Dates: Noted below on each individual session. All calls are held from 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM Pacific Time on the second Tuesday each month.
Format: Live webinars on Zoom. All sessions will be recorded and will be posted on this page for access for registered students as well as on our YouTube channel.
Zoom Information: Once you have registered for this program, please ensure you are signed in to your account and return to this page to access the “Get Your Zoom Link” lesson. You must register separately on Zoom to get your participation codes and reminder emails.
Faculty: Various
Academic Credit: Bachelors- 3 credits, Masters – 3 credits; Doctoral – 3 credits
Price: FREE as Audit; Per Credit Pricing for BA, MA, PhD
At the heart of the world wisdom traditions are books that distill the essence of the teachings of the masters down through the ages. Many have no authors, some are compilations over long periods of time, others reflect teachings of masters who themselves never wrote a word. Socrates and Jesus never wrote any books, for instance, but Plato wrote his Dialogues recalling his memory of what Socrates said and the Gospels recount the life of Jesus many decades after Jesus had gone. Other books have legendary authors but appear to be compilations heavily redacted over many centuries. Some books are considered “God’s word” such as the Bible or the Koran and have endured for millennia inspiring countless millions of believers. Others remain obscure and speak deeply symbolic truths hidden within the layers of the language in the text itself. Still others express the essence of a tribal tradition on the brink of extinction and are valued for what is on the verge of being lost. Great books continue to be written by individuals alive today.
New Recordings can be accessed on YouTube
What makes a Great Book great? Intro to Ubiquity’s Free Great Books Live Course:
Faculty: Each year, Dr. Jim Garrison and Dr. Gyorgyi Szabo choose six books they consider “great” and examine each one. Guest lecturers with specific expertise were invited to participate either in dialogue with Dr. Garrison and Dr. Szabo, or as lead lecturers. This course is available for Internal Online Independent Study.
Learning Objectives
- To understand the qualities that distinguish a literary work as a “Great Book.”
- To reflect upon the challenges framed by authors in ancient times in light of current global crises.
- To grapple with deep issues common to all humanity through active discussion, web forum postings, and/or paper assignments.
- To compare the major themes of the books studied.
Academic Credit: Students taking the course for credit should submit a post paper at the end of each year which includes six books. Bachelors level post-papers are 6–9 pages in length, Masters level post-papers are 10–15 pages in length, and Doctoral level are 20–25 pages. Papers should be written in APA style, with footnotes and bibliography. Papers should demonstrate the student’s knowledge of the books for the course and discuss how the content has contributed to the student’s understanding of themselves and to their spiritual growth. Artistic expression is welcomed.
The rules guiding our assignment collection and grading process can be found here: Ubiquity University Grading Policy
The following books will be examined in 2026
January 13 & February 10
Jim Garrison, PhD on The Foundations of Tibetan Mysticism by Lama Anarika Govinda
Tibetan Mysticism is one of the most rarified mystical traditions known. Cultivated in the supreme heights of the Himalayan Mountains, Tibetan mysticism took Buddhist and Asian notions of consciousness, unity, diversity, delusion and enlightenment to new levels. Anarika Govinda, a German born seeker who converted to Buddhism during his travels to Asia, writes one of the most sublime treatments of how the mantra OM MANI PADME HUM refracts cosmic truth for all ages.
Jim Garrison, PhD is the President and Founder of Ubiquity University. He has been studying great books since childhood as the son of missionaries to China and Taiwan where he was able to delve into eastern spirituality, particularly Buddhism and Taoism. His double Masters degree in the History of Religion and Christology at Harvard University and his doctorate on a Jungian analysis of ancient Judeo-Christian apocalyptic literature at Cambridge University enabled him to study texts across the spectrum of Axial religions and wisdom traditions. He has spent a lifetime studying great books from east and west, both ancient and modern, sacred and secular.
March 10 & April 14
Gyorgyi Szabo, PhD on The Door, by Magda Szabo
The Door is an unsettling exploration of the relationship between two very different women. Magda is a writer, educated, married to an academic, public-spirited, with an on-again-off-again relationship to Hungary’s Communist authorities. Emerence is a peasant, illiterate, impassive, abrupt, seemingly ageless. She lives alone in a house that no one else may enter, not even her closest relatives. She is Magda’s housekeeper and she has taken control over Magda’s household, becoming indispensable to her. And Emerence, in her way, has come to depend on Magda. They share a kind of love—at least until Magda’s long-sought success as a writer leads to a devastating revelation. The Door is a bone-shaking book. This book is a masterwork of a major modern European writer. In 2012, an award-winning film was made based on this book, starring Dame Helen Mirren.
