The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are by Watts, Alan - 1966

New York: Pantheon Books, 1966. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. First printing stated on copyright page. Very good plus with minor closed tear at base of spine and a touch of foxing to front endpapers, otherwise bright and clean. In a very good minus dust jacket ($4.95 price intact) missing top 1.5 inches of spine but otherwise in nice shape with minor wear and slight darkening to spine. A nice copy of a title rarely found in collectible condition. In this classic work, Watts provides a much-needed answer to the problem of personal identity, distilling and adapting the Hindu philosophy of Vedanta. He explains that at the root of human conflict is our fundamental misunderstanding of who we are. The illusion that we are isolated beings, unconnected to the rest of the universe, has led us to view the "outside" world with hostility, and has fueled our misuse of technology and our violent and hostile subjugation of the natural world. To help us understand that the self is in fact the root and ground of the universe, Watts has crafted a revelatory primer on what it means to be human--and a mind-opening manual of initiation into the central mystery of existence.