The Enchanted Forhaxa Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Card Deck Review: The Enchanted Forhaxa Tarot by MJ Cullinane. Boxed set of 78 Cards and Guidebook. Published by Hay House. UK £18.99 : US $26.99 : Can $35.99 Date: 17/10/2023

“Each gift of nature possesses a radiant energy.”

MJ Cullinane aka Margaux Jones is an award winning artist and is the creator of Crow Tarot She is also the artist and the author of this oracle. She has taken from Nordic and Celtic folklore for the inspiration for this deck of tarot. I liked the artwork very much and it assisted my readings which are creative, meaningful and wise. the word ‘forhaxa’ means ‘bewitched’ in Swedish. Gender roles do not exist in the enchanted otherworld and the energies in the oracle - fairies and mermaids, possess both male and female traits so are given the pronoun of ‘they’. There are no priests or churches. Suits are named after the elements of fire, water, Earth and air. 

Journey into the Tao

Mind Body & Soul Ezine DVD Review: Going Nowhere - Journey into the Tao: A Beginners Guide to Eastern Spirituality - available £35.99 from Watkins Books: http://www.watkinsbooks.com/

By Dr Lorenzo Da Costa - website: www.soulace.co.uk Produced by Tim Lee 

It can be a great privilege to share vicariously in the spiritual journey of another, to hear their enthusiasms and to partake of some of the wisdom and practice which has guided them on the path. This DVD set consists of a series of lectures on Eastern spiritual practices and ideas. The lectures are clearly presented and accompanied by diagrams which clarify key points. This makes the set easy to follow for the beginner and sharpens Da Costa’s points for the more knowledgeable. The set is well referenced with pointers to a number of popular authors on the subject.

Romantic Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Romantic Tarot by Emanuel’s Signorini. Art by Guila F Massaglia. Published by Lo Scarabeo. 

Set in the late 19th - early 20th century, this is the ideal deck for your clients who have relationship/love issues and are seeking advice. These cards help connect to the beauty and joy of romance. There are 4 suits, Cups (yellow) are set in Venice, Pentacles (green) are set in Rome, Wands (red) are set in Paris, and Swords (blue) are set in Vienna. 

The artist has created art for Golden Art Nouveau Tarot and After Tarot. 

Ancient Egyptian Magic

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Ancient Egyptian Magic Classic Healing and Ritual for Modern Times By Cassandra Eason Published by Vega Books Paperback 192 pages Author website: http://www.cassandraeason.com/

Cassandra Eason is the author of over 30 books on New Age spirituality and she is an international speaker and workshop facilitator. 

This is a book written for those who wish to practice Egyptian ritual, so I must start by acknowledging that I am reading for academic interest and have not tried the suggested rituals. However, this book is full of history, myth and magic. I was fascinated by the perspective. While I am tied to my English roots now, there was a time when I would have enjoyed practicing these rituals. In my teens, this was the book I longed for and craved.

The Paths of Yoga by Andrea Tteja (Part I)

Andrea Tteja - www.infin8space.com

Ashtanga Yinyasa is the system of Yoga taught by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois at the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, India. This method involves synchronizing the breath with progressive series of postures—a process producing intense internal heat and a profuse, purifying sweat that detoxifies muscles and organs. The result is improved circulation, a light and strong body, and a calm mind.

The Bihar School of Yoga (Satyananda) was founded in 1964 by Paramahamsa Satyananda to impart yogic training to householders and sannyasins. The Yoga techniques are a synthesis of many approaches to personal development, based on traditional Vedantic, tantric and yogic teachings in conjunction with contemporary physical and mental health sciences. These techniques are taught by Bihar Yoga Bharati and through health management courses held in the old BSY Ashram. Bihar School of Yoga also guides Yoga projects and medical research in association with prestigious hospitals, organizations and establishments. Programs made by Bihar School of Yoga are used in the education and prison Government sectors, in hospitals, by the Defence Services, private and public sector industries such as Indian Oil Corporation, Coal India Limited, National Thermal Power Corporation, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, the Steel Authority of India, Hindustan Paper Corporation, Hindustan Copper Corporation, etc.

