Book Review : The Seeker

Title : The Seeker

Author : Karan Bajaj

Publisher : Penguin India

It so turned out that the books that I picked up for reading this summer kept leading me to the logical next and further on in my pursuit to know and understand things better, as if it was all pre-planned and ordained to happen. Although  I am far removed from understanding the meaning of life and getting even a glimpse of the elusive peaceful state of mind but the dots that are joining through these books are bringing in some form of solace and respite. Just wondering if it is Alchemist's message getting validated in real life - nature conspiring in some way to satisfy the urge from within.

Happened to pick 'The Seeker', seeing it on the stands of a book store, along with J.P. Vaswani's book - Thoughts Life has Taught Me. Written by Karan Bajaj, this book is again a person's journey to know the purpose of life. In more cases than one this kind of desperation gets kindled when one goes through extreme emotions like - near death experience, loss of a loved one or similar such situation. During such life changing experiences, many questions cloud a mind and one keeps wondering and questioning about what is beyond what is visible to the eye. The urge to know more and know better keeps one unsettled till one begins on some path to everlasting peace.

In 'The Seeker', Maximus Pzoras, a Harvard economist and Wall Street Banker calls it quits soon after his mother's demise. In order to find reason for human suffering, despair and pain, he sets out on a journey from New York to the snow capped Himalayas first, then to an ashram in South India and finally to the Himalayas again. He realises that it is the mind that needs to be conditioned to stay silent. 'Mind is always on fire. It violates every yogic percept, claiming it wants enlightenment when it craves pleasure, coveting the comfort of chatter, committing violence when it thinks negatively. Mind knows no contentment, no peace, no maturity.'

In order to find the truth behind the statement, “So if there is birth, age, suffering, sorrow and death, then there must be something that is un-born, un-aging, un-ailing, sorrow-less and deathless, immortals as it were" Max progresses from one stage to another and experiences an inner transformation.The bondages, attachments, worldly pleasures that earlier enticed and seduced him, slowly settle down and so do the bodily discomforts. The book actually walks the readers through an adventurous journey where the protagonist is equally unsure and unsettled to begin with but gradually the clouds of confusion start diffusing giving way to clarity and assuredness.

After reading this book, the learning gets reconfirmed that there is a right time for everything when the mind, soul and body actually get ready to receive it. The receptiveness of these three faculties conjoin to convey the message to the nature which then conspires to make it happen in its own discreet way.

Karan Bajaj has done a great job in bringing out the inner feelings and emotions of a person on the journey to self realization. The detail and depth in his writing validates how keenly he must have experienced the emotions and how deeply he must have observed the progressive changes. He talks highly about the significance of selfless service and silence while mentioning various means and mediums in order to stabilize the mind. He touches upon the concepts of - power of yoga and meditation, good and bad karma and the outcomes of the same, rebirth theory and much more and the way they are pieced together, make it all very logical. While reading through the book, one may not even realise but one eventually gets a glimpse of how 'Tattvam asi'  - the enlightened state - would be.

Tattvam asi means - You are That (That is God), which means aligning oneself with that supreme power as one is actually a part of that complete whole.

This book has already gone in the list of 'Literary Sojourn Recommends' for this year.

Book Review : Conversation Between God and Man

Title : Conversation Between God and Man

Author : G.Venkataraman

Publisher : Media Division, Sri Sathya Sai Sadhana Trust
Crossposted at : Saffron Tree

There comes a time when strongest of the strong anchors give way, leaving the yet inexperienced boats and ships that are tethered to it, bobbing in the open waters. The sheltered life comes to a halt abruptly and the unsettled boats are thrown exposed to the meddling of winds and waves. Human life is no different and one inevitably finds oneself in a situation where the most trusted of the relationships reveal their transient nature. That is the situation when one is left confounded and robbed off - of enthusiasm and even the will to move forward. What for? Why? How? - questions pose a big threat to the natural flow of life on those junctures. One gets acquainted with the feelings which know no language or expression. An amateur human mind may interpret it as insatiable hunger, unquenchable thirst, inadequate sleep, untreatable pain or irreparable broken pieces of heart. But it is far beyond that, it is an absolute vacuum, a bottomless abyss and deep dark tunnel with no light in sight. Where does one go? How does one progress? Even if one starts moving, is it progressing or retrogressing? Who will hold the hand at that time?

