A Field Guide to the Soul: A Down-to-Earth Handbook of Spiritual Practice [Hardcover]

James Thornton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 19, 1999

After a career as one of the nation's top  environmental lawyers, James Thornton spent  several years on retreat, culminating in a meeting with the Dalai Lama, who asked him to teach a path of integration and wholeness.
        
In A Field Guide to the Soul, Thornton leads us through a series of contemplative exercises designed to clarify the body, mind, and heart, and make a deep connection with the wisdom encoded in the natural world. His nature writing is joyously lyrical; the book as a whole is immensely practical, drawing on Jungian psychology, and Buddhist, Hindu, and Christian teachings, to give us the tools to work for the benefit of all living beings.
        
At a time when people are desperate to make some sense of their lives, Thornton shows us how to embark on our own hero's journey. Only by taking full responsibility for our thoughts, feelings, and actions can we bring about the revolution in consciousness that is so vital today. In order to discover how to care for the Earth and all its inhabitants, we must first learn how to care for ourselves. Here is a practical manual that shows us the way.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Field guides are designed to help us identify and better appreciate the natural world around us--whether it be spotting the Baltimore oriole or recognizing the Rocky Mountain juniper tree. James Thornton, a naturalist and renowned defender of the earth (a former attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council), has compiled a field guide for helping readers identify and appreciate the wonders of the soul, as if it, too, were an natural terrain filled with beautiful mysteries. Although Thornton draws upon Buddhism, Christianity, and Jungian psychology, he is at his best when relying on metaphors and lessons from nature to illustrate the deeper work of spiritual development, such as facing the "Beasts in the Forest of Our Hearts" or finding courage from meandering, aging rivers, or learning truly to listen by hearing the songs as well as the breath of the titmice and chickadees. --Gail Hudson

From Publishers Weekly

In a fast-paced world, the body often outruns the soul, leaving the latter panting for nourishment. Drawing on Jungian psychology and Buddhist and Christian spiritual practices, former environmental lawyer Thornton offers a guide to bringing the soul sustenance. He contends that there are three ways of awakening the soul. The "way of the mind," says Thornton, instructs us in using our inner silence to rid ourselves of stress and to focus on our creativity. The "way of the heart" leads us into the "forests of our hearts to meet the beasts that dwell in them." According to the author, following the way of the heart taps into our deepest emotions and enables us to experience the heights of mystical rapture. The "way of action" emphasizes the ways we relate to the world around us. Following the "way of action" places us at the center of the natural world and fosters ecological awareness and sensitivity, making us "homogaians." Although Thornton strives for new insights in these brief meditations and exercises, this volume of quasi-spiritual pop psychology joins already overburdened shelves.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Harmony; 1st edition (January 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 060960368X
• ISBN-13: 978-0609603680
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,517,796 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Whole Spiritual Guidance, April 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Soul: A Down-to-Earth Handbook of Spiritual Practice (Hardcover)

This is an unsentimental book that takes you into James Thornton's sacred world and allows one to form or deepen one's one world. He does this with short, easy-to-digest chapters, and in fact I love reading one or two before bedtime. The depth and breadth of wisdom is unique and joyous. He writes, "There is always the terror of stepping out of our old protective skin. But a new one will reliably extrude itself . . . Our heart is broken open, again and again, until it is big enough to hold the world." So, you see, beautiful writing and beautiful wisdom. If you are a person who hesitates to buy books about the soul, fearing new-age trends (I am one of those people who does not go in for cliched new-age topics), please be assurred that this book is not trendy or maudlin. It is a profoundly joyful book, and Thornton's natural vignettes are thought-provoking and calming and illuminating.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DOES GOD KNOW MY NAME?, January 31, 2000

By 

D. C. (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Soul: A Down-to-Earth Handbook of Spiritual Practice (Hardcover)

Not long ago, after having read many books on Buddism and meditation, I began to think that maybe the whole idea of a personal, loving God or Father was a myth of my own making... Our making... A fabrication we needed to survive... An opium of the masses. Although I gained much from reading on Buddism and meditation, I found I just didn't want to let go of the idea of a personal, loving Father with a plan for my life. If this is your hope too, read this book. His encounter with God is honest, unpretentious, and truly mystical. I no longer have any doubt.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent New Age book--A critical review, August 2, 2001

By 

Wyote (Seoul) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Soul: A Down-to-Earth Handbook of Spiritual Practice (Paperback)

I read this book because I strongly believe in reading opinions I disagree with. And in the end, I do disagree with some of Thornton's conclusions. However, I have to admit that this is one of the most insightful New Age texts I have ever read. It was very challenging on a personal level, and I learned a lot about myself while reading it. Thornton is certainly thought-provoking, intelligent, and a capable writer. If you enjoy New Age books, you should definitely read this one. If you do not, you should give this one a try. Few books about spirituality get better than this.