I listened to some Alan Watts videos on youtube and they were

None of them. Watts is a nice guy to listen to, he is deeply sincere about his beliefs and his attitude is wonderfully positive and well meaning, but he is the Ken-sama of spiritualism.

>>9625338
Yeah, but everyone is the Ken-sama of spiritualism. As far as I can tell, no-one has figured it out. So might as well read Watts. He's fun and has some good insights, although of course in his own life he wasn't exactly a model Buddhist monk or anything.

>>9625379

Read primary spiritual texts, i'm sure he would agree. Like his talks on Zen? Read some Zen masters. Like his Hindu talks? Read some Hindu gurus. Like his Christian metaphysics? Read some Gnostics.

tao the watercourse way

>>9625396
>Read primary spiritual texts, i'm sure he would agree.
Yup, this. As someone who loves Watts one of the most important things his lectures have imparted on me is that no matter how many spiritual tea-time chats you have, at the end of the day you're the only authority you're entitled to, and that's not something to be sad about but is one of the most liberating things you can integrate onto your personality.

So the best way you can read or listen to him is as someone who has an opinion on something you have an opinion of yourself.

At least recommend something to read please

>>9626013
Recommending you read Nietzsche first, he is the closest thing we have to a western Vedantist. If you feel like your lost, like everything is shit by the end of reading say: Geneology of Morals and Zarathustra then I would recommend reading The Upanishads.

>>9625332

this guy was an alcoholic new age pseud who spouted nonsense. go straight to the source and read some actual Zen.

Start with Dogen and Mumonkan

>>9626216
>implying there weren't zen masters who got shitfaced on saki and ran around the woods giggling all the time
Stop Christianizing Zen!!!!!
Also
>pseud
People don't learn Chinese to study Buddhism if they are pseuds.

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>>9625332

Don't mind the contrarianism of /lit/, it;s normal 4chan bullshit.

The Book On The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are and a newer released Out Of Your Mind are great to read as singular books or as a delving point into Watts personal interpretations and introductions into eastern mysticism.

People who hate on Watts here have probably never read his books in general. He gets tied in with all the new age spiritual/intellectual wankery, but I personally believe Watts to be much more crystallized and sincere in what he wanted western society to understand from his journeys of knowledge.

Who gives a fuck what /lit/ dorks think OP, follow your interests.

>>9626377

Nobody is hating on Watts, we're in agreement with him if anything. One should be acquainted with the primary materials in spiritual issues first and foremost, and Watts stresses this autonomy constantly. I adore Watts personally, he has (rather inadvertently) opened up a vein of spiritualism in our current society that has been much needed. first he was sampled in a few rock albums, now he has his own videogame? it's pretty fucking cool i have to say. This generation gets its counter-cultural kicks intellectually more often i hope. we just did dmt and played rez

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>>9626589
Not that one.
I agree on the Game being great, The weird open world thingie if you hit a rock you get an 20 minute sound snip.
I used to listen to his lectures while gaming after work.

But this really grind(/ground?) my gears:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey2SL5kOtnM

I heard the short TV version when over at my parents.
>*Walk into living room*Hey watching Watts?
>What? no just a commercial
>Nah, I know this, a beard guy right?
>*looks at TV* Oh I see \\\what's/// going on here.
>*Silence*

Is Wisdom of Insecurity any good?

>>9626050
>Nietzsche is close to a western vedantist

Kek

>>9626231
>People don't learn Chinese to study Buddhism if they are pseuds.

Watts managed to, so yeah people do.

>>9625332
No one takes Watts seriously anymore, he gets so much wrong about buddhadharma it isn't funny. It is telling how he is never referenced in Buddhological studies, even about Zen.

Part of it was the era he grew up in, but he severely misunderstood his own experiences, thought he experienced enlightenment and all this other bullshit that is refuted by any careful analysis of his own accounts. His shit was dressed up "oneness" nonsense.

Study actual Zen or Dzogchen.

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>>9627479
His own experiences are more like gnostic, you haven't heard him about Christianity?

>thought he experienced enlightenment and all this other bullshit
Where did you get that from?

>His shit was dressed up "oneness" nonsense.
Yeah in the sense that everything can be twisted to be views and 'dressed up "oneness" nonsense'.

You have high standards for spiritual entertainers. What do you masturbate to? {I wanna know, I wanna lvl up you see}

>>9627289
yes

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>>9625379
>no-one has figured it out

when i hear Alan Watts I can only imagine 20something potheads dropping truthbombs on the sheeple and 35+ yogamoms still riding that wave of new age bullshit. am i wrong? is he worth taking seriously?

>>9630176
It might be a healthy start to take him as serious as he takes himself.
>Studied theology
>knows some chinese/japanse/sanskrit
>knows some texts, general streams
>Can talk about Jung

Says he's not a guru, at most a spiritual entertainer.


My question is, when You say :
>When I hear Alan Watts
Did you ever listen to a lecture/saw one of his "movies"?
I mean, only if you heard some quotes mixed with music on youtube, I could understand your question/remark.

Oh shit,
>He compared western and Chinese (bit Japanese) and Indian religions.

Why do people think he's a Buddhist monk? He drunk himself dead.

If He was something spiritual, he was some Tao/Dao drunkenmaster.

>How many people saw that movie in his jean suite?