The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
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The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
Guide Cover by Even Lazier Publishing Ltd copy.jpg
first and second edition covers (1971, 1972)
Author Thaddeus Golas
Cover artist Klaus Rothe
Country USA/GB
The Lazy Man’s Guide To Enlightenment is a 1971 philosophical essay by American author Thaddeus Golas. Originally started as a letter for friends, the book itself began as a mimeographed pamphlet which Golas handed out on the streets of San Francisco in 1971. It was first published as a book in 1971 by Joe E. Casey, but was then taken over by the Palo Alto, California based Seed Center in 1972. The book was an underground bestseller, and in 1979, was published by Bantam Books. In 1995, Gibbs Smith, Publisher, of Utah, issued a hardcover edition, which included photographs and an introduction by Golas. In 2010, Seed Center Books issued an audio recording of the text read by the author, and an international edition of the book returning it to its original look and format, with three new chapters and revisions, penned by the author late in life.[1]
Contents
1 Origins
2 Chapter headings
3 Publication history
4 References
5 External links
Origins
Thaddeus Golas, inspired by the popularity of subatomic physics and his passion for Eastern Mysticism, began formulating his personal metaphysical paradigm in the mid-1950s.[2] While living in San Francisco in 1969, he decided to publish his first short-run pamphlet "Pleasure and Pain", that would put him in touch with others who shared his interest in enlightenment.[3] The immediate result was that Golas was invited by an enthusiastic Stephen Gaskin to join his famous "Monday Night Class" meetings. Thaddeus Golas had gathered his ideas in the form of dense manuscripts, over a twenty-year period, but by 1970, he resolved to use his background as a copy editor for women's magazines to pitch his language on a level that casual readers could easily understand. The writing of his final manuscript of The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment was swift, and took place over a few chaotic and sleepless weeks during which he experienced great pain in his right arm. He would write tirelessly in bursts of prose which included the first sentence of the published text, "I am a lazy man". Golas later indicated that he never considered another title for this book, besides The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment.[4] He quickly distributed photocopies of his text hoping to receive feedback, and offering for others to "do with it what they will," but his decision to self-publish resulted from the advice and encouragements of such authors as Alan Watts and Ram Dass.[5] The book was originally intended as a "trip-guide" for LSD enthusiasts; it could be used to guide them psychologically and steer them away from "bummers". Thaddeus Golas later said he was stunned to see that "a general audience got off on it." While waiting for delivery of the first edition, Thaddeus Golas created a list of two hundred bookstores, including stores he had visited as a book salesman for Harper and Row in the early 1960s; he wrote every store manager, informing them that the book would be available from the distributor Bookpeople. He also visited bookstores in San Francisco, leaving them with consignment copies. These copies would eventually sell-out in a matter of days. The second printing, at 10,000 copies, sold out in two months. The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment became a rare publishing sensation in the Bay Area. [6]
Chapter headings
(Includes the three additional chapter added to the final, revised edition.)
Foreword
"Who Are We?"
"Look, Ma, I'm Enlightened"
"How To Feel Good"
"Lifesavers"
"How We Got Here"
"Self-Improvement"
"Time And Vibrations"
"Going Through Changes"
"What Is Real?"
"Free will"
"Expand!"
"Who's On First?"
"How You Get There"
"A Fable"
"Even Lazier" (brief selections from the main text)
"A Young Person's Guide to Enlightenment (Addendum)
Publication history
Self Published (1971)
Seed Center (1972)
Bantam Books (1980) ISBN 0553263587
Gibbs Smith (1995) ISBN 0879056983
Seed Center Books, Even Lazier Publishing (2008) ISBN 0983057435[7]
Seed Center Books, Even Lazier Publishing Audio Book (2008) ISBN 0983057443[8]
Seed Center Books, Even Lazier Publishing (2010) ISBN 9780983057406[9]
References
The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment, A Young Person's Guide Edition, Revised and Updated
The Lazy Man's Life, autobiography of Thaddeus Golas
Seed Center Books, publisher of the book
The Lazy Man's Life, autobiography of Thaddeus Golas
The Lazy Man's Life, autobiography of Thaddeus Golas
The Lazy Man's Life, autobiography of Thaddeus Golas
The Lazy Man's Life, autobiography of Thaddeus Golas, Thaddeus Golas. Copyright page.
