<strong><em>New Books</em></strong>

New Books

Neohumanism, Yearning, and Becoming:

Essays on Education and Spirituality

By Marcus Bussey

Review by Kathleen Kesson

I have been reading the work of Australian professor, researcher, and author Marcus Bussey for many years, and hold him in the very highest esteem as a preeminent interpreter of the philosophy of Neohumanism and its important contributions to educational theory and practice. In this new book of his collected essays, we are invited to join Dr. Bussey on a reflective journey that illustrates, in truly comprehensible ways, how “thinking,” in his words, can become “a spiritual practice in discernment and love” (p. 15). Yes, he is a “thinker” but he is so much more – a poet, visionary, educator, artist, activist, and spiritual seeker. He never fails to awaken me to new ways of thinking, to spread the wings of my thoughts more widely, to breathe more deeply, to take flight alongside this fellow traveler.

Perhaps it is our shared commitment to integrating the powerful streams of thought coming from the realms of critical theory/critical pedagogy and spiritual expansion that leads me to regard him as an academic soulmate. We live in a world of binaries – rational/nonrational, intellectual/spiritual, sacred/secular. To integrate these supposed oppositions is a significant accomplishment, but here we have a clear exposition of what he terms critical spirituality; as he notes in his book, “This critical spirituality is a corner stone for any engagement with sustainable futures as it forces all to look beyond dominant categories as we co-nurture a future worth having” (p. 33). Dr. Bussey is a futurist leading us toward a “poetics of possibility” (p. 39) – a future firmly rooted in a yearning for the Great, a devotional sentiment that longs for a connection with the Cosmic creative force, but a sentiment coupled with a spiritual pragmatism that offers us the tools we need to overcome injustice and exploitation in all of their forms.

The philosophy of Neohumanism was articulated by Prabhat Rainjan Sarkar (1921-1990), also known by the spiritual name of Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti – Indian philosopher, guru, social reformer, linguist, author, and composer – in The Liberation of Intellect: Neohumanism (1982). Each essay in this book draws from the deep well of P.R. Sarkar’s many teachings, who is acknowledged by Dr. Bussey as demonstrating to him “how the spiritual and the mundane are woven together” (p. 15). Bussey approaches the task of interpretation with humility, aware that “there is a whole world beyond the word” (p. 17) in “the mystery of reading Sarkar” (p. 17).

Sarkar’s ideas were dictated; that is, they emerge from an oral tradition thousands of years old. This presents a unique set of challenges to academics hoping to interpret a guru’s words with fidelity. From my (albeit limited) perspective, Dr. Bussey not only fosters our understanding of the meaning of the spoken words of Shrii Sarkar, but he embodies the very essence, the heart and soul of the original speaker. To describe Marcus as a brilliant wordsmith (he is that) does not do justice to his capacity for language that both draws us in (to our own soulful awareness) and draws us out into the world, where he beautifully illustrates the potential for integrating the domains of spirituality and the material reality of life.

In a world that often seems fast descending into chaos, brutality, alienation, and oblivion, Marcus renews our faith in the possibilities of grace, of hope, of universal love and of a bright future. This is a book I will return to again and again when I am in need of intellectual fresh air, of a shift in perspective, of inspiration to stay the course, and of the wisdom to guide us though these troubling times.

(2025) From Authors Press

A digital copy of this book is free to GANE members. Write to:
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NHE Publications

https://nhepublications.gurukul.edu/

New Children’s Stories

By Nancy Niiti Gannon

Published by Neohumanist College of Asheville Press

It’s a Yoga Party

Kids love doing yoga! Read this story and follow the adventures of four friends who do yoga together. Like them, you can move your bodies and keep them in tip-top shape. During yoga, you pretend to be animals, stand like towering trees, slither like snakes, and act like brave warriors. It’s a fun way to keep healthy. With the fun story come 28 colorful pictures, making it easy to follow along and have a blast. Yoga also helps you enjoy and connect with nature, becoming aware of its colors and beauty. So, grab a copy of It’s A Yoga Party! and experience the exciting benefits of yoga!
It’s a Yoga Party – Buy on Amazon

The Heart’s Language

In The Heart’s Language, Nancy Gannon reveals an enchanting series of short stories for parents and teachers to share with children aged four through eight. Each story stands alone and unfolds as a lesson in character using situations relevant to target-age children. The Hearts Language is an invaluable tool for parents and teachers seeking to introduce meditation and yoga to young children, planting the seeds for a lifelong practice.
The Hearts Language – Buy on Amazon

Far and Near Love

In Far and Near Love, we follow the adventures of red-haired, precocious Mimi. Although the book is fiction, it is also an educational manual with thought-provoking enrichment material along with the stories. Find out in these engaging stories how Mimi faces and rises above her challenges to find inner peace, an important quality to help today’s children be their best selves.
Far and Near Love – Buy on Amazon

New Issue
Neohumanist Review

The forthcoming edition of Neohumanist Review (5/July 2025) has Liberating Psychology as its main theme. Articles in this issue include: “Devotion and Awe”, “Freedom from Inferiority Complex”, “Existential Self-Esteem”, “Aryan and Alpine Civilization” and “Obsessive Clinging and Addiction”. Copies of the paper edition will be available at the Ananda Marga Gurukula conference in Romania this July. Previous issues are available for free at theneohumanist.com.

Subscriptions: https://theneohumanist.com/subscriptions/