The Spiritual Emerson: Essential Works by Ralph Waldo Emerson Paperback – 29 January 2014
by Ralph Waldo Emerson (Author)David M. Robinson (Editor)
4.6 out of 5 stars 103 ratings
Part of: Tarcher Cornerstone Editions (13 books)
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Here is the heart of Emerson's spiritual thought for those readers who seek to understand the transformative quality of great ideas. Concise and suited to years of rereading and contemplation, The Spiritual Emerson traces the arc of the inner message brought by America's 'Yankee Mystic.'
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Mary Beth Alban
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely way to absorb Emerson's spirituality.Reviewed in the United States on 1 May 2020
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A concise review of Ralph Waldo Emerson writings.
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Janet
5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read For Our TimesReviewed in the United States on 30 November 2009
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I purchased this book because Jacob Needleman had written the foreword. However, after reading it, I think it is an important to be read at this time. The first section, Self-Reliance, is worth the price alone. Emerson points out the need for each of us to rely not on government or others for our needs, but through ourselves first by finding our inner self and using it to go forward. After you rely on yourself alone, you can then help others and let them help you when necessary.
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Paperback
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Here is the heart of Emerson's spiritual thought for those readers who seek to understand the transformative quality of great ideas. Concise and suited to years of rereading and contemplation, The Spiritual Emerson traces the arc of the inner message brought by America's 'Yankee Mystic.'
Reading Emerson, writes philosopher Jacob Needleman in his introduction, 'can awaken a part of the psyche that our culture has suppressed.'
More than a handy volume of Emerson's landmark works, The Spiritual Emerson also includes overlooked classics, such as 'Fate' and 'Success,' which served as major sources of inspiration to some of the most influential American metaphysical thinkers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Each of the book's selections is drawn from authoritative final editions that were corrected by Emerson himself. The introduction by religious scholar and philosopher Needleman explores the hope and power found within Emerson's thought - and why its meaning is so deeply felt by readers today. 'Be, and not seem.' Ralph Waldo Emerson
About the Author
Date- 2013-08-06
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) was a renowned lecturer and writer, whose ideas on philosophy, religion, and literature influenced many writers, including Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman. After an undergraduate career at Harvard, he studied at Harvard Divinity School and became an ordained minister, continuing a long line of ministers in his family. He traveled widely and lectured, and became well known for his publications Essays and Nature.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the son of a Unitarian minister and a chaplain during the American Revolution, was born in 1803 in Boston. He attended the Boston Latin School, and in 1817 entered Harvard, graduating in 1820. Emerson supported himself as a schoolteacher from 1821-26. In 1826 he was 'approbated to preach,' and in 1829 became pastor of the Scond Church (Unitarian) in Boston. That same year he married Ellen Louise Tucker, who was to die of tuberculosis only seventeen months later.
In 1832 Emerson resigned his pastorate and traveled to Eurpe, where he met Coleridge, Wordsworth, and Carlyle.
About the Author
Date- 2013-08-06
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) was a renowned lecturer and writer, whose ideas on philosophy, religion, and literature influenced many writers, including Henry David Thoreau and Walt Whitman. After an undergraduate career at Harvard, he studied at Harvard Divinity School and became an ordained minister, continuing a long line of ministers in his family. He traveled widely and lectured, and became well known for his publications Essays and Nature.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the son of a Unitarian minister and a chaplain during the American Revolution, was born in 1803 in Boston. He attended the Boston Latin School, and in 1817 entered Harvard, graduating in 1820. Emerson supported himself as a schoolteacher from 1821-26. In 1826 he was 'approbated to preach,' and in 1829 became pastor of the Scond Church (Unitarian) in Boston. That same year he married Ellen Louise Tucker, who was to die of tuberculosis only seventeen months later.
In 1832 Emerson resigned his pastorate and traveled to Eurpe, where he met Coleridge, Wordsworth, and Carlyle.