The Paths to Yoga by Andrea Tteja (Part II)

Andrea Tteja - www.infin8space.com

Continued from Part I    

Karma: Selfless Service as a path to Yoga. "Karma Yoga is the selfless devotion of all inner as well as the outer activities as a Sacrifice to the Lord of all works, offered to the eternal as Master of all the soul’s energies and austerities." Bhagavad Gita

Right Attitude It’s not what you do that counts, it’s the attitude while doing it that determines if a job is a karma yoga job, i.e. a liberating job, or a binding job. Work is worship. Swami Sivananda advises us to "give your hands to work, and keep your mind fixed at the lotus feet of the Lord."

Tantric Sex

Mind, Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Tantric Sex - Reawaken Your Desire by Discovering Slow, Luxurious Sex, Mini book hardback £6.99. Kindle: £6.17 Published in hardback by Quiver Minis, US $9.99 : CAN $12.99 : U.K. £6.99 

I love this little book to awaken our desire for slow, luxurious sex! Tantra teaches us to focus, be sensual, and intensify our enjoyment of a slow, intimate and loving caress or kiss, or a full, mindful and prolonged lovemaking orgasm. 

With tasteful naked images and excellent supportive text, this book will brighten up your sex life, restore you to heart felt physical and mental joy, help you to let go of inhibitions and allow you to experience beauty and kindness which flow towards the joy and wonder of sexuality.

Secrets of Paradise Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Secrets of Paradise Tarot by Leticia Ferrer-Rivera. Boxed set of 81 cards and Guidebook. RRP US $29.99 : Can $39.99 Published by Hay House. 

May the oceans bring blessings, abundance, and healing to all who inhabit planet Earth. 

Sample: Coexist - this card has no number because it is not part of a traditional tarot deck. It depicts from left to right, Santierre or Candomble, a Buddhist, monk, a Wiccan high priestess, a Catholic priest, and an Indian bride representing the Hindu religion. The card is about learning to respect the beliefs of others. It is about understanding others, becoming more spiritually and culturally competent, instead of assuming, or judging, when you do not know anything about a tradition or ritual. If this card is pulled, it means you are a tuned with the people around you. If for some reason, this appears in the reverse position, it shows the need to perform shadow work.   Use the pendulum to see which symbol it chooses to learn more. Feel free to remove it from the deck and not use it for certain readings. 

The Tablets of Light

Mind Body & Soul,Ezine Book Review: The Tablets of Light - The Teachings of Thoth on Unity Consciousness by Danielle Rama Hoffman, published by Bear & Co, Paperback 290 pages £16.99 Kindle: £16.14 Author Website: http://divinetransmissions.com/author/divinehoffman/

This book contains the channelled message of 'The Emerald Tablets of Light' from Thoth, the spirit guide of the author. We are introduced to a new language and a new way of thinking and speaking. Reclaim yourself by choosing to be a Connected Vibrational Recogniser, claim your Light Body, create through Divine Design, experience the Potency of Life Force Within, remember your Cosmic Choice, reconnect with Source, find out The Blueprint of Unity Consciousness, decode the Divine Sequence Within, lift the Net of the Mass Consciousness Grid, learn to Spiral Multidimensional Wholeness into Everything, transcend your perceptions, choose 'yes and no' at the same time, increase your Bandwidth, discover What You Left For Yourself to Find, take a Divine Mission Hookup, be who you fully are, stand out, get a Divine Energy Spirit, reclaim your Divine Access Point, Awaken to Universal Design Codes - and more!

Working With Spirit Guides

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Working With Spirit Guides - How to Make Contact with Angels, Fairies and Power Animals by Teresa Moorey, published by Octopus Books, £12.99

This full colour book has easy and practical suggestions to use  - oils, colours, gemstones, visualisations and meditations, cleansing and healing exercises and rituals to contact ancestors, power animals, goddesses, Ascended Masters, previously incarnated spirits, etc. 

