Practicing Conscious Living and Dying: Stories of the Eternal Continuum of Consciousness [Paperback]

Annamaria Hemingway (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 20, 2007

An uplifting collection of spiritually illuminating texts and powerfully thought- provoking real life stories, showing death as an integral part of life. Modern medical advances have resulted in death and dying becoming a taboo, which leaves us feeling isolated when the inescapability of death touches our lives. These touching observations of closeness to someone else who is dying, and personal accounts of near death experiences and after-death communication, illustrate how coming to terms with the inevitability of death is actually a life-affirming experience. These emotionally powerful and inspirational experiences address timeless questions and show how each of the people has come to understand that death teaches us that the preciousness of life must be lived with a sense of purpose and meaning, as a celebration of our existence.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A beautiful and inspiring book that underscores the positive and dramatic effects that death can have on a person's life. -- International Association of Near-Death Studies

Death, it has been said, is the supreme teacher, and this beautiful and deeply moving book certainly exemplifies the adage. -- Kenneth Ring, Ph.D. Author of Lessons from the Light

I am captured by the style in which this book is written, Highly recommended. -- P.M.H. Atwater, Near-Death Researcher, Author.

I am captured by the style in which this book is written. Highly recommended -- P.M.H Atwater, Near-Death Researcher, Author.

Practicing Conscious Living and Dying offers a wide range of research that confirms death is only a transition. -- Bill Guggenheim, co-author of Hello From Heaven

This is a glorious book that raises the power of story to its most majestic purpose. -- Larry Dossey, MD

From the Author

Every interaction with death, dying and bereavement involves entering the painful world of grief and suffering, but at the same time, we are given the opportunity to emerge from the experience with a sense of awe, and a greater insight into the mystery of creation.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: John Hunt Publishing (December 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184694077X
• ISBN-13: 978-1846940774
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,138,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Annamaria Hemingway, Ph.D. is a spiritual counselor and member of the International Association for Near-Death Studies. She is the author of Practicing Conscious Living and Dying, Myths of the Afterlife, and Immortal Yearnings and her work is primarily focused on consciousness studies.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rational, comprehensive, and insightful, March 6, 2008

By 

Marco M. Pardi "Anthropologist: College Profe... (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Practicing Conscious Living and Dying: Stories of the Eternal Continuum of Consciousness (Paperback)

Over the past 8 years American Fundamentalists have attempted to monopolize the literature on Near Death Experiences and associated phenomena, usually employing their publishing factories to disseminate Trojan Horses - books purporting to be about this subject, but carefully crafted for the furtherance of their narrow "religious" agendas. As an Anthropologist (specializing in Death & Dying) for over 40 years, I study the impact of these insidious and often downright untruthful vehicles on the fabric of culture and society throughout the world.

Ms. Hemingway's book is truly welcome on several levels. Her presentation of historical and mythological data is accurate, unbiased,, and very much appropriate to her subject. Her presentations of what many people feel have been their experiences are also unbiased, particularly in her introductions and summary analyses. As a scientist, I am impressed.

Her exploration and treatment of the implications of the reported experiences speaks beyond just the scientist; it speaks to the human in all of us. Thus, the broad value of this book. To her great credit, Ms. Hemingway does not allow herself to be sidetracked onto epistemological cul-de-sacs. Her egalitarian approach allows Deists and non-Deists alike to find validity in her materials, and therefore in their lives.

Of particular interest, regardless of a reader's a priori stance, is the inherently honest message she conveys through the detailed discussions of the life changing nature of these phenomena. Without a subversive agenda of the furtherance of what some narrow group defines as good, this manuscript presents a cornucopia of examples of how to be of benefit, even ultimate benefit, in the lives of others as well as of the self. As such, this book is a service to all mankind.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A True Exploration of the Spirit, February 25, 2008

By 

Jeffrey Behnke (Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Practicing Conscious Living and Dying: Stories of the Eternal Continuum of Consciousness (Paperback)

For each of our earthly days, there is a mountain that we scale. We don't know where we are going or from whence we came, but we feel that inner urge to climb, if for no other reason than because it is there. And if, halfway up, we lose some of our equipment or some of our co-climbers as all of us do, we don't know if we can continue. We stare at the summit, and just want to turn around in despair, or even jump from the rocky surface to be with the equipment and the support of others around us that we lost. Our fingers grow numb, we can hardly feel our lips. We cry. We grieve. The wind whips around us in a flurry of tornado drifts, hell-bent on stopping us, destroying the heart and the will inside, and so often the whisperings from its roar from this wind sounds so inviting: Jump, it says. Let go. There is no hope for you. You have lost too much.

For those going through the grieving process of a friend or a lifelong companion, books such as Annamaria Hemingway's Practicing Conscious Living and Dying are a godsend. They provide the support required to continue on in the face of insurmountable loss. Reading it makes you feel like, moments after losing your own equipment on your climb upwards, you have found the equipment of another who has intentionally dropped it from the mountain before you as a gift. You stare at it, wondering if it was sent from God himself, and you realize, internally, that perhaps the equipment that you have just lost is serving another far below, going through their own sense of hopeless despair. Your own loss is thus quite possibly serving as a tremendous gain for another who needs it at this very moment. The look in their eyes they must be experiencing--currents of positive energy flowing through their organs. It doesn't feel so bad letting go now, does it? You slide the equipment of another that has passed on before you around your shoulders and continue your upwards climb with a renewed sense of vigor, purpose, and peace. The despair felt moments before is gone only to be replaced by an overwhelming sense of serenity.

I read Annamaria Hemingway's book at work. "Who died?" A coworker asked me. I looked up at him over the cover and said, "A few billion people." You don't necessarily have to be going through a particular grieving process to enjoy books such as this--they give you a sense that what we are dealing with here collectively on this planet is far greater than what we are lead to believe. Materialistic perspectives that are preached to us through science journals and media outlets with the archetypal cheat sheet of being `true by association' causes so much damage to our souls that we need books such as this to help repair those rips and tears in the very fabric of who we are. Material philosophies are well-intentioned, for sure, but we also need explorers of the spiritual realm as well, and this book is a good guide. It is filled with numerous first-hand accounts of people finding purpose in their life after experiencing an NDE, after meeting someone going through their own dying process, after witnessing the passing of a young child. In the same light, it appeals to individuals of every faith, and doesn't preach to you in any way about the benefits of living your life in a particular way, with a particular God--life is meant to be experienced in a multitude of ways, and as you move up that cliff, opening your internal eyes to find the path is just as important as opening up your external eyes. Hemingway showcases numerous people experiencing these awakenings, and perhaps by reading of them, you yourself will experience one of your own. I truly enjoyed this book, and I'm sure you will as well.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational book about how to live and die consciously, February 5, 2008

By 

G. Belden - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Practicing Conscious Living and Dying: Stories of the Eternal Continuum of Consciousness (Paperback)

Annamaria Hemingway has written a wonderful book on how to live with awareness and openheartedness in the face of our inevitable death.

This book is a scholarship on death and dying framed within the nuances of philosophy and the value of story. Annamaria has gleaned these turning-point stories from several contributors who had "near-death" experiences, or other life-changing moments. These stories are antidotes to our fears of death. They are at once inspiring and useful.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wants to live an awake and meaningful life.

A. Kirkpatrick