It is common in both Buddhism and Freudian psychoanalysis to treat desire as if it is the root of all suffering and problems, but psychiatrist Mark Epstein believes this to be a grave misunderstanding. In his controversial defense of desire, he makes clear that it is the key to deepening intimacy with ourselves, each other, and our world.

Proposing that spiritual attainment does not have to be detached from intimacy or eroticism, Open to Desire begins with an exploration of the state of dissatisfaction that causes us to cling to irrational habits. Dr. Epstein helps readers overcome their own fears of desire so that they can more readily bridge the gap between self and other, cope with feelings of incompletion, and get past the perception of others as objects. Freed from clinging and shame, desire's spiritual potential can then be opened up.

PRAISE
"A masterpiece. . . . It teaches us how not to fear and repress, but to rechannel and harness the most powerful energies of life toward freedom and bliss." —ROBERT THURMAN

Psychiatrist Epstein offers a novel reinterpretation of the thinking of both the Buddha and Freud about desire. Contrary to the popular view that these two major figures taught the danger of desire and the necessity of renunciation, Epstein, author of three popular books on Buddhism, argues that it is clinging—holding on to some person, object or experience—rather than desire that causes suffering. Instead, the psychiatrist says, desire is a human urging that offers a path toward enlightenment. When rightly seen, desire can lead to sensing both the bliss and emptiness that Buddhism teaches.

In support of his interpretation Epstein ranges from ancient literature to the contemporary psychiatrist's office. He draws on the Ramayana, the Hindu epic of love and adventure; Buddhist tantra, esoteric practices and teachings that harness erotic energy; and case histories of his patients, who are plagued by longings and use what Buddhists would call unskillful means of responding to their human urges.

Occasionally the range of material is a stretch. Case histories and other stories more easily illustrate his argument than does his use of psychoanalytic literature with its more technical, abstract concepts. But as a good therapist would, Epstein concludes by offering advice for working with desire. The book contains fresh views on the fertile intersection between contemporary American Buddhism and human psychology.
—From Publishers Weekly