Book Review

The Invisible Wedding

Exploring the Essence of Spiritual Partnership.

David and Faye Fields

I am in the middle of reading ‘The Invisible Wedding‘ but my Husband was so impressed with this book he has written this review about it.

The authors believe that in intimate relationships there is an invisible wedding between ‘our soul and the Beloved, the One – where the essence of all life and all love waits to be discovered’.

‘The Invisible Wedding’ is a truly amazing book on the spiritual aspect of relationships. The authors show how deepening levels of intimacy open us out and bring up our repressed stuff, which we need to heal. As the inner work continues we move to unconditional love of God. A total inner journey to who we really are.

It becomes quite clear through the book that a committed relationship where we keep no secrets leads us on a journey of deepening love and spiritual advancement. Which if approached in the right way is a far superior path than trying to develop inwardly on the path of renunciation, eg monkhood.

This is from chapter 2 – The Naked Heart.
“When what we see in the other can be embraced as unconscious aspects of ourselves, disillusionment dissolves into the third stage of relating called Acceptance. It is in acceptance that we find peace”.

This quote from the back cover sums it up
“Reuniting with the heart is the journey you are invited to take in this unique and soulful book. As you begin to live your life with a new awareness of what your own heart is capable of, a burden will be lifted from your personal relationships as conflict is resolved at its origin, without breaking the bond between you and your partner”.

Click here for The Invisible Wedding website

Book Review

The Four Agreements

Don Miguel Ruiz

The Four Agreements is a best selling book that has been very helpful to me in difficult times. I love the simplicity of the 4 agreements and the Toltec wisdom.

The Toltec were scientists and artists who formed a society to explore and conserve the spiritual knowledge and practices of the ancient ones. Toltec knowledge arises from the same essential unity of truth as all the sacred esoteric traditions found around the world. Though it is not a religion, it honors all the spiritual masters who have taught on the earth. While it does embrace spirit, it is most accurately described as a way of life, distinguished by the ready accessibility of happiness and love.

The Four Agreements

1. Be impeccable with your word
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of the word in the direction of truth and love.

2. Don’t take anything personally
Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

3. Don’t make assumptions
Find the courage to ask questions and express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

4. Always do your best
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

I also love Don Miguel’s other books. Click here to view his website.

Deepak Chopra

This week our friend Janina has been moved by the death of an old friend to write about Deepak Chopra and the invaluable influence his teachings have had on her life.
She has discovered a recent project of his called Wild Divine

This is an excerpt of a blog she posted at blingat.ning.com

Deepak Chopra is a well known author, speaker and teacher of Healing Truth/Wisdom. He is often a guest speaker on Oprah daytime television; and has enhanced the lives of millions of people by giving practical processes for health. He offers thought provoking concepts to challenge the individual away from outdated Belief Systems/Thought Patterns.
To read more click here

Book Review

Spontaneous Healing of Belief
Shattering the Paradigm of False Limits

Gregg Braden

My Husband has been reading this book and has been very impressed.
New discoveries in physics and biology suggest that a shift in our beliefs could bring healing, peace and even change our reality.
Watch this video I found on YouTube to know more

Book Review for Children

Secret of the Peaceful Warrior

Dan Millman

Whilst writing these reviews I have found that every book has a story (no pun intended), and this one is no exception.
‘Secret of the Peaceful Warrior’ is a book I had for my youngest child who is too old for it now. I was going to pass the book onto a friend to share with her grandson who had moved to Australia from the US.

When my son saw I had the book out, he asked if I was going to do a book review on it. I responded enthusiastically with, “That’s a great idea. Why didn’t I think of it!” I had overlooked doing a review on it and only saw an opportunity to share it’s wisdom with a friend, instead of the world!

‘Secret of the Peaceful Warrior’ is a very masterful creation of real life situations, that are woven into a magical story that empowers children to face their fears. It explores bullying and the peaceful way to deal with it, not to run away and not to fight.

It has good examples of friendship and forgiveness. Even though ‘Secret of the Peaceful Warrior’ has been around for along time, it’s an invaluable resource for parents to help children with the inevitable trials that they will encounter in the playground and life.

‘Secret of the Peaceful Warrior’ will help children to recognize their own strengths and their power within. In fact it’s a great book for all ages.

Book Review

Janina is generously sharing her love of a most precious book that has been pivotal to her growth and healing. Thank you Janina.

A Course in Miracles

My name is Janina from yaninayoga.wordpress.com and yaninayoga.webs.com where you will access lots of interesting, simple and useful healing information about Yoga, Healing, Breathing, Relaxation, Meditation and Balance in Life.

