Reviews written by Krysta

What a precious book this is and what a great opportunity it offers to learn more about the commonality of the three Abrahamic faiths. Mirabai is an adjunct professor of Philosophy and World Religions at the University of New Mexico-Taos. In addition to her professional knowledge, however, comes her own attraction to all faiths from the time she was a child.
She not only shares an overview of essential teachings and stories of saints and masters, but some stories of her own journey. She has not done this in her other books where she translates the words and ideas of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila. It is quite a treat to get a small look in to some of her own experiences.
In today’s world where there is so much arguing about various religious beliefs, this book is an oasis where one can experience these traditions as friends and colleagues. Where, as Mirabai says, “A dedication to lovingkindness is the highest expression of faith for all three religions.”

With the renewed resurgence in the efforts of some far-right conservatives to make abortion illegal again, this book is being published at the perfect time. Linda Weber has been a psychotherapist and spiritual counselor for women for forty years. She became an active feminist in 1970 and was one of the country's first abortion counselors. Weber has walked through the process of abortion with many women and has witnessed many stories.
Through walking her own spiritual path as well as by being a student of history and social sciences, Weber is able to put the choice of having an abortion into a broader context, a spiritual context of compassion and understanding.
Every woman who has had an abortion, every man who participated in the decision, counselors, doctors, those who are pro-choice and those who are not, need to read this book. I have never seen this issue addressed in such a deep, holistic, loving, and compassionate manner. Oh, that those who would condemn women who make this choice should read and understand this book.

Everybody is in one or more relationships. From parents and siblings, to bosses and life partners, our lives are filled with relationships of one kind or another. We've been told a lot of things about relationships and we believe a lot of things. For instance, do you believe a relationship can work only if you compromise? Or that if your partner loved you he or she would do what you want them to do?
What if the concept that men and women think differently is wrong? What if we are more alike than we're different? How would this change your life?
Tim Ray is a relationship columnist and blogger who has written a clearly thought-out book that is also humorous and encouraging. Whether or not you're in a close relationship right now and whether or not it is working for you, this book will be very helpful in understanding better how relationships do and don't work! Many myths are destroyed in this book and rightly so!

Follow four teens from Santa Cruz, California as they meet their peers in Nigeria and India and have the opportunity to meet the Dalai Lama and ask him about happiness. The teens also speak with Richard Gere and George Lucas as well as other people – asking what makes people happy.
This is an impactful movie to watch and would be especially good for teens and young adults. Statistics show that more teens are depressed than ever before and many don't know what happiness is or how to experience it. Full of great insights, the movie could be very motivating as well as reassuring to people of all ages.

Much of the unrest we see in the world today can be attributed to a lack of personal meaning in people’s lives, according to Dr. Hunter. He describes this as spiritual hunger and offers the solution of integrating myth and ritual into daily life. In a thorough discussion of what myth and ritual are, he explains that the effort to meet this deep need offers an explanation for something like the attraction of gangs and hazings and other such behaviors in young people. He also shows how corporations attempt to fill this need by prompting us to buy things and experiences that don’t usually fit the bill.

This book proposes that instead of filling this spiritual need through negative or empty behaviors, we can learn how to design our own rituals that can be embedded into daily life. By using the power of these rituals we can ease our internal hunger for meaning and find our lives richer and more fulfilling. There are tons of examples and stories in this book that can lead you to your own answers – the kind you can depend on.

Many people would like undeniable proof that we humans continue to have some sort of life after we leave this world. Although I can’t say this book would satisfy all of these folks, there’s a lot of great research and information here that might tip the scale for them.

The author grew up in a household that supported alternative thinking, such as the ideas of Helena Blavastky and Rudolf Steiner. In his adult life, he was immersed in more mainstream spirituality when he worked as editor at Guideposts magazine. That is where he began to hear about near-death experiences. Once his father died, this started his foray into trying to understand what happens after we die.

Part memoir, part history, and part roadmap to what we all might face, this book does a great job of exploring the afterlife in an open and new way. Even if you are already convinced that the soul survives death in some way, you’ll enjoy many of the stories and research presented here.

How many times have you tried to learn a new skill such as playing a musical instrument or learning a new sport or language and then given up after a brief time? This is fairly common and this book helps to explain why it happens and how to overcome this tendency. Truth is, life is a series of learning new concepts and behaviors. If we can improve our ability to learn we can improve the quality of our life journey.

