“History is something that very few people have been doing while everyone else was ploughing fields and carrying water buckets.”
― Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
― Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
“No one can understand history without continually relating the long periods which are constantly mentioned to the experiences of our own short lives. Five years is a lot. Twenty years is the horizon to most people. Fifty years is antiquity. To understand how the impact of destiny fell upon any generation of men one must first imagine their position and then apply the time-scale of our own lives. Thus nearly all changes were far less perceptible to those who lived through them from day to day than appears when the salient features of an epoch are extracted by the chronicler. We peer at these scenes through dim telescopes of research across a gulf of nearly two thousand years. We cannot doubt that the second and to some extent the third century of the Christian era, in contrast with all that had gone before and most that was to follow, were a Golden Age for Britain. But by the early part of the fourth century shadows had fallen upon this imperfect yet none the less tolerable society. By steady, persistent steps the sense of security departed from Roman Britain. Its citizens felt by daily experience a sense that the world-wide system of which they formed a partner province was in decline.”
― The Birth of Britain
― The Birth of Britain
“I am never lonely. A lonely person is one who is not aware of the complete fullness within. When you become dependent on something outside without having awareness of the reality within you, then you will indeed be lonely. The whole search for enlightenment is to seek within, to become aware that you are complete in yourself. You are perfect. You don’t need any externals. No matter what happens in any situation, you need never be lonely.”
― Living with the Himalayan Masters
― Living with the Himalayan Masters
2026 Reading Challenge
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Are you ready to set your 2026 reading goal? This is a supportive, fun group of people looking for people just like you. Track your annual reading go ...more
Classics for Beginners
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People who are new to classic books can discuss which books to read and what they think of books they have already read. People who are experienced wi ...more
Adam’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Adam’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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