SUPERSEED!
by Tom Stanks, Pentland Press, 1993 - 72 pages, $12.95, paper

I felt a oneness with the earth,
With the water and the cloud,
But most of all with all the trees
Who now were not a faceless crowd.

Before I plunged into their shade,
A hyacinth in sunshine bright
Laughed at me in the morning wind
Its purple petals my delight.

These are the opening lines to The Magic of Love, a poem which radiates the spirit of Superseed!, a delightful and illuminating story by Tom Stanks, local writer, storyteller to school children and longtime student of Zen.

Superseed! is a rich combination of beautiful poetry, the wisdom of nature, an adventure story for all ages and a timeless spiritual quest to understand the meaning and purpose of life. The main characters are an apple tree named Vol, a deer named Jeremiah and a boy named Eddy. In the supporting cast of god’s creatures are Scampy the squirrel, Red the woodpecker and a mysterious “voice of the Earth.”

In Vol’s journey, he learns many vital lessons and experiences many surprises. While meditating, a mysterious voice reminds Vol of his source – I am the Earth that gave you birth – and that life moves through phases. Vol discovers that she began as a seed with a shell (defense) that had to be broken for her true self to emerge. And, that growth occurs by being open to receiving nature’s bountiful harvest (the earth, sun, wind and rain) and communion with all god’s creatures, big and small.

Through his many encounters, Vol awakens to life as continuous creation, the transformative magic of love and connection, the real meaning of learning and genius and the gifts of silence and uniqueness. Like a shower of blessings, apples fall from his branches and nourish the hungry deer. At the end of the story, Jeremiah tells the others how fulfilled he is now that his three life wishes have come true.

Vol, or “lov” spelled backwards, and the others discover who they are by exploring their feelings and their fears, and what they mean to each other and how they can help their brothers and sisters through an “ecological crisis.” On this level, Superseed! is a metaphor or perhaps a universal myth for the life mystery and challenge that we all live and share.

Reviewed by Dan Butts

A SIMPLE PLAN FOR ENLIGHTENMENT
By Gustav Barnard, published by Gustav Barnard, 1997, soft cover, 95 pages.

In the author’s words, this is a serious book for serious people. Otherwise, it is a fun book. Enjoy! And if you feel lacking in spirituality, keep this book nearby and reap the one-liner value, such as “Ignorance normally gallops recklessly in exultation on the plains of arrogance.” Barnard explains the separation from God we call reality. He asks us to go beyond ourselves to figure out why we have this constant desire for happiness, fulfillment and contentment. It is from a base of happiness that we grow to enlightenment.

The book is comprised of nine chapters, all pertaining to Gustav Barnard’s techniques, a down to earth roadmap to heaven. He encourages the reader to enjoy giving and receiving in order to maintain God’s balance. As we have free will, we can choose what course of action to take in regard to following the great masters. They are here to help us, but the greater the distance we walk toward them, the greater our experience of their help.

The way we look at the world determines what we experience and also the quality of our lives. It establishes how we treat the world and how the world treats us. According to the author, if we actively choose this concept, we can create heaven on earth for ourselves simply by our thoughts, intentions, attitudes and approaches. Barnard details the ways and means to delve into this great journey of discovery in small categories. Our partnerships, self-independence, self-realization, responsibility and stress are in our favor to study and contemplate. We may still have the same old irritations but with knowledge of ourselves, we can now handle them effortlessly.

Barnard has given us profound sayings, with several listed on opposite pages in each chapter. An example, “Are we happy because we enjoy things, or do we enjoy things because we are happy?” And one of my favorites, “If you cannot see too clearly yet, that is O.K., clear sight right now might blind you.” I want to cut these writings out and spread them all over the house to remind me I am still on this spiritual path and there is always help with authors like Gustav Barnard.

Reviewed by Mary E. Denison

MESSAGE FROM FOREVER
by Marlo Morgan, Harper Collins, 1998, 323 pages, $24.

