Review of Literature
(Exam questions are not drawn from the Review of Literature Section)
Tara Brach, who is a Buddhist lay priest and clinical psychologist, has written a book called Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With The Heart Of A Buddha (2003). This book looks at the ways in which many people feel that they are inadequate and build their lives around such powerful feelings. Brach shows how people can continue to live their lives feeling unworthy, but also how this is not necessary. In this book, Tara Brach shows how freedom from unworthiness is very possible and offers us practices, including meditations and reflections, to help with the transformation process of creating lives of acceptance. A quote that Tara Brach gives from the Buddha is as follows: “Like a caring mother holding and guarding the life of her only child, so with a boundless heart hold yourself and all beings.”
Barbara Ann Brennan’s book Hands of Light (1987) is a wonderful book for anyone interested in learning healing skills. Barbara Brennan has been a healer for over fifteen years. She brings knowledge from her many healing sessions to this book, as well as scientific understandings of the human energy body. This book covers a wide range of healing techniques and gives pictures as visual aids to the written material. Readers can use this book to transform themselves through self-healing.
A book that was used for inspiration in this course is You Are That! (1996). This book used is a compilation of Gangaji‘s teachings during satsangs held between 1993-1995. Gangaji addresses many topics in this book, including the challenges of surrendering. You Are That! is written in a question and answer format, keeping true to the experience of what a gathering, or satsang, would be like. One of the many beautiful messages in this book is that we do not need to do anything in order to recognize our divinity. We instead can surrender into our true selves. In the words of Gangaji, “Stillness reveals presence of Being. You are that presence of Being. Receive you Self. Drink your Self. Be nourished by your Self. Begin your exploration of That.”
Another book that was very helpful in writing this course is When You’re Falling, Dive (2003). Cheri Huber, the author, has been a student and teacher of Zen for over thirty years. Cheri Huber beautifully shows readers how there are two possibilities for how we react to every moment; we can either accept or resist life as it is. Huber offers practices, teachings, and questions to apply to the path of learning to accept life. This book is written in a playful manner with pictures and diagrams included. To further describe When You’re Falling, Dive we can turn to the words of Cheri Huber in her preface. “Part of what I do as a Zen student and teacher is recognize blocks and hindrances that litter the path of awakening: unwillingness, intellectualizing, self-hate, resistance, as examples. Suddenly I will see one of those blocks everywhere and think, yes, this is it, I’ll offer this to those who ask for guidance, and they will see and their suffering will end.”
Stephen Levine wrote a book called A Gradual Awakening (1979), which offers knowledge and practices for becoming more aware, letting go of our hindrances, and coming into meditative states of awareness. This book is beautifully written and shows a great deal of understanding on the part of Stephen Levine. Ram Das talks about this book in its preface with the words: “Stephen Levine deals with mediation and social responsibility in a way that is neither abstract nor hollow: This is practical stuff for day-to-day living. His ability to do this comes from his own life in which he has shown a continuing sense of social consciousness.”
The book Living By Conscious Choice by Nancy Only was very useful in writing this course as well. Nancy Only starts this book by helping readers to recognize that all we feel and do during the course of a day are choices. We have the choice to feel stressed or happy. Nancy Only then goes on to offer us new choices that we can make: to choose awareness, gratitude, letting go of the past, and several other empowering choices toward our health and happiness. Nancy Only says, “And when we decide we are ready for the responsibility of creating the life we want, when we are willing to invest ourselves fully in each moment of choice, when we consciously decide that life is much more than something which happens to us, we begin to live with a sense of power that makes it worthwhile.” Each chapter offers questions to ponder and an exercise to practice. This makes Nancy Only’s book one of both intellectual and experiential knowledge.
Another wonderful book that I came across for this course is Living With Joy (1986). This book was written by Sanaya Roman, who channeled the information for it from a being of love and light named Orin. Orin shows us how to take the steps to transform our lives into ones of empowerment and awakening to divine truth. Readers can learn to open their hearts, realize their life purposes, and create their lives without struggle. We can be helped to gain self-love and acceptance through the wisdom Orin gave Sanaya Roman for us to hear.
Another inspiring book relating to forgiveness is The Four Agreements (1997). Written by Don Miguel Ruiz, this book looks at the beliefs we created as children that shape our lives. It shows us how each person has different beliefs that form what Ruiz calls our book of laws. Ruiz then provides beliefs from the Toltec path of wisdom that can help us to live empowered and joyous lives.
The book Loving-Kindness: The Revolutionary Art Of Happiness shows us how we can create loving-kindness in our lives. This book is written by Sharon Salzberg, a Buddhist teacher. It teaches us that we do not need to only long for feeling love and kindness, but that these can come into our lives through self-discipline and practice. In the words of Sharon Salzberg, “Spiritual practice, by uprooting our personal mythologies of isolation, uncovers the radiant, joyful heart within each of us and manifests this radiance to the world.” Sharon Salzberg offers readers exercises to bring experiential wisdom to the practice of loving-kindness as well.
Dr. Randolph Stone wrote a book called Health Building (1985) in which health is looked at from the perspective of the mind, emotions, spirit, and body. Dr. Stone received Doctors’ degrees in Osteopathy, Chiropractic, and Naturopathy. He lived to the age of 91, and even during the later years of his life, Dr. Stone taught and traveled with a great sense of vitality. In this book, Dr. Stone talks about health in relation to the energy flows of the human body. He gives general guidelines for people to follow in order to regain and then maintain their health. Dr. Stone did much research on the polarity of energy within each cell of the body, and formulated this into the practice of polarity therapy, which is discussed in this book as well. Dr. Stone’s writings are highly inspirational.
The Dalai Lama offers wisdom on compassion for the self and others in his book An Open Heart: Practicing Compassion In Everyday Life (2001). This book leads us through the transformation of our heart energy, from being selfish to compassionate. The Dalai Lama shows readers how the path to compassion can be broken down into a series of meditations. He leads readers through this series, starting with basic meditations and leading to more complex ones. This process involves much reflection and a willingness to dedicate oneself to the Buddhist path of compassion. One beautiful aspect of this book is that it can be used as a complimentary source of inspiration and transformation to any spiritual practices that one already has in his/her life.
Another book used in this course is Peace Is Every Step: The Path Of Mindfulness In Everyday Life (1991) by Thich Nhat Hahn. This is a beautiful book written in a simple way to convey a powerful message. Thich Nhat Hahn offers stories of his own path of mindfulness. He gives readers tools to bring mindfulness into all aspects of their lives, including driving and washing dishes. There are several meditations in this book as well. I first read this book several years ago and can remember it touching me very deeply in its beauty. It is used in this course to offer practices of how to raise one’s awareness and become more present to life.
Amorah Quan Yin was inspired to write The Pleiadian Workbook: Awakening Your Divine Ka (1996) after remembering past lives in which she connected to the same wisdom that this group of light beings, called Pleiadian Emissaries of Light, has shared with her in this lifetime. Amorah Quan Yin shares with readers her own experiences in opening up to the Pleiadian Emissaries of Light and then goes into the knowledge that she has learned from them. There are many wonderful techniques on grounding, releasing old thoughts and energies, healing oneself, and connecting with other realms of existence. Through these techniques, we can raise our energy levels and connect with our divine selves. One of the messages that Amorah Quan Yin has received is that this is the time for spiritual growth, and the information of this book can help us to excel on our own spiritual paths.