Books I Love
SACRED PLEASURE: Sex, Myth, and the Politics of the Body | Riane Eisler
An extremely empowering and insightful book that opened my eyes to the depth, complexity, history, and far-reaching implications of living in a patriarchal world. Gloria Steinhem writes, "Sacred Pleasure makes the links between sacralizing pain and justifying war, between child abuse and sado-masochism, between patriarchy and the war of the sexes, between the intimate and the political. Only by sacralizing pleasure can new links be forged to peace, equality, and empathy." This is a really important read.
HEALING OF THE SOUL: Shamanism and Psyche | Ann M. Drake, Psy. DA
A powerful book that helped me to connect more fully with my healing powers and abilities. I hadn't realized that what I was doing in my healing sessions is, essentially, utilizing shamanic practices. Many of my skills started arising spontaneously and naturally, so I didn't necessarily have a framework or terminology for what I was doing. What Ann is talking about and describing in this book really brought it all home for me and helped me better understand the energies and powers I had been working with - so once I had some terminology and framework, it really opened up the flow and took it all to an entirely new level! This is an excellent book for helping to understand the energies of the human experience we are working with on the planet right now - the energetics of the fear, trauma, and mental health issues that are so prevalent. Once we have a framework for our mind to wrap around, the door to healing can swing wide open in a powerful new way. I highly recommend this book to help you tap into the healing power of energy and frequency and moving beyond the strictly Western perception of healing that so many of us have grown up in.
THE BODY KEEPS THE SCORE: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma | Bessel van der Kolk, MD
A super important book that helps us to understand how trauma shapes our experience and how we store trauma in our body, mind, and spirit. It dives into the importance of working with our trauma at so many various levels to bring about the most comprehensive healing. A very helpful read for so many of us who are working with these energies both within ourselves and within the collective. Trauma is soooo freakin' prevalent for so many of us. I think it is important to understand the depth and complexity of its effects on us at the individual and societal levels.
IN SUPPORT OF HEALTHY/DIVINE FEMININE AND MASCULINE:
RETURN OF THE DIVINE FEMININE, RISE OF THE DIVINE MASCULINE: And the Men Who Are Calling for Her Return | Duann Kier
THE POLITICS OF WOMEN'S BODIES: Sexuality, Appearance, and Behavior | Rose Weitz - A Collection of Important Essays
THE MINDFUL MAN: Words from the Earth | Caspar Walsh
TO BE A MAN: A Guide to True Masculine Power | Robert Augustus Masters, PhD
A small collection of books I have found helpful in a number of ways to support both our getting in touch with healthy feminine and masculine energies, as well as recognizing unhealthy feminine and masculine within ourselves. It is important to understand how these energies are at play within ourselves, as we are a blend of both to varying degrees, not simply one or the other. Each book has its own take on the various ways that these energies show up for us and each author has their own powerful wisdom to express. I highly encourage looking around to see what resonates best with you. I tend to pick and choose from a variety of sources as there are so many great views and ideas out there. These are but a few great options to support you on your journey. And if you know of other books that I should include on this list, do please reach out and let me know! Always on the lookout for more great books!
HIGH MAGICK | Damien Echols
I love this book!!! There are so many magick books out there that feel dry and inaccessible. This is written in easy, modern language that flows, empowers, and invites the reader into a rich, fulfilling exploration of the beautiful and enlightening practice of magick as a spiritual path leading one towards Ultimate Love. Damien doesn't talk down to you, he lifts you up, puts it all out there, and trusts in your ability to embrace magick and step fully into your power! The path of magick is an excellent one for gaining mastery of your energy body and utilizing the energies in your environment to align with your Higher Self and grow spiritually. From the inside cover: "Magick is not a path for followers: it is a path for questioners, seekers, and anyone who has trouble settling for dogma and preformulated answers. Magick is for those who feel the desire to peel away the surface of reality and see what lies beneath." Yes please!!!
