A Few Life-Changing Books

Over the years, there have been so many incredible books that have changed my life. Here are a few as I’m looking back remembering how powerful they were when I first read them.

In these books, I discovered keys that unlocked doors within my heart & soul, and revealed truths I'd been waiting to remember. They have illuminated the distortions we get caught in, and how we lose connection with our true essence -  lost in our conceptual minds and the illusion of separation.

These books expose our collective amnesia; AND they beckon us toward a radical reawakening to entirely new ways of experiencing ourselves and our precious planet.

"The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible" by Charles Eisenstein 

This book spoke directly to my heart (hence the title!). It dives deep into the core of our modern crisis—the elevation of analytical thought and empirical evidence above all. Eisenstein writes about how our obsession with categorization and separation has frayed the very fabric of society and our connection to the natural world. His vision is so incredibly beautiful; calling for a renaissance of heart-based stories and practices that weave us back into our lives on this planet. Eisenstein encourages us all to journey from our minds to our hearts, emphasizing empathy and interconnectedness as the medicine that can heal our fractured world.

"The Secret Teachings of Plants" by Stephen Harrod Buhner

This book completely opened my world to other ways of perceiving wisdom. Blew me away I could learn to listen to plants in this way! Stephen Harrod Buhner is the modern grandfather of re-learning to listen to the natural world. He invites us to journey into the sentience of plants, to discover the profound wisdom that comes to life in the language of our hearts. Buhner shows us the limitations of the scientific method, which blinds us with its dissective limited worldview. When we open to the rich, intuitive knowledge that thrives beyond quantification, it's here we truly learn. He shows us how to dissolve the barriers of our conceptual mind, how to plant our feet firmly in the ground of heart-based perception, and how to cultivate a deeper, more symbiotic relationship with the plants.

"The End of Your World" by Adyashanti 

This book offered me a doorway to get out of the incessant looping mental suffering, exactly when I needed it. Adyashanti does an excellent job exploring the far corners of the egoic mind—with its fortress of concepts and identities—and how when it begins to crumble it reveals the luminous essence beyond. He guides us from an intellectual understanding to the transcendence of the conceptual mind. It’s only through directly experiencing liberation from our thoughts, that we begin to really understand what this awakening thing is all about. He offers us a relief to step outside the never-ending mind into more awareness & freedom.

What resonates deeply with me is how these books show us the consequences of our reliance on analytical thinking—environmental degradation, societal inequalities and a lack of spiritual connection & meaning. They call on a holistic, interconnected understanding of life experienced through the heart, so we can find a fulfilling and sustainable life on Earth. 

I love how they honor each in their own way the mystery and interconnectedness of all existence and celebrate a beauty in life that can only be experienced outside the mind.