For all those readers who delighted in Marlo Morgan’s first book, Mutant Message Down Under, her new book is now available in bookstores. Called “a novel of aboriginal wisdom,” Message From Forever, provides new perspectives on Australian aboriginal life and its philosophies. The “message from forever” is the simple, yet spiritually deep, aboriginal philosophy and principles for good living.

Whereas Marlo Morgan’s first volume was written in first person and “inspired by actual experience,” it was “sold as a novel to protect the small tribe of Aborigines from legal involvement.” Her new book is a third-person narrative, much more clearly a novel, and yet it, too, strongly suggests factual undercurrents.

Message From Forever tells the story of Aborigine twins, a boy and a girl, separated at birth in 1936, and taken from their mother by Christian missionaries. It seems rather obvious, by inference, that their individual experiences symbolize the experiences of many aboriginal children in those years.

The girl, named only Beatrice since none of these children were given family names, is raised by nuns at a Catholic orphanage in Australia. Readers can easily find themselves very angry at the way these “orphans” were treated. The orphanage for girls was void of human love and even kindness. Indigenous girls were only basically educated, but trained instead to serve as laborers or household help. Only through the kindness of a few adults over the years does Beatrice manage to learn to read and to self-educate herself. Meanwhile, she and other girls were surgically sterilized at age 9!

Her brother, named Geoff, has even fewer opportunities. He is taken in by Protestant Christian missionaries, who are depicted in the book even less sympathetically than the “Holy Sisters” at the orphanage for girls. Geoff grows up, ignored, unloved and unsupervised, at a large sheep ranch. He demonstrates remarkable artistic talent that no one cares about. He is finally “adopted” by an American minister and his wife who take him to America where he loses all sense of cultural identity. Once the minister’s wife gives birth to children, Geoff is relegated to a corner in the basement, and only brought forth on some Sundays to demonstrate the family’s “compassion” to the needy. By the time he is in his mid- teens he is alcoholic, and soon slips into a life of crime and drugs. He ends up on death row in Florida with little understanding of how he got there and no hope for his future.

Meanwhile, Beatrice, after working for awhile in a boarding house, walks away into the outback to join a small group of Aborigines. There she learns about her ancestral roots, and the reader, once again, as in Marlo Morgan’s first book, has the opportunity to absorb the philosophy and ethics of the Australian Aborigine.

After several decades of living the life of the Aborigine, Beatrice returns to the outer world of Australian society, determined to help her people. This latter part of the book parallels what we understand to be current social movements in Australia. Her work ultimately brings her into contact with her brother, whom she knows only as a suffering, fellow Aborigine.

This book is a fascinating depiction of a culture little known to most Americans. One finds the so-called “savage” Aborigines to be among the kindest, most gentle, loving humans on the planet. Their philosophy of oneness with All and unconditional love for all living things – humans, animals, plants – is highly inspirational. This is a different and moving story, well worth reading. It offers insights into other cultures as well as insights into our own hearts, our spirituality, and our relationship to the environment.

Reviewed by Gayl P. Woityra

HORSE SENSE AND THE HUMAN HEART
by Adele von Rust McCormick, PhD and Marlena Deborah McCormick, PhD. Health Communications, Inc., 1997, 230 pages, $10.95.

Nature is not just someplace you are in when you decide to travel “up north.” Nature is all around us, and we are part of the natural design. Naturally, all things living are joined by a common bond and electromagnetic energy. But, how each of us chooses to develop in our own lives is as unique and individual as nature itself. Even Mother Nature, known by many names, is unpredictable and creative. Her process is simple and straightforward, in that any shifts in flow of natural energy create a chain reaction. Science and nature are two areas of study that are joining together to understand our world, and how we react in that world, now more than ever before.

What a rare and wonderful experience to read such an insightful book, which combines nature through animals, in particular, horses, with the nature of the beast, what makes animals and humans “tick,” connecting us with nature so astutely. Such an enjoyable and enriching read this was that I could not put it down until I was through. It has a very easy flow with none of the psychological terminology expected from two PhD’s.

