Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way
Encyclopedia
Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way is a book by the writer Idries Shah
that was first published by Octagon Press
in 1978. Later editions by Harper & Row (1981) and Penguin Books
(1985, 1993, 1996) include an introduction by Nobel Prize
Winner Doris Lessing
.
Shortly before he died, Shah stated that his books form a complete course that could fulfil the function he had fulfilled while alive. As such, Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way can be read as part of a whole course of study.
Written in response to enquiries about the Sufi tradition, Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way presents traditional teaching stories
and anecdotes and articles from newspapers to illustrate prerequisites to Sufi learning. One such prerequisite is that the learner should organise their basic human needs so as to be able to give adequate attention to their studies. The second section of the book is dedicated entirely to Shah's theory on the human need to give and receive attention.
Approach. In Human Givens: A New Approach To Clear-Thinking and Emotional Wellbeing by Ivan Tyrrell & Joe Griffin, the authors state that in their view Shah's theory represents “a profoundly more subtle understanding of the importance of attention than found in Western psychology till now” and go on to quote in full the 21 principles of attention that Shah considered worthy of study.
Richard Smoley and Jay Kinney
, writing in Hidden Wisdom: A Guide to the Western Inner Traditions (2006), described Learning How to Learn as one of Shah's best works. They noted that the book provided a solid orientation to Shah's "psychological" approach to Sufi work and added that Shah, at his best, provides "insights that inoculate students against much of the nonsense in the spiritual marketplace."
In September 1978 Psychology Today
described the book as "the watershed in studies of the mind" and elsewhere as "a textbook of method and attitude."
Idries Shah
Idries Shah , also known as Idris Shah, né Sayed Idries el-Hashimi , was an author and teacher in the Sufi tradition who wrote over three dozen critically acclaimed books on topics ranging from psychology and spirituality to travelogues and culture studies.Born in India, the descendant of a...
that was first published by Octagon Press
Octagon Press
Octagon Press is a cross-cultural publishing house based in London, UK. It was founded in 1960 by Sufi teacher, Idries Shah to establish the historical and cultural context for his ideas.-Description:Octagon Press published many of Shah's later works...
in 1978. Later editions by Harper & Row (1981) and Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
(1985, 1993, 1996) include an introduction by Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
Winner Doris Lessing
Doris Lessing
Doris May Lessing CH is a British writer. Her novels include The Grass is Singing, The Golden Notebook, and five novels collectively known as Canopus in Argos....
.
Shortly before he died, Shah stated that his books form a complete course that could fulfil the function he had fulfilled while alive. As such, Learning How to Learn: Psychology and Spirituality in the Sufi Way can be read as part of a whole course of study.
Content
Teaching stories
Teaching stories is a term used by the writer Idries Shah to describe narratives that have been deliberately created as vehicles for the transmission of wisdom...
and anecdotes and articles from newspapers to illustrate prerequisites to Sufi learning. One such prerequisite is that the learner should organise their basic human needs so as to be able to give adequate attention to their studies. The second section of the book is dedicated entirely to Shah's theory on the human need to give and receive attention.
Reception
The theory on attention presented in the book has influenced the school of psychology and psychotherapy known as the Human GivensHuman Givens
Human Givens approach or Human Givens Psychotherapy is form of psychology and psychotherapy developed by Joe Griffin and Ivan Tyrrell introduced in their 2003 book Human Givens: A new approach to emotional health and clear thinking...
Approach. In Human Givens: A New Approach To Clear-Thinking and Emotional Wellbeing by Ivan Tyrrell & Joe Griffin, the authors state that in their view Shah's theory represents “a profoundly more subtle understanding of the importance of attention than found in Western psychology till now” and go on to quote in full the 21 principles of attention that Shah considered worthy of study.
Richard Smoley and Jay Kinney
Jay Kinney
Jay Kinney is an American author, editor, and former underground cartoonist. A member, along with Skip Williamson, Jay Lynch and R. Crumb, of the original Bijou Funnies crew, Kinney also edited Young Lust, a satire of romance comics, in the early 1970s with Bill Griffith...
, writing in Hidden Wisdom: A Guide to the Western Inner Traditions (2006), described Learning How to Learn as one of Shah's best works. They noted that the book provided a solid orientation to Shah's "psychological" approach to Sufi work and added that Shah, at his best, provides "insights that inoculate students against much of the nonsense in the spiritual marketplace."
In September 1978 Psychology Today
Psychology Today
Psychology Today is a bi-monthly magazine published in the United States. It is a psychology-based magazine about relationships, health, and related topics written for a mass audience of non-psychologists. Psychology Today was founded in 1967 and features articles on such topics as love,...
described the book as "the watershed in studies of the mind" and elsewhere as "a textbook of method and attitude."