Interview : Anandaa

A wonderful book - A Cupful of Aha! and equally wonderful author description of himself. I must post the exact message from author here. 

"About the Author

The author is possibly the only double PhD(one in Applied Psychology, the other in Comparative Tribal Music) who has spent multiple stints in several rehabilitation centres for problems ranging from drug abuse, mental breakdown, and schizophrenia. 

He then spent 8 years roaming the remote regions of the Himalayas - living with goatherds and monks, and often going several months with not a work spoken.

At ease with Prime Ministers and commoners alike; he has the unique ability to predict key events of your future just by looking at a photograph of your little finger.

P.S. : None of the above is true. The author is just the average John (or Jani or Janaradhan). does not matter.

The message is important; not the messenger."

How did the idea of 'A cupful of Aha!' occur to you?

Quite honestly – right out of the blue! J

I just started putting pen to paper (actually, fingers to keyboard) and the story literally wrote itself. I didn’t have the plot thought out – I just started with the base premise and went with the flow. After a point, the words wouldn’t come and I’d stop for the night. And then enjoy the suspense as I had no clue what was coming next. But the conversation between the two main characters did feel very real as I wrote.

So – divinely inspired or temporary schizophrenia – I’m not sure. But I loved the process and the end product!

What was the objective of putting the wisdom of life in words?

Thank you – very flattering words – ‘wisdom of life’! But seriously, I was just sharing some insights and a quirky perspective. I’m in no way qualified to expound on such matters; but as I’ve said in the book - ignore the messenger, the message is still very relevant for you.

How much of what you have written did you actually experience?

Some of it, yes – and some of it I deeply yearn to instill more in my everyday life. I’m extremely grateful to the many Masters who have graced my life and pulled me along – kicking and screaming sometimes – on the path of self-discovery.

Which one thing do you want the readers of 'A cupful..' to take with them?

I’ve had very different takes on the book from people who have read it so far – from ‘simply enjoyable’ to ‘deeply philosophical’. And some of my friends have been puzzled by certain twists in the tale (again, different ones). So I think the book is more like a mirror – it seems to reflect what you need to see.

But if the book elicits a few smiles, and leaves you with a few questions – I think my job’s done.

What do you plan to write next? Is there any dream writing project that you have in mind?

I do have a couple of ideas I’m mulling over. And of course, my dream is that the next book also writes itself!

Which authors do you like reading the most - Indian and Foreign authors? Can you please name some of the books that have motivated and inspired you the most?

This is a difficult one. Because I just love to read (and re-read), and I read everything from fiction to philosophy to comics, and usually read 3-4 books in parallel. I close my eyes and at least 15 names come to mind – so I think I’ll skip this one!

How has been your journey of being an author?

A refreshingly different break from the corporate world I spend so much time in! If you thought writing a book is the hard part, wait till you figure out the process of getting it to print! And here I’d like to a say a Big Thank You to the BecomeShakespeare.com team. More than the professionalism and great quality, what impressed me most was how BecomeShakespeare.com helped convert the entire experience of getting my book to print into sheer joy - it felt like a gang of good (and talented) friends were jamming to create some awesome music together!

What suggestions would you want to offer to budding writers?

Just one – stop waiting for advice! Listen to your heart and just start writing!

Click here to buy the book.

Book Review : The Alchemist

Title : The Alchemist

Author : Paulo Coelho

Publisher : Harper Collins

ISBN : 9780061233845

There is time for everything. Nothing happens by chance because there is the force of universe that makes things happen the way they happen and when they have to happen. I must confess that though I have heard so many good things about the book 'The Alchemist' as well as the author, - Paulo Coelho, it took me a long time to pick this book up and read it. It has been on my reading wish list for the longest period of time. But it is indeed true, there is time for everything and nothing can pre-pone or postpone the natural occurrence of that happening.

Now after having read this book, I can say sometimes delay is for good. Perhaps it was waiting for that space and attention in my mind which it deserved and I am happy that it could get its worth. Even after having read it a couple of weeks back, I have taken so many days to write about the book. I wanted the written matter of the book to sink it, get digested and get soaked in my self. This sinking, digesting and soaking is perhaps one of those things which Paulo Coelho categorizes as "It's the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary" and the extraordinary-ness of the same is understood only by experiencing it.

The Alchemist is a story of a young shepherd boy who ventures to follow his dreams of treasure in a distant place. On the journey, many experiences, incidents and people await him to transform him into a wise and enlightened individual. Paulo Coelho beautifully accentuates the significance of the journey over that of the destination. The treasure could be anything - riches, love or divine wisdom but the same becomes secondary compared to what all is gathered and what all is assimilated on the way to reach the destination. And once that is done, it becomes immaterial whether destination is actually reached or not as the pleasurable journey itself becomes the goal.

