Neil Douglas-Klotz

"The Aramaic translations of Klotz cut through the rote and bring us to the deeper meanings of Jesus's teaching that can still touch our hearts, move our souls, and ignite our action."--Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing Neil Douglas-Klotz, bestselling author of Prayers of the Cosmos and The Hidden Gospel, brings together forty years of research to update his pioneering work on the Lord's Prayer and the Beatitudes. Through expansions of Aramaic's multiple meanings as well as guided contemplations, The Aramaic Jesus Book of Days provides a guide to transformation through the way of the prophet. It shows how the deepest teachings of Jesus address contemporary challenges, such as our relationships with nature and each other, as well as the purpose of life itself. The author shares personal relevance about how the words of Aramaic Jesus's teachings have changed his own life--his sense of love, purpose, and relationships--and more importantly, how they can heal and enliven the daily life of everyone. In short chapters, the book takes up life themes facing contemporary readers and offers meditations to address them. Each chapter is introduced with a short saying and keyword of Jesus, heard with "Aramaic ears," and then proceeds to show how this applies to a life issue today. The Aramaic Jesus Book of Days offers a unique perspective on Jesus's teachings that can help you to connect with them on a deeper level and live a more authentic, fulfilling, and compassionate life.

"Neil Douglas-Klotz has distilled his decades of rigorous scholarship, deep practice, and revolutionary insight into a potent elixir for our times." --Mirabai Starr, translator of Julian of Norwich: The Showings and author of Wild Mercy This book is an approach to Jesus's recorded words and teachings through his native language, Aramaic, answering many questions clearly and consistently, even if unexpectedly, no matter which Gospel you have in your hands. From the Introduction: "Jesus's teachings have been used historically to fuel what became modern Western culture, with all its pluses and minuses. At the same time, viewed through his native language, the same teachings provide a solution to our culture's greatest challenges, pointing the way toward a proper use of our human individuality and will." Through expansions of Aramaic's multiple meanings as well as guided contemplations, Revelations of the Aramaic Jesus provides a guide to transformation through the way of the prophet of Nazareth. It shows how Jesus's deepest teachings address contemporary challenges, such as our relationships with nature and each other, as well as the purpose of life itself. Revelations of the Aramaic Jesus is a guide to living an authentic interior life without dogma and a spiritual path that makes you more comfortable in your own, providing a sense of meaning and purpose.

Sterling's remarkable and deeply inspiring account is a real-life Meetings with Remarkable Men for the 21st century. -- G. A. Lipton - Author of Rethinking ibn Arabi This book has been in the making for nearly two decades. As my experiences multiplied over the years, I found myself sharing these experiences in gatherings - big and small - especially among the Sufi community I had been a member of for the better part of four decades. As time passed these stories became a regular feature in our annual gathering. It seemed no matter how many times I would repeat them they never lost their freshness and veracity to touch people's hearts and inspire the mind and imagination of the miraculous-ness of life and the unique gift of life's experiences we all share. As time went on the volume of stories grew. It became clear that I needed to do justice to these experiences and share them with a greater audience. This inspiration was confirmed and magnified by Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri who encouraged me to collect these stories all together and share them widely for the benefit of others that would surely be touched and inspired. It was a struggle for me to corner myself and actually write these stories down. I had been in the habit of "performing" them as is common in the Sufi tradition of oral storytelling. After much reflection I realized my reticence for writing these down was an egoic attachment to performing them, that I had become identified as a persona "Hajj Mustafa - the Sufi Storyteller." It was an ugly but needed realization which led me to put aside storytelling for a while. Overtime, with the grace of God, this inclination dissolved and replaced with a compulsion to share these stories not as an act of self-aggrandizement, but of gifts given to me with the responsibility to pass them on to others. The stories in this book are from my life's experience, but "my life" is a gift of the Life-Giver and the best one can do is get out of the way and be present in the moment as it flows through one. This is what I have attempted to do here in this book and He knows the truth of all things. I hope you in-joy these stories. ENDORSEMENTS I have respected and loved Hajj Mustafa for so many years that I cannot even count them. The quality that I have enjoyed - and know others do too - is his story-telling ability, which carries considerable meaning and always have an ever-lasting transformational effect on others. It's a rare situation to have someone who has had most of their life searching, investigating and enjoying meetings with remarkable and enlightened people. His honesty, truthfulness and courage are the outstanding qualities that will come out in most of what he is conveying in his book. This book is indeed one of the best ones in our times -- Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri - An Enlightened Spiritual Master and Author David Sterling's remarkable stories are a collection of gems that he has spent a life-time threading with the light of his soul. The reader will journey along with David, connecting one gem to the other eventually to the presence of the Source, where all gems are gathered together in one sparkling message of unity and purpose. -- Dr. Adan al-Adani - Author of Lights of Consciousness

