Cygnus Review - Spring 2022 Issue

Spring 2022, Issue 2

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Cygnus Review HEAL YOUR BODY ❖ FEED YOUR SOUL ❖ FREE YOUR MIND ❖ LOVE YOUR PLANET

Secrets from a Herbalist’s Garden An Article and New Book from Herbalist and Druid Jo Dunbar

Connect with the Energy of the Findhorn Spirit Oracle Cards New Insights into Reiki for Self-Care

Plus!

❖ Reflections on the Life of

Thich Nhat Hanh ❖ Judy Piatkus on her Life in Publishing ❖ Scanned - A Report on the New Surveillance ❖ The Book of Celtic Verse ❖ Directory of Cygnus Cafes

EDITOR’S LETTER

In the Steps of Thich Nhat Hanh

T

he Buddhist monk and teacher Thich Nhat Hanh passed away in January.

He was 95 years old, and he lived a very productive life, so it’s not an occasion for sorrow. Many of us will miss him but he left his body of work with us a long time ago. I saw him speak many times; once I had managed to tune in to his heavilyaccented, quiet voice, I didn’t hear any great revelations from him and his talk contained no major turning points for me. Of course the effect would have been different if he was teaching in a monastic setting, but this was a large set-piece event in a prestigious London location.

We were there though to be in his presence and appreciate his energy, and that’s what I took away with me.

He left behind many books with his name on the spine, which are not diminished because he is not in his physical body anymore. The Miracle of Mindfulness was published in the seventies, and when I started becoming interested in spiritual material, it was the only mainstream book on that subject, along with plenty of specialist Buddhist titles.

He didn’t make mindfulness into the massive global phenomenon it is today: it would take a whole book to untangle that story. However, he was always its Buddhist magnetic

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north, as mindfulness itself steadily became detached from its Buddhist roots. Many people have benefitted from it, but you could also say that it has become a tool of “the system”, maybe even a palliative, whereby we can’t expect society to help us but must rely on ourselves and our own inner resources.

As I get older, the people who were my spiritual heroes are dying on a regular basis. Previously on these pages I have mentioned Wayne Dyer and Ram Dass, as well as Thich Nhat Hanh today. That’s just age and physics I guess – nothing remarkable.

Even though we are told sometimes that we are “all one”, it’s paradoxical then that the spiritual movement revolves around these names, these big figures with their particular personalities. For that reason, they stay with us on the journey, and when they live in our memory their energy remains strong, as does their power to teach and influence us.

Being with people physically is so important and this has been made clear in the pandemic. You don’t pick up so well with the energy of someone on a computer or phone screen. I think it’s very important now – while taking every precaution we feel is sensible – to be with people and to feel that loving and joyful energy of a fellow human. It will help us navigate away from what has been a nightmare for many people.

Even though we are outwardly living the life we did before the pandemic, I think inside our minds it’s like a devastated wasteland.

Time will heal the trauma and bad memories, but in the meantime we need to do all we can not to slip further into negativity. It’s more important than ever to do that inner work, to remember who we are and where we come from.

A Cygnus member reminded me of the words of Teresa of Avila: “May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.”

“It’s more important than ever to do that inner work, to remember who we are and where we come from..”

Things have happened recently that you wouldn’t have dreamt of five years ago, including now a new war in Europe. However, if fantastically bad things can happen, so can fantastically good ones. They are just as likely. It’s not meant to be easy, but we must keep faith in that something greater, even when we are not getting any clear signs or proof. I think now that I used to believe it was meant to feel easy, and that if it didn’t feel easy, we somehow had to improve ourselves.

But that’s changed: our strong efforts make the connection stronger and we need to cultivate a quiet inner sense of peace and trust. And we need to keep tirelessly working, like Thich Nhat Hanh, because it’s worth it.

Adam

MEET THE TEAM Publisher

Etan Ilfeld

Editor

Adam Gordon

Head of Design

Karen Smith

with thanks to Glen Wilkins Head of Sales

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Reviews

Adam Gordon Emma Thackara

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READING SPRING TIME HERBS BY JO DUNBAR

A

very ancient system, known as The Doctrine of Signatures is built upon the belief plants are nature’s medicine, and that God marked each plant with a signature, so that we will know how to use it. Food examples include sliced carrots which look like eyes, and indeed, carrots are rich in vitamin A, critical to maintaining a clear cornea. Sliced mushrooms look like ears, and are rich in vitamin D, needed to maintain hearing and even reduce tinnitus.

Amongst herbs, we often see similar correlations. At this time of year, the banks are painted in the vibrant yellow of Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna, or Ranunculus ficaria) flowers with their radiant glittering petals. Also known as Pilewort, you can see the signature when you dig up the roots, which accurately describe the shape of piles (haemorrhoids). The root is rich in tannins, which tighten over stretched tissues. In the past, Lesser Celandine was made into an ointment for applying to the suffering area.

A pretty little cottage plant called Lungwort (Pulmonia officinalis) is covered in a myriad of tiny hairs, just like the hair-like cilia that we find in the bronchi of our lungs.

For generations, lungwort was boiled in milk, and drunk to alleviate pneumonia.

One of our favourite childhood plants, Goosegrass (Gallium aparine), is valued by Medical Herbalists for detoxing the lymphatic system. This system, made up of a series of long vessels, interspersed by clusters of nodules, strains debris from the lymphatic fluid before it is drained into the blood stream. Gallium itself is a watery plant, of a long and spindly nature, with nodes at distant intervals – just like the lymphatic system. In the past, women would collect a double handful of this plant and wrap it into a mat.

The hairs on the plant would hook together and form a sieve which separated curds from whey.

Nettle (Urtica dioica) is a well-known denizen of wild places. I always see this plant as a fierce protector of the more

delicate plants, and when I am collecting herbs, I know that I need to move on when nettle buzzes me. It is the sting which is her signature. The name Nettle comes from the Anglo-Saxon name “Noedl”, which means needle. Those needles inject histamine and formic acid into the skin, producing the painful rash that we all know. However, nettle is one of the best herbs to use in the case of urticaria. It is a natural anti-histaminic, and a blood cleanser, helping to remove the offending molecules which cause the rash, whilst at the same time reducing the histamine reaction.

Willow (Salix alba) is one of the first trees to break bud, and always heralds spring. She likes to grow in damp and boggy areas, and it is her choice of place which is the signature in this case. Willow, rich in salicylates, is a highly valued anti-inflammatory herb, used for generations to ease the pain and stiffness of arthritis, particularly arthritis triggered by cold and damp conditions.

With our beloved Elder, the signature is in the time of year. In May, she bursts forth with a froth of creamy flowers covering the countryside. Of course, this is also the time when the pollen count is very high, and streaming noses and itchy watery eyes can ruin our early summer days. The elder flower has amazing anti-inflammatory effects on our mucous membranes, and simply popping an inflorescence into a cup of boiling water can effectively stop hay fever symptoms for several hours. It is so effective that I find it equal to over-thecounter antihistamines.

In the early autumn, just when the viruses start doing their rounds, the berries are ripe and ready to be picked.

These plump juicy deep blue berries are rich in vitamin C, and have exceptional anti-viral properties, being able to prevent the binding and entry of the virus into the cell.

The Doctrine of Signatures is not scientific, but it is fun. It encourages us to get out into nature and spend time observing it more closely. When we combine observation and knowledge, this system can at the very least serve as a pleasing memory prompt.

Secrets from a Herbalist’s Garden

SECRETS FROM A HERBALIST’S GARDEN by Jo Dunbar

Essential Spring reading

Jo is an experienced herbalist with a thriving practice in the South of England. She previously wrote the award-winning Spirit of the Hedgerow and she is also a practising Druid. She is wholeheartedly committed to plant wisdom and to the health and vitality of nature. This book is full of remedies, recipes, spiritual wisdom and orthodox science. In these times when we are having to fall back on our own resources more, the wisdom here encourages us in our self-sufficiency and our own capability for treating ourselves in both mind and body. All the familiar plants are there like mugwort, vervain, garlic, rosemary and nettles and there are remedies for headaches, skin complaints, nausea and aching joints. It’s presented like a much-loved almanac with line-drawings and plenty of folklore and anecdotes.

224pp, 200 x 145 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320153 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50 - DUE EARLY MAY!

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BOOK REVIEWS – Self Help DRIVE YOUR OWN DARN BUS

by Julia Kristina

HAPPY DAYS by Gabrielle Bernstein

“It’s all in your head” is a statement that we all rail against when we are stressed and worried. We feel somehow that it’s not, and that if we can just get a few things sorted everything will be fine. Except that it never seems to be. This book is a revelation, it will guide you through why a lot of the issues you may be struggling with - anxiety, second-guessing, trying to please everyone, taking things too personally, self-doubt, to name just a few - are made considerably worse because you have preconceived ways of perceiving problems and it’s these that lead to emotional meltdown. The author shows you how to address these preconceptions and overcome them, helping you to become the driver of your own emotions, thoughts and behaviours and push away the negative sensations that have been affecting your life.

Gabrielle has become a real spiritual giant.

As she has got older her wisdom has become deeper but she still has that “everyday” touch. We are learning more and more about trauma and inner disorders nowadays that are stopping us from expressing ourselves as the human beings we truly are. It’s a book about “unlearning fear”, as she puts it. It’s a book for young people at turning-points in their lives and who need a bit of inspiration to get them started on sorting themselves out. She helps you find a vision for your life. It’s inspiring to hear how she put her self-destructive behaviours behind her and brave to read her stories of how messed-up she still was even though she was already giving high-profile spiritual talks and workshops. It’s a great book for anyone whose struggles with everyday living are stopping them from living their best life.

224pp, 216 x 137 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

248pp, 223 x 144 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £18.99

EMBRACE YOUR POWER

by Louise Hay

THE UPGRADE by Louann Brizendine

“Inside of you is a smart, powerful, dynamic, capable, self-confident, alive, alert, fabulous woman.” This message from Louise Hay sums up what she wants us to be, and indeed what we can be. She uses the word woman here but is not dismissive of the equally important needs of men to break free of the expectations that hinder them as much as women, but ultimately this book is for women. It examines all the areas of life that can inform our behaviour and shows how to look out for negative influences, with wise and approachable advice on addressing our own self-esteem, health, sexuality and financial issues. The book includes extra resources, plus a list of books by, and for, empowered women.

It is a personal, thoughtful and comprehensive guide on being the best woman you can be.

At last, someone has reshaped the way women should look at the phases of the menopause (which she has re-named Transition to rid it of its male-centric descriptors), and not be afraid, but energised! Psychiatrist Louann Brizendine has spent most of her professional years treating and talking to women, and thereby developing an in-depth understanding of what happens to us both emotionally and physically as we move through Transition.

