Offers advice on how to embrace healthier perspectives on aging through a rich spiritual life, covering subjects ranging from depression and mentorship to sexuality and the spiritual paths that open later in life. "In [this book], Thomas Moore reveals a fresh, optimistic, and rewarding path toward aging, one that need not be feared, but rather should be embraced and cherished. In Moore's view, aging is the process by which one becomes a more distinctive, complex, fulfilled, loving, and connected person. Using examples from his practice as a psychotherapist and teacher who lectures widely on the soul of medicine and spirituality, Moore argues for a new vision of aging: as a dramatic series of initiations rather than a diminishing experience, a passage that each of us has the tools-- experience, maturity, imagination-- to enjoy in the fullest way. Ageless Soul addresses: the many paths of spiritual growth and learning that open later in life; the vital role of the elder and mentor in the lives of younger people; why melancholy is a natural part of aging, and how to accept it, rather than confuse it with depression; sex and sensuality; building new communities and leaving a legacy. [This book]teaches readers how to embrace the richness of experience and how to take life on, accept invitations to new vitality, and feel fulfilled as they grow older."--Jacket.

Includes index.

Part one: Rites of passage. The first taste of aging ; Old bodies, young souls ; The passages of life -- Part two: Becoming a deeper person as you age. Melancholy: a way to happiness ; Processing life experiences ; The maturing of sexuality -- Part three: Imagine aging differently. Illness as an initiation ; Kindly curmudgeons ; Play, work, retire -- Part four: Open your heart to the future. Being fulfilled as an elder ; Legacy: the future of your life experiment ; Transforming loneliness -- Part five: The spirituality of aging. Friendship and community ; The angel of old age ; Living with dying -- Conclusion: Let things take their course.