Millions of Americans know yoga as a superb form of exercise and as a potent source of calm in our stress-filled lives. Far fewer are aware of the full promise of yoga as a 4,000-year-old practical path of liberation—a path that fits the needs of modern Western seekers with startling precision. Now Stephen Cope, a Western-trained psychotherapist who has lived and taught for more than ten years at the largest yoga center in America, offers this marvelously lively and irreverent "pilgrim's progress" for today's world. He demystifies the philosophy, psychology, and practice of yoga, and shows how it applies to our most human dilemmas: from loss, disappointment, and addiction, to the eternal conflicts around sex and relationship. And he shows us that in yoga, "liberation" does not require us to leave our everyday lives for some transcendent spiritual plane—life itself is the path. Above all, Cope shows how yoga can heal the suffering of self-estrangement that pervades our society, leading us to a new sense of purpose and to a deeper, more satisfying life in the world.

Average Customer Review: ( 30 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.

Stephen Cope writes from a perspective that I feel really speaks to the Western spiritual seeker. He combines his experience and knowledge as a psychotherapist with his knowledge of Yoga and other spiritual paths.

While Yoga is a path of union, it appears only too clear that without removing the layers of psychological baggage, union with the divine cannot truly mainfest in ones life. All of the spiritual insights and epiphanies will never be more than a transparent veil placed thinly over the unresolved baggage. Insights without fertile ground to take root will soon fade or be used as another vehicle for ego building.

The author makes clear that the mature path of Yoga is not one of renunciation, or a solitary journey, but explains that "as spiritual practice matured in India there arose a radical new understanding of the paradox of action and inaction. This was the doctrine of inaction in action, and goes further to explain that Krishna teaches in the "Gita" to "Act in the world in alignment with your true vocation, your true self etc....." Clearly not a path of renunciation or a solitary path but one that involves action IN the world.

I found this book really spoke to me as a person on the spiritual path in a way that is truly transformative and not just a bunch of religious dogma. Using his own personal experiences and the experiences of other seekers throughout the book, he has woven a beautifully written guide that is really eye opening and practical. It clearly put into perspective many things that I have either personally struggled with or wondered about.

Stephen Cope makes no claims to be an enlightened master with "wisdom from on high"nor is he trying to "convert" anyone to a particular spiritual path. He explains how the various tools of yoga can help us become more in touch with our true selves. How the process and practice of Hatha Yoga for example, isn't just physical exercise but a spiritual and yet practical process that can help people grow by becoming grounded in their own bodies. At the same time one can work at developing their witness consciousness thru the process of Hatha Yoga.

Of the many things I took away from the book, one particularly valuable was the "mantra" Breathe, Relax, Feel, Watch, Allow" which can be used in Hatha Yoga practice, meditation, or even in one's ordinary life when they are scattered and want to become grounded, focused and internally centered.

Some have mistakenly concluded that the author's final assessment is that all of his spiritual practice was for nothing. While there is a "moment" in the book where Cope leaves in the middle of a retreat, a retreat that he had preconceived notions of it's outcome , that is not by any means the conclusion of the book. Actually the crux of what Stephen Cope comes to realize after refelecting on his10 years or so of practice is that "In the entire path of yoga, there is really only one lesson...... Whenever we relinquish our craving, clinging and grasping, whenever we stop the war with reality and are totally present and undivided, we are immediately in union with our true nature".

The book also talks about the Kripalu Center and it's own growth, through the early years with founder Amrit Desai, to his (Desai's) fall from grace, and how this community matured rather than fell apart in the midst of this controversy.

It also explains much about the "false" Guru phenomena. In particular what happens when disciples own needs for an "all knowing father" can in their own way create a monster of their own making.

If you are a Yoga practitioner who wants to go "beyond the postures" as strictly physical exercise, or a spiritual seeker of any faith who wants to read a book that speaks with honesty and depth, intelligence and insight (and to "real people") then I highly recommend this book.

35 of 36 found the following review helpful:

This is an erudite, beautifully written memoir.Nov 05, 1999

This beautifully written book is several books in one: an engaging memoir, a map to personal transformation and an explanation of the deeper side of yoga. As a devotee of yoga and one who has practiced it for over 30 years (beginning with a whiplash injury which doctors were helpless to cure in l968), I found this book to be unlike anything else on the market. Stephen Cope takes us far, far beyond the postures which are only the outer manifestations of yogic practice and carries us with him to the mysterious heart of yoga. No one else that I've read can do this with such directness and (apparent!) simplicity. This book is a MUST "read" not only for those who practice yoga, but also people who want a guide through life's difficult changes. Stephen Cope is an erudite, compassionate teacher.

24 of 25 found the following review helpful:

Mind-bending memoir.Jul 28, 2001
By G. Merritt
"We are not who we think we are," Stephen Cope writes in the introductory pages of his book, "our true self remains deeply hidden, incognito, submerged beneath a web of mistaken identities" (p. xix). I have never tried yoga, but read as an insider's memoir of spiritual growth in a yoga community, I nonetheless found Cope's book fascinating. While many of us define "the real world" through college degrees, marriage, children, careers, and our homes, Cope's sabbatical in a yoga ashram taught him that "we have become exclusively identified with our physical bodies, with our possessions, with our thoughts, with our personalities. We think we're our ideas, our careers, our families, our countries. We live our lives in utter ignorance of the vastness of our real nature, estranged from our true selves. This is the source of our suffering" (p. 63). Cope's writing is honest, and his unique book will appeal to readers interested in living life from the heart, whether they have spent time on a yoga mat or not. It may also be approached as a trusted resource for those who are serious about the practice of yoga, or for anyone considering a yoga retreat. And at times, Cope's book even inspired me to give yoga a try.

G. Merritt

19 of 20 found the following review helpful:

Enlightening and inspiringApr 21, 2000

I've studied yoga for years (albeit only as a physical discipline), so I was attracted by the title of this book. It started off sounding like yet another "How [name a spiritual practice] transformed my life" biography, and I almost put the book down at that point -- but I'm glad I didn't. Cope seamlessly interweaves the story of his personal development, and that of his fellow seekers, with clear and easy-to-understand explanations of the philosophical and spiritual underpinnings of yoga. His analysis of why modern-day Americans feel alienated from their true selves is, I feel, right on the mark, and he effectively uses his own experience to illustrate how we all can get back on track again. I was also impressed with his candor and sense of balance about the Kripalu community. When their guru turns out to have feet (and other body parts) of clay, it would have been easy for the community to throw out his message as well as him. But Cope gives him credit for having been an excellent teacher, and it's a tribute to the soundness of his teachings that Kripalu has continued to grow in a new direction after the guru's departure. This book is not only a fascinating story of one man's spiritual growth, but also painlessly educational about the belief system he espouses, and I found it enthralling on both counts.

See all 30 customer reviews on Amazon.com