She is a scientist, so takes some time to inform us about our hormones, chemicals and the female brain and their role throughout our lives, from our fertile years through to post-Transition where in essence they switch off and we are set free. No more will they dominate our decision-making processes so we will find ourselves in a place where we can really grow into our wisdom, strength and resilience.

160pp, 178 x 127 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £8.99

336pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

YOU JUST NEED TO BELIEVE IT

by Andrea McLean

BEYOND SEX AND SOUP

by Anna Parkinson

240pp, 214 x 138 x 214 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

288pp, 217 x 141 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £13.99

❖ Code: 320150 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

❖ Code: 320115 ❖ Non-Member Price: £6.65 ❖ Member Price: £5.99

Andrea McLean gave up a six figure salary in the middle of the recent Pandemic to follow her dream. A bit bonkers you might think, and so did she, but she survived and thrived, and has written this guide to show us how we too can overcome our fears and do the things we’ve always wanted to do. More than that, it’s also a self-help book, giving us tools to believe in ourselves as well as our ambitions, to do away with doubt, break negative patterns, get organised and unlock courage.

All this over a 10-day programme, where Andrea gives us one thing to focus on each day, each of which breaks down barriers and builds up confidence. Definitely a book to try if you feel locked in the wrong life and dissatisfied with yourself and everything around you. ❖ Code: 320111 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

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❖ Code: 320122 ❖ Non-Member Price: £13.32 ❖ Member Price: £11.99

❖ Code: 320119 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

“Understanding the uniqueness of your reality, what is shared and what is different, can free you to live your life to the fullest, in a way that is fruitful, healthy and happy”. Anna Parkinson describes her understanding of healing as being a process, both logical and mystical, aided by invisible tools that we can discover and use to heal ourselves. Having become a healer after being diagnosed with a brain tumour, she has plenty of experiences to share, and in this book she also lays out a practical approach to healing that is approachable and easy to follow. Touching on the physical, emotional, spiritual and practical, her book draws on wisdom from religious figures through to doctors, so you feel you are in good hands. ❖ Code: 320126 ❖ Non-Member Price: £11.10 ❖ Member Price: £9.99

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THE BIRTH OF THE FINDHORN SPIRIT ORACLE CARDS BY SWAN TREASURE

J

ust after the Co-Creative Spirituality Conference in 2018, intuitive artist Deborah Koff-Chapin offered a touchdrawing workshop at Findhorn.

To be able to be there I had to move mountains. I surely didn’t know about the scope of the plan that spirit had in store for me this time: I just knew I had to be there, at that place, at that time, and that my answer was “Yes”, a full-hearted, fully-embodied “Yes”! I trusted that.

After a brief introduction to touch-drawing I begun to paint using my hands and fingernails instead of brushes. This was all new to me, but the images kept flowing onto the paper one after the other as if a stream of energy was passing through my body and moving it. We were blessed to have the studio available at night-time too and that was mostly when the energy that you now see visually expressed in the cards came through.

In the following days I showed the drawings to some friends and it became apparent that some of the pictures stood out as particularly alive.

My next step was to sit with some of them in meditation, in the sanctuaries and in the gardens of the Findhorn community; it was then that I began to clearly hear the voices of the spirit guides who introduced themselves as an alliance of spirit beings that forms the “Oracle of Findhorn”.

A year or so later, Covid struck and I was then visiting my mother in Italy which meant I couldn’t leave the country nor indeed the house and therefore I had plenty of time at my disposal. So Spirit sent me a gentle reminder in the form of my publisher friend’s e-mail asking “what happened with that idea of sharing these paintings in the form of a card deck?

Now would be a good time….”

A fully flowering “Yes” resounded from my soul, which brought me back to Findhorn as soon as I could and saw me writing through the lockdowns, being so uplifted by the light of the Findhorn spirit oracle alliance that I experienced this introspective time as a great blessing.

Each spirit guide depicted in the

What does it take to co-create with Spirit? cards had a lot to say, somehow in its own language, so it took patience to distil the essential words exactly as you can now read them in the booklet accompanying the cards. Each picture you see in the cards is actually a blueprint of a vibrational being of light who was able to transmit its essence in a way as close to our human understanding as possible. By tuning into them you can intentionally open a channel of communication with the spirit beings of the Findhorn Oracle and over time establish a relationship with them fostering a beneficial

energetic alignment. Every card also comes with a suggested spiritual practice to facilitate the grounding of its energy. I have learned over the years that when working with powerful energetic fields it is important to let my spirit fly while keeping my feet firmly on the Earth.

The structure of the deck follows the universal movements of the shamanic medicine wheel to invite a spiritual practice that honours the interconnectedness of life where everything – the seen and the unseen worlds – has its place and unique value in a harmonious system. My intention in co-creating the Findhorn spirit oracle has been and still is that these cards would facilitate an inner connection with each of the depicted spirit beings and the human embodiment of the qualities or spiritual values they bring through, in service to a kinder and more balanced society.

This deck is also my offer of love to thank the wonderful people of the Findhorn community who are walking the spiritual path day in day out, and particularly Dorothy Maclean, pioneer and co-founder of this place, who began consciously communicating with nature spirits all those years ago. And if you have read this far, most probably the Findhorn Spirit Oracle Cards have also been co-created for you.

To see more about my work please visit: swantreasure.com

FINDHORN SPIRIT ORACLE CARDS by Swan Treasure Most of us are familiar with the Findhorn community and the amazing energies there. It’s a place of learning and reconciliation where the gardens grow abundantly and the devas communicate with the people there. What if you could appreciate and use some of those energies wherever you are? Here is your chance with this amazing deck of 44 cards brought through by someone who has lived in that magical location for 10 years. Each card depicts a spirit being and carries a message from them - a longer message is in the accompanying book. The cards are called, for example, Awakening, Conception, Abundance and Victory and the pictures on them are naive, mysterious and mystical. They follow the direction of the medicine wheel and will assist us in deepening our connection with the divine.

Spiritu

W

al discov ONDE R ery is a love affair wit

h life.

GENEROSITY

Be generous with yourself.

Life is a gift.

INITIATION

REJUVENATION

Attend to the light in your eyes and the fire in your spirit.

Your fire is on, cherish it, tend to it.

160pp, 140 x 102 mm, Boxed Set inc. Paperback and 44 full-colour cards, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320149 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

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BOOK REVIEWS – Deeper Spirituality THE DISCIPLE by Feroze Dada

In an account that is rich with description and illuminating storytelling, Feroze Dada tells the tale of his life as he travels around the world meeting and learning from various amazing encounters. His account begins at Mother Mary’s House in Ephesus, and continues via beautiful locations like Assisi, the Giza Pyramids and an orphanage he has been running in Myanmar/Burma. The author was born a Muslim and his main teacher is a Sufi, but the book also finds room for plentiful stories and parables from many traditions, some the reader will be familiar with. It makes for an enjoyable odyssey that rattles along quickly and without any effort. It concludes with the Covid lockdown and the author reflecting on how this feels like a fresh start for him and for humanity. It’s very enjoyable.

Gian Kumar has written a book to help us see beyond our preconceptions - reliance on religion and paying lip service to spiritualism - using both philosophy and science to demonstrate how we can awaken the soul that contains our spirit. His message is clear, we must rise above our cognitive senses and not be led by our mind, because while our brain drives us, the spirit is absolute, aware energy entrapped in our soul and if we set this free, we will realise our place in the universe. His book leads us in the pursuit of experiencing sheer observation (being a witness) in the form of absolute non-dual energy, but first we must work to reform our ideas of how to exist, lose our reliance on the brain and our ego and work hard at finding the way to allow our soul to break free.

208pp, 197 x 130 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.00

240pp, 216 x 135 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

FLOWERING INTO AWARENESS

by Pathik Strand

WETIKO by Paul Levy

❖ Code: 320134 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

This series of essays on the nature of reality is a timely read. With our world troubled by war, environmental meltdown, and global greed and suffering, we need to remind ourselves that we don’t need to be living like this and take a moment to think about how we can change ourselves and everything around us. The author calls his book a spiritual manifesto which deftly describes his passionate description of the philosophy of universal consciousness and how we all need to rethink our understanding of the ego before we can hope for peace on earth. He details what he believes to be the root causes of mankind’s problems and his vision of a way out of them to peace and harmony in an inspiring and straightforward way, making this an approachable and life-changing read.

❖ Code: 320117 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

Wetiko is a Native American concept relating to an evil spirit taking over someone’s mind to encourage negative behaviour, both individually and collectively. This fascinating book - the author’s second on the subject - raises some fascinating issues, whether you take the concept of Wetiko metaphorically or literally. In talking about Wetiko we can defuse it because it doesn’t thrive if it’s genuinely held up to the light. The author looks at artists, writers and other visionary thinkers who have tackled the subject, like CG Jung, Colin Wilson and Philip K Dick, and again by reading what they have to say about it, we too can dispel this contagious virus. It’s easy to read and almost refreshing in the way that it gets straight to the point. There’s no doubt that there’s a kind of soul sickness in humanity and maybe it’s easier if we can call out evil for what it is.

336pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £16.99

208pp, 217 x 140 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £11.99

❖ Code: 320136 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

GAIA ALCHEMY by Stephan Harding

RECENTERING SETH

by John Friedlander

❖ Code: 320128 ❖ Non-Member Price: £9.98 ❖ Member Price: £8.99

Stephan is a scientist, has a Ph.D in behavioural ecology and is one of the founders of Schumacher College in Devon.

He is also guided by his dreams and visions and this book is full of anecdotes about lessons he has learned and encounters he has had on other levels. As you can tell from the title, he is continuing the work of the great James Lovelock, while one of his interior guides is CG Jung. Thomas Moore calls this book “a beautiful blueprint for transforming contemporary knowledge and returning soul to our planet”.

Much of the transformation is done through alchemy and he explores many of the ancient and enigmatic engravings from that tradition, to consider what they might offer today when we are all looking to transform society. 320pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320141 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

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THE THIRD EYE: AWAKENING YOUR TRUE SELF by Gian Kumar

This is a very full-on, intense and wildly fascinating book, taken from the transcripts of a number of talks the author gave, mostly based around the Seth teachings. Seth, as many of you might know, is a wise channelled entity who spoke through Jane Roberts. The books that came out of these teachings were very popular and they show an intelligence and profundity that you rarely find in any other spiritual books. I read a couple and they were quite mind-blowing. The author has now tried to reformulate these teachings and has combined them with a whole load of other esoteric subjects like aura reading and Buddhism. I think the Seth books have a lot to offer, so a book like this which contextualises them and reformulates them is invaluable.

448pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320137 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

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AHEAD OF HER TIME BY JUDY PIATKUS

O

ne of our home-grown authors in the mind, body, spirit field, Soozi Holbeche, was an expert on healing with crystals and semi-precious stones. A beautiful and elegant Englishwoman, who always looked as if she would be at home at a Buckingham Palace garden party, Soozi had built up a following and gave regular workshops. Susan, an enthusiastic editor who had recently joined the company and who was interested in this area, encouraged us to commission Soozi’s first book, The Power of Gems and Crystals, and I read it at proof stage and found it very interesting. What I didn’t realize was that it had been given to me to read without the introductory chapter, which Soozi hadn’t yet delivered.

The book was due to be published in the autumn of 1990 and I read it a few months before then while lying on the sofa in my office. Cyril and I had been learning to play golf and in our final lesson I’d swung round too enthusiastically with the golf club. It was to be a movement that changed my life. I felt an ache for a couple of days and then we went to the cinema one evening and I sat still for two hours. The next morning I woke up and could not move. I could hardly walk the few steps to the bathroom, I was in such pain…

It was and has been the most painful injury of my life so far, and the healing process went on for several months.

It was suggested to me that Soozi might be able to help my back to heal, so I made an appointment with her. By then, I was able to travel in a cab to her small flat in Kew. There were beautiful crystals on every surface. It felt very soothing. She invited me to lie down on the spotless white bedspread in her bedroom and began to tell me what she would do.

Because I hadn’t read the first chapter of her book, I

hadn’t realized that Soozi, as well as working with crystals, was also an expert in past-life regression therapy.

I was about to be regressed to look at my past lives in order to find out why I had such severe back pain. It was a shock to discover what was about to happen, but because I was her publisher – supposed to know what she did and had written about – I couldn’t admit to it. Obediently, I closed my eyes and Soozi began a guided meditation which took me back into a previous life.

After an hour, the experience ended. Soozi had regressed me to three separate lives and she had given me a healing meditation to help me get well. She was not only trying to heal my physical pain but also some of my childhood wounds. During the experience, I saw myself as a male leader of men centuries ago, perhaps somewhere in Scandinavia – I was dressed as I imagined a Viking would be – and I had not behaved as a leader should. I had also had very different, contrasting lives in Egypt, where I had been a pampered princess in one and an outcast in another. We discussed whether and how these experiences might be impacting on my present life.

Soozi included meditation and visualization in her session to enable me to begin to make a full recovery from not only the physical pain with my back but also the emotional issues with my parents, which had affected so much of how I had experienced my life up until that time.

She explained to me about our souls and our spirits, our past lives and our karma. All this was a lot to take in, yet it felt very powerful and interesting.

It was as if a door had opened for me to a completely new way of seeing and experiencing the world. It was going to take some time to absorb and I hoped it would help to make me well. I went home and wrote up everything I could remember so that I could reflect on the experience in the weeks and months ahead.

A Healing on Every Level

AHEAD OF HER TIME by Judy Piatkus

Essential Spring reading

Judy Piatkus is a great friend of Cygnus and of the spiritual community here in general. Read here her amazing story and how she became a renowned publisher. She did not come from a monied background and began her career as a secretary. By the time she founded Piatkus Books from her spare bedroom, she was married with a disabled small daughter and pregnant with her second child. Gradually she learned how to be both a publisher and a managing director and to combine that with her family life as she had by then become a single mother of 3. Throughout the book Judy describes her learning experience as an entrepreneur, what it really means to run a company, the many triumphs and the pitfalls, what worked and what didn’t, how the company learned to reinvent itself through lean times and how it felt to finally strike gold.

224pp, 224 x 141 x 224, Hardback, 2021, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320152 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

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BOOK REVIEWS – Magic and Shamanism SHAMANIC CREATIVITY

by Evelyn C Rysdyk

Evelyn is an important author because she really knows what she is writing about and her teachings are based on deep knowledge and learning. Her previous books include The Norse Shaman, and this title carries quotes by contemporary masters like Sandra Ingerman and Itzhak Beery. It’s full of simple exercises influenced by shamanism that will enhance our creative energy. She’s not trying to make us shamans, but instead she is trying to make us think and act differently to help us break through in various ways, by boosting our right brain, engaging in rituals and reprogramming the subconscious.

Many exercises come close to what we might call magic in the West – it’s fascinating to consider the relationship between them. The whole book feels like an approachable and encouraging way to reinvigorate your life.

256pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320138 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

THE TRIPLE GODDESS

by Rachel Patterson

Whether you are involved in Wicca or not, the Triple Goddess is a very useful concept. Her three aspects are the maiden, the mother, and the crone, and the tradition can be traced back to Ancient Greece. The Triple Goddess represents many things such as birth, life, death and the phases of the moon, waxing, full and waning. It gives us a productive way to think about our own lives too and their phases; it can help us evolve and understand our own pathway through life and reconcile us to ageing and other life changes. It’s important to remember also that the Goddess is for everyone, whatever their gender, and that we can think of these figures in a masculine way if we wish. And, in the end, who needs labels anyway? The author gives examples of this triad from across history and location, plus rituals for connecting with the Triple Goddess.

Cygnus is embedded in Wales, even if the books are no longer sent from there. This book isn’t just for witches but can appeal to anyone interested in Welsh folklore and culture.

Written by a Welsh practitioner, it shares the magical traditions of the land of the red dragon, exploring deities, fairies, folklore, charms, plants, and magic with dozens of exercises for hands-on practice. You can explore the history and terminology of Welsh magic and methods for honouring the land, and learn to connect with Cerridwen, Rhiannon, and other deities as well as fairies and mystical creatures. Anyone can easily incorporate traditional Welsh folk magic into their modern spiritual practice, with exercises for honouring those who came before, connecting with the spirit of your home, protecting against adversity and malignant spirits, changing the weather, and much more.

288pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £15.99

❖ Code: 320133 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

THE WISDOM WHEEL

by Alberto Villoldo

Alberto Villoldo is an experienced teacher who has been working with indigenous sages in South America for decades. We can trust him, I think, to bring through genuine teachings.

The four directions of the Medicine Wheel are an important concept and here he takes a fresh and detailed look at them. This is a time when I think the Mesoamerican beliefs and practices are especially important in bringing us forward into better times and this book shows us how to become Earthkeepers. There are exercises and rituals that look rewarding and interesting, plus, as ever with this author, lots of stories to help the narrative along. It’s not a big book, but it’s entertaining and optimistic. At its heart is the author’s account of a mystical journey into the Himalaya in Nepal.

216pp, 216 x 135 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £18.99

128pp, 216 x 140 mm, Paperback, 2021, RRP £6.99

❖ Code: 320120 ❖ Non-Member Price: £13.32 ❖ Member Price: £11.99

THE WAY OF ABUNDANCE AND JOY

by Shirley Blancke

YOUR MAGICKAL YEAR

by Melinda Lee Holm

❖ Code: 320127 ❖ Non-Member Price: £5.54 ❖ Member Price: £4.99

Don Alberto Taxo is one of the most celebrated shamans in the Americas. He is also a spiritual elder and healer from the Atik people of the Andes in Ecuador. For 20 years he has taught in the United States, as well as other places, in an attempt to fulfill the ancient prophecy that the Eagle and the Condor will fly together, as the relationship between North and South America was described in legend. There’s a bit of biography in there but the book mostly consists of don Alberto’s words and descriptions of his work. On top of that, there are experiential accounts from students and clients of his of the teaching he has done or the healings they have undergone. Everyone agrees that these are the teachers we need to listen to and learn from in these challenging times.

272pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320139 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

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WELSH WITCHCRAFT

by Mhara Starling

I really like this book, although it is introductory.

It’s perfect for anyone who wants to start a spiritual practice in an earth-based tradition.

They can use it to develop their own unique path or to get going and then move into another already existing tradition. Or just for someone who wants to get rhythm and discipline going in their spiritual life. Because it’s published by Cico, it’s excellent value - it’s a large format hardback which lays flat very easily when it opens and has a lot of gentle colour drawings. It gives you rituals for the new moons and full moons in every month, along with tarot and lots of other astrological tips. You can then add the Celtic festivals if you wish, along with other celebrations unique to you, and then you have your own practice. Great for anyone who wants to dip their toe into paganism.

160pp, 235 x 190 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320107 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

BOOK YOUR AD TODAY ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Email: advertising@cygnus-books.co.uk ❖ More information: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/advertising

BOOK OF CELTIC VERSE BY JOHN MATTHEWS

C

eltic poetry tends to come from the edges, both literally and metaphorically, from the places where people have taken refuge from a more dominant or aggressive race, class or regime.

Here are two poems from a newly reissued anthology, available in a pocket-sized hardback, that I chose to be representative of the book. Celtic writing is at ease with spirit and deep inner matters, and with travel and wandering. These poems seem to emerge mysteriously from the mists, before they sink back away out of sight.

Adam

Taliesin’s Nature Not of mother nor of father was my creation.

I was made from the ninefold elements – From fruit trees, from paradisal fruit.

From primroses and hill-flowers, From the blossom of trees and bushes.

From the roots of the earth was I made, From the broom and the nettle, From the water of the ninth wave.

Math enchanted me before I was made immortal, Gwydion created me with his magic wand.

From Emrys and Euryon, from Mabon and Modron, From five fifties of magicians was I made – Made by the master in his highest ecstasy – By the wisest of druids before the world began.

I know star-knowledge from the beginning of Time.

TALIESIN (6TH CENTURY)

THE BOOK OF CELTIC VERSE edited by John Matthews

Two Poems from a Rich Tradition Ode We are the music-makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams, Wandering by lone sea-breakers, And sitting by desolate streams; World-losers and world-forsakers, On whom the pale m oon gleams; Yet we are the movers and shaker Of the world forever, it seems.

With wonderful deathless ditties We build up the world’s great cities, And out of a fabulous story We fashion an empire’s glory.

One man with a dream, at pleasure Shall go forth and conquer a crown, And three with a new song’s measure Can trample an empire down.

This gem of a book brings you the best of what Celtic verse is so resonant with - love, nature, war, spells and spiritual connection - drawn from more than 15 centuries of writing. John Matthews, an expert on Celtic lore, has only chosen poems by authors who have close ties or strong roots in Celtic culture, and it shows. From Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band through to Amairgin from the 2nd century BC via AE and Sir Walter Scott, the coverage of contributors is extensive, and the choice of poems a delight. The book is also split into parts that represent a subject matter - spells, war, love, nature and the spirit - so you can read the poems from start to finish or in chunks as your mood dictates. This book is the sort of thing you’d buy as a present then end up keeping for yourself.