Inspiration from wilderness mystics from around the world, including Henry David Thoreau, Bai Juyi, Rainer Maria Rilke, Lalla, Rachel Carson, John Muir, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Simone Weil, the Baal Shem Tov, Hermann Hesse, Kahlil Gibran, Emily Dickinson, Nan Shepherd, and many more. Sages and mystics throughout the centuries have sought inspiration in the wildness of nature. This little book gathers the sayings and stories of the women and men who have sunk their roots deep into inner retreat and brought forth wisdom for all times and peoples. Here we find the stories and voices of desert fathers and mothers, forest hermits, mountain mystics, wandering philosophers, and wise eccentrics who maintained their solitude while living in society and challenged the status quo with humor. From East and West and everything in between. From Christian hermits, wandering Kabbalists, itinerant Sufis, Zen practitioners, Yogis, court jesters, transcendentalists, and freethinkers, Wild Wisdom gathers a timeless harvest for spiritual renewal. By turns witty, startling, beautiful, and sublime, Wild Wisdom makes a fine companion for personal retreat, daily contemplation, or simply taking time out during a busy day.

Spectrum of Reality synthesizes a comprehensive analysis of the human condition and the way we perceive reality. Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri makes difficult concepts accessible, especially through the use of metaphors, allegories, and insights from modern science. His thesis is that human consciousness manifests in several ways across a spectrum that ranges from universal supreme consciousness to personal conditioned consciousness. It is the nature of human culture, thought and personal consciousness to continually operate in a dualistic way, so that Reality is obscured by several layers of fragmentation. The ultimate harmony of human consciousness with universal reality is the challenge of existence. Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri illustrates that we can heal the split between individual and the universal by recognising that each is essential to its different territory, and believes that 'spirit' is the causal factor from which all states arise. Adnan al Adnani, author of Lights of Consciousness: A Sufi view of Science and Spirituality"The aphorisms, precepts and commentaries presented by Shaykh Fadhlallah Haeri in his new work, Spectrum of Reality, are immensely rewarding. They provide the reader an extraordinarly insightful access into the realm of subtle meanings that underpin the outer realities; and provide not only spiritual nourishment but also an understanding of the vaster, hidden, worlds which enfold the human condition." Dr. Ali Allawi, visiting professor at the National University of Singapore and Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Professor, Oxford University and former Minister of Finance, Iraq, Author of 'The Crisis of Islamic Civilzation', & 'The Occupation of Iraq: Winning the War, Losing the Peace' "Spectrum of Reality is a true masterpiece, a life long work, and a very well written book, which is sure to satisfy all those who earnestly yearn to know and understand the actual Meaning of Life, What is the Nature of Reality? and How to Awaken to the Divine Self, that is lying latent in each human being, and waiting to be Realised. I highly recommend this significant and priceless publication for all earnest seekers who wish to understand the Real Truth of the World in which we live." Alan Jacobs, President Ramana Maharshi Foundation UK, Poet, Author of 'Poetry for the Spirit', 'The Wisdom The Native American Indians', 'When Jesus Lived in India

The stories in this book are drawn from the dozens that Douglas-Klotz has enjoyed telling in his seminars over the past 20 years. Most of them appear in works of the classical Sufis, such as Rumi, Attar, or S'adi. To preserve some of the in-person feeling and bring the language up to date, he has given them his own improvised turns." If you want to hear a good story but prefer to read it instead, then read Douglas-Klotz He writes as if he's sitting in your living room, invited over for afternoon tea to entertain you with some heart-pleasing, often humorous, yet soul-searching Sufi stories. His modernization of these old texts is gentle and mindful, yet unapologetic." --Maryam Mafi from the Foreword

The New Story about the Oldest Stories in the WorldToday apocalyptic predictions and images dominate popular culture and social media. Yet for most of our history, human consciousness focused on the mystery of beginnings, not endings. Our ancestors felt that the most powerful energy and clearest vision for the future could be found at our inception. They meditated on stories of the Great Beginning as the way to go forward. Original Meditation is two books in one. First it investigates the ancient tradition of creation mysticism and shows how Western culture became sidetracked into an increasingly narrow, apocalyptic world view. Second, it shows how we can begin to recover an authentic meditation on our shared beginnings, a meditation that can bring us into a more embodied and compassionate present. To help us on our way, Neil Douglas-Klotz offers us a living anthology of voices, from a mystical view of the first chapters of Genesis, to the Aramaic words of Jesus, to translations of mystical voices like Jelaluddin Rumi, Ibn Arabi, Meister Eckhart and the Jewish Kabbalists. Uniting the native spirituality of the Middle East with Western creation spirituality, we catch a glimpse of the life-affirming energy of "beginning-time" and experience what it means to be fully human in today's world. "After reading this very welcome resource, you will want to join Douglas-Klotz in exclaiming: "Genesis Now "--Spirituality and Health (voted one of best spiritual books of the year). "Neil Douglas-Klotz is a rare jewel; a brilliant scholar with heart whose words have the power to reconnect us with our sacred source. This is truly a book for our times.... The perfume of divine belonging rises from every page as this modern mystic skillfully guides us into the essence of the Sacred Mystery.--Dr. Joan Borysenko, author of Your Soul's Compassp "Deeply moving, compelling, and radiant with hope, the book is a living prayer that can contribute to personal and inter-religious transformation."--Mary Ford-Grabowsky, author of Sacred Voices "By the time we finish this book, we are ready and able to join body, heart, mind, and spirit into a healing wholeness-indeed, the wholeness of Creation."--Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Director of the Shalom Center, author of God Wrestling

