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Summary: The summit of Christian Neoplatonism
Review: Eckhart was,among others, progenitor of western dialectics and mystical tradition. Neoplatonism, contrary to Aristotle's thought, was a liberating movement during late Middle Ages (I'm not talking about the formative period of Christianity)and the Renaissance, leading to advancement both in philosophy, arts and science.It wasn't for nothing that scientific discoveries ran parallel with attacks on St.Thomas Aquinas,the symbol of dilapidated Aristotelian metaphysics ( although, as a Dominican, Eckhart remaind superficially a faithful Thomist). As for his spiritual doctrine, it can be briefly summarized: For occidental view man is a body-soul-spirit compound (in medieval psychology vegetative, animal and rational soul comprise psyche, while intellect-spirit is immortal "part" of God in man). Or, in words of Eckhart, you have "scintilla animae" or spark of the soul where is the conjunction between man's soul and Christ-Son of God.Christ is Logos, God in manifestation, so the ultimate destiny is to rekindle the spark of soul into the flame of unity with God-and that's it.This is non-orthodox Christian spiritual psychology).St.Paul's words "Christ liveth in me" are interpreted that Christ-Logos- Son of God somehow replaces "old" psyche and the new man is born-hence spiritual resurrection.This is not Jesus Christ from the Gospels (in this case you would have a possession, something detestable ), but Christ-Logos, the ground of every man's soul.With this Eckhartian "quaternity" 1.Anima/soul 2.imago Dei/scintilla animae waiting for awakening 3.Inner Christ, the Son 4.God, the manifest aspect of Godhead the late medieval metaphysics had come to its spiritual summit.
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Summary: Good introduction to Meister Eckhart.
Review: Meister Eckhart has become one of my favourites, and this is the book that introduced me to his work. If you're interested in his writings, this is a good place to start. Although I found some parts of the book very difficult at first, when I read through them again many months later they started to make more and more sense. One must learn to read Eckhart properly, or he is very easily misunderstood. He expresses perfectly orthodox ideas in very unorthodox ways, throwing all concern with theological precision to the wind. Reading his work can be very refreshing, once one learns to read it properly. If you're looking for more, I recommend College and McGinn's 'Meister Eckhart: The Essential Sermons, Commentaries, Treatises, and Defense.'
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Summary: Stammering about what has to be experienced
Review: One of the problems of a mystical experience is that you are probably writing about what has to be directly experienced. As Eckhart says, "anything we say of him (God) is bound to be stammering". Logic and scholastic experience cannot be used to dissect his writing. Eckhart uses metaphors, to give sign posts that hint at a deeper experience. There are paradoxical statements "If I am empty, God, of his very nature is obliged to give himself to me to fill me". We may think of denying ourselves as a commandment, but for Eckhart it is a reward. There are statements that seemed heretical to the church at the time like "To seek God by rituals is to get ritual and lose God in the process". I cannot claim to understand Eckhart completely, for example the difference between God and Godhead, but this small book warrants future readings.
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Summary: Stammering about what has to be experienced
Review: One of the problems of a mystical experience is that you are probably writing about what has to be directly experienced. As Eckhart says, "anything we say of him (God) is bound to be stammering". Logic and scholastic experience cannot be used to dissect his writing. Eckhart uses metaphors, to give sign posts that hint at a deeper experience. There are paradoxical statements "If I am empty, God, of his very nature is obliged to give himself to me to fill me". We may think of denying ourselves as a commandment, but for Eckhart it is a reward. There are statements that seemed heretical to the church at the time like "To seek God by rituals is to get ritual and lose God in the process". I cannot claim to understand Eckhart completely, for example the difference between God and Godhead, but this small book warrants future readings.
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Summary: How can one be one's own child, mother, and midwife?
Review: The author - David Steindl-Rast, O.S.B. - has provided the novice apsirant to essential knowing and being a beginners guide, or introduction of sorts, to one of the most simple, yet difficult and profound bodies of 'mystical' ways and means . . . the way of dissolving the self, and the means of birthing God in the ground of the soul.
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Summary: A beautiful book!
Review: This little book has become my favorite edition of Eckhart's writings. It's a beautiful collection of spiritual counsel and insight into the soul's relationship with God. Drawn primarily from his German sermons and letters, the langauge is more direct and less technical than in his Latin treatises, and more practical in orientation -- these are primarily his writings on the spiritual life, rather than his more complicated theological treatises. Amazingly profound, powerful, and fresh in the way he writes about the mystical experience that transcends all language. There are passages that are pure poetry. I had to buy copies for all my friends. If you like this book, you might also try the poems of Angelus Silesius and, more recently, Frithjof Schuon.
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