Author Archives: Elderwoman
‘Living in Connection: Theory and Practice of the New World-View’ by Chris Clarke
In this book, Chris links his extensive, first-hand knowledge of modern physics with a deeply-felt creation spirituality, aided by a powerful grasp of the history of science and philosophy. He wants to tell us what it means to really live in moment-by-moment connection with all-that-is, or, to use a favourite term of his, with the Other. To do this, he sets out the new world-view that makes living in connection possible.
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Posted in Cosmology, Creation Spirituality, Gaia, Philosophy, Science, Spirituality
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‘Out of the Labyrinth: Who We Are, How We Go Wrong and What We Can Do about It’ by Carl Frankel
This book addresses the elements in human nature that either propel one in the direction of living in harmony with the earth or, as is the usual case, carry on as though a connection didn’t exist. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Politics, Practical, Psychology
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‘Thames: Sacred River’ by Peter Ackroyd
Peter Ackroyd has provided a very readable, comprehensive, thematic biography of the river Thames. The feature that makes it relevant to GreenSpirit is that throughout, the river comes first. People and places are considered in the context of their relationships with the river. Continue reading
Posted in History, Spirituality
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‘The Acentric Labyrinth: Giordano Bruno’s Prelude to Contemporary Cosmology’ by Ramon Mendoza
Ramon maintains that Giordano Bruno, who was burned at the stake in 1600, is the true founder of modern cosmology, and that he goes far beyond modern physics in linking cosmology and spirituality. Bruno put forward a view of the Universe which is close to that – indeed goes further than that – which is held by early twenty-first century physics. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Gaia, History, Science, Spirituality
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‘Sacred Gaia: Holistic Theology and Earth System Science’ by Anne Primavesi
As part of the development of a liberation theology, Anne Primavesi presents a critique of the view that biological evolution is driven almost exclusively by competitive processes and the way this has been carried over into the human SocialScape and used to justify the exploitation of humans and the natural world. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Philosophy, Religion, Science
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‘The Symbiotic Planet. A New Look at Evolution’ by Lynn Margulis
Margulis’ research has shown that symbiosis, the term used to describe the phenomenon of organisms living together to their mutual advantage, has played a major role in biological evolution. This represents a significant shift from classical neo- Darwinism which sees competition as the virtually the only selection mechanism. Continue reading
‘Sweat Your Prayers: Movement As Spiritual Practice’ by Gabrielle Roth
Gabrielle Roth’s dance system or ‘the five rhythms’ isn’t about definite steps, but about responding directly to music and moving however you feel. The five rhythms are supposed to be the five basic types of process which underlie all music, even though they are often found mixed together. Continue reading
Posted in Creation Spirituality, Health and wellbeing, Practical, Psychology, Spirituality
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‘The Living Goddesses’ by Marija Gimbutas (Edited and supplemented by Miriam Robbins Dexter)
In this book Marija Gimbutas provides us with a scholarly but also readable account of the Goddess tradition of Europe from the late Palaeolithic and Neolithic eras, through the megalithic and henge building periods and into recorded history. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Gaia, History, Religion, Science, Spirituality, Uncategorized
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‘Breathe into Being: Awakening to Who You Really Are’ by Dennis Lewis
This book is a good introduction to that most fundamental constituent of our life, breathing. It is short, with 75 brief chapters, most of which contain practical advice and a breathing exercise, plus many wise words on embodied spirituality.