The Alchemist is one of those unique books which are packed with insightful acumen without overwhelming the readers.  The ability to listen to one's personal legend, understanding the closeness to the Soul of the World, utilising the positive force to achieve the personal legend is what this life is all about. And universe ensures that to an individual who is determined enough, the Personal Legend does get revealed.

"When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it."

"Everyone when they are young, knows what their Personal Legend is. At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives. But, as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend. "

The enthusiasm to take every moment as it comes, the dexterity to give the best to that moment and then the gratification of  having given done one's best, is all that is required for a successful living. Its when we try to steer our life's sail against the tide because of innumerable fears and apprehensions, that the problem begins."We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it's our life or our possessions and property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand."

The author talks about significance of various other aspects in our lives like - voice of heart, dreams as God's messages, role of an individual in the cycle of life and positive force working its magic strangely. The written text would inspire you - to follow your intuition no matter how illogical it may sound to others, to unlearn a few things in order to make room for new, to explore beyond obvious, to see past prejudices and perceptions and much more. 

Undoubtedly, a 'must read' book.

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 : The Valmiki Syndrome

Title : The Valmiki Syndrome

Author : Ashok K. Banker

Publisher : Random House India

ISBN : 978-8-184-00141-9

'Work Life Balance' is indeed a tricky topic, almost like walking on a tightrope and more so in the current age when 'more' and 'higher' seem to be the mantras. There seems to be a maddening rush these days to earn more, purchase more, possess more, acquire more but Banker raises very apt questions - Is this desire for more, leading us to a cult of self-help? Is life only about self-help?

Ashok K. Banker who has made an indelible mark on Indian literary firmament through his Ramayana series, Krishna Coriolis and new Mahabharata series, draws parallels between the story of Ratnakaran (who later transformed into Maharishi Valmiki) and those of contemporary Suhasini and Sara in 'The Valmiki Syndrome'.

What is Valmiki Syndrome? Banker defines the Valmiki Syndrome as - "the struggle, the constant, never ending attempt to balance both sides of the scale and relentless pressure to keep them perfectly aligned."

He begins his narration by first penning down a disclaimer about his book through some very interesting analogies:

Just as The Bhagwat Gita is not a management textbook.

The Ramayana is not a misogynistic religious tract about Good versus Evil.

The Mahabharata is not a manual on the art of war.

Similarly 'Valmiki Syndrome' is not a self-help book, or a how-to book, or a manual, guide, textbook or codebook for anything.

Ratnakaran, the bandit earned his livelihood by looting and killing people but once, coaxing of Narada to get an answer to a very simple question from his family, led Ratnakaran to confront the Valimiki Syndrome. This incident metamorphosed him into a completely new individual - Maharishi Valmiki.

As Ratnakaran's journey of self-realization progresses in the book, the author weaves the modern age stories of Suhasini and Sara bringing to forefront, the dilemma - "the question whether one's primary dharma should be towards achieving one's goals, or fulfilling one's obligations to one's family." Suhasini, being the prime bread earner of the family began her journey with all the right reasons but while marching ahead on her career path with well deserved successes and accolades she failed to acknowledge that she had left her family far behind somewhere. Whereas Sara, the rebellious daughter of rigid Maharashtrian parents, listened to her heart and walked out of her parental home to carve a niche for herself but her heart kept beating at the right place.

Using the stories of Ratnakaran, Suhasini and Sara as conduits, Ashok Banker conveys the significance of introspection and some soul searching in order to get answers to these three basic questions :

Who Am I?

Who Do I Wish To Be?

How Do I Become That Person?

It is imperative to realize that none of us is an island leading a solitary existence. So while an individual gets sucked up in the demands of achieving one goal after another on the simple pretext that the same is being done for the loved ones, he/she runs short of time and energy to assess when the fine balance between the duties towards work and home starts getting compromised. For that elusive right balance, the growth has to be sustainable and only then it can be maintained.

So push the pause button of your life for a moment and check back once, do you have your loved ones in close proximity with you or have you lost them somewhere in your pursuit of building your career.

Reflecting transformation in the Indian society, the author has wisely chosen females as the  protagonists of his stories struggling to strike a balance between work and personal life rather than men donning the traditional role.