256pp, 192 x 129 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320155 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

We, in the ages lying In the buried past of the earth, Built Nineveh with our sighing, And Babel itself with our mirth; And o’erthrew them with prophesying To the old of the new world’s worth; For each age is a dream that is dying, Or one that is coming to birth.

ARTHUR O’SHAUGHNESSY (1844 – 1881)

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BOOK REVIEWS – Crystals and Atlantis THE CHINTAMANI CRYSTAL MATRIX

by Johndennis Govert and Hapi Hara

ENERGY CLEANSING CRYSTALS

by Judy Hall

384pp, 241 x 168 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £25.00

160pp, 234 x 163 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

THE EMPIRES OF ATLANTIS

by Marco M Vigato

THE MODERN GUIDE TO CRYSTAL CHAKRA HEALING by Philip Permutt

416pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £19.99

160pp, 234 x 190 x 234 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

This is a nice heavy and large-format book printed on thick paper and full of colour photographs, drawings and diagrams.

It’s an interesting variant on our usual crystal titles because it takes an historical approach and delves through legends and true accounts to discuss the Chintimani, the wish-fulfilling jewel known in many cultures as the stone that grants your heart’s desires. The book goes on to explain that there are three types of Chintimani: the stone that’s known from myth, certain historical power gems from history like the Koh-i-Noor diamond that’s fixed in the British crown jewels and a multidimensional field that we can all activate to manifest our intentions. There are specific practices in the book to help with this.

It’s a fascinating text which is not just for crystal fans. ❖ Code: 320142 ❖ Non-Member Price: £17.76 ❖ Member Price: £15.99

I think it’s good every once in a while to include an “ancient civilizations” title in Cygnus, and this is a good one. It’s fascinating and fun and I think it’s relevant with the Stonehenge exhibition now on at the British Museum. Who we are now is closely related to what humanity achieved in the past. There are all these incredible buildings around the world whose complexity and technical sophistication don’t fit the conventional timeline. So when did Atlantean civilization start and what were its ebbs and flows? I find it exciting to consider that Atlantean survivors then went on to found other civilizations elsewhere on the planet, from Gobekli Tepe to the Mayas and from Egypt to the Druids in the British Isles. The book is full of colour photos, drawings, charts and maps and it’s an easy read. Definitely a book to invest in if you enjoy this kind of history. ❖ Code: 320145 ❖ Non-Member Price: £13.88 ❖ Member Price: £12.50 - DUE EARLY MAY!

This beautifully refreshed version of Judy Hall’s Earth Blessings brings us a comprehensive guide to crystals and how to use them. It’s also a visual treat. The book covers the use of crystals to improve your personal energy and the energy around your home and office, but also how to help environmental healing using crystals. Here Judy describes how we can help to detoxify the planet, create harmony, improve water quality and even address traumas and political unrest. There is also a comprehensive directory of some of Judy’s favourite crystals, each with a guide to their healing energies and a colour photograph to use if you don’t have the crystal itself. Capped off with useful glossary and resource sections, this is a must-have book for anyone interested in crystals. ❖ Code: 320159 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

This was first published in 2009 as The Complete Guide to Crystal Chakra Healing and is a lovely and bright guide to healing using crystals and the energetic chakra system in the body. It’s full colour throughout which works well for books about the chakras. It’s also printed on glossy paper and is excellent value. Of course there is much useful wisdom here about the chakras in general, not just where they relate to crystals. There are more than 100 profiles of different stones, from Beryl to Rutile and from Carnelian to Pyrite, describing their different effects and telling us how to work with them. They are all good at concentrating light and energy. There are also many techniques described including pendulums and laying the crystals on the body.

This is a great book for anyone starting on the path of healing themselves and healing others. ❖ Code: 320109 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

EARTH ALCHEMY ORACLE CARDS

by Katie-Jane Wright, illustrated by Nikki Strange

When you open a new pack of oracle cards, it’s always with a frisson of excitement. This beautiful new deck of 50 cards lovingly created by crystal expert Katie-Jane Wright and illustrated by Nikki Strange, is designed to bring us closer to the earth around us by tapping into the wisdom of plants and crystals. You feel like you can dive into the cards and, within each, encounter a power born of the combination of one of nature’s creations and its accompanying crystal, gently leading you through to inner healing, love and connection. The cards include Azurite and Orchid, Golden Topaz and Yellow Rose and Astrophyllite and Gingko. The booklet explains the energy of the elements of each card and how to work with the deck.

Grandmother Moonstone Cycles of Change | Illuminating boundaries, new beginnings

CARD LAYOUTS_LIVE.indd 2

Secret Garden Sacred Space | Cultivate your space, inner beauty, self-care

128pp, 114 x 76 mm, Boxed Set, Paperback and 50 full-colour cards, 2022, RRP £18.99

❖ Code: 320157 ❖ Non-Member Price: £13.88 ❖ Member Price: £12.50

CARD LAYOUTS_LIVE.indd 1

25/10/21 4:20 pm

Petalite Cosmic Downloads | Higher Heart healing, see the bigger picture

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25/10/21 4:21 pm

25/10/21 4:22 pm

BOOK YOUR AD TODAY ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Email: advertising@cygnus-books.co.uk More information: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/advertising

FIND YOUR LOCAL CYGNUS CAFÉS

LEICS, Coalville Cheryl Colpman 01530 831 798 cheryl@cherylcolpman.co.uk

★ NEW OXFORD Norma Hare 01865 849459 norma.or@hotmail.co.uk

STAFFS, Stoke-on-Trent Nathan Smallman 07724 189 988 nathan.smallman@btinternet.com

LINCOLNSHIRE, Horncastle Melissa Bay 07989 508391 countrygardenpets@tiscali. co.uk

PERTHSHIRE, Crieff Rebecca Dearman 07483872183

STAFFS, Tamworth Jo Greaves 07738 216429 jo.greaves2017@gmail.com

BEDS, Luton Jenny Martin 01582 415242 jennym4759@yahoo.co.uk

CUMBRIA, Penrith Jackie Lewis 07799 884452 stellapolarisbb@gmail.com

BRISTOL, Bishopston Jane Stott 07788 418 078 janestott070@gmail.com

DERBY/NOTTINGHAM David Steare 01332 661 102 david.steare@ntlworld.com

BUCKS, Milton Keynes Nikki Brown 07972 257 004 nikki-nutrimed@hotmail.co.uk

DEVON, Barnstaple Mrs Viv Easton 01271 375 303 easton866@btinternet.com

CEREDIGION, Llangrannog 1st Wednesday of every month 2-4 plus 3rd Friday 7-9 pm Amanda Painting 01239 654 699 amandapainting@gmail.com

E AYRSHIRE, Kilmarnock Anita Neilson 07778 923380 anitaneilson61@gmail.com

MERSEYSIDE, Liverpool, Thornton Sue Massey 0151 924 6240 suemassey60@yahoo.com

E SUSSEX, Bexhill on Sea Carol Sargent 01424 217 630 mail@youniquewellbeing.co.uk

MIDLOTHIAN, Edinburgh Tabora Green 01835 268546 trueharmony@hotmail.co.uk

SOMERSET, Taunton Robin Littman 01278 671 679 Robin@resource-me.com

E SUSSEX, Hove Simon 01273 220 159 info@tolcentre.com

N LONDON, Enfield/Waltham Abbey Chrissie 07845 019398 / 07935707538

S GLOS, Thornbury Trisha Seward 01179 621661 trishaseward@talktalk.net

FIFE, Markinch Amy Thomson 07775 877114 heartholistictherapiesbyamy@ gmail.com

N YORKS, Selby Val Turner 01757 713093 valdert@btinternet.com

S YORKS, Doncaster Sandra Edwards 07773 173 919 sandra579@btinternet.com

N YORKS, Whitby Daphne Wright 01947 602 425 daphnewright05@gmail.com

SOUTH LAKES, Cumbria Catherine Hunt 07957 861408 hello@ primewellbeingfoundation.com

CARMARTHEN Dorothy Morris 01267 267 652 dorothy_morris@hotmail.com CHESHIRE, Chester Sue Bates 01244 318231 sgcbates@uwclub.net CLEVELAND, Saltburn Kathryn Luczakiewicz 01287 204 400 info@saltburnwellbeingcentre. co.uk CORNWALL, Port Isaac Ann Fanstone 01208 880 300 fanstone@phonecoop.coop CORNWALL, Penzance Anthea Tounsend 01736 719 606 CORNWALL, Truro Jane Goodall 07967 201 929 janegoodall@live.co.uk

ISLE OF WIGHT, Shanklin Kate Stuart 07957 909 566 redfox_1@btinternet.com KENT, Ashford Sylvia Nichols 01233 626 206 viastjames@icloud.com

MANCHESTER, Sale Rosemary Plunkett 0161 962 4123 rosieglow3@icloud.com MERSEYSIDE, Liverpool, Woolton Pamela Langley 0151 421 1772 pamelalangley@hotmail.com

NORFOLK, Kings Lynn Amanda Rowe 07786 066761 info@hectorsbarn.co.uk

NORTHANTS, Irchester LANCS, Lytham, St Ann’s Karen Holton Simone Qualter & Andy Cowgill 07980 770 893 07928 632 976 klholton@live.co.uk simonequalter@yahoo.co.uk

RHONDDA, Pontypridd Louisa Mills cygnuscaferct@aol.co.uk RICHMOND UPON THAMES, Surrey Liz Sokoski 07432 585693 ROSS-SHIRE, Conon Bridge Shenagh Leiper 07721 656 668 leipershenagh@gmail.com SHROPSHIRE, Ironbridge Romella Jones 01952 881 151 cariadtherapies@outlook.com

SURREY, Caterham Chris Osborn 01737 551 459 chrisosborn612@gmail.com SURREY, Guildford, Shere Linda Sewell 07850 839 472 lindasewell@hotmail.co.uk W SUSSEX, Bosham Jeanine Hanneman 07769 666729 jeaninevh@live.com W SUSSEX, Horsham and Haywards Heath Judy Sharp 01444 459 433 judysharp123@gmail.com WILTS, Salisbury Jane Wainwright 01722 413 902 janesnowflake@gmail.com WIRRAL, Merseyside Carol Carter 07807 077966 carolcarter100@btinternet.com WORCESTERSHIRE Tenbury Wells Diann Dowell 01584 811228 SenseTenbury.co.uk

“Now that we can all start meeting up in person again, please remember to keep your physical distance from each other and stay safe. With all our best wishes...”

