Huxley and God: Essays [Paperback]

Aldous Huxley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1992

In this anthology of 26 essays, Huxley discusses the nature of spiritual practice, good and evil, religion and magic, and the best texts of the various religious traditions. This is Huxley's celebration of the "ultimate reality". In his novels and essays, Huxley consistently examined the spiritual basis of both the individual and human society. He sought, through his work and his experiments with mescalin, to reach an authentic and clearly defined experience of the divine. In this book, he addresses the critical environment, political, social and spiritual issues that face us today, making these essays, written between 1941 and 1960, relevant and prophetic.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

During the last 25 years of his life, Huxley turned his formidable intellect to the study and practice of classical mysticism. He became convinced that direct awareness of ultimate reality was available to anyone willing to resist the distractions of the ego and seek union with God. These 26 essays, written between 1941 and 1960 and for the most part originally published in Vedanta and the West , present mystical practice as the noblest human endeavor. In crisp, clean prose, Huxley avoids the obstacles of speaking about what is by definition ineffable. This well-edited volume will interest readers who wish to know more about Huxley as well as those seeking an introduction to the mystical tradition.
- Steve Gowler, Wofford Coll. Lib., Spartanburg, S.C.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; 1st edition (June 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006250536X
• ISBN-13: 978-0062505361
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #401,280 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) is the author of the classic novels Island, Eyeless in Gaza, and The Genius and the Goddess, as well as such critically acclaimed nonfiction works as The Devils of Loudun, The Doors of Perception, and The Perennial Philosophy. Born in Surrey, England, and educated at Oxford, he died in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

77 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A five-plus star book, November 25, 2001

By 

Chattan Gordon - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Huxley and God: Essays (Paperback)

This book is a collection of 26 essays and two poems written by Aldous Huxley during the last twenty years of his life. Each essay is about man's relationship with God, with the environment and with his fellow man. Huxley started out life as an agnostic and, at times, took a sarcastic, almost caustic attitude towards religion. However, certainly by 1939, his attitude had changed, as those familiar with Huxley's later works will recognise. In fact, several of the essays contained in this book appear in Huxley's later novels such as DEVILS OF LOUDON and TIME MUST HAVE A STOP.

Huxley believed that those who wholeheartedly and sincerely seek God will find what they're looking for. He tried to strip religion of all the tradition and trappings to find a common thread running through all religions. What he found was, in part, that God is One and that God is love. In these essays, he shares his methods for seeking (and finding) God. He also shares his thoughts on the destructiveness of misguided religious idealism and nationalism. There's alot of deep thought in this book. I really can't do Huxley justice in a review of one of his religious works. The man was in a class all by himself. I will say that this book makes its readers stop and think. The essays contained in this book are particularly apropos to a warring and terrorism-stricken society such as ours. I especially recommend two essays, "On a Sentence from Shakespeare" and "A Minimum Working Hypothesis". You'll see life differently after reading them.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unbelievably Brilliant! I wish I read this earlier in my life., August 26, 2007

By 

JR Smithway (AZ, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Huxley and God: Essays on Religious Experience (Paperback)

I started out with Huxley's Perrenial Philosophy and am 3/4 of the way through Huxley and God. The effect these two books have had on my way of thinking about most anything religious or spiritual, and matters of daily existence and reality can't be understated. If asked what my belief is about God, I would recommend that someone read both of these books. No one in my mind has written about God, Godhead, the Divine Ground and our times existant relation to that reality better than Aldous Huxley. I found my self completely awed by what and how he describes the things he does. He makes so much sense out of really complicated verse and Mystical thought, and always has really profound insights to all that he discusses, which is immense. I hope more people find these books and have the same appreciation that I do for Mr. Huxley. You are in for a wonderful read, one that will force you to stop, and make you think about and recognize the enormity off all that he speaks.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At the intersection of Western Blvd and Eastern Way, August 24, 2007

By 

Richard Hurley "Quantum Buddhist" (Astoria, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Huxley and God: Essays on Religious Experience (Paperback)

Huxley's brilliance shines in this collection. I do not like to use the word "God" as it has little meaning since the many concepts that people dump into the word are so varied that the word does little to communicate. But with Huxley, a master comunicator, and key figure in the exciting merging of East and West mystic philosophy, the word illuminates. I could use the word sitting down talking to Aldous.