When actor Christopher Reeve was asked in a BBC interview which book he would want if stranded on a desert island, he replied, "The Inner Reality by the philosopher Paul Brunton."
A provocative and compelling work, The Inner Reality is an essential guide for spiritual seekers. First published in the 1930s, this remarkable book interweaves the teachings of two great religious figures: Jesus and Krishna. Identifying a common current running through both Christianity and Hinduism, Paul Brunton argues that an "inner reality" or "kingdom of heaven" can be found within each of us. Defining religion as simply the practice of binding oneself with divinity, he encourages readers to embark on the quest for self-knowledge and spiritual communion through a commitment to the contemplative path. With his profound interpretations of the world's sacred texts, from the Gospel of St. John to the Bhagavad Gita, Brunton bridges East and West to guide the reader into the living heart of these ancient traditions.
This new edition has been updated to incorporate the author's final revisions and includes a foreword by the Paul Brunton Philosophic Foundation.
“Paul Brunton was surely one of the finest mystical flowers to grow on the wasteland of our secular civilization. What he has to say is important to us all.”
—Georg Feuerstein, author of The Yoga Tradition: Its History, Literature, Philosophy and Practice
“[Paul Brunton is] a person of rare intelligence … thoroughly alive, and whole in the most significant, ‘holy’ sense of the word.”
—Yoga Journal
“An uncommonly interesting volume by one of the leading exponents of the Yoga Philosophy to the Western world. The author gives an entirely new interpretation of the Seven Beatitudes, and a most illuminating exposition of the life of Jesus during the years between childhood and maturity...”
—Johannesburg Sunday Times
“This is in some ways the most helpful and practical of the books of this popular writer of mysticism. Brunton's presentation of his methods is clear and reasonable.”
—The Knoxville News-Sentinel [Tennessee]
“Paul Brunton, who has taken upon himself the task of explaining yoga philosophy to the West, has produced The Inner Reality which is a further step on the path to a deeper revelation of the true meaning of yoga.”
—Illustrated Weekly of India [Bombay]
“The Inner Realty is one of those delightful books.… Its chief asset is a profound simplicity, which leads you all the while nearer to a more complete understand of man and the universe. There is not a dull page and hardly a paragraph that does not sparkle with some gem of truth. How much the modern world needs those words when hatred and fear and suspicion are poisoning the minds and corrupting the hearts of men.”
—The Two Worlds [Manchester, England]
“Rather astounding doctrine this to come from one wholly sold on the idea of Yoga. A mingling of the mystical and material is what Paul Brunton pleads for.… No book can assist more in this search than Mr. Brunton's Discover Yourself.”
—Sutton Place magazine [New York City]