We are never alone; we may be lonely, but we now know we are not alone, wherever we are!

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11

❖ Dates & times are on our website: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/cygnus-community-cafes ❖ Contact: vicky@cygnus-books.co.uk for more information

A Guide to Starting a Cygnus Café

W

e know that we have many members who are interested in starting Cygnus Cafés in their community, and that they have questions, both about how to get started and also how they want their group to run. Below is a mini-guide to running a Cygnus Café to give you a taste of what you can expect – if you would like to start your own Café please do get in touch. ❖ The starting point for setting up a group is the purpose

of a Cygnus Café, and that is creating a space for you to meet people of like mind in your own locality. Nowadays it is often the case that you might find you can only get so far by yourself using a book. Sometimes it can be a great help on your spiritual journey to share issues that feel unresolved, with others of like heart.

❖ Many groups take a little

while to gain momentum, and this is normal. We suggest you avoid the temptation of trying to find a perfect arrangement. ❖ Setting up for the

meeting we suggest that the host prepares the room in the most appropriate way, arranging the seating so that everyone has eye-to-eye contact. Meetings generally begin with everyone taking turns to say their name and where they are from and, if they wish, a mention about something they may want to talk about later. ❖ Many groups have found it

❖ Most of our groups run in what

we would call an unstructured way, they have no agenda and allow the magic of the moment to provide the topics spontaneously, depending on who wishes to share their recently experienced insights or share their current concerns of the heart.

very helpful to keep the level of the meeting at a higher level by setting the intention of the group to the highest good at the beginning of the meeting.

So that, whatever happens, the highest good may come out of it.

❖ When getting down to

❖ Gradually most groups

practicalities the first thing you need is a space, generally meetings are held in members’ homes or quiet rooms in cafés or community spaces. Any room hire costs etc. are shared by the participants on a donation basis.

We advise avoiding noisy venues or spaces that have no door, as this helps a great deal. You need a safe space where you know you will not be interrupted. ❖ When thinking about when and how often to hold

your meetings, consider the needs of the group when deciding what is best for (most of ) you. Some groups choose mornings, others evenings, some even choose a weekend. Larger groups sometimes choose to have two meetings in a month, once in the evening and once in the morning, to match the different lifestyles. Most meeting last for around 2 hours and our advice is to stick to the same day every month, week or fortnight to allow people to organise their diaries.

begin to observe how Cygnus Cafés can grow in depth as participants feel more comfortable and they can share their vulnerabilities and “soft spots”. This gives others the confidence to share their concerns or doubts.

❖

We love hearing from our members and finding out what you are up to at your café meetings. Please send your comments, thoughts and updates to editor@cygnus-books.co.uk so that we can include them on this page.

❖ For meeting support you can contact Vicky Hartley at Cygnus on

vicky@cygnus-books.co.uk

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BOOK YOUR AD TODAY ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Email: advertising@cygnus-books.co.uk ❖ More information: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/advertising

Health – BOOK REVIEWS BACK IN BALANCE

by Richard Brennan

Richard Brennan’s own experience of relieving terrible, chronic back pain using the Alexander Technique and his extensive expertise gained from teaching it, immediately makes you want to read more about this fascinating therapy. He describes how easy it is to build up excessive tension in the back without knowing it, and he shows how you may be sitting, standing or moving in ways that put pressure on your muscles, joints and bones all of which may lead to back pain. His easy-to-read narrative of the causes and effects plus the exercises he describes to start the process of healing, makes the Alexander Technique feel very approachable. If you have issues with your back, this book should definitely be on your reading list.

192pp, 229 x 144 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320156 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

DYING TO BE ME by Anita Moorjani

This is a 10th anniversary reissue of Anita’s ground-breaking and bestselling memoir. It contains a new afterword which describes the further changes she has experienced since initial publication. The book relates how, after fighting cancer for four years, her body was overwhelmed and began shutting down. As her organs failed, she went into an extraordinary near-death experience, where she realised her inherent worth... and the actual cause of her disease. On regaining consciousness, she had the realisation that there are miracles in the Universe that she had never even imagined. In Dying to Be Me, Anita shares all she has learned about illness, healing, fear, being loved, and the true magnificence of every human being. This book sings that we are spiritual beings having a human experience ... and that we are all One. 240pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320113 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

THE GLOW PLAN by Abigail James

The sub-heading for this book is Face Massage for Happy, Healthy Skin in 4 weeks but it’s about so much more than that, aiming to help you achieve an all-over healthy glow that emanates from within.

Abigail James is a skin care professional and certainly knows all about products and treatments but also understands that there are many things that affect our skin, from mental wellbeing to a good night’s sleep, and from external stresses like pollution to general physical wellness.

Her book walks us through these and gives advice on how to improve each of them, then concentrates on a 4-week plan to really make a difference, starting with face massage techniques and exercises to help improve our mindset, through to how to get a good night’s sleep, let go and find self-love.

288pp, 200 x 145 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320160 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

HOLISTIC MEDICINE AND THE EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX

by Matthew Wood

Matthew has been a practising herbalist for more than 35 years and he has written several popular books on the subject, including The Earthwise Herbal. This is an in-depth book which is full of patient scientific teaching and doesn’t have many stories and anecdotes. It’s definitely important though: basically it aims to show how the body works at a cellular level and why certain plants, medicines and compounds help us to heal.

The research is meticulous, and it has to be a must-read for anyone interested in health and healing. Our cells are controlled and directed by something called the Extracellular Matrix, which was only discovered in 1975. Matthew calls it an “all-encompassing inner ocean” and this book shows us how to keep it calm, clean and functioning well.

256pp, 227 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320147 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

TURN AUTISM AROUND

by Dr Mary Lynch Barbera

Diagnosed cases of autism have skyrocketed in recent years without much understanding of why or how to treat the condition. This book is an essential read for any parent who has concerns about the development of their young child, whether it’s in communication, speech or attention issues. Dr Barbera strongly argues that you shouldn’t wait for health professionals to step in but start addressing the issue yourself. If you do, you could help your child ward off the worst of autism and lead a much less challenging life. She lists the red flag behavioural traits to look out for and provides exercises to do with your child, citing many examples of how these exercises have helped a host of children also showing autistic tendencies.

She became involved with autism treatment having been in denial about her own son’s condition, so speaks with a lot of passion and authority.

264pp, 227 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320112 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

YOU CAN HAVE A BETTER PERIOD

by Le’Nise Brothers

The author, a registered nutritionist specialising in women’s health, hormones and their menstrual cycle, has delved into the reasons that some women suffer while others sail through life without really noticing their period. She has identified the fact that periods are adversely affected by nutrition, stress and lifestyle at different stages of each cycle, and has worked out how small improvements and changes in each of these areas can make a big difference. Citing examples of women she has successfully treated and giving instructions on what changes to make, like cutting down on alcohol and unrefined sugars and adopting simple exercises and stretches, she has created an essential guide to taking control of your period and menstrual cycle.

344pp, 216 x 138 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320154 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

ORDER & CUSTOMER SERVICE LINE ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Website: www.cygnusreview.com ❖ Twitter @CygnusBooks ❖ Facebook @cygnusbookclub ❖ Instagram @cygnusbooks

13

BOOK REVIEWS – Tarot & Oracle Cards THE BODY TAROT

by Emma McArthur

THE TREE MAGICK ORACLE DECK

by Gillian Kemp

This is published by Cico so it is excellent value.

There’s a comprehensive book inside plus 52 cards in colour, each relating to a specific tree.

The author lives in Bedfordshire and is an experienced clairvoyant who works with many forms of divination. The trees include the Pear, Baobab, Silver Birch and Hawthorn and on each card there is an affirmation relating to that tree.

The card also shows that tree’s specific leaf in a lot of detail. It’s not heavily esoteric or complicated but it forms a good way of relating to the trees around us in a spiritual way as a fellow being. You can choose a card for an affirmation or use layouts of several cards for guidance or divination. The book also includes a sprinkling of tree lore. This would make a charming gift for someone new to the field.

64pp, 160 x 134 mm, Boxed Set inc. 52 full-colour cards, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320104 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

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This is a fascinating new departure in tarot and offers all sorts of possibilities for healing and good health. Emma is an artist who works in publishing and her major arcana shows 22 different organs with parallels to the more common tarot cards.

Thus The Heart is The Fool, The Liver is The Hanged Man and then The Teeth are Strength. There are now five minor arcana suits instead of four and those suits correspond to the Five-Element healing system: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. There is also an attractive full colour book with further readings for each card and some ideas for productive spreads.

Some tarot decks can be frivolous and are more of a chance for the artist to show off, but this presents all sorts of options for living more happily in the body and to tune into its undoubted wisdom.

64pp, 152 x 115 mm, Boxed Set, Paperback and 72 full-colour cards, 2022, RRP £16.99

❖ Code: 320108 ❖Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖Member Price: £10.99

EMPATH ACTIVATION CARDS

by Rev. Stephanie Red Feather

In the last magazine we had the Empath’s Empowerment Deck from Judith Orloff and now, from another publisher, we have this deck created by Stephanie Red Feather, who wrote The Evolutionary Empath in 2019. This deck is very different: the other one had inspirational slogans accompanied by four lines of advice, while the images here are enigmatic mandalas and other shapes inspired for example by crop circles and indigenous Australian art, all in bright vivid colours. Judith Orloff is a psychologist, while Stephanie is a shamanic minister, so you will understand that this deck is more mystical, intuitive and inspirational, intended to connect sensitive people with the source and help them discover their life’s purpose. Cards include Mental Discipline, Ascension Throne and Lineage Healing.

210pp, 194 x 133 mm, Boxed Set, Paperback and 44 colour cards, 2022, RRP £25.00

❖ Code: 320146 ❖ Non-Member Price: £17.76 ❖Member Price: £15.99

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Tarot & Oracle Cards – BOOK REVIEWS GODDESSES, GODS AND GUARDIANS ORACLE CARDS

by Sophie Bashford

THE GUARDIAN ANGEL ORACLE DECK

by Delia Ciccarelli

This is a grand and impressive package: 72 colour cards, a 160-page illustrated hardback book and a luxury keepsake box. Every card carries a hand-painted image of a specific angel, including Daniel, Mihael, Haziel and Ariel.

These all come from the Kabbalah and are also referred to as the 72 names of God. Having said that, the deck is more New Age looking than deeply esoteric. The angels are all androgynous beautiful beings and the book tells you all about them: their attributes, correspondences and meanings. The book also includes suggested spreads, for divination, help or insight. You can also find out the name of your own guardian angel, based on your date of birth. This set is a companion for life, and will always be with you, like the angels at your side.

