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Fields:Personal DevelopmentArt & Social EnergyScience & Technology
Personal Development
Abraham Lincoln Lincoln persevered despite long odds and tremendous hardships (especially early in his political career). Although the target of countless attempts to deride his credibility, not only during his Presidency but also after his death, Lincoln leaves us with a legacy of honesty, courage, and resolve.
Adam Smith In an era dominated by mercantilism and state-sponsored oppression, Smith had the audacity to suggest an economic and philosophical system which trumpeted the power of the individual and the vast capabilities of the human race. His most famous book, On the Wealth of Nations, is still referenced today, some 200+ years after its initial publication, as the work on present-day capitalist philosophy. Now that's a classic!
Andrew Carnegie Carnegie was the inspiration of Napoleon Hill's classic, Think and Grow Rich, and was one of the most successful businessmen in American history. Famously, Carnegie spent the later half of his life trying to give away all of the money he earned in business to worthy causes through the creation of the Carnegie Foundation. His legacy continues to this day, and last year his Foundation alone donated over $200 million to deserving non-profits.
Ben Hogan The "Wee Ice Man" was a legendary golfer, known for his grueling practice schedule and ball striking ability. In the hight of his career, he survived a head-on collision with a Greyhound bus (spending 59 days in the hospital along the way). Miraculously, less than a year after the accident, he continued to dominate golf tournaments despite doctors predictions that he may never walk again.
Bob Dylan The greatest folk singer of all time, Bob Dylan is a true original. Throughout his famed career, he always kept true to his self and always played the music that he felt like playing (sometimes to the alienation of his close friends and fellow musicians). Favorite Work: Subterranean Homesick Blues
Bruce Lee Bruce Lee lived the life of a true martial artist. His dedication, not only to his craft but also to the Truth, produced a man whose actions were perfectly aligned with his philosophies (a rare combination indeed). Lee's creation of Jeet Kune Do is the foundation for the hugely popular mixed-martial arts movement today.
Dan Millman Gymnast and author, Dan Millman's life is an example of how ignorance can be replaced by wisdom and the material by by Eternal. His book, The Way of the Peaceful Warrior, is a fantastic read for anyone about to embark on a journey inside themselves. It is touted as a "book that changes lives" - and it certainly changed mine after my first reading. Favorite Work: The Way of the Peaceful Warrior
David Allen Allen is responsible for bringing zen into the boardroom. His very practical and concrete advice (unlike the theoretical bullshit on this site!) about how to organize your life has brought relief to millions of victims of the corporate grind. He's well-versed in Zen Buddhism and is a very spiritual person in his own right (ordained MSIA minister).
John Locke The greatest of the "social contract" theorists and one of the greatest Western minds to ever live, Locke argued that the state should only have those powers necessary to provide services that humans are incapable of providing for themselves in a state of anarchy (the "State of Nature"). His work had a major influence on the Declaration of Independence and centuries of individualistic and freedom-minded thought.
J.S. Mill John Stuart Mill is credited as the founder of classical liberalism. Mill's famous "harm thesis," which argues that the only limit to a man's freedom is the point at which he harms another man, is the foundation of nearly every Western legal system. His arguments in favor of free speech, which explain that even the expression of an erroneous or obnoxious point of view is valuable because debate reinforces the correctness of the majority's beliefs, maintain exceptional persuasive force to this day.
Mario Andretti Known for his burning desire to win and his ever-constant practice, Andretti has certainly captured the Horatio Alger grand conception of the American Dream. Andretti's legacy includes wins in NASCAR, Formula One, Grand Prix, Stock Car, IndyCar, and open wheel competitions.
Michael Jordan With every clutch shot, he built his dynasty. With every multi-story dunk, he built his legacy. Whatever the future holds for basketball, Jordan will always be the greatest to ever play the game. He was able to transcend his own human limitations and for brief amounts of time accomplished the impossible.
Napoleon Hill A truly enlightened individual, Napoleon Hill provided a repeatable formula for obtaining the "American Dream." Think and Grow Rich is to the Western world as Buddha's Noble Eightfold Path is to the Eastern world- a step-by-step guide toward obtaining Western enlightenment.
Pohaku Pohaku brought the ancient Hawaiian belief system of HUNA to the digitized Western world every other week through his extremely enlightening Huna Trainer podcast. Over the course of dozens of podcasts, Pohaku takes us inside the mind of a real Hawaiian HUNA shaman and shares his brand of ancient tribal wisdom. I highly recommend his lessons from Makapu'u Bay, in which he relays to the audience the lesson the ocean taught him while he was body surfing that morning.
