The 5 Transformative Books I Recommend Most
The Rewilded Soul is now read in 104 countries and 49 states in the U.S. Thanks for joining me in exploring what it means to create a life of deep fulfillment on the inside and conscious ambition on the outside. It brings me joy to share this journey with you. If you’re new here, welcome! 👋🏼 If you’re a regular, thank you for your trust.
This short list contains the five books I gift or recommend the most to people who are interested in discovering their life’s purpose, exploring the nature of reality, and living a more fulfilling, conscious life.
My life has been turned inside out by these titles. If you read and apply the ideas in any one of them, you’re likely to spark an inner revolution that will unravel who you think you are, who you think others think you are, and set you on a path to real freedom and wonder.
Happy exploring.
KSK
P.S. I’ve included Amazon links (non-affiliate) if you’re interested in adding any to your bookshelf.
1. Essentialism
by Greg McKeown
This book changed how I see every aspect of my life. It is a spiritual growth roadmap masquerading as a business book.
The first time I read it, I was taken by surprise at how applicable his ideas were to everything from my relationships and work to how I view and embody my life's deeper purpose. I have read this book at least ten times and its pages are soaked through with highlighter, notes, and markups.
Need clarity in your life? Start here.
2. Awakening to the Natural State
by John Wheeler
I don’t know how to describe John Wheeler. I first discovered him through a Reddit thread on non-dual philosophy, which led me to a website that archives his books in free PDF format.
For several years, he wrote extensively on awareness/consciousness and the ideas he learned from “Sailor” Bob Adamson, who studied under a man named Nisargadatta (see #4 below) and then simply disappeared from the public eye.
If you want a pragmatic, non-”woo-woo” perspective on the nature of the mind, awareness, and identity, read Wheeler. People from all walks of life and faiths would benefit from these ideas.
3. The Tao Te Ching
Translated by Stephen Mitchell
Roughly translated as "the Way", Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching is a reduction sauce of universal truths about life, love, the nature of being, and happiness told in short sayings that I revisit often.
It’s my favorite read before going to sleep, due to its brevity, clarity, and use of metaphors. If you want a book you can open to any page and discover something new each time, this is it.
4. I Am That
Talks with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
I Am That is a wide-sweeping examination of reality's non-dual/unified nature as told through recorded conversations between Nisargadatta, an Indian shopkeeper who became a spiritual teacher, and people who traveled to ask him about the meaning of life.
The first time I read it, the concepts in this book were like neutron bombs to many ideas I learned early in life about what reality is and why we're here. I often recommend this book as a dare to adventurous readers.
5. Know Yourself: An Explanation of the Oneness of Being
By Ibn ‘Arabi / Balyani / Translated by Cecilia Twinch
This short book, originally written by a Sufi mystic sometime around 1200 AD was, for the first time in history, translated and published in English in 2021. For hundreds of years, it has been one of the most widely read texts in the Middle East, so to be able to enjoy it as a Western is a gift.
It is perhaps the most profound text on the nature of Reality I have ever come across. What is fascinating is the entire text merely expounds on just one simple phrase. Some books are invitations beyond the words on the page. This is one of them. To the one who has ears to hear, let them hear.
I love these Kevin! Thanks! I read number five on a previous recommendation by you. I will lean into these. Hope all is well. Thanks for sharing. Time for a book club. 🙏❤️
My gems:
Sacred Powers by David Ji
Soul Vows by Janet Conner
The Second Mountain by David Brooks
Embers by Richard Wagamese
Thanks, Kevin. I'm definitely going to reread Essentialism and read Wheeler for the first time.