Excerpt from "Roadsigns On the Spiritual Path: Living at the Heart of Paradox"

Regardless of the specifics of their journeys, all seekers struggle with the same basic issues. We stumble into similar mysteries for which we have no ready answer, and we are forced to make decisions for which we are unprepared. As inevitable as bad weather, these dilemmas sometimes crop up at the beginning of the road, sometimes once the expedition is well underway and the wonder and excitement begin to fade, and sometimes years or decades later, when we have been lulled into complacency by a period of contentment.

Another source of today’s dilemmas is also one of our greatest assets: the staggering array of spiritual teachings that are available to everyone. While this is an unprecedented opportunity for richness, depth, and the creation of individually tailored paths, it is also mind-boggling. Authorities contradict each other, and sometimes themselves. Concepts that once illumined our way now lead to cul-de-sacs of paradox and ambiguity. Yesterday’s truth becomes today’s confusion and tomorrow’s hogwash and vice versa. Where do you look for guidance? Whom do you trust? How do you make decisions?

Adapting perennial wisdom to modern sensibility is, and probably always will be, a work in progress. Meanwhile, those of us who heed the eternal call of the spirit can only shuffle toward enlightenment as best we can. We muddle through, decoding one mystery after another, trying to render unto God and Caesar alike without offending either. To be sure, there are times when the road is friction-free and bump-proof. The ride is joyful, even blissful. Inner and outer are of a piece, and decisions are not so much made as glided into. Then, almost inevitably, comes a bone-rattling pothole, a traffic jam, a detour, a collision. You feel bogged down by doubt and confusion. You don’t know which way to turn, or whether to exit completely. That’s when you understand why the spiritual path has been called a razor’s edge, and why the sublime promises of sacred texts are tempered with cautionary statements like this one from the Bhagavad Gita: “Hazardous and slow is the path to the Unrevealed, difficult for physical man to tread.”

This book was written to help seekers steer through the hazards on the sacred highway. It is intended to fit into the backpack or glove compartment, so to speak, of everyone who takes spirituality seriously, whether he or she has been at it for thirty days or thirty years. My goal is to ease your way along the path, whether it is mainstream or unconventional, whether independent or within an established institution. The book will help you become more savvy and self-aware, better prepared to make sound decisions.

About the Author: Philip Goldberg maintains a spiritual counseling practice and he teaches meditation and a variety of mind-body practices geared to clients’ development needs. Philip is a founding director of the Forge Institute, a non-profit institution dedicated to fostering a renaissance of spiritual wisdom.

Title: Roadsigns On the Spiritual Path: Living at the Heart of Paradox

Author: Philip Goldberg

ISBN No: 978-81-7822-342-1

Price: Rs. 295/-

Rights: Asia Only

Publisher: New Age Books

Distributor: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Website: www.mlbd.com , E-mail: mlbd@vsnl.com