The Meru Project
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Meru Foundation Reading List
Updated May 2009

This partial list of recommended books was originally compiled in 1993, and is updated periodically. Arrangement is very roughly by topic.

Meru Foundation has joined the Amazon Associates program, which gives Meru Foundation a percentage of the sales price for each book ordered via the links on this page. Clicking on the icon to the right of the book description will take you to amazon.com's listing of that book, where you can place your order. (Not every book below is in print.)

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GOD ACCORDING TO GOD, A physicist proves we have been wrong about God all along
Author: Gerald Schroeder, Ph.D.
Publisher: Harper One/Harper Collins 2009; ISBN 978-0061710155
MIT physicist Gerald Schroeder, author of Genesis and the Big Bang, offers a view of
God based on re-examining traditional Biblical material, that is supportive of
science and a rational understanding of the observable world of nature.
(Reviewed in Meru eTORUS #45, May 2009)
To order from amazon.com, click on the icon at right.
THE REFLEXIVE UNIVERSE, Evolution of Consciousness
Reflexive Universe-Buy From Amazon
Author: Arthur M. Young.
Publisher: Anodos Foundation. Revised edition ©1999; ISBN 1-89216-011-0
Everything you would ever want to know about the torus (doughnut shape).
Cosmology, philosophy and physics. Highly recommended.
To order from amazon.com, click on the icon at right.
SYNERGETICS, Volumes 1 & 2
Author: R. Buckminster Fuller.
Publisher: Macmillan Vol. 1: 1975 - ISBN 0-02-541870-X; Vol. 2: 1979 - ISBN 0-02-541880-7
Fuller's magnum opus. Cosmology and geometry. Superb; difficult to read.
This book now available as a browsable online website.  Entrance page is at:
www.rwgrayprojects.com/synergetics/synergetics.html
SEFER YETZIRAH, The Book of Creation, In Theory and Practice
Author: Aryeh Kaplan
Publisher: Sam Weiser 1990 ISBN 0-87728-726-0
Perhaps the only credible translation and discussion available in English.
To order from amazon.com, click on the icon at right.
THE CIPHER OF GENESIS, The Original Code of the Qabala as Applied to the Scriptures
Cipher of Genesis
Author: Carlo Suares
Publisher: Shambala 1970 (Eng.) ISBN 0-87773-141-1
A unique and insightful presentation; valuable even with errors in details.
THE WISDOM IN THE HEBREW ALPHABET,
The Sacred Letters as a Guide to Jewish Deed & Thought
Author: Michael L. Munk
Publisher: Artscroll Mesorah 1983 ISBN 0-89906-194-X
Traditional and authoritative Jewish presentation. Important Appendix.
THE BOOK OF LETTERS, A Mystical Alef-Bet
Author: Lawrence Kushner
Publisher: Harper & Row 1975 ISBN 0-06-064900-3
Introductory primer on the Hebrew alphabet. Beautifully hand written.
KABBALAH, The Way of the Jewish Mystic
Author: Perle Epstein
Publisher: Shambhala 1988 ISBN 0-87773-438-0
One of the best introductions to Kabbalah.
THE PATH OF THE KABBALAH
Author: David Sheinkin, M.D.
Publisher: Paragon House 1986 ISBN 0-913757-69-1
An excellent introduction to Kabbalah.
THE MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE IN ABRAHAM ABULAFIA
Amazon Link - No Image Avail
Author: Moshe Idel
Publisher: SUNY Press 1988 ISBN 0-88706-553-8
Detailed academic treatment of some works of one of the greatest kabbalists.
THE LIVING TORAH IN HEBREW:
The Five Books of Moses and the Haftarot/Hebrew and English in One Volume
Author: Aryeh Kaplan
Publisher: Moznaim Pub Corp; ISBN: 0940118726
Hardcover (June 1981)
THE ZOHAR: Pritzker Edition, Vol. 1

Author/Translator: Daniel C. Matt
Publisher: Stanford University Press; ISBN: 0804747474
Hardcover (October 2003) 
THE BOOKS OF CONTEMPLATION: Medieval Jewish Mystical Sources
Author: Mark Verman
Publisher: State Univ of New York Pr; ISBN: 0791407195
Hardcover (February 1992) (Suny Series in Judaica: Hermeneutics, Mysticism, and Religion)
THE BAHIR
Translator: Aryeh Kaplan
Publisher: Samuel Weiser; ISBN: 0877286183
Paperback - 272 pages (September 1980)
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THE HANDBOOK OF JEWISH THOUGHT, Vol. 2
Author: Aryeh Kaplan.
Publisher: Moznaim Publishing Corporation. ISBN 0-940118-79-3
Coll. Trade Cloth - 396p. (December 1993)

