A.E.
The
Candle of Vision.A poetical vision of mystical
vision and the quest for such.
BODY,
SOUL, AND SPIRIT AWARENESS SECTION
Body
Readings
On the Soul's Connection to the Body
Grealy,
Lucy. Autobiography
of a Face
Ms.
Grealy tells the powerful story of her "loss
of face" when bone cancer claims her jaw as a
young girl. Through surgeries and the years, Grealy
becomes an excellent writer and strong enough to tell
her story. An excellent book to sharpen our awareness
of Body and self-image.
Kreinheder,
Albert. Body
and Soul: The Other Side of Illness
Sacks,
Oliver. A
Leg To Stand On
Sacks,
who has given us so many insightful books on the unusal
medical condition (i.e. Awakenings, The
Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat), gives a close
view of an accident that could have cost him his life
in his earlier years. A shattered leg reverses roles,
Dr. Sacks becomes the patient.
Fiffer, Sharon Sloan & Steve Fiffer. Body
A
very fine collection of essays from a wide variety
of authors each on a body part (i.e. "Eyes",
"Hair", "The Nose", "Breasts."
On Connecting More Deeply With Body
Jerome,
John. Stone
Work: Reflections on Serious Play & Other Aspects
of Country Life
This
is an excellent book in the sense that we get both
a wonderful view of Body in terms of nature and a
continual reminder to experience the natural world
for what it is instead of just thinking about it.
Jerome takes us through several environments each
time pointing out to us (and himself) what is important.
Stone walls, swimming upside down, the smelling power
of dogs are a few of the vehicles for this sharp vision
of Body.
Knapp,
Carolyn. Pack
of Two: The Intricate Bond Between People and Dogs
There
are dozens of books that could be included here but
this is a recent discovery. Caroline Knapp (author
of Drinking: A Love Story) brings us into her
close relationship with her dog. Not an unusal event
considering there are 50 million dogs in this country.
But Knapp draws us in so deeply we can stand back
and ask ourselves what is this basic linkage between
humanity and animals. Why does the Body seek other
bodies outside of the human species to know itself.
While this could be a Soul issue, the call to know
a dog is also a call to know a greater world beyond
the human.
Lawlor,
Anthony. A
Home For The Soul: A Guide For Dwelling With Spirit
and Imagination
This
coffee table style book walks us through the house
we should have, showing us connections between the
physical and our Souls.
Adams,
Cass. The
Soul Unearthed: Celebrating Wildness and Personal
Renewal Through Nature
A
very encompassing collection of writings about nature
from many perspectives and levels of depth.
Jamal,
Michele. Deer
Dancer: The Shapeshifter Archetype in Story And In
Trance
Caution:
The use of this book is not meant to feed our inherent
need for power. It is easy to turn the technique of
shapeshifting towards the limiting purpose to get
"the strength of the lion", the "cleverness
of the fox," or the "agility of the cat."
How this book should be used is to get different perspectives
on the embodied world. How does the world and the
physical objects within it look for the bird's eye,
from the snake's eye, or from a bear? Jamal has written
a very valuable and approachable book to a shamanistic
tradition not fully appreciated before.
On
External Sensing
Don, Mantagu. The
Sensuous Garden
This
beautiful book is not devoted to how to garden but
how to experience a garden. Chapters are split into
one per sense as well as a chapter for intuition.
To give you more information that might give a sense
of the character of this book, Touch is into subject
sections on Soil, Tools, Feet, Foliage, and Bark.
Every section is heavily illustrated with color and
high quality black and white prints. Sure to sharpen
the senses.
Franck, Frederick.
The
Zen of Seeing: Seeing/Drawing As A Meditation
An
excellent book that shows us how to open our eyes
generally and how to deepen that experience through
simple drawing.
Grunwald, Henry. Twilight:
Losing Sight, Gaining Insight
This
small book (just the right length) draws our attention
to our eyes and the world captured in their lenses.
Grunwald becomes our accidential teacher through the
slow progression of disease that robs much of his
eyesight. He gives us lessons in eye mythology, sight,
and on how precious it is.
Suskind, Patrick. Perfume:
The Story of A Murderer
This
novel tells the story of an evil man, a man who could
smell everything but had no scent himself. The descriptions
of what he sensed in this world draws us in as much
as the tale itself.