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Posted in Health and wellbeing, Practical, Spirituality
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‘Nature and the Human Soul: Cultivating Wholeness and Community in a Fragmented World’ by Bill Plotkin
Depth psychologist and wilderness guide Bill Plotkin, well known for his earlier book, Soulcraft, begins this one with a quote from Thomas Berry, a poignant poem from Drew Dellinger, five succinct sentences outlining the mess our species has made of the planet in the last two hundred years and the following statement: “True adulthood, or psychological maturity, has become an uncommon achievement in Western and Westernized societies and genuine elderhood nearly nonexistent.” Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Psychology, Spirituality
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‘The Master and his Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World’ by Iain McGilchrist
This is one of the most important books that I’ve read. I heard Iain McGilchrist talking about it on the radio when it was first published and just knew I had to read it. It’s a weighty tome (both in size and content), covering both the structure of the brain and how the brain’s structure and function has shaped Western culture. McGilchrist is eminently suited for the task, as he taught English at Oxford University before training as a psychiatrist and is therefore able to express complex ideas in simple, attractive ways. Continue reading
Posted in Health and wellbeing, History, Psychology, Science
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‘The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community’ by David C Korten
David Korten wrote this book several years ago, but it is probably even more relevant – and urgent – today. He sees us at a crossroads, and the choice we make will result in either The Great Turning of the title, or The Great Unravelling. Continue reading
Posted in History, Philosophy, Politics, Practical
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‘Come Down to the Wood’ by Judith Bromley
Judith Bromley’s book is unlike anything I have ever read. I would say that I have experienced it rather than read it. As she led me through the seasons of a single year, I found myself wanting it not to be autumn but to continue to be summer. I found myself engaged in the process of gauging the height of the sun, and the point in the valley where the sun never shines. I felt really glad that the populace don’t have access to ‘our’ wood, and that it remains undisturbed and sacred. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Philosophy, Practical, Spirituality
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‘Becoming Animal: An Earthy Cosmology’ by David Abram
An essential first step in repairing the damage we have done to the planet and to ourselves may be to go back to basics and, literally, to come to our senses.
Not only must we fully re-inhabit our animal bodies but we must also become aware of our vital interconnectedness with all other creatures. And for tutoring us and inspiring us in these twin tasks I have never met a better teacher than David Abram. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Important Titles, Philosophy, Practical, Psychology, Spirituality
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‘The Spell of the Sensuous’ by David Abram
Part personal story, this book begins among the bright green terraced rice paddies of Bali as the author sets out on a study tour through Asia to document the relationship between magic and medicine. Rather than travelling as an academic, he goes simply as a magician, using his own well-developed magic skills to make a collegial connection with the various sorcerers and shamans he meets along the way. Soon, however, he begins to discover the deeper truths of the shamanic role in community, which is to be the knowing, sensing bridge between the community and the greater reality, both psychic and organic, in which all our human communities are embedded. Continue reading
Posted in Education, Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Important Titles, Philosophy, Practical, Psychology, Spirituality
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‘The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder’ by Richard Louv
Whereas Louv’s earlier book Last Child in the Woods pointed out the problem of Nature- Deficiency Disorder in children, Louv’s new book The Nature Principle points out that adults themselves can suffer from the same disorder—and many already are. Though we tend to forget it, we too are animals; we co-evolved with the natural world and we need it as much as ever. Being isolated from green and growing things predisposes us to a range of conditions such as obesity, diabetes, asthma, behaviour disorders, depression and a lack of connection with community and place. We ignore these warnings at our peril. Continue reading
Posted in Education, Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Philosophy, Politics, Practical, Psychology
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‘Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy’ by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone
It is so easy to become fearful, isolated and despondent about the enormity of the environmental and social challenges that we, as a human race, are currently facing. This book tells us how we can sustain ourselves through these challenges and live positive, compassionate and hope filled lives Continue reading
Posted in Creation Spirituality, Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Philosophy, Politics, Practical, Psychology, Spirituality
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‘The Universe Story’ by Brian Swimme and Thomas Berry
Most cultures have creation stories. And for many centuries, those creation stories have served to bond people together in a shared sense of history and of destiny. Our modern, Western culture, with all its book learning and its technology and its scientific knowhow has long since outgrown tales of Adam and Eve and fig leaves and yet there has been nothing coherent to put in their place. For a long time now, we have been a people in need of a creation story. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Education, Gaia, History, Important Titles, Philosophy, Science, Spirituality