Ideal as a gift for a beginner, the book is easy to read and you can learn how to contact your spirit guides. Ideal for beginners. Teresa Moorey is a clinical hypnotherapist. 

Review: Wendy Stokes https://wendystokes.co.uk 

Your Secret Self Book Review

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Your Secret Self - Illuminating the Mysteries of the Twelfth House - A Guide to Using Astrology & Your Dreams for Personal Growth by Tracy Marks. Published by CRCS Publications. 

This book provides specific dream interpretation methods, and majors on Twelfth House astrology. How to deal with self defeating problems, escapism, family dynamics, symbolism, inner conflicts, repression, our shadow, inner demons, what lies in our subconscious mind, and how to gain inspiration, compassion and spirituality, transformation, are fascinating and exciting topics. Examples of case studies are given, we are also provided with a dream journey and questionnaire, worksheets, and information on each planet and sign. 

Though no special knowledge of astrology is required, I think it helps to understand the finer points of this book.

Tracy Marks is a popular astrologer and psychotherapist, and has interests in dream work and journal writing. 

Secrets of Paradise Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Card Deck Review: Secrets of Paradise Tarot - Inspired by Caribbean & Latin American Culture& Mysticism. By Leticia Ferrer-Rivera. Illustrated by Laura Bello. Boxed set of 81 cards and Guidebook. Published by Hay House. Date Jan 2023 UK : £22

“May the oceans bring blessings, abundance, and healing to all who inhabit the Planet Earth.”

Sample: Madre Tierra - About this card - This title replaces The World in traditional decks, and depicts the Ceiba Tree (the sacred tree of the Maya) from Puerto Rico. Animals from Africa, Spain, Uruguay, and Puerto Rico appear in this card, under the Sun and Moon. Card Meaning: This card appears when a person needs to evaluate their position in relation to the rest of the world. Is this person in an eternal night under the moon or burning under the baking Sun? Or are they as grounded, centred and strong as the sacred Ceiba Tree? This card is also a representation of power and shows how much influence someone has over their circumstances. It highlights knowledge and education. We must always learn from situations, and not only be interested in what we can easily master. This card might also show a deep love of nature and a person’s deep caring for the planet. This card honours all wildlife and animals. 

NLP

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: How to use Neuro-Linguistic Programming to Change Your Life by Ali Campbell. Published by Hay House. RRP UK £8.99  

NLP is a powerful method of personal change and this book describes the most important NLP methods in an easy to understand way. All the major parts of Neuro-Linguistic Programming are here. What is NLP, anchoring, modalities, the swish technique, changing states, Meta models, etc. There are exercises, timelines and checklists that demonstrate the method to help you change memories, strengthen your communication, manage your mood and mental health. 

Life Magic

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Life Magic - The Power of Positive Witchcraft  by Susan Bowes. Full Colour Hardback. Published by The Speaking Tree. 

This book is a positive thinking celebration of life. It connects us to nature and to others through the Divine Feminine. Many male and female deities are featured, the meaning of magic, spell making, rituals, candles, the calendar, astrology, the moon, numbers, trees, cards, and other pagan topics are covered here. This is the time of the return of the goddess, of the witch! Accoutrements, rites of passage, and working with spirits of the Otherworld are included. 

Healing With Past Life Therapy

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: Healing With Past Life Therapy - Transformational Journeys Through Time and Space by Lorraine Flaherty. Published by Findhorn Press. RRP £12.99  

Case studies of regression to past lives and the Inner Freedom Therapy author’s own personal biography are documented. Using the story of the Wizard of Oz, we are taken on a journey of healing, to notice obstacles, and discover a greater purpose. We are given exercises: past lives, soul groups, soulmates, cleansing, spirit attachments, karma, reaching our full potential, a fabulous future? 

A great deal is assumed in terms of belief, and it is a highly promotional book with a great deal of confirmation bias - without any evidence - so do I recommend it? If we can be discerning, and keep an open mind, there are areas that are interesting and worth a read. 