The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment, Audio CD, Thaddeus Golas. Copyright page.
The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment, A Young Person's Guide Edition, Revised and Updated, Thaddeus Golas. Copyright page.
External links
The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment, Updated and Revised Seed Center Books Edition, with new chapters.
Seed Center Books, publisher of the book
official Thaddeus Golas website
Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment Paperback – 1 September 2008
by Thaddeus Golas (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars 113 ratings
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Kindle
$12.10
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Originally published by the author in 1972, the underground classic Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment teaches how to improve the quality of life, to feel good, and to determine what's real. Golas leads the reader down the path toward enlightenment with simple steps, like memorizing key phrases and incorporating them into daily life and thought. Think of how much better your life might be if you reminded yourself to "love as much as you can from wherever you are" or "love it the way it is." This classic book is full of useful tips on how to live a more conscious life and to be an engaged and aware member of the universal community.
"While we have humility and pride enough to act on the knowledge that we exist in an infinite harmony, that we are neither greater nor lesser than any others, we can enjoy exquisite spiritual wealth and pleasures. When you love yourself, you are in truth expanding in love into many other things. And the more loving you are, the more loving the beings within and around you. On all levels we are mutually dependent vibrations. Play a happy tune and happy dancers will join your trip." - From The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
After serving in World War II, author Thaddeus Golas graduated from Columbia College in New York. He later moved to San Francisco, where he became involved in the activism and spiritual quests of the 1960s. He was an editor of Redbook magazine and a book representative for publisher Harper and Row.
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Publisher : Gibbs Smith (1 September 2008)
Language : English
Paperback : 110 pages
Reading age : 18 years and up
Dimensions : 12.7 x 0.66 x 17.78 cm
Customer Reviews: 4.6 out of 5 stars 113 ratings
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Product description
From the Inside Flap
"We are equal beings and the universe is our relations with each other. The universe is made of one kind of entity: each one is alive, each determines the course of his own existence.
"That is really all you need to know to understand this book or to write your own. Everything that I say has it's roots in that first paragraph, and it's possible to resolve any question by going back to it and thinking it through for yourself."
These words of Thaddeus Golas's, written back in 1971, still ring true, will always ring true. Now, The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment come to us in an attractive hardcover edition, including an author's introduction and author photographs. In the introduction, Golas reveals the events in his life leading up to the writing of the book and the response to the Guide during its many years in print. It is a book for equal beings from all backgrounds.
"The concept that we live in a universe of equal beings can make sense of all religions, and can contain all metaphysical attitudes. It is ithe easiest raft to discard when we reach the other shore that is no shore. It can tell us how to live on this plane; it can show how our physical existence is the expression of spiritual laws. It gives us an absolutely confident understanding of what is true and what is real.
"Equal and unique live beings are all that is fully true and real in the universe. We are the universe."
From the Back Cover
You don't have to work hard or suffer to be in paradise
"I am a lazy man. Laziness keeps me from believing that enlightenment demands effort, discipline, strict diet, non-smoking, and other evidences of virture. There is a paradise in and around you right now, and to be there you don't even have to make a move. All potential experiences are within you already. You can open up to them at any time. There is an odd chance that this is what someone needs to read in order to feel better about himself. If you are a kind person and want to know what ot expect when elightenment strikes and why it comes to you, this is for you."
"It's all right to have a good time. That's one of the most important messages from enlightenment." --From The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
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Customer reviews
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jennyw
1.0 out of 5 stars Poor explanations
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 June 2019
Verified Purchase
Not a great fan
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Sheila G Winstanley
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for spiritual seekers.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 December 2011
Verified Purchase
Every soul on the planet would benefit from this work of intuitive genius.