He settled in Concord, Massachusetts, in 1834, where he began a new career as a public lecturer, and married Lydia Jackson a year later. A group that gathered around Emerson in Concord came to be known as 'the Concord school,' and included Bronson Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne
Product details
Publisher : Tarcher; 1st edition (29 January 2014)
Language : English
Paperback : 240 pages
Reading age : 18 years and up
Dimensions : 12.78 x 1.68 x 17.78 cmBest Sellers Rank: 292,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)142 in Metaphysics Textbooks
247 in American Literature Textbooks
447 in U.S. Fiction AnthologiesCustomer Reviews:
4.6 out of 5 stars 103 ratings
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Product details
Publisher : Tarcher; 1st edition (29 January 2014)
Language : English
Paperback : 240 pages
Reading age : 18 years and up
Dimensions : 12.78 x 1.68 x 17.78 cmBest Sellers Rank: 292,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)142 in Metaphysics Textbooks
247 in American Literature Textbooks
447 in U.S. Fiction AnthologiesCustomer Reviews:
4.6 out of 5 stars 103 ratings
====
Editorial Reviews
Review
'A guided anthology that takes the reader through Emerson's own spiritual evolution.'--Robert D. Richardson, Jr., author of Emerson: The Mind on Fire
'It is a great service of this book that it traces [Emerson's] spiritual development . . . [It] is also valuable in establishing the full texture and subtlety of Emerson's much-misunderstood notion of self-reliance and nonconformity.'--Richard Higgins, Boston Globe
'This collection brings together for the first time Emerson's most important writings on spiritual themes, along with a discerning and eminently readable introduction by one of the foremost authorities on Emerson's religious thought.'--Lawrence Buell, Harvard University, author of Literary Transcendentalism and Emerson
About the Author
David M. Robinson is the author of numerous books, including Emerson and the Conduct of Life and Apostle of Culture: Emerson as Preacher and Lecturer. He is Oregon Professor of English and Distinguished Professor of American Literature at Oregon State University in Corvallis.
Product details
Publisher : Beacon Press (April 15, 2004)
Language : English
Paperback : 280 pages
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4.6 out of 5 stars
Carolina Santos
5.0 out of 5 stars Concise selection, not worth full price though
4.6 out of 5 stars
Carolina Santos
5.0 out of 5 stars Concise selection, not worth full price though
Reviewed in Brazil on 19 October 2020
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The book is amazing concerning the selection of the essays. I just think it's not worth it paying full price.
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Alonso
5.0 out of 5 stars new age bibleReviewed in the United States on 11 June 2014
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I liked the book because the title exactly describes the contents. It is Ralph Waldo Emerson discussing the human condition from a spiritual standpoint. The fact that he thought all this back in the 19th century is already impressive. His words have a timeless characteristic to them, and they are very relevant today in our post-modern world where we are, like it or not, seeking for spiritual guidance and religion just doesn't cut it anymore.
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The book is amazing concerning the selection of the essays. I just think it's not worth it paying full price.
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Alonso
5.0 out of 5 stars new age bibleReviewed in the United States on 11 June 2014
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I liked the book because the title exactly describes the contents. It is Ralph Waldo Emerson discussing the human condition from a spiritual standpoint. The fact that he thought all this back in the 19th century is already impressive. His words have a timeless characteristic to them, and they are very relevant today in our post-modern world where we are, like it or not, seeking for spiritual guidance and religion just doesn't cut it anymore.
The first answer to this phenomenon is atheism, yet the book does a great job explaining why this is happening as well.
It took me about a couple of months to get through it - taking my time while reading other books. I've read similar books like krishnamurti's 'talks and dialogues', but RWE is more personal and direct, so to speak.
Overall, it exceeded my expectations knowing very little of RWE, and now I feel like I know the best part of him. This book makes me want to read more of his literature and not necessarily related to spirituality, but just to get a more complete picture of who this man was and what made him write so eloquently about this topic. Definitely recommended to whomever wants a break from typical cheap store literature.
