Publications written or edited by Shri Raghavan Iyer
The Pythagorean Sangha Series
THE PYTHAGOREAN SANGHA SERIES seeks to stress the application of theory to practice in individual life. Drawing upon the vital quintessence of the Upanishadic-Platonic tradition, the Sangha publishes time-honored texts of universal appeal for the sake of lifelong learning in daily life. Intense exploration of metaphysical and ethical concepts forms the basis for self-enquiry and deliberation in thought and speech. Contemplation and honest self-examination are fused to summon the untapped potentials of humanity while cultivating a sense of the sacred in respect to sound, speech and silence.
THE JEWEL IN THE LOTUS
Any person can joyously rediscover his or her membership in the commonwealth of humanity by incarnating the best that can be gleaned from the great religions, cultures and literatures, diverse schools of thought and differing modes of creativity… Every person can become an active beneficiary of the precious jewels of mystical texts and traditions, a distiller of the evocative meanings of enduring myths, and a grateful partaker of the sumptuous banquet of human sapience. Anyone may draw freely upon soul-wisdom, especially by striving to enrich the quality of one’s ideation for the sake of becoming a pristine ray of light focused upon the Spiritual Sun, upon enlightened beings and the ethical welfare of the entire human race. This is the well-tested benediction of the Philosophia Perennis. —Raghavan Iyer
The Jewel in the Lotus is a comprehensive collection of chants, invocations and intimations from the world’s religions and mystical traditions. Its breadth, depth and universality will appeal to the general reader as well as to practitioners of meditation. It will bring joy and inspiration, solace and regeneration, to occasional as well as regular users.
Available through Concord Grove Press
THE DHAMMAPADA
Gautama Buddha once said, “He who sees the Dhamma sees me. He who sees me sees the Dhamma. ” The Dhammapada, newly translated and accompanied by a comprehensive introduction by Raghavan Iyer, sets forth the universal message of Buddha, priceless to every earnest seeker of enlightenment.
The Dhammapada contains the most direct and authentic original utterances of Buddha. The entire Pali text and complementary portions of the Chinese version are elegantly translated into English, along with a complete and compelling rendition of the Tibetan Udanavarga. Together, these three texts provides a unique access to the entire dharmapadani literature central to all Buddhist schools, spanning multiple languages and traditions.
Available through Concord Grove Press
THE MORAL AND POLITICAL
THOUGHT OF MAHATMA GANDHI
The Moral and Political Thought of Mahatma Gandhi was first published in 1973 by Oxford University Press and reissued in 1978 as a Galaxy Book. It was a main selection for the Library of Political Studies in 1974 and an alternate selection for The Library of Political Affairs in the same year. It has received international acclaim as an authoritative and masterly exposition of Gandhi’s thought.
Available through Concord Grove Press
THE BHAGAVAD GITA
The Bhagavad Gita, translated with an instructive and compelling introduction by Raghavan Iyer, is a luminous rendition of this timeless spiritual classic, universally appreciated for its profound truth and unfailing relevance. The dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna, between God and Man, is elegantly rendered into eloquent English, together with the original Sanskrit text in transliteration. Each verse of the eighteen discourses is accompanied by an apposite and incisive commentary drawn from the world’s spiritual and philosophical inheritance.
Available through Concord Grove Press
THE VOICE OF THE SILENCE
The Voice of the Silence, selected from The Book of the Golden Precepts, translated and annotated by H.P. Blavatsky in 1889, is for the daily use of Lanoos – disciples. This Centenary Edition of this spiritual classic includes a preface by Raghavan Iyer, a foreword for this edition by the XIV Dalai Lama, and the message originally written for the Peking Edition of 1927 by the IXth Panchen Lama.
The precepts of The Voice of the Silence depict the dauntless Bodhisattva Path of self-renunciation for the sake of the universal enlightenment of all beings. Within a luminous vision of the highest goal of human evolution and spiritual alchemy, The Voice speaks clearly of the trials and pitfalls a spiritual aspirant must encounter and surmount. Combining metaphysical depth, ethical incisiveness and psychological breadth, it offers the bread of Wisdom and the bread that feeds the shadow, the pristine Teaching of Buddha which superbly sustains the pilgrim soul in the world’s labyrinth.
The Stanzas of Dzyan, drawn from the same sources, intimate the vast expanse of cosmic evolution and the great human pilgrimage inseparable from it. Illuminating appendices to the Centenary Edition convey the spiritual significance of the present historical moment facing humanity. They also throw light upon the composition of The Voice of the Silence, place its conceptions within Tibetan Buddhist tradition, and provide a precise spiritual and ethical context in which to comprehend its teachings. The book speaks the forgotten language of the soul to all fervent seekers of enlightenment.
Available through Concord Grove Press