Sephirot - The Spheres of Heaven Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Sephirot - The Spheres of Heaven Tarot by author, Georg Hobmeier, and illustrators, Eliot Baum and Viv Tanner. Boxed set of 80 cards and guidebook. Published by Hay House. RRP US $24.99 : Can $33.99 : UK £18.32

Sample card text: Nine of Cups - Love cannot last in a static form. It either transforms and grows anew or perishes. This is the nature of life of all energy in the universe and it is the lesson of the 9 of Cups. While the fountain of love, like edifice of this card, is magnificent, it’s also strangely ephemeral. Eventually we will have to move on. If we don’t stand up and leave this tranquil fountain of our own volition, something or someone will force us. This is the tale of caution, but also hope. Life is motion, and love is life in motion. If the flow is maintained, there will be countless more fountains. We need not cling to this one.  

The Virgin and the Pentacle

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: The Virgin and the Pentacle – The Freemasonic Plot to Destroy the Church by Alan Butler, published by O Books, paperback 192 pages £12.99 

This book opens with describing the vision of the Madonna at La Salette, France, on 19^th September 1846 when two illiterate children (a 14 year old girl and an eleven year old boy) delivered to the church authorities a message of great criticism. The date was strategic as it was the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows (which takes place in the sun sign of Virgo, that of the Virgin). On this date, the planets were aligned in such a way as to be very extraordinary and the place also was very interesting. There are ancient lines throughout France known as ‘salt lines’ often ending in ‘al’ or ‘hal’ meaning ‘salt’. La Salette is on one of these ancient lines. It is stated that when many of the Knights Templar escaped when their order was persecuted, they arrived in Switzerland, Portugal, Scotland and perhaps America, and taking with them their secrets, such as the honouring of Mary as a symbol of Isis, the ancient goddess. The KT had connections to the great Cistercian abbeys, created by St Bernard and possibly they had connections to the Essene Brotherhood which were thought to have influenced Jesus and John the Baptist. 

Transient Light Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Transient Light Tarot by Ari Wisner. Published by Hay House. Boxed set of cards and guidebook. Poetry by Fausta Joly. RRP US $28.99 : Can $35.99 : £19.16

Londoner and queer artist, Ari Wisner’s previous Tarot deck is titled ‘Trinity Tarot’. The the inspiration for this Transient Light Tarot deck is his personal life and in his understanding of transience in circumstances and in life. Using imagery and symbolism, he has made a genderless Tarot where everyone can find themselves, and for this reason the titles of some of the Majors are changed: Revealer, Nurturer, Defender and Proclaimer are examples. The Court Cards are: Apprentice, Champion, Keeper, and Crown and the suits are Wands, Vessels, Swords, and Coins. There are suggestions for ritual and personal practice. 

Old English Tarot

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Card Deck Review: Old English Tarot by Maggie Kneen, 78 cards and instruction booklet in pack, published by U.S. Games Systems Inc.

"Focus your knowledge of the past - and your hopes for the future - on the present moment."

The artist, Maggie Kneen, researched at the British Library, and discovered the Luttrell Psalter written and illuminated in the 14th century by a wealthy landowner. This, and the oldest available tarot card images inspired this beautiful card deck. Peasant life, religious scenes, mythical beasts, musical instruments, transport, fashion and footwear, architecture, kitchen utensils, furniture, harvest scenes are some of the delights in this deck, and the borders and patterns are extremely enjoyable.

The Healing Power of Illness

Mind Body & Soul Ezine Book Review: The Healing Power of Illness - Understanding What Your Symptoms are Telling You by Thorwald Dethlefsen and Dr Rudiger Dahlke. Published by Vega Publishing. RRP US $14.95 : Can $22.95 : UK £9.99 

This is an alternative to allopathic medicine, it looks at illness as though it is a symptom of a psychological condition that carries a message for us. When we change our consciousness, we create greater balance and harmony rather than excess, and the thinking that creates the symptom - that creates illness - will change. All kinds of illnesses are explained, including infection, disease of body organs, even our sexuality, and accidents. We are introduced to thoughts that govern our health, including good and evil, addictions, cancer, etc.