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The Little Book of Life and Death
In this book Douglas Harding, author of On Having No Head, takes a fresh look at death, and points to that which is before and beyond death - our true self.
- GenresPhilosophy
191 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 17, 2019
It's basically "On Having No Head", but feels less fresh and incorporates the message that we already know what it's like to be dead (since we are in reality headless, timeless beings).
March 26, 2017
Douglas E. Harding does a very thorough job of investigating life and death.
Though he does it from his “headless” perspective, there is no need to have read any of his previous books to understand what he is saying.
The writing is simple and clear, and D. E. H. (as he so often refers to himself in this book) has a very English style of writing and sense of humor that I find quite endearing.
THE LITTLE BOOK OF LIFE AND DEATH offers more than a perspective on human mortality, it offers a technique for seeing your true nature—a logical prerequisite for truly understanding the topic of the book.
You might not find answers to the nature of life and death on an intellectual level, but if you apply the technique offered to investigate into your true nature, you may come to an answer on a deeper, experiential level.
I highly recommend this book to all who perceive themselves as mortal.
Though he does it from his “headless” perspective, there is no need to have read any of his previous books to understand what he is saying.
The writing is simple and clear, and D. E. H. (as he so often refers to himself in this book) has a very English style of writing and sense of humor that I find quite endearing.
THE LITTLE BOOK OF LIFE AND DEATH offers more than a perspective on human mortality, it offers a technique for seeing your true nature—a logical prerequisite for truly understanding the topic of the book.
You might not find answers to the nature of life and death on an intellectual level, but if you apply the technique offered to investigate into your true nature, you may come to an answer on a deeper, experiential level.
I highly recommend this book to all who perceive themselves as mortal.
September 25, 2022
I stumbled upon D.E. Harding through a footnote in a great book by J.W. Montgomery, noting that one of his other works had an introduction by C.S. Lewis. I further discovered that this was one of his more accessible books, so I decided to give it a look.
Maybe I'm just not getting it, but this came across as a handbook of hopeless obscurantism and ontological monism that I don't find compatible with orthodoxy. There were a few redeemable thoughts here and there, but they were the exception to the rule.
Maybe I'm just not getting it, but this came across as a handbook of hopeless obscurantism and ontological monism that I don't find compatible with orthodoxy. There were a few redeemable thoughts here and there, but they were the exception to the rule.
May 29, 2020
Excellent read on life and death, from one of the foremost "hidden" Zen masters of the West, where he ponders his own imminent death as well as offers solid practices to use to prepare for one´s own.
January 1, 2013
He gives a good perspective.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews