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Body Healing Cards, by Ewald Kliegel

Body Healing Cards, by Ewald Kliegel with illustrations by Anne Heng
Findhorn Press, 9781644112557, 56 cards and 127 pages, June 2021

In this beautiful set of cards and the accompanying guidebook, Body Healing Cards, author Ewald Kliegel & illustrator Anne Heng provide a wonderful way to talk with your body’s organs.  By focusing on an organ and then either choosing or intuitively drawing cards, one can learn more about disease, illness, or upset in the body and discover ways to heal.  Using his 40+ years of experience as a massage therapist, naturopath, and reflexologist, Kliegel really knows the human body. 

He invites you to use this set of cards to communicate with your body and “intuitively investigate the essence of your individual organs and discover their physical, soul and spiritual layers.”1 I was intrigued by the concept of these cards due to my work as a Reiki master, hypnotist, and tarot card reader. 

After briefly perusing the first few pages of the guidebook, I decided to do a card reading regarding my shoulders.  I have an old injury on one shoulder and some arthritis in both shoulders.  Sometimes I have pain in one or both shoulders during the night, as I am a side sleeper. 

I chose the Health Generator Spread2 and chose the Shoulders card for the center of the reading. The design on the Shoulder card featured a human form balancing itself on a spire, with arms outstretched and an apothecary scale behind it. It reminds me of a tightrope walker, and I considered how my shoulders help me balance myself and my life.

With Shoulders lying face up, I proceeded to shuffle the cards and then drew three cards and placed them face down on the right of the center card. Next, I drew two cards and placed those face down on the left of the center card. Now that I had all of my cards, I focused on the Shoulders card and followed Kliegel’s six questions to ask both the card and my shoulders for clues about my pain. 

1. What do I see in this image?
2. Which sensations, feelings, emotions, perceptions or memories come to mind?
3. What do I like most about the image?
4. What do I not like at all in the image?
5. If I were to step inside the image, what could I see, hear or recognize as the person in it?
6. How does all this fit together with the organ and my topic?3  

As I went through the questions, I felt into the beautiful design of blues and purples. The idea of balance came up with this thought:  “As long as I am balanced, I am also safe.” Lastly, I turned to the page in the guidebook where Kliegel shares more information about the Shoulders and suggests Hypersthene and Fluorite as two crystals that may support shoulder health.4

The first three cards revealed even more about this situation.  The first card was Thymus. It featured all of the chakra colors and a human being with arms raised over its head, reaching skyward.  This visual led me to think about the interconnectedness of all of the parts of my body and how when I am stressed, I may tense or hold my shoulders in a tight or constricted way.  

The questions led me to realize that my thymus can help transform my stress.  The crystals Kliegel recommended were Bloodstone and Aquamarine.  I realized that I had some of these beads on hand and decided to make a bracelet with these stones and others I may learn about during this adventure. 

In the second card, I saw Throat and the human being was singing out, free and easy.  She seemed so powerful, asking for help or support, to lighten her burdens.  Again, I caught the tie-in to my shoulders. 

For the third card in this series, Ears appeared, and I felt the sensation of the sound of the ocean when you hold a shell to your ear.  I also heard a soft echo and classical music. I loved the spiral shape of the background artwork and the pleasing rainbow of colors. One suggestion I heard while reviewing this card: “How may I listen to my shoulders for healing clues?” 

Next, I turned to the two cards to the left of the Shoulder card.  Here I found the card for Bronchi, which are the tubes that connect your trachea to your lungs. By following the trail of the 5 questions (which are slightly different for these two cards in this spread), I was reminded of the power of the breath to bring calm.  Once again, when I am calm, the shoulders relax and I can center myself.  I saw myself in a calming oasis and realized that I may be holding my breath and tensing up during my day.  Kliegel suggests that you “Follow your breath without trying to change it.”5  

The last card in this spread was Connective Tissue.  The visual was a boy holding an egg, filled with a tree, a dragonfly, water and plants.  One of the questions led me to realize that I live inside nature and that I can find my calm place in nature. This helped me to see the interconnectedness of everything again and how nature responds to me and my feelings.

Kliegel really encourages you to look at all of the cards and “See how these organs relate to my question, issue or situation?”6 This works as a type of summation of the time you have spent with the cards regarding your health issue.  Another helpful question is “How may I use what I have learned to make a change in my health situation?”7

In the section called “Portraits of the Organs”, Kliegel goes through each of 52 organs and gives basic information and two crystals for healing benefits.  You can refer to this information to learn more about the organs and create affirmations.  Kliegel recommends that you create two affirmations for each card and consider utilizing the crystal recommendations, as well.

I used the Health Generator Spread again for my husband and a friend.  My husband was interested in learning more about his fatty liver.  He learned about the importance of deep breathing and formulated some affirmations to help better nourish himself and be more conscious of his fears.

For my friend, we investigated her diverticulitis, which is based in her large intestine.  From her spread, she learned to “Concentrate on what’s important, and let go of trivial matters.”8 Surprisingly, she also got a message from her stomach and learned this:

“The druid of the stomach cauldron watches over our food as well as how we think and feel about our life force and nourishing our soul.” 9

She shared that this visual will help her make better choices for her own nutrition. 

The guidebook has several spreads, some of which are very complex. One even makes use of all of the cards. I tried Spread 5, Healing Connections, and found it very complicated, as it used ten cards and multiple questions.  If one had a very complex health situation, perhaps the more complicated spreads could be helpful. However, I found the spread with five cards that accented the one central card to be very targeted and helpful. 