The most precious publication I have in my extensive book collection is called – A Course in Miracles (ACM) – it is actually 3 books in 1 – a Text, a Workbook and a Manual. ACM has played a pivotal role in my Healing and Personal Growth since 1989.

My copy of this unique book is full of pages with highlighted paragraphs. It contains so much wisdom that it can take many years to absorb even the smallest concepts. I know of people who have had this book in their possession for up to 10 years yet struggle to follow the workbook despite continued ‘trying’.

After completing a full year with the Workbook (late 1990s) – I later returned to complete another 2 years of daily study with the Workbook before feeling satisfied with my absorption of information. Although I have now completed the whole book, there is an awareness that I will soon return to complete another 12month commitment to the Workbook. I know I will continue to grow every time I contemplate even one page of Reading in the Course in Miracles.

Amongst the contents of ACM you will find topics such as Principals of Miracles, the Illusion of Separation, Retraining the Mind, Healing and Wholeness, The Problem of Guilt, God and the Ego, The Undoing of Fear, The Awakening, The War against Yourself, and The Inner Picture.

The introduction reads . . . . .
This is a course in miracles. It is a required course. Only the time you take it is voluntary. Free will does not mean you establish the curriculum. It means only that you may elect what you want to take at a given time . . .

This course can therefore be summed up very simply in this way:
Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the Peace of God.
Some of my favourite sayings for your contemplation . . .
‘Health is the witness unto Health . . . No one is healed through double messages . . . The only thing that is required for healing is a lack of fear. The fearful are not healed and cannot heal . . . ‘ p632 Text.
‘No special relationship is experienced in the present. Shades of the past envelop it and make it what it is’ p397 Text.

‘You cannot perform a miracle for YOURSELF because miracles are a way of GIVING acceptance AND receiving it. In time the giving comes first, though they are simultaneous in eternity, where they cannot BE separated . . . Eternity is ONE time, its only dimension being “always”’ p214 Text.

‘A jailer is not free, for he is bound together with his prisoner. He must be sure that he does not escape, and so he spends his time keeping watch on him. The bars which limit him become the world in which the jailer lives, along with him. And so it is on his freedom that the way to liberty depends for both of them. Therefore hold no one prisoner. Release instead of bind, for thus are you made free . . . ‘ p363 Workbook.

‘Joy is the inevitable result of gentleness. Gentleness means that fear is impossible, and . . . ‘ p13 Manual.
‘Healing is accomplished the instant the sufferer no longer sees any value in pain . . .’ p17 Manual.
‘The bodies’ eyes will continue to see differences. But the mind which has let itself be healed will no longer acknowledge them . . . ‘ p26 Manual.

The Thetford Foundation PO Box 68 Eudlo QLD 4554 Australia thetfordfoundation.org are the custodians of ACM – You are welcome to contact them about getting your copy of this publication.

Book Review

Today we have a Book Review by Janina who is so passionate about this book that she wanted to share it with the world.
Thank you Janina for sharing your wisdom.

The Oracle Within
Dick Sutphen

My name is Janina from yaninayoga.wordpress.com and yaninayoga.webs.com where you will access lots of interesting, simple and useful healing information about Yoga, Breath, and Balance in Life.
I would like to share with you a book that has been part of my life for over 15 years – The Oracle within by Dick Sutphen.

My first contact with this wonderful publication was in 1994 when manager/owner of Xanadu Healing Centre in Palm Beach, Gold Coast Australia. There was a bookshop incorporated in the Centre.

One day a customer came in to ask for this book. It wasn’t one on the popular reading lists at the time (so had to be ordered in). BUT when I glanced inside the pages after the book arrived – I decided to order a few more copies, keeping one for myself.

The magic of this book is its ability to help you gain clarity about any life situation. The wisdom on each page comes from a variety of well known sources such as Alan Watts, Bukkyo Dend Kyokar, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Sheldon B Kopp and many others. And it is the way that the wisdom is linked which makes this my favourite.

The book covers 250 topics from Contradiction to Control; Compassion To Karma; Protection to Awareness; and Cycles, Duality, Suffering, Gossip, Inspiration to name a few.
The oracle within is easy to use . . . . . . . “Be Still. Close Your Eyes. Breathe Deeply. Dwell upon your most important question. Know there is a Solution. Expect a Miracle. Then, open this book at random and read the message from your Higher Self, your Oracle Within”.

If you still wish for more guidance on your question – you can choose from a selection of related topics at the bottom of each page. This unique feature greatly enhances the value of the wisdom available and gives more depth and scope to the questioner. Usually by the third reading I feel satisfied with the understanding I have gained about my specific issue.

The Oracle Within (ISBNO-671-72360-X) was published in 1991 by Pocket Books New York.

