The Universal Path to Enlightenment: The Way to Spiritual Success for Everyone Paperback – October 6, 1992

Disclaimer: I only read a fourth of this book.I did not feel compelled to finish it. This review is based on that portion.From the book's description given on Amazon, I thought it was going to focus on the commonalities among different faiths.The first sentence of the description reads, "This book brings together the easy and joyful principles and practices that are common to all of the major religions of the world." But this is not at all what I found when I started reading the book. I only read a fourth of the book, but in those pages, the book presents a divisive comparison of the Vedic tradition to Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism. The author sings the praises of the Vedic religion. He dismisses Christianity, Judaism, and Islam very quickly for "patterns of prejudice, intolerance, violence ..." He is kinder to Buddhism, mostly because it evolved out of the Vedic tradition, but ultimately, he concludes that "there are obvious limitations in this [Buddhism] philosophy."While I thoroughly enjoyed the author's discourse on the philosophy of the Vedic religion, I did not care for his comparison of it to other religions. His comparison was seriously biased as it only focused on the worst points of the Monotheistic traditions and the best points of the Vedic tradition. It seems to me, the author falls into the very trap of which he accuses the monotheistic religions: being "close minded." Seriously, why compare religions at all? If the author's intention is to attract people to the Vedic faith, why not just focus on it? Why bash the others?I felt this book did deserve three stars in spite of its harsh comparison because it really does do a good job of explaining concepts in the Vedic tradition. I wish the author would rewrite the description of the book he gives on Amazon though. Based on the portion of the book I read, the description is very misleading.One last note: I have read another book by this author and really enjoyed it. It did not critique other religions. I would like to read other books by him that strictly deal with the Vedic tradition. He seems thoroughly knowledgeable on the topic and does a great job of focusing on its practical application for achieving joy and a higher state of consciousness.

This is "Book 1" in a series of three. It approaches the topic of Vedic literature in a clear, concise way. The author seems American or Western himself, and presents the material thoroughly.

Such an inspiring book . The author had presented everything in such a lucid manner what to say? A must read for spiritual aspirants. Believe me you can turn your life around with such knowledge