Ashok Banker is a brilliant writer whose words flow seamlessly through the three stories. Every  argument proposed is riveting, captivating and has the ability to motivate the readers to think, rethink, analyze and strive for that elusive balance. However,  having read his take on mythology through his earlier compositions, I do feel that he excels in that genre much more than he does in the garb of a modern day story teller. His forte is mythology, unquestionably.

The umpteen number of books trying to educate people on how to emotionally handle the personal front, assume that people are dedicatedly working towards furthering their career goals. However I feel, there is a small lacuna and Banker could have scored a brownie point here if he had talked about those cases where people make the work-life balance an excuse to not put their best in their work fields. This would have made his work a well rounded study of the topic.

Moreover, I can't help questioning the relevance of this book to Indian context because the truth is, there is just a very small fraction of our urban population which can actually relate to what the book talks about.

Having said that, with the deluge of self-help books that are available on the shelves, 'The Valmiki Syndrome' has the substance to stand tall amongst the crowd. The last chapter which actually deals with the syndrome is sure to stir the inner-self of every thinking individual and at least would initiate the exercise to evaluate how to prioritize and manage the life on personal as well as professional fronts. 

This review appeared in the newspaper : 'The Tribune' 

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 : Living Fully - Finding Joy in Every Breath

Title : Living Fully - Finding Joy in Every Breath

Author : Shyalpa Tenzin Ripoche

Publisher : New World Library

ISBN : 978-1-60868-075-7

Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche was born in Himalayas and was trained as a Lama from the age of four. Rinpoche received transmissions from all the major schools of Tibetan Buddhism and he is a lineage holder of the Great Perfection (Dzogchen) tradition. Dzogchen is an ancient spiritual teaching developed in Tibet within Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The word 'Dzogchen' means 'total perfection' which refers to the true inherent nature of all beings. It is the knowledge that Tibetan masters have transmitted without being limited by sectarianism.

He begins by narrating a wonderful analogy of human life with that of one day stay in a hotel room where we go to relax but instead of relaxing for even a single moment, we start finding faults in that single room and spend those limited hours of the day in fixing up the things which bother us. I found this analogy very apt and clever.

He goes on to explain it as "Our most pressing challenge is to live fully. Our deepest aspiration is to experience the richness and fullness of our being in every moment. Fulfillment of worldly pleasures bring momentary feeling of euphoria and the lonely and empty feeling returns soon. We do not experience the pure fulfillment inherent in every moment and therefore, we tend to use sense pleasures as a temporary slave".

All the accumulated timeless wisdom shared by Shyalapa is very practical. He talks on many subjects - take the first steps by making the heart pure, approach every single thing sincerely, the indispensable human qualities that are absolutely required for a positive living, importance of consciously being in the moment, challenge of liberation from self, the law of Karma - creating action and facing the reaction, meditation, ocean of wisdom - our mind and then he wraps his teachings by highlighting the importance of having a master whose presence itself makes all sorts of confusions fade away from our lives. Very rightly he lays a lot of stress on the fact that knowing these teachings is just half the work done, what is absolutely necessary is to put them to practice and start experiencing the results. If the teachings fail to transition from theoretical plane to execution level no change will happen.

"In closing, I strongly urge you to practice. These teachings must be applied to your daily life - they must be put into practice - in order to have an effect and lead to true realization".

Shyalapa Ripoche's writing is simple and easy to follow but the only point at which many of the self-help books falter is the way the teachings are presented ,which seems like a list of do's and don'ts and unfortunately 'Living Fully' falls in the same category. There are not many anecdotes or incidents to explain the points or elaborate upon them. With all human challenges and character frailties, I would have preferred him to be discussing those and how an individual can surmount the hurdles through practically feasible diversion of thoughts or some such methods. But I guess for this kind of guidance Shyalapa recommends all to have a spiritual guide or guru in the life so that the journey of life becomes a guided tour rather than a directionless event.

Book Review : Many Lives Many Masters

Title : Many Lives Many Masters

Author : Brian L. Weiss

'Many Lives Many Masters' is an interesting, engaging and enlightening read. The subject addressed in the book is the one greatly written about and well debated upon. It can be termed as theory of rebirth, reincarnation, after life, permanence of soul, many lives etc.

Through this book, Dr. Weiss describes his own experience with Catherine who was 27 years old when she came to him for the psychiatric help regarding her anxieties, panic attacks and phobias. While the doctor tried all possible conventional methods to cure Catherine but nothing seemed to work with her until she transitioned to hypnotic trans state wherein she could recall her past-life memories and experiences which clearly indicated the causes of her present life specific symptoms. The treatment worked with her so well that she started showing immediate improvement in her overall approach towards life, and her issues just vanished completely. Her hypnotic states not just were improving her condition, they were in fact a great learning experience for Dr. Weiss himself wherein he could get to decipher the secret messages from the spirits belonging to the other world regarding life and death.