The author tells many stories about himself and others sharing how he came to design his method for mastering any skill or challenge. “When we learn to focus on and embrace the process of experiencing life, whether we’re working toward a personal aspiration or working through a difficult time, we begin to free ourselves from the stress and anxiety that are born out of our attachment to our goals,” writes Sterner. “When we subtly shift toward both focusing on and finding joy in the process of achieving instead of having the goal, we have gained a new skill. And once mastered, it is magical and incredibly empowering.”

This is a great book to study whether you want to master a skill such as language or sports or if you just want to make the process of living daily life more fun and meaningful.

Cyndi Dale, well-known author of The Subtle Body and New Chakra Healing, teaches that if we don’t have strong and healthy energetic boundaries, we can experience all kinds of difficulties: health, relational, spiritual, financial, and emotional. Through her work with clients over many years as well as her own research, she has developed ways to assess and strengthen energetic boundaries.

Which syndrome might you have: paper doll, vampire, mule, psychic-sensitive, healer’s, no-boundary, or environ? Use the information in this book to find out where you might be open to being affected by other people’s energy or that of your environment.

Learn how to use sounds, colors, shapes, crystals and stones, and Divine grace to heal energetic boundary issues so that you can move forward in your life instead of remaining stuck in old patterns that don’t serve you. Energetic Boundaries is a comprehensive workbook that offers many solutions. Healers and therapists will find it a wonderful aid in working with client issues as well as with their own.

Reading like a suspense novel, this book gives us a doorway into the heart, mind, and life of psychiatrist, researcher, and author Raymond Moody who introduced the phenomenon of the near death experience to the general public. His best-known work "Life After Life" has sold over ten million copies and has helped people change how they view life after death.

We learn about his childhood inclinations to these studies as well as how he followed this trend of research into his adult life. The story of his own illness and brush with suicide and the other side of life make for a fascinating tale.

This important book addresses the question many people want answered: is there life after death or not? Read about the research as well as the first-hand experiences in Paranormal and see what you think.

Everyone faces the issue of forgiveness at some time or another in their lives. Being able to forgive and move on is critical to emotional, physical, and spiritual health. This book offers one of the best processes I have read about. It is an eight-step process that was taught to the author by a woman named Dr. Edith Stauffer. She taught this process for over 35 years and it was a synthesis of her spiritual studies and her work as a psychotherapist.

Don’t be overwhelmed by there being eight steps. They flow naturally into one another and each is fully explained in the book and is accompanied by stories of others who have walked this path. Not only does the book explain how to forgive other people, but also how to forgive yourself, life, God, abuse, and evil.

If you have even a shred of unforgiveness in you toward anyone or anything, do yourself a favor and get a copy of this book. Then use it and feel the release and relief that comes from truly being able to forgive.

Don’t you love the title of this book? We’re seeking deep happy, not just surface happy! The author has quite a background in holistic therapies as a practitioner as well as a teacher and has studied a variety of spiritual teachings. In this book, he takes the reader through an understanding of what deep happy is and then progressively walks through the process as it pertains to life troubles, relationships, expectations, health, and spiritual processes.

There are tons of stories in the book and these serve to make his teachings very clear and more easily applied to one’s life. Fairfield talks about the various blocks people have to happiness and offers solutions. The tone is friendly and the ideas approachable. He offers specific techniques that can be applied to actual life situations, not simply intellectual ideas.

This would be a great book to work your way through, taking your time to truly assimilate what it is teaching. It’s one of those books you’ll keep handy and refer to even after you’ve read it.

This movie grabs your attention in the first few minutes and holds it to the very last second. When this movie opens in Seattle, I see lights going off inside people’s minds as they begin to understand how they relate to the world.

As a combination drama and documentary, this film outdoes both The Secret and What the Bleep Do We Know in helping people understand they don’t have to wait for a crisis to learn how to think and behave differently.

The movie follows the story of single Dad Aaron Roberts who is convicted of manslaughter when he kills another driver in a car crash. He had been drinking and he had his young daughter in the car with him. In an instant, his life changes. He loses his daughter and goes to prison for several years. While in prison, through his relationship with the janitor and a guard, he learns how he created the mess he’s in – and how to change it.

Interspersed with the story are comments by leading scientists and teachers such as Dr. Candice Pert, Dr. Thomas Moore, Dr. Joe Dispenza, and Debbie Ford. They help make the case for understanding that stress is the consequence of our perceptions, reality is what we make of it, and that our limitations are the result of our perceptions. The theater will be dark but you’ll want to take notes! Incredibly well-done, this is a movie you’ll want to take your friends and family to see and then enjoy some spirited conversations afterwards.