At the back of the guidebook, Kliegel offers a chart of all of the organs, arranged in alphabetical order and adds two affirmations and two crystal recommendations. For example, for my husband’s reading, we found a great affirmation for his liver: “I draw on abundance and imagination.” efn_note]page 117[/efn_note] Kliegel also recommends Malachite and Chrome Diopside for supportive crystals. 

The cards are printed on a very nice card-stock, are a good size, and are not too large for easy shuffling.  The colors of the artwork are very pleasing to the eye and also add to the healing quality of the entire card system.  The back of the cards is a beautiful mix of cooling blues and sea-foam green.  I found the cards visually appealing and calming. I loved the box, with its magnetic flap and cutout to hold the cards, with just enough room for the guidebook to fit easily inside.

This card set is probably best for someone who has some experience working with tarot or oracle cards and is comfortable working with different spreads.  I really love all of the questions that Kliegel utilizes in each of the spreads.  He also has a few simple meditations that one can use to get into a good space for doing work with this deck.  Here is one example:

To go back and create space for the whole, close your eyes for a moment and get into the flow with the practice of the four breaths:
– Root yourself in the earth with magma splashing.
– Open your imaginary sunroof for the universal light beam 
– Feel the bubble bath of light around your roots in the magma
– Let the flames blaze high10

I really enjoyed working with the Body Healing Cards and look forward to more adventures.  You can always use it for a quick reading (a three-card spread would also work very well) and refer to the guidebook as needed. This card set would be great for a massage therapist or any type of body worker to accent client sessions. I am also inspired to reflect more on the interconnectedness of my body and its many organs, which work in concert for my good health.

Crystal Oversoul Cards, by Michael Eastwood

Crystal Oversoul Cards: Attunements for Lightworkers, by Michael Eastwood
Findhorn Press, 1644111764, 66 cards, 224 pages, November 2020

I was drawn to the Crystal Oversoul Cards: Attunements for Lightworkers by Michael Eastwood because of the intricate geometric crystal designs on the cards. I thought this deck might help me connect with the sacred geometry within different crystals, hence changing my state of consciousness in meditation. While these cards have shown to be useful for attuning to different perceptions, overall they are quite different than I expected in both positive and negative ways.

First of all, the cards are very big and bulky in my hand. Unfortunately the large size of the cards seems to have detracted from the crystal images on the card. They don’t appear to have enough pixels for the amount of space they take up on the card, similar to if you’ve ever tried to make a photograph bigger and all it does is lose the quality and look stretched out. The only redeeming quality is that the box is nicely designed; it has a magnetic strip along the side, allowing for easy opening and closing, that keeps the box securely shut when being stored.

I also think I underestimated just how New Age these cards would be as an oracle deck. I’m a big fan of working with crystal energy, and I can be receptive to ideas about Lemuria and Atlantis. However, my first impression was that this deck pushed it a bit too far and was very untethered in its approach to attuning to these crystals energies. The whole deck requires knowledge of working with additional chakras beyond the traditional seven: the eighth chakra, the ninth chakra, and the Earth Star chakra. I wasn’t familiar with this, nor could I find much information on them. Leery of channeled information, I will admit I approached this deck with a bit of skepticism.

Eastwood has previously published two card and book sets, Crystal Oversoul Attunements and Crystal Oversoul New Earth Attunements, which he combined to make this deck. An Oversoul is described as “the collective soul or matter all individual crystals in their field will identify and communicate with.”11 I take this to be almost like a common soul of the crystal, which people can communicate with. According to Eastwood, in the past humanity had a closer connection to the Crystal Oversouls, but they still can play a role in our evolution to new levels of consciousness and spiritual awareness. He compares the Crystal Oversouls to mandalas or templates, writing:

“Their visual manifestation as mandalas serves as a clear purpose and the intricate, never ending and overlapping patterns within each temple mirror the differences and uniqueness. Every fine detail stimulates our consciousness to remember specific aspects of our vastness; to reconnect with the awareness of our being part of a greater unfolding, of our divine self.”12

After sharing his own experience of working with crystals and describing how co-creating with them can be a spiritual path, Eastwood moves into teaching the deck user about attunements. I finally became more comfortable with his concept of an Oversoul because he also discusses how the crystal is overseen by a Deva, which I have read much more about and am already familiar with. This made the leap into understanding the Oversoul not quite as far as I had felt it was before. He writes, “When we direct our healing or intent through a crystal, it is amplifying back the consciousness of an Oversoul and Deva directly into our aura.”13 This provided me with a more grounded understanding as proceeded with my first attunement.

Another surprising thing I discovered, which made me more confident in getting started with this deck, is that Eastwood recorded meditations for cards 45-66 because they are especially important energies for the awakening of humanity. There is a link to download them through Inner Traditions website. Hearing Eastwood’s voice was soothing, and it helped me to feel more connected to the cards than when I read the description in the guidebook. I honestly wish he had done the meditation for all the cards and not just these final ones in the deck.

At last, I decided to do a supportive attunement, intending to learn from the image and information. I chose the card Petalite. This card spoke to experiences I was having at the time, including desiring to integrate both intellect and intuition, as well as cleanse my energetic field to release outdated patterns and limiting beliefs. It felt particularly apt for the timing of the pull too because it was during a waning moon phase, which is the time frame this card corresponds with. I spent time holding the card to my chest, envisioning the energy of Petalite merging with my own. This was when I started to feel a sense of reciprocity with the Crystal Oversouls. As I opened myself to their energy, I did indeed start to feel new levels of relaxation, awareness, and wisdom emerge from within.

