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Best Sikhism

1 & 2 Timothy, Titus
Most Bible commentaries take us on a one-way trip from the twentieth century to the first century. Walter L. Liefeld (Ph.D. Columbia and Union) is distinguished professor emeritus of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and is the author of The Expositor’s Bible Commentary on Luke, Interpreting the Book of Acts, New Testament Exposition, and the IVP New Testament Commentary on Ephesians.
Reviews
"Very insightful and easy to understand."
"Have purchased about 6 books in this series and I really enjoy using for my sermon prep."
"Exactly what I was looking for...in the exact shape as advertised."
"Just started to read it."
"Part of a very applicable and easy to use commentary."
"Once again, excellent application of Scripture in this series."
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Kundalini Yoga: The Flow of Eternal Power: A Simple Guide to the Yoga of Awareness as taught by Yogi Bhajan, Ph.D.
This definitive guide, fully illustrated with photographs, is an accessible introduction to the ancient practice of Kundalini yoga, with information on poses and positions, diet and lifestyle, breathing and stretching techniques, chanting and meditation exercises, and general guidelines that can help anyone—beginner or advanced—gain the greatest benefit from the practice of yoga. Kundalini Yoga: A Simple Guide to the Yoga of Awareness is an introduction to living your life with more awareness and spirituality, as well as a guide to the principles of this form of yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan, the author's teacher.
Reviews
"As someone that regular lifts weights, plays sports, and throws kettle bells around, this book gives exercises which provide recovery and improved flexibility."
"simple easy recipes and great instructions for heart opening easy meditation."
"I went to Kundalini yoga classes for 7 years and since my teacher went away I have missed it so much."
"It would probably also be a good book to read if you are considering kundalini yoga, but want to see exactly what it is and what the philosophy behind kundalini yoga considers."
"the directions for the asanas are clearly given, and the sketches are definitely contributory!"
"The book itself..."
"Great book for all the essentials for the beginner in Kundalini."
"Really good book with Kundalini techniques."
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God Is Not Great
God Is Not Great is the ultimate case against religion. All the same, this is salutary reading as a means of culling believers' weaker arguments: that faith offers comfort (false comfort is none at all), or has provided a historical hedge against fascism (it mostly hasn't), or that "Eastern" religions are better (nope). Sam Harris' The End of Faith (2005) and Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion (2006) have questioned the existence of any spiritual being and met with enormous success. Replace religious faith with inquiry, open-mindedness, and the pursuit of ideas, he exhorts. Religious faith, he asserts, is both result and cause of dangerous sexual repression. Believers will be disturbed and may even charge him with blasphemy (he questions not only the virgin birth but the very existence of Jesus), and he may not change many minds, but he offers the open-minded plenty to think about.
Reviews
"It's not easy reading, but there are great points that I've not considered before."
"It is a good book but it is pretty much a rant."
"Christopher Hitchens lays out numerous clear arguments supported by history and logic why religion is a negative force in our world."
"This is an extremely well-written deconstruction of popular myths about religion, the main one being that it provides a solid "moral foundation" for believers."
"Hitchens is articulate, rational in his arguments, and his points are very compelling."
"Makes a good case for organized religion doing more harm than good."
"Unfortunetely the writer is not with us anymore."
"I found it by watching various debates on religion on youtube and I must say that Hitchens writes as he speaks - eloquently and convincingly."
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Best Islamic Shi'ism

