Richard Sylvester (1)

When I look back at the last 30 years of my life it seems to have been like finding myself as a character in a play who is dreaming that he is following a “Spiritual Quest”. (At least, in my imagination, that was the rose-coloured romance of my starting point.)

The journey has taken me to a lot of foreign and exotic places, brought me through the pages of a great many books,.... until at this point in time I find myself here. A new and unexpected member of an internet group called Library Thing, and writing the first book review I’ve ever attempted.

What pushed me to do this was an extraordinary gem of a book with the unlikely title of, “I Hope You Die Soon”, by Richard Sylvester. I'm sure that on first encounter most people would find the title more than a bit unsettling, since it seems to be expressing a thought that few of us would be happy to hear another person greet us with.

Nevertheless, I bought the book, and, perhaps unsurprisingly, found that its contents had even more power to stop me in my usual complacent tracks than the title did. For more than a year now, each time I finish it I lay it down on the pile beside my favourite reading chair,....then irresistibly, a week or two later, I find myself drawn back to it. I pick it up, and once again slip gratefully back into that strangely compelling dream. Seeing the world through the lens of Richard’s experiences truly stretches all my accepted ideas of what I used to so confidently call 'reality'.

If you have any attraction to, or curiosity about, Non-Duality teachings, I highly recommend that you try yourself, via his book, this extraordinary transposition into the world Richard is describing.

If you would like to have more than the words of a review from a complete stranger to go on before you buy a book,... there’s a free interview with him you can watch by clicking on the “Conscious TV” blue link on Richard’s website :

http://www.richardsylvester.com/

Once the TV link opens, click on the Non Duality link just below the title. When that page opens, scroll down through all the alphabetical list of interviews on the right. Richard’s is the third from the bottom.

I don’t think the oral and visual re-telling of his life experiences in this interview will disappoint you. (And for true bibliophiles, the book, and its companion edition, are even better.)… (more)

I have to chuckle: the LibraryThing header says under "popularity" 0.

If you are interested in exploring the concepts behind Advaita (non-dualism), Sylvester presents a clear answer. The book is laid out in a question & answer format, probably transcriptions of "satsang" (disciples/teacher sessions to discuss the Truth) sessions at his home.

This was a book read at the weekly Connie Martin book discussion in Frederick MD. The format of question and answer is conducive to her format of reading and discussion.

Unlike most Indian authors, Sylvester is quite clear in his presentation because he is writing (or speaking) in his first language, with no translation issues (unless you don't quite believe Brits speak English anymore :-).

However, as clear as I found Sylvester, it is amazing how his students "just don't get it." Oh well, I guess it would have been a short book if they had.… (more)