Gyorgyi Szabo, PhD is the Dean of Graduate Students at Ubiquity University. She was a Co-Founder and Academic Dean of the ‘Ervin Laszlo Center for Advanced Study’ (ELCAS). She served as the Director of Research and Development of the Center’s Exploratoria Program. She was co-creator of the WorldShift International Foundation, and the WorldShift 2012 organizations, and currently serves as the Executive Director at the Laszlo Institute of New Paradigm Research and a Member of the Advisory Board of the Memnosyne Foundation. She lectures worldwide and has published two books; papers in The Scientific and Medical Network’s Review, The Shift Network, and World Futures: The Journal of New Paradigm Research. Gyorgyi Szabo holds a PhD in Sociology – Summa Cum Laude awarded by the Sorbonne, University of Paris. She is also a trained Reiki and Reconnective Healing practitioner. Her holistic approach to metaphysics and interest in conscious evolution serves as foundation for her work in facilitating cooperative evolution toward a peaceful and regenerative world.
May 12 & June 9
Jim Garrison PhD, on 1177 BC: the Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric Cline
In this book, noted historian Eric Cline provides an analysis of the universal collapse of kingdoms, empires and civilizations in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern region that has puzzled historians and scholars for centuries. Cline write that he offers his analysis as both an insight and a warning for the current collapses taking place all around us. 1177 BC is a distant mirror on our world situation today.
Jim Garrison, PhD is the President and Founder of Ubiquity University. He has been studying great books since childhood as the son of missionaries to China and Taiwan where he was able to delve into eastern spirituality, particularly Buddhism and Taoism. His double Masters degree in the History of Religion and Christology at Harvard University and his doctorate on a Jungian analysis of ancient Judeo-Christian apocalyptic literature at Cambridge University enabled him to study texts across the spectrum of Axial religions and wisdom traditions. He has spent a lifetime studying great books from east and west, both ancient and modern, sacred and secular.
July 14 & August 11
Pedro Carta on Meditations, The Annotated Edition, by Marcus Aurelius
Meditations is a collection of personal journals written by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius between 170 and 180 CE, not intended for publication. In these twelve books, Aurelius records his private philosophical reflections and spiritual exercises based on Stoicism, a school of thought he studied extensively. The writing serves as a guide for self-improvement, helping him cope with the stresses of being an emperor and navigate life’s challenges with reason, virtue, and inner tranquility. He reminds himself to focus on what he can control—his own judgments and actions—and to accept what he cannot, such as external events and the behavior of others. Ultimately, Meditations offers timeless wisdom on topics like mortality, duty, and living in harmony with the natural order of the universe.
Pedro Carta is a Ph.D. candidate in Wisdom studies at Ubiquity University. His career began in journalism, where he worked for Conde Nast Publications in Madrid, Spain. He has also worked as a park ranger in California and briefly as a TV producer in New York City. After a period of soul-searching in midlife, he developed a passion for Greek philosophy, psychology, and physics. For the past ten years, he has been studying Stoicism and applying its principles to his life. This expertise has led him to his current role in New York City’s foster care system, where he prepares foster youth to secure housing and live independently as they transition into adulthood.
September 8 & October 13
Victoria Moore on Spiritual Ecology: The Cry of the Earth
2nd edition — edited by Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
Humanity is in the process of evolving to a higher level of consciousness. Throughout our short and violent history, humanity has traveled down the wrong path. We desperately need to find our way back home before we are forever lost.
This book features many voices, drawn from a pantheon of our most luminary visionaries, working to heal the Earth, and with it, ourselves. This collection of essays speaks a profound and essential truth, inspiring us all to listen to the Cry of the Earth. We will deepen our personal reflections and expand the circle of conversation about our connection with Earth and each other. This book provides a life raft of spiritual solace and inspirational calls to action, moving to a sustainable future, both environmentally and spiritually.
November 10 & December 8
Roberto Sciffo on Paolo Coelho, The Alchemist
‘The Alchemist’ by Paolo Coelho, is a story about a young shepherd boy and his journey of achieving his dream yet guided by, well, one needs to read the book to find out. However, his journey is relatable to the reader’s, and therefore has the ability of leading the reader into learning to know oneself through listening to one’s heart, taking the reader on a wonderful and relatable journey of magic, coincidence, and insight, and being guided by following one’s dream. It has been welcomed from its first printing in 1988 in Portuguese (Brazil), to becoming a global phenomenon with over 120 Million copies sold worldwide, in 89 languages and, topping bestseller lists in 74 countries.
Roberto was born on the island of Cyprus, and grew up there until leaving for studies of Mechanical Engineering in the US. His interests have taking him to work in various fields including management/product development (scientific instrumentation / precision optics) and manufacturing, to alternative health, team building/dynamics, systems design, design and construction, and for the last 15 years into the fields of the environment and sustainability. He has co-founded a number of companies, and continues to grow by continuing his education, and holds many certificates including qualified as a ‘Blue Economy Expert’ (regenerative economies), Permaculture (PDC) certified, Capra Course Alumni, and a multitude of courses in sustainability design (transportation, energy systems, business, etc.). He is currently a PhD candidate at Ubiquity University in Design for Sustainability.
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