People V The State of Illusion will change lives.

As a business consultant, this is an area where I see people in our community stumble the most. Mention the idea of planning and they turn pale while their mind and heart shuts down. Asking a mostly right-brain person to plan is like asking a cat to bark.

I ask my clients: Would you take off on a cross-country driving trip without looking at a map and having some sort of plan in place? Sure, you could do it without a plan - but you may or may not end up at your chosen destination!

This book tackles all the necessary components of business success with a right-brain approach. Use color, drawing and other more right-brain approaches to tackle the must-do items that will help you succeed in your business. The world needs your gifts now more than ever. If proper planning is keeping you stuck, this book might hold a key that will unlock your door to success.

This book will not be for everyone as it takes the reader on a journey far beyond that explored in the usual studies of metaphysics. It is about something Wilde is calling the “end of days,” even though he is not saying the world is actually ending – instead, he is saying it is ending as we know it.
According to Wilde, there are battles being waged in the spiritual worlds, battles being waged by the forces of light against dark entities in order to free the planet. The book explains the various entities and events that are going on in these other worlds and what each person can do to work with the various energies. He talks about inviting grace into our lives and how we can allow divine grace to heal us and the planet.
Some of this information can seem to be way “out there” and is impossible to describe in the space allotted for a book review. I was involved in a group telephone interview with Stuart whom I had met and interviewed many years ago. I can say that his energy has changed substantially and he is much more mellow and compassionate.
If you are interested in some of the more challenging explanations of time and space and the planet, this book will certainly intrigue you and offer a lot of material for thought.

Dr. Bernie Siegel is known world-wide for his fabulous work in the medical profession where he did ground-breaking healing work in aligning body, mind, and spirit. This book could be seen as a mini-course for daily use. At the end of a year, you would have covered just about every issue imaginable.
Try these: Prescription #129 - Get Comfortable (quit worrying about what others think of you)
Prescription #42 - Argue or Love? (You get to choose and the results will show.)
Prescription #315 - Sense of Humor (Get one!)
Grab a copy of this book and put it where you have breakfast every day. Enjoy one of these prescriptions and see if your life isn’t better very soon – you might not know yourself in a year’s time!

Most people are now familiar with Mike Dooley after he was featured in the movie, The Secret. Prior to that, however, Dooley had quite a following because of his audio courses and his daily email program Notes From the Universe. The latter eventually became several books.
What people seem to most enjoy about this author is that he shares his own processes and he gives practical information that is inspirational at the same time. This book is no exception. Written in short chapters, each of them is filled with inspiration, compassion and love. No matter what issue life might be throwing at you, there is a chapter here that can support you in choosing better thoughts that will help you enjoy a happier, more satisfying life.

More of a workbook than one to simply read, Finding Heaven Here leads the reader through the journey of experiencing true soul-living. This is, of course, the experience of heaven on earth. Throughout the book, the author shares much of his own journey and process which helps us find his words believable and worthy of action in our own lives.
Exercises such as “exploring heaven’s compass” helps us walk through what the author calls the four realms: the world of man, heaven on earth, darkness, and Divinity. This one exercise is used as a base for us to explore other aspects of our daily life and attitudes.
The author’s journey has taken into him many different religions and traditions and the entire book is sprinkled with various quotes from a wide variety of teachers. The value in this is that the information can appeal to a broad range of people from many different backgrounds.
If you want to explore the idea of self-realization in a bit of a different light, this book would be a great guide for you.

When is the last time you read a spiritually-oriented book and could actually say it was a fun read? This is exactly what Crafting a Magical Life is: a fun read. The reason it is so much fun is that the author gives various projects the reader can use to enhance their manifestation skills. She walks us through making our own pendulum, manifesting map, power prayer beads, traveling altar, dream pillow and so much more.

The author gives specific instructions as well as explaining how to use the various items and techniques. Crafting a Magical Life gets you out of your head and into your heart and soul. By using some of these projects and making them your own, you will enhance your own clarity while increasing the power of attraction in your energy field. Both of these can only support you in manifesting the life you are destined to live.