I realized I had misjudged this deck. My first hasty pull upon receiving it has been hoping for an immediate answer, which the guidebook does not provide. Eastwood offers an attunement for the deck user to open up to the crystal’s energy in their own life. The essence of this deck is engaging in one’s own energy work to facilitate this relationship with the Crystal Oversouls. One will get out of this deck the energy that they put into it.

While this might not be a deck I pull from every day, I feel reassured knowing I can call on the Crystal Oversouls in my spiritual journey as allies. It is interesting to connect with the crystals energetically, merging my auric field with their Oversoul, rather than just touching my crystals or meditating with them physically. There is a subtle dimension of consciousness at work here, and the cards do a wonderful job of facilitating this relationship even without the crystals themselves being in my physical presence.

Therefore, I highly recommend Crystal Oversoul Cards for energy workers who are looking to enhance their connection with the crystal realm. Whether or not one wishes to make the connections to the distant past, such as the time of Lemuria or Atlantis, there is still a great benefit for the future in reuniting with the wisdom of the Crystal Oversouls. Yes, to use this deck requires tapping in beyond the ordinary senses and opening up to new perceptions and ideas, such as the additional chakras, but energetically it will be impactful

Cell Level Meditation, by Barry Grundland and Patricia Kay

Cell Level Meditation: The Healing Power in the Smallest Unit of Life, by Barry Grundland, MD and Patricia Kay, MA
Findhorn Press, 9781644112243, 176 pages, March 2021

… Dr. Barry Grundland was a psychiatrist whose specialty area might have been called psychoneuroimmunology. This is a big word that basically means min-body healing.  The mind, including our thoughts, emotions and attitudes affects the body, and in turn the body affects our minds, thoughts, emotions and attitudes. For over 50 years, Barry worked with people as a true healer –one who helps others come to Wholeness, or a sense of being who they really are…14

Cell Level Meditation: The Healing Power in the Smallest Unit of Life by Barry Grundland, MD and Patricia Kay, MA provides the reader with a broad perspective of the wonders and amazing capabilities of the wisdom of our bodies to heal. The quote above may not be innovative in our current society that is flooded with self-help tools, self-awareness training and contemplative practices of all manner, but the quintessential intention held in this statement about the co-author Dr. Grundland speaks to the simplicity of the book itself and acknowledgment of our capacity to thrive, heal and remain in a state of well-being simply by engaging the healing nature of our bodies in the process. 

“Cell Level Meditation” is a term crafted by Dr. Grundland to describe the power-and simplicity of establishing dialogue with the body at the cellular level and programming those related cells to function in a specific way. Co-author Patricia Kay speaks to the inherent directive and energy of the cell….

… The Cell is a real thing in the material world., and it is a metaphor as well, since it carries a basic “pattern” of organization you can find in every level of Life. The cell has a nuclei for example, which is a central area where you can find very basic information, that is very precise instructions for how things work; this information is inscribed on strands of tightly coiled threads called DNA…15

Kay further sets the tone for what follows and how the reader will be using the cell as a tool for healing:

… For our purposes, at the “level of the cell” we engage the workings going on there at different levels and states of awareness, which we can find with concentration, focus and participation through breath…16

Cell Level Meditation is separated into twenty chapters and makes use of poetry and quotations throughout the book. In general, there is a very poetic tone running through the information provided, which serves to engage the reader at all levels of being and all levels of understanding of neurobiological studies. 

The Introduction lays the groundwork for what follows in the subsequent chapters:

Cell Level Meditation is a vehicle for finding our way “home”.  We take the breath to our cells, offering them our deepest desire to be happy and healthy and strong.  In some way, they hear us and respond…This meditative form is a gift that helps the mind and the body come into healing, which in turn, helps us be ourselves in fullness…17

One of the things I appreciated about Cell Level Meditation is the way in which the reader is enveloped in the intention, whether overtly or subtly in the writings, with a gift of opening to the experience of meditation as a healing soured, as well as greater knowledge of the physical aspects of our being that are co-creators in that healing. 

Chapters one to five act as a primer for the reader and offer tools, exercises and insight into the art of Meditation and its use at a cellular level (chapter one and two), mind (chapter three), body (chapter four) and breath (chapter six). This information in and of its self is valuable in delving deeper into the “whys” of the contemplative arts, whether directed towards cell level use or general mindfulness. 

There is a specific and supportive rhythm that flows through the teachings of Cell Level Meditation. Each of the remaining chapters expands on these basics and moves through the process of this meditation in a style that is user friendly and allows for time to process and digest what has come previously. Moving through the book, the information has a wonderful way of capturing the mystical in the scientific and the scientific in the mystical. 

Chapter 19, “Conditioned Habits”, is one that calls the reader to awareness of their body’s (cells) wisdom and inherent dialogue (if we train ourselves to listen); and, the acknowledgement that we are all “programmed” (conditioned) towards certain habitual behaviors.  The previous chapters have established the importance of breath as a vehicle of movement and enlivenment, and the practice of breath focused meditation to further awaken the cells and enable these changes and shifts towards a more balanced state. The reader is reminded that this desire and action towards change often brings about “chaos”, a term used widely in the scientific community denoting the precipice of change or shift from one state of being to another, a naturally occurring evolutionary process found throughout nature….

