What book or books have been the most inspirational in your life?

Similar questions: book books inspirational life.

Homer's Iliad has a lot of things to say about human life in all times and places as does Greek Philosopher Epicurus I'm just reading this amazing edition of the Iliad I bought online. It was first sold in a bookshop in Jackson Missippi and in the original Greek wth a word by word English translation. I loved this when I was about 11, now I'm I'm somewhat older it has gained in significance.E.g.

Homer's gods carouse, have sex and set the dinner table at a roar with jokes etc. , all intercutting with the war on the Trojan plane below them which they regard with changing degrees of interest or indifference. The gods also sleep, even Father Zeus, which shows a degree of lack of involvement with the earth below. He sends for a dream, instructing the dream to lie to King Agamemnon, so as to draw him into a military disaster.

You know this thing people say when they become ill with lung cancer, when they never smoked etc. , and invoke some kind of sense of frustrated justice."It's not fair. Why me? " In Homer, people pray to the gods, honour the gods but bad things happen to them still, as the gods just don't like them very much, or just aren't interested in them.

Now this is a religion with, perhaps, a degree of realism attached to it. When someone is killed in battle, Homer sometimes describes the person's entire life and how they kept to all the rules, how his father was a good man who offered hospitality to all (a key precept of virtue in Ancient Greece) and then he describes the victim 'biting the cold bronze' and his' armour clattered upon him. ' Ie and a fat lot of good it did him.

When I used to sit in Church I used to think about the various philosophical options available between theism and atheism. The general idea we were offered was: 1) God exists and 2) is interested in your observation of his rules and acts as a moral agent, punishing you, etc.3) rewards you with life after death. -but you could have 1) without 2 and 3.

God could exist but just not care about you, or anyone or anything. This is the position of the Greek Philosopher Epicurus interestingly, though put more tactfully as the gods being perfect and distant are caught up endlessly within the calm and distance of their own perfection. I went to a site of one of his cities in Turkey, which would have been Ionia for him.

There were cities that were like giant communes of people devoted to him for over 400 years. He thought that the conditions for a happy life involved being free of debt, as you could not be happy if you were not economically independent. All round the market place were inscriptions saying things like 'Are you sure you truly want what is on sale here?' Can you imagine this on billboards in New York?

'Are you aware that a love of material things could enslave you to debt? ' etc.If you are interested in learning, or reactivating your Greek, the word to put in your search engine is 'interlinear' as well as 'Greek. ' If you are interested in reading the New Testament in the original there is a very reasonable interlinear Greek translation at Amazon.com.

Thanks for your interest!.

The Holy Qur'an is the most book that has been most inspirational in my life. In addition to the amazing set of verses contain scientific facts that have been discovered ages after the descendence of ther Qur'an such as the embreyonic development, barriers between meeting seas, intrecate details about a lot of insects, etc..., the Qur'an contains a lot of wisdom in it. The more I contemplate about issues in this amazing Holy book, the more I see perfectionism and an unlimited link of reasons that no human can come up with.In my point of view, it's a book of infinite wisdom.

I hope to get to know it by heart one day and to learn everything about ir inside out.

I'll named two.. Johnny Got s Gun: It is a brutal story and a psychological/characterization masterpiece with strong anti-war undertones. While the author wasn’t outright anti-war - he definitely wanted the price of war to be known. The forward to one of his books talks about the tonnage of death : "An equation: 40,000 dead young men = 3,000 tons of bone and flesh, 124,000 pounds of brain matter, 50,000 gallons of blood, 1,840,000 years of life that will never be lived, 100,000 children who will never be born."

The book was the beginning of an awakening in me of sorts. I read it when I was 14 or 15 and it definitely got me thinking about the human aspect of war - something - that was very clear to my parents (many of the young men from my mom and dad’s neighborhood died in Vietnam. It got me asking questions - and wanting to understand the true causes and reasons for us to want to kill one another.

Waiting for Godot: This isn’t a novel - it’s a play by Beckett and is a fantastic journey into the absurdity of existence. I am quite surprised this book is not protested more considering the deep anti-religious subject matter. In a way.. reading Godot was like coming home.It clicked with me.. the entire scene - the conveyance not just through the subject but through the silence and pauses and banality of it all.

The interconnections can seem boring and confusing yet interesting and familiar. Even reading it my first time - I understood the basic intention and themes while not truly grasping the subtle nuances. Lucky’s rant is an idea shaper all unto itself.