After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam
Even as Muhammad lay dying, the battle over who would take control of the new Islamic nation had begun, beginning a succession crisis marked by power grabs, assassination, political intrigue, and passionate faith. Pitting the family of his favorite wife, the controversial Aisha, against supporters of his son-in-law, the philosopher-warrior Ali, the struggle would reach its breaking point fifty years later in Iraq, when soldiers of the first Sunni dynasty massacred seventy-two warriors led by Muhammad's grandson Hussein at Karbala. Balancing past and present, she shows how these seventh-century events are as alive in Middle Eastern hearts and minds today as though they had just happened, shaping modern headlines from Iran's Islamic Revolution to the civil war in Iraq. It began with a question asked after a particularly ghastly suicide bombing in Iraq: "How come Muhammad, the prophet of unity who spoke of one people and one God, left behind him this terrible, unending, bloody legacy of division between Sunni and Shia?" The subject was all the more irresistible to me personally since it brings together many of my deepest interests: the interplay of religion and politics, more intricately intertwined in the Middle East than anywhere else in the world; my own experience living in and reporting from the Middle East for Time magazine and other publications; my affinity for narrative nonfiction and for tracing the interplay of past and present; and my original training as a psychologist, which comes into play as I explore the story, the way it has endured, and how it is used today in politics, society, spiritual life, and, too often, war. I could almost imagine that if all this had only been better known in the West, American troops would never have been sent within a hundred miles of Iraqi holy cities like Najaf and Karbala, which figure in it so largely, and that we would never have tried to intervene in an argument fueled by such a volatile blend of emotion, religion, and politics. In the end, I will be happy if readers simply turn over the last page and breathe out the words I found myself saying again and again as my research deepened, and that seem to me an entirely appropriate response to a story of this power: "Oh my God..." --Lesley Hazleton.
Reviews
"I wonder if one can trust so much in a source that seems almost 'partisan' to one of the branches of Islam..., although I can only say, it is inviting to keep reading and searching for other opinions."
"Probably better than many devote Moslems would because the are simply too close to the subject matter and the figures involved are "larger than life"."
"Did not know much of the history after the death of Prophet Muhammad SAW so this narrative was very enlightening."
"Good, simple, short and to the point not 100% accurate but still worth reading."
"Quite objective."
"Heavily sourced and well researched, I caught myself thinking "oh I need that book, and that one, and that one.""
"This historical narrative conveys the complex nature of familial and religious ties in the 7th Century developing Islamic world in an easily understood manner."
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Best Children's Around the World Books

Children Just Like Me: Celebrations!
For 12 months, Barnabas and Anabel traveled around the world, meeting children and talking to them about the celebrations and festivals they enjoy. Grade 2-6?A rich, multicultural look at holidays around the world.
Reviews
"I truly believe this book was part of that early inspiration. Can't wait to see their eyes light up the way my girls did!"
"The pictures an information in this book are amazing."
"My grandson has a birthday coming up and will give him the same book with pages all about him at the end."
"My mom bought me this book when I was young, only 8 or 9 years old - it was FASCINATING, just a wonderful look into the lives of all these children - even though their lives are VASTLY different from each others, the same questions applied and it was just so interesting seeing how they write their name, who their best friends are, their favorite toys, their favorite food."
"Sweet little book from DK with the quality and whimsical fun you'd expect from their fine publication house."
"Ties in nicely with my "UNDERSTANDING ALL KIDZ CULTURES TEACHING UNIT" . .. CREATIVE DISCOVERY LEARNING APPROACHES helping kidz use their MULTI ~ Intelligences and various hands-on senses ."
"LOVE this book!"
"There is a set of "tin children" from the book available that really looks like the childrent in the book."
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Best Shintoism

