The Laws Of Spirit - Dan Millman

The Laws Of Spirit was recommended and loaned to me by someone I respect, in lieu of a copy of The Way of The Peaceful Warrior (which I have yet to track down a copy of).

ISBN: 978-0-915811-93-9
format: Paperback
pages: 120
publisher: New World Library
pub. date: 1995-11-01
started reading: 2008-9-28
finished reading: 2008-10-24

While I generally like books like this, and found this one to be interesting, I can not say that it was my favorite read.

I say this in part because, of the 12 laws discussed, I found several to be 'common sense' to my way of thinking. And I found one or two, to be a little too preachy or striving for a sense of mysticism that I don't share.

The laws of unity and faith in particular I found difficult to relate to, and while I'm sure you could draw your own conclusions from this, it wasn't because of a lack of faith or empathy on my part with the sentiments expressed. Instead, I felt that this attempted to deliver the message in the way any missionary would in days gone by of telling you this is the way it is.

Some truths in life are meant to be discovered and lack any usefulness if they are presented instead of found.

The things I enjoyed about the book was its briefness. Each law was consolidated into a short story, or parable, which is related in clear and easy to understand language and example. While, in general, I prefer more grandiose books aimed at instilling ideas through epic prose (see Atlas Shrugged), it is nice to read books such as this (or The Tao Of Poo) where one can pick it up, read a single law, and put it down again and give your mind time to process and explore the thought.

The Laws of Spirit is about one man's encounter with a sage in the wooded hills near his home. Through stories, tests, and experiences in the wild, the sage challenges the man to examine 12 core principles that underlie human existence: balance, choice, process, presence, compassion, faith, expectation, integrity, action, cycles, surrender, and unity.