Sophie is the UK-based author of You Are a Goddess and a teacher of the feminine spiritual way. Here is a set of 44 bright and beautiful cards – each one features a god or goddess from one of many traditions. They range from Apollo to Avalon Priestess and from Persephone to Thoth. The box also includes a 176-page book that gives useful interpretation of the possible message from each deity, plus suggested ways of doing a reading with them or of using them as an oracle. Most importantly – and as Sophie herself points out – the cards are striking and significant enough that we can use them as gateways into a closer relationship with that deity for magical or inspirational purposes.

She gives us a lovely visualization that can help us to meet any of the figures we select and they can then go on to guide us on a temporary or long-term basis.

176pp, 136 x 100 mm, Boxed Set, Paperback with 44 colour cards, 2022, RRP £15.99

❖ Code: 320110 ❖Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖Member Price: £10.99

160pp, 198 x 135 mm, Boxed Set, Hardback and 72 colour cards, 2022, RRP £29.99

❖ Code: 320105 ❖Non-Member Price: £21.09 ❖ Member Price: £18.99

ROSE ORACLE

by Rebecca Campbell

Rebecca is another UK-based Hay House author with an exciting new deck. Originally from Australia, she now lives in Glastonbury.

Her most recent book was Letters to a Starseed and her teachings are gentle and genuinely mystical. Everyone knows that the rose is a classic spiritual symbol across history. Here Rebecca presents 44 cards with different images of the rose in different stages of development, and they are beautiful and intriguing. Of course there is also a book with extra guidance and teachings. The cards range from The Anointer and The Breathing Rose to The Holy Grail and The Mystic Rose.

A sample message on one card is “Silver Lining. Relief. Hope. It’s over. Acceptance.”

The cards are all presented in her classic colours – pinks and violets – and are (not exclusively) feminine oriented.

168pp, 141 x 101 mm, Boxed Set, Paperback with 44 colour cards, 2022, RRP £18.99

❖ Code: 320114 ❖ Non-Member Price: £15.54 ❖ Member Price: £13.99

AVALON PRIESTESS Intuitive awakening

APOLLO

Divine messages

THE BLOOM

CODES OF THE SEEDS

Creations realized. Right time. Harvest. Celebrate.

The blueprint is within you. Take the next step.

ADITI

Expand your consciousness

DRYAD

Protect your energy

BROTHERS OF THE ROSE

AFTER THE RAIN

Sacred masculine. Honor. Protection. Support.

Silver lining. Relief. Hope. Mercy. It’s over. Acceptance.

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15

THIS BOOK IS FOR EVERYONE, VACCINATED OR NOT

V

accinated or not, if you live in a city, country, or region that has rolled out a vaccine passport, or is in the process of doing so, this book is for you.

It is a manifesto, not against the vaccines themselves, but against how they are being used to radically reorder society in ways that are of little benefit to anyone except the business, financial, and political elite. Whatever our beliefs about the vaccines themselves, we will all have to live with the consequences of the changes the passports and mandates will bring. Those consequences will include greater social division and polarization, loss of bodily autonomy, growing authoritarianism, further erosion of privacy, and the creation of a two-tiered society.

If you’re fully vaccinated, it is arguably even more important that you read this book. You may assume you won’t be affected by their roll out; after all, you’ve complied with all the public health requirements thus far. You have done what’s been asked of you. But there’s no guarantee that you’ll meet additional requirements of the future. As anyone who has lived in an authoritarian state knows, rules and mandates have an annoying habit of multiplying…

In September, Spain’s Supreme Court ruled against the use of COVID-19 passports altogether as a means of restricting access to public spaces, only to overturn its own ruling a month later. A court in the Wallonia region of Belgium has also ruled that vaccine passports are illegal and may even contravene citizens’ rights to data privacy. While these moves may offer a sliver of hope, time is a luxury we do not have. The speed of change in the pandemic-era world is blistering. At the beginning of 2021, concerns about vaccine passports were dismissed as off-thewall conspiracy theories. By the end of the year they were being rolled out at a lightning-fast pace across Europe, North America, and even parts of Asia and Latin America…

In the meantime, all of the technological inputs needed to create

16

Scanned by Nick Corbishley the interlocking systems of digital control, tracking, and surveillance that will usher in the hyper-authoritarian “new normality” already exist. They just need to be put in place, which is exactly what is happening right now. As UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a speech given to the UN General Assembly on September 24, 2019, just months before the pandemic began, “Digital authoritarianism is not the stuff of dystopian fantasy but of an emerging reality.”

On the bright side, the official narrative is unraveling in many countries, whether on the lauded benefits of the vaccines, the necessity for booster shots, or the dangers of using cheap, repurposed treatments.

Trust in government is plunging as public health authorities keep shifting the goalposts of their policy agenda. For many parents, giving healthy children vaccines that have no longterm safety data for a virus that poses a limited threat to children represents a clear red line, especially when the government’s own advisors warn against it, as recently happened in the UK. There is a risk, however, that as the lies, broken promises, and outright fraud become increasingly apparent to more and more people, governments will resort increasingly to coercion and brute force, as we’re already seeing in countries such as France, Germany, and Australia. As George Orwell once wrote, “all tyrannies rule through fraud and force, but once the fraud is exposed they must rely exclusively on force.”

Most of us who live in liberal democracies in North America, Western Europe, Japan, or Australasia and were born in the postwar era have little or no experience of what life is like under the thumb of an authoritarian regime—for which we should be eternally grateful. But it also means that we are dangerously complacent. We don’t know what it’s like to be designated a nonperson by an overweening State and deprived access to basic services, public spaces, or the ability to earn a living. If we are not careful, if we do not treat the threat in front of us seriously enough and take strong, concerted action in the small window of time still available to us, we will soon find out.

SCANNED by Nick Corbishley

Nick Corbishley is a British investigative journalist who lives in Spain. In Scanned he gives us a deep analysis of vaccine passports and all the digital surveillance that many of us are now subject to. He looks at what’s happening in many countries across the world, not just the UK and it’s pretty sobering reading. The potential for knowing what we are doing most of the time is vast and there’s a lot of potential for mistaken identity too. No one is doubting that the Covid passports can do a great deal of good, but they are also open to much abuse. The author underlines, with a lot of evidence to back him up, that this is another stage in the erosion of our privacy. It’s published by Chelsea Green who also brought out Dr Mercola’s Truth About Covid-19, and likewise this book carries copious pages of notes.

208pp, 215 x 135 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320102 ❖ Non-Member Price: £9.98 ❖ Member Price: £8.99

BOOK YOUR AD TODAY ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Email: advertising@cygnus-books.co.uk ❖ More information: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/advertising

Healing – BOOK REVIEWS NEUROAFFECTIVE MEDITATION

by Marianne Bentzen

There are quite a few intense titles in this current Cygnus, many of them from Inner Traditions, but I like what they do: they genuinely try to push the boundaries and have no intention of being purely commercial.

Neuroaffective Meditation combines meditation, psychology and neuroscience (which the author has studied for 25 years) and is specifically formulated to work with embedded trauma. From that point of view, it’s a great validation that her book carries a foreword by Peter Levine, author of Waking the Tiger and pioneer in this field. The book contains 16 guided meditations which are also available online. It’s exciting when an experienced author offers a curriculum that takes into account how the brain matures and develops; thus this book is a practical and effective manual for spiritual development.

256pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320143 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50 - DUE EARLY MAY!

THE POWER OF THE HEALING FIELD

by Peter Mark Adams

This is a great book full of stories and accounts of personal healing and of healers venturing out on to other planes to gather lost souls and bring them to the light. The author has shared a practice for more than 20 years with his wife where they have specialised in energetic healing of all kinds, and Peter himself has been practising these methods for more than 45 years. It’s encouraging for everyone who wants to hear evidence of other planes of reality and reassuring to those who know that the simply material world is a lie. It also offers a good start for people who want to become healers themselves, as it includes techniques and the framework behind energetic healing. It’s not heavy or dense and all in all I think it’s the sort of book we need at the moment.

176pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320144 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

A CELTIC BOOK OF DYING

by Phyllida Anam-Aire

Phyllida has worked extensively with the sick and dying and is imbued with a Celtic consciousness that has given her a view of life, love and death that allows her to help those who are dying and their loved ones, as well as teaching those still living that the end of corporeal life is not actually the end of all life. In this book she examines those Celtic traditions that show us how to live life well, how to support the dying, how to help the bereaved and how to embrace love over fear. Her words are kind and helpful and scattered with her own uplifting poems and songs. They will help you contemplate your own death with more confidence and be more able to help anyone you know who is dying.

208pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320140 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99 - DUE EARLY MAY!

ESSENTIALS OF MEDICAL INTUITION

by Wendie Colter

Having a good intuitive sense can be really helpful in cutting through problems that are complicated, overcharged with emotion or muddled by conflicting facts. Medical intuition takes this a step further to provide a comprehensive perspective across wellness, either supporting or informing conventional medical techniques. Wendie Colter is a professional medical intuitive and has been practising and teaching for 20 years, so brings clarity to a relatively unknown area, describing its history and evolution, outlining fascinating case studies and partnerships between clinicians and medical intuitives and including a guide to how we can create a deeper intuitive connection with our bodies. Medical intuition can really help anyone who can’t get a diagnosis for an ailment, has an issue that doctors can’t diagnose or a condition that isn’t recognised.

208pp, 216 x 135 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £20.00

❖ Code: 320158 ❖ Non-Member Price: £13.88 ❖ Member Price: £12.50

UNBLOCKED by Margaret Lynch Raniere and David Raniere PhD

THE HEALING POWER OF THE SUN

by Richard Hobday

304pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

224pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.00

If you have an interest in tapping but have been a little unsure about how it works, what it can do and if it is really worth it, then you must read this book. It’s written by a formidable husband and wife team: Margaret is a former highly successful engineer turned therapist, and David a clinical psychologist. Margaret has applied her engineer’s mind to the nature of chakras and how to work to release them, with considerable success, and she shares this with us, supported by clinical analysis of the process from David. They show you how to unblock the chakras yourself using visualisation, tapping and voicing. To give context, they also tell us what each chakra does, how it gets blocked, and why and how the healing process works, all of which makes you feel that you are in really good hands. ❖ Code: 320116 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

We have been scared away from the healing powers of the sun, because of understandable fears of skin cancer. Richard Hobday has a background in engineering and solar building design and has combined this expertise with his research into the sun as a means for complementary therapy. He provides a balanced account of the role of the sun in our lives: from the effects of working and living under artificial light, to harnessing the sun to help treat a variety of diseases from osteoporosis to some cancers. He intertwines interesting historical facts about how doctors and nurses (including Florence Nightingale) harnessed the sun and fresh air to treat tuberculosis and infection, with more modern science plus helpful tips on how to have a sunbath that’s beneficial not harmful. ❖ Code: 320135 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

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17

BOOK REVIEWS – Spiritual Practice

INTIMATE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE DIVINE

by Caroline Myss

PEACEFUL HEART WARRIOR SPIRIT

by Dan Millman

SPIRITUAL FREEDOM IN THE DIGITAL AGE

by Jason Gregory

Now in paperback, spiritual superstar Caroline Myss’s new book explores and inspires us with the mystical power of prayer.