While being in that abysmal state for a few months, I often wondered, how a human could equip him/herself to maintain sanity and equanimity during such phases. And as  a parent what can we do to help our children tide over such situations as and when they happen to confront them. After searching unsuccessfully for answers everywhere, one realises that perhaps there's only one way to seek the peaceful state - embarking on the journey towards one's inner self - where the seat of the soul actually is. It may be termed as almighty, omnipresent, all pervasive or by any name that one feels comfortable with. The connect with the supreme authority or one's own true self can be the only permanent anchor and support.

When we so painstakingly pick the best schools, hobby classes, books, besides the regular things of basic needs for our children, shouldn't we be conscious of the fact that they would need a big store of their inner strength as well for all crests and troughs in their lives. Contrarily, who are we to teach them because the spiritual age of an individual may not have any connection with the worldly years that one keeps piling on. Nevertheless, we can do our bit by encouraging them to read in order to build that store house.

'Conversation Between God and Man' is one of those books which can/should be read along with children or to them starting from the primary section itself. It is a simplified version of the conversation that happened between Lord Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra - the essence of Bhagvat Gita. After seeing his family and friends in the rival camp, Arjuna lost all interest to fight the battle and the feeling of futility of the whole bloodshed overpowered him. He was ready to accept defeat over triumph because the victory would come by killing his own kith and kin. Lord Krishna then taught him the mystery of reincarnation and the philosophy behind being a true action-oriented (Karma yogi) person. A karma yogi is the person who can stay in the moment without letting the past or future interfere and that is how one can hope to dedicate oneself to that moment entirely. Reincarnation which is often compared to change of clothes by the soul reinforces the cause and effect theory - as one sows so one reaps. As a soul continues its journey from one life to another, it learns, it enriches and purifies itself to eventually merge with the supreme power.

Dedicated chapters on happiness, conscience, awareness, rebirth, surrender to God and purpose of life convey the timeless teachings of Bhagvat Gita - the voice of Lord Krishna. The connection that it establishes between mind, soul and body brings a lot of clarity and peace. Special emphasis is laid on the importance of one's duty and submission of all that one does to the supreme authority.

It is absolutely important to live life with the awareness that, what we send comes back to us - positive or negative. Hence think good, do good and be good while staying immersed in the designated duties that one needs to dispense. I would highly recommend repeat readings of this book to fully understand its message and to keep it fresh in the mind always. While reading the book, it feels as if the questions that Arjuna pose are exactly the ones that often come to our minds. The dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna inspire the readers to look for happiness at the right place and with right awareness rather than to make the transient things as focus of our lives. 

'The Gita is not, as is commonly imagined, merely about Krishna giving advice to Arjuna to shed his doubts and get on with the fight. Nor is it specific to any particular religion or school of Spiritual philosophy, as many seem to believe. Rather, it is all about a LIFE BOAT, which, if availed of, can save individuals, entire communities and indeed the whole of humanity, from being drowned by the innumerable difficulties that plague today's society at the macro as well as the micro level.'

I am sure there is sufficient reading material available in all sects and religions and comparing them or picking one over others is not the objective here. The aim is to study enough and to understand enough in order to enjoy the peaceful blissful state - which is the true nature of an individual. I would like to pick many books written by enlightened souls across various religions to read myself and to read to the children so as to see which path makes the understanding easier and lays long lasting impression on the minds.

