Divine Books

This book offers a wide range of thought provoking ideas on the early development of Judaism, in particular, the role played by women during this period.

The author proves that the contemporary role of women in mainstream Judaism is certainly not as it has always been by providing a variety of examples in which women were once central to and powerful figures in the religion and its practise. These female figures include priestesses, who held dominant positions in organised religious activities and goddesses, who equalled or dominated over the typical male god figure.

One of the most interesting parts of this book is a detailed textual analysis of well-known stories from the Old Testament. In these analyses, the author demonstrates that traditional interpretations of these stories derive from translations of biblical texts which were written in a patriarchal environment. The author offers alternative translations which radically transform these stories and remove their often misogynistic meanings.

Ultimately, this book challenges the reader to be aware of the patriarchal context in which contemporary, mainstream religious values and institutions have developed and to go behind this interpretive layer to gain a new appreciation and understanding of the religion (and indeed modern, western society generally).

Jenny Kien has written the book I have been searching for. She has addressed my dilemma -- that of a woman of Jewish heritage who has been turned off by her patriarchal religion, found a home in women's spirituality and the Goddess, and yet is still "Jewish." Since finding the Goddess, I have been struggling with how to reconcile my need for a Divine Female with my Jewishness, and Kien has provided a great many answers. But this book is not for Jews only. As the Jewish Bible/Old Testament is the foundation of the Christian Bible/New Testament, finding the Goddess as She is buried in the Jewish Bible also strengthens the idea of the Divine Woman in Christianity.

Kien has looked at the beginnings of the old Israelite religion; studied the cultures which existed in what we now call the Middle East in the era when the Hebrew tribes were coalescing; and traced how the Goddess was demoted from the all-encompassing mother to becoming almost non-existent.She has followed how the idea of one male God, Jahweh, emerged and eventually took over -- banishing the Goddess in the process, although the old Israelite religion was polytheistic throughout its early days. Tackling the issue of monotheism Kien wishes that amongst the many strands of Judaism today ( e.g. Orthodox, Hassidic, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, and most recently the emergence of Jewish Renewal) there could be a place for a "polytheistic strand in which people could choose to focus their worship on Goddess, God, or both."

Kien's work is situated within the parameters of current feminist and women's spirituality thinking, and she feels that the "age-old struggle between monotheistic Judaism and the goddess is nothing less than men's battle against women's sexuality." How does one reclaim the concept of a Divine Female within the framework of Judaism, and still have Judaism? Based on the long tradition of individuals studying, interpreting, and commenting on the Torah, Kien states that Judaism has no dogma and therefore no theology, and that "it is the work and the responsibility of the individual to determine and develop her/his own interpretation of the texts." Staying within this tradition, Kien therefore believes that women not only can but also must reclaim these texts, and reveal the goddess within them and within Judaism. Women can create their own midrashim or interpretive stories, invent rituals to express their needs, and reclaim the yearly festivals to mark what is important in women's lives. We must also create new synagogue services to incorporate the Divine Woman, as it is not enough to say the traditional prayers with the God language rewritten in the feminine gender.

Reinstating the Divine Woman in Judaism presents us with a well-developed thesis that a Divine Woman has been present since the beginning of what became Judaism, and that it is time to reinstate Her in our practices.

This CD is everything I thought it would be,I play it almost everyday,it fills my heart and soul with a joy.

I originally purchased this in cassette form back in 1999 and played it until it died from exhaustion. The songs to the female Orisas are so beautiful that you can't help but dance along and praise them. Baba Canizares did an excellent job of compiling these praise songs. My personal favorite is the song to Yewa, Queen of the Underworld. It has such a haunting melody that if it's playing and someone's talking, I shush them so that I may pay it my full attention. It is a beautiful CD with which to begin your day or whenever you'd just like to be in a meditative space. Ase

This is my very favorite Goddess calendar and I'm so glad to see it back this year! The commentary by Lunaea Weatherstone of The Sisterhood of the Silver Branch is beautiful, and her daily captions range from serious to insightful to funny. As always, the artwork is well chosen and beautifully reproduced. It's a delightful mix of ancient and contemporary Goddesses. I couldn't wait till January to hang mine up!

A lovely calendar for your favorite goddess.

12 sumptuous paintings from four very talented artists give each month a unique feel, and there is something interesting for every day of every month! 2007 through 2009 is overviewed on the inside back cover.

