"It is said that the Buddha recognized only one miracle - the transformation of human consciousness. This book describes the processes of individual evolutionary transformation. These descriptions will prove useful to those who are just beginning a transformational phase in their lives and to those who find themselves in the midst of one and are perhaps searching for signposts and conceptual tools. The central thesis of this work is that metaphor, symbols, and analogies are essential to describing this process and that there appear to be about a dozen or so key ketaphors - from dream to awakening, from captivity to liberation, from fragmentation to wholeness - and symbols for transformation that occur over and over in all major cultures and sacred traditions throughout the world. This is the common language of humanity's transformative process: the language of symbols, the language that we know in dreams, in poetry and art, in the visions and voices that tell us of nonordinary realities, of the sacred, of the mystery. Opening to Inner Light draws on the writings of Eastern and Western mysticism, comparative mythology, literature and poetry, and those of philosophers and teachers in the esoteric, shamanic, yogic, and hermetic traditions. It incorporates the formulations of modern depth psychotherapy, anthropology, and transpersonal psychology. Rich in scholarship, in symbolic imagery, and the personal experience of the author's colleagues, clients, and students, as well as related published accounts, Opening to Inner Light is a book for all those who have undergone any deep personal change, from a born-again religious conversion to the extended, expanded consciousness of spiritual illumination."--back cover.

The hidden meanings of the Beatles’ most esoteric lyrics and sounds are revealed by a rare insider who spent two decades with the man who made “meditation,” “mantra,” and “yoga” household words: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. “I absolutely love this book. Between the stories and the pictures, many I’ve not seen before, this is truly a spiritual journey.” —Chris O’Dell, author of Miss O’Dell, My Hard Days and Long Nights with The Beatles, The Stones, Bob Dylan, and the Women They Loved The spiritual journey of the Beatles is the story of an entire generation of visionaries in the sixties who transformed the world. The Beatles turned Western culture upside down and brought Indian philosophy to the West more effectively than any guru. The Inner Light illumines hidden meanings of the Beatles’ India-influenced lyrics and sounds, decoded by Susan Shumsky—a rare insider who spent two decades in the ashrams and six years on the personal staff of the Beatles’ mentor, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. “With clarity, depth, and impeccable research, an exceptionally comprehensive book filled with engaging tales and fresh insights that even diehard Beatles fans will find illuminating.” —Philip Goldberg, author of American Veda: From Emerson and The Beatles to Yoga and Meditation, How Indian Spirituality Changed the West This eye-opening book draws back the curtain on the Beatles’ experiments with psychedelics, meditation, chanting, and Indian music. Among many shocking revelations never before revealed, we discover who invented "raga rock" (not the Beatles), the real identity of rare Indian instruements and musicians on their tracks, which Beatle was the best meditator (not George), why the Beatles left India in a huff, John and George’s attempts to return, Maharishi’s accurate prediction, and who Sexy Sadie, Jojo, Bungalow Bill, Dear Prudence, Blackbird, My Sweet Lord, Hare Krishna, and the Fool on the Hill really were. “This book reminds us in illuminating fashion why Susan is the premier thinker about India’s key influence upon the direction of the Beatles’ art. In vivid and stirring detail, she traces the Fabs’ spiritual awakening from Bangor to Rishikesh and beyond.” —Kenneth Womack, author of John Lennon 1980: The Last Days in the Life Half a century later, the Beatles have sold more records than any other recording artist. A new generation wants to relive the magic of the flower-power era and is now discovering the message of this iconic band and its four superstars. For people of all nations and ages, the Beatles’ mystique lives on. The Inner Light is Susan Shumsky’s gift to their legacy.

A New York Times bestseller in hardcover, Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker’s We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For was called “stunningly insightful” and “a book that will inspire hope” by Publishers Weekly. Drawing equally on Walker’s spiritual grounding and her progressive political convictions, each chapter concludes with a recommended meditation to teach us patience, compassion, and forgiveness. We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For takes on some of the greatest challenges of our times and in it Walker encourages readers to take faith in the fact that, despite the daunting predicaments we find ourselves in, we are uniquely prepared to create positive change. The hardcover edition of We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For included a national tour that saw standing-room–only crowds and standing ovations. Walker’s clear vision and calm meditative voice—truly “a light in darkness”—has struck a deep chord among a large and devoted readership.

A comprehensive guide for creating a daily spiritual practice, GROWING YOUR INNER LIGHT offers tangible advice on developing a unique spiritual path that fits exactly who you are, what you need as a spiritual being, and how you want to live. Author Lara Owen shows how a personalised practice can open the doors to living full with integrity and to feeling connected with the surrounding world. GROWING YOUR INNER LIGHT gives readers the freedom to integrate from different traditions - and develop new ones - in order to create their own spiritual tradition. Owen explains how practices from global religions can be combined with contemporary wisdom to create an authentic experience for readers yearning for a sense of inner peace. With a direct experience of spiritual meaning and connection, GROWING YOUR INNER LIGHT is a groundbreaking, transformative journey through thirteen phases of your growth, including: developing intuition; creating sacred spaces and altars; understanding your dreams; exploring the importance of retreats, meditation, and rituals.