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silvia prigitano
4.0 out of 5 stars the lazy man enlightment guide
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 January 2013
Verified Purchase
It wasn't not the proper version that I expected but still a nice version and in good condition too, so really good
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Sonja
5.0 out of 5 stars Erhellendes über die Erleuchtung
Reviewed in Germany on 5 September 2016
Verified Purchase
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Enlightenment is a pretty hard thing to describe. I've read a number of books that I haven't been any smarter about this subject or even had an idea of what enlightenment is all about. And of course, even after reading this little book, one is not automatically enlightened. What Golas does, however, is to describe that enlightenment is not a one-time liberating experience, from which we are caught at some point - possibly by accident. It's a simple process that we can design ourselves every minute. Roughly summarized, it refers to the poles of love (expansion) and fear (contraction) and it describes very well how this process can be controlled and asks us to check for ourselves whether he is talking or not. The whole thing is also quite unesoteric. For me everything in this book is logical and comprehensible and serves me as a guide in everyday life, which has already made me understand some tricky situations - the situation lit up, so to speak. The book is now my Bible - what luck that it is so small. ;-) It completely lives up to its English title "the lazy man's guide to enlightment", also in terms of content. And of course I think that it should definitely be published again in German.
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P. Zolantra
4.0 out of 5 stars A great read and a classic in the self-help field.
Reviewed in Canada on 24 August 2013
Verified Purchase
This book was written in the early 70s, when a lot of people were searching spiritually and doing a lot of drugs to potentially help them on their way. It's an interesting description of the basis of reality but may or may not resonate with everyone. It's an entertaining read whether or not you agree with what the author is saying, and it offers a lot of food for thought. It may or may not help you on your path to enlightenment, but it will definitely give you a lot to think about.
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The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
by
4.12 · Rating details · 681 ratings · 80 reviews
Originally published by the author in 1972, the underground classic Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment teaches how to improve the quality of life, to feel good, and to determine what's real. Golas leads the reader down the path toward enlightenment with simple steps, like memorizing key phrases and incorporating them into daily life and thought. Think of how much better your life might be if you reminded yourself to "love as much as you can from wherever you are" or "love it the way it is." This classic book is full of useful tips on how to live a more conscious life and to be an engaged and aware member of the universal community. "While we have humility and pride enough to act on the knowledge that we exist in an infinite harmony, that we are neither greater nor lesser than any others, we can enjoy exquisite spiritual wealth and pleasures. When you love yourself, you are in truth expanding in love into many other things. And the more loving you are, the more loving the beings within and around you. On all levels we are mutually dependent vibrations. Play a happy tune and happy dancers will join your trip." - From The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment After serving in World War II, author Thaddeus Golas graduated from Columbia College in New York. He later moved to San Francisco, where he became involved in the activism and spiritual quests of the 1960s. He was an editor of Redbook magazine and a book representative for publisher Harper and Row. (less)
Paperback, A Young Person's Guide Edition, Revised, and Augmented by Author Thaddeus Golas, 91 pages
Published January 11th 2011 by Seed Center Books, Even Lazier Publishing, Ltd. (first published January 1st 1972)
Original Title
The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment
ISBN13
9782746628052
Edition Language
English
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Mar 01, 2019Hákon Gunnarsson rated it it was ok
I thought this was some kind of Dummies Guide to Enlightenment. Well, it’s not. Appearantly this is a trip guide. I suppose it means that the lazy man’s path to enlightenment is to meditate while tripping on LSD.
Thanks, but no thanks.
It’s not badly written, and it’s the hippiest book I’ve ever read, but I found nothing of use in it.
Thanks, but no thanks.
It’s not badly written, and it’s the hippiest book I’ve ever read, but I found nothing of use in it.
Apr 10, 2013D rated it really liked it
The 2008 edition is great. Some snippets:
A constantly expanding love...
* The attitude toward any goal: nice if it happens; nice if it doesn’t. It’s OK. You won’t mind letting go of one beautiful experience because love will make the next one just as rewarding.
* Take the example of music, letting go of one note to hear the next, then our pleasure can be constant though the vibrations change.
