Sojourns of the Soul: One Woman’s Journey around the World and into Her Truth
By Dana Micucci.
278 Pages | First Quest Edition 2011 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 9780835608985.
One Woman’s Journey around the World and into Her Truth.
‘And there was a new voice, which you slowly recognized as your own, that kept you company as you strode deeper and deeper into the world, determined to do the only thing you could do – determined to save the only life you could save’. – Mary Oliver ‘The Journey’.
Sojourns of the Soul is the quintessential armchair travel book for the spiritual seeker. Dana Micucci’s touching memoir chronicles seven sacred journeys that span 14 years of Micucci’s life, during which she explores the connection of inner growth to world travel that eventually leads to her own enlightenment. Unlike other inspirational travel books, Sojourns of the Soul provides a rare mix of in-depth wisdom and literary insights from the holistic view of an experienced female traveler.
From Chapter 3: ‘Egypt to Eternity’ (p. 101):
” ‘This mystery must be unveiled some day’, wrote H.P. Blavatsky in Isis Unveiled. ‘The answers are there. They may be found on the time-worn granite pages of cave-temples, on sphinxes, propylons, and obelisks . . . . They key was in the keeping of those who knew how to commune with the invisible Presence, and who had received, from the lips of mother Nature herself, her grand truths. And so stand these monuments like mute forgotten sentinels on the threshold of that unseen world’. “
Dana Micucci gives a compelling account of her growing spiritual illumination through visits to some of the most sacred places on earth. Her lively, engaging narrative takes us through the Australian outback, Angkor in Cambodia, the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, Lhasa in Tibet, Chichen Itza in the Yucatan, the Monastery of Christ in the Desert in New Mexico and Machu Picchu in Peru. As her travels progress, Micucci links each visit to the awakening of a particular chakra – the chakras being the seven energy centers of the body in Hinduism, associated with progressive enlightenment. In the afterword, Micucci reflects on how her experiences continue to shape her life after resuming her career as a journalist in New York City. She finds she is more tolerant, can engage in daily activities with more heart-centered awareness, and can sustain states of joy and gratitude for longer periods of time. Readers who yearn for long-delayed adventure won’t be able to put this book down. With the added benefit that it is not just a journey log but more of a seeker’s manual in which travel is simply the vehicle, they will find it’s unnecessary to travel to far-flung places for the spiritual inspiration available in their everyday lives. As Micucci says, “Each day brings new remembrances of our divinity, of the Divine presence in all beings, and of our eternal connection to each other. I am so grateful to be here NOW . . . with you.” Sojourns of the Soul is neither a theoretical tome nor an otherworldly quest; rather, Micucci takes you on an actual journey as she interacts with the wisdom on the earth in a natural and colorful manner. She returns ‘home’ with wonderful insights and a clearer vision of what matters most. The same thing will happen to you as you tag along with Sojourns of the Soul. This book has universal appeal. You will appreciate this delightful journey as a skillful, professional writer engages those magic places and people that continue to live in our souls. —Dr. Don Beck, founder of the Center for Human Emergence and CEO of Spiral Dynamics Integral. Sojourns of the Soul is a rainbow bridge through time and space. Dana Micucci uses her colorful journeys into diverse cultures to learn for herself and teach us, her readers, about the powers of transformation—and the ecstasy of being fully present in every moment. —John Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Hoodwinked and Confessions of an Economic Hit Man. In Sojourns of the Soul, Dana Micucci delves into the wisdom and spiritual traditions of other cultures. This is a powerful and rich book describing a passionate journey towards wholeness that emphasizes movement beyond fears and judgments. Dana’s brilliant prose carries you along as if you were journeying right alongside of her. This is an important book in a time when the search for meaning is so urgent. —Sandra Ingerman, author of Soul Retrieval and How to Thrive in Changing Times. An easy read, elegantly written, this is the gripping story of a woman’s profound transformation, with travel as a spiritual teacher. It is a vivid experience, both well researched and inspiring. —Gay Luce, Ph.D, transpersonal psychologist, author and three-time recipient of the American Psychological Association Award for Journalism. Nothing opens the eyes of a soul like a dive into an unknown pool. Dana Micucci’s journeys into the unknown have transformed her life and she unravels the exciting details in these masterful tales. Sojourns of the Soul is an uplift to the spirit of any armchair traveler. —Jan Phillips, author, No Ordinary Time—The Rise of Spiritual Intelligence and Evolutionary Consciousness. Reading Dana Micucci’s memoir, Sojourns of the Soul, was like ‘being there too’, as she eloquently describes her powerful and evocative life changing experiences at some of the most sacred and ancient energy centers on the planet. On one hand her story is extremely entertaining. It makes me laugh. It brings tears to my eyes. I see myself more deeply and gain greater clarity of my own journey of the soul through her words. Dana also gives the reader much interesting background information about each of the ancient civilizations she profiles. These people are no more, but they have left their legacy and their messages in stone for us to find and decode. . On a deeper level I am reminded of the timeless nature of my own sojourns of the soul and of the guiding lights within each of us that assist all of us on our eternal journey. I am reminded that faith, love and the trust to follow my own inner light is the generative power that will allow me to create all that I am and all that I have the potential to become, now and forever. —Judy Satori, Spiritual Channel, Author, Teacher
The Pilgrim Self
164 Pages | First Quest Edition 1996 | Softcover | Quest Books, U.S.A. | ISBN: 0835607399.
” Life is . . . a series of sunrises, with night following behind them – each night a little death, each sunrise a minor birth . . . linked together by a single secret, the secret of who you really are. “
So begins this deceptively simple, poetic jewel of a book by Robert Ellwood, author of the best-selling inspirational classic Finding the Mind. Drawing on the teachings of Theosophist Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831 – 1891), Ellwood describes the individual self as a Pilgrim journeying from life to life, learning, growing, evolving toward that state of infinite purity from which we come and which is our true home.
A spiritual Passages for today’s seeker, Ellwood’s gentle travelogue for the soul points to the deeper meaning of the stages and sign-posts of human life – childhood, adolescence, midlife, aging – offering guidance for the Pilgrim who is each of us, as we walk life’s winding Path.
From Chapter 2 – ‘Chinks of Eternity’ (p. 29):
As the Secret Doctrine puts it:
” The universe is worked and guided, from within outwards. As above, so it is below, as in heaven, so on earth; and man, the microcosm and miniature copy of the macrocosm, is the living witness to this Universal Law and to the mode of its action.
And again:
From Gods to men, from Worlds to atoms, from a Star to a rush-light, from the Sun to the vital heat of the meanest organic being – the world of Form and Existence is an immense chain, the links of which all are connected. “