The Essential Mystics, Poets, Saints, and Sages: A Wisdom Treasury

by Richard Hooper

The Essential Mystics, Poets, Saints, and Sages is a treasury of quotes and passages from the great Sufi mystics, Buddhists, Hindus, Taoists, Jews, and Christians throughout the centuries. This collection, curated by religious scholar Richard Hooper, stresses the beauty of religious language and mystical experience, including hundreds of entries from world's major religious traditions, the greatest poets, mystics, sages, and saints of all time. Included are selections from William Blake, Ramakrishna, Rumi, St. John of the Cross, Osho, Tagore, Chuang Tzu, and many more. The selections are given context by the introductory essays by Hooper, which explore the Perennial Philosophy, the nature of the mystical experience, and the way of non-dualism. The Essential Mystics, Poets, Saints, and Sages is an ideal gift as well as a source for daily guidance and support, regardless of the religious or sectarian affiliations.

Genres: Spirituality, Mysticism, Nonfiction, Religion

368 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2013

Reviews

[كيكه الوزير · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was unaware that this is just a book of quotations. There is a very short introduction into Mysticism (but from a very personal perspective), otherwise the book sorts quotes from figures of Mysticism throughout history in most of the worlds major religions. There is a lot of focus on Buddhism. How can you rate a book of quotes? Not my cup of tea, but if it's yours, it's well organized.

[Elinor Stutz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whether you are a true believer, inquisitive or just seeking insight for deeper understanding of revered religious leaders, you will want to purchase several copies of The Essential Mystics, Poets, Saints and Sages, by Richard Hooper. The tagline appropriately reads "A Wisdom Treasury". What struck me is the commonality between religions. And for your reading pleasure, there are many wonderful insights on love, compassion and developing deeper relationships. This book is a gem and deserves to be shared with your good friends.

[Kristi Duarte · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway, but I would probably have bought it anyway, because I'm doing research on different religions and am very interested in how they tie together. Actually, I believe all religions are one, only the "rules" differ. In any case, Richard Hooper does a wonderful job in bringing all this information together in a summary (introduction), backed up by the quotes from a selection of mystics throughout the ages. The book is dedicated "To the One who is in All". Love it.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected. This book has an interesting concept, but it didn’t work well for me. It took quotes from mystics of many religions and grouped them by subject. The quotes themselves were interesting and the experiences of the mystics from far different religions were surprisingly similar, which kind of confirms that God is God, no matter what name or description we use.

My biggest problem is with the indiscriminate choice of sources. The author treats sources that have been discredited by historians, archeologists, and theologians with as much regard as proven legitimate sources without even mentioning their status for readers who might not be familiar with them. I think this does a disservice to most readers, both the casually curious and the seriously seeking.

The author has at least one more book on this topic, which I’m not planning to read.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful read and likely even better if taken in small daily doses. Much wisdom contained in this volume and a book I will likely refer to time and again.