Karim Nour is the Co-Founder of Kashat, the region’s first Nanno finance company tackling financial exclusion by providing financial services to the under-banked. His passions are building winning teams, studying human development and maps of meaning, and practicing with purpose.
Nour told WAYA what he considers a good book: “For me, A good book is one that makes me tumble headfirst into another. An even better book is one that makes me lose my head altogether, and feel like there can be nothing more to be said. Below are some of my favorites that have done just that:”
Meditations – Marcus Aurelius
Marcus used to rule a quarter of the world (namely the Roman empire) he fought desperate wars, the plague, and his wife apparently ran off with one of his generals who rose up against him. He wrote one of the world’s most profound works that was never intended to be published. Oh and he forgave his wife. Marus has stuff to say.
A Theory of everything- Ken Wilber
Wilber’s “Integral theory” is in my mind perhaps the most comprehensive map (not the terrain) of reality that includes all realms and disciplines imaginable. His model embraces levels of human development (stages), states of being (states), types of intelligence (Lines), and ways to show up in the world (quadrants), is so compelling that it may take years to approach a full belly. This book is the snowflake on the tip of the iceberg. It compelled me to read many of his other works, A History of everything, his Magnum Opus, ‘Sex ecology, spirituality” “Integral phycology”, and “Grace and Grit”.
The 3 Pillars of Zen- Phillip Kapleau
Ever use a word wrong since you were born. Like “ that couch is zen” yeah well this might set you straight. In fact, it may make you less interested in words, cognition, or rational thinking at all. “Thought” may even lose its position on your mantle as the pinnacle of human expression. This book led me to the works of Shunryu Suzuki and his treasure “Zen mind beginner’s mind” which is a book that made me put down all books on Zen.
The Gift – Hafez
If love was ever able to temporarily masquerade as the written word. If your heart of hearts could be made to smile by the markings on a page. Hafez would hold that pen. This is a book that makes you realize there is a light language of depth, a language of love, all on its own.
Other WAYA Book Club articles to check out:
Mirna Slieman
Tarek Seif El Nasr
Ramy Khorshed
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