The Invention of Religion in Japan
In this book, Jason Ānanda Josephson reveals how Japanese officials invented religion in Japan and traces the sweeping intellectual, legal, and cultural changes that followed. Josephson argues that the invention of religion in Japan was a politically charged, boundary-drawing exercise that not only extensively reclassified the inherited materials of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shinto to lasting effect, but also reshaped, in subtle but significant ways, our own formulation of the concept of religion today. " The. Invention of Religion in Japan is truly revolutionary. “Jason ­Ananda Josephson astutely analyzes how Japanese definitions of religion sought to contain Christian missionary agendas and to position Japan advantageously vis-à-vis Western nations while at the same time radically reconfiguring inherited traditions and articulating new ideological norms for Japanese citizens. This study is illuminating reading for anyone interested, not only in modern Japan, but in the complex interconnections of religion, modernity, and the politics of nation states.” ( Jacqueline Stone, Princeton University ). “Written with remarkable clarity, this book makes an excellent contribution to the study of the interface of traditional Japanese religions and politics. Josephson has used well-documented examples of the creation of various Japanese belief systems in the modern era to suggest a new model for understanding the colonial past of religious studies and to provide new tools and models for grappling with continuing change in religious studies theory. “Jason Ananda Josephson’s book on the ‘invention of religion’ is an informative, well-argued, and stimulating discussion of an important topic that should be fascinating to anyone interested in religion in modern Japan or religion in any historical or cultural context.”-Paul L. Swanson | International Bulletin of Missionary Research. “Jason Josephson’s The Invention of Religion in Japan offers a creative theoretical apparatus that many students of Japanese religion and history will find immediately useful. Josephson upends the familiar Saidian account of Europe’s masterful encounter with the passive ‘Orient,’ showing that Japanese interpreters played active roles in formulating European understandings of the new academic field of ‘Japanese religions.’”-Religious Studies in Japan. “Josephson admirably traces the development of ‘religion’ in Japan and the West, and he constantly reminds of how this invention was inextricably interwoven with international politics and diplomatic relationships. Josephson presents a sophisticated analysis of the invention of religion in Japan by applying theoretically and empirically based explanations that rely on primary source data in multiple languages to contest previous notions of ‘religion’ and assumptions within the academic study of religion. In that respect, The Invention of Religion in Japan can help scholars of religions in Japan and elsewhere continue to refine and shape our understanding of ‘religion’ in modernity.”-Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. Readers who are not Japan specialists will find the issues framed by interesting anecdotes and well-chosen historical information.”-Journal of Religion in Japan. “The book is a linguistic and textual tour de force that challenges many preconceptions about the development of studies of religion in Japan as well as about religion as a defined, or definable, category in Japanese contexts. Its thesis, that “religion” as a conceptual category did not exist prior to Western incursions into Meiji Japan and that it thus needed to be invented by the Japanese, is argued convincingly and will make many who have held alternative viewpoints think again. One hopes very much that people outside of religious studies do not look at Josephson’s title and think this is a book solely about religion. “Theoretically sophisticated and intellectually ambitious, Josephson’s book challenges the long-held assumption that religion is a universal component of human experience….Josephson’s work is a skillful exercise in semiotic analysis, drawing on sources in Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, French, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Spanish, and Italian, and it illuminates the role of the Japanese as observers of the West, not merely as objects of Western observation….In this way, Josephson uses the transnational approach not only to revise a long-standing problem in Japanese historiography but also to deconstruct hegemonic Western concepts.”-Cross-Currents. “Josephson weaves together a fresh narrative of Japanese nation-building in its relation to religion. [Josephson] does a brilliant job in showing how ‘religion’ was used by state officials, scientists, and other protagonists in late 19th-century Japan as exactly what it is: a free-floating signifier with a strong discursive force that can be of great use for different processes of negotiation and naturalization.”-Inken Prohl | Religion. “The book brilliantly weaves two genealogies of scholarship, making it deeply interesting to students of either one: studies examining the construction of State Shinto in the Meiji period as a nonreligious expression of modern Japanese identity with a generation of critical scholarship on the academic study of religion. [Josephson] has produced an elegant argument that religion (including its co-products, the secular and the superstitious) was not so much imposed on Japan, but rather, in the discursive gap created by Western missionary and diplomatic incursions, invented in Japan by the Japanese to serve the late nineteenth-century modernization project. Josephson sheds much light on how the Western category of religion was adapted, interpreted, and transformed in Japan at the turn of the twentieth century. “Josephson’s investigation of the category of religion as it developed in modern Japan is a helpful addition to the field, and, to be honest, I have already begun assigning it in seminars. This book [will be] useful in comparative and theoretical courses on religion and will no doubt appeal to anyone studying Japanese religions and Japanese history.
Reviews
"He told me that it opens new territory in the understanding of the development of Buddhism in Japan and the effects of the intersection with Christianity on both the Japanese and Europeans who brought Christianity to Japan."
"I highly recommend this book to undergrads considering a religion major, as well as people who want a summary of various topics related to the formation of the religious category in Japan."
"Josephson makes a profound argument about the nature of the category of religion through a detailed examination of how that category was formulated in Japan following Japan's encounter with The West."
"This is an excellent overview of the history of State Shinto and its development as a tool both for control and for adaptation to international assumptions about religion."
"Wonderful dissection of what is science, religion, and how they interweave."
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Best Jainism