* If we ‘listen’ to the world, and let it act on us without either-or judgements and ideas, then we can comprehend each flash of pleasure as a tone in the infinite harmony. The orchestra of the world plays the familiar melodies again and again...
* All states of consciousness are available right now. Every possibility in the past and future exists timelessly, it’s always there and you activate your level of reality by your own vibrations.
Whether I am conscious of it or not,
I am one with the cause of all that exists.
Whether I feel it or not, I am one
with all the love in the universe.
* Every state of consciousness is perfect and complete, and does not need to be changed.
* Look at your own vibration level before reacting to what you think is an external reality.
* The more you love, the faster you vibrate, the less need you feel to control anything, and you are not fearful of change and variety. You experience everything deeper and slower and more lovingly.
* No matter what others are doing, you are the only one who is responsible for what happens to you.
* When you learn to love hell, you will be in heaven.
* You are free to be anywhere you want to be in the world that is real to you now. And beyond that, you are capable of being in any time, on any vibration level, in any system, with whomever you like.
* You’re never alone - there are many beings aware of you at all times, loving you, ready to make you feel it whenever you are ready to open up to it, taking care to see that you don’t get in too deep, encouraging you to love yourself.
* The world you see is in truth a reality of convenience - the universe will compassionately arrange itself into anything you need it to be to work out your preferences. You have an infinite choice of worlds to live in
* No resistance. Remember this especially when you are dying
Go beyond reason to love -- it is safe. It is the only safety.
The sin that most needs to be loved and forgiven is the state of mind that sees human beings as sinners.
Give others the freedom to be stupid - the most important and hardest step to take in spiritual progress.
Handle the world with divine love. We are but channels of spiritual joy, and to continue to have it we need only be open channels.
We enjoy exquisite spiritual wealth and pleasure when we know we are all equals.
The jewel you hold is Understanding. You cannot add to its beauty by hiding it and hinting that you have it, nor by wearing it with vanity. Its beauty comes from the consciousness that others have of it. Honor that which gives it beauty.
I am one with all the love in the universe.
(less)
A constantly expanding love...
* The attitude toward any goal: nice if it happens; nice if it doesn’t. It’s OK. You won’t mind letting go of one beautiful experience because love will make the next one just as rewarding.
* Take the example of music, letting go of one note to hear the next, then our pleasure can be constant though the vibrations change.
* If we ‘listen’ to the world, and let it act on us without either-or judgements and ideas, then we can comprehend each flash of pleasure as a tone in the infinite harmony. The orchestra of the world plays the familiar melodies again and again...
* All states of consciousness are available right now. Every possibility in the past and future exists timelessly, it’s always there and you activate your level of reality by your own vibrations.
Whether I am conscious of it or not,
I am one with the cause of all that exists.
Whether I feel it or not, I am one
with all the love in the universe.
* Every state of consciousness is perfect and complete, and does not need to be changed.
* Look at your own vibration level before reacting to what you think is an external reality.
* The more you love, the faster you vibrate, the less need you feel to control anything, and you are not fearful of change and variety. You experience everything deeper and slower and more lovingly.
* No matter what others are doing, you are the only one who is responsible for what happens to you.
* When you learn to love hell, you will be in heaven.
* You are free to be anywhere you want to be in the world that is real to you now. And beyond that, you are capable of being in any time, on any vibration level, in any system, with whomever you like.
* You’re never alone - there are many beings aware of you at all times, loving you, ready to make you feel it whenever you are ready to open up to it, taking care to see that you don’t get in too deep, encouraging you to love yourself.
* The world you see is in truth a reality of convenience - the universe will compassionately arrange itself into anything you need it to be to work out your preferences. You have an infinite choice of worlds to live in
* No resistance. Remember this especially when you are dying
Go beyond reason to love -- it is safe. It is the only safety.
The sin that most needs to be loved and forgiven is the state of mind that sees human beings as sinners.
Give others the freedom to be stupid - the most important and hardest step to take in spiritual progress.
