Clarification

Thanks for the question, Terry. I had to think about it for a few days. Here are my choices at this moment. Another day, another list might materialize.

Autobiography of a Yoga, by Paramahansa Yogananda, the book that opened my eyes to the spirituality of the East; a life-changer for me

I and Thou, a classic of Western spirituality, Martin Buber’s unforgettable exploration of intimate, compassionate relationship with the other and with the divine

Without Buddha I Couldn’t Be a Christian, theologian Paul Knitter’s stirring account of his own faith-crisis, and how Buddhist insights led him to a more person-centered Christianity

The Mystic Heart, Wayne Teasdale’s wonderful presentation of the masterful concept of interspirituality

Christians and Religious Pluralism, Alan Race’s now-essential introduction of three modes of interaction between religions: Exclusivism, Inclusivism, and Pluralism

The Tao of Physics, Fritjof Capra’s groundbreaking glimpse of some of the parallels between modern physics and eastern philosophy; one of the inspirations for my doctoral dissertation, “The Eye of the Triangle,” on parallels between the Buddhist philosophy of interdependence and the new physics

Vimalakirti Sutra, the historic Buddhist text of the householder Bodhisattva, who surpasses monks and sages in wisdom and compassion; a beloved spiritual text in Eastern Buddhism; see the translation by Robert Thurman, Uma’s dad

Gandhyvyuha Sutra, a classic Sanskrit work, which forms the 39th chapter of the massive Avatamsaka Sutra—the greatest Buddhist exposition of interdependence—was one of the key texts of my own graduate study; a wonderful account of the spiritual journey of the seeker Sudhana and what he learns from over 50 Bodhisattvas—“enlightening beings.”

The Book of Rumi, the Islamic scholar and Sufi master’s stories of the spiritual dimensions of everyday life; Rumi happens to be the best selling poet in the U.S.

I Ching, especially in the Bollingen translation, with its amazing foreword by Carl Jung, this revered compendium of centuries of Chinese spiritual wisdom is so much more than the “book of divination” that it is usually taken to be.