Book Review : Siddhartha

Title : Siddhartha

Author : Herman Hesse

Publisher : Bantam Book

 "The true profession of man is to find his way to himself"

Siddhartha is the story of every thinking individual as one maneuvers through the paths of life while trying to work on the conflicts that the three essential elements of a being pose - mind, body and soul.  I consider such books small little pauses in the otherwise madly running lives in current times. They goad an individual to stop, think, introspect and examine which one of the three - mind, body or soul is dominating the self at any given point of time.

Siddhartha, as a boy got enchanted by the thoughts of gods and sacrifices, as a young adult left his home in order to conquer his mind and body to live as an ascetic, as a man got immersed in fulfilling the pleasures of senses and becoming their slave, and later left everything that was dear to him to embark on a fresh journey to find peace and Atman. His life came a full circle starting from a boy to a man and then back to being a child again. The boy who was boastful of three incredible arts - fasting, waiting and thinking, saw the same abandoning him one by one. He ended up exchanging the skills that he had acquired during the diligent years of youth, for the transitory things which usually obsess an ordinary man. Eventually he had to get in touch with his inner self in order to attain the divine peace.

As  he progressed in his journey of life, his personality changed, his needs changed and accordingly his teachers changed and in the end he learns the essence of life from outwardly mute river. Sitting silently by the river, watching its continuous flow, Siddhartha learns the timeliness of a being, unity of things and the art of listening to that one sound - the Om sound - which has the power of submerging every diverse sound in its folds.  "Learned from river to listen, to listen with still heart, with a waiting, open soul, without passion, without desire, without judgment, without opinions. "

A very thought provoking story but then it does make you believe that things happen when they have to happen and when the time is ripe for the same to happen. Perhaps this was the reason that even after meeting Buddha and getting impressed with his demeanor and his teachings, Siddhartha felt the need to leave that place as he believed that a teacher can simply impart knowledge but cannot make the disciples share the wisdom that experience only brings. "Wisdom is not communicable. Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it."

Siddhartha's words while he decided to leave Buddha to embark on his pursuit alone - "Buddha you have reached the highest goal which so many thousands of Brahmins and Brahmins' sons are striving to reach. You have done so by your own seeking, in your own way, through thought, through meditation, through knowledge, through enlightenment. You have learned nothing through teachings. Nobody finds salvation through teachings. To nobody, can you communicate in words and teachings what happened to you in the hour of your enlightenment. The teachings of the enlightened Buddha embrace much, they teach much - how to live righteously, how to avoid evil. But there is one things that this clear, worthy instruction does not contain, it does not contain the secret of what the Illustrious One himself experienced. "

Book Review : Old Path White Clouds

Title : Old Path White Clouds

Author : Thich Nhat Hanh

Publisher : Hind Pocket Books

ISBN : 81-216-0675-6

Thick Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddist monk and an accomplished author who has penned - Being Peace, Under the Banyan Tree, The Path of Emancipation and 85 other books. In 'Old Path White Clouds' , he presents the life and teachings of Gautam Buddha spanning over 80 years.

The story is divided into small chapters and are presented in a very simple language.  Through this book, readers get a glimpse of Buddha's thoughts, how he followed his inner calling to embark on a journey of self realization and what all he experimented with to attain the blissful state. During the course of his search, he first tried the path of self deprivation but later realized that -"The body is not just an instrument, it is the temple of the spirit, the raft by which we cross the other shore." He stopped practicing and advocating self-mortification.

"He realized that body and mind formed one reality which could not be separated. The peace and comfort of the body were directly related to the peace and comfort of the mind. To abuse the body was to abuse the mind. "

After attaining enlightenment, he dedicated his life to leading many individuals to the same path of peace and devotion.

He taught the world the significance of mindful awareness and living in the moment by being a role model who practiced every ounce of what he preached. "Your mind should  not be chasing after thoughts of yesterday or tomorrow, but should dwell fully in the present moment. Living in mindful awareness is living in the moment, your mind and body dwelling in the very here and now. Living each day mindfully is the very basis of spiritual practice."