… Rather than being too worried about being at the edge of chaos”, you are now empowered to stay present with your experience… Even in chaos, you have the breath. You are going into Unknown Territory, but with your intention and hope and the breath. The rest … comes from a higher place. … By working with the edges of our conditioned habits with awareness, willingness to stay present for what is actually going on as sensations in the body, even stuck patterns are called to a higher level when there is a ripe moment…18

These are merely highlights of this book. It is difficult to capture an “experience” in the writing of a review. I believe, however, that the authors have done just that, and more. Additionally, the publisher Findhorn Press was aptly suited for this title. Having reviewed several of their titles now, there is most definitely a theme and level of quality in the work of their authors that provides representation from the scientific/academic community as well as the more esoterically inclined. The overall themes are those of wholeness and collaboration at the levels of the environment, the planet and most importantly those beings who remain as stewards of themselves and their surroundings.

Cell Level Meditation takes the reader into a journey of the microcosmic nature of our self and the profound power of healing and wholeness contained in the singular component of our physical make-up – the cell. And, from that place of the cell the potential for what can be brought back into the macrocosm is limitless. 

Answering the Call of the Elementals, by Thomas Mayer

Answering the Call of the Elementals: Practices for Connecting with Nature Spirits, by Thomas Mayer
Findhorn Press, 978- 16441122144, 160 pages, June 2021

Answering the Call of the Elementals: Practices for Connecting with Nature Spirits by Thomas Mayer is a timely book that incorporates the melding of environmental consciousness and the intuitive nature within humankind that desperately needs reawakening if we are to co-exist with those beings that inhabit the natural world.

It is no secret to those who live collaboratively with the ephemeral spirits, beings, and other sentient forces that we are at a crossroads. How we proceed, who (or what) we consider to be allies to form alliances with, will dramatically affect the outcome of this planet and all of the life that occupies it.

Mayer has brought this need to the foreground in a book filled with first hand experience and a prodding for the reader to seek out their own measure of experience that will give proof of the existence of nature spirits. 

Even if we are not consciously aware of it, we live in the realm of elemental beings. Everywhere, and all the time, they penetrate our souls and slip into our hearts. The whole world around us is ensouled with elemental beings. Elemental beings participate in everything that is happening in nature around us… 19

Answering the Call of the Elementals is separated into twenty chapters and is a narrative of the author’s recounting of his experiences in seeking those beings he identifies as elementals. One thing that struck me in reading this book was the lack of a definitive definition as to what “elementals” are. There is a movement between the semantics of “elementals” and “nature spirits” that is not always easy to follow in terms of whether they are interchangeable or something altogether different.

But, even in saying that, there is a purposeful wisdom in what appears to be lacking definition and by the end of the book the reader realizes that there is no generic definition of these beings. They are changeable. They move through many worlds and have many agendas to fulfill in both the physical and spiritual worlds. 

Beginning with the opening pages of “Chapter 1: The Plea”, the reader is immediately drawn into the experience of Mayer and his conversation and meeting with the four Elementals (beings) of nature. In simplistic form, these beings are the pure essence of their respective alchemical realms of earth, air, fire, or water, as they exist within the natural world. This meeting comes as a plea from their realms:

We are the beings of the nature elementals. We encompass and represent them. We come to you with a request. Humanity has forgotten the elemental beings. We live in your subconscious, we are a big part of your lives, but you know nothing of us…20

This plea is the driving force behind the authoring of this book. In Mayer’s writings, the reader can palpably and emotionally feel the imminent need to awaken and to rekindle the long forgotten relationships with those beings we still, albeit not acknowledged, live so intimately with. Mayer provides the reader with as much descriptive and ambient tone as possible to allow the information to wash over the reader at all levels of understanding and, perhaps, to also stimulate the urgency abiding in how far removed we have become from the natural world and these elemental beings. 

It is time. In this moment I decide. It is all perfectly clear in an instant. I will do their bidding. As a first step I will focus on teaching the meditation courses, and the following steps will develop from there…21

In Answering the Call of the Elementals, Mayer succeeds in providing a step-by-step plan of developing and awakening the sensorial tools necessary to “see”, feel and dialogue with nature spirits”.22 In particular, “Chapter 4: Experiencing Elemental Beings” provides some of the “how” to make contact and the “why” of its potential and necessary agenda. 

Experiencing elemental beings is generally prohibited by mental blocks. These mental blocks tend to come up particularly when you begin with practical exercises. You think your own perceptions are figments of the imagination, or fantasies, and you are so full of mistrust that nothing remains. So right away, you throw out the baby with the bathwater…23

As the reader moves deeper into this chapter, there is a slow building of confidence in abilities crafted by specific examples of the author’s experiences, interwoven with sound and practical contemplative endeavors that serve not only this purpose but many others relating to spiritual practice and growth. There is a lot of information in what appears to be not many pages, and the information is dense and rich.

Mayer is very methodical in the step-by-step approach of training the reader to be able to access the largely intuitive and feeling nature that aligns with that of the elemental beings. And, it is precisely this analytical methodology that allows the “mental blocks” that persist to be assuaged in their need to dominate and over analyze so that something more natural and organic can open in their place. This opening becomes the threshold of meeting and perceiving those inhabitants of the elemental worlds, and it is in this space of mutual recognition that the healing of the planet, self, and spirit may begin. 

There is a lot of information to ruminate over and to digest between the covers of Answering the Call of the Elementals. Mayer uses the teachings of Austrian philosopher and esotericist Rudolf Steiner as the underpinnings of this book giving a layer of Christian mysticism to a topic that is also part and parcel of pagan practices. This makes the content more globally based and underscores the intention of its writing; collaboration and co-creation between humanity and the realms of the more ephemeral beings.

