Sex: The Relationship Between Sex and Spiritual Development [Paperback]

John G. Bennett (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Newcastle Publishing Company (September 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0877285330
• ISBN-13: 978-0877285335
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,631,971 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very rare book about the energy-levels of sex, June 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Sex: The Relationship Between Sex and Spiritual Development (Paperback)

Next to survival, sex is the most powerful force in our lives, yet many people don't understand it. It is used for procreation and for pleasure, but it also has an impact on personal transformation. In this book Bennett deals with many of the questions asked by spiritual seekers.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New edition by Bennett Books Publishing, February 28, 2011

By 

Michela (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex: The Relationship Between Sex and Spiritual Development (Paperback)

Sex: The Relationship Between Sex and Spiritual Development
The new edition has been updated for the twenty-first century with an in-depth analysis of sex energy in a new foreword by Anthony Blake, author of The Intelligent Enneagram.

John G. Bennett worked with G. Gurdjieff and P.D. Ouspensky, traveled extensively in the Middle East, and came into contact with many of the world's spiritual leaders.

This book is compiled from conversations that took place between John Bennett and his students at the International Academy for Continuous Education in England from 1971 to 1974.

Next to survival, sex is one of the most powerful forces in our lives, yet many people don't understand it. It is used for procreation and for pleasure, but it also has an impact on personal transformation.

In this lucid exposition, JG Bennett deals with questions that are being asked by spiritual seekers and provides answers to the following:

* What effects can men and women have on each other because of sexual relationship?

* Is there any connection between sexuality and spirituality?

* Are there essential differences, not just physical ones,between men and women?

* What can sexual activity do for a relationship in terms of spiritual unity?

* Should sexual activity be regulated when a couple aspires to develop spiritually?


"This is not a matter of morality. There is no sense in which Bennett is saying that this or that behavior is wrong. What he tries to do is show how we might orient ourselves in order to connect with a higher realm of meaning. Such an approach is largely ignored in a world that sees romantic love as some kind of summit of our engagement in sex. Bennett took pleasure in re-asserting Gurdjieff's contention that sexual intercourse was a mode of excretion.

"People who want to work on themselves are in an invidious position. They find themselves called upon to take responsibility for actions in which they lack sufficient knowledge, capacity, and understanding. This extends to the enterprise, which in many ways was the foundation of the teaching promulgated by Gurdjieff and Bennett: that of 'making a soul.' The general principles are very fine but their application is shrouded in complexity and uncertainty. This has led in the past to people relying on leaders, teachers, or gurus to tell them what to do. However, an important aspect of Bennett's approach -- that he kept to in both theory and practice -- was that such reliance was suspect and what was needed was the development of 'understanding.'

"This book is written in such a spirit. This book is an invitation to question commonly held assumptions and search for a deeper meaning in what we do."_from the new Foreword by Anthony Blake, Editor