Healing into Possibility: The Transformational Lessons of a Stroke

By Alison Bonds Shapiro

ISBN: 978-1-93207-324-9 (HJ Kramer/New World Library, 2009)

Being a caretaker of my father, who had a stroke, I know all too well the necessity of finding meaning, working through frustration, and even finding humor around a physical trauma. Alison Bonds Shapiro speaks with a clear voice of what to do and how to do it when dealing with your stroke or that of a loved one. It’s important for anyone in this situation to know that most of what we’ve been told about our brains is simply not true. Our brains have a healing capacity called neuroplasticity that until recently was not recognized. But much of our healing depends on our emotional views of the situation and this is where, as a caretaker, I found the book most useful.

Rahasya Poe, Lotus Guide

Only a Theory: Evolution and the Battle for America’s Soul

By Kenneth R. Miller

ISBN 10: 0-67001-883-X (Viking, 2008)

It’s difficult to imagine that the debate for the literal translation of Genesis and the evolutionary understanding of the 21st century is still going on. In fact, it’s mostly in America that this is the case. In most of the world the debate was left behind many years ago. Even the Vatican has stated that one should not read Genesis literally. We need, as Americans, to reclaim our rightful place in the world of science and Only a Theory is a positive step toward that goal. This book is for anyone who “knows” the world is more than 6,000 years old, and for those of you who don’t know this, your faith should give you the courage to question your beliefs.

Rahasya Poe, Lotus Guide

The Law of Attention: Nada Yoga and the Way of Inner Vigilance

By Edward Salim Michael

ISBN: 978-1-59477-304-4 (Inner Traditions, 2010)

Anyone who gives it a little thought quickly concludes that most of our spiritual and religious views are culturally determined. So to find a writer born in 1921 who was not indoctrinated into a culturally based belief system was refreshing. At this point in my life I found this book to be a welcome perspective on my own higher nature and a guide to a personal experience of the after-death experience through meditation … the very thing that many of us run from and avoid at all costs. Many of our deepest fears emanate from not coming to grips with our mortality so anyone seeking the deeper meaning of life should read this book.

Rahasya Poe, Lotus Guide

The Mindful Path through Shyness:

How Mindfulness and Compassion Can Help Free You from Social Anxiety, Fear, and Avoidance

By Steven H. Flowers

ISBN: 978-1-57224-650-8 (New Harbinger Publications, 2009)

Anyone caught in the grips of “shyness” would truly benefit from reading this book and doing the meditations. In step-by-step exercises Steve Flowers guides you through the many layers of self-judgment, self-blame, resentment, and anxiety that often accompany shyness. As a society we are evolving into a world that brings us face to face with other people and cultures, so healing ourselves breaks down the divisions that we often feel in others but that are actually within ourselves. I wish I could have read this book many years ago while dealing with feelings of isolation that were a direct result of my shyness.

Rahasya Poe, Lotus Guide

The Emotion Code

By Bradley Nelson, DC

ISBN: 978-0-97955-370-7 (Wellness Unmasked Publishing, 2007)

Gifted craniosacral founder John Upledger, DO, treats “energy cysts.” Chiropractor Brad Nelson also found that unresolved emotions create trapped energy balls in specific areas of the body, up to the size of a melon. He uses muscle testing to identify which emotion is stuck, where, and when it began (www.EmotionCode.com/flowcharts.htm). He clears it by running a magnet down the governing meridian—under the nose and down the spine. My meditation group tried it and was pleased with the results. Muscle testing is tricky, however, as both the tester and testee need to be in balance. If not, inaccurate or inconclusive testing results. The book is simply written for a general audience, relies on anecdotes of his cases rather than scientific evidence, but is intriguing enough to give the magnet a try. You can buy them inexpensively at an electronics store.

Gayle Kimball

Deva Premal and Miten in Concert with Special Guest Manose

ASIN: B002F3BPQ8 (DVD and CD; White Swan Records, 2009)

To observe playfulness while in deep devotion is always amazing, but to hear it manifest itself in music is another thing altogether. Then when you add the accompaniment of Manose to what is already divine you have a situation that happens only on rare occasions and it’s all captured in its entirety on this CD and DVD. Some moments would be difficult to duplicate so it’s our good fortune to have this available for all time. Being Brazilian, I especially enjoyed "Calma e Tranquilidade" and "Ilumina," which are Brazilian chanting.

Dhara Lemos, Lotus Guide magazine