It is interesting to read how Buddha compiled the Noble Eightfold enlightenment path, and how throughout his life, he tried to share his peaceful state with so many others who came in contact with him. One very important aspect, though very small, caught my attention - he was very effective in teaching every individual in the language that the person understood the best, for instance, Svasti was a buffalo boy and he was taught using the terms that he was most conversant with while to a Sitar player he used the strings of the sitar as an example while showing him the divine path. There is a lot that a reader can take from the book. This is the first biography of Buddha that I read which took me through some very significant moments of Buddha's life.

However, I cannot skip mentioning that this book does falter at many points - it is repetitive and many parts are redundant which only increase the volume of the book without enriching the readers in any way. The book could have been more precise to be more effective. Some of the chapters give an impression as if they are compiled bits and pieces from here and there. As I understand, a biography should be more tight with no scope of redundancy because it is primarily a sincere presentation of facts. Also, the narrative keeps vacillating from Svasti the buffalo boy to Buddha himself, which makes it a little disruptive sometimes.

Thich was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by none other than Martin Luther King Jr. He is the founder of Van Hanh Buddist University in Saigon, and has taught at Columbia University and the Sorbonne.

Must quote a few lines from the book -

"Bhikkhus, when you have seen deeply and have attained the Way, the beautiful may still appear beautiful and the ugly may still appear ugly, but because you have attained liberation, you are not bound by either. When a liberated person looks at beauty, he can see that it is composed of many non-beautiful elements. Such a person understands the impermanent and empty nature of all things, including beauty and ugliness. Thus he is neither mesmerized by beauty nor repulsed by ugliness."

Bhikkhu must cleanse his body and mind of desires, attachments, anger and aversions.

Love is possible only when there is understanding. And only with love can there be acceptance."

Book Review : The Secret of The Nagas

Title : The Secret Of The Nagas (Book II of Shiva Trilogy)

Author : Amish Tripathi

Publisher : Westland

ISBN : 978-93-80658-79-7

I guess all are wary of the sequels, the part II's, the Dwitiyas(seconds) and the following versions, for the simple reason (well supported by statistics)that usually the same seem like the diluted versions which let the expectations down, they even let the impressions of the first one fade away. So all these anticipations and apprehensions were there when I picked the second book of the 'Shiva Trilogy'(Book I - The Immortals of Meluha, reviewed here).

The initial one-third of the story did not stir much emotions inside me. Perhaps the expectations were too high. The story was going on pretty well, in fact, very fast paced but I was desperately missing the euphoria, the magic that I felt many times while reading 'The Immortals of Meluha'. Oh well, I thought, it is indeed not easy to replicate anything, then how could I expect the same magic getting replicated in the sequel too. But all my apprehensions and fears were put to rest the moment the identities of Naga queen and the Lord of the People are revealed. After that the story just soars high in the space, which Amish has made his readers used to.

Neelkanth's mission to find the evil and destroy it continues in the second book. He has to avenge the murder of his dear friend Brihaspathi and identify the mysterious Naga who is chasing Sati. Shiva's sojourn to find the answers to unanswered mysteries lead him and his entourage to many different places - Swadeepan, Kashi, Branga land and to the land of Nagas which has been very secretly guarded by the Naga Queen and the Lord of the People. Shiva gets to understand, experience and learn the fundamental duality of life, the inseparability of evil and good, the coexistence of masculine and feminine part in the universe, futility of preconceived notions, deception of first appearances, imperfections in perfection, scope of virtue in imperfection, significance and need of both evil and good, and much more.

Our hero, the Shiva in second book has matured into a much more assured person, having taken the role of being a saviour comfortably now, in comparison to the unsure rustic tribal Shiva who was introduced to us in the first book. The abuses coming out of his mouth are also contained to minimum.

However, I did not understand the significance of the word 'Nagas' for the people who are actually banished Suryavanshis or Chandravanshis born with physical deformities or abnormalities. They have their own kingdom Panchvati, which is a secret place in deep jungles.