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vicki mccabe
2.0 out of 5 stars
It took me about a couple of months to get through it - taking my time while reading other books. I've read similar books like krishnamurti's 'talks and dialogues', but RWE is more personal and direct, so to speak.
Overall, it exceeded my expectations knowing very little of RWE, and now I feel like I know the best part of him. This book makes me want to read more of his literature and not necessarily related to spirituality, but just to get a more complete picture of who this man was and what made him write so eloquently about this topic. Definitely recommended to whomever wants a break from typical cheap store literature.
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vicki mccabe
2.0 out of 5 stars
Very heavy and dense reading not happy
Reviewed in the United States on 31 May 2021
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I love Emerson’s poems and essays but this book was very hard to read and understand. It’s very and densely wrote. I couldn’t even get passed a few pages in the first chapter. I sent it back. Very disappointed.
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I love Emerson’s poems and essays but this book was very hard to read and understand. It’s very and densely wrote. I couldn’t even get passed a few pages in the first chapter. I sent it back. Very disappointed.
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Mary Beth Alban
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely way to absorb Emerson's spirituality.Reviewed in the United States on 1 May 2020
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A concise review of Ralph Waldo Emerson writings.
3 people found this helpfulReport abuse
Janet
5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read For Our TimesReviewed in the United States on 30 November 2009
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I purchased this book because Jacob Needleman had written the foreword. However, after reading it, I think it is an important to be read at this time. The first section, Self-Reliance, is worth the price alone. Emerson points out the need for each of us to rely not on government or others for our needs, but through ourselves first by finding our inner self and using it to go forward. After you rely on yourself alone, you can then help others and let them help you when necessary.
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Robert Duncanson
5.0 out of 5 stars Almost Seeing A Good Man Eye to Eye
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2014
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Anyone who is young, who is frightened of appearing stupid, who takes a reading Emerson as a solitary reader might flee and not return for decades.
Such a one am I. By living I beat the first. I've outgrown the fear and accepted the second term, stupidity, as a given.
But now Emerson is not only comprehensible but a delight to read.
He writes in a conversational style if you consider both his time (They were willing to take on long sentences) and that he was brilliant. Not " OK you just read a page of Kant, thought you understood, now paraphrase," it but you can't brilliant. He writes in a voice that is meant to be heard-- impressive and engaging and brilliant--but still a voice to be heard.
Since I read this book, I have only found one flaw in Emerson: he inserted an occasional quote from himself at the beginning of essays.
Not a bad flaw for a man who understood the eye is the center of the universe or who saw magnetic wires connecting all.
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The Spiritual Emerson: Essential Writings by Ralph Waldo Emerson
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The Spiritual Emerson: Essential Writings by Ralph Waldo Emerson
by Ralph Waldo Emerson, David M. Robinson (Editor)
4.24 · Rating details · 291 ratings · 31 reviews
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) is known best in the twenty-first century as a literary innovator and early architect of American intellectual culture, but his writings still offer spiritual sustenance to the thoughtful reader. The Spiritual Emerson, originally published on the two hundredth anniversary of the writer's birth, brings together the writings that articulate Emerson's spiritual vision and promise the greatest relevance to today's reader. (less)
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Yelda Basar Moers
Apr 13, 2016Yelda Basar Moers rated it it was amazing
Shelves: spirituality, transcendentalism, soul-writing
Hands down, Ralph Waldo Emerson is one of my favorite spiritual writers of all time! I also count him to be a prophet of nature, the Self and the Soul.
I believe that any avid spiritual reader should read the classics. For me, that would include Emerson’s writings. Together with Thoreau, he led the 19th century American spiritual movement called Transcendentalism.
Emerson believed that there were two places you could find God,
in your own Self (the higher self or soul) and in Nature.
He was the head of the Unitarian church, but then not only left it, he broke off from religion altogether to espouse a spirituality that was divorced from any dogma or form.
I love this compilation and edition from Tarcher, which includes his best spiritual writing.