Ackerman, Diane. A
Natural History of the Senses
Although
there are no sensory awareness exercises in this book
just reading Ackerman excellent description of the
role of the senses and that which affects the senses
sharpens our alertness.
On
Internal Sensing
Chia, Mantak. Awaken
Healing Engery Through the Tao
Chia
has provided an immensely valuable service in bringing
the way of chi kung to the West. In his many books
he clearly teaches ancient techniques of cultivating
that mysterious and real inner energy called chi.
Not only does Chia show us how to unmask these energies
and relate to their unique flows he also teaches us
anatomy. Chi and anatomy bind us closer to our Bodies.
Gendlin, Eugene. Focusing
This
book puts the body back into the picture when doing
psychotherapuetic work. Gendlin uses his relatively
easy to learn Focusing technique to help us find the
"gut feeling" behind our dreams and feelings.
When we find that feeling, we know, claims Gendlin,
that we are getting to the truth of the situation.
Feldenkrais, Moshe.
Awareness
Through Movement
A
classic work that covers the basics of body awareness
through the slow movement of various parts of the
body.
Walton, Todd. Open
Body: Creating Your Own Yoga
A
book for those who want to pursue their own path of
body movement/body awareness. This small book presses
the reader to try their own thing rather than follow
a system devised by others.
Knaster, Mirka. Discovering
The Body's Wisdom
An
outstanding guide to the full range of current body
therapies and awareness enhancing programs. Knaster
gives the history of each program, some examples of
its work, and where to find more information.
Hanh, Thich Nhat. The
Long Road Turns To Joy: A Guide To Walking Meditation
Straight,
to the point instructions on mindfulness possible
when walking with alertness.
Soul
Readings
On
The Character of Soul
Snunit,
Michal. The
Soul Bird.
This book
looks like a childrens book (and it can be read to
children), but it is perfect for Soul awareness training.
It is short so its message can be easily retained
but it is tremendously complex in its vision. It covers
almost every essential point about the Soul. Outstanding!
Fox,
Suzanne. Home
Life: A Journey Through Rooms & Recollections.
The title
tells it all.
Lawlor,
Anthony. A
Home For The Soul.
This
coffee table style book walks us through the house
we should have, showing us connections between the
physical and our Souls.
Dickens,
Charles. A
Christmas Carol.
A perfect
example of the power of Soul to grab and to enlighten.
Scrooge doesn't have a chance once he is targeted
by Soul and "ghosts" appear to teach him
how to open his heart.
Berry,
Carmen Renee & Tamara Traeder. Girlfriends:
Invisible Bonds, Enduring Ties.
Male or
female, this book serves well to remind us of the
precious friendships that we have and how the Soul
is connected to this world largely through people.
On
Finding The Soul
Moore,
Thomas. Care
of the Soul.
Moore,
Thomas. Re-Enchantment
of Everyday Life.
Moore,
Thomas. Soul
Mates: Honoring the Mysteries of Love & Relationships
Moore,
Thomas. The
Planets Within
Heckler,
Richard A. Waking
Up, Alive: The Descent, The Suicide Attempt, And The
Return To Life
Although
this is a very serious book on a serious topic, it
carefully delinates issues not only essential for
the person who has attempted sucide but for all of
us. What the Soul needs to survive, to avoid deep
despair, and to flourish is outlined by Hecker.
Progroff,
Ira. At
A Journal Workshop.
An essential
guide for getting a soulful grasp on life. Great for
life reflection or life change. Includes instructions
for going deeply within the Soul to find the wisdom
offered there.
Stone,
Hal and Sidra Stone. Embracing
Our Selves: The Voice Dialogue Manual.
The Stones
provide an excellent introduction to the many sides
of the powers of the Soul as expressed through the
emotions. They also show how to find the emotions
as they take on the form of inner figures populating
our dreams and imagination.
Chopich,
Erika J. & Margaret Paul. Healing
Your Aloneness: Finding Love and Wholeness Through
Your Inner Child.
A few years
ago there was an explosion of books on one's "inner
child." Reading carefully many of these authors
seemed to describing many aspects of the Soul. This
book is one of the better books to come out of the
inner child era.
Zweig,
Connie & Steve Wolf. Romancing
The Shadow: Illuminating The Dark Side of the Soul.
To be Soulful
means to honestly explore what is at the heart of
one's own nature and to learn to accept it. This book
covers the uncovering process needed to find ourselves.
