I had this three books which stuck in my mind and soul like no others. I turn to them again and again because….well, because they are so good! Why? Because this books can make you see the magic in life without any fairy tale sprinkles. It is all real, here and now. And this three books can make you understand how and why reality is so magical and so, you can integrate that magic into your life. The description I made them so far makes them sound like children books with unicorns and rainbows. Well, in fact they are about quantum physics, cellular biology, energies, mindfulness and ancient wisdom. But read them and let me know if you didn’t feel the magic!
I strongly believe that any of the three books I will present can actually change your life in better and I highly recommend them.
Let’s begin!
(P.S.: the order of the books is aleatory)
The books are:
The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra
The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton
THIS IS THAT: Patanjali's Yoga Sutras Padas 1 and 2 by Anand Mehrotra
The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra
Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra was exactly the book I was searching for, a book which talks about spirituality and science, searching for common ground between the two. That helped my analytic mind to better understand and incorporate the spiritual eastern knowledge and so to shift my vision over energy and how everything is related and interconnected.
The book is written in a way which makes it relatively easy to follow and understand, even though it talks about quantum physics and gets into details very much. The author succeeds to make himself understood by any person, no matter their background.
Two things that stuck in my mind from this book were the fact that quantum sub-particles are born and die and being transferred from one particle to another constantly, meaning that there is a constant flow and exchange of energy in the Universe, and the other is that space is all what there is; scientists each time they go deeper and deeper into the quantum particles world they find more and more space, just as on macro level, there are far less celestial bodies (planets, stars, etc) than there is space.
The Tao of Physic by Fritjof Capra is a scientific work in which the author creates a beautiful parallel between the ancient eastern teachings and belief systems and the recent discoveries in science and physics. He tracks the evolution and teachings of Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese Thought, Zen and Taoism, of physics from Ancient Greece to nowadays. After explaining them one by one, he then highlights the similarities between them. The main one is that the seer is the seen, meaning that reality depends on the observer, it is relative. This might translate into “your life is as you perceive it to be” or “you got the power!”.
This book helped me see life as energy and as a constant change of energy, perspective which reveals the interconnectivity between everything, objects, persons, thoughts, feelings, words, actions and how each of them has an impact over the others.
For a person as analytical as me, those informations helped to really assimilate the teachings of yoga on the brain level and so now my beliefs come from a place of understanding and true knowledge. I highly recommend this masterpiece book and it’s beautiful way of presenting the mysteries of quantum physics, the wisdom of ancient beliefs and the hidden reality behind everything in this Universe!
The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton
The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton is a very nice, relaxed and funny reading about biology, the micro universe of the cells, the macro universe of the human life and …. (drum rolls)... quantum physics! Yes! Why? Because everything is connected! Lipton, a cellular biology scientist, being also a University professor manages to talk about science in a very friendly, approachable manner. So there is no reason to duck this amazing book. In The Biology of Belief, Lipton takes us in a trip to the cellular world. His passion about the subject can easily be felt throughout his book. He is dissecting the cell, in the search for an answer to the question “Which part of the cell is the brain?” This correlated with a search for the question “Are the genes deciding our faith? If yes, then can allopathic medicine through genetics and the sequencing of the human genome, solve every health problem we have?” Well, I want to scream the answer to you, but I would ruin your reading. But I give you a hint! Everything is connected, changing, evolving.
The book is structured into seven chapters from which the last one is titled “How to be conscious parents”, which addresses parents and how to integrate the book’s teachings into your children education. I find this chapter to be crucially important, because without incorporating the sciences’ discoveries into our day to day life and without passing it further to the next generations, it is useless and a very sad loss.
The other chapters talk about cells, how life appeared on earth and how it developed, how much we have to learn from the earth’s most simple organisms, which is the real brain of the cell, the unknown power of the environment, placebo effect, the immense power of thought, intention and energy and many other interesting topics.
Compared to The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra it is a much easier reading, because it doesn’t go so much into scientific details, keeps it fun and easy to understand basic biology and quantum physics knowledge, and probably also because we are much more familiar to biology than quantum physics, which The Tao of Physics book has as its main topic.
Why should you read this book? The Biology of Belief will make you see and understand the true power that you have over your life, how your beliefs shape your life, how much we have to learn from our environment and how much we depend on it.
THIS IS THAT: Patanjali's Yoga Sutras Padas 1 and 2 by Anand Mehrotra
THIS IS THAT: Patanjali's Yoga Sutras Padas 1 and 2 by Anand Mehrotra is the authors’ interpretation of the famous Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. What makes it special compared to other interpretations is the contemporan approach to this ancient wisdom. Let’s review the Patanjali's Yoga Sutras a little, to understand better the book I am presenting.
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is a collection of 196 sutras which summarizes the yoga system, compiled somewhere between the 4th and the 5th century BCE. Although the sutras are short aphorisms, their meaning is very deep and each sutra can be interpreted differently by every person. The sutras talk about the theoretical and the practical aspect of yoga. Patanjali forms the Ashtanga Yoga system, eight limbs system, form by Yamas, Niyamas, Asanas, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi, a system which is at the base of probably all yoga types present today in the world.
The sutras are split into four chapters, the first one being Samadhi Pada in which says what yoga is and explains what Samadhi is and how it can be attained. Sadhana Pada, de second chapter talks about the practice, about Ashtanga Yoga and Kriya Yoga. Vibhuti Pada, the third chapter talks about the supra-normal powers, siddhi, that a yogi can attain through yoga practices, but Patanjali warns that those powers can become an obstacle for an yogi who wants to reach enlightenment. Kaivalya Pada, the last chapter describes and talks about enlightenment, liberation, moksha.
In THIS IS THAT book, Anand Mehrotra interprets the first two chapters of Yoga Sutras in a radical, transformative way. If you ever listened to Anand Mehrotra you surely know that this is how he is: radical, transformative, destroyer of the victim attitude and the ego. As I read the book I could hear him talking and he is able to transmit through his writing the same energy as he transmits in his talks and classes. What do I mean by that? He can reveal to you you own power, your own infinite potential of being, destroying all your excuses in the most loving and uplifting maner. In THIS IS THAT he makes the ancient yogic knowledge accessible to anyone and relatable to our lives today in the twenty one century. If you are looking for a book which can make you see the beauty of life and also gives you the tools to obtain a more mindful, meaningful, peaceful and loving life, then this is the book for you.
While going through the short aphorisms, Mehrtora presents a new deeper way of interpreting them. He doesn’t stop at the first meaning of the sutras, but he goes into the depths, into the human mind and soul and pulls to the surface the Sutras true wisdom. Many of the sutras can be interpreted only at the level of the body and mind, but yoga does not work for a better body or a better mind. Yoga works for the soul mainly through body and mind. The deep spiritual aspect of yoga is easily overlooked. Anand Mehrotra reveals the spiritual aspect of yoga and Yoga Sutras in a determined, radical, relatable, compassionate and loving method. It is a great book to uplift your spirit any day!
So this are the three books that may change your life. I hope I made you curious and I hope you will read them, all or just one. If you are in the mood for some reality check and magic in the same time this books are what you need!