The Dice Game of Shiva: How Consciousness Creates the Universe

by Richard Smoley

In this fascinating book, Richard Smoley examines the roles God has played for us and reconciles them with what we today know through science and reason. In the process, he shows that consciousness is the underlying reality beneath everything in the universe.

In one of Hinduism’s great myths, Shiva plays a dice game with his consort, Parvati, and loses consistently. If he is the greatest god, why does he lose? Through this story, Richard Smoley explores the interplay between consciousness, represented by Shiva, and experience, exemplified by Parvati. He draws on numerous disciplines to offer an illuminating exploration of mind and matter and a provocative understanding of consciousness, the self, and the world.

Genres: Religion, Philosophy, Psychology, Spirituality

213 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Quincy Miller]

This was really fun to read. If anyone could explain this topic any better or refute some of his points with some authority, I'd be interested to hear it. My feeble mind found no wholes in his logic. Quite enjoyable. I'll be reading more of his books, right away.

[Ritika Rakshit]

Hard to put down.

Raised Hindu and still learnt a lot about how all the beliefs of faith are the same and where the thinking separates them. Religion is another story.

Didn’t realize the author was Christian after all - did not notice when reading and that fact does change my impression as the examples were mostly from the bible in hindsight. I wish the author had disclosed that more clearly or had written in an agnostic manner.

[Andrew]

Disappointing

COMING SOON.

OVERALL DIDN'T SAY MUCH OF ANYTHING AND HAD MORE TO SAY ABOUT CHRISTIANITY THAN ITS OSTENSIBLE TITLE WOULD HAVE YOU BELIEVE.

[Kevin Fuller]

Having tacitly approached Consciousness through the framework of Esoteric Christianity in 'Conscious Love', Smoley now sets his sights on this now popularly burgeoning Science through the lense of an Indian Myth. Shiva and Parvati, Lord of the Worlds and His Consort respectively, have their apparent eternal lovemaking interrupted by a trixter figure who introduces the two to the game of parcheesi. As the two begin to play the game, Shiva very soon recognizes although He can win maybe a couple of games in a row, He is the Big Loser when matched with Parvati. Shiva, you see, taken subjectively, represents pure Consciousness, the state that exists in the premoments of waking when one is All with the World and there is no duality to speak of. Parvati, again taken subjectively, on the other hand quickly entices Shiva into duality and all out multiplicity and soon has Him believing He is what He thinks and feels. Besides all this, there is the mode in which Shiva and Parvati interract, this being causality, and more satisfying to me, synchronicity, or as Smoley presents it, 'constant conjunction'. Though Smoley reduces perhaps what could be a very complex subject, Consciousnes, to these three aspects, Pure Consciousness, entrapment in the 'World', and the mode by which this interplay takes place, there is no shortage of interesting and even expansive elaborations to be made. Feel constantly caught up in Life? Ever feel trapped like you can't escape? Let Smoley give you a few pointers on finding a way to step back and even transcend your daily thinking that just may keep causing you conundrums. Very good read and highly recommended!

[David Ravicher]

very good read, dry at times and only the tip of a much larger ice berg, but very good none the less.

[Richard Friedericks]

I used the story of Shiva and Parvati as told through this book, along with the ideas, with my high school students to introduce the concept of non-duality. Great book!