It is important to note that Rudolf Steiner was the founder of a specific branch of philosophy known as anthroposophy, which supported the concepts of an objective and intellectually comprehensible spiritual world that could be accessed and experienced by humanity. This is a key understanding Mayer uses throughout the book as a given ability that all of humanity has.

Answering the Call of the Elementals is definitely a title I will return to for another read through. I have a sense that each reading will undoubtedly reveal another nuanced subtleties inherent in this re-connection to the spiritual world. The Epilogue of this title speaks to the author’s …vision for the future “includes elemental beings once again becoming a cultural public resource for our civilization”24

Mayer outlines a vision of the future that integrates elemental beings into the fabric of all of society’s daily workings. These include a school-level course of study focused on the elemental beings as part of the traditional educational studies, elemental research groups at universities, local governmental departments, and committees dedicated to the well-being and care of elementals, as well as farmers enlisting the strength and help of agricultural elementals and the direct connection of contractors and builders with those elementals of the mechanical and work equipment being used. These goals feel lofty in aspiration, but perhaps what is required is lofty ambitions and devotion to restoring our connections to the natural world. 

This vision is surely unfamiliar today and beyond the normal conceptual frame. To me, it is not only realistic, but necessary. The nature elementals are eagerly waiting for human beings to consciously grasp them, for their future existence is dependent upon it. We humans and the elemental beings have a common destiny – to rescue the elemental beings…25

The Last Ecstasy of Life, by Phyllida Anam-Áire

The Last Ecstasy of Life: Celtic Mysteries of Death and Dying, by Phyllida Anam-Áire
Findhorn Press, 9781644112656, 175 pages, June 2021

Death plays such a huge role in our lives. It is something that a lot of people would rather not think about even though it is all around us every day. Though some may call it morbid, I have an interest in learning about how different cultures view death. Seeing how communities treat those who are dying can reveal so much about them. Ireland in particular has such a fascinating culture, steeped in rich history. I wondered what insights I could glean from reading more about how a person from that culture would view topics such as death and grief. Thanks to Phyllida Anam-Áire and her book The Last Ecstasy of Life: Celtic Mysteries of Death and Dying, I have the answers to that question.

To say that Phyllida Anam-Áire is intimately familiar with death would be an understatement. Throughout her life training as a nun and then as a therapist where she trained with Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, she learned to view death in a unique way. To her death is not a looming spectre waiting menacingly off in the distance. Death is a constant companion that she has embraced with love. Having found the sacred nature of what it means to live while facing one’s own mortality, she passes on this wisdom through flowing poetry and thoughtful prose.

The first chapter introduces us to some core topics and important information about the author’s beliefs about the nature of life itself. An overarching question of this section revolves around the concept of identity and just what really is the “I” that we speak of when we talk about ourselves. What parts of us can really be considered the true expression of our ‘self’? She shares the Celtic belief that “creation came about by the out-breath of life force and so it was”. This breath that gives us life does not belong to us, but it is something to savor while we get to experience it. She chooses not to question the specifics of what this “breath” might be, instead she surrenders to the mystery and encourages us to do the same. Pondering the unknowable will distract us from living out the fullest expression of life. At the same time she states that it is important to make some personal sense out of what we can observe about the nature of life around us.

With references to works by others in the scientific community, she speaks about the natural energetic field within and around all living organisms. Anam-Áire states that to her the life force that fills and balances all things is a force of love. “This Love does not judge or condemn as its core is the Universal Heart, the heart of compassionate energy.”26 This Universal Heart can act as a source of love of life in the world. It is a beautiful way to view life. Viewing things with compassion and empathy in mind leads to a kinder, more understanding world.

From there the author spends the majority of the book discussing the types of processes we undergo as we die. The energy within us starts to weaken and eventually is released from us as we die. She uses sprinklings of poetry throughout the book to help highlight the emotional themes she brings up. Even the prose she writes reflects her poetic spirit. While the words she uses are not overly complex and the tone very conversational, Anam-Áire weaves together beautiful sentences that evoke certain deep feelings throughout the book.

There are a number of blessings and visualization exercises written throughout the book. Trying those exercises for myself I felt myself more at peace as I went through them. It was interesting to explore these types of thoughts and feelings from the safety of my home. One of the exercises that I found the most impactful was located at the end of chapter three. This exercise, entitled “Let Love Heal…Now”, led me into a deep meditation of healing and self love. The text went on for a few pages, the experience diving deeper as things progressed. I felt the sacred nature of my own divinity and the healing power of love from the Universal Heart. Afterwards I felt at peace and relaxed, having healed bits of myself that required it. Luckily this was near the end of that chapter, which gave me time to reflect.

At the end of each chapter the author leaves a list of questions for the reader to ponder. Taking a few moments to digest and reflect on what I had just read, I found those questions enlightening. They cause us, as readers, to reevaluate our preconceived notions about ourselves, divinity, and the nature of life and death. Taking time to think on these questions, I was led to some interesting personal conclusions that I had not previously considered. With that in mind I was able to sit with a more complete knowledge of myself. Contemplating those questions has given me a greater understanding of what I want from my life as well as my death.

Reading The Last Ecstasy of Life was a journey of self discovery. Led by a guide who speaks with wisdom and a clear reverence for life, the reader is led to examine themselves. I would recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn to approach death with compassion and have a deeper appreciation for life. This is an excellent book that was a pleasure to read. Anam-Áire has managed to breathe such a vibrant sense of life and love into a book all about the topic of death and dying. She has left me with questions to ponder for the remainder of my life as I try to shape what that life will look like. Though when death finally does come for me, I believe I will be more prepared.