This book is classified under Self-help/Psychology/Animal Behavior, but it is truly a story about what one family discovered when they took the passions of their personal life, raising horses and helping people, and formed a way to enrich and counsel those in need, whether they just needed an escape from their daily lives or were in desperate situations. Their work began as strictly clinical, and progressed to working with schizophrenics, addictive personalities and with gang members, among others. Through a chain of circumstances which led to clients being introduced to their farm, they realized the healing power of their horses and what it takes to raise them and used this insight, in order to find a way to help people find out why they were where they were, where they wanted to be, and what their true passions are. It gave me goose bumps because it spoke to my heart and didn’t preach to me. You could feel the love, the passion, emanate from every page.

You do not have to be a horse lover or an animal lover to gain insight from Horse Sense. We all have heard the term “horse sense” in connection with a keen ability to read people and circumstances. This is the idea behind the connection between horses and humans, and roles humans “play.” In the movie, The Horse Whisperer, a story unfolds about a horse trainer with a gift of communication with the horses who uses his ability with people. In Horse Sense, horse whispering, which mixes instinct and intuition, is shown as the organic knowing at work, without calling rational problem solving into play. This is how boundaries are developed. By sheer human nature, and keeping an open stance, many wonderful insights are waiting inside of us.

Mostly, Horse Sense held out hope and inspiration. It is very hard for some to tap into their “true” selves. All of us deal with stress differently, though we all possess some level of primal instinct or intuition, in order to achieve more creative and responsible lives. This book clearly and comfortably shifts the paradigm of the mind to a different, enlightened level easily and compassionately. It is not so much a matter of feeling as what is done with that feeling. Hope to heal and inspiration to move past obstacles is a powerful feeling, one which I have hung onto since reading this book. And if the book isn’t enough help already, the authors welcome you into their realm by giving you the name of their foundation affiliation, The Institute for Conscious/Awareness, and the name of their farm, the Three Eagles Equine Experience, in Calistoga, California.

Their work is for all walks of life, whether you experience minor discomforts or major life challenges. Thinking in general of the state of society as we know it today, this book offers an insightful view of our role in society and why certain things are the way they are. We all have boundaries in which we live, but given the opportunity to shift those boundaries, we can achieve a new perspective and inspiration, while feeling rewarded for having the courage and joy or reading this book.

Reviewed by Kimberly D. York

BEAN BLOSSOMS DREAMS
by Sallyann J. Murphey, Berkley Books, 2nd edition, 1995, 312 pages, $5.99.

Bean Blossom Dreams was the perfect afterthought to Horse Sense and the Human Heart. Whereas Horse Sense is a book that tends to go a little deep into the individual psyche, this book was a perfect accompaniment, light and easy. If you were serious about buying a horse and/or a farm after you read through Horse Sense, Bean Blossom Dreams gives you back a little perspective about life on the farm.

Humorous and down to earth, this story begins in the city with a successful married couple with a little girl and two dogs. They are out of their domain, like a fish out of water, but are tied to their lives as they know them in the city. However, the more they look around, the more they know this is nowhere and how they wish to raise a family. So, off to a 42-acre farm in the beautiful hills of Brown County, Indiana. The farm was named after their first year as Bean Blossom – the original name once given this farm from the previous owners.

Without being biased, Murphey humorously punctuates the differences between country versus city living and all the hilarious antics that go on in running a farm, a business, a career and a family at the same time. With all of its hard lessons of nature, the drama and magic that lives in our imaginations flows through Murphey’s pen. This is a love story of back to nature origin. What started as a small patch of dirt on the roof of a city building, burgeoning with fruits and floral delights, turns into endless possibilities for this ingenious young family. It is a dream of city-dwellers everywhere that country-dwellers have lived for centuries. This book captures a raw spirit and delights in triumphs. It mimics Horse Sense in its concert with nature and beasts.

