The Metaphysical Society - Confucius in 90 Minutes

Confucius in 90 Minutes

Publisher: Blackstone Audio Inc
Author: Paul Strathern
Narrator: Robert Whitfield
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes (Unabridged)
Physical Price: $19.95
Download Price: $8.99
Format: Encoded Windows Media
Only Available in the US and Canada
© 2006 Blackstone Audio Inc

Confucius knew all about life and told us how to behave but we can't find out precisely what he was up to. His well-meaning platitudes, quaint maxims, and quasi-enigmatic anecdotes combined to produce an ideal philosophy for civil servants. It would appear that his aim was to turn his pupils into good government officials, but his teachings succeeded beyond his wildest expectations, providing rules of conduct and spiritual fodder for more than two thousand years.

In Confucius in 90 Minutes, Paul Strathern offers a concise, expert account of Confucius' life and ideas and explains their influence on man's struggle to understand his existence in the world.

The book also includes selections from Confucius' work, a brief list of suggested readings for those who wish to delve deeper, and chronologies that place Confucius within his own age and in the broader scheme of philosophy.

Paul Strathern earned a degree in philosophy at Trinity College, Dublin, and has lectured in philosophy and mathematics. A Somerset Maugham prize winner, he has written books on history, philosophy, and travel as well as five novels. His articles have appeared in numerous publications, including the Observer (London) and the Irish Times. He lives and writes in London.

Earphones Awards recipient Robert Whitfield was born in England and worked for the BBC for ten years as a radio news announcer and also worked as a narrator for the Royal National Institute for the Blind in London. In addition to narrating for Blackstone Audiobooks, he involves himself in numerous stage-acting projects in the United States and Europe.

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."
-- Albert Einstein

"Seek and 'ye shall find, knock and the door will be opened, ask and it shall be given unto thee."
--A Biblical Passage

"The true understanding of both the Creator and the creation is considered to be the transcendental or metaphysical knowledge."
-- Bhagavad Gita

"For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction."
-- Isaac Newton