The Wisdom Way of Knowing: Reclaiming An Ancient Tradition to Awaken the Heart

This book won't appeal to those who believe that our rational mind is the source of our greatest meaning and truth. For, according to the ancient tradition known as Wisdom, the human mind's full scope includes heights and depths which rationality can never encompass. Neglecting these other regions of our being leads to a limited state of mind, known by the Wisdom tradition as sleep. Yes, that's right, the more invested we are in our intellect, our ego, and our attempts at logical control of the world around us, the more asleep we really are.This book is about waking from that sleep. And Bourgeault, an ordained Episcopal priest, has written it very clearly and rationally. Which is fitting, since to find wholeness we want to expand our minds beyond rationality, not do away with it. Bourgeault's particular gift here is her ability to teach about the Wisdom tradition from an interfaith perspective, without presenting too much information about too many different religious paths. For Wisdom cannot be claimed exclusively by any path; rather, it underlies all the great paths to inner knowledge. Bourgeault organizes her material by focusing on the kernel of truths shared by the Christian, Jewish, and Sufi traditions.She defines Wisdom, at the start of the book, as "a precise and comprehensive science of spiritual transformation that has existed since the headwaters of the great world religions and is in fact their common ground." And yet, even though this "science" appears worldwide, it has, in many cultures, been lost or watered down over the millennia for various reasons. In the second chapter, "How the Christian West Lost Its Wisdom," the author examines how in the early fourth century, the Christian Church changed its approach to spirituality, substituting "doctrinal mantras" for a direct, heart-centered encounter with Jesus. She then describes how in Medieval Europe, the Wisdom tradition didn't die, but rather took shelter underground, where it came up for air via outlets such as the arts, literature, and the teachings of esoteric groups.After this historical chapter, the remainder of the book focuses on the process of spiritual transformation. In the chapter entitled "Three-Centered Knowing," she discusses in depth practices for balancing mind, heart, and body. She has some wonderful insights, like "trying to find faith with the intellectual center is something like trying to play a violin with a saw: it's simply the wrong tool for the job." She also presents a different definition of what she means by the term "heart" than the one many of us might know. Rather than the seat of feelings, passions, and emotions, in Wisdom teachings the heart is "an organ for the perception of divine purpose and beauty. It is our antenna. . .[it] is not for personal expression but for divine perception." That does not mean that we must suppress the emotions. But we do learn that it's advantageous to not let them dominate us.Of all the teachings in this book, I found her chapter on surrender the most radical, and by "radical" I mean having the potential for re-forming us at the deepest layers of our being. She writes, ". . .in any situation in life, confronted by an outer threat or opportunity, you can notice yourself responding inwardly in one of two ways. Either you will brace, harden and resist, or you will soften, open, and yield. If you go with the former gesture, you will be catapulted immediately into your smaller self, with its animal instincts and survival responses. If you stay with the latter regardless of the outer conditions, you will remain in alignment with your innermost being, and through it, divine being can reach you. Spiritual practice at its no-frills simplest is a moment-by-moment learning not to do anything in a state of internal brace."She makes a good point, but it's a hard teaching to learn to do. And for that reason, she discusses other practices that help us learn. Some of these practices, like centering prayer and lectio divina, are for Christian seekers. Others, like chanting and meditation, have a place in a great many traditions.Bourgeault's book is short (120 pages), but she packs a lot into it. The book ends with a section on further resources for the different practices she recommends, as well as a good bibliography (with comments) that should keep you going further in your reading for a long time. It's a good resource for people just setting out on a spiritual path, as well as people who've been travelling for some time.

This book really surprised me. I read it over a two day period and was struck by its depth and wisdom.The author takes her readers over various routes reaching always for the roots of the Christian Wisdom traditions that have been buried and forgotten in out contemporary moment. This book shares some confluence with Matt Fox's early books, especially Original Blessing and a Spirituality Named Compassion. Cynthia is really good at bringing together disparate wisdom traditions on a specific themes and drawing our attention to the depth of nuance of wisdom that is rarely examined in modern churches or discussed in those circles. Somewhere along the way, Christianity got lost on the post Easter Christ of Faith, and downplayed the historic Jesus of justice seeking mystical awareness.In these pages, the author blends the best of the Christian tradition without losing sight of the aim of spiritual transformation. In this regard, the Heart is not the seat of the emotions as many assert, but rather a portal to divine unity.Besides the obvious blending of different traditional understandings, the author turns -- again and again -- to a certain aliveness of the human enterprise that can never be found in the pursuit of mammon and other material centered agendas. This turning asks for a inward reflection invoked by understanding what brings meaning and authenticity to people. If you are rigid, mired in left brain hegemony and rational outcomes, then this book will hold little meaning for you.Conversely, if you are able to integrate what Jung called the "Self' through self examination opening to wider vistas of personal growth, and authenticity toward the whole, this book might be a catalyst for your awakening. And if you are already on the path of awakening, this book will surely reinforce the themes, and keep your feet walking in the direction you want to go. To put it differently, this entire book offers a holistic spirituality.Of particular insight was the discussion on the similarities between Sufism, the Christian wisdom tradition, and especially on the Fourth Way material. These intersections provided some of the best commentary I've seen on mystical consciousness.Somewhere along the way, Christianity got bogged down in a pre occupation on what to have people believe in, and discarded justice, and personal transformation. It no longer sought to teach mystical practices that might heal the body, but rather asked for uniformity.Since Bourgeault is on the fore front of this awakening in the Christian tradition, many may find a way back. They may find a way Back to themselves, first and foremost, but also find a revival of a tradition that may -- in time -- compete with the hegemony of dogmatic and sterile churches that have become rote and lifeless. Obviously for some, this will remain a source of confrontation and dispute, but for those, like myself, who have long left church as a source of meaning, this Path hold hope to re engage with the roots of our own traditions in a way that makes sense and not encumbered with all the moral relativism.While this is my first book by this author, I have ordered a couple more, and look forward to reading more.

Like most of Cynthia's writing, in this book she again stretches our minds with some chewy but fascinating information about the way of Wisdom. A fascinating exploration of various wisdom principles, mixing theory and practice in a balanced way to underscore the notion that knowledge without practice serves no purpose to anyone. In her own life, Cynthia exemplifies this balance with a formidable intellect and compassionate action through her numerous courses and activities in the Wisdom space. Her contribution to this area of spirituality is significant and continues to build.

Very wordy with long words that sometimes don't seem to make sense and often need a dictionary. The useful bits of wisdom were hard to find and very infrequent. It has put me off books from the Richard Rohr stable although his daily meditations are very good and I always read them and keep several quotes. I keep getting tempted to buy but this one is still a deterrent,

I found this book interesting but quite a difficult read.It need reading a little at a time and several times.

Wonderful

A wonderful read to help develop a deep spiritual awareness

I've been following Cynthia Bourgeault for about a year, and after completing the online Wisdom course, started applying the fundamental teaching of 'knowing with more of me'. I am beginning to experience knowing with more of me, and it is quite disconcerting, in particular at the moving center. Reading the book is expanding and clarifying more of what was presented on the course. I highly recommend the teachings, and importantly, applying the practices and giving time for wisdom to come forth. And whether it is just my experience or not, if you find something disconcerting changing, and something inside says it is the awakening of the wisdom way of knowing, trust it and continue.