Steve Jobs The most innovative businessman in the world, Steve Jobs has redefined the cutting edge of computing (and himself) over the past three decades. Jobs heroic rise to fame was followed by an embarrassing decline and excommunication from Apple. During this darkest period, however, Jobs found himself again. Jobs teaches us that sometimes our most creative moments can come when things are seemingly most dismal. Favorite Work: MacBook Pro, iMac, iPod again and just as quickly rose to the ranks of CEO of two of the most respected companies in the world, his former brain-child Apple and the major movie studio Pixar.
Steve Pavlina An ex-con turned blogger, Steve Pavlina's personal development site is consistently one of the highest ranked blogs on Alexa. His prose is easy to identify with, his information is valuable and his text is filled with rare wisdom.
Tiger Woods So far, Tiger Woods has been the most amazing and consistent athlete of the young 21st century. Even after many changes to his swing and approach, Tiger is still the most feared player on the PGA Tour. His practice routines are legendary. Like Jordan, when he is performing at his peak, he is all but unstoppable. If you have any doubts that Wood's golf game is divinely inspired, check out the chip shot he made on the 16th at Augusta.
Tim Ferriss Ferriss' revolutionary book, The Four Hour Work Week, introduces new takes on concepts such as the the nature of wealth, outsourcing, and retirements. His search for the meaning of life found him chasing money at the expense of his own happiness and well-being. Recognizing this apparent contradiction, he focused his life instead on exploring what the world had to offer by discovering the best ways to maximize his output while minimizing his input.
Theodore Roosevelt While he may not go down in history as one of the greatest Presidents in the history of the US, Teddy Roosevelt will certainly be remembered as one of the greatest men in the history of the US. A frail and sickly child who was constantly ostracized for being a dork, Roosevelt learned how to fend for himself at an early age. His steadfast commitment to action in times of doubt is something to be revered. In addition his speeches rank among the most inspirational in American history. (See link below) Favorite Undertaking: The Man in the Arena [link]
Thomas Edison Edison's genius lies in his perseverance, which enabled him to become one of the giants of American Entrepreneurship. Interestingly, he was also instrumental in helping Thomas Paine regain his notoriety in American history after he was all but erased from history books because of his outspoken love to Deism (and loud criticism of the Church).
Thomas Jefferson Shaped the young country perhaps more than any other man. Jefferson had a purpose and a vision for the nation - both of which are beautifully expressed in the Declaration of Independence which he penned almost entirely by himself. His affinity for natural law and other libertarian principles make the Declaration a timeless assertion of human rights, one that would be cited centuries later by Martin Luther King, Jr. and consistently inspire the world to embrace justice, humanity, and the inherent dignity of every man.
Thomas Paine It was Paine's writings which inspired the masses in the first popular revolution dedicated to individual freedom and limited government. The emotional appeal found in the pamphlet Common Sense enlivened the Revolution in the minds of the lay public who responded to Paine's pathos over Jefferson's cold logic.
Wayne Dyer Author of one of the most successful books of all time (Your Erroneous Zones has sold over 30 million copies), Dyer is a champion of positive thinking and living in accordance with ones means. A student of the Tao, Dyer is considered by many to be the leading therapist in the world. His works provide real-life examples of exactly how to shed our most unbreakable demons and exactly how to change our world for the better by looking for answers inside ourselves.
Art & Social
David Deida I think I've literally bought Deida's book, The Way of the Superior Man, ten times, and each time I gave it away to someone I truly cared about. If you want to understand women and your relation to the feminine and the Universe at large, read this book. Read this book if you don't "get" women. Just read this book (and don't get it on Audio, as the audio version isn't true to the actual written book). Get your significant other his books for women as well- they're amazingly good at helping a couple understand their partners needs. Favorite Work: The Way of the Superior Man
DJ Quik Having grown up in Compton, California, 17 year-old David Blake left his mother's house and went on to become a professional DJ, rapper, and the most talented producer in hip-hop (with respect to Dr. Dre). Quik's beats are some of the most sought after in rap, which is why Quik makes $100,000 per track. His tracks are distinctive for their upbeat and energetic vibes. Favorite Work: Balance + Options
Henry David Thoreau Author of the famed journey of self discovery, Walden, Thoreau found meaning to his life in the wilderness. He rejected the materialism of metropolitan society and sought to find himself instead.
Hunter S. Thompson Hunter S. Thompson is the only author I can read cover to cover in one sitting. Hell, I've read 800 pages of mostly pointless personal letters he sent out to friends and family just because he was the author of them. Unlike most authors, Thompson doesn't describe, say exactly what a heroine addict must go through before they shoot up. Instead, Thompson describes exactly what it must be like right after a heroine addict plunges the needle into the fleshy part of his left arm and pulls down the hammer.