I would say the way the second book ends is not like how the first ended in terms of level of curiosity the first managed to raise. People who read the first book, would surely want to read the second but not sure about the third. Personally, I would want to see how the saga ends because I usually pursue things till their logical conclusions. But there is no doubt about the fact that this journey has been very enriching and fulfilling for all the characters of the story, primarily Neelkantha and all the readers too.

I specifically liked the parts when Shiva is guided by the Vasudevs in a veiled manner. The cover pages of both the books are quite impressive too.

I must compliment the author for having weaved the philosophy of the evil and good so charmingly with the adventure and thrill part. The adventure gives pace to the story while the philosophy part brings the much needed pondering breaks, the opportunity to assimilate and absorb what has been going on in the story.

This story has deeply influenced and impressed me. The almighty seems to have become a little more approachable and accessible to me. I guess, it is all in our minds.

Book Review : Quantum Angel Healing

Title : Quantum Angel Healing

Author : Eva-Maria Mora

Publisher : Synergy Books

ISBN : 978-0-9845040-1-5

Eva Maria Mora, the author of 'Quantum Angel Healing' begins the book by first showing us a mirror - the mortal human beings in search of solutions to innumerable problems - ranging from physical discomforts, illnesses to mental and emotional stresses. And for these problems, we tend to blame others or look for some external reasons, this is our way of justifying our miseries or finding excuses for the same. But in all this exercise we miss out on the real cause, the fundamental root of the problem which is - our belief that we are different from others, we are away from our true selves and we are separate from the almighty. Perhaps that is what we view from behind so many masks that we don from time to time while on this earth in one particular birth.

Then the author proceeds onto guiding the readers that the solutions can be sought and the problems can be alleviated by some simple breathing and meditation techniques. What these techniques empower us to do is to generate a high energy field and connect the same to an even higher energy field. This is exactly what the Quantum Angel treatment practitioner enables the clients in pain to achieve. The undiminishing source of the highest energy level is none other than the divine energy of love which is transferred through the messengers of God - the Angels. The author talks about many miracles that she witnessed happening in front of her eyes.

Pain of any form that we experience in life is a direct indicator that our mind, body and soul are out of balance and are struggling with each other at some level. All human beings have seven main chakras which spin and move energy up and down the body and play a critical role in keeping both the physical and energy bodies healthy. The expert practitioners of Quantum Angel Healing can aid the clients in channelizing the energies from the chakra system and clearing the blocked energies in the system to create a clearer energy fields. The clearer energy fields start vibrating at the frequency appropriate to receive the messages from angels. Ms. Mora talks about many techniques to make connection with the angels and she has actually listed down the particular angels

After having talked about the different techniques, which she compares to the new recipes of a cookbook, she moves on to encourage the readers to even refurbish the kitchen by bringing in some new pots, pans and some fresh ingredients to try the new recipes with.

All these new items are actually positive steering of the thought process - cleaning up the blocked energies, checking the past emotions, experiences and beliefs, identifying whether we fall in any of the categories of - 'a victim', 'a judge', 'unable to forgive', or 'love hurts' and if so, following the program to clear that particular part of our personality.

She elaborates upon the most important steps of the Quantum Angel Healing formula -

1. Opening yourself to the flow of the angelic healing energies
2. Forgiving
3. Letting go of and transforming old emotions and harmful energies
4. Visualizing
5. Accepting love, new energies and new belief systems
6. Feeling gratitude

Second part is dedicated to different illnesses and their respective symptoms and which program works the best for healing these health issues.

This book definitely motivates the readers to first critically analyze own self, identify the problem areas, cleanse the energy levels internally as well as externally and apply the natural healing procedures. I found it very exciting and some of the techniques are easily to follow but I guess many need to be practiced under an expert practitioner. Through this book the author offers a peek into an intriguing world of energy levels and how the same can be manipulated for greater benefits.