When it comes to upbringing, most of us at one time or another experienced some sort of country activity. Whether it be fishing, or taking a nature hike through the woods or walking along a wooden bridge, you may even remember a time when you visited your relatives’ land or maybe bought fresh produce from a fruit stand on the side of a country road in summer. And who hasn’t known someone who’s gotten a pumpkin from a pumpkin patch or visited a Christmas tree farm? Country and farming go hand in hand, be it for profit or to feed the brood. There are gardens in the most remote or obscure places. It is a tradition held sacred among people. It is in our ancient roots, but yet as we get older, society teaches us to move away from that and do something else. But what? Anything else but “farming.” And so we march on to the tune of another drum, but deep in our soul, we hear a familiar call.

Not all of us are as “country” as others, for not all of us have memories of fields of grass, tire swings hanging from weeping willows, or a whole bush of cottontails waiting to be touched, or a bunch of honeysuckle that you can smell all night in a vase on the table. Or the smell of canning the season’s fruits. Or the feel of blisters from garden tools. But maybe somewhere, at some time, you took a moments to be in nature. It is at that exact moment you wonder what you’re doing away from this. And your mind wanders to a memory of where you wanted to raise your family. In the country, perhaps? Bean Blossom Dreams was a sweet escape to live vicariously through Murphey’s experiences, both good and bad. And to not feel so bad about where you are now.

This book goes beyond just a story as the author also chose various “home recipes” that touched the very palate of this “farm-grown” country girl. It is definitely a welcome kitchen addition to any cookbook collection. It is a good read over and over while stirring.

Reviewed by Kimberly D. York

FENG SHUI ASTROLOGY – USING 9 STAR KI TO ACHIEVE HARMONY & HAPPINESS IN YOUR LIFE
by Jon Sandifer, Ballantine Books, 1997, 232 pages, $12.

Ever have one of those years? They certainly don’t have 356 days in them and once in a spiraling motion, it’s hard to get through. Sometimes it seems never-ending, always one drama after another, so much you could write your own soap opera and win the t-shirt, and you just want to get off this ride. They say it isn’t the destination that counts, but the journey to get there. But when you’re stuck and you’re trying to make sense of it all, and you’ve done all the right things, and still you are where you are, what next? Joe Big at the office got that promotion you were promised. Why? Or am I “supposed” to even question why? As we move, though, it is a journey, good or bad, of our choosing, whether we can see that or not. Is it so terrible these days, or do we just think terrible? Could it be so simple to understanding that it seems so hard? Then, read Feng Shui Astrology.

Feng shui and 9 star ki (pronounced chee) astrology are very ancient philosophies. Around the world, both modern and ancient civilizations have appreciated the qualities of ki energy in their environment. Books like The Way of Qigong, which is the art and science of Chinese energy healing, by Kenneth S. Cohen, and others written on the subject of feng shui, go into detailed elaboration on the origins of ki and how it affects us. Both draw aspects of their understanding from an ancient text called the I Ching or Book of Changes. It helps if you have a basic understanding of ki and a little inkling toward astronomy and/or astrology to be able to apply the techniques of this book, though beginners would have no trouble understanding because of the way this book is written. It can be applied immediately and gives a certain balance and harmony just from knowing how you’re feeling, is probably in sync with your astrological picture. This may not necessarily be your “lifestyle and living” picture, which may contribute to your feeling out of sorts. You may be pleasantly surprised to see you’re right where you should be.

This system of astrology doesn’t go by birth time, although feng shui deals with spatial objectives, while 9 star ki astrology deals with time objectives. Another difference to, say, newspaper horoscopes, is that 9 star ki astrology is more of a cyclic table, just as the seasons repeat in cycles. By applying basic nature to our life force, we can see a pattern develop with which to gain direction. This is a great achievement in understanding when to push and when to let go, when to work and when to rest, to listen to a more natural rhythm in which to dance. Life really isn’t that hard, or it shouldn’t be, and by having a “guide,” along with meditation, relaxation, exercise and diet, you feed your whole essence and give out what you want in return.

