47 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent for anyone willing to look inside themselves, July 6, 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Chakras and Their Archetypes: Uniting Energy Awareness and Spiritual Growth (Paperback)
I have been on a journey of trying to find out who I am and why I do things for the past 2 years and out of all the information I have come across, this book explains it in the most simplest form with the simplest understanding. I found this book to be one of the only books so far that really gets to the "heart" of the subjects I wanted to work on within myself (and covers all of them!). If you have the courage to look inside and not be afraid of what you find, you can really be on a journey to a more peaceful, fulfilling life. I must go back and read it again so I can practice the exercises and meditations. Excellent book! I'm ordering another one from this author which will expand on my knowledge of unlocking my energies.
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82 of 90 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a good book for beginners, July 2, 2003
This review is from: Chakras and Their Archetypes: Uniting Energy Awareness and Spiritual Growth (Paperback)
Having studied archetypes and chakras, I would definitely recommend this book for anyone in the *beginning* of their study of both archetypes and chakras. That said, there are several things I liked about the book: the clear, concise manner in which terms were defined; the manner in which positive and negative aspects of archetypes were defined and illustrated; and the case histories. There are several other things about this book that I question.
However, my main difference is with Ms. Wauters' somewhat glib characteristics of archetypes; first of Victim and Mother in the root chakra. As a childfree person (who also happens to be a teacher) I always knew I never wanted children, and to me, as an extremely independent, autonomous person, the traditional path of motherhood was a path of victimization, ie, putting everyone's needs before one's own, never taking time for oneself, sacrificing constantly, and never complaining. I understand that she means "nurturer" here. One must remember that not all mothers are nurturers (cf Susan Smith and Andrea Yates as extreme examples), and not all who nurture choose to mother (or to parent, to be more inclusive).
I question also that the Servant is a negative archetype; certainly it's not universally so, as Jesus Christ, Mahatma Ghandi and Mother Teresa certainly knew: to serve others is to empower oneself and others. Certainly martyr service is negative, just as nasty, attitude-filled waitperson-from-hell service is negative. But as one who grew up female in the South and came out of it liberal, independent and feminist, at 35 I see that one may choose to serve, but service does not make one a servant. At least on a first reading of Ms. Wauters' book, I'm not sure this point is made clearly enough.
I also question Ms. Wauters' characterization of the Intellectual archetype as negative, and the Intuitive as positive. Personally as an intellectual, I'd characterize that as positive, and too much intuition without articulation as being negative. One does, of course, need to balance both to be healthy.
I also wonder if Ms. Wauters has read _Awakening the Heroes Within_ by Carolyn Pearson, who offers 12 archetypes, all of which are very fleshed out. (I would recommend the Pearson book for a more thorough study of archetypes.) I wonder, too, if she's done elemental reading in Jung. This book, while good, could have done with a bibliography as well. Overall it is a good beginning along the path of studying archetypes and/or chakras.
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47 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent guide to the real you., October 13, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Chakras and Their Archetypes: Uniting Energy Awareness and Spiritual Growth (Paperback)
This is a great book to introduce you to the chakras and archetypes. It is easy to read and understand, and gives you the tools to look inside your heart and soul in order to know yourself better and change what you believe needs changing. Be honest with yourself when you read it and follow the meditation instructions and you will feel like your life is put back on track.
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