A Treasury of Jewish Quotations
For more than forty years Dr. Joseph L. Baron, the eminent Jewish scholar, gathered material for this work, mining all the great treasuries of classic Jewish literature. Joseph L. Baron was a reform Rabbi who served at the Temple Emanu-El B'ne Jeshurun in Milwaukee from 1926 to 1960.
Reviews
"And they come from such diverse sources as the Bible to works of the 20th century, from prophets, philosophers, educators, statesmen, rabbis, novelists. But since the compiler, an eminent Jewish scholar, spent 40 years compiling these sayings, I can spend a few more months digesting them."
"To express it in a simple form, this book is a must for everyone interested in philosophy, ethics and what the jews have said about diverse themes throughout history."
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Best Taoism

Change Your Thoughts - Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao
In this book, Dr. Wayne W. Dyer has reviewed hundreds of translations of the Tao Te Ching and has written 81 distinct essays on how to apply the ancient wisdom of Lao-tzu to today’s modern world. Some of the chapter titles are “Living with Flexibility,” “Living Without Enemies,” and “Living by Letting Go.” Each of the 81 brief chapters focuses on living the Tao and concludes with a section called “Doing the Tao Now.”. His books Manifest Your Destiny, Wisdom of the Ages, There’s a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem, and the New York Times bestsellers 10 Secrets for Success and Inner Peace, The Power of Intention, Inspiration, Change Your Thoughts—Change Your Life, Excuses Begone!, Wishes Fulfilled, and I Can See Clearly Now were all featured as National Public Television specials.
Reviews
"VERY inspiring... Read it slowly and carefully..."
"I was not familiar with the author or the associated book, but I ordered this calendar because I thought the images looked great and I wanted to find a calendar that had some kind of interesting content with each month. The back of the calendar also gives a listing of the same holidays with the dates they occured on in 2009, a miniature of the final four months of 2009, and a small layout of the 2011 months."
"I am learning stuff and Wayne Dyer's voice calmly puts me to sleep."
"The first self-help book I ever read was by Wayne Dyer."
"What can I say its Dr. Wayne Dyer?"
"This man has always been one of my favorites since he first began writing."
"Or in my case, basic principles and concepts for review and meditation every day, even if heard before."
"Great read!"
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Best Confucianism

A Guide to Elegance: For Every Woman Who Wants to Be Well and Properly Dressed on All Occasions
The original What Not to Wear from one of fashion's. most enduringly. stylish women ... Madame Genevieve Antoine Dariaux spent most of her life in Paris, and now lives in the south of France.
Reviews
"Some of the fashion advice is a little dated, but her overall approach to life is worth incorporating into your own."
"I found much of the advise in this book very well thought out, including how to dress for one's shape in the easiest and simple way."
"Boujie."
"Great read, a bit out of date in some things as it is written in the 60's but in has great style has no time."
"I use it all the time for checking just to make sure I look my best before walking out the door."
"It's fun to read this book."
"Very good tips for elegance."
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Best Karma Buddhism

Astrology/Karma & Transformation 2nd Ed
Especially emphasizing the transformative and karmic significance of Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, this book places all astrological techniques in a growth-oriented perspective. Regarding his written works, the Library Journal stated: "The simplicity and clarity of his treatment of complex ideas is remarkable; it makes accessible even to the beginner a wealth of understanding....giving meaningful psychological grounding to astrological interpretation.
Reviews
"I rate it as an excellent book for all the details and explanations that the author provides."
"This book takes a positive, helpful view of the topic of karma as it can be understood through astrology."
"Exceeded my expectations, here is the book whereby one comes to understand the inner secrets of all life!"
"As with all of Arroyo's books, this one takes Astrology to another level."
"Arroyo is a great teacher of astrology."
"great read!"
"Fresh and well thought out."
"Perfect for those ready to grow beyond beginning astrology."
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Best Zoroastrianism