James Allan Very little is known about James Allan. From what we can gather, he lived a simple life with his spouse in a rural part of the U.K., and it was there that he (and his wife) penned many great works on the subject of happiness. Mr. Allan's short work, As Man Thinketh, is as fresh and useful as any present-day self-help book. His favorite analogy was, "Your mind is your garden," in which he compared good thoughts to seeds which sow in the garden of the mind until they grow and bear fruit in the form of good deeds. Short and sweet - my kind of book! Favorite Work: As Man Thinketh
James Bond I know James Bond is fictional; still, we can learn a lot from the character of James Bond because his charm and good humor seem so real. To be able to laugh in the face of danger. To charm any woman with a few pithy remarks. To overcome brute and unrefined strength with tact and guile. James Bond is the thinking man's superhero.
Matisyahu Mixing orthodox Judaism, reggae, hip-hop, beat-box and rock, Matisyahu's music is truly divinely inspired. His lyrics are uplifting, poetic and almost concerned with Hashem. Not only that, his live shows are epic (see below). Favorite Work: Youth
Ralph Waldo Emerson Father of the American transcendentalist movement, Emerson believed that the Divine could only be grasped through direct experience rather than through the Christian doctrine and dogma which was popular in the East Coast during his life. Emerson consumed the ancient Hindu texts voraciously and makes many references to the One throughout his work.
Sammy Davis Jr. Performing in a time of radical change in the civil rights laws of the United States, Sammy Davis Jr. faced criticism from both blacks and whites. While he took some of the Hate personally, he still shined in his performances and his actions. Extremely generous, Davis supported long-time friends for decades at the cost of his personal wealth.
Sean Carter (Jay-Z) The self-proclaimed "best rapper alive" is a living legend comparable to what Babe Ruth was to baseball or Jordan was to basketball. Growing up the Marcy Projects in Brooklyn, New York, Carter became a crack dealer at the age of 16 and amassed a small fortune by the time he reached his early 20s. When tired of the stress of drug dealing, Sean Carter transformed himself into the rapper Jay-Z at the age of 29. His demo was rejected by every single music label in New York and Los Angeles, but instead of giving up on his dream of becoming a musician, he started his own recording company in order to get his music heard. Now a multi-million dollar company, Rockefeller Records has been one of the most influential labels in music over the past two decades, and Mr. Carter is now a wildly successful CEO.
Trey Parker & Matt Stone Expanding from the political cartoonists of yesteryear, the South Park creators blend humor, hypocrisy and individualistic ideals into their always entertaining shows, movies, and side projects.
Tupac The 'thug poet', Tupac's music is in a category all to itself. He crammed more life into his 25 years of existence than most achieve in over twice the time. He lived in the ghetto for most of his life and was very much in touch with the needs and desires of the poverty laden neighborhoods, yet at the same time he was an intellectual and an insatiable reader, and he possessed the amazing ability to feel at home in a crack house, library, gang meeting, or even in a suburban PETA gathering.
Energy
Alan Watts One of the great Western philosophers of the 20th century, Watts played a pivotal role in bringing Zen Buddhism to the West. His razor-sharp British wit and deep-seeded love and respect for the Eastern dharma combined to help modernize the ancient Buddhist teaching for an urbane and mostly Christian, audience. Check these awesome cartoons (using audio from Alan Watts lectures) produced by Matt Parker and Trey Stone!
Carl Jung Spurred to find an answers to his own psychological neurosis, Jung delved into both Eastern and Western mysticism, philosophy and dharma in order to find the true meaning of human consciousness. Not intimidated by some of his peers who shrugged off the Eastern tradition as nonsense, Jung explored all major religions, searching for concrete answers where modern science had only guesses. His groundbreaking work on dreams, art and the human psyche serves as a present-day blue print for psychologists and truth-seekers alike.
Confucius The founder of the Eastern tradition of study and discipline, Confucius taught that cultivating the Self was one's highest ideal. Confucius was also a believer in the Golden Rule, "What one does not wish for oneself, one ought not to do to anyone else; what one recognizes as desirable for oneself, one ought to be willing to grant to others." Confucius was one of the first to argue that having the government force its own morality onto its citizens is counterproductive. Instead, he dreamed of a society which was constantly improving and changing its laws (usually erring on the side of greater personal freedoms). He wrote, "When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them." His philosophies dominate Asian thought to this day.
Gandhi Abused and imprisoned, Gandhi knew that in spite of all turmoil his soul could never be extinguished, and he lived life accordingly. Certainly a master of karma yoga, Gandhi may be the most beloved human in the world even 60 years after he left his body! Gandhi described his life as an experiment with the Truth, and a noble experiment indeed.
The Gnostics The first Western movement to suggest that God could be found in your "inner Self." The Gnostics believed that each human being is connected through a divine spirit. Thus, the Gnostics held that individual rights and freedoms were a birthright, a natural product of being "a member of God's Kingdom."
