Spiritual Housecleaning: Healing the Space Within by Beautifying the Space Around You (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Healing is possible..." (more)
Key Phrases: spray cleaner, oven cleaner, sacred space, Julia Cameron, Care of the Soul

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In today’s high-stress world, most people look to home as a refuge. Yet frantic schedules and waning energy often turn the dream into a dispiriting nightmare of dirt, clutter, and disorganization. Spiritual Housecleaning shows how the cleanliness and order of each room in a house represents and affects specific aspects of an individual’s spiritual health and well-being. Each chapter provides a series of practical exercises to help readers take on the most mundane tasks of cleaning with mindfulness and self-examination.

Product Details

• Paperback: 189 pages
• Publisher: New Harbinger Publications; 1 edition (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572242396
• ISBN-13: 978-1572242395
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #435,003 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

148 of 153 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars for an Original Winner!, June 22, 2001

By A Customer

Kathryn L. Robyn's book, Spiritual Housecleaning, could be subtitled, "Healing the Space within by Reading about Beautifying the Space Around You." But that would not be Robyn's message. To heal, you have to actually do the work. Somehow she doesn't make it feel like work. The book is so inspiring, I found myself cleaning out the refridgerator and pantry before I even finished it. The book is entertaining, insightful, witty, down to earth, even poignant. Its spiritual ideas span ancient and contemporary philosophies of the East and West alike. As a person in a helping profession, I can attest to its psychological accuracy as well. As creative as it is practical, I have never read a book that combined such welcome simpicity and complexity under one cover. On second thought, I have never read such a book, period. Cudos to Ms. Robyn for a real original.

70 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why spiritual decluttering leads to an organized home, April 23, 2003

By	K. Corn "reviewer" (Indianapolis,, IN United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

I'm amazed no one has really written a book like this one yet...the idea of spiritual awareness being linked with an organized, peaceful and nurturing home environment seems so commonsense, so obvious But perhaps that is this author's special talent, that she sees beyond the spiritual clutter and detritus of life to the heart of what matters - and that she also realizes how a peaceful soul leads inevitably to a more serene, simplified environment. In short, those of us who find it difficult to keep our homes decluttered may need to look within ourselves first.
But don't assume this book is just about spiritual matters or that it omits the how-tos of housecleaning. The author also includes valuable tips such as "Always vacuum and dust your windows when you clean your floor" and even suggests you enlist helpers when tackling larger tasks. Finally, she urges readers to actually make sure they have time to just "putter" or do nothing - so that when they do get back to work, it is with a lightened, refreshed spirit.

68 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bought it for all my Friends, June 22, 2001

By	Paula Salke "tltonrye" (Chicago) - See all my reviews

Kathryn Robyn takes this subject to a whole new level. I'm a big fan of Julie Morgenstern's book about organizing. She explains how "zones" help us stay neat and organized. This book goes yet a step deeper. The author writes about the "emotional zones" of your life and how they relate (or don't) to the home you've created. I had dozens of epiphanies doing the practice pages at the end of each chapter. Yes, my house is cleaner now, thanks to the author, but it's actually my life problems and the solutions to them that are clearer.