You're Not New Age
Of course not. New Agers believe a lot of silly rubbish about things like tinfoil pyramid hats and crystals and astrological signs. You're way beyond all that. You're intelligent, thoughtful, perceptive. Your friends say you're deep. You got a lot out of Carl Jung's 'Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Vintage)'. You read 'The Power of Myth' after watching that fascinating Bill Moyers special with Joseph Campbell (it almost made the fundraising bearable). You've even looked into Eliade's 'Shamanism'. New Age? No way. You're no dum-dum.

You're Spiritual But Not Religious
You may not have actually read 'Spiritual, but not Religious : Understanding Unchurched America ' or 'Spiritual But Not Religious?: An Oar Stroke Closer To The Farther Shore', but yes, that describes you exactly. Organized religion is just, well... so organized. On the other hand, you do enjoy books like 'Anam Cara : A Book of Celtic Wisdom' and 'Eternal Echoes : Celtic Reflections on Our Yearning to Belong' by John O'Donohue -- in fact, almost anything Celtic. Certain approaches to science also interest you. You recently read 'The Biology of Transcendence: A Blueprint of the Human Spirit' by Joseph Chilton Pearce, and it reminded you why you got so excited all those years ago by 'The Crack in the Cosmic Egg: New Constructs of Mind and Reality'.

Your Goal is to Integrate Body, Mind and Spirit
So, really, you're something of an intellectual. Though you know that's never the whole story. Getting hung up in concepts is a trap. You were so impressed by Daniel Goleman's 'Emotional Intelligence : Why It Can Matter More Than IQ' that you went out right out and bought 'Destructive Emotions: How Can We Overcome Them?: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama'. You listen to it while you're working on 'Your Ultimate Pilates BodyŽ Challenge : At the Gym, on the Mat, and on the Move'. But integration -- that's the real challenge. 'Body + Soul' is your favorite magazine -- well, next to 'Elle Decor'.

You Think Self-Esteem is Healthy Narcissism
You've worked hard to overcome negative ideas about yourself. 'Six Pillars of Self-Esteem' by Nathaniel Branden was a big help, as was 'Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited', which is where you learned that healthy narcissism is a mature, balanced love of oneself coupled with a stable sense of self-worth. (You think: "That Sam Vaknin, wow, he really knows his stuff!") You also had a sort of spiritual epiphany when you read 'Atlas Shrugged'. Wanting to learn more about Ayn Rand (and Nathaniel Branden, too), you picked up a copy of 'The Virtue of Selfishness'. Now you're beginning ask yourself 'What It Means to Be a Libertarian'.

You've Read Everything You Can Get Your Hands On by Elaine Pagels
Encountering 'The Gnostic Gospels (Vintage)' represented a turning point in your life. You'd never tell your best friend, but you even have a copy of the 'Complete Idiot's Guide to the Gnostic Gospels (The Complete Idiot's Guide)' stashed under your bed, along with 'The Complete Idiot's Guide to Mary Magdalene'. You also tried reading 'The Gnostic Religion' by Hans Jonas (which was, face it, just too hard), but you almost lost your equanimity when you ran into 'Rethinking "Gnosticism": An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category' here on Halfvalue (some joker put a link to it in a "So You'd Like To..." guide).

You're Heavy Into Quantum Physics
You've come to understand that reality is not what you thought it was (back before you started doing acid, anyway), and you've been interested in things like 'Swedenborg and New Paradigm Science (Swedenborg Studies, No. 10)' ever since you first read 'The Tao of Physics' and the 'Dancing Wu Li Masters : An Overview of the New Physics (Perennial Classics)'. You find that sort of thing so mind blowing, you're even thinking about signing up for the 'Life and Teaching of Naropa' Institute. While you were fascinated by some of the deeper implications of 'What the Bleep Do We Know!?', overall you thought it was a bit too New Agey.

You've Personally Met Jung's Archetypes
You're serious about your spiritual (but not religious) quest. You've read 'The Psychology of the Transference' (which is not really about Alchemy), and you're slowly working your way through 'Mysterium Coniunctionis: An Inquiry into the Separation and Synthesis of Psychic Opposites in Alchemy (The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, Volume 14)' (which is also not really about Alchemy). Sometimes that scholarly material gets overly heady, though, and you just look at those wonderful 'Archetype Cards' by Caroline Myss (you simply adored her 'Sacred Contracts : Awakening Your Divine Potential'). Oh yes, and you love anything by Robert A. Johnson... 'He : Understanding Masculine Psychology (Perennial Library)', 'She : Understanding Feminine Psychology', 'We : Understanding the Psychology of Romantic Love'.

You Forgave And Forgot
Speaking of romantic love, you can't understand why some people make such a big deal about their inevitable losses. Love hurts, sure. But get over yourself. Move on! Even though it's a bit dense in places, one book that really changed the way you see the world was 'Narrative Therapy: The Social Construction of Preferred Realities'. It's all about finding your own story. And when all is said and done, isn't 'Forgiveness: The Greatest Healer of All'? (One book you really won't like at all, btw, is 'Before Forgiving : Cautionary Views of Forgiveness in Psychotherapy '. Stay away from that one at all costs!)

You're in the Now Now
Eckhart Tolle's 'The Power of Now : A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment' was a real God-send at a time in your life when things almost sort of began to look kind of dark. But since then, you've been 'Practicing the Power of Now: Essential Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises from The Power of Now' and now things are beginning to look up. Of course, that's almost like a metaphor or something -- "beginning to" -- because there really isn't any beginning or ending, past or future, so how could anything ever have been otherwise than as it is? These days when 'Stillness Speaks', you listen. Why, it's almost as if you're living on 'A New Earth : Awakening to Your Life's Purpose' -- 'Giving The Love That Heals' and 'Keeping The Love You Find'.

Your Friends Are All White
There aren't really any good books about this. Yet. But I'm working on one. Google mystic bourgeoisie. Or just wait around here on Halfvalue. Like 'The Cluetrain Manifesto: The End of Business as Usual', 'Gonzo Marketing: Winning Through Worst Practices', and 'The Bombast Transcripts: Rants and Screeds of Rageboy', it will appear when the planets are properly aligned... and the student is ready.