Jesus No hyperbole would exaggerated the impact Jesus has made on the Western world as the founder of culture and society as we know it in the West. Jesus highlighted the importance of voluntary charity, love, and community in human society and inspired countless works of art, music, and other achievements. Jesus' advocation of the Golden Rule eventually became the inspirational foundation for liberty in the Western legal system - namely that all men are equal (under the law) and that laws should allow for the maximization of the freedoms which do not impinge on the rights of other individuals.
Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee Meher Baba Like Sri Ramakrishna, Jesus, Krishna, and other Avatars before him, Meher Baba believed in the divine capacity of man. He also believed in tolerance - he lovingly accepted and nourished any and all who came to him seeking refuge from persecution. His famous motto, "Don't Worry, Be Happy," was immortalized in a song by Bebby McFerrin.
Plato Was the first to logically analyze different belief systems and the first to recognize the potential harm in unbridled Democracy, namely the Tyranny of the Majority, a system of coercion he felt was effectively indistinguishable from the tyranny of a single monarch. Plato was also the first of the great Western philosophers to speak of a "transcendent universe" similar to that mentioned in the Vedas.
Ramakrishna At a time when Hinduism was falling off the world stage (the British called it 'idol worship') Sri Ramakrishna appeared to rejuvenate the ailing religion. He claimed that that all religions, from Hinduism to Christianity to Islam to Judaism to Buddhism, were essentially saying the same thing- "There Is Only God." An enlightened master and Avatar, Ramakrishna serves as an inspiration to all of humanity.
Sadghuru
Seneca At one time he was the most powerful man in the world, but gave it all up for spiritual freedom and the pursuit of happiness. A Roman Stoic, Seneca believed that the path toward enlightenment lay through reason and deep understanding of nature. Although Seneca never read the Vedas, his ideas are 100% consistent with both the Hindu and Buddhist doctrines.
Socrates Laid the foundation of Western philosophy and learning with the introduction of the Socratic Method, which enhanced the role of inquiry and reason in political philosophy.
Vivekananda Vivekananda was a student of Ramakrishna's (see above) for six years before he believed to his own satisfaction that Ramakrishna was actually in touch with his own divinity and that he truly was liberated. Due to the Swami's Westernized education, he was able to reconcile the spiritual achievement of the East with the material achievement of the West. He argued that even though in a spiritual sense India as a country is very enlightened, when it comes to society and government it is an utter failure. Corruption is rampant and there is no concept of "greater good" (which exists in nearly every Westernized country). Vivekananda loved the freedom (societal, economic, religious) offered by America and stressed the need for personal as well as spiritual achievement.
Science & Technology
Albert Einstein Anyone who is able to peer inside the physical realm of the Divine and understand some of its rules deserves our utmost respect; Einstein was one of a very limited few to accomplish this. Although much of his work would be ultimately discredited by the discovery of quantum physics, the rejection of his ideals was essential for the birth of the new science of quantum physics. The brilliant scientist is best remembered for his theory of relativity, which expands on Newton's principles of movement in the classical worldview. Ultimately, Einstein failed to provide the comprehensive unification theory of the universe in which he was so desperately searching (which is obvious in hindsight, as providing a comprehensive unification theory would invalidate his very own theories of relativity, causality and locality). Einstein's world was composed of atoms which move in determinalistic patterns. But we have since learned that there is an entire universe existing on the Planck scale which does not operate under the same set of faithful patterns as Einstein envisioned them to be.
Amit Goswami Upholding the tradition set by Newton, Bohr and Einstein, Goswami is next in line to becoming the new authority on the universe's inner workings. Goswami's stated mission is to prove the Tibetan Book of the Dead using quantum physics. His vision of the world is one full of wonder and beauty, and very similar to the one found in the Upanishads. But unlike the Upanishads, Goswami uses the latest discoveries in science and physics as the basis for all his claims. Favorite Work: The Visionary Window
Issac Newton Newton's discovery of what we now refer to as classical physics was nearly as big as an accomplishment as the first primates standing up and walking on two feet. Unlike Einstein, Newton had no previous conception of a world which behaved in predicable, calculated ways. A brilliant mind (although it turns out probably not a brilliant a theologian) He was able to deduce an incredible amount about the nature of the natural world without the benefit of standardized calculations (he had to invent them), instruments or electricity.
Niels Bohr His model for quantum physics first showed the existence of a supernatural force (which disobeys Einstein's principle of locality). Wisely, Bohr never tried to explain his voodoo physics in classical mathematical terms - perhaps he understood that the force behind the quantum movement was of a realm beyond even electron rings.
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Bodhidharma is conspicuously missing.
After seeing all these wonderful names, and checking this great place out a bit, I'm truly surprised that Alexander Shulgan was among those not listed. Just in case you folks don't recognize the name, you can pick up his book '[/u]Pihkal[u]'. Considering the spirit of the content, your remarkable site might give some mention...