Index
Texts
Primary and near-primary sources — the books that keep the traditions alive.
- Bardo Thodol
The "Tibetan Book of the Dead" — instructions for navigating the intermediate states between death and rebirth.
- Bhagavad Gita
The "Song of the Lord" — a 700-verse Sanskrit dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna on duty, action, devotion, and self.
- Corpus Hermeticum
A set of texts attributed to Hermes Trismegistus — the core scripture of Hermeticism.
- Dhammapada
A collection of 423 verses attributed to the Buddha — arguably the most loved book of early Buddhism.
- Diamond Sutra
A key Mahayana sutra on emptiness — and one of the earliest printed books in human history (868 CE Chinese woodblock edition).
- Gospel of Thomas
A collection of 114 sayings attributed to Jesus, discovered at Nag Hammadi in 1945 — a non-canonical window into early Christian contemplative teaching.
- Heart Sutra
A short Mahayana text condensing the entire Prajnaparamita (Perfection of Wisdom) literature into about 250 Sanskrit syllables.
- I Ching
The "Book of Changes" — one of the oldest Chinese texts, a divination and wisdom work used continuously for over three millennia.
- Lotus Sutra
One of the most influential Mahayana Buddhist scriptures — central to Tiantai, Nichiren, and much of East Asian Buddhism.
- Masnavi
Rumi's six-volume mystical poem — perhaps the greatest work of Sufi literature and one of the supreme poetic achievements in any language.
- Meditations
Marcus Aurelius's private notebook — Stoicism applied, page by page, by an emperor to the weight of his own life.
- Mumonkan
The Gateless Gate — a 13th-century Zen koan collection of 48 cases with commentary by Wumen Huikai.
- Philokalia
An anthology of writings by Orthodox Christian contemplatives from the 4th to 15th centuries — the central textual tradition of hesychasm.
- Platform Sutra
The only Chinese Buddhist work given the title "sutra" — the teachings of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng.
- Shobogenzo
Dogen's 95-fascicle masterwork — "Treasury of the True Dharma Eye," among Buddhism's most demanding philosophical works.
- Tao Te Ching
The foundational text of Taoism — 81 short chapters of paradox, poetry, and political philosophy attributed to Laozi.
- The Cloud of Unknowing
Anonymous 14th-century English work — the foundational guide of the Christian apophatic tradition.
- The Interior Castle
Teresa of Avila's 1577 map of the soul — seven dwelling places through which the contemplative moves toward union with God.
- Upanishads
A collection of late Vedic texts exploring the nature of self and ultimate reality — the philosophical foundation of Advaita Vedanta.
- Yoga Sutras
Patanjali's compressed 196-verse codification of classical yoga — the foundational text of raja yoga.
- Zohar
The central text of Kabbalah — a 13th-century Aramaic mystical commentary on the Torah attributed to Shimon bar Yochai.