His essay The Over-Soul is my favorite. Other favorite essays in this compilation include Self Reliance, Spiritual Laws and Fate. The Spiritual Emerson only offers a small selection of his essays, which makes for a great introduction to his work. For a more comprehensive compendium, try Selected Writings of Emerson, which also includes his poems.
Below is one of my favorite quotes from The Over-Soul:
“The action of the soul is
oftener in that which is felt and left unsaid
than it that which is said in any conversation.”
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Jeffrey Howard
Jan 06, 2014Jeffrey Howard rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: wisdom, philosophy-general, best-of-books-list
Emerson has no peer or rival.
Too much wisdom in one person.
Genius flows from his every word.
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Selby
May 07, 2010Selby rated it liked it
Shelves: nonfiction
"As long as the soul seeks an external god, it never can have peace."
This is a wonderful collection of Emerson's insightful essays. I particularly love the long final paragraph in The Over-Soul. (less)
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J Brandon Gibson
Oct 16, 2020J Brandon Gibson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: philosophy-wisdom-self-help, favorites, religion, to-read-again, red-wagon
I had to trick Goodreads to let me add a review to a book that I haven't finished. This book is a collection of Emerson's (I call him Ralphy, respectfully) and I have read so far his essay "Self Reliance", and "Compensation" and both have been 5 star essay's.
My only complaint is RWE gets a bit wordy sometimes, like "yeah I get he point, its a good point and I resonate with it I promise, get on to the next thought".
Great book, great guy. My grandfather's middle name is Emerson, and so is my son Enoch's. So I am proud to have some Emerson in me somewhere. One more thing... I am usually reluctant to look up the history of some of my favorite thinkers from pre-now because they usually have skeletons in the closet, or some baggage that makes you want to distantly admire them.. RWE is a rock, and I have been happy to find that he was a man who walked the walk.
I already rated this 5 stars, because I quote this guy now on a weekly basis.. these essays (and poems) have definitely made their mark in my greater philosophical / religious context.
------- Update [05.07.2021]
Over the last few years I have read a few of the essays in this collection, specifically Self Reliance, and Compensation multiple times. Overall, I would say my favorite chapters (essays) are "Self Reliance", "Compensation", and "The Oversoul".
As mentioned earlier (whenever my part way review was written) I am rating this 5 stars. I rate great books, that I thoroughly enjoyed 4 stars, I write books that change my life, and enrich my thinking to a "more lofty sphere" 5 stars. (less)
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Nathan
Jun 19, 2019Nathan rated it really liked it
Emerson’s collection of essays are still relevant today, more than 150 years later. This anthology wonderfully shows threads linking essays to one another over a 30 plus year span of time. You can clearly distinguish the development of Emerson’s ideas. It is interesting to see how Emersonian concepts of unity, self and God are precursors to some of the positivist spiritualism of the later 20th century. A very wide spectrum of religious thinkers owe much to Emerson. Whether its Oral Roberts seed faith or Brian McLaren’s higher life, Emerson tilled the land earlier.
In Compensation he gives a case for dualism (symmetry) and that all actions have expected responses (e.g. you get what you give). In his Divinity School Address, Emerson infamously promotes moving away from religion to the preferred position of personal guidance from the Source or Being (God). He even has the practical application of his philosophical statements in The Fugitive Slave Law, where he rails against the evil 1850 law and advocates for those in the Union to side with the Universe’s truth over Congress’. There are many gems thorough out this collection of writings. I have a selection of quotes below that I want to highlight and holdup for more reading later.