The author is an acclaimed graduate of Columbia university, a M.D. from the Yale university School of Medicine and Chief Psychiatric at a major hospital and has over 37 papers and many book chapters that are published in this field to his credit. He is an expert on brain chemistry. So he was rightly surprised and skeptical about what his experience with Catherine was leading him to believe. But his skepticism started losing its ground when over and over again he witnessed the miracle this process was bringing in Catherine's life and how everything seemed to fall in just the right place and of course the extremely significant messages relayed to him from the other world with Catherine as a conduit.

This book brings to fore the age old belief that there is a supreme authority who is behind the existence of every single thing in this world and good or bad, our actions stay with us and to settle the accounts of our previous incarnations we need to keep coming in the world. Many religions have already been imparting the knowledge of the theory of cause and effects through our karmas and the subsequent births but the cases like Catherine reinforce this philosophy. The author highlighted another very significant point that the exercise with Catherine made him realize that the fear of death which scares almost all living individuals can be overcome to a great extent with this knowledge simply by being aware that we were there before this and we will be there after this life too, its just that we move from one state to another and in this process attempt to gain wisdom and learn for the benefit of our soul.

Found some repetition of text - specifically when the author is trying to explain the authenticity of what Catherine was saying while being regressed - she was not an actress, didn't do drugs, had not read anything about afterlife and after death experiences. Almost verbatim passage is repeated on a couple of occasions.

Overall a very gripping and engaging read and readers will find answers to some of their own personal questions. This book can serve as a great introduction for the readers who are new to this field of knowledge and research.

Book Review : Temple of Destiny

Title : Temple of Destiny

Author : Neeraj Singhvi

Publisher : Pustak Mahal

Temple of Destiny takes us to a journey of self realization when a person named Harrod travels to India in pursuit of finding answers to his queries. He comes to Guru Satyanand's ashram and on the very first day he is put into a course of four cycles -

The cycle of connectivity and integration

The cycle of wisdom

The cycle of self recognition

The cycle of self actualization

This book is dedicated to Harrod's progress in the first cycle - The cycle of connectivity and integration. He is asked to follow a very simple regimen of getting up early in the morning, meditating a little while followed by spending an hour or two in observing a tank with some fishes in it placed in a room which has nothing else there. In the evening , Guru invites Harrod to share his emotions and experiences of watching the activities of the fishes in the tank. This seems like a very trivial task to Harrod initially. With his mind already working at an accelerated pace desiring to learn too much too soon, he had his own apprehensions and doubts whether he would be able to learn anything from this activity. But as he spends more and more days doing the same set of activities in strict timely fashion, he realizes how every little thing and every small activity has the potential of teaching so much. Every day he gets an opportunity to delve deeper into his observation about the fishes, their happiness, their feeding patterns, their attachment with each other as well as with him, their need to have clean surroundings in order to cultivate positive and happy thoughts and much more.

Harrod narrates his observations to the Guru in the evenings and Guru helps him channelize his thoughts in such a manner that he begins to correlate many things and starts seeing the connection and common thread binding all living creatures thereby showing him the essence of the principal of connectivity and integration of mind, body, earth and the universe.

During their discussions together, Guru talks about the futility of materialistic life and how unimportant it is compared to the inner peace and inner happiness that we could attain which would eventually go with us. He enlightens Harrod about the bond of love and how emotions start ruling a human mind which leads to more suffering for the person himself/herself as well as the others concerned.

But I guess the most significant lesson that he learns and in turn all the readers will learn is how significant it is to slow down sometime and observe our surroundings. Once we master the art of observing keenly, we will be able to mend our own actions ourselves.

As I began reading this book, I was a little unsure, what unique thing will this book offer when there is a deluge of self-help books in the market. On some points, my doubts were proved wrong while on some I felt I doubted it correctly.

However, there are some serious problems with this book - the author mentions the course of fours cycles for the self-realization process but nowhere in the text is this mentioned that this book is dealing with just the first cycle or it is part I or the readers should expect or should not expect the other cycles in the following parts or just the first cycle description was the aim.

Unfortunately another Indian book which suffers from typos, grammatical mistakes and repetition of words and even repetitive text. I strongly believe that these spoilers ruin the overall impact of the book.

Overall a one time read book, not great but not bad either. My rating for this book would be 3/5.

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 : 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.