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‘The Science Delusion: Freeing the Spirit of Enquiry’ by Rupert Sheldrake
The aim of this book is to encourage a fundamental and beneficial re-evaluation of the way the sciences are defined and practised in our modern world. It does so by carefully and systematically examining ten core beliefs that most scientists accept without question, all of which are in fact untested and untestable and which severely limit the ability of our modern sciences to respond convincingly to the challenges we face in the twenty-first century. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Gaia, Philosophy, Psychology, Religion, Science, Spirituality
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‘Planet as Self: An Earthen Spirituality’ by Sky McCain
‘Planet as Self’ argues for a radical rethink of our relationship with Mother Earth or Gaia and points out how beliefs – scientific or religious – can so easily be mistaken for truths. Nothing less than a paradigm shift in our basic beliefs is called for. Continue reading
Posted in Cosmology, Gaia, History, Important Titles, Philosophy, Religion, Spirituality
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‘Climb up to the Moor: Moorland Life through the Seasons of the Year.’ Words and pictures by Judith Bromley with selected paintings by Robert Nicholls
This book about the moorland of the North Yorkshire National Park is a feast for the senses. Everyone reading it will certainly want to experience the moorland as Judith has. She walks there in every season: observing, watching, writing and painting. Each month she describes the impact on all of her senses of what is above her head, below her feet and within her field of vision. By itself the language that she uses paints glorious pictures in our minds, but the written words are accompanied by stunning paintings of the places she describes. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Health and wellbeing, Life Cycles, Nature Study, Practical, Spirituality
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‘Healing this Wounded Earth: with Compassion, Spirit and the Power of Hope’ by Eleanor Stoneham
The book is a call to action – to heal our wounds and our fractured society, and most importantly halt the violence we are inflicting on this planet before it’s too late. The author points out that, through increasing urbanisation, most of us have lost contact with the land and the soil and as a result part of our soul has died. She writes from a Christian perspective but draws on the wisdom of other religious traditions as well. She assures readers that her message is for those of all faiths or none: what matters is that they possess ‘the honesty of intention’ She tackles big questions such as how we move into a new era of social responsibility, lay the foundations of a just society and reform our economic system so that we value people and not money.
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Posted in Gaia, Health and wellbeing, History, Religion, Spirituality
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‘A Better World Is Possible’ by Bruce Nixon
After reviewing what is wrong with today’s world, Nixon argues for a sustainable and just economy, involving reform of the large global financial institutions currently dominated by the interests of big business and rich countries. He proposes unlocking democracy by moving to a more participatory system, with more power at a local level. He also illustrates how the money currently poured into the military machine could be used for conflict resolution and war prevention. Additionally, he addresses the issues of eradicating world hunger, and creating sustainable (and beautiful) towns and cities. Continue reading
‘Evolutionaries: Unlocking the Spiritual and Cultural Potential of Science’s Greatest Idea,’ by Carter Phipps
We have, as a human race, to combat climate change, over population, the destruction of species and more. These have to be addressed collectively by humans, no one country or group can go it alone. How can we do this? This book provides sign-posts, sometimes answers, sometimes questions, but at least broad pointers to the ways in which we can integrate an overarching story to help us to address the pressing issues of today.
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Posted in Cosmology, Philosophy, Science, Spirituality, Uncategorized
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‘Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future’ by Bron Taylor
The overall aim of this book is to define and describe dark green religion which, reduced to one simplistic sentence, means a belief in the intrinsic value and sacredness of Nature, and to examine the influence of this strand of belief upon our contemporary culture, particularly in the West. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, History, Philosophy, Religion, Spirituality
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‘Eyes of the Wild:Journeys of Transformation with the Animal Powers’ by Eleanor O’Hanlon
An epic, personal journey to meet whales and wolves, bears and wild horses, guided by outstanding biologists and other observers who are renewing an ancient way of connection with the wild. Continue reading
Posted in Gaia, Nature Study, Spirituality
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‘Integral Spirituality: A Startling New Role for Religion in the Modern and Postmodern World’ by Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber’s Integral approach, which is intrinsically value-free, is a unique method for understanding pretty much anything in a fully comprehensive, multidimensional and holistic way. It has the capacity to break up socio-cultural and ideological logjams and may well be the best tool available, right now, for achieving religious tolerance, peace and (when applied to ecological issues) sustainability. Continue reading
Posted in Philosophy, Practical, Psychology, Religion, Science, Spirituality
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