Handle the world with divine love. We are but channels of spiritual joy, and to continue to have it we need only be open channels.
We enjoy exquisite spiritual wealth and pleasure when we know we are all equals.
The jewel you hold is Understanding. You cannot add to its beauty by hiding it and hinting that you have it, nor by wearing it with vanity. Its beauty comes from the consciousness that others have of it. Honor that which gives it beauty.
I am one with all the love in the universe.
(less)
Jun 17, 2013Robin Clark rated it really liked it
We are equal beings and the universe is our relations with each other. Thaddeus Golas.
There it is! Enlightenment! So, so simple. So profound. Easy, simple. Now relax for the rest of your life and be happy.
There it is! Enlightenment! So, so simple. So profound. Easy, simple. Now relax for the rest of your life and be happy.
Aug 24, 2012Thaddeus Golas rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author) · review of another edition
For those on the road still trying to thumb a ride, this book will show you how to make it on your own. There is no other way. Being the lazy man’s lazy man, I quickly went to the last pages and back cover to glean the quintessential enlightenment offered in the excerpts. How can I be lazy and accelerate my vibrations to encompass all that wisdom in a flash, you may ask? Chapter 7 answers that If you’re the kind of person caught up in sin, asceticism, rejection of earthly enjoyment, or other evidence of strict virtuous discipline, and are still having trouble being enlightened and in joy, this book is for you. It will shatter all your preconceived ideas about spirituality, If what you are doing isn’t working…love it and leave it. In other words: let go and let God. The Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment lets you know you are already there. So what’s the point of arrival? We exist on many levels simultaneously: from a being of concentrated mass (separateness, individuality), through energy being, to space being (oneness). How come, you may ask, most of us are only aware of the densest physical level? The answer is you can’t be anywhere else until you love yourself where you are now. After all, it’s a world of your own creation. As long as we reject anything we are tied to that one thing. Now that’s karma! The only effective way to be free of anything, is to love. Accept yourself where you’re at. If you hate or despise something, love yourself for despising or hating it. It’s the E=MC2 of the Universe. Be there, then.
R.L.
I AM Magazine, Quebec. (less)
R.L.
I AM Magazine, Quebec. (less)
Sep 09, 2010Guy rated it liked it · review of another edition
I have an ambivalent reaction to this book. It gave me no new understanding, but I like that Golas aligned himself with Chuang Tzu and like Taoists who argue against straining and struggling to take actions or achieve understanding.
It is likely at a more challenging level to spiritual/philosophical ideas than an introduction, but will be unnecessary for people who have been seriously struggling with the spiritual/philosophical meanings of life for any length of time.
I like his blunt way of stating the obvious truths we delude ourselves into not seeing. As such I keep thinking that it deserves more than 3 stars, but I cannot bring myself to move my rating to 4. Perhaps my concern about it is that like many spiritual guides, it emphasizes the role of mind and attitude in achieving so-called enlightenment at the expense of respecting one's somatic reality, and perhaps physical well-being. As a society we are completely beholden to products of the mind, be it agri-business justified land, water and animal abuse, the poisoning of our food products with -icides or business practices with Harvard Business Schooled flow charted MBA-itis.
A good read and more than an introduction to Taoist philosophical ideas.
For further notes about this book, see egajdbooks
(less)
It is likely at a more challenging level to spiritual/philosophical ideas than an introduction, but will be unnecessary for people who have been seriously struggling with the spiritual/philosophical meanings of life for any length of time.
I like his blunt way of stating the obvious truths we delude ourselves into not seeing. As such I keep thinking that it deserves more than 3 stars, but I cannot bring myself to move my rating to 4. Perhaps my concern about it is that like many spiritual guides, it emphasizes the role of mind and attitude in achieving so-called enlightenment at the expense of respecting one's somatic reality, and perhaps physical well-being. As a society we are completely beholden to products of the mind, be it agri-business justified land, water and animal abuse, the poisoning of our food products with -icides or business practices with Harvard Business Schooled flow charted MBA-itis.