Inviting Angels into Your Life, by Kathryn Hudson

Inviting Angels into Your Life: Assistance and Support from the Angelic Realm, by Kathryn Hudson
Findhorn Press, 1644111727, 239 pages, September 2020

I’ll never forget an encounter I had in a bread shop one cold, December morning. I had just left the hair salon after getting my hair cut. I was thinking about my cousin who was hospitalized for a serious illness and bothered by a relationship problem. The gray sky matched my mood. I was even feeling guilty for going to the salon with my cousin so ill. I heard a man speaking to me from behind as I waited in line to buy bread. “Everything will be okay. I promise you.” I turned around and looked at this slightly built man, the only other customer in the store.

I felt tears well up. “Really, everything will be okay. Remember what Mikey is telling you. Mikey is always right.” He walked up to me, gave me a hug, and left the store. This was not a normal encounter – and I remember it to this day, 11 years later. I continued to wonder if Mikey was indeed an angel. After finishing Kathryn Hudson’s book, Inviting Angels into Your Life, and reading of angelic encounters, I am more convinced than ever that Mikey of the bread store was Archangel Michael.

I’ve read a lot of books on angels over the years, but Inviting Angels into Your Life resonated with me more than most books on this topic. Kathryn describes what angels are (without being clinical in nature or getting bogged down with the hierarchy of the angelic realm) and brings them to the reader in ways that we can truly interact with them on an everyday basis. As she writes, the angels are always present and willing to help– what they need is an invitation from us and that is what she shows us how to do. Angels will never infringe upon our free will. Kathryn, a certified Angel Therapy practitioner, has written on this topic and is a workshop presenter on angels.

One of the things that I most liked, and found very helpful in working with angels, was her descriptions of how there is unlimited angelic help available to all of us. If we work with the angels all day, every day, we are not taking angels from someone who we perceive as needing them more. I came to think of this as an angel being like a mother, a mother who can help one child with a seemingly menial task such as homework help while also helping another child deal with a relationship problem. Nothing is too small to ask an angel for help with – and as such asking does not take the angels away from someone asking for help with a serious health issue, for example.

Kathryn write a lot about living a “Large” life, a life aligned with our intended state of being, which is Joy. “Joy is rooted in the truth of our being, eternal and light-filled, no matter what our current experience is on the earth plane. Joy is the essence of Large Life…”27 Angels help us remember our true essence and are willing to help us live a life that is not based in fear and scarcity.

The book is divided into four parts: Take Action with Angels – Preparation, Our Friends in High Places – Archangels, Energy and Angelic Healing, and Next Steps. In Part One she writes on how we can prepare ourselves for interacting with the angels in an intentional way. She describes an angel as “an expression of God that accompanies us here on the earth plan during our lifetime.”28 By viewing our bodies as an instrument, she shows the reader how, “it is up to us to become more aware of how our instrument works and reach toward its mastery.”29 This instrument works through clairvoyance, the method through which we communicate with angels. She defines clairvoyance as “a capacity to see/understand things in an extraordinary way, over and above what is deemed ‘normal’.”30

Part One offers exercises such as channel opening, how to ask for help, filling one’s body with light, and connecting with the earth. She also suggestions for aftercare after completing the exercise. I particularly liked the exercise of connecting to Mother Earth – and the closing affirmation; “I open my channel to stand strong upon the earth, grounded and ready to live my life’s purpose – Large. Thank you, Gaia, Mother Earth.”31

Part Two focuses on the fifteen archangels with whom she most works, from Azrael to Zadkiel. For each she describes the specific focus or form of help of which each one is a master, the associated chakra and color, and the ideal stone with which to connect. She concludes each description with an exercise that can be used to connect with the specific archangel. Peppered throughout are stories of her connections with the archangel or those of others. Uriel, for example, can be called on in times of natural or personal disasters. Uriel is associated with the solar plexus to bring calm, the color is steel grey, and the stone is snowflake obsidian.

The focus of Part Three is on Energy and Angelic Healing. Included are ways to connect with our inner child, do chakra work, and ways to raise our frequency. As we align more with our true self and the spark of the Divine that resides within us, so too do we open ourselves more to angelic communication.

The final part, Four, focuses on Angelic Co-Creation, “essentially a partnering with the Angelic realm in order to live our lives to the fullest, in service of Light, Love, and Joy.”32 She recommends entering into two Contracts, one with our inner child and one with the angels. All offerings are doable – and not intimidating.

I highly recommend Inviting Angels Into Your Life for those new to working with angels as well as those who have been tapping into the angelic realm for a while. I’ve taken Kathryn’s suggestion to “talk” to my guardian angel during the day, as I would a friend. I now communicate with the angels in ways that don’t always focus on problem solving such as pointing our something beautiful that I see (like that lovely full moon) or laughing at myself for something silly that I did. Angels as friends! Use this book to invite them in!

Gateways to the Soul, by Serge Beddington-Behrens

Gateways to the Soul: Inner Work for the Outer World, by Serge Beddington-Behrens
Findhorn Press, 9781644110454, 302 pages, 2020

In his book Gateways to the Soul: Inner Work for the Outer World, Serge Beddington-Behrens shares ways that we can reconnect with our soul through various “gateways” that he has used in client sessions and workshops over his 40 years as a transpersonal psychotherapist. His goal for this book is an invitation; he asks the reader to bring a “new kind of ‘sacred space’ into the way you live your everyday life.”1 Beddington-Behrens gives us a framework for healing by inviting us to move through the book as a “training manual” and use the exercises and questions he includes to create new “gateways” into change and healing.