BREAKING THE HABIT OF BEING YOURSELF: How to Lose Your Mind and Create a New One | Dr. Joe Dispenza
I am so totally all about empowering ourselves to create our own reality with love and positivity - this book strengthens our ability to do so and validates what we have come to know as true for ourselves. We create our reality with our thoughts, behaviors, and mindset. Negativity breeds negativity ~ positivity breeds positivity. It really is that simple. Simple, but not exactly easy to embody and master. It takes work (A LOT OF WORK!!!) to deprogram all of our negative thought processes and habits - this book helps with that!!!! "Once you break the habit of being yourself and truly change your mind, your life will never be the same!" Amen to that!
THE UNIVERSAL CHRIST | Richard Rohr
This is an unbelievably powerful book and I must have highlighted about 75% of it, if not more! Having had an extremely life-changing kundalini rising experience a few years back that showed me the ultimate reality of our existence - that everything is Christ-consciousness and that we are in fact MADE OF LOVE, this book aligns perfectly with what I now know to be true. It is a call to all of us to connect with the Truth of this reality - the Truth of the LOVE that we all have access to when we move beyond the fearful energies that permeate our planet. This book is not about the dogmatic religion that Christianity has turned into. This is about LOVE and I cannot recommend it more highly.
MEN EXPLAIN THINGS TO ME | Rebecca Solnit
Eye-opening and powerful, this book raises awareness of issues women deal with every day that have become so normalized that we don't even think twice about their repercussions or even realize they are happening - but we need to - we absolutely need to! From the inside cover: "Solnit took on what often goes wrong in conversations between men and women. She wrote about men who wrongly assume they know things and wrongly assume women don't, about why this arises, and how this aspect of the gender wars works, airing some of her own hilariously awful encounters. She ends on a serious note - because the ultimate problem is the silencing of women who have something to say, including those saying things like, "He's trying to kill me!"
THE BOOK OF STONES: Who They Are and What They Teach | Robert Simmons & Naisha Ahsian
This is the most in-depth, thorough, and inclusive book I have found on gemstones. These are powerful energies that have been unbelievably transformative, healing, and truly life-changing for us. If you are interested in acquiring a huge set of super powers, I highly recommend picking up this book and start working with these amazing beings now. The thorough index makes it easy to find the perfect stone for any purpose. They will support your body, mind, and spirit in profound ways. Get ready to level up! This book is a must-have for crystal and stone enthusiasts at any level - beginner to advanced!
WAY OF THE SUPERIOR MAN: A Spiritual Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Women, Work, and Sexual Desire | David Deida
A must read for both men and women! This book helped me understand myself like I never had before...and it's written by a man! This guy has unbelievable insight into women and will help you to connect more fully and authentically to your healthy masculine energy. Raising our vibrations for sure! His writing style does rub some people the wrong way and I'll admit that some of what he says makes me cringe a bit, but I still recommend it highly. Take what you like and leave the rest!
THE RETURN OF THE FEMININE AND THE WORLD SOUL | Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
Sufi teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee deep dives into the imbalance of masculine/feminine energies in our current lived experience and the serious need to reconnect with and embrace feminine energies to bring about much-needed balance and change. An important element of his teaching is the need for women to move beyond anger, blame and victim-consciousness, to reclaim their power, rise up and be the change they so desperately need. He explores the depth and complexity of feminine energy within both men and women, offering profound insight and supporting our exploration of how these energies show up in the collective and in each of us individually - both their wounded aspects, as well as their empowered ones. Women are in a very special position to bring balance, union, and harmony - men are in the special position of stepping back, holding space, and supporting the feminine to do the vital work she is here to do. This is a powerful read! Highly recommended!
FREE DOWNLOADABLE BOOKLET!
13 WAYS THE WOUNDED FEMININE ARCHETYPE IS SABOTAGING YOUR RELATIONSHIPS ~ AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT?
Start your healing journey today! Gain powerful insight into how the unconscious grief and inherited trauma of the Wounded Feminine may be wreaking havoc In your relationships! And learn what you can do about it! Break free from unhealthy relationship patterns, low sense of self-worth, lack of confidence, and fear of being yourself, of following your heart, and being in your power.