No longer are you of the mind to resist or to fight against the negative ki energy, but that a positive ki energy builds up inside and you send it out instead of waiting to get good ki sent to you first. You reap what you sow.

If you are ready to let your spirit soar and to join with the universal song of natural harmony, then Feng Shui Astrology will help you on your journey. This book will definitely enlighten you.

Reviewed by Kimberly D. York

On My Way Home: An Autobiography of A Priest In Today’s World
by Rev. Jay Samonie

When I first met Fr. Samonie, the first thing I told him was that I hated his book. He looked at me puzzled, then I gave him my reasons why. The first, was that we were just getting over the storm of July 21, and when I started to read the book four days later, the power was growing dimmer and I had to read a major portion of the book by candlelight.

My second reason I hated the book was I felt as though I was invading his personal life, every detail from the time he was 3 years old to the present. And lastly, I couldn’t put the book down.

Then I smiled and told him that this was probably one of the best books that I had ever read, even though I’m not a huge fan of biographies or autobiographies. A wave of relief washed over him as we talked.

On My Way Home, is a touching personal account of one man’s faith in his chosen profession and of the difficulties that come with that faith. Plus, it’s very rare for a priest to be open about his belief in metaphysics and psychic occurrences that he’s encountered.

While reading the book, you’re transported into his life. His writing makes you feel as though you’re there right by his side. Maybe this is why I felt uncomfortable, since I was experiencing the same joy and pain that he felt years earlier.

Fr. Samonie is a born storyteller, and there are times that you wished you could stand back and not feel his pain. One such example is in 1955 when both of his parents passed away prior to his ordination. His father passed away at the end of January and his mother three and a half months later.

By giving the reader this example, (which still causes grief), he gives you a reassuring hand that life does go on, even though your question as to why is never answered, or is it?

On a metaphysical level, he tells us of his first vision at the age of 7 in 1937. The vision was also shared by his siblings, Rose, Billie and Tony. It was actually his sister Billie who called them to the window, where she pointed out what was happening at the cemetery across the street. The vision lasted an hour, and they met with ridicule when they told their peers about what they had seen. Their parents did not challenge them when they were told of what the children had witnessed.

As Fr. Samonie writes, he tells you of his struggle with falling in love, (another way in which his faith is tested), the miracles that he’s witnessed, disasters that he’s been involved in, (a tornado and fire at the church), and his many other metaphysical encounters.

What started out as a few pages of information for his 140 nieces and nephews fumed into this autobiography. His story, in itself, rivals any of today’s bestsellers and is an easy read. He draws you into his life and whenever you find yourself trying to put the book down, you can’t, because you want to know more.

Currently, he is working on a follow-up novel on his reflections of going home. This book will delve deeper into his metaphysical experiences.

No matter what faith you are, this is recommended reading for everyone.

Reviewed by Eric J. Tuchelske

THERE ARE NO ACCIDENTS – Synchronicity and the Stories of Our Lives
by Robert H. Hopcke, Riverhead Books, 1998, softcover, 252 pages, $13.

This beautifully written book flows with small stories of meaningful coincidences in peoples lives. Hopcke teaches us how to examine our lives as coherent narratives in which we are the protagonists.

Important life changes become difficult for many of us to manage, whether it is a breakdown in a marriage, death of a loved one, or the loss of a job. There are these symbolic coincidences with our connection to others that can reassure us that we are never really alone in the midst of such transitions. Synchronistic events remind us that our lives are organized, consciously and unconsciously, the way a story develops.

Hopcke is a Jungian-oriented psychotherapist and is the director of the Center for Symbolic Studies. He reminds us how our feelings are spontaneous, natural and free like a current of water that we stand in and feel around us but which we cannot direct or control. And when a synchronistic event lands us right smack in the middle of that current it takes great courage to stay in touch by affirming one’s feelings as a crucial mode of experiencing life.

