Alan Watts was an orator and philosopher of the 20th century. He spent time reflecting on personal identity and higher consciousness. According to the critic Erik Davis, his "writings and recorded talks still shimmer with a profound and galvanising lucidity."[1] These works[clarification needed] are not accessible in the same way as his many books.
Lectures
The following lectures can all be obtained at alanwatts.org.[2]
Is this life a dream?
Watts proposes a thought experiment of imagining that one has total control over the content of each night's dreams. He uses this thought experiment to make a case for the self as the ultimate reality.[3]
What if money were no object?
Watts argues that there is less difference than generally supposed between what one would want to do if money were no object, and what one should do under actual circumstances. He proposes that the question "What do I desire?" should be given greater emphasis, even under actual circumstances.[4]
The mind
Watts makes a case for quieting the mind by leaving it alone. He argues that we are "addicted to thoughts" and want to avoid ourselves, and that this quest for self-avoidance leads to a "vicious circle" of worry.[5]
Note: ISBNs for titles originally published prior to 1974 are for reprint editions.
Watts, Alan W. (1932). An outline of Zen Buddhism. London: Golden Vista Press.
Watts, Alan W. (1937). The legacy of Asia and Western man: a study of the middle way. London: John Murray.
Watts, Alan (1940). The meaning of happiness: the quest for freedom of the spirit in modern psychology and the wisdom of the East (1st ed.). New York: Harper and Row.
Watts, Alan (2020). Just So: Money, Materialism, and the Ineffable, Intelligent Universe (1st ed.). Boulder, Colorado: Sounds True. ISBN1-68364-294-5.
Translations
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (1944). Theologia mystica: being the treatise of Saint Dionysius pseudo-Areopagite on mystical theology, together with the first and fifth epistles. Translated from the Greek and with an introduction by Alan W. Watts. West Park, New York, USA: Holy Cross Press.
Note: ISBN's for titles originally published prior to 1974 are for reprint editions.
1932 An Outline of Zen Buddhism, The Golden Vista Press (32-page pamphlet)
1944 Theologia Mystica: Being the Treatise of Saint Dionysius, Pseudo-Areopagite, on Mystical Theology, Together with the First and Fifth Epistles, West Park, New York: Holy Cross Press OCLC2353671
1970 Does It Matter?: Essays on Man's Relation to Materiality, Pantheon Books, ISBN0-394-71665-5
1971 The Temple of Konarak: Erotic Spirituality, with photographs by Eliot Elisofon, London: Thames and Hudson. Also published as Erotic Spirituality: The Vision of Konarak, New York: Macmillan
1972 The Art of Contemplation: A Facsimile Manuscript with Doodles, Pantheon Books
2000 Eastern Wisdom, ed. Mark Watts, MJF Books. ISBN1-56731-491-0, three books in one volume: What is Zen?, What is Tao?, and An Introduction to Meditation (Still the Mind). Assembled from transcriptions of audio tape recordings made by his son Mark, of lectures and seminars given by Alan Watts during the last decade of his life.
2000 Still the Mind: An Introduction to Meditation, ed. Mark Watts, New World Library. ISBN1-57731-214-7
2000 What Is Tao?, ed. Mark Watts, New World Library. ISBN1-57731-168-X
2002 Zen, the Supreme Experience: The Newly Discovered Scripts, ed. Mark Watts, Vega
2006 Eastern Wisdom, Modern Life: Collected Talks, 1960–1969, New World Library
2017 Collected Letters of Alan Watts, Ed. Joan Watts & Anne Watts, New World Library. ISBN978-1608684151
Watts, Alan (2020). Just So: Money, Materialism, and the Ineffable, Intelligent Universe (1st ed.). Boulder, Colorado: Sounds True. ISBN978-1-68364-294-7.
2023 Tao for Now: Wisdom of the Watercourse ed. Mark Watts, edited transcripts, Waterside Productions, 2023. ISBN978-1960583901
Audio and video works, essays
Including recordings of lectures at major universities and multi-session seminars.
1960 Eastern Wisdom and Modern Life, television series, Season 1 (1959) and Season 2 (1960)
1960 Essential Lectures
1960 From Time to Eternity
1960 Lecture on Zen
1960 Nature of Consciousness (here)
1960 Taoism
1960 The Cross of Cards
1960 The Value of Psychotic Experience
1960 The World As Emptiness
1962 Haiku (Long playing album - MEA LP 1001)
1962 This Is It - Alan Watts and friends in a spontaneous musical happening (Long playing album - MEA LP 1007)
1971 Alan Watts on Living, 5-part television miniseries produced in Vancouver by CBC Television, concerning his views on the detrimental nature of culture.[13][14][15]
1972 The Way of Liberation in Zen Buddhism, Alan Watts Journal, vol. 2, nr 1
1972: Radio interview. Alan reads from his auto biography "In My Own Way" and discusses his life and philosophy with Lex Hixon; host of “In the Spirit” on WBAI Radio. (Transcript).
1994 Zen: The Best of Alan Watts (VHS)
1998 Summer Of Love: The Spirituality And Consciousness Of The 1960s (Cassette)
2004 Out of Your Mind: Essential Listening from the Alan Watts Audio Archives, Sounds True, Inc. Unabridged edition,
2005 Do You Do It, or Does It Do You?: How to let the universe meditate you (CD)
2007 Zen Meditations with Alan Watts, DVD (here)
2013 What If Money Was No Object? (3 minutes) on YouTube
2021 'Delta Goodrem' 'PLAY' Bridge Over Troubled Dreams
2022 'The Art of Meditation' , Sigur Ros & Formless
2022 'Accepted Too' , Akira The Don
Biographical publications
Stuart, David (pseudonym for Edwin Palmer Hoyt Jr.)(1976). Alan Watts: The Rise and Decline of the Ordained Shaman of the Counterculture. Chilton Book Co., Pa. ISBN978-0801959653
Lhermite, Pierre (1983) Alan Watts, Taoïste d'Occident, éd. La Table Ronde.
Furlong, Monica (1986). Genuine Fake: A Biography of Alan Watts. Heinemann (or titled Zen Effects: The Life of Alan Watts as published by Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, ISBN0-395-45392-5).
Notes
^David, Erik (2006). The Visionary State: A Journey through California's Spiritual Landscape. Chronicle Books. ISBN0-8118-4835-3.