DeSalvo,
Louise. Breathless:
An Asthma Journal.
While this
short book does not need to read its entirety, (try
reading about 70-75%), it wonderfully conveys how
one can explore a life event towards greater wisdom.
DeSalvo takes asthma and digs deeply into what this
condition means to her as she explores what it has
meant to others. A great example of how to do Soul
work.
Spirit
Readings
On
The Character Of Spirit
Metzner,
Ralph. The
Unfolding Self
A well written
overview of the great metaphors of spiritual transformation.
Each chapter is dedicated to single theme such as
"removing the veils of ignorance" and "trial
by fire."
Cousineau,
Phil. The
Art of Pilgrimage
One can
feel the Spirit as Cousineau takes us along the path
followed by so many pilgrims throughout time and around
the world. Spirit laden rituals, sacred places, and
writings are discussed in artful detail.
Hesse,
Hermann. Journey
To The East
Hesse takes
us a on a grand journey to the great achievement of
Spiritual understanding.
Hesse, Hermann. Siddhartha
This telling
of the Buddha's life captures our attention by its
simplicity of detail and richness of Spiritual consideration.
Stuart,
Micheline. The
Tarot Path To Self Development
Similar
to the above books with the exception we given the
wonderful images of the Tarot to contemplate along
with a description of Spiritual development.
Turner,
Kay. Beautiful
Necessity: The Art & Meaning of Women's Altars
A heavily
illustrated discussion of the why and the power of
collecting and honoring Spirit laden objects.
Arguelles,
Jose & Miriam Arguelles. Mandala
A good overview
of how symbols are used to convey concepts about the
Spiritual experience.
London,
Jack. The
Star Rover.
London at
his very knowledgeable best. Written in 1913, he writes
a book that grips us with the hope for Spirit as he
contrasts freedom to the hell of early American prisons.
These prison experiences of torture are hard to get
past, and the middle section when the main character
is living in other times is slow going, but when London
soars, we feel like we are right along side of him.
This book is recommended here not as a story that
embraces reincarnation and astral travel but as one
that conveys clearly the archetypal/mythological nature
of Spirit.
On
Appreciating The Experience of Spirit
Paffard,
Michael. The
Unattended Moment
A well presented
small collection of transpersonal experiences experienced
by an assortment of people of various ages and in
various circumstances.
Masters,
R.E.L. & Jean Houston. The
Varieties of Psychedelic Experience.
Masters
and Johnson conducted extensive research with clients
who were administered psychedelics over an extended
period. This book outlines the chief characteristics
found as one moved along the path of inner development
fostered by these sessions.
Sparrow,
G. Scott. I
Am With You Always: True Stories of Encounters With
Jesus
Encounters
by everyday folk written in clear language.
Underhill,
Evelyn. Practical
Mysticism
An outstanding
discussion in non-typical terms of many of the experiences
one has along the mystical path.
On
Spirit Practices - Via Inner Images
Masters,
Robert & Jean Houston. Mind
Games: The Guide To Inner Space
A very good
collection of a an overwhelming number of exercises
that seek to give some impression of the Spirit experience.
Johnson, Robert A. Inner
Work:Using Dreams and Active Imagination For Personal
Growth
A good introduction
to developing one's capacity to go deeply into active
imagination.
Casey,
Michael. Sacred
Reading: The Art of Lectio Divina
Lectio Divina
is a simple process of taking a very short passage
of sacred text (or poetry) and letting the words free
reign to come alive in the mind's eye. If carefully
chosen, they can lead the sacred reader to a close
encounter with sacred symbols and concepts.
Gore, Belinda. Ecstatic
Body Postures: An Alternate Reality Workbook
Gore proposes
that the postures shown in native art around the world
and through out time are deliberate poses needed to
contact various levels of Active Imagination. This
book contains scholarship and practical information
on how to experiment with these postures.
On
Spirit Practices - Via Inner Silence
Leshan,
Lawrence. How
To Meditate
A good introduction
and instruction in classical meditation.
Goldstein,
Joseph. Seeking
The Heart of Wisdom: The Path of Insight Meditation
Carries
the Leshan material further by putting meditation
into a wider context without steeping it in a specific
religious system.
Hannah,
Barbara. 
Underhill, Evelyn. 
Cochran, Tracy
& Jeff Zaleski. 
