Larry Dossey

21/2 stars!! Reminds me not to discount a book because of low star count. I love this book! I have loaned it out several times. I share bits from it with clients regularly. The subtitle is a misrepresentation of the extraordinary springboard of healing possibilities offered here. These are not Fourteen Steps, these are fourteen iceberg tips reviewed and it is up to the reader to dive deeper and experience more for themselves. Each topic is circumnavigated to display a range of aspects known. show more I love the spherical approach that takes us off the linear focus. It tickles the flexibility of the reader to consider more than one aspect of each chapter subject. Continued exploration is suggested and recommendations are made. show less

Recommended (and lent) by a friend, this isn't the kind of book I would usually read. It's written by a scientist, and categorised as 'New Age'. However, it's quite a fascinating read. The author attempts to look beyond the early materialism of science, through quantum physics, and into unexplored realms that unite the spiritual and the scientific.

His theory is, primarily, that our minds are not the local entities we perceive them as, but 'non-local', and in a sense 'God'. He demonstrates show more this in the early part of the book using several documented experiments. The second part of the book explores (in a low-key way) some quantum physics and other scientific concepts, and the last section looks at religion as a whole, and God in particular.

It's not written at all from a Christian perspective, yet several Christian mystics and scientists from the past are quoted. The author seems to see the Christian faith as rather narrow-minded; whereas I could see much of what he discussed as fitting in quite well with my belief in God and eternity, he seemed to think that his theories were not compatible with any particular belief system.

I'd perhaps rate this three and a half stars if I could - it was an interesting read, if a little heavy and long-winded in places. But it's now twenty years out of date, and I have no idea if some of his science is now considered obsolete. Worth reading, anyway, for an attempt at setting religion alongside scientific thinking, although strongly denominational or structured Christians (or indeed those of other faiths) might find some of it disturbing. Could give some atheists a few points for debate, however! show less

Larry Dossey is one of the better authors out there. He is an M.D., and in this book discusses the healing effects of prayer. Not many medical doctors are aware of the power of prayer, far less use it to heal their patients.

Experiments have shown that prayer in fact positively affects high blood pressure, wounds, heart attacks, headaches, and anxiety. It was also shown that the “Thy will be done” approach was “quantitatively more powerful than when specific results were held in the show more mind”. A simple attitude of prayerfulness seemed to set the stage for healing.

The author shares his personal experiences of praying for his patients and of tackling his own health problems. We learn that many saints and spiritual teachers died of cancer, including the Buddha (or one of them), Saint Bernadette, Krishnamurti, Suzuki Roshi and Sri Ramana Maharshi. He discusses this paradox: surely they, of all people, should have been able to heal themselves? Jesus himself in John 9:1-3 implies that there may be a higher purpose to illness that we simply cannot grasp “because we do not know the ways of the Absolute”. There are also people who “break all the rules of good health, smoke and drink with abandon, and live to be a hundred without ever falling ill.”

Disease is part of the natural order, not a sign of ethical, moral or spiritual weakness.

This book is not so much a book of answers, but one in which the author discusses the various aspects of illness, healing and prayer, so we can reach our own conclusions.

Many were perplexed by the terminal cancer of Ramana Maharshi. His pain was immense, and he would scream out at night. Maharshi told people “There is pain, but there is no suffering”.

The author provides us with fascinating stories of miraculous recovery, and refers us to the works of Stanley Krippner, Lawrence LeShan, Joseph Campbell, Rainer Maria Rilke, and so on.

He refers to the “realization that physical illness, no matter how painful or grotesque, is at some level of secondary importance in the total scheme of our existence”. This is because our higher self is impervious to the ravages of any physical ailment whatsoever.

He tells us of the cooperation between Norman Shealy, M.D. ad Caroline Myss. The latter is incredibly skilled at diagnosing people´s illnesses at a distance. She is 93% accurate. We learn about noncontact therapeutic touch, transpersonal imagery, remote sensing and “telesomatic events”.

There is a chapter about prayer and the unconscious mind. People who deny their health problems “survive in greater numbers than those who confront the facts squarely and honestly”. No other psychological coping style is correlated with such a high survival rate in the acute phase of a myocardial infarction.

Learning “how to be” can set in motion not only healing but the power to heal. The author cites the case of de Vaca, the Spanish explorer, and that of Funatsu, a Japanese lost in the snow in Antarctica. The latter was buried alive and had to learn a “being strategy” – a not-doing strategy.

We learn about lucid dreams, healing dreams and shamanic journeying (Sandra Ingerman),

There are chapters about how to pray and what to pray for, time-displaced prayer, your doctor´s beliefs and why they matter, and even one on “black prayer”, which includes shamanic hexing (voodoo) and the Hawaiian death prayer.

This is an immaculately written book by a learned author. I strongly recommend that you read it. It is an encouraging and inspiring book and I will now be adding other books by this author to my long reading list. show less

The Power of Premonitions
How Knowing the Future Can Shape Our Lives
by Larry Dossey, M.D.

It was so eye-opening to review this 288 page book about premonitions. I really enjoyed the way the author looked at the billion aspects of this mufti-dimensional topic, and then went on to expand it from there. It made me start thinking how many times in our lives we just chock things up to coincidence, when there was a lot more going on behind the scenes. There is a lot of well presented and much needed show more info between these hallowed covers.

Being an Intuitive, my job centers around my ability to pick up on the messages in what ever form they come in, so it was especially a delight for me to learn even more on deeper and deeper levels. My favorite part of this blessed read was the way the author used many well placed stories that illustrated the different experiences. And I will be eternally grateful that he constructed this precious teacher into such a well structured easy to follow format. I would recommend this much needed help to anyone interested in those hunches and where they come from. Thanks, Larry, for shedding some light on a much needed area.

Love & Light,

Riki Frahmann show less