“In every chapter, therefore, I discuss how we can concretely bring the qualities of this mysterious ‘thing’ called Soul into all aspects of our daily lives and thus enable ourselves to start making them into a sacred practice.”28

Beddington-Behrens begins by sharing his background as part Russian royalty and part wealthy aristocrat. He was educated in what he calls “posh” schools and was growing up to be in an elite part of society. When he read a book by the Indian spiritual teacher Krishnamurti, he began to see the possibility of a different type of life in a different type of world.  He knew that he had to change his inner world to make the changes he wanted to see in his outer world. 

His first spiritual experience took place when he visited the Scottish spiritual community at Findhorn in his early twenties.  He points out that Findhorn was not the large community that it is today, but rather a bunch of “caravans” and a small group of people.  This took place in 1967 and he immediately felt at home.

He learned that Findhorn became a “kind of training course to help you to be yourself!”29 Here he learned to ask questions, to confront himself, and to challenge his past conditioning.  At the end of the first chapter, he poses questions to help the reader unearth information about inner changes we may want to make. (He also gives us a hint that there will be more questions to come!)

What really interested me about this book was its subtitle about “inner work for the outer world.”  It was Gandhi who said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”  The author really hits home with this idea in every chapter. He asks us to do the inner work in order to see changes in our outer world.

One technique that he taught dealt with regret.  He invited the reader to use the breath to release regret.  By exhaling regret and inhaling good energy, one can release regrets. He then shared another series of techniques:

“You can also use the four elements of fire, water, earth and air to help you release your regret. You can either use one element that you feel more drawn to, or if you wish, all four. With fire, write down your regret on a piece of paper and then throw it on the fire. As you watch it burn, imagine the regret burning up inside. With water, stand under a shower and imagine the water is flowing through you, flushing out your regret; see it going into the drain and being washed away for good. With earth, lie down on the grass and imagine giving your regret to mother earth and it passing out of you into the soil. With air,  stand outside on a windy day and say: ‘Please wind blow my regret out of me.’”33

I used this tool to help myself clear an issue that I had been carrying around with me for several months. Afterwards, I felt lighter and more at peace with myself and the other person involved in the situation.

Another section that really spoke to me was the one entitled “Gateways through Our Dark Side.” As someone who has been doing shadow work for a number of years,  I was particularly interested in any new techniques.  He first explained that “shadow” is “those parts of ourselves that we are ‘in the dark’ about, that we don’t know we possess.”34  He then went on to share how his father projected parts of his own shadow onto his son and then those shadow aspects became a part of Beddington-Behrens’ own self-image.  This summary really touched me:

“What happens when we get negatively projected upon – we can also say ‘regarded in a reductive light’ is that we will often internalize the projections and incorporate them into our own self image. This is often what will have occurred with people who have low self esteem.“35

I see now that my mother projected quite a few traits on me!  He then shared with us a concept of “withdrawing our projections” and focusing on our close relationships as the basis for becoming more aware of shadow aspects. At the end of the chapter are questions for journaling and unearthing these shadow aspects.  Then, he included a healing exercise where one can take back projections and send positive energy transmissions to anyone involved.

I really enjoyed the author’s writing style and all of the stories about his life.  He was very honest about his healing journey and his strengths and weaknesses, and I appreciated his candor.  As an Oxford-educated transpersonal psychotherapist, Beddington-Behrens is also a shaman, an activist, and an educator.  He teaches worldwide and enjoys homes in both London and Mallorca. 

This book is probably best for someone who has been on a spiritual journey for at least a few years.  Some of the concepts might be difficult for someone who is new to awakening or new to healing psychological issues in a transpersonal way. 

In the back of the book, the author includes a recap of all of the exercises in the book, listed in order and by “gateway” complete with page numbers.  This is extremely helpful.  He also includes a separate index.

As he was finishing the book, the COVID-19 pandemic began. He mentions it with this interesting point of view:

“My strong hunch is that underneath this seeming curse, lies- if we evolve a long term perspective- a very profound blessing, and that a story or a ‘world of consciousness’ that I have been arguing needs to die, is actually doing so much more quickly, and is therefore quietly creating a space for something new to be born that very much needs to be born. Basically, this pandemic has actually come to save us from ourselves!”36

Thank you, Beddington-Behrens, for a fascinating chronicle of your life and these healing exercises in Gateway to the Soul.

Deva, by Jacquelyn E. Lane

Deva: Our Relationship with the Subtle World, by Jacquelyn E. Lane
Findhorn Press, 978-1644110741, 320 pages, June 2020

Deva: Our Relationship with the Subtle World by Jacquelyn E. Lane is a title that anyone who is serious about the undertaking of engaging and communicating with the natural world should read. Lane is an educator by profession and this is quite apparent in the organization of the book. She has also been involved in the study of metaphysics for 50+ years, and this experience is the underpinning of this particular title and its teachings regarding the work of collaboration with the laws and spirits of nature through the development of a relationship of mutual respect, stewardship, and care.

…. Life is a great song. From the rocks that seem to be still to the bubbling water of a stream that flows over them. From the uncurling leaves of small plants to giant trees. From the quiet hamlets to the teeming cities. It’s all singing-notes within tunes, tunes within themes, themes within symphonies.1

These words flow from the pages and are the first lines of the Introduction. Simply reading them draws the reader in for a closer look and the journey that is about to unfold in the voluminous content that follows, if truly heard and appreciated, becomes a timeless and timely composition of nature. 