Book Review : The Trinity

Title : The Trinity

Authors : Marie D. Jones, Larry Flaxman

Publisher : The Career Press

ISBN : 978-1-60163-145-9

The book 'The Trinity' divulges the all pervasiveness of the number 'three', its magic, its power and its influence. The narration begins with first establishing the omnipresence of the trinity in all possible realms of the world - nature, religion, psychology, mythology, culture, quantum physics and much more. The famous ones with which almost all of us are well conversant are - the holy trinity in Christianity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the one in Hindu faith - Brahma (the creator), Vishnu(the protector), Mahesh (the destroyer), the famous abodes of the soul - Heaven, Earth and Hell, three levels of human mind - conscious, unconscious and subconscious, major life cycle stages - birth, life, death and three laws of Newton. It definitely brings home the point that the reach of the concept of Trinity is indeed ubiquitous, not restricted to any particular religion, faith, culture or society. Is this some kind of a secret code in need to be decoded?

The authors Marie D. Jones and Larry Flaxman precisely attempt to bring out the magic behind this number in their book 'The Trinity'. In order to achieve this, they discuss about a long array of things and amongst them the one which has been elaborated in great detail is the structure of brain and the different sections of this organ which makes the human being a highly evolved living organism to have ever walked on the face of the earth. The hindbrain, mid-brain and forebrain are the distinct sections of the brain and are the managing units of very specific skills and emotions. Then there is the mention of intent and reality and the conditions under which the intentions get transformed into reality. What actually is intention? It is defined as 'focused, directed, persistent thought. It is resolve and determination to make specific things happen'.

Further on, the authors take up the concept of prayer and the secret behind the prayers. Marie Jones and Flaxman attempt to explain it scientifically, how the treatment of mind can help transform a prayer into an "affirmative" prayer - the mechanism by which one could actually manifest what one wants in life. They describe this system of scientific prayer using a five step structure - Recognition, Identification, Declaration, Thanksgiving and Release. Chapter 9 focused on this topic was an interesting read. I specifically liked the arguments that have been put across to find the reason for 'Why most people's prayers don’t come to pass?'

'The Trinity' brings out a fresh take on many topics and yet another way of looking at things. Overall a very captivating read, offers some healthy arguments and would surely motivate the readers to ponder upon the issues that have been dealt with in the book.

Book Review : Holy Cow : An Indian Adventure

Title : Holy Cow : An Indian Adventure

Author : Sarah ManDonal

Publisher : Random House

ISBN : 978-0-553-81601-3

Twenty one years old Sarah MacDonald visits India and to say the least she simply hates her experience in the country and vows never to step her foot on this land again. But destiny does bring her back after 11 years, making an Indian beggar's prophecy correct about her. This time she comes to India leaving her dream job in Sydney for the love of her life, who happens to be posted in New Delhi.

Claiming to be an atheist, she finds herself in a totally alien territory where faith, belief and religion define a part of who people are and not just that, there is so much more to India and the people than she could ever have imagined or expected. She embarks on the journey to unravel the mysteries of India and Indian-ness and flows with what each day unfolds in front of her.

Being in the most polluted city, observing people very closely, she wonders why so many foreigners keep trying to figure out India when in fact this whole exercise is pointless, India is one country which is beyond any understanding, any statement, for anything one states about India, the opposite is also true. It's rich, its poor, spiritual and material, cruel and kind, angry and peaceful, ugly and beautiful, smart and stupid. It's all the extremes.

She observes, experiences and tries to understand the faiths, beliefs and religions of different people and what these mean to an Indian. To immerse deeply and to partake all flavors, she first takes the calming Vipassana course in the small town of Dharamkot, pays visit to the Vatican of Sikhs - the Golden Temple, travels to Kashmir and closely observes the Muslims and their ability to surrender and sacrifice, spends some days in Buddhist Monastery, gets introduced to beliefs of the Jews and Parsis of India, marvels at the unbelievable simplicity and self-perfection of Jain faith, gets awed by the orderly organisation of Sathya Sai Baba anshram in Bangalore, appreciates the Hinduism for showing innumerable ways to divine and peeks into the lives of Indian Christians. After having experienced faith from different angles, she realizes that she has made a start along the path to personal transformation and inner peace.