Hopcke reflects on how the work we do is significant to a central part of our lives. Freud’s well-known comment that the purpose of one’s life, “is to love and to work” is lost in a society of automation and numbers. There was a time, before the rampant development of industry and technology, when the significance of the work we did was undisputed, when even the humblest job held meaning. Today’s frequently repetitious and mind-dulling jobs rob us of our creativity. Love alone is not enough to answer all our needs, hopes and dreams.

Robert Hopcke makes it clear to the reader that we consciously set out to cause for ourselves meaningful events – pursuing a relationship, applying for a job, naming our children – events that are not accidental or a causal but intentional actions. So many of the difficulties individuals encounter occur when their egos are confronted and defeated by circumstances they cannot control. If so many of these stories seem to have a positive ending, it is because a synchronistic experience has by definition a significance, and that perception of significance imparts a feeling of order, coherence and wholeness to the characters.

Reviewed by Mary E. Denison

THE 1998 WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? AND WORKBOOK – A PRACTICAL MANUAL FOR JOB-HUNTERS AND CAREER-CHANGERS
by Richard Nelson Bolles, Ten Speed Press, 1998 (revised yearly each November), 223/300 pages, $16.95

Known as “the best selling job hunting book in the world,” featuring job hunting on the Internet, with over six million copies in print, this phenomenal book has received the “Magna Cum Laude” award and just received the compliment of being placed on the 1995-1996 list of “25 Books That Have Shaped Reader’s Lives” in The Library of Congress, along with the Bible, Treasure Island and Gone with the Wind. It is in its 28th edition and was completely rewritten last year. Its motto is: “Give me a fish, and I will eat for today; teach me to fish, and I will eat for the rest of my life.” If in doubt whether to get this book, just preview the Preface, which is in itself a summary. And though it is totally geared to anyone finding not only a j.o.b. (“just over broke”), but anything that is your true life’s work, it is almost spiritual in its intent of pinpointing what that anything might be. The beauty of its popularity lies in the fact that even though you may or may not be aware that you need or want a “career change,” its greatest reward is studying the real, authentic you, and your life’s purpose.

I read a book of virtues to my children as part of their bedtime stories. Among the pages of this jewel is a section on work. What are you going to be when you grow up is a question about work, not fundamentally a question about jobs or pay, but about life. Work is applied effort, it is whatever we put ourselves into, whatever we expend our energy on for the sake of accomplishing or achieving something, which in this sense is not what we do for a living but what we do with our living. Most people do what is expected of them or which fulfills a societal need, not what they passionately live for. But there is another approach that which, we all know, we have got to do something. It’s a scary and frustrating task, a fine line between love and hate, which doesn’t need to be played out if we’re using the right tools to achieve a win/win situation.

The focus on work always tends to lead toward focus on family. The answer of how to juggle these two harmoniously would be worth its weight in gold. So, don’t let the weight of this book fool you into thinking you have to be a mastermind to unlock the code. That’s how most of us feel when we hear the words resume, job hunting, skills or career, along with a sense of panic at the prospect of having to change. No doubt it takes a lot of effort to nail down, but there are much smarter ways of doing the same thing with a different approach that it’s almost common sense, “Why didn’t I think of that” kind of stuff. The effort to change, whether forced or otherwise, is in direct relation to the attitude you have when circumstances are presented. If given a chance to time when your ship will come in and have a reservation waiting, anyone would jump on it as quickly as they could. But that’s exactly what this book offers.

Most of us appear to be afraid to dream, invent, invest any of our energies in what truly makes us happy. Why is that? This book can explain that and many other common dilemmas which face each and every one of us. It’s never too late or too early to start doing some soul searching. My children who range in ages from 8 to 15 were intrigued by the questions and strategies applied in the workbook attached to the back of the book (really two books in one). They saw how generations pass on traditional life’s work, as well as using unique and individual passions as a springboard for their future security and happiness. I would have paid a king’s ransom for just this experience to touch their lives.

