The Big Book (Alcoholics Anonymous)Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men and Women Have Recovered from Alcoholism (nicknamed The Big Book because of the thickness of the paper used in the first edition) is a 1939 basic text, describing how to seek recovery from alcoholism. The Big Book was written by William G. "Bill W." Wilson, one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA or A.A.), with the help of various editors. The composition process was not collaborative other than editing.
Twelve-step programTwelve-step programs are mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance , behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), founded by Bill Wilson and Bob Smith, aided its membership to overcome alcoholism. Since that time dozens of other organizations have been derived from AA's approach to address problems as varied as drug addiction, compulsive gambling, sex, and overeating.
Alcoholics AnonymousAlcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a global mutual aid fellowship dedicated solely to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually inclined Twelve Steps. AA’s organizational principles are outlined in its Twelve Traditions and Twelve Concepts.[1] In 2021 AA estimated it was active in 180 countries with nearly two million members — 73% in the United States and Canada.
NatureNature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. In this general sense nature refers to the laws, elements and phenomena of the physical world, including life. Although humans are part of nature, human activity or humans as a whole are often described as at times at odds, or outright separate and even superior to nature.
ExistentialismPhilosophy dealing with absurdity of existenceLeft to right, from top left: Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert CamusExistentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence.
The BuddhaFounder of BuddhismSiddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (lit. 'the awakened one'), was a wandering religious teacher who lived in the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was born in Lumbini, in what is now Nepal, to royal parents of the Shakya clan, but renounced his home life to live as a wandering ascetic.
ConsciousnessAwareness of internal and external existence17th-century representation of consciousness by Robert Fludd, an English Paracelsian physicianConsciousness is being aware of something internal to one's self, or of states or objects in one's external environment. It has been the topic of extensive explanations, analyses, and debate among philosophers, scientists, and theologians for millennia.
GodA supreme deity, supreme being, supreme god, or simply just God (often with capital G), is a deity within theistic belief systems which is believed to be the ultimate cause of all things in existence. As such, it is seen as the creator, sustainer, and ruler of the universe. God is often thought of as incorporeal and independent of the material creation. Conceptions of God vary considerably.
MathematicsMathematics is a field of knowledge concerned with abstract concepts such as numbers, geometric shapes, sets, functions, and probabilities. It uses logical reasoning and proof to study and establish their properties, often expressed as theorems, formulas, and equations. Mathematics is used to model and solve problems in science, engineering, technology, economics, and everyday life.
DeityA deity is a supernatural being considered to have authority over some aspect of the universe and/or life, with many also being considered as sacred and worthy of worship. It is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or to control some part of the universe or life, for which such a deity is often worshipped". The Oxford Dictionary of English explains deity as anything revered as divine.
Conceptions of GodConceptions of God in classical theist, monotheist, pantheist, and panentheist traditions – or of the supreme deity in henotheistic religions – can extend to various levels of abstraction: as a powerful, personal, supernatural being, or as the deification of an esoteric, mystical or philosophical entity or category; as the "Ultimate", the summum bonum, the "Absolute Infinite", the "Transcendent", or Existence or Being itself; as the ground of being, the monistic substrate, that which we cannot understand; and so on.
Supreme BeingSupreme Being might refer to: God, supreme deity in theistic beliefsCult of the Supreme Being, religion established by Robespierre during the French RevolutionApeiron, concept in Greek philosophySee alsoBeing (other)Supreme (other)Supreme Beings of Leisure, an American electronic/trip hop band*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.