The Divine Within

"A genius … a writer who spent his life decrying the onward march of the Machine." — The New Yorker

Brave New World author Aldous Huxley on enlightenment and the "ultimate reality."

In this anthology of twenty-six landmark spiritual essays and other writings, Aldous Huxley discusses the nature of God, enlightenment, being, good and evil, religion, eternity, and the divine. Huxley consistently examined the spiritual basis of both the individual and human society, always seeking, through the lens of the Perennial Philosophy, to reach an authentic and clearly defined experience of the divine. Featuring an introduction by renowned religious scholar Huston Smith, this celebration of "ultimate reality" proves relevant and prophetic in addressing the spiritual hunger so many feel today.

This collection, gathering his most insightful writings on the spiritual life for the first time, explores the path to enlightenment through:

• The Nature of Consciousness: Huxley’s incisive analysis of the mind, from the "slavery of thought to life" to the potential for liberation from the ego.
• Mysticism East and West: An exploration of the common ground between spiritual traditions, from Christian mystics and the teachings of Meister Eckhart to Vedanta and Zen Buddhism.
• The Path to Enlightenment: A practical look at the role of meditation, contemplation, and self-transcendence in achieving a direct, unitive knowledge of the divine Ground.
• Religion and Reality: A brilliant critique of idolatry and the limitations of symbolic religion, arguing for an immediate, personal experience of "ultimate reality."