Deva is a fitting publication for the Findhorn Press and the mission of the Findhorn Community. To fully appreciate the need for this book a little history of The Findhorn Community will offer some background. The Findhorn Community developed from the resettlement of Peter and Eileen Caddy, their children, and Dorothy Maclean to the Findhorn Bay Caravan Park in 1962. The three had dedicated their lives to the pursuit of esoteric studies and applications and the barren soil of the caravan park provided the setting of opening to the land spirits and guidance in how to “live” in harmony on the land. All that was planted in accord with the aid of the Devas, elementals, and other nature spirits grew beyond expectation, and the garden became a marvel within the horticultural world.37

This book will please both the scientist and the esotericist in its content. Science and the esoteric philosophies are fast becoming great friends and supports to one another as we learn more about quantum physics and the nature of matter and energy. There is still quite a bit of ways to go in the overlap, but more books such as this will help in creating that bridge of cross-pollination. In reading the biography of the author we learn that Deva, was shortlisted for the 2019 Ashton Wylie Unpublished Manuscript Awards: an affirmation of the need for this material to be given the proper consideration it is due. 

The Introduction holds the keys to everything that the reader needs to know regarding what to expect from this book and what is required from the reader by way of open mind and willingness to become “involved” in the world that surrounds us in a more authentic way. So, for some this book will definitely be one of those slow and steady reads that leaves you with questions and wanting to know more-and do more-with each paragraph. And, for others it will affirm everything they have known and are currently working towards. 

Lane gives a clear and simple (ironically, for a very complex subject) introduction to who/what the deva are and the use of that term in the content that follows…

…. Deva is an ancient Sanskrit word from India meaning “Being of Light”… They sing ideas into form. It is the deva that cause us to exclaim, “Wow, this is a special place. It feels so alive!”…. they are within every atom. Deva are the faeries in the grass. They are the vast energy of sea, wind  and mountains….To really (understand) deva, we need to realize that deva is a kingdom of substance and form-the world of matter both solid and subtle.38

Deva is separated into three parts comprising a total of eighteen chapters. In some cases more is more, but this is one case in which it feels after reading that there were too few chapters — meant in the most complimentary of ways. There is a strong infusion of Theosophical principles throughout the book, but these are incorporated in such a way that the reader does not have to be a student of Theosophy to understand what is being said. The Bibliography is filled with resources of books, articles and recordings sourced from some of the most prominent and respected presenters of physics, botanists, metaphysicians, theosophists and more. I would consider this work as a required text for a course in how to become a participant in the worlds shared by humanity and nature. 

Part One: Elemental Tunes dives right in to exploring the inhabitants of our greater etheric planes of Earth that are the pure expression of energy from densest to the more rarified. Each chapter contained within this section opens the reader to a new experience of the devic kingdom and provides the basis upon which the individual can extrapolate and come to their own conclusions regarding how the energy of what is unseen is often more powerful than that seen as we become more aware of what is within and surrounds us…

… The deva kingdom is everywhere, say the ancients-an Intelligence infused into matter at every level of density.39

Part Two: Who’s Singing Your Song encompasses the aspects of emotion, thought  and those forms of deva that we create. I particularly enjoyed chapter eight “Emotion” and Lane’s attention to the power of our emotions as fueling many of the components of the spiritual evolution of devas, humanity and all of the sea of matter, formed and formless. This chapter really calls to the reader to examine their emotional baggage and presumptions that create patterns of illusion that are in contradiction to the organic nature of the deva and humanity. As I moved through the information in Part Two, I was reminded of the deep connection we have in mind and heart and the impact, not only upon ourselves, but everything from the densest of matter to the most subtle. These also inherently include the discordant relationships and often-resultant ill effects that communication with the deva kingdom may have if the individual is not aligned within him/herself.

Part Three: Symphonies could be compared to the final movement of a stirring orchestral composition. All of the instruments have a role that is both profound and subtle in their impact. The climax reaches its peak and we are left in the after-glow of a symphonic masterpiece that is inspiring and has reached deeply into the fibers of all of our being. These final chapters of Deva speak to active participation in the natural world and those aspects of the deva kingdom we are more familiar with as iconic representations of nature. Trees, plant life, geographic regions, climate change and planetary deva are some of the topics discussed. 

The final two chapters, “Deva, Religion and Pan” and “Consciousness,” were appropriately placed in the organic flow of this writing. These are topics that are usually captured at the beginning of a discourse such as this, and in doing so, feel like the perfunctory ‘getting that out of the way” manner in which they are often treated. In this case, this very important material punctuates the final notes of this symphony, and it is always those last notes that are remembered, even if the rest is forgotten. 

Lane offers these thoughts as conclusion and calls us to re-member our true state of being…

…The Great Song dances out of the One from the highest to the lowest. We can see its effects all around using every kingdom (animal, deva, mineral, etc..) beside us. We can hear it directly when we cease to place our individuality before that One Life. Yet, from the beginning it has called on our inner ear relentlessly until we have learnt to listen and, in listening, we hear the song of our own Light as well.40


Deva: Our Relationship with the Subtle World has been an immensely satisfying book to read. and I am looking forward to the many re-reads I will give as my own journey in connecting more deeply to the Deva continues. We are at a crossroads of choice and the next steps we take collectively, but most importantly individually, will determine so much more than what we see of the physical world. The more reminders we have about our place in this “symphony of life,” and the more books that are brought forward that will speak to all levels of engagement and practice will be steps in the right direction.  Open your eyes with new wonder and call out from your highest intention and you may just be surprised at who/what calls back in reply.