TALKback: Book Reviews & Essays

Meet our ConsciousREADERS Club

Tonietta A. Walters, David Jon Peckinpaugh, Christyna Jauffret,
Charles Ng'Ang'a Maina, and Vanessa McNeill.

Here's the books they're discussing now - join us!

* Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love and Wisdom by Dr. Rick Hanson
* Tantra: The Art of Conscious Loving by Charles and Caroline Muir
* Entangled Minds: Extrasensory Experiences in a Quantum Reality by Dean Radin, PhD

Christyna Jauffret ~ Mauritius Island "Living on a remote island, you want to go 'beyond borders,' in my case to see what's behind the palm trees along the coast. I did my schooling at a catholic convent school, i know, i know.... And studied at the Ecole Nationale Des Beaux Arts in Montpellier then Bordeaux, France from 1986 to 1989, then came back to the sandy strip of Mauritius I call home (40kms wide by 84 kms long), not even a dot on the map. Gave birth to my son, Jordan, and got very very bored.

Then wings sprouted from my heels, like Hermes the Greek messenger, but with less wisdom. I sold a few paintings, taught Art, saved every Roupee (our local cash), and started exploring South East Asia. I had a cool plan: Travel to a country for about a month, see, feel, breathe, taste, observe the people, habits, sites and the last 2 weeks of the trip set up a free painting workshop and share my limited knowledge with whoever was interested.

I had amazing and enriching experiences in Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, Pakistan and the Afghan refugee camps in Peshawar. The travels fired my inspiration and whatever I gave in those exotic places and spaces I received 1,000 times in return. I became a chameleon, observed in deep camouflage, with quiet energy and saw through my heart. I chose to investigate traumatized land and population as they echoed something deep in my soul.

I looked, learned, listened and healed a little bit more with each country. Last year I chose Tibet, where I walked the Kora around Mt Kailash (6000 meters altitude for an ex-asthmatic is not always fun!), a pilgrimage on sacred ground. I had the best motivation ever mixed with an unbending intent: Gratitude. I wanted to say thank you for my life. From a flat island in the Indian Ocean to the Himalayas, I have only reasons to be happy." Images © All rights reserved. To learn more about her work: http://www.flickr.com/photos/christyna_sj/ & http://www.worldofspa.ch/2010/aboutus.htm

Charles Ng'Ang'a Maina ~ Nairobi, Kenya ~ A child of the Universe. An ambitious Kenyan who is currently working at Kitengela Hot Glass.

"I have this unquenchable thirst for knowledge and a strong desire to share the knowledge that I acquire with others. I always make an effort of learning a new thing from every experience in my life. I accept life as it comes, changing what I can and flowing with the rest.

A positive attitude helps me to overturn misfortunes and calamities into positive energy - which fuels my life and keeps me going. I take pride in the fact that I know myself and I know what I want in life. I just want to live! I love, therefore I am. I want to see peace, love and justice in the world. I also would like to see people believe in themselves and in their ability to make a difference. And I want to try my best to wipe out poverty (mental, spiritual, and material) out of this world. For there is nothing as dehumanizing as poverty. There is nothing as bad as wanting something and not having the means to get it. I believe with Love all things are possible. "

Single mom Vanessa McNeill is currently studying human behavioral psychology and neurobiological sciences at the University of Montana. Vanessa intends to synergize her passion for consciousness, personal transformation, and scientific studies with her technical writing/researching background into an artistic expression of the body’s ability to heal itself.

Her vision is to share inspired strategies and education, promoting self-care for others to find their own holistic, conscious way towards healing, living, and evolving.

Inspired by the works of such American luminaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau,
David Jon Peckinpaugh lives in Atlanta, Michigan and is a father, an author, and a musician who continues to seek a valid means of returning the many blessings that he himself has received from the hands and hearts of others. By adding his voice to the symphony of a distinctly American brand of philosophy and discourse, that is, by nature, both diverse and multi-faceted, he hopes to inspire others to lift their voices up and share their most profound dreams and heart-felt experiences with others. He is the author of the books Buddha & Shakespeare: Eastern Dharma, Western Drama.

His other books include Naked Guide To Life & Death: Experts, Extremism, Evolution, Education; and Framing The Postmodern: Language, Culture, Commerce, & Consciousness. He has also released numerous CD's as a composer/singer-songwriter--the latest being Urizen: Samsara's Greatest Hits. Some of his latest musical explorations can be found at http://www.reverbnation.com/DandelionSky. For additional info or contact you can find David at http://www.facebook.com/davidjonpeckinpaugh.

Tonietta A. Walters ~ Fort Lauderdale, Florida has a Specialized B.A. in Art and Philosophy and a M.A. in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Art & Cognitive Science, both from Florida International University. She is a member of Mensa and 2010 South Florida Cultural Consortium Visual and Media Arts Fellow.

Her work in art is an investigation of her psyche in an attempt to resolve the conflicts between her culturally ingrained sense of self and externally imposed concepts of identity. Her academic work involves philosophical investigation of the intersection of art, religion and cognitive science.

Her latest project: The Xhyra Graf
The Art & Consciousness Project First Post
Information on the Artist’s Creative Process to be collected here: NoumenArts DataNet
This project will focus on the artmaking process as opposed to the art viewing process [except where viewing becomes necessary to art making]. This is at bottom an attempt to make methodical the organizing of my thoughts with the hopes of having an interdisciplinary final product [web: images, audio, video, etc. along with text].

Photo of “My Last Nerve: Pinpointing the Neural Correlates of Consciousness”

My brain works in strange ways…at least so it seems to me. This has created situations that have affected my psychology and emotional development in a subtly complicated fashion. I am sure a trained psychologist would straighten me out in no time.
However, I’m an artist. This means two things:

I could never afford enough psychotherapy and
I suppose I make art because of some trouble communicating…it’s just easier for me to pound on steel.

In working I try to figure things out, specifically the process itself and what drives me to make art. Building upon the premise that there is some commonality (a basic psychological premise) between human beings, I believe that a personal investigation of my creative process will lead to some, hopefully concrete, information about what drives us as thinking beings.

ConsciousREADERS Club

"Stress Free Drugs Sensual Intelligence Natalie Geld"

A MUST READ FOR DEEPER SELF AWARENESS...

"I felt like the author was talking with ME."

"This book is an amazing look inside yourself, and also an interactive experience, where you're experimenting and experiencing your own body in new ways as you read.

It's insightful and fun, this is a must for anyone who wants to try new sensual and sensory experiences, and I pity those who don't."

Examine profound connections of sexuality, stress, emotions and consciousness. Mind is body. Body is mind. Spark a dialogue... Welcome to our [R]evolutionary community!

Translated into 148 languages so far, our readers live in 202 countries, including every state in America -- Thank you for inspiring us!