Reading list

Philosophy of Consciousness

From contemplative accounts of awareness to modern philosophy of mind.

Intermediate. 6 steps

Stage I: Terms

Text
Who Am I?
Ramana Maharshi
Ramana’s self-enquiry, in which consciousness is examined from within.
Text
The Yoga-System of Patañjali
Patañjali, tr. James Haughton Woods, 1914
The seer and the seen: Yoga’s dualism of consciousness and mind.

Text
The Varieties of Religious Experience
William James, 1902
James on mystical states and other forms of consciousness.

Text
Ethics
Baruch Spinoza, tr. R. H. M. Elwes, 1883
Spinoza’s Part II: the mind as the idea of the body.
Concept
Philosophy of mind
The modern debate in outline: dualism, physicalism, idealism and beyond.

Cite this entry

Chicago (bibliography): “Philosophy of Consciousness.” Reading list. The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society. Last modified November 7, 2026. https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/philosophy-of-consciousness.
Chicago (note): “Philosophy of Consciousness,” reading list, The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, last modified November 7, 2026, https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/philosophy-of-consciousness.
MLA: “Philosophy of Consciousness.” The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, 7 Nov. 2026, www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/philosophy-of-consciousness.
BibTeX: @misc{reading-lists-philosophy-of-consciousness, title = {{Philosophy of Consciousness}}, howpublished = {The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society}, note = {Reading list. Last modified November 7, 2026}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/reading-lists/philosophy-of-consciousness} }