Turning the Templar Key

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Turning the Templar Key - Martyrs, Freemasons and the Secret of the True Cross of Christ by Robert Lomas 

The book opens to Martin Foulks’ glowing appraisal of Freemasonry and its charitable and self development aims, though fortunately, we don’t need to join a secret society with hidden handshakes, threats and a death ritual with knives and coffins to achieve a Christian life! 

The book begins with a fantasy of the morning of 13th October 1307 when the last Templar Grand Master was arrested by the soldiers of King Philip the Fair in the dormitory of the Paris Temple - the place where the royal valuables were kept for safety. Templar knights were monks. Priests are initiated, they say mass, and are. very different, though some monks were also priests, but not the Grand Masters, as one priest for a few dozen monks would have been adequate. Even with minimal criticisms, did I enjoy the content of the text? Yes, very definitely. It is beautifully written, and the author is a great story teller. 

Mists of Avalon Oracle

Mind Body & Soul Card Deck Review: Mists of Avalon by Rose Inserra, illustrated by Nadia Turner. Published by Rockpool Publishing. Boxed set of 36 cards with guidebook. 

Sample card: 12 The Holy Grail - Life Force, Wisdom. Be a beacon of light by walking the path. Shine bright with your magical soul, for all to see, feel, know and grow. The message is that there are new opportunities and beginnings presented to you. Be open to receiving the flow of life’s gifts. This is the time of conception, new beginnings, new love, birth, and a new cycle of life. Follow your personal soul quest, without losing sight of what holds the most value for you.

 

9 Dimensions of the Soul

Mind Body & Soul Book Review: The 9 Dimensions of the Soul - Essence and the Enneagram by David Hey

Published by: O Books Paperback: £10.99 168 Pages

Author website: http://sbpra.com/davidhey/

This is an insightful and in-depth book by a student of Baghvan Shree Rajneesh. Along with an introduction, Core Understandings and a History of the Enneagram are provided Hey explains that the Enneagram as a symbol that has represented a way of understanding the spiritual evolution of mankind. 'Essence' is explained as 'different qualities of being' and 'our true nature'. Essence is explained as a way to look at our individuality and that what 'defines the aspects of our true nature'.  I clearly understood what the author was discussing as his words were easy to understand from both a humanistic and spiritual perspective.

Feminist Spirituality - The Goddess

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review - Jailbreaking the Goddess - A Radical Revisioning of Feminist Spirituality by Lasara Firefox Allen, http://lasarafirefoxallen.com/ 267 pages Published by Llewellyn Books, $22.99 US

This is a fascinating and new 5 fold model to replace the traditional 'maiden, mother and crone' 3 fold aspects of the goddess.

The five new aspects introduced in this book are:

Femella - The Child
Potens - Woman of Power
Creatrix - She Who Creates
Sapientia - Woman of Art and Wisdom
Antiqua - The Ancient One

Ben Mijuskovic - Loneliness

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Loneliness in Philosophy, Psychology, and Literature by Ben Lazare Mijuskovic  is available on Kindle £2.52 with 309 pages and there is a FREE download of the book from the website.

This book focuses on the link between literature, psychology and philosophy throughout time and on humankind's ability to deal with loneliness. The author, Ben Mijuskovic, explores the various ways society uses loneliness, for example, "punishing" prisoners by isolation from others. The book discusses in detail the reasons why children fear being alone and how adults deal with a similar anxiety but do not share their concerns with others. The author is a Professor and this is very much reflected in the style of writing. The book provides in depth academic understanding and will be of great interest to students and fellow academics. Reviewer: Susan Griffiths