THE DIGNITY OF DIFFERENCE: How to Avoid the Clash of Civilizations

Author:  Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks
Publisher: Continuum; ISBN: 0826468500
Paperback - 156 pages (July 2003)
ABRAHAM ISAAC KOOK - LIGHTS OF PENITENCE, LIGHTS OF HOLINESS:
The Moral Principles, Essays, Letters and Poems
Translator:  Ben Zion Bokser
Publisher: Paulist Press; ISBN: 080912159X ;
Paperback - 415 pages (July 1978)
THE INNER MEANING OF THE HEBREW LETTERS
Author: Robert M. Haralick
Publisher: Jason Aronson; ISBN: 1568213565
Hardcover - 360 pages (September 1995)
THE BOOK OF HEBREW SCRIPT
Author: Ada Yardeni
Publisher: British Library; Bilingual Edition  ISBN 1584560878
Hardcover: 355 pages
THE TREE OF LIGHT, A Study of the Menorah
Author: L. Yarden
Publisher: Cornell Univ. Press 1971 ISBN 0-8014-0596-3
The history of the Menorah - The Tree of Light and the Tree of Life.
ALPHABETIC LABYRINTH: The Letters in History and Imagination
Author: Johanna Drucker
Publisher: Thames & Hudson; ISBN: 0500280681
Paperback - 320 pages 1 Pbk Ed edition (March 1999)
THE EMPEROR'S NEW MIND, Concerning Computers, Minds,
        and the Laws of Physics
Author: Roger Penrose
Publisher: Vintage  2007 ISBN 0-67-977631-1
Comprehensive presentation of mind, physics and artificial intelligence.
THE ROAD TO REALITY: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe

Author: Roger Penrose
Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2002 (2nd ed.) ISBN 0-19-286198-0
Penrose's exploration of the connection between mathematics and the physical world.
THE ELEGANT UNIVERSE: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and
        the Quest for the Ultimate Theor
y
Author: Brian Greene
Publisher: Vintage Books; ISBN: 0375708111
Paperback - 448 pages  (February 29, 2000)
WARPED PASSAGES: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's
        Hidden Dimensions

Author: Lisa Randall
Publisher: Harper Perennial 2006; ISBN: 0060531096
Paperback - 512 pages
PROGRAMMING THE UNIVERSE: A Quantum Computer Scientist Takes On the Cosmos

Author: Seth Lloyd
Publisher: Vintage 2007; ISBN: 1400033861
Paperback - 256 pages
ENDOPHYSICS: The World As an Interface
Endophysics-Amazon Link
Author: Otto Rossler
Publisher: World Scientific Pub Co; ISBN: 9810227523
Library Binding - 200 pages (July 1998)
THE END OF TIME: The Next Revolution in Physics
Author: Julian B. Barbour
Publisher: Oxford Univ Press 2001; ISBN: 0195145925
Paperback - 384 pages
TIME'S ARROW & ARCHIMEDES' POINT: New Directions for the Physics of Time
Author: Huw Price
Publisher: Oxford Univ Pr (Trade); ISBN: 0195117980
Paperback - 320 pages (September 1997)
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THE FABRIC OF REALITY: The Science of Parallel Universes-And Its Implications
Author: David Deutsch
Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper); ISBN: 014027541X
Paperback - 400 pages (August 1998)
HYPERSPACE: A Scientific Odyssey
Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps and the Tenth Dimension
Author: Michio Kaku
Publisher: Anchor Press 1995; ISBN: 0385477058
Paperback - 384 pages
THE SELF-AWARE UNIVERSE: How Consciousness Creates the Material World
Authors: Maggie Goswami, Richard E. Reed, Amit Goswami (Contributor), Fred Alan Wolf
Publisher: J P Tarcher; ISBN: 0874777984
Paperback Reprint edition (March 1995)
SUPERSTRINGS: And the Search for the Theory of Everything
Author: F. David Peat
Publisher: McGraw-Hill 1989; ISBN: 0809242575
Paperback - 256 pages
PHYSICS AS METAPHOR
Physics as Metaphor-Amazon Link
Author: Roger Jones, Ph. D.
Publisher: Univ. of Minnesota 1982 ISBN 0-8166-1916-6
An important perspective on physics and philosophy; readable and satisfying.
THE HAND: How Its Use Shapes the Brain, Language, and Human Culture
The Hand Amazon Link
Author: Frank R. Wilson
Publisher: Vintage Books; ISBN: 0679740473
Paperback - 416 pages (September 1999)
HAND AND MIND: What Gestures Reveal About Thought
Author: David McNeill
Publisher: University of Chicago Press; ISBN: 0226561348
Paperback - 558 pages (December 1995)
FROM HAND TO MOUTH: The Origins of Language

Author: Michael C. Corballis
Publisher: Princeton University Press; ISBN 0691116733
Paperback - 272 pages (September 2003)
GEOMETRY AND THE IMAGINATION
Authors: David Hilbert, S. Cohn-Vossen
Publisher: Chelsea Pub Co; ISBN: 0821819984
Hardcover Reprint edition (October 1999)
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THE FOURTH DIMENSION, A Guided Tour of the Higher Universes
Author: Rudy Rucker
Publisher: Mariner Books 1985 ISBN 0-395-39388-4 (paperback)
Readable illustrated introduction to understanding higher dimensional geometry.
CHAOS, Making a New Science
Author: James Gleick
Publisher: Penguin (2008) ISBN 0143113453 Paperback
One of the best (readable) introductions to Fractals and Chaos theory.
MATHEMATICS, THE SCIENCE OF PATTERNS: The Search for Order in Life, Mind, and the Universe

