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This is a challenging book for a reviewer, because it does not follow the normal rules of nonfiction exposition. As such, one has to evaluate the book for what it is . . . not compare it to what it is not. I have read several of Dr. Chopra's books, and find that they are all written at the transcendental level. By that, I mean that they are intended to be tested by your unconscious mind rather than your conscious mind. So the words either resonate or they do not. The way this work communicates has a lot in common with Gary Zukov's works on the soul, such as Soul Stories. One of the things that this book is not, is a book about religion. That may seem strange for a book about knowing God, but it does permit a more holistic look at the question than the context of a single religion sometimes offers. In a very free-ranging discussion, Dr. Chopra cites examples from all major religions as well as those who report paranormal experiences (whether contacts with angels by ordinary people, mind-reading, or psychic healing). From these straws in the wind as examples, he constructs a hierarchy of contact to God that is similar to one that Maslow espoused for the human hierarchy of needs. Dr. Chopra's main point is that our psychological development is tied to our spiritual development, which limits or opens us to new ways to perceive God. He neither condemns nor exalts one state greatly over another, although he does put them on a continuum (beginning with God as protector and moving to God as what "I am"). He ties this percpetual ability to make contact in terms of the physical world, the quantum domain (the area where spirit and the material world meet), and the virtual domain (the area of pure spirit). The work is an original and interesting application of thinking from a variety of fields to find what appear to be their common elements. Whether he is right or not is basically a matter of personal perception and faith. Most of us could use a novel context for having a good spiritual conversation with a trusted religious or spiritual adviser. How to Know God? would make a great book for such a conversation. Whether you agree with it or not, you are probably going to find yourself opened to the possibility of appreciating God's presence in some ways that you did not appreciate before. That's a very worthwhile accomplishment when it happens, and my perception that it is likely is one reason why I gave the book a five star rating. The other reason is simply that the book resonated with me at a very profound level, which left me with a sense of deep peace. I cannot predict what you reaction will be. Anyone who wants a tightly woven book about religion, or a logical argument for this point of view, would do well to go elsewhere. This book simply doesn't explore that part of the potential domain about knowing God. Good luck in transcending whatever limitations you are experiencing now in knowing God!
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