Beautiful color photographs and carefully selected quotes taken from Ruchira Avatar Adi Da's Teachings adorn this inspirational book. It records in detail, the remarkable work that spans the first 25 years of this Great Master's Teaching Life. Truly a labor of Love!

This coffee-table quality book is a must buy for anyone interested in understanding how the Divine World Teacher, Adi Da Samraj has worked intimately with his devotees during the past 25 years. This book is full of beautiful photographs, stories,and quotes from Adi Da Samraj. I highly recommend it for anyone truly interested in estatic living and divine communion.

What an astounding book! The Happiness and Radiance flowing from these pages is mind-stopping. Truly, I recommend anyone to read this book and be challenged and sublimed by the Realization of the author Avatar Adi Da - this is no ordinary book, and yet it can be read by anyone who is interested in the truth, the spiritual history of this world and what it really is to be Enlightened or genuinely "on the path".

"The Seven Stages of Life" is a book that no-one could ever forget, having read it. It is a book that one must own and refer to forever, for it speaks directly to the heart, and the heart of our human situation here, alltogether.

The spiritual path herein described through the seven possible stages of progress and development has never been do fully and clearly and unambiguously stated. I am very grateful to own this book and know it will serve as a wondrous guide to my heart forever.

There are many gurus, saints and mystics who have been realized to one degree or another, but the depth of wisdom and realization that shines through this book surpasses anything that I have ever read or seen in my extensive search for spiritual wisdom. This book has vastly clarified my understanding of what it means to transcend the ego and to realize the Source or Truth of existence. I feel that Avatar Adi Da Samraj is a true Heart-Master who has given the world the transcendental help that we have all been praying for. I am forever grateful for his words, which have shown my heart a freedom and understanding that I have always known on some level.

I have had a fascination with Sheela Na Gigs for a long time, but to be honest my knowledge on her was scant. I have worked with her as a personal deity for about 8 years (when she first appeared to me), so I had some idea of how I viewed her, but this book has refreshed my connection with Sheela to a profound level.

This book puts fowards some very interesting ideas as to the origins of the Sheelas & her name, and her possible basis in the hag aspect, which is the type of energy that I myself have found her to have. I have also gleaned some new ideas as to possible symbolic interpretations of her physical appearance, which has set me off on new avenuse of thinking.

The end of the book has a catalogue of Sheelas in England, Ireland, Wales & Scotland, and each entry has sketches of them. With this book in hand I have been to see two of them, one in Oxford & another in Fiddington. There is a Sheela about 20 minutes from my house and that will be my next visit!

This pictorial catalogue is extremely useful in that it allows you to see the particular Sheela refferred to in the main body of the text, thus enabling you to make up your own mind as to whether it supports the claims or not.

I must say it's a great shame I'm the first person to write a review of this book, I just wish there were as many people interested in Sheelas & their origins as Green Men, because to be honest Sheela is far more interesting!

I first stumbled across a drawing of one of these unusual stone effigies in a book of horror stories called "The Angry Dead." To see the actual images in Dublin's National Museum, was still a bit of a shock as the anatomical detail proudly displayed by these Sheelas is normally only visible to a gynecologist or lover.

So I turned to this interesting and well-written book to learn more about the Sheela-Na-Gigs. Oddly enough, they are not fertility figures. Most of them are portrayed as ferocious and gaunt, with the ribs clearly delineated. Here is one of the earliest references to a Sheela found at Barnahealy, County Cork: "This is one of those old Fetish figures often found in Ireland on the fronts of churches as well as castles, they are called 'Hags of the Castle' and when placed above the keystone of the door arch were supposed to possess a tutelary or protective power so that an enemy passing by would be disarmed of evil intent against the building on seeing it."

Typically in Gaelic oral traditions, a central character in many of the stories was a fearsome female figure, typically described as "an old woman with a bald head, cadaverous ribs, sagging abdomen, and small flat breasts." She is the crone, the third aspect of the Earth goddess which also includes a maiden and a woman in her sexual prime.

It is rather delightful to think that the Sheela-na-Gigs migrated from Celtic mythology into Christian iconography and could be found perched above many a monastery or church door where generations of monks filed under her, protected (although they may not have known it) from the evil eye by an exaggerated carving of female pudenda. It's a pity that more recent churchmen (especially since the Reformation and most especially since Victorian times) were more prudish than their early counterparts and destroyed or hid many of these Sheelas.

