Mystics, Masters, Saints, and Sages: Stories of Enlightenment
All the figures profiled inMystics, Masters, Saints, and Sageshave one experience in common: they achieved enlightenment, the elusive promise  of "profound peace, extreme happiness, and a deep understanding of the truth,"  as editors Robert Ullman and Judith Reichenberg-Ullman describe it. In gathering  the autobiographical stories, essays, and poems written by these various  seekers, the editors explore diverse pathways to transcendence. Some, such as  the Buddha, suffered. Others found the right guide, such as the Sufi poet Rumi,  who met his beloved teacher in a bustling Turkish marketplace. Some went to the  brink of suicide, such as the Canadian Eckhart Tolle, author ofThe Power of Now. The editors  offer a brief biographical sketch before each essay, giving readers context for  digesting these inspiring experience, which span thousands of years and many  regions of the world. The editors claim to be nondenominational, but there are  significantly more contributions from Eastern traditions than any other.-- Gail Hudson