Book Review

Defenders of the Heart

Managing the Habits and Attitudes That Block You from a Richer,
More Satisfying Life.

Marilyn Kagan and Neil Einbund

Published by Hay House November 2008

I was excited to find a stall selling brand new spiritual/new age books etc, at 15% off the recommended price at the local markets. The owner of the stall was a Lady with 3 daughters who travels the east coast selling at markets and also on line at Soul Soother Books.

After devouring all the titles, ‘Defenders of the Heart’ was a must have, with chapters titled, ‘Defuse Your Weapons of Mass Projection’,
‘Rid Yourself of Hand-Me-Down Anger’ and more.

The authors explain how the heart needs to be protected, but it also needs to be open to giving and receiving love, embracing people, activities and causes that create a rewarding life. I love the ‘Defendapedia’ at the beginning of each chapter. The first entry is ‘Denial: The tactic of overlooking the obvious to reduce anxiety’.

‘Defenders of the heart’ helps us to discover our defense mechanisms that guard us against hurt by showing the 10 habits and attitudes that defend, and how to recognize which ones are sabotaging our lives.
The result of gaining an awareness of our defensive habits is to have a fuller heart, a deeper connection to others and a more complete and fulfilling life.

By using real life examples and humor, I found the book to be an easy and worthwhile read for those that want to look deeper into their unconscious responses and open to the abundance of love that is always there waiting for us.

Do we want to open ourselves to experience the fullness of life, or wait until we are old and grey to comprehend what we may have missed by not being open? I certainly don’t.

Book Review

Women & Risk
How to Master Your Fears and Do What
You Never Thought You Could Do

Nicky Marone

‘Women & Risk’ is not available new, but is a very beneficial book for women (or anyone) that wants to confront their fears and take risks to achieve their goals. This book explains how women can be highly skilled and successful in one realm of their life, yet are immobilized by fear in other areas.

The Author explains how she had access to magnificent ski slopes, yet was terrified to go skiing until she was challenged by a friend. “Being scared is not a justification for not doing it, everyone is scared the first time.” the friend said. These words changed her life. After taking the challenge and finally going skiing, she adored it and lean’t the hidden lesson that fear tries to teach us: that is, when we refuse to be helpless in the face of it, we learn to love ourselves with a newly acquired definition of who we are and what we can do.

Avoiding risk and therefore fearing and avoiding life is self-defeating, where as mastery behavior is life-giving and self-affirming. By resisting situations that are risky and unpredictable, we miss the opportunity for growth, change and transformation.

This is not just a book about risk taking, it has heartwarming stories like the woman who was too afraid to leave an abusive relationship because she believed she could not survive on her own, but transformed her life by challenging her limiting beliefs and developed self-efficacy. It shows us how to develop mastery behaviour with a six part plan.

‘Women & Risk’ helped me to recognize self-defeating beliefs and inquire into them. I have worked on setting goals and I had never thought of going skiing until reading this book. I even considered going with Ski Yoga Magic Holidays to the snow as it sounds great!

Curanderas

Female Shamans of Peru

Lakshmi’s Healing Journey

A journey of courage and faith shared through film, stories and song.

We had no idea what the evening would bring, but when we paid for the tickets and the cashier said “Enjoy the Movie”, then in the next breath “Or whatever takes you”, I wondered what we were in for!

The immortal words of Albert Einstein flashed across the screen and were accompanied by Didgeridoo. We were transfixed as a short ceremony was performed by the presenter, followed by string Bass, guitar and song.

Robert was sharing the story of his journey with his mother to South America armed with only their intentions. His mother Lakshmi, had Multiple Sclerosis and after many years of managing her condition with an Ayurvedic lifestyle, she met someone who introduced her to shamans in Venezuela. She began her treatment using sacred healing plants, Ayahuasca and San Perdo Cactus, where past abuse by a priest as a child emerged. Dealing with her own internal anger, her body had severe reactions. The Medicinal Herbs brought the truth forward and the MS left.

Lakshmi returned home and while dealing with the past abuse, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Lakshmi felt her healing lay with the plants and headed for Peru, where the process of Ancestral Healing began. We witnessed some of the cord cutting ceremony which was an empowering process for Lakshmi and her two sons.

The next stage of the journey took them to the Amazon Jungle where they were guided by Curanderas, and Lakshmi is still living there after one and a half years. They believe her cancer is in remission.
This is an incredibly brave story and a documentary is going to be released.
This was no ordinary night out. The absolute authenticity displayed by Robert is unique, but what else could we expect in Byron Bay!
For anyone wanting more information, here is Lakshmi’s blog

We wish Lakshmi all the best