A good read and more than an introduction to Taoist philosophical ideas.
For further notes about this book, see egajdbooks
(less)
Feb 10, 2019Ra rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: scribd, ebook, non-fiction
Short book that has been popular for decades, and it is clear to see why. It is very honest and accessible. It is also a strange place to find enlightenment, as the author clearly states between the pages that he wrote it for acid heads.
Reading this got me to thinking, and ultimately agreeing, with the author that enlightenment does not care how you reach it. You can be guided there by scripture or by the words of a Sufi Imam, or the lines written by an unlikely acid head guru like Thaddeus Golas.
I like some of his ideas and his attempt to link them to quantum physics and science, but what truly spoke to me is the way he summed up the findings of his spiritual search, the non-discriminatory approach to enlightenment, the idea that you can find it anywhere, and also what he spoke about love in the first part of the book, not the last part which was a bit confusing.
Very short book that could be read or re-read to absorb some new age spirituality. (less)
Reading this got me to thinking, and ultimately agreeing, with the author that enlightenment does not care how you reach it. You can be guided there by scripture or by the words of a Sufi Imam, or the lines written by an unlikely acid head guru like Thaddeus Golas.
I like some of his ideas and his attempt to link them to quantum physics and science, but what truly spoke to me is the way he summed up the findings of his spiritual search, the non-discriminatory approach to enlightenment, the idea that you can find it anywhere, and also what he spoke about love in the first part of the book, not the last part which was a bit confusing.
Very short book that could be read or re-read to absorb some new age spirituality. (less)
Aug 06, 2019Alex rated it it was amazing
The entire book is written in a language that felt foreign. I have my read shoved firmly in the "rationalist" bubble, and the author lives and breathes a much more spiritual air than I am used to. Half of the experience of reading this book was observing my own reactions to the language, which made me realize just how narrow-minded I've become. The other half was meditation on the messages expressed by the author, once I managed to separate them, as best I could, from the language used to describe them. The messages resounded very powerfully with me, some of them gave way to some bundled pain. Reading this book was an experience and I think I will return to it, periodically. (less)
I bought this book a million years ago. I found it on my shelf and read it in a sitting (it is very short). I guess I'm not very enlightened because I kept finding my attention distracted by all of the mentions of LSD. Published in 1972, it shows that it was published in 1972. I guess I have to work towards the enlightenment that lets me read it without focusing on all of the off-hand references to LSD and other drugs. (less)
Dec 27, 2009Doc rated it it was amazing
Possibly the thinnest most entertaining essay on enlightenment ever written. 80 pages of purely great stuff!
This shall be my first review where I do not want to give stars to a book. On the one hand, it contains probably every idea about enlightenment, the states of consciousness, the emphasis on love, all the good ideas and practices, while on the other hand, it's extremely difficult to understand those words completely unless it comes from myself too. But some did, and that's why I would want to keep reading it from time to time.
Lines from the book to which I can connect:
* We are equal beings and the universe is our relations with each other. What am I doing on a level of consciousness where this is real?
* No resistance. (In mind not in body)
** Love as much as you can from wherever you are.
* Whether I am conscious of it or not, I am one with the cause of all that exists. Whether I feel it or not, I am one with all the love in the universe.
* Go beyond reason to love: it is safe. It is the only safety.
* All states of consciousness are available right now.
** Enlightenment doesn't care how you get there.
* Whatever you are doing, love yourself for doing it.
* When you learn to love hell, you will be in heaven. (less)
Lines from the book to which I can connect:
* We are equal beings and the universe is our relations with each other. What am I doing on a level of consciousness where this is real?
* No resistance. (In mind not in body)
** Love as much as you can from wherever you are.
* Whether I am conscious of it or not, I am one with the cause of all that exists. Whether I feel it or not, I am one with all the love in the universe.
* Go beyond reason to love: it is safe. It is the only safety.
* All states of consciousness are available right now.
** Enlightenment doesn't care how you get there.
* Whatever you are doing, love yourself for doing it.
* When you learn to love hell, you will be in heaven. (less)