"What you cannot learn in your own body, you can learn nowhere else."--the UpanishadsA Book of Self Re-Education is a treasure house for all who wish to explore the creative essence of life in the substances of their bodily form. Raden Ayou Jodjana (1888-1981), beloved student of the Sufi Murshid Hazrat Inayat Khan and devoted wife of Prince Raden Mas Jodjana, the great Javanese dancer, here expresses the inexpressible teaching of these two great masters in moving prose poems that are a step-by-step guide to waking up fully inside our human bodies." To give attention. It is the simplest and the purest act of love. The greatness, the joy, the rapture and the beauty of all love, depends on the intense receptivity of our attention." So open wide the whole body. Receive the incoming tide of space. Open the body from the centre. So that your whole being can absorb all that wishes to be felt and known by you, with the full and silent comprehension of love."

Heute beherrschen apokalyptischer Bilder alles -vom popul ren Film bis zur fundamentalistischen Religion. Aber das menschliche Bewusstsein wurde w hrend des gr ten Teils seiner Geschichte von der Ausrichtung auf den Anfang, nicht auf das Ende, bestimmt. Die Themen der Sch pfungsgeschichte und die damit einhergehenden lebendigen Praktiken durchziehen sowohl die hebr ische Bibel als auch die Evangelien. In der sp teren christlichen Tradition blieb die Praxis, die Sch pfungsgeschichte in sich selbst nachzuvollziehen, in den Schriften keltischer und europ ischer christlicher Mystiker wie Pelagius, Johannes Scotus Eriugena und Meister Eckhart erhalten. Die Auffassung von der Sch pfungsgeschichte als tats chlicher spiritueller Praxis nimmt auch eine zentrale Stellung sowohl in der j dischen als auch in der islamischen Mystik ein. Das Buch untersucht auch, wie die moderne westliche Welt diese lebendige Weitsicht verloren hat, und unterbreitet Vorschl ge, wie wir beginnen k nnten, sie zur ckzugewinnen. Dr. Neil Douglas-Klotz bringt dem Leser sowohl den Hintergrund als auch die Erfahrung der Urspr nglichen Meditation nahe. Sie vermag es uns eine Vision davon zu vermitteln, was es hei t, vollkommen menschlich zu sein.

Eine geheimnisvolle Welt ffnet sich: Scheinbar vertraute Worte und Botschaften des Jesus aus Nazareth werden aus seiner aram ischen Muttersprache ganz neu f r uns bersetzt. Der aram ischen Jesus redet, lehrt und verk ndet wie ein eingeborener Prophet und Mystiker der W ste. Staunend begegnen wir uralter Weisheit, erfarhen kosmische Weite, ekstatische Liebe zur Sch pfung und spirituell-k rperliche Heilung. Was dabei herauskommt, ist eine hoffnungsvolle, n hrende und sehr zeitgem e spirituelle Botschaft. Neil Douglas-Klotz' klarer Kommentar f hrt uns dazu, die alte Weisheit Jesu auf unser heutiges Leben anzuwenden. Jedes Kapitel enth lt meditative bungen und K rpergebete, damit wir die lebensver ndernde geistliche Praxis der urspr nglichen mystischen Tradition Jesu direkt erleben k nnen." Dieses Buch ist ein Geschenk an alle, die in den Geist des historischen Jesus und des mystischen Christus eintreten wollen. Indem sie die Menschen in Jesu Land und ihrer poetischen Sprache ehrt, bringt sie ein notwendiges Gleichgewicht in die historische Jesusbewegung. Sie macht starre und dualistische bersetzungen der christlichen Schriften r ckg ngig und weckt so die Frohe Botschaft, die nach all den Jahrhunderten immer noch eine Botschaft ist, auf, fordert und erneuert sie."--Dr Matthew Fox, Autorin von Original Blessing and The Coming of the Cosmic Christ. Dr. Neil Douglas-Klotz ist ein international bekannter Theologe und Psychologe, Autor der B cher Das Vaterunser, Segen aus dem Kosmos, Die Urspr ngliche Meditation und Sufibuch des Lebens. In seiner Arbeit vers hnt er die aram isch-christliche, j disch-mystische und sufistische Tradition. Regelm ssige Kurse und Workshops im deutschsprachigen Raum. Er wohnt in Schottland.

