I was drawn to this book by a review I spotted elsewhere, at a time when my life had just undergone
great spiritual change. I had chosen to abandon my Christian faith, on the grounds that I had been ignoring terrible
problems with it. See my personal blog for more details. In short, I came to view my religion as a sort of mind prison, where
you are lured into sacrificing your freedom to think for yourself to a massive set of beliefs that are laid out for you by
others: the Bible and the Church. And any attempt to reclaim that freedom to think for yourself intstantly makes you a denier
of the word of God. It was a breath of fresh air for me to start looking at life and universe saying, "What do I think?"
instead of "What do they want me to think?"
This book is essentially Patricia Panahi's autobiography, and she has an interesting story to tell. In her childhood, she
was in the rare position of having a Muslim father and a Catholic mother. They weren't overly religious people, and didn't
impose their beliefs on their daughter. This allowed Patricia to look at what she was being taught from two standpoints that
were very different, whereas most of us grow up with a single religious view and the idea that "I'm right, and everybody
else is wrong." In her college years, she learned about Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, Buddism, etc., but always from the
perspective of an outsider looking in. She started to notice ways in which all religions were expressions of some of the same
ideas.
As I was reading this, I couldn't help thinking
how great it would be if we all had the opportunity to learn it this way - if we were shown a big picture and allowed to choose,
instead of being encouraged to blindly follow what those around us are doing, and never dare to question it for fear of being
branded unacceptable or fear of facing some external punishment.
Patricia appears to possess that rare kind of skepticism that is actually looking for answers
rather than looking to deny the reality of everything. A little later in life, a friend encouraged her to go to something
called a "Rebirthing" session - a New Age type practice that involved lying down and allowing your Higher Self to
affect you. The results of that session were the first big wake-up call to the idea that there was an actual spiritual dimension
to life that was real and definite - something you could experience rather than simply have faith in. This awakening led Patricia
to start reading everything she could get her hands on, on a vast array of spiritual topics. Over the course of her life since
then, she has learned and experienced a great deal which she shares with the reader. Not only strange experiences that scientists
would balk at like walking on fire, but hard experiences of life that contain priceless lessons.
The theme of the book is spiritual awakening. I felt a great sense
of kinship with many of the ideas that Patricia communicates. I wouldn't say I was on the same page with everything, but overall
this is an excellent read. If you're learning to see the world in wider terms than the rigid scientific mindset that says
"This world is all there is," or you're daring to step outside the boundaries of a religion that has been programming
you, I thoroughly recommend this book. It will be a great encouragement to you in your quest for truth. 