Originally written in 1975, this book is a collection of ideas and teachings that David Spangler shared with other residents of Findhorn, Scotland. Findhorn was an early intentional community where the residents lived by applying the principles of attracting to themselves whatever they needed to promote wholeness and further growth.
David Spangler was one of the early residents there and the principles he teaches in this book were used to help grow the community. The book has been out of print for some time and we are fortunate to have it available once again.
These days we hear a lot about the law of attraction and it is frequently tied to making a lot of money, buying real estate, or otherwise improving our material lives. This book is based on the idea of working with the state of our consciousness so that we can express the selves we are here to manifest. Spangler calls it Gaian manifestation and it goes way beyond many of the ideas being taught today.
If you are looking for something with real substance that will support you in your spiritual quest within a material universe, you will want to grab a copy of this book. Read it several times as once will only get you started on this path. Subsequent readings will take you to the center of it.

At five and a half hours, this is a very interesting presentation by internationally-recognized cellular biologist Bruce Lipton and author/educator/syndicated columnist Steve Bhaerman who is also known as Swami Beyondananda. As a mixture of science and culture, they examine where the world is today and where it is headed.
If you find yourself being fearful that we are going to the proverbial hell in a handbasket, these men say we should take heart. The world is exactly where it ought to be. Things really are going through major changes and shifts. And, best of all, we get to participate in the natural process of releasing what no longer works and welcoming in the new era.
Our participation is encoded within the trillion of cells in our bodies, just waiting for us to recognize and use the blueprint provided. In their insightful and playful way, these teachers help us understand and embrace our part of co-creators of this wonderful world still to come.

Using a very personal style, the author takes us through the seven stages of spirit’s journey. These stages apply to men as well as to women but the book is written more specifically from the view of a woman walking these paths.
The stages are: forgetting, remembering, exploring, practicing, shadows on the path, reclaiming – and finally to acceptance. There are many poems and stories to augment the information provided and the book is written in such as way that it could be used by a woman’s group as a shared study guide.
Linda Carroll is a psychotherapist in Oregon as well as being an author. This is evident throughout the book as she is able to merge spirituality and psychology in a grounded manner that invites the reader to fully engage all aspects of themselves for this exciting and sometimes grueling journey.
Filled with practical and inspirational information, Remember Who You Are is sure to be a special and prized tool for many in the years to come.

I love practical books. Theory is nice and important to know and understand but books that increase the practical know-how of the reader get extra gold stars from me. This fits the bill.
The author has studied the ancient wisdom of Hawaii many years and, although not a native Hawaiian, he was formally adopted into a native family and has spent the majority of his life in the islands exploring these teachings.
After going through an explanation of Huna – what it is and isn’t – we are given tools, visualizations, and practices to increase focus, become present, and discover- and attain – what we want in life.
He gives seven principles that can be used to change your life and learn how to use mana or personal power to shift your thoughts, affect your world, and make decisions with discernment, clarity, and confidence.
Some of these ideas are universal and found in other traditions and teachings. It is nice to work with them with a bit of a different angle and understanding. This is a great book to add to your working library.

What a gorgeous book this is. As an oversized, soft cover book, it is in full color with beautiful photos of the plants being discussed. The book is a comprehensive guide to the magical properties and mystical uses of nearly 300 herbs, flowers, and other plants. The author explains how to harness the healing and protective power of plants to better connect with nature and spirit.
There are simple recipes for teas, tonics, and elixirs as well as ways to burn incense and other methods to tap into and apply the magic these plants possess. If you have any interest in deepening your understanding of how the plant kingdom interfaces with your life, you will thoroughly enjoy this book. It would make a terrific gift for the gardener in your life who is open to working with energy.

Can shaking your head and body make you feel better and enjoy better health? According to many people, it can. In its most basic form, brain wave vibration involves the gentle, rhythmical shaking of the head and body, through which the practitioner achieves a more relaxed, peaceful state of being. People who have been using this technique are claiming health benefits from reduced stress to lessening of chronic diseases.

Of course, I tried it. Yes, it feels good – sort of getting the kinks out on many levels. The book gives an extensive background and basis for brain wave vibration while the part which tells you how to do it is actually very short. I enjoyed getting the background information because it all made so much sense.

The author is a world-renowned brain philosopher and educator Ilchi Lee, who is the person who started the Dahn Yoga Centers. The book is the culmination of over 30 years of studies aimed at finding effective means of natural health maintenance.

If you want a preview of this, go to www.brainwavevibration.com where you can see a video of the practice and get more information. This doesn'??t take the place of reading the book but it will give you some practical knowledge to start with.

Dr. Sha is fascinating and this book contains a lot of really useful information. The book guides you through a complete healing process, one that will touch all aspects of who you are: body, mind, soul, and spirit.

