Halfway up the mountain — Mariana Caplan

Some books will save you 10-20 years, or a couple lifetimes. This is one of those.

Mariana Caplan gathered a bunch of teachers who were reported to be enlightened masters and had them comment on the theme of Halfway up the Mountain. She seems to have a pretty good selection filter, this is a kind, instructive, humble, and informative book from several different lineages including sufism, psychedelics, yoga, and zen buddhism. Very soothing for anyone who has spent any time immersed in the electronic vitriol and outrage that seem to characterize our social media sites.

At a certain point on the path, it can be hard to find materials that give you adequate instructions, outside of an embodied teacher in a lineage, which many cultures simply can’t easily provide. While I’ve recently come to (grudgingly) accept the necessity of embodied teachers, I also think anyone, at any stage of the path could benefit from reading this book to figure out how to find one.