This is what happens when you don't write for awhile, you get a back log of stuff. That's why there's three.
First, lets start with The Celestine Prophecy
. If you remember, Golden Moon (the level lone reiki hippy chick I met in Sapa), recommended this book to me. It wasn't easy to get a hold of either. I found it in other languages or the book stores had other titles (sequels) by the same Author. Finally, a book shop in Chang Mai that had a lot of books I wanted (I bought the chi book there too) had one hiding in the store room. This book has a little bit of mystique behind it; it is usually passed down instead of bought.
To begin with, you need to understand why Golden suggested this book to me. Remember that we were talking about this energy flow and that I was trying to understand what I felt. Therefore, this book is sort of spiritual, but written as a novel. The plot is that the main character becomes aware of the existence of an ancient manuscript that has nine prophecies/secrets of the world (called insights) written within it. This manuscript is in scattered pieces in Peru, and the government and Catholic Church are trying to destroy and cover it up by any means possible. Most of the book the main character is running from people with guns.
There are nine chapters and each one reveals one of these insights. Some of the insights are really ridiculous (esp. the last one), but some described some things that I experienced pretty well. I don't buy into the books insights as truths about the world, although some are fairly Tao influenced which I feel is pretty legit, but the message that the book is trying to put forth is a good one. Basically, how we should first become whole people (like I've mentioned), to listen to your intuitions, and how we should treat people with compassion.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book, then the insights and some technical things started to get to me. The insights started getting too ridiculous; the last one is too ridiculous for me to even paraphrase it. Also, for a book based in Peru, you'd hope that the author had researched or been there. That doesn't seem to be the case. For example, this character travels to Machu Pichu by road and stays at a house right next to the ruins; neither being accurate. They drive to Iquitos. Iquitos doesn't have any roads into it; you have to fly or boat. Things like that. Odd.
Anyway, I liked it for the most part, but it isn't for most people. It's one of those books that you have to be ready to read or you'll absolutely hate it.
The next book is One For My Baby
. If you like self deprecating humor, which the British are so good at, and love based novels, this one is for you. I thought this was an excellent book. There were of course some takes on love I disagreed with, but it is full of great lines on the subject. Also, the self deprecation is up there with Hi Fidelity (one of my favorite books and movies).
The plot is that the main character, Alfie, meets the love of his life while working in Hong Kong. They get married and she dies, and most of the book he is punishing himself. He has a series of meaningless relationships, does things he's not proud of, his family falls apart, etc with the bad things. He meets a Chinese family and starts learning Tai Chi (which he has actually researched and does justice to), but can't stick with the commitment. Eventually, of course things take a turn for the better and things work out the way you hope - or maybe not. Give it a go.
The last book is the Big Book of Chi: An Exploration of Energy, Form and Spirit
. It's essentially a text book on what chi is and where the concept came from and the beliefs that it influenced (Buddhism, Hindu, and all eastern culture). It's a survey of some of the more commonly known forms, techniques, etc that deal with chi like Tai Chi, Acupuncture, Feng Shui, Reiki, Japanese Gardens, and more. If you are interested in the Tao and chi, this is a fairly good introduction; it really brings helps bring it all together.
First, lets start with The Celestine Prophecy
. If you remember, Golden Moon (the level lone reiki hippy chick I met in Sapa), recommended this book to me. It wasn't easy to get a hold of either. I found it in other languages or the book stores had other titles (sequels) by the same Author. Finally, a book shop in Chang Mai that had a lot of books I wanted (I bought the chi book there too) had one hiding in the store room. This book has a little bit of mystique behind it; it is usually passed down instead of bought.To begin with, you need to understand why Golden suggested this book to me. Remember that we were talking about this energy flow and that I was trying to understand what I felt. Therefore, this book is sort of spiritual, but written as a novel. The plot is that the main character becomes aware of the existence of an ancient manuscript that has nine prophecies/secrets of the world (called insights) written within it. This manuscript is in scattered pieces in Peru, and the government and Catholic Church are trying to destroy and cover it up by any means possible. Most of the book the main character is running from people with guns.
There are nine chapters and each one reveals one of these insights. Some of the insights are really ridiculous (esp. the last one), but some described some things that I experienced pretty well. I don't buy into the books insights as truths about the world, although some are fairly Tao influenced which I feel is pretty legit, but the message that the book is trying to put forth is a good one. Basically, how we should first become whole people (like I've mentioned), to listen to your intuitions, and how we should treat people with compassion.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book, then the insights and some technical things started to get to me. The insights started getting too ridiculous; the last one is too ridiculous for me to even paraphrase it. Also, for a book based in Peru, you'd hope that the author had researched or been there. That doesn't seem to be the case. For example, this character travels to Machu Pichu by road and stays at a house right next to the ruins; neither being accurate. They drive to Iquitos. Iquitos doesn't have any roads into it; you have to fly or boat. Things like that. Odd.
Anyway, I liked it for the most part, but it isn't for most people. It's one of those books that you have to be ready to read or you'll absolutely hate it.
The next book is One For My Baby
. If you like self deprecating humor, which the British are so good at, and love based novels, this one is for you. I thought this was an excellent book. There were of course some takes on love I disagreed with, but it is full of great lines on the subject. Also, the self deprecation is up there with Hi Fidelity (one of my favorite books and movies).The plot is that the main character, Alfie, meets the love of his life while working in Hong Kong. They get married and she dies, and most of the book he is punishing himself. He has a series of meaningless relationships, does things he's not proud of, his family falls apart, etc with the bad things. He meets a Chinese family and starts learning Tai Chi (which he has actually researched and does justice to), but can't stick with the commitment. Eventually, of course things take a turn for the better and things work out the way you hope - or maybe not. Give it a go.
The last book is the Big Book of Chi: An Exploration of Energy, Form and Spirit
. It's essentially a text book on what chi is and where the concept came from and the beliefs that it influenced (Buddhism, Hindu, and all eastern culture). It's a survey of some of the more commonly known forms, techniques, etc that deal with chi like Tai Chi, Acupuncture, Feng Shui, Reiki, Japanese Gardens, and more. If you are interested in the Tao and chi, this is a fairly good introduction; it really brings helps bring it all together.
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