After explaining how he became dedicated to the healing of all souls on the planet, we are lead through many different exercises that are designed to bring us back to wholeness. We are also exposed to various "Divine Soul Downloads that can purify the soul and transform your life.?"

Simply reading the book and doing the various exercises as you are reading, brings in a different sort of energy. It is like you’re remembering something about yourself and can enter into a more relaxed comfort with yourself.

People such as Wayne Dyer, Marianne Williamson, Larry Dossey, Dr. Masaru Emoto and C. Norman Shealy have experienced Dr. Sha's work. You might want to try it yourself. The book comes with a free CD of Dr. Sha'??s "Soul Song for Rejuvenation" which feels very healing and supportive. More information and Soul Songs are available at www.DrSha.com.

Have you noticed that we live in a very busy world, one where it is more and more the norm to be overly busy? Me, too, and I am weary of it. Aren’t you?
Marc Lesser is an executive coach, business leader, and Zen teacher who has come up with ways for people to leave some of the busyness behind and be able to embrace their lives with more groundedness and focus. Like the surgeon whose last name is “Cutt,” it is serendipitous that Marc’s last name is “Lesser!”
The book helps the reader understand what is driving our increased busyness; get past the belief that doing less makes us lazy; find out how to stop letting busyness have a negative impact on our families; how to be present and focused; and how to make time for quiet and reflection.
When so many people are being challenged by having less, this is the perfect time to consider the joys of doing less. Perhaps both can lead a person to new insights and a more meaningful and enjoyable life.

The Camino in Spain was made famous to many spiritual seekers when Shirley McLaine made her pilgrimage there. Although people have been walking this ancient path for over ten centuries, during the past ten years there has been a renewed interest in walking the Camino.
These books are written by a man who has walked these paths more than once and who talks about them in both practical and mystical ways. The guides are full of every type of information a traveler would need from where to sleep to what to bring (and what to leave at home), the sites along the way, and weather-related information. The material is supported by maps and photos and the books are easily carried in one’s backpack.
What is so wonderful is the inclusion of spiritually-oriented material which would help you make this into a true pilgrimage that can “open the space that allows for profound personal transformation.”
Even if you don’t think you will ever make this pilgrimage, you will enjoy the books because they help you feel like you are right there, making the journey along with the many travelers on the paths.

The author of this book is an MIT-trained engineer who presents information about how to work with the subconscious mind in such a way that blockages are cleared allowing more health, wealth, and happiness to come into a person's life.

The book is written in several sections and gives a lot of background about what the author calls the “formula for miracles.” He tells the story of the woman who discovered Theta healing as well as his own story of healing. There is a tremendous amount of good information here about how the mind works, how muscle-testing works and about the results of using Theta-healing. If a person does not already have this information, this book is a great source for learning it.

What is missing and what made the book frustrating for me is that we are not taught the technique of Theta healing but must go to a live seminar to learn it. Since this is the crux of the book, I was left feeling like I had been given a lot of good information – an appetizer - with the main course being kept from me unless I went to another restaurant.

This 35-card deck and accompanying 176-page guidebook is a shamanic guide to what the authors call our “Inner Egypt,” or place of mystery, wisdom, and abiding love that resides within each of us. Similar to other oracular tools, one forms a question and then chooses a card for response. After allowing one'??s own intuition to decode the information, one can turn to the guidebook for a clearer understanding

What's really fun and interesting about this deck is that it is based on the mysteries and knowledge of Egypt so if one is not familiar with these, this is a chance to learn something new. Nicki Scully is well-known for her work with the Egyptian Mysteries and she has been studying and traveling there since 1983.

The artwork in the cards is beautiful, very colorful, and filled with symbology that one can use to meditate and gain deeper understandings. The explanation in the book as to how the cards came to be is very interesting and adds to the depth of mystery they offer.

We'??re all in relationships of one sort of another and this seems to be an area of challenge at one time or another, especially in intimate relationships. This book can help you gain insights relating loce to the spiritual development in each of six universal archetypes. The author identifies six classic profiles of individuals in love: the Innocent, the Orphan, the Pilgrim, the Warrior-Lover, the Monarch, and the Magician.

He explains how we move through these different archetypes and helps answer questions such as “What is love? How do I find it and how do I keep it? He uses examples from the modern world such as Prince Charles and Princess Diana and the television show Desperate Housewives.

His use of the images and wisdom from the tarot make for an interesting mix and fascinating read, not to mention the usefulness of applying it to your own life.