Nature
“The production of a work of art throws a light upon the mystery of humanity. A work of art is an abstract or epitome of the world. It is the result of expression of nature, in miniature. For although the works of nature are innumerable and all different, the result or expression of them all is similar and single. Nature is a sea of forms radically alike and even unique. A leaf, a sunbeam, a landscape, the ocean, make an analogous impression on the mind. What is common to them all,—that perfectness and harmony, is beauty. The standard of beauty is the entire circuit of natural forms,—the totality of nature; which the Italians expressed by defining beauty ‘il più nell’uno.’ Nothing is quite beautiful alone: nothing but is beautiful in the whole. A single object is only so far beautiful as it suggests this universal grace. The poet, the painter the sculptor, the musician, the architect, seek each to concentrate this radiance of the world on one point, and each in his several work to satisfy the love of beauty which stimulates him to produce. Thus is Art a nature passed through the alembic of man. Thus in art does Nature work through the will of a man filled with the beauty of her first works.” p33
The Divinity School Address
“Let me admonish you, first of all, to go alone; to refuse the good models, even those which are sacred in the imagination of men, and dare to love God without mediator or veil. Friends enough you shall find who will hold up to your emulations Wesleys or Oberlins, Saints and Prophets. Thank God for these good men, but say, ‘I also am a man.’ Imitation cannot go above its model. The imitator dooms himself to hopeless mediocrity. The inventor did it because it was natural to him, and so in him it has a charm. In the imitator something else is natural, and he bereaves himself of his own beauty, to come short of another man’s.
Yourself a newborn bard of the Holy Ghost, cast behind you all conformity, and acquaint men at first hand with Deity. Look first and only, that fashion, custom, authority, pleasure, and money, are nothing to you,—are not bandages over your eyes, that you cannot see,—but live with the privilege of the immeasurable mind.
Not too anxious to visit periodically all families and each family in your parish connection,—when you meet one of these men or women, be to them a divine man; be to them thought and virtue; let their timid aspirations find in you a friend; let their trampled instincts be genially tempted out in your atmosphere; let their doubts know that you have doubted, and their wonder feel that you have wondered. By trusting your own heart, you shall gain more confidence in other men.” p79
Self-Reliance
“A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than a luster of the firmament of bards and sages. Yet he dismisses without notice his thought, because it is his. In every work of genius we recognize our own rejected thoughts; they come back to us with a certain alienated majesty. Great works of art have no more affecting lesson for us than this. They teach us to” p89
“It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.” p90
“Prayer that craves a particular commodity, anything less than all good, is vicious. Prayer is the contemplation of the facts of life from the highest point of view. It is the soliloquy of a beholding an jubilant soul. It is the spirit of God pronouncing his works good. But prayer as a means to effect a private end is meaness and theft. It supposes dualism and not unity in nature and consciousness. As soon as the man is at one with God, he will not beg. He will then see prayer in all action. The prayer of the farmer kneeling in his field to wed it, the prayer of the rower kneeling with the stroke of his oar, are the true prayers heard throughout nature, though for cheap ends.” p102
“Do that which is assigned you, and you cannot hope too much or dare too much. There is at this moment for you an utterance brave and grand as that of the colossal chisel of Phidias, or trowel of the Egyptians, or the pen of Moses or Dante, but different from all these.” p106
Compensation
“An inevitable dualism bisects nature, so that each thing is a half, and suggests another thing to make it whole; as, spirit, matter; man, woman; odd, even; subjective, objective; in, out; upper, under; motion, rest; yea, nay.” p115
“All things are double, one against another.—Tit for tat; an eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth; blood for blood; measure for measure; love for love,—Give, and it shall be given you.—He that watereth shall be watered himself.—What will you have? quoth God; pay for it and take it.—Nothing venture, nothing have,—Thou shalt be paid exactly for what thou hast done, no more, no less.—Who doth not work shall not eat.—Harm watch, harm catch.—Curses always recoil on the head of him who imprecates them.” p121
“The good are befriended even by weakness and defect. As no man had ever a point of pride that was not injurious to him, so no man had ever a defect that was not somewhere made useful to him. The stag in the fable admired his horns and blamed his feet, but when the hunter came, his feet saved him, and afterwards, caught in the thicket, his horns destroyed him. Every man in his lifetime needs to thank his faults. As no man thoroughly understands a truth until he has contended against it, so no man has a thorough acquaintance with the hindrances of talents until he has suffered from the one and seen triumph of the other over his own want of the same.” pgs125-6
“Thus do all things preach the indifferency of circumstances. The man is all. Every thing has two sides, a good and an evil. Every advantage has its tax. I learn to be content. But the doctrine of compensation is not the doctrine of indifferency. The thoughtless say, on hearing these representations,—What boots it to do well? There is one event to good and evil; if I gain any good I must pay for it; if I lose any good I gain some other; all actions are indifferent.