Author: Keith Devlin
Publisher: Scientific American Library (1997) ISBN 0716760223
Paperback: 216 pages
A PASSION FOR MATHEMATICS: Numbers, Puzzles, Madness, Religion, and the Quest for Reality

Author: Clifford A. Pickover
Publisher: Wiley; ISBN: 0471690988
Paperback: 408 pages (2005)
THE GOLDEN RATIO: The Story of Phi, the World's Most Astonishing Number

Author: Mario Livio
Publisher: Broadway  ISBN 0767908163
Paperback - 294 pages (2003)
AN IMAGINARY TALE: The Story of "i" [the square root of minus one]

Author: Paul J. Nahin
Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr; ISBN: 0691127980
Paperback: 288 pages (January 15, 2007)
TRIGONOMETRIC DELIGHTS
Author: Eli Maor
Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr; ISBN: 0691095418
Paperback - 256 pages (2002)
e: The Story of a Number
Author: Eli Maor
Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr; ISBN: 0691058547
Paperback - 232 pages (April 1998)
THE MYSTERY OF THE ALEPH: Mathematics, the Kabbalah, and the Search for Infinity

Author: Amir D. Aczel
Publisher: Washington Square Press; ISBN 0743422996
Paperback - 272 pages (2001)
A HISTORY OF PI
Pi - Amazon LInk
Author: Petr Beckmann
Publisher: St. Martin's Press; ISBN: 0312381859
Paperback - 200 pages 19 edition (August 1976)
GÖDEL, ESCHER, BACH: An Eternal Golden Braid
Author: Douglas R. Hofstadter
Publisher: Basic Books; ISBN: 0465026567
Paperback - 777 pages 20th anniv edition (January 1999)
DELTA: A Paradox Logic (Series on Knots and Everything, Vol 16)
Author: Nathaniel Hellerstein
Publisher: World Scientific Pub Co; ISBN: 9810232438
Hardcover (March 1998)
DIAMOND: A Paradox Logic (Series on Knots and Everything).
Author: Nathaniel Hellerstein
Publisher: World Scientific Pub. Co.; ISBN: 9810228503
Hard Cover (January 1997)
SENSITIVE CHAOS, The Creation of Flowing Forms in Water and Air
Author: Theodor Schwenk
Publisher: Steiner Press 1990 (revised) ISBN 1855840553
Paperback: 288 pages
One of the best presentations of dynamic forms in nature available. Many illustrations.
MIRACLES OF MIND: Exploring Nonlocal Consciousness and Spiritual Healing
Authors: Russell Targ, Jane Katra
Publisher: New World Library; ISBN: 1577310977
Paperback - 352 pages 2 edition (June 1999)
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CATASTROPHE: An Investigation into the Origins of the Modern World
Author: David Keys
Publisher: The Ballantine Publishing Group ISBN 0-345-40876-4
Hardcover - 343 pages (1999)
ISAAC NEWTON: The Last Sorcerer
Author: Michael White
Publisher: Perseus Press (Helix Books); ISBN: 073820143X
Paperback - 416 pages (April 1999)
SERPENT IN THE SKY, The High Wisdom of Ancient Egypt
Author: John Anthony West
Publisher: Quest Books (1993) ISBN 0835606910
Paperback: 266 pages
Coherent, open, inclusive, but not kooky, presentation of Egyptian teachings.
THE CODE BOOK: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography
Author: Simon Singh
Publisher: Anchor Books; ISBN: 0385495323
Paperback - 410 pages (August 29, 2000)
CRACKING THE BIBLE CODE
Cracking Bible Code-Amazon Link
Author: Jeffrey Satinover
Publisher: William Morrow & Co; ISBN: 068815994X
Paperback - 368 pages Reprint edition (June 1998)
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Books Out of Print as of January 2009:
THE HANDBOOK OF JEWISH THOUGHT, Vol. 1
Author:
Aryeh Kaplan Publisher: Moznaim Publishing Corporation. ISBN 0-940118-49-1 Coll. Trade Cloth - 307p. (March 1979)
OUT OF PRINT

THE GEONIM OF BABYLONIA AND THE SHAPING OF MEDIEVAL JEWISH CULTURE
Author: Robert Brody Publisher: Yale Univ Pr; ISBN: 0300070470 Hardcover - 384 pages (March 1998)
OUT OF PRINT

THE DOCTRINE OF THE DIVINE NAME: An Introduction to Classical Kabbalistic Theology
Author: Stephen G. Wald ASIN: 1555402429 This title is out of print.

   

SPIRALS: From Theodorus to Chaos
Author:
Philip J. Davis, Walter Gautschi, Arieh Iserles ASIN: 1568810105 This title is out of print.

THE ZOHAR IN MOSLEM AND CHRISTIAN SPAIN
Author:
Ariel Bension Publisher: Hermon Press, N.Y. 1932, 1974 ISBN 0-87203-046-6 Jewish, Christian and Moslem teachings in the golden age of Kabbalah.
OUT OF PRINT