In Search of Zarathustra: Across Iran and Central Asia to Find the World's First Prophet
Following Zarathustra’s elusive trail back through time and across the Islamic, Christian, and Jewish worlds, Paul Kriwaczek uncovers his legacy at a wedding ceremony in present-day Central Asia, in the Cathar heresy of medieval France, and among the mystery cults of the Roman empire. “Fascinating. One vacillates between wonder at the story told and admiration at the genial intellectual virtuosity of the storyteller. A delight.” — Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. “Vital. Remarkable. Artfully reveals the Zarathustian hinges of Iranian culture. [It] is written with the prescient elegance of a curious traveler and in the hope that ideas that once changed the world may do so again.” — Boston Review.
Reviews
"The books takes you though each of the powerful Zoroastrian dynasties of the Persian Empire, and explains how the religion itself morphed over time during those centuries. The news these days would have you believe that the Iranians and Israelites are mortal enemies; however, there is a rich, shared past between these two cultures."
"Good info on a largely forgotten religion."
"A great journey that helped me learn my origins."
"It widen the knowledge and opens the door toward a rich and alive past that made part of what the world is today."
"Kriwaczek is a grand old traveler, following the tracks of a tradition across the world, generally spiraling backward toward the original source of all our major monotheistic beliefs -- God and the devil, heaven and hell, the messiah and the day of judgement -- in the first Zoroastrians."
"I suppose if you know absolutely nothing about Zarathustra, you might find this book sort of interesting (although you will be getting some truly bad history), but if you have even a Wikipedia level understanding of the subject, it will probably be a frustrating waste of time. He retells information he gets from a cab driver, a tour guide, and some guy who he was standing next to at an archeological site. He makes it sound like he's on a mystical journey, but he's just staying in hotels, taking cabs, and looking at tourist sites. And if you know anything about Zoroastrianism and have wondered about it's influence on our beliefs today, you might have a good idea of the first place to investigate: The Babylonian captivity of the Jews and their restoration to Jeruselem by Cyrus the Great of the Persians."
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Best Tao Te Ching

Tao Te Ching
Lao-tzu's Tao Te Ching, or Book of the Way, is the classic manual on the art of living, and one of the wonders of the world. Text: English (translation). Original Language: Chinese. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Reviews
"Get this book, make some tea, turn of the incessant rattlings in your brain and the screens in your home and relax to ancient wisdom that has influenced millions of hearts and minds for thousands of years..."
"I felt the digital version was hard to read."
"Anyone who's looked at the original Chinese characters knows that it's tough to literally translate into English - many connectives we use to make things flow are just not present in the Chinese. Where other translations can be bogged down with frilly adjectives and add-ons, this one strips itself down to the bare essentials - not only approaching the spareness of the original, but also the theme - 'ten thousand things' are 9,999 too many!"
"It's been said that this is the best translation of Lao Tzu's Tao Teh Ching, though I cannot attest to the validity of the statement I can say that of the few translations that I have read this has been the most easy to understand and the most enjoyable."
"if you want to read the original this is a fine translation."
"More than happy to see an edition of Tao Te Ching that was my first exposure to the material."
"Stephen Mitchell really brings this work to relevance and I'd strongly recommend it to anyone looking to work in any leadership position."
"Since I practically have Mitchell's translation memorized, it is fun to have a new translation which is simple and understandable."
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Best Tibetan Book of the Dead

The Tibetan Book of the Dead: First Complete Translation (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
The first complete translation of a classic Buddhist text on the journey through living and dying Graced with opening words by His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the Penguin Deluxe Edition of The Tibetan Book of the Dead is "immaculately rendered in an English both graceful and precise." Profound and unique, it is one of the great treasures of wisdom in the spiritual heritage of humanity. (Sogyal Rinpoche, author of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying ). a voyage inside the profound imagination of a people, immaculately rendered in an English both graceful and precise. I hope that the profound insights contained in this work will be a source of inspiration and support to many interested people around the world.
Reviews
"I have been a voracious reader all my life, and have been exposed to thousands of pages of literature from countless brilliant minds; my advice to those of my ilk: read this book and be amazed at the complexity of it."
"Good resource book."
"Cleared up a lot of questions for me and help me verify and correlate certain information important to me."
"Great book for understanding the process of exiting physical body, the between state and helps in healing process for the closed relatives of people who died."
"A great book."
"Good translation and color photo pages are lovely."
"everything about this book is awesome."
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