There is a deeper fact in the soul than compensation, to wit, its own nature. The soul is not a compensation, but a life. The soul is. Under all this running sea of circumstance, whose water ebb and flow with perfect balance. Lies the aboriginal abyss of real Being. Essence, of God, is not a relation or a part, but the whole. Being is the vast affirmative, excluding negation, self-balanced, and swallowing up all relations, parts and times within itself. Nature, truth. Virtue, are the influx from thence. Vice is the absence or departure of the same.” p127
“There is no penalty to virtue; no penalty to wisdom; they are proper additions of being. In virtuous action I properly am; in a virtuous act I ass to the world; I plant into deserts conquered from Chaos and Nothing and see the darkness receding on the limits of the horizon. There can be no excess to love, none to knowledge, none to beauty, when these attributes are considered in the purest sense. The soul refuses limits, and always affirms an Optimism, never a Pessimism.” p128
The Over-Soul
“It is of no use to preach to me from without. I can do that too easily myself. Jesus speaks always from within, and in a degree that transcends all others. In that is the miracle.” p144
Circles
“Therefore we value the poet. All the argument and all the wisdom is not in the encyclopedia, or the treatise on metaphysics, or the Body of Divinity, but in the sonnet or the play. ” p158
“The difference between talents and character is adroitness to keep the old and trodden round, and power and courage to make a new road to new and better goals.” p162
“The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire is to forget ourselves, to be surprised out of our propriety, to lose our sempiternal memory and to do something without knowing how or why; in short to draw a new circle. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” p163
The Fugitive Slave Law
“He only who is able to stand alone is qualified for society. And that I understand to be the end for which the soul exists in this world,—to be himself the counterbalance of all falsehood and all wrong. ‘The army of the unright is encamped from pole to pole, but the road to victory is known to the just.’” p201
“Whenever a man has come to this mind, that there is no Church for him but his believing prayer; no Constitution but his dealing well and justly with his neighbor; no liberty but his invincible will to do right—then certain aids and allies will promptly appear: for the constitution of the Universe is on his side. It is of no use to vote down gravitation of morals. What is useful will last, whilst that which is hurtful to the world will sink beneath all the opposing forces which it must exasperate.” p201-2
Worship
“But the official men can in nowise help you in any question of to-day, they deriving entirely from the old dead things. Only those can help in counsel or conduct who did not make a party pledge to defend this or that, but who were appointed by God Almighty, before they came into the world, to stand for this which they uphold.” p215
“Every man takes care that his neighbor shall not cheat him. But a day comes when he begins to care that he do not cheat his neighbor. Then all goes well. He has changed his market-cart into a chariot of the sun. What a day dawns when we have taken to heart the doctrine of faith!” p216
“Man is made of the same atoms as the world is, he shares the same impressions, predispositions and destiny. When his mind is illuminated, when his heart is kind, he throws himself joyfully into the sublime order, and doss, with knowledge, what the stones do by structure.” p230
Character
“Morals is the direction of the will on universal ends. He is immoral who is acting to private end. He is moral,—we say it with Marcus Aurelius and with Kant,—whose aim or motive may become a universal rule, binding on all intelligent beings; and with Vauvenargues, ‘the mercenary sacrifice of the public good to a private interest is the eternal stamp of vice.’”p244
“’Let no intruder come between thee and me; deal Thou with me; let me now it is they will, and I ask no more.’ The excellence of Jesus, and of every true teacher, is, that he affirms the Divinity in him and in us,—not thrusts himself between it and us. It would instantly indispose us to any person claiming to speak for the Author of Nature, the setting forth any fact of law which we did not find in our consciousness.” p246-247
“The Divine Mind imparts itself to the single person: his whole duty is to this rule and teaching. The aid which others give us is like that of the mother to the child,—temporary, gestative, a short period of lactation, a nurse’s or a governess’s care; but on his arrival at a certain maturity, it ceases, and would be hurtful and ridiculous it prolonged. Slowly the body comes to the use of its organs; slowly the soul unfolds itself in the new man.” p247
