Maxims Minimus is the sedimentation of over forty years of experience in teaching, writing, and treating patients. As many other poets, T. Byram Karasu dares to be just so clear, and no clearer. Thus, Dr. Karasu’s Maxims is well suited for this age of Twitter and text messages. He says, “Anything that cannot be said in 140 characters (or in 140 seconds) is not particularly worth saying.” This book is Dr. Karasu’s reflections about loving, working, living, dying, and everything else—his philosophy of life expressed in microstyle.

This book is about the basic lessons on fundamental aspects of life that everyone eventually learns painfully. The book is a headstart, a solid platform of knowledge on love, marriage, work, believing and joyfulness.

Know yourself. Nothing in excess. Give a pledge and ruin is near. These are the words inscribed on a stele just outside the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. Stunning in their simplicity, these Maxims have survived the test of time. Even today, they cause the reader to pause and think about what such short, poignant phrases mean. For those who study Hellenic Polytheism, either in historical or modern religious context, the Delphic Maxims are of great import because they hold a key to understanding early Greek thought. Delving into both the history and the current application of 34 of the Maxims to the creation of personal ethics and morals, Allyson Szabo provides us with a path to personal growth and understanding of the world around us.