Brian L. Weiss, M.D., psychiatrist and New York Times best-selling author, offers soothing sanity in turbulent times. This short course in meditation gives readers the tools they need for physical, emotional, and spiritual healing, and includes an audio download of a guided meditation. This book was previously published by Hay House as Meditation: Achieving Inner Peace and Tranquility in Your Life. In Directing Our Inner Light, Brian L. Weiss, M.D., offers an audio download of a guided meditation and explains the techniques he has used to help thousands of patients around the world harness the healing powers of meditation. You'll learn how relaxation, visualization, and regression can be used to release fears in a holistic way, strengthen the immune system, and alleviate chronic pain and illness, among other benefits. The practice of meditation also helps rid the mind of stress, intrusive thoughts, and the pressures of the world, opening you up to what's truly important. The more you meditate, the further you move away from the level of everyday consciousness (encompassing frustration, anxiety, and worry), and the closer you draw to the higher perspective of enlightenment. As you progress along this path, it becomes easier to achieve increasingly higher levels of spirituality.

A guide to personal spiritual initiation through the transformation of habitual patterns, apathy, and resistance • Based on the Native American medicine wheel, the Vedic wheel, and the universal initiatory mandala • Enables readers from any tradition to initiate themselves through practices of thought transformation, narrative medicine, meditation exercises, rituals, and journaling • Facilitates breaking through personal and societal illusions that perpetuate resistance and apathy Intentions and spiritual principles, meditation and contemplation, ritual, and risk-taking are the conditions that comprise an initiated life. Regrettably, in modern society we do not have rites of initiation that break through the personal and societal illusions that instill and perpetuate negative habits that keep us in states of resistance. Lacking initiation practices, we often remain trapped in ways of being in the world that were formed by our past conditions and attachments. We tend to identify too strongly with the status quo, which must be challenged to prevent stagnation and to encourage happiness and authenticity. Julie Tallard Johnson shows how to become initiated into an authentic life through practices of thought transformation, cultivating attention, journaling, storytelling, and rituals found in the four directions of the universal mandala. She begins the Wheel of Initiation in the South, where initiates set their intentions; then moves into the West, where they free themselves from habitual patterns and core beliefs; then into the North, the direction of cultivating attention and unity; and finishes in the East, the direction of regeneration and initiation. Drawing upon the life experiences of those who have successfully navigated the wheel, Johnson demonstrates that once fears, assumptions, and ingrained beliefs are confronted and transformed, initiates emerge ready to reenter society with renewed energy and vision that will enrich their own lives and their communities.

A comprehensive guide for creating a daily spiritual practice, Growing Your Inner Light gives specific advice on developing a unique spiritual path that fits exactly who you are, and what you hope to grow into as a spiritual being. Author Lara Owen clearly shows how a personalized practice can open the doors to living fully with integrity and to feeling connected with the surrounding world. For readers yearning for a sense of inner peace, and a direct experience of spiritual meaning and connection, Growing Your Inner Light is a groundbreaking, transformative journey through thirteen phases of your growth, including: developing intuition; creating sacred spaces and altars; understanding your dreams; exploring the importance of retreats, meditation, and rituals. Growing Your Inner Light gives readers the freedom to integrate from different traditions -- and develop new ones -- in order to create their own spiritual tradition. One former student of Lara's program shared that she feels "less like a spiritual tourist and more like a pilgrim." Spiritual development is a natural part of being human, and a vital way to expand the intensity of your inner light throughout your life.

A beautifully illustrated gift book to help us uncover and trust the innate goodness in ourselves and others. We receive so many messages from our culture meant to divide us from one another or turn us against ourselves. Yet when we stop judging, stop avoiding, stop trying to resist that which makes us afraid or ashamed, we open to our true nature—a boundless field of awareness that is innately fearless and loving. This recognition of our essential human goodness may be the most radical act of healing we can take. “The gold of our true nature can never be tarnished,” says Tara Brach. “In the moments of remembering and trusting this basic goodness of our Being, we open to happiness, peace, and freedom.” In Trusting the Gold, Tara draws from more than four decades of experience as a meditation teacher and psychologist to share her most valuable practices for reconnecting with the beauty of our humanity—from timeless Buddhist wisdom to techniques adapted to the specific challenges of our modern age. Here you’ll explore three pathways of remembering and living from your full aliveness: • Opening to the Truth of the present moment • Turning toward Love in any situation • Resting in the Freedom of our natural, radiant awareness “Even in the midst of our deepest emotional suffering, self-compassion is the pathway that will carry us home,” Dr. Brach writes. “What a joy to pause and behold our basic goodness, and to see how it shines through each of us. Seeing that secret beauty, we fall in love with all of life.”