I revisit Godot from time to time.. to see how I’ve change.. to see where I am in relation to that place. It is - a measure - if you will.It was extremely uncomfortable at first.. because it was a form of validation. Yes.

Waiting for Godot validated my views of the world while not spoon feeding me what to think.It is largely interpretive yet undeniable in its larger themes. It opened my mind to truly rally against oppressive structures. I think I intellectually became a man shortly after reading Waiting for Godot and acted as a doorway to other Beckett works... Beckett has been my most influential author... --------------------- Honorable Mentions got to : The Art of War : Sun Tzu A Brave New World: Aldous Huxley The Society of the Spectacle : Guy Debord Sources: My Life .

2 powerful books for you... But, I warn you..."inspirational" isn’t always "feel good". For me it is also a discovery. It can bring tears.

Here are two of the most inspirational and influential books I have read. I am not including Scripture here. The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness (Newly Expanded Paperback Edition) by Simon Wiesenthal."Author Simon Wiesenthal recalls his demoralizing life in a concentration camp and his envy of the dead Germans who have sunflowers marking their graves.

At the time he assumed his grave would be a mass one, unmarked and forgotten. Then, one day, a dying Nazi soldier asks Wiesenthal for forgiveness for his crimes against the Jews. What would you do?

This important book and the provocative question it poses is birthing debates, symposiums, and college courses. The Dalai Lama, Harry Wu, Primo Levi, and others who have witnessed genocide and human tyranny answer Wiesenthal’s ultimate question on forgiveness." As a Driven Leaf (Paperback) by Milton Steinberg (Author), Chaim Potok (Foreword).

"Alfred Kazin: A rare and moving book, creative and sensitive. Book Description: "As A Driven Leaf" is a novel in which fictional and historical characters comfortably coexist.It is a gripping tale of the renegade Talmudic sage, Elisha ben Abuyah, caught in a personal struggle between his own faith and the compelling culture of Rome, circa 70 CE. " ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INSPIRATION 1a.

Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.B. The condition of being so stimulated. 2.

An agency, such as a person or work of art, that moves the intellect or emotions or prompts action or invention.3. Something, such as a sudden creative act or idea, that is inspired.4. The quality of inspiring or exalting: a painting full of inspiration.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Sources: http://www.amazon.com/Sunflower-Possibilities-Forgiveness-Expanded-Paperback/dp/0805210601/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212148939&sr=8-1 ; http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0874411033/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books ; http://www.bartleby.com/61/69/I0166900.html curious7777777's Recommendations The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness (Newly Expanded Paperback Edition) Amazon List Price: $14.00 Used from: $4.30 Average Customer Rating: 5.0 out of 5 (based on 35 reviews) As a Driven Leaf Amazon List Price: $16.95 Used from: $1.50 Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 (based on 37 reviews) The Sunflower...$11.20 As a Driven Leaf...$11.53 .

Aside from the Bible, I have a long list... 1. Mere Christianity (C.S. Lewis) - A good primer for an initiate and anyone else needing renewal.2. The Road Less Traveled (M.

Scott Peck) - Well-grounded psychology combined with Christian faith 3. People of the Lie (M. Scott Peck) - Exposition on the reality of evil and Satan and the necessity of spiritual warfare.4.

The Philokalia (Sts. Nikodemus and Makarios) - The Eastern Orthodox "Talmud" on the Jesus Prayer, stillness and spiritual warfare (Four volumes! ) 5.

The Wounded Healer (Henri Nouwen) - A must for those entering Lay Eucharistic Ministry (visiting the sick, shutins and dying, carrying the communion sacrament to them). In addition, of course to the Holy Bible, these books have been a great help in my journey..

Your 'Change category' does not work. You put my 'computer' question into 'Religion & Spirituality. '" "What is the most enlightening/inspirational book you have ever read?" "If your life was a book what book would it be?

" "I am taking a poll on this question, "What is the difference between spirituality and religion? "" (10 answers) "What is the best way to publish a book with inspirational quotes and photos?" "I am looking for large print books that are non-fiction but NOT about religion, crosswords, etc. " "how many inspirational books are sold each year? " "What do you think of the book: Religion and Science?" "What books do I absolutely NEED to read at least once in my life?

" "What book (or books) changed your life?

Your 'Change category' does not work. You put my 'computer' question into 'Religion & Spirituality.

I am looking for large print books that are non-fiction but NOT about religion, crosswords, etc.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.