“And one sees with some pain the disuse of rites so charged with humanity and aspiration. But it by no means follows, because those offices are much disused, that the men and women are irreligious; certainly not that they have less integrity or sentiment, but only, let us hope, that they see that they can omit the form without loss of real ground; perhaps that they find some violence, some cramping of their freedom of thought, in the constant recurrence of the form.” p252
“Mankind at large always resemble frivolous children: they are impatient of thought, and wish to be amused. Truth is too simple for us; we do not like those who unmask our illusions. Fontenelle said: ‘If the Deity should lay bare to the eyes of men the secret system of Nature, the causes by which all the astronomic results are affected, and they finding no magic, no mystic numbers, no fatalities, but the greatest simplicity, I am persuaded they would not be able to suppress a feeling of mortification, and would exclaim, with disappointment, “Is that all?” ’ And so we paint over the bareness of ethics with the quaint grotesques of theology.” p253
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Jacob Fure
Apr 29, 2016Jacob Fure rated it it was amazing
Shelves: spirituality-and-philosophy
I read these essays often. It is one of the books that I continually come back to. The writing is intellectual and meditative. It always makes me have good articulate thoughts and puts me in the present moment. You really have to read it a few times to fully understand what it is saying.
My favorite essay is the one on Compensation. Fate is also really good one.
Any student of philosophy must read Emerson.
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Zoe Ann
Mar 30, 2015Zoe Ann rated it it was amazing
Shelves: american-literature
I have always loved Emerson, and this particular collection of essays is the best I've seen. It contains a wide variety of his writings over time chronicling his journey with Transcendentalism. It has become a beloved book that I will read over and over again, or grab to read snippets for inspiration or when I need some spiritual food for my mind as well as my heart and soul. (less)
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Matt Merlino
Oct 04, 2007Matt Merlino rated it really liked it
If you haven't read Emerson's essays on self reliance or commerce or any at all then put down your false modern guru hippy text nonsense secret pile of hobgoblin lore and read Emerson for the love of reason and emotion. (less)
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Himanshi Yadav
May 07, 2020Himanshi Yadav rated it it was amazing
Don’t you just love rare editions of collected works of your favourite writers especially when they have the same essays/ poems you long for in a compiled form? I do and this is hands down my favourite. I am not sure where I ordered this from back in 2017 but im so glad I did. This pocket book has probably the best essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, who is my all time favourite American philosopher. As written in the introduction, “Reading Emerson can awaken a part of the psyche that our culture has suppressed”, and to elaborate on this thought, I’d like to add that as you bring about this inner change it gets hard to believe in our ordinary selves and we transcend the barrier to discover our true human element. (less)
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Altanzul Davaa-Ochir
Sep 28, 2020Altanzul Davaa-Ochir rated it it was amazing
In this compilation of essays and lectures given by Emerson, I find myself feeling immersed by a universal force that's the truth, that which we feel every day as human beings. Emerson's thorough explanation of his point of view serves as a nice palette of refreshing perspective on how things are in their nature and how things could be.
Sometimes it can be hard to strike a balance for people who are spiritually and creatively inclined to be more of a cog in the machine that is the society, whose only expected result is undisturbed production. But in those times, reading Emerson might help you to cope better through his understanding of the nature of 'so it goes', if not provide much more than that.
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Kelly
Jan 27, 2021Kelly rated it liked it · review of another edition
“Self-Reliance” & “Success” spoke to me, but the rest of the essays seemed to be recycled ideas from eastern religion. I have heard of similar concepts already (many of us have) but I fail to see the purpose of these points! If they are indeed the truth, then what? I think we’d go on living the same way.
