wilber student will find this book helpful in understanding Wilber's notion of how the individual negotiates its way along the "spectrum of consciousness" (though I think a better and more complete explanation can be found in "The Eye of Spirit") and, armed with some understanding of Wilber's more recent writings, perhaps will be less likely to mistake this for being a comprehensive treatment of even this part of his thought. I recommend it for that purpose.

1. In essence, Wilber's "The Atman Project" is a book whose central message is that the meaning & purpose of life is "evolution" of consciousness ( rather fuzzily defined, probably under the influence of Neotheosophical writers/sages like Sri Aurobindo ), culminating in non-dual recognition of oneness of one's being with the eternal Ground of all ( Boehme's Ungrund/Abyss, Advaita's Brahman, Vajrayana's Dharmakaya, Eckhart's Godhead/Gottheit etc. ) In short, you got a clear message: the pinnacle of humanity are Zen patriarchs, Jiddu Krishnamurti or Ramana Maharshi. Shakespeare, Bach or Einstein are still schoolboys. Evidently, such a worldview unabashedly puts the author's pro-mystical bias as *the* key to the "riddle of existence". More, even "spiritually" or religiously minded people could hardly accept that the ground of the theophanies & the source of prophetic revelations, i.e. "God", is, at best, just a passive object of quietist meditative practice of rather passive contemplatives. The Biblical or Koranic God is reduced to an anemic yantra or mumbo-jumboid mantra.

2. Wilber's psychology is a curious blend. Essentially, he assimilated Freudian "insights" ( now heavily questioned ), put them within partially Jungian framework ( his chief reference is Neumann's "The Origin and History of Consciousness", whose singular terminology he amply (mis)uses ( pleromatic self, uroboric self,..))& subsumed under Vajrayana/Tibetan idealist monism. Admittedly- although both pillars of Atman project share the same trait: the absence of genuine levels of selfhood, as exemplified in the indestructible "I" ( Assagioli's Psychosynthesis ), spiritual seed ( Valentinian Gnosticism ), jiva ( Hindu Tantra ), "the naked isolated self" ( Gerda Walther , Psychic Being ( Aurobindo )- that very consistency makes the entire "Atman Project" inconsistent. For, if nothing transpersonal, but still individual, evolves, we are again back on Hegel's evolving Spirit from "Phenomenology of Spirit", "enriched" ( better, fused into perfect confusion ) by Vajrayana Buddhist doctrine. Well, yoy can't get both evolution and illusory nature of reality.

3. At the end, just a few remarks: a) Wilber consistently misreads various "perennial philosophies". For instance, his tables of correspondences at the end of the book are sad examples of ignorance ( Kabbalah's Binah and Hokmah as "spiritial" equivalents of Nirvikalpa Samadhi, plus other numerous bizarre attributions ). b) his obsessive sqabble re pre-trans fallacy is completely redundant- an echo of Freud/Jung disagreements & a few humanistic psychologists' fixations. c) conceptually, there is virtually nothing new cognitive-wise in this book. Whilst other researchers, from Stapp to Stuart Hameroff, try, stumblingly, to come to a new definition of consciousness, Wilber self-congratulatorily rehashes old dogmas & antiaquated concepts. d) considering that Freud's edifice is rapidly falling apart, Wilber's "pre" phase would probably follow the same way.

Babbit describes the ways addicts and abusers foil our best efforts to find out what they're up to. Our kids are experts at manipulation, and will go to great lengths to "protect" their addictions. They distract us from our instincts, avoid our attention, and unfortunately can plummet downward in a deathly spiral, under our very noses. Babbit describes ALL THE POPULAR DRUGS, the corresponding paraphernalia that can identify each one's use, and the symptoms displayed by someone using them. YOU WILL BE SHOCKED as you read the myriad of ways our children have found to get high! Have you ever grabbed a can of whipped cream out of the fridge only to find it's gone flat?? (they "huff" the gas out of the can!)...some even unscrew the gas cap and huff gas fumes right out of your car (keep a locking cap on yours!)

Nikki Babbit's well written, non-judgemental book is an ESSENTIAL primer for Parents of substance and alcohol abusing teenagers!! This is NO-NONSENSE, "IN YOUR FACE" information, effectively organized for quick reference to deal with your individual situation (stage of chaos) quickly! I am ordering several copies now to distribute to those is immediate need, and to display while speaking at parent's groups/community outreach, etc. Sometimes the despair and pain we parents go through is best channeled back into the world by sharing a story or insight or knowledge. Once you've "interrupted" their progression and gotten them help, your kids basically have a long process to recovery and have to work their programs on their own. If parents then try to channel their pain and worry back into community involvement it helps keep you a little more sane and helps the effort to reduce the distribution of drugs. God bless, and good luck to you!

He discusses how AD/HD can affect both adults and children. However, he tends to put more emphasis or child and adolescent issues.

Dr. Phelan does not pull punches or sugar-coat the issues. He makes it clear that AD/HD can make life challenging for individual and family. This directness is both the strength and weakness of this tape (and book.) The first couple of chapters tend to emphasize the difficulties. You have to wait a while before you get to the parts that give you some hope. The first couple of chapters might have you thinking about trading your child in for a non-defective model. But stick it out--by the end of the book you will have a clearer idea of the steps you can take to resolve difficulties.

I am pleased that this book is available in an audiocassette version. Many families affected by AD/HD are already spread too thin. They may not have the time or the attention span to sit down and read an entire book. This particular audiocassette was produced in a professional manner. Dr. Phelan reads didactic material and actors dramatize family anecdotes. This breaks up any monotony and makes for an enjoyable listening experience.

Nancy Deville has a rare quality to explain very clearly even the very difficult questions. Therefore also the non-native English reader will definitely not only understand but also enjoy and profit from the book.

Nancy Deville has a rare quality to explain very clearly even the very difficult questions. Therefore also the non-native English reader will definitely not only understand but also enjoy and profit from the book.