It gives me hope that true happiness survives and is living well in the hearts of humanity, that I, too, can join this ever-increasing population of hard-working passionate people. Think it, believe it, do it.

Reviewed by Kimberly D. York

THE WAY OF QIGONG – THE ART OF SCIENCE OF CHINESE ENERGY HEALING
by Kenneth S. Cohen, Ballantine Books, 1997, 428 pages, $27.50

Taking a quote from the cover of this book, “Qigong, which literally means ‘working with the energy of life,’ is an integrated mind-body healing method that has been practiced with remarkable results in China for thousands of years.” The Chinese have known for a very long time its use in healing as well as preventing disease, and qigong has more recently been coupled with modern medicine to cure cancer, immune system disorders and other life-threatening conditions. The Way of Qigong was written by Kenneth Cohen, who is a renowned qigong master, scholar and health educator. He has been a pioneer in introducing qigong to the West, and has undergone many scientific studies of healers and practitioners of qigong to validate its effectiveness.

When I was a little girl, I was very sickly with bronchitis and a weak immune system. My family was very spiritual and prayer was a very powerful tool for me. Through prayer, I naturally developed a meditative state in which the natural flow of energy throughout my body gave me “vibrations of wellness.” I was told that God would not let me bear more than I could handle. Therefore, He would also take away these problems. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was really practicing qigong, thinking with the mind that which the body needs, breathing correctly to let the energy flow because I was in a meditative state, and willing the natural energy to heal my body. Today, I have excellent health, do not suffer whatsoever from bronchitis or other breathing problems, and use relaxation exercises daily. The first I had learned about the clinical benefits of that which I practiced as a child was when I was having children. You know, you go to the Lamaze class and they teach you how to breathe through pain and relaxation of the entire body ignoring pain. Wow, that’s what I do. Since then, I know that illness and human discomfort is a mind-body connection.

Reading The Way of Qigong has been a wonderful and enriching experience. And for any doubters, there is information on its history and scientific confirmation that this is not a hoax or some money-making scheme. In evidence of its growing popularity, when my mother was diagnosed with systemic sclerosis, arthritis, Raynaud’s syndrome, and a weak immune system, her doctor was very concerned and prescribed medication, along with relaxation and qigong exercises. They were not called qigong, though they follow the same simple practice. For years I have been telling her that she needs to relax. But how do you relax? It takes patience and commitment on a daily basis, but who has the time? I say, who has the time not to, when there is a very high risk of living in pain and with large medical bills.

Imagination is a powerful thing. It can make us believe just about anything, achieve all our true desires, take us away from our cares or convince us we are dying. Mind over matter uses the imagination’s ability to override common sense and laws of natures. So, why is it so hard for people to believe in the natural mind over matter healing process? Imagine a battery: stress and bad health habits act to run down the battery’s charge, its “qi” (pronounced chee), while self-care and self-awareness help to maintain and improve qi. By gently yet rigorously and daily working with our life energy through breathing and relaxation exercises, massage, visualization, meditation and other natural methods, including diet, each one of us can learn to improve health and enhance vitality by cleansing, gathering, releasing and circulating qi so that it reaches all the body’s cells. It is becoming aware of our bodies and what it is saying to us. It’s pleasurable to do, takes about 20 to 40 minutes a day, it costs nothing except poor health if not practiced, and it’s wonderfully life-enhancing.

I once thought that I was really strange because I had this power in me to help heal. I would help anyone with ailments, sore muscles, poor breathing, and would explain the benefits of daily relaxation and meditation. After reading this book, I was excited by the fact that each one of us can greatly improve our own health and prevent many other illnesses. Whether you believe this to be true or are a skeptic, no doubt that you cannot discount Kenneth Cohen’s breakthrough book, The Way of Qigong. I highly recommend this book to all people, in all nations, as a daily responsibility each of us have to ourselves and our higher power.

Reviewed by Kimberly D. York