Instead of confining this practice to a particular form of religious dogma, she instead sets out a method where we use prayer as a tool to gain an intimate relationship with a higher cosmic order. With this book, Myss gives us 100 different prayers to inspire us to reach beyond our egos and more actively seek out the power of grace in our daily lives.

These beautifully written prayers have nothing formal about them at all, but rather are like direct conversations with the divine, and are highly inspired by great mystics like Rumi and St. Teresa of Avila.

All Dan’s books come full of rich lessons in how to live and how to stay strong. Here he reveals more about his life and the teachers who helped him to become a teacher himself. There are four of them: the first two he calls the Professor and the Guru, and they inspired him to write the world-famous classic Way of the Peaceful Warrior. The other two are the Warrior-Priest and the Sage, and they have influenced all the work he has done since. His story sweeps across the United States but this time it is less full of parables and more an autobiography where he is trying to be as truthful as possible. His story is in a way his message, and I always finish his books feeling happier.

Swann introduces us to mermaids that live on the astral plane and to mermaids incarnated in human bodies, and outlines exercises to help us meet and learn from them.

Her position is that mermaids can really help us individually with their one-ness approach to love (with descriptions of her own conversations with mermaids), and that if we aspire to become mermaids there will be more of us in tune with the oceans and be ready to help clean them up. Her narrative contains descriptions of her own personal experiences, a guide to developing a relationship with the water within ourselves and in the physical world, and a useful section answering any question you may have about mermaids.

One minute we were writing letters, the next we’re face down in our phones forgetting to talk to those on the other side of the table. And what those of us who experienced life before the digital age forget is that there’s a whole generation who only know life on social media, gaming, communicating via SnapChat etc.

It’s a scary thought, because how are they to know what life could be like, was like, and how are they going to connect with the fact that their mental health is suffering and their lives are in some ways out of their control? This timely book describes the best and worst of digital, and how we urgently need to reconnect with nature before humankind ends up as robots.

304pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £13.99

256pp, 215 x 140 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

128pp, 208 x 137mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

208pp, 218 x 141 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £11.99

❖ Code: 320118 ❖ Non-Member Price: £10.55 ❖ Member Price: £9.50

❖ Code: 320131 ❖ Non-Member Price: £11.66 ❖ Member Price: £10.50

❖ Code: 320148 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

❖ Code: 320125 ❖ Non-Member Price: £9.98 ❖ Member Price: £8.99

MANIFESTING YOUR MAGICAL LIFE

by Radleigh Valentine

SPIRITUALITY WILL SAVE THE WORLD

by Sally Smith

208pp, 230 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

152pp, 140 x 217 x 12 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £8.99

What a lovely book! Written with joy, laugh out loud humour and great insight, the author (who, by the way, you’ll want to meet once you’ve read the book) tells you how to release the magic that has always been inside you and live the life you were always meant to live.

Illustrated with poignant and/or hilarious moments from his own full life, his message is that you deserve happiness and it’s time to unlock it. He includes helpful exercises that will enable you to hone your goals, release blocks and generate a sense of commitment to living a joyous life. He delivers his anecdotes, suggestions and miracle-making secrets with a warm and sparkly tone that genuinely makes you feel not only empowered, but a bit better about life already. ❖ Code: 320123 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

18

HOW TO BECOME A MERMAID by Elyrria Swann

If you’re looking for something of a beginner’s guide to spirituality and leading a spiritual life, then this book might be the one. It outlines the general principles of spirituality and how they differ from religion, gives you information about teachers and tools you can use, and guides you gently through what it means to embrace your soul. Its down to earth tone and gentle debunking of some of the myths that surround spirituality are reassuring, and it is also non-prescriptive about what your ultimate goals should be so that you don’t feel defeated before you even start your journey. These types of book are important because they describe what spirituality actually is and not what it has been hijacked to become, and how, when embraced, it can actually change the world we live in. ❖ Code: 320124 ❖ Non-Member Price: £6.65 ❖ Member Price: £5.99

BOOK YOUR AD TODAY ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Email: advertising@cygnus-books.co.uk ❖ More information: www.cygnusreview.com/pages/advertising

REIKI BY ELISE BRENNER AND NANCY SPATZ

W

e welcome you here to discover the possibilities that self-Reiki practice has to offer. Whether you are new to Reiki or not, let’s start with a helpful definition: Reiki is a mindbody-spirit healing and meditation practice from Japan that promotes health and well-being, mindfulness, resilience, and aliveness. All of us can draw on Reiki mind-body skills to claim our strengths, sustain our well-being day-to-day, and address challenges, both big and small, personal and societal. The selfpractice of Reiki is an integrative mind-body-spirit approach that is accessible to people of all ages, backgrounds, and health conditions.

In our hearts, we all want to live on purpose and with purpose. The teachings and practices of self-Reiki give us an essential resource we can incorporate into our everyday lives to bring in, reach for, and claim our inner qualities and awareness so that we can live intentionally. By living intentionally, we invite physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. You will learn how self-Reiki practice brings a sense of balance, aliveness, and peacefulness into everyday moments, as well as into moments when we feel physically and emotionally depleted or overwhelmed. An experience of balance and peace is not something we attain, it is something we reclaim. And when we do, we feel at home in our bodies, more connected to our vitality, to our purpose, and to those around us.

You will discover that self-Reiki practice provides you with a compass for navigating through the complexities and uncertainties of life. This compass points us in the direction of well-being and resilience as we traverse the deep depths, narrow straits, as well as the passages through them. SelfReiki mind-body skills are a natural, non-pharmacological, strengths-based approach to both (i) building resilience in order to sustain our ongoing well-being, and (ii) utilizing that resilience in moments of difficulty. Let’s briefly explore the two faces of resilience, both of which Reiki self-practice addresses. When we think of resilience, what often comes to mind is the capacity to bounce back after adversity.

While this is true, there is also another aspect. Resilience is not only reacting to challenges after they occur. Resilience involves purposefully building our own inner strengths, reserves, and capacities to feel courageous and whole despite disappointments, struggles, and social forces beyond our control. Resilience is not solely about claiming our inner qualities and wisdom, but also connecting with wisdom that lies in others…

One of the points this book makes is that what appears to be individual-level distress, such as anxiety, also occurs within the larger context of the social conditions that create it, such as inequality. We understand that the capacity for resilience

resides not only within an individual.

Rather, the capacity for resilience also depends on sociocultural, economic, and political resources available to people in their larger lifeworlds. These larger forces are out of the control of the individual. In such circumstances, we can’t expect to meditate our way out of injustice, can we? So, then, what does Reiki practice offer in this case?

Self-Reiki practice calms our nervous system, allowing us to be courageous; to think, speak, and act with wisdom and compassion so that we may pursue justice for ourselves and for all who are structurally disempowered. We can use this resilience as a resource for effectively confronting larger systemic brokenness, and creating the conditions for building a more peaceful and just world.

Self-Reiki practice is about facing uncertainty and relieving suffering of self and others. As you learn the Reiki practices outlined in this book you will find you can face uncertainty with greater courage and strength; loosen constriction; relate skillfully to your experiences; become more aware of your patterns and tendencies; and embody your authentic way of being in the world. Self-Reiki mindbody skills help us refocus our energy toward resilience, openness, and flexibility when faced with the unthinkable.

What’s more, as we cultivate our own state of well-being, we can create a peaceful space for others to experience.

Self-Reiki practice helps us feel settled in ourselves, creating a ripple effect, enhancing our ability to be intentionally present for others, and even find ways to relieve the suffering of others. Self-Reiki practice allows us to live in peace with self and others.

The Possibilities of Self-Reiki

REIKI: A SELF-PRACTICE TO LIVE IN PEACE WITH SELF AND OTHERS

by Elise Brenner and Nancy Spatz

This book is a wonderful resource for anyone who wants to learn about Reiki or is already practising, with specific emphasis on self-care through Reiki. Outlining the principles and mechanisms of Reiki, from hands-on healing to hara breathing and meditation, and illustrating these with real-life examples, the book guides you through the disciplines that can lead you to cultivate inner peace and self-compassion. The self-Reiki practices introduced here will alleviate pain and overwhelm, ushering in mindfulness, resilience, and recovery capacity. The writing is scholarly, bringing it gravitas, but also approachable which makes you feel like you’re in good hands.

160pp, 217 x 140 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £10.99

❖ Code: 320129 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

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19

BOOK REVIEWS – Books for children SITTING STILL LIKE A FROG

by Eline Snel

Published in 2013, this is still the original and best book on mindfulness for children. It includes 11 simple mindfulness practices to help your child (ages 5-12) deal with anxiety, improve concentration, and handle difficult emotions. There are also short examples of how mindfulness has helped children, plus many anecdotes and of course a description of what mindfulness is. It also includes a 60-minute audio CD of guided exercises read by Myla Kabat-Zinn. It’s especially useful now that more young people need help with calming down, becoming more focused, falling asleep more easily, alleviating worry, managing anger, and generally becoming more patient and aware. Includes a foreword by bestselling author and mindfulness for stress release expert Jon Kabat-Zinn, husband of Myla.

112pp, 183 x 153 mm, Paperback, 2013, RRP £11.99

❖ Code: 320164 ❖ Non-Member Price: £9.98 ❖ Member Price: £8.99

This book was recommended by a Cygnus member as a perennial family favourite. Young Shiraz lives a lonely life with her stepmother and stepsister, completely unaware of the old woman who lives alone next door...until Shiraz’s runaway yarn ball brings them face-to-face. This beautiful story from Tehran-born Israeli pop star Rita Jahanforuz explores the power of listening to others and the value of empathy, of being kind and good for their own sake. You have to see past what’s on the outside. The story is depicted in vivid colours that evoke beautifully the streets and houses of Iran. For ages 6 to 10 years old.

40pp, 272 x 220 mm, Paperback, 2013, RRP £7.99

❖ Code: 320161 ❖ Non-Member Price: £6.65 ❖ Member Price: £5.99

BREATHING MAKES IT BETTER by Christopher Willard and Wendy O’Leary

THE MONSTER PARADE

by Wendy O’Leary

This is an earlier book by Wendy O’Leary, co-written with psychologist Christopher Willard.