"...gripping...mesmerizingly real...." Kirkus Reviews First century CE, Roman Palestine: Yehuda Tauma believes he's found his lucky break when he finds a valuable pearl on the floor of the temple of Jerusalem where he works as a scribe. Convinced that his position at the temple only serves to maintain the network of corruption and greed that he eschews, Yehuda and his bodyguard Ioannis set out for a new life in Damascus. But when they come upon the body of Yehuda's adopted father and mentor outside the village of Armageddon, Yehuda vows to find the killer and uncover the reason he was killed. Ever loyal, Ioannis promises to accompany Yehuda on his avenging mission. As the two men search for the killer, they meet surprising allies and treacherous adversaries along the way. Yehuda and Ioannis must unravel the intricate secret messages and visionary clues left behind by the dead man-while trying to stay alive themselves. Renegade scribes, revolutionary cells, temple spies, oppressive tyrants, and visionary prophets and priestesses collide in this mystery of the volatile first century in the Middle East. "The mystery itself is gripping enough-unfurling slowly, tantalizingly-but the history provided as a backdrop to the fictional narrative is mesmerizingly real.--Kirkus Reviews " a] subtle blend of genres with mystic elements...the 'whodunit' storyline and some well-chosen characters keep the book entertaining and very enjoyable...reads very easily for such an intellectually stimulating novel."--Historical Novel Society

Part oracle, part meditation book, and part Aladdin's cave of Middle Eastern myth and sacred story, Desert Wisdom offers a fresh way to hear the ancient visionary voices of the Middle East that generated three (or more) of the world's great religions. Renowned Sufi scholar and teacher Neil Douglas-Klotz, author of The Sufi Book of Life and Prayers of the Cosmos, has revisioned his acclaimed 1995 classic for the 21st century. Praised by scientists, poets and mystics alike for its ecological approach to "hearing" the native wisdom of the Middle East on its own terms, Desert Wisdom takes us on a journey from ancient Egypt throughout the Middle East to Sufi poets like Rumi and Hafiz. In between, we spend time hearing Genesis the way a storyteller might have told it and sit at the feet of the Aramaic-speaking prophet, Yeshua of Nazareth. Through it all, Desert Wisdom presents us with ancient wisdom about life's biggest questions like: Why am I here? Who am I? And how do I love? "Middle Eastern enchantment for the soul. Bravo " --Fred Alan Wolf, Ph. D., featured in the film "What the Bleep Do We Know?" "Read this book aloud. Let the sounds wrap around your heart. These are translations so unhampered by reduction, stiffness and religiosity that the modern window opens quiet on the ancient garden." --Carolyn McVickar Edwards, Author of The Storyteller's Goddess "A prophetic and mystical accomplishment of the first order " --Dr. Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing and The Reinvention of Work "Open the book anywhere, and you will discover delightful inner openings and insights." --Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, author of Sufi Links and Spectrum of Reality Already have the first (1995) edition? What's New in Desert Wisdom 2.0: *Seven new translations from the Aramaic words of Jesus. *Ten new translations from the Hebrew (Genesis, Zohar and Dead Sea Scrolls). *Three new translations from the Qur'an. *Book reorganized for better use as an oracle in a similar format to The Sufi Book of Life. *Meditations rewritten and keyed to "Life's Big Questions." *All notes and commentary revised and updated. *New "Quick Start Guide" and Preface. *Complete indexes to meditations and textual strands, plus a new general index *Plus: all translations from the first edition revised and updated, with improved transliteration of original texts.

Jesus sprach das Vaterunser auf Aramäisch. Aus dieser bildreichen Sprache hat Neil Douglas-Klotz das Jesusgebet neu übersetzt. Seine zusammengestellten Meditationen und Körperübungen lassen sich leicht und alltagstauglich umsetzen. Das Buch präsentiert eine neue, zeitgemäße Methode, um die verborgene Tiefe eines der bedeutendsten abendländischen Gebete zu erfahren.

Furnishing meditations on the ninety-nine Qualities of Unity, this reflective handbook explains how to apply Sufi principles to the challenges of modern life, with inspirational commentary on each quality and its relationship to contemporary concerns, along with timeless wisdom from the Sufi masters, stories, lore, and poetry. Original.

Finally, Jesus' own words! New translations from his native language with meditations & body prayers to begin the way of spiritual change he originally taught.