A Story Waiting to Pierce You: Mongolia, Tibet and the Destiny of the Western World

by Peter Kingsley

Overview

A Story Waiting to Pierce You is a breathtaking account of our past and our future as human beings. Firmly and gracefully it traces the ancient threads that connect Mongolia, Tibet and Native Americans to ancient figures such as Pythagoras and the very origins of western civilization -- showing how these sacred ties have shaped our lives today. This remarkable book by the acclaimed author of Reality, In the Dark Places of Wisdom and Catafalque: Carl Jung and the End of Humanity is a work both of magic and of the finest scholarship. With haunting simplicity and power it tells the true story of where our western culture really came from -- and of where it is taking us now.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781999638467
Publisher:	Catafalque Press
Publication date:	05/14/2025
Edition description:	2nd Second Revised ed.
Pages:	194
Product dimensions:	5.32(w) x 8.47(h) x 0.41(d)

About the Author

Peter Kingsley, PhD, is internationally recognized for his groundbreaking work on the origins of western spirituality, philosophy and culture. Through his writings, as well as lectures, he speaks straight to the heart and has helped to transform many people's understanding not only of the past -- but of who they are. The recipient of numerous academic awards, he holds honorary professorships or fellowships at universities in Canada, the United Kingdom and United States. Throughout his career he has worked together not only with Native American elders and western spiritual teachers but also with many of the most prominent figures in the fields of classics and anthropology, philosophy and religious studies, ancient civilizations and the history of both healing and science. The author of six books which together have exerted the profoundest and most far-reaching influence outside as well as inside academia, for years Peter Kingsley has lectured very widely -- speaking to professional scholars, psychologists and followers of different spiritual traditions, healers and medical practitioners as well as people who very simply are aware of the need to wake up to a reality greater than the one we are used to. For more information on his work visit www.peterkingsley.org

What People are Saying About This

Walter Burkert

The rich and dense scholarship in this book is admirable, nay incredible, with worldwide scope. Scholarly discussion depends on evidence—of which A Story Waiting to Pierce You offers the most surprising riches combined with overwhelming expertise. (Walter Burkert, author, Greek Religion and Babylon, Memphis, Persepolis)

Pir Zia Inayat Khan

In this profoundly erudite and eloquent book is a startling ancient secret that will forever alter the way we think about the origins of western civilization.

Thomas Moore

This is a small book. You can read it in an hour. I suggest that you read it several times and really get the golden idea at its core. Then bring that idea to everything you do—every decision, every choice, every plan, every interpretation. Live by an entirely different guidance. Walk like you've never walked before. (Thomas Moore, author, Care of the Soul and The Re-enchantment of Everyday Life)

Jacob Needleman

A blazingly alive work of scholarship and spiritual insight. (Jacob Needleman, author, What is God? and The Heart of Philosophy)

Coleman Barks

Reveals the surprisingly mystical origins, and purpose, of western culture as well as what it means to participate in its eternal unfolding right now. "Let this book wake you up into new sunlight. It is not just a book, and so to be read with the mind. Peter Kingsley's voice is a friend, and also a way of seeing, of remembering essence, of walking in a great circle around an island you have always loved, but only rarely visited. (Coleman Barks, translator, Rumi)

Jack Weatherford

By challenging some of our most fundamental perceptions of early European history, Peter Kingsley pushes out the horizon of the modern world and opens a new chapter in our appreciation of European-Asian relations. His innovative research into the spiritual and intellectual debt of ancient Greece to Inner Asia not only broadens our understanding of the past, but also helps us to understand better who we are today. (Jack Weatherford, author, Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World)

Larry Dossey

Piercing. Peter Kingsley is a master of adamantine prose and peerless scholarship. His work is truly worthy of that overworked term wisdom. And he is a master stylist: he turns you upside down and inside out without your knowing it is happening. This book will inspire, delight and enlighten many but will also challenge others because it is a mirror that reflects our most stubborn prejudices about the origins of our most sacrosanct cultural beliefs. And for that, Peter Kingsley deserves the highest praise. (Larry Dossey, MD, author, Reinventing Medicine and The Power of Premonitions)

Editorial Reviews

In this profoundly erudite and eloquent book is a startling ancient secret that will forever alter the way we think about the origins of western civilization.” —Pir Zia Inayat Khan


“The rich and dense scholarship in this book is admirable, nay incredible, with worldwide scope. Scholarly discussion depends on evidence—of which A Story Waiting to Pierce You offers the most surprising riches combined with overwhelming expertise.” —Walter Burkert, author, Greek Religion and Babylon, Memphis, Persepolis


"The book's controversial claims are based on impeccable scholarship and thus should be taken seriously. Highly recommended." —Choice (April 2011)


“Let this book wake you up into new sunlight. It is not just a book, and so to be read with the mind. Peter Kingsley’s voice is a friend, and also a way of seeing, of remembering essence, of walking in a great circle around an island you have always loved, but only rarely visited.” —Coleman Barks, translator of Rumi


“By challenging some of our most fundamental perceptions of early European history, Peter Kingsley pushes out the horizon of the modern world and opens a new chapter in our appreciation of European-Asian relations. His innovative research into the spiritual and intellectual debt of ancient Greece to Inner Asia not only broadens our understanding of the past, but also helps us to understand better who we are today.” —Jack Weatherford, author, Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World


“A blazingly alive work of scholarship and spiritual insight” —Jacob Needleman, author, What is God? and The Heart of Philosophy


“Piercing. Peter Kingsley is a master of adamantine prose and peerless scholarship. His work is truly worthy of that overworked term wisdom. And he is a master stylist: he turns you upside down and inside out without your knowing it is happening. This book will inspire, delight and enlighten many but will also challenge others because it is a mirror that reflects our most stubborn prejudices about the origins of our most sacrosanct cultural beliefs. And for that, Peter Kingsley deserves the highest praise.” —Larry Dossey, M.D., author, Reinventing Medicine and The Power of Premonitions

“This is a small book. You can read it in an hour. I suggest that you read it several times and really get the golden idea at its core. Then bring that idea to everything you do—every decision, every choice, every plan, every interpretation. Live by an entirely different guidance. Walk like you’ve never walked before.” —Thomas Moore, author, Care of the Soul and The Re-enchantment of Everyday Life

From the Publisher