And well, I’m just not sure that I’m even convinced.
Emerson uses analogies and pretty prose, but I guess when it comes to spirituality, I’m more interested in evidence (even anecdotes count! People believe what they say for the most part). I’m not sure what I expected but it was mostly underwhelming.
“Self-Reliance” was pretty great though; it was rather edifying. (less)
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Michael Y.
May 07, 2022Michael Y. rated it really liked it
emerson is beautiful writer in his constant metaphors and rhetoric—he can evoke rebuttals to personal thoughts like no other can. his notion of simplicity is quintessential of the transcendentalist movement, and pretty much the antithesis to inspections into the complexities of life, or so it seems.
i cannot seem to agree with him on many of his notions though—although i try to read with an open mind, many of his concepts are simply too ignorant of life’s complexities to satisfy me. however, his perspective is one that should be utilized often. simplicity truly is the key to contentness. perhaps i will revisit this book in the future (less)
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Ben
Jun 24, 2019Ben rated it it was amazing
rousseau in blue jeans ?
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Mairi
Jul 10, 2019Mairi rated it it was amazing
It's not the easiest read but it is worth reading several times. It is very thought provoking. A few chapters of motivational, wise words that should be essential reading. (less)
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Amy
Aug 31, 2019Amy rated it it was amazing
Shelves: nonfiction
This was such a great read.
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Laura
Jan 15, 2021Laura rated it it was amazing
Sometimes very insightful, sometimes absurdly naive, sometimes purposefully blind. Tons of underlining and things I'd enjoy discussing in a book club (less)
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Elvalo
Aug 09, 2019Elvalo rated it it was amazing
That book is really cool.
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Panama Judas
Oct 22, 2015Panama Judas added it
Quite possibly the most important book I've had the pleasure of reading. Emerson's prose carries his thoughts so damn beautifully. Adorned with insight and plenty to question and consider. The spiritual writings just strolled right in to my top ten. (less)
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Mar
Jun 08, 2008Mar rated it it was amazing
if you like emerson and are interested in religion and spirituality, then this is the way to go.
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Andrew
Feb 17, 2009Andrew rated it it was amazing
one of americas finest contemplative writers. essays such as nature, self-reliance, and the over-soul are included.
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Windy
May 31, 2009Windy rated it it was ok
Shelves: own, read-in-2008
To be honest, I don't think I finished all of this book. It's just so boring! I'm sorry. I tried to make myself like it. (less)
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Pam Marcello
Jan 05, 2010Pam Marcello added it · review of another edition
"Accept the place the divine providence has found for you..." ...more
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Morning
Mar 29, 2010Morning rated it it was amazing
Another incredible read. Wow-------a weath of wisdom.
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Bill
Mar 04, 2011Bill rated it really liked it
Shelves: spirituality
This is Pilgrim at Tinker Creek x 10. Every sentence provokes insight.
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Mike
Feb 15, 2012Mike rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: favorites, 2012
Inspiring and hopeful, a look into one of the great minds of the 19th century. It is as a breath of fresh air in the smoke filled world of today. Truly, one of my all-time favorites.
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Tyler
Dec 11, 2012Tyler rated it it was amazing
Such resonant, beautiful writing. A soaring call to become more in touch with our best selves and the best of the world around us.
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Dana Reynolds
Jul 30, 2013Dana Reynolds rated it really liked it
Either one likes Emerson's writing style or one doesn't. Nevertheless, this collection is and will be frequently returned to again and again. ...more
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Cassidy Robinson
Aug 16, 2013Cassidy Robinson rated it it was amazing
read this in India, lots of great ideas
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Joshua Sundquist
Nov 30, 2016Joshua Sundquist rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Wow. Must read book. "the wisdom of the wise man consists herein, that he does not judge them; he lets them judge themselves, and merely reads and records their own verdict." (less)
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Katrinka
Nov 04, 2008Katrinka rated it really liked it
Often fantastic and inspiring pieces in this collection.
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