It’s based on the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, especially in its emphasis on following our breath and on visualizing ourselves as mountains, trees or clouds to see ourselves as more resilient and fitting in better. Every other double page presents a stressful situation concluding with the phrase “stop and take a breath” and the following spread ends with “breathe in, breathe out – peace is near”. So it teaches young children that they need to follow their breath when they are in a stressful situation and gently remind themselves that they can be like aspects of nature which just go on and endure, whatever is happening around them.

“When you breathe you are alive and because you are alive, anything is possible.”

This is the latest book by educator and public speaker Wendy O’Leary and it’s intended to help children (and adults!) see all feelings, and especially bad ones, as a parade that goes past you which you can choose to witness and not engage with. It’s written in rhyming verse and meant to be read to younger children. These are all familiar monsters that we see quite often, like anger, sadness and worry.

We are used to having them around but sometimes they can feel scary; however we can also choose to see them as a regular parade that we are familiar with and which doesn’t bother us.

The illustrator is clever and makes the creatures representing the feelings look nicer and friendlier once the witness has seen them as harmless friends. As you can see, the book uses the principles of CBT and Buddhism.

36pp, 234 x 234 mm, Hardback, 2019, RRP £13.99

32pp, 249 x 235 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £13.99

❖ Code: 320163 ❖ Non-Member Price: £11.10 ❖ Member Price: £9.99

20

THE GIRL WITH A BRAVE HEART

by Rita Jahanforuz

❖ Code: 320162 ❖ Non-Member Price: £11.10 ❖ Member Price: £9.99

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Nature/Walking – BOOK REVIEWS MINDFUL WALKING by Alice Peck

At only £7.99 Mindful Walking is a lovely little collection of tips, exercises and ideas for being quiet in the natural world and using its gifts to live well with calm and mental peace.

It’s a classic Cico title, so it’s not overly profound or heavy on the narrative, but there are lovely photographs throughout and it’s a small hardback that fits very comfortably in the pocket. There are many ideas for making the most of being in nature, including Seeing Colours, Cleansing with Mud, Foraging for Seaweed and Water Meditation. There are bigger books on these subjects but in the end how much text do you actually need? These little tips and nudges are enough to encourage us and make us feel optimistic in this time when everything all around seems to be working towards the opposite goal.

144pp, 160 x 122 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £7.99

❖ Code: 320106 ❖ Non-Member Price: £5.54 ❖ Member Price: £4.99

GOING TO SEED by Simon Fairlie

There aren’t many books like this one. It’s pretty unique. It’s the story of Simon Fairlie, who at a young age turned his back on anything resembling a conventional life and embarked on a colourful path involving travel, squatting, protesting and magazine editing. All in all, a life well-lived, and now he runs a small dairy at the Monkton Wyld community in Dorset. The account is fun and rattles along at a great pace, full of fascinating vignettes in wild and exotic locations. There is a serious message too: he questions the trajectory of so-called western progress and in his own life he has developed a model of living at a smaller scale on a localized patch of land. He is a pioneer and a true hero but this is a warts and all account and he is open about what he has got wrong. Read it and be inspired.

272pp, 230 x 153 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £14.99

❖ Code: 320103 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

52 WAYS TO WALK

by Annabel Streets

This is an elegant hardback which is pocket-sized to carry with you on all your perambulations. There’s one idea a week for how to enhance your walking or how to make the most of it. They range from Walk Barefoot and Walk Beneath a Full Moon to Seek Out the Sublime and Take a City Smell Walk. Every chapter has a delightful line drawing at the start. Walking is something that most of us can do so that we can use it to get and stay fit. Meanwhile, when many of us are under pressure and suffering mental strain, it’s also a great way to alleviate stress. Annabel also supplies the science behind why any one aspect of walking is good for you. Finally, every chapter has tips on how to make the most of the practice she is proposing.

352pp, 205 x 139 mm, Hardback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320101 ❖ Non-Member Price: £ 11.10 ❖ Member Price: £9.99

GODS IN SHACKLES by Sangita Iyer

In 2013 Sangita Iyer visited her childhood home of Kerala, India, where over 700 Asian elephants were forced to perform in crowded, noisy festivals. These gentle creatures who people claimed to revere were chained, abused and exploited for the entertainment of tourists and for profit. Her account reminds us of the importance of the relationship between humans and other animals and reveals the yawning gap between how we treat ourselves and how we treat them. It also draws the author to reflect on the shackles that a patriarchal society has placed on her.

Ultimately though the book is inspirational as we are all encouraged to speak up for beings who are suppressed and victimized, and we can see how the author’s work to save the elephants has ultimately saved her. The foreword is by Jane Goodall.

304pp, 215 x 135 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £12.99

❖ Code: 320121 ❖ Non-Member Price: £8.87 ❖ Member Price: £7.99

NINE WAYS TO CHARM A DRYAD

by Penny Billington

HEALTHY PLANET by Fred Hageneder

228pp, 229 x 152 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £15.99

416pp, 216 x 139 mm, Paperback, 2022, RRP £15.99

We all know how important trees are as strong living beings and about all the gifts they give us. This book shows how to go to the next level and consciously build a profound magical relationship with a dryad, which is the spirit of the tree. With nine themed charms, author Penny Billington helps you connect with tree nymphs and nature spirits so that you may receive their blessings, advice, and guidance. Penny is of course also the author of The Wisdom of Birch Oak and Yew, and is a Druid living in Somerset. Nine Ways to Charm a Dryad shares meditations, exercises, writing prompts, and tips for creative art projects designed to support communication with the wise spiritual beings found in the forests and fields. This book also includes tips for people who are not able to venture outdoors and those with mobility restrictions. ❖ Code: 320132 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

It’s difficult not to be depressed about the state of our beautiful planet and this book doesn’t gloss over this. But it also gives practical advice on what we can all do to help make positive change, and that brings an optimistic note to the message. This book is extremely comprehensive, detailing exactly how the planet and all life on it works, what exactly we’ve done to each element of this fragile ecosystem and continue to do, and what practical measures are needed both globally and individually to change the current course. It also tackles the bigger question of how humankind needs to reassess its mindset and value system, both of which enable the destruction we’re seeing. The need to move from ego and greed to empathy and gratitude for what the planet already gives us is paramount, and this book reminds us of that. ❖ Code: 320130 ❖ Non-Member Price: £12.21 ❖ Member Price: £10.99

ORDER & CUSTOMER SERVICE LINE ❖ Phone: 02078 594 375 ❖ Website: www.cygnusreview.com ❖ Twitter @CygnusBooks ❖ Facebook @cygnusbookclub ❖ Instagram @cygnusbooks

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KINDREDSPIRIT

Align your life path with the flow of the universe.

Available from www.watkinspublishing.com, Amazon and other book retailers

NOTICEBOARD &NOTICEBOARD ADVERTISING EVENTS, COURSES & WORKSHOPS THE SACRED FEMININE ROSE WOMB MYSTERIES OF AVALON retreat for women; July 22-29, 2022 at EarthSpirit. Reclaim your birthright of vitality, passion for life, and feminine power in a safe, sacred, temple space with highly skilled, experienced facilitators. amrita@ sacredfeminineschool.com Website: SacredFeminineSchool.com/glastonbury-2022 ECKHART TOLLE UK EVENTS Free Online Webinars, Workshops, Retreats, One-to-One, Video Teachings, Local Support Groups. www.eckharttolle.co.uk Email : neil@thepowerofnow.co.uk Tel : 07754 016779

SHAMANIC PRACTITIONER TRAINING ONE YEAR SHAMANIC PRACTITIONER TRAINING with Derek Gane, shamanic healer and teacher over 20 years at The Healing Tree Centre, a 20a retreat centre in North Cornwall. Starting June. www.healingtree.org.uk thehealingtreecentre@gmail.com

PERSONAL ON YOUR OWN? The Free Spirits Club exists for people seeking new friends, pen pals or romance.

Call Rebecca, 01663 526523 www.freespiritsclub.co.uk hello@freespiritsclub.co.uk

For spiritual seekers expecting answers, not platitudes.

In the 480-page Many Voices, One Mission, twenty highlyevolved spirit guides deliver wisdom, detailed insights and practical advice in contemporary, no-nonsense language.

Their communications will comfort, inform and inspire in equal measure, encouraging you to approach this life and the next from a totally different, liberating perspective.

Themed sections examine: Paperback available from: thejosephcommunications.co.uk Life’s Journey ; Aspects of the Afterlife ; The Sacred Earth ; or amazon.co.uk Spiritual Science ; Co-Creation ; or send cheque for £18.95 Connections ; Spiritual Living ; (includes p&p) Health and Healing and more. made payable to: Many Voices, One Mission is Band of Light Media Ltd. bold enough to ask the big to: spiritual questions…

10 Sparrable Row, …And daring enough to answer Briercliffe, Burnley, Lancashire, BB10 3QW. them.

Paperbacks—ebooks—audiobooks thejosephcommunications.co.uk amazon.co.uk

Revealing the astonishing hidden world around you Your perceived ‘reality’ is simply a brush stroke in a much bigger picture.

Humanity has forgotten that it is linked to invisible but hugely powerful spiritual forces.

In his new book the Spaces Between acclaimed spirit communicator Joseph unveils this greater reality and the lifeforms that exist within it and interact, unseen, with you in subtle but powerful ways.

Some are allies, some are destructive, but all are brought under the spotlight by Joseph, whose intention is to reveal the hidden world you are a part of and are influenced by, second by second. …Read the Spaces Between and your viewpoint will change forever.

PAPERBACK from: thejosephcommunications.co.uk or amazon.co.uk or send cheque for £16.95 (includes p&p) made payable to Band of Light Media Ltd. to: 10 Sparrable Row, Briercliffe, Burnley, Lancashire, BB10 3QW.

For details of other Joseph Communications books: www.thejosephcommunications.co.uk

HEALING, COACHING AND READINGS ANGELIC GUIDANCE WITH MICHAEL Welcome positive change into your life. Please telephone Eastbourne 01323 365751 for further details. mikeallone@talktalk.net BRIGHTEYES PSYCHIC Natural Healer Clairvoyant. Gifted medium works with my guides and gives no false information.

Can only give what comes through. I do all my personal readings myself.

Landline: 0113 274 1652. Mobile: 07970 712749.

CLAIRVOYANT, PAUL offers spiritually guided consultations in Brighton & Eastbourne and also by telephone. My work always helps those ready for change. Please telephone Brighton 01273 602929 for further details.

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