This book contains drawings of all known Sheela-na-Gigs of Ireland and Britain, and also figures that might be related to them. The authors also list a website where further research on Sheela-Na-Gigs is being published: jharding.demon.co.uk.

You might want to plan your next trip to Britain or Ireland to include viewings of these fascinating, archaic Divine Hags.

Wonderful explanation of the root cause of everyday problems with the use of short stories added with a sense of humor. And more importantly, the appropriate yet practical solutions. Smooth flow and easy to read.

I must have read this book about 15 times, and I keep finding new things in it. If you're a seeker, buy this book.

This book examines the LDS view of God and mankind's relationship with him. It looks at historical documents to identify times when mankind's view of God changed (such as a change from an anthromorphic view to the present mainstream Christian view). McConkie's wit and style makes this book very enjoyable and easy to understand. The arguments are straightforward, inspired, and well researched. No honest person can dismiss this work simply out of hand.

"Sons and Daughters of God" weaves three threads: the Apostasy our identy viz-a-viz God; the restoration of this knowledge by Joseph Smith; and real-life, "rubber-meets-the-road" applications of these doctrines from McConkie's experiance as mission president for the LDS Church in Scotland.

McConkies begins each chapter with an incident from his mission that illustrates the doctrinal points contained in each chapter, such as the loss of God's body, "figurative or literal," and so forth. Then the light of the Restoration is cast upon the subject.

This book is another touchdown for McConkie and is great for any recent convert who wants a deeper understanding of the "so-what" of the Apostasy.

What a joy to read! I found myself nodding my head "Yes!" over and over again as I absorbed this book. Cheryl has written a warm, thoughtful and easy-to-understand book about subjects that can easily get confusing for most of us. It is easy to sense that she writes Soul Speak from her own experience, and directly from her heart. She says that there are several areas to be addressed if we want to be able to easily and naturally tap into our latent potentials as physical and spiritual Beings. These include examining our personal attitude, circumstances, history, health, and beliefs. Cheryl writes about each of them in a way that I find clear, direct and profound. She shows that learning to live in accord with Nature and Spirit is actually very simple and easy. She brings it all together with her personal story of her own awakening, demonstrating what is possible for every one of us. And that is the biggest message here - that the wonderful bliss, peace and contentment of living Soulfully is right here in front of us..... available right now.

An ordained minister, Animal Communicator, Medical Intuitive, conscious channeller, and Reiki II Practitioner, Cheryl Stoycoff draws upon her psychic abilities and experiences to share a kind of "blueprint" for spiritual transformation and understanding that will enable readers to access their own inner guidance, unlock intuitive abilities, understand and accept psychic abilities as a natural part of their humanity, tapping into the Divine wisdom of the soul and bringing that wisdom into every part of daily life. Soul Speak: Opening To Divine Guidance is a superb contribution to the growing library of New Age spirituality and metaphysical studies.

Ivo Dominguez, Jr., in his book Spirit Speak, provides a clear and concise approach to working with the realm of the other world based on his years of study and personal experience. This book not only provides excellent insight into working with the ancestors, spirit guides and so forth, but also provides practical advice for the spiritual practitioner looking to broaden his or her practice.

Ivo understands the challenges, trials, and tribulations that come with higher workings, and he helps his reader by providing exercises to help prepare for those challenges. His is a much more thorough and thoughtful approach than one might see in many of the books available on the market. Many of these exercises have applications that can be used under many other circumstances.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in spirit contact, working directly with divine embodiment and understanding the guiding spirits that wish to support humanity.

A remarkable book that fills what was a gaping hole in modern magical/occult literature. Spirit Speak gives a clear overview and deeper understanding of the mechanisms of and requirements for contact with non-physical consciousness independent of the dogma of various religions and spiritual traditions.

The author's knowledge of his subject is both broad and deep, and is given further authority by his years of personal experience in working with the world of Spirit. You'll get clear, reasoned explanations and examples spirit contact, distilled through a practical mindset and dished up with wonderful metaphors that help clarify unfamiliar concepts.

While laying out a solid conceptual and philosophical framework for understanding spirit contact, the book also gives plenty of practical techniques and advice. In fact, the chapter on "Preparations and Interventions for Higher Order Workings" is worth the price of the book all by itself.

Already a classic among those who read the book in its earlier, self-published incarnation, to those of you who have read the original, I can suggest without reservation that you add this version to your library. It has been considerably expanded as well as re-written.