The charm of India was such that despite having to endure a lot of irritants like - the unending trail of beggars which gets exceptionally bigger behind a foreigner, various people charging exorbitantly for the basic services, lecherous gestures of men, to just name a few - while leaving India this time, she is glad 'to be reborn as a better person, less reliant on others for her happiness and full of a desire to replace anger with love.' And, she has gained another home - the home of her spiritual rebirth.

I really liked the author's play with words - simple and perfectly apt, witty and intelligent. To give a slice of her writing style, just a few pages into the book she writes about the Indian traffic and the road sense -

'Pedestrians are on the bottom and run out of the way of everything, bicycles make way to cycle-rickshaws, which give way to auto-rickshaws, which stop for the cars, which are subservient to trucks. Buses stop for one thing and one thing only. Not customers - they jump on while the buses are still moving. The only thing that can stop a bus is the king of the road - The Holy Cow. '

On a personal note: I guess being Indian, we see such huge diversity right from the moment we open our eyes that we have always considered it as part of who we are without consciously registering as much, but actually if we watch India from afar, not as someone part of it, I think India is too intriguing, overwhelming and awe-inspiring and has been a complex topic for many people. The fact is, India is beyond all definitions and statements and that is precisely the uniqueness of this country.

Book Review : Planetary Transformation

Title : Planetary Transformation

Author : Imre Vallyon

Publisher : Sounding Light

ISBN : 978-0-909038-61-8

Review written for BookPleasures

Through his book 'Planetary Transformation', the author Imre Vallyon introduces the readers to a potential higher awareness and unprecedented transformation which is about to dawn on our physical planet. This transformation has the potential of tremendous opportunity in store for the Mankind. To make use of this opportunity we need to understand this process first and equip ourselves to arise, awake and absorb it positively.

Imre begins by first educating the readers about the cyclical nature of the Sun and the solar system through various zodiac signs.

Our solar System is journeying right into the path of a much higher energy stream, which means that our Solar Logos and all the planets could be swamped with a huge tidal wave of high-frequency energy that they have never encountered before. Some slight changes are already being observed ever since 1857 which are slowly gaining momentum and will peak in the coming hundred to thousand years. If these astrological changes are referred to as 'horizontal' changes then he talks about another form of 'vertical' changes which can be initiated by higher energy descending from higher dimensions, from the Inner World.

How these cosmic energies and higher-frequency streams will impact our Solar System, our Mother Earth, our coming generations and humanity in general is an interesting topic of research and learning.

The next few generations are blessed to be getting this amazing chance to cooperate with the Divine plan by first being aware of the immense possibilities thrown open in front of them. The humans will have a choice to either help the planet enter into a Golden Age or push it to be another failure due to ignorance and non-cooperation with the cosmic changes. We all can choose to elevate our awareness from the basic physical to astral level where there is Divine unity - past, present an future are fused into one knowing Consciousness and Oneness. This means we can awaken into a higher dimensional awareness and can be a walking Buddha or Christ.

Our planet is getting ready for this enormous transformation, and the onus is on us to prepare ourselves to be in tune with ourselves, our planet and with the Cosmos while keeping an informed eye on the stumbling blocks on the path.

After having discussed this upcoming transformation in the lives of our future generations, Imre then walks the readers through some of the guided meditation techniques and chanting routines, following which, we can hope to raise the consciousness in line with the Divine vision and participate actively in the whole transformation process.

A prophetic book which very succinctly offers many interesting revelations about the cosmic world, our future, what to expect and how best to approach the future turbulent times to bring in peace, love and eternal happiness for all.

About the author : Imre Vallyon is the visionary author of The Magical Mind, Heavens and Hells of the Mind, The Sedona Talks and The Art of Meditation. He was the Aston Wylie Award winner in 2008 and a Living Now gold medalist in 2009.