Alan Watts

Alan Watts was a spiritual teacher in the sixties and early seventies (he died in his sleep in 1973). I honestly don’t know how to describe him. I want to say that he was so cool (because he was!), but that sounds trite and childish. I heard about him early last year through some talks that I was transposing for a former Buddhist monk. My local library has a copy of Om: Creative Meditations—a superbly edited compilation of some of his lectures—and I was blown away by this little masterpiece. It was the beginning of my Watts fascination. Audio collections of his lectures are available for purchase on the Alan Watts website, which is managed by his son Mark Watts; however, you can listen to hours upon hours of Watts’ lectures for free on YouTube. His famous book, The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing WhoYou Are is also available to download for free online. I’m looking forward to obtaining and reading The Way of Zen. I’ve heard it's very good… 

There has been a resurgence of interest and popularity in Watts’ work. I would say Watts is similar to spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle; although, I prefer Watts because of his bohemian lifestyle, sense of humour, and organic nature. (Tolle has become too commercial in my opinion.) Listening to Watts’ lectures will transform, entertain, and enlighten you. I’ve always been fairly open-minded, but Watts has helped me to clear away false beliefs that I was holding on to and wasn’t even aware of. It’s amazing how much damage our spiritual upbringing can have. How much needs to be unlearned to even catch a glimpse of what is truth and find the freedom that we are seeking. Watts has done this for me and I am eternally grateful. Whenever I need a shift in thinking, I turn to his lectures. He has become a part of my consciousness in an intimate and crucial way.

*Did you know that Alan Watts created and released a psychedelic album in 1962 called This Is IT? Here’s the track “Metamatic Ritual”: