The Five Most Significant Spiritual Books on My Journey

In the sixth grade, I won a creative writing contest sponsored by the local library. My short story, Magic Carpet Ride, likened reading to a magic carpet ride where every opening of a book cover was like embarking on a new journey. Each book would transport you to a new place to explore, observe and grow.

I still see books this way. They are gateways to knowledge and catalysts for change. They can be solace during a time of grief, or entertainment when relaxing on a beach. Every book holds a little world inside of it created by the author.

So many books have been part of my spiritual journey. These five were exceptionally significant.

Living in the Light: A Guide to Personal and Planetary Transformation by Shatki Gawain

This was the first spiritual book I read. I don’t recall how I came to have a copy of it, or what drew me to it, all I remember is 18 year old me felt like I’d found a little piece of home in its pages.

Having been raised Catholic, the message was that we had to seek guidance and forgiveness through a Priest who would communicate with God on our behalf. That never felt right to me, so when Living in the Light described how our intuition allows us access to communicate directly, it was a relief. Learning about bringing our shadow side into the light to own all of our energies was a powerful concept I still explore with many of my clients today.

The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron

This book came along at a time in my life I was feeling adrift. I had made the difficult decision to divorce my husband when he was finally diagnosed with a severe mental illness. I wanted to stick by him in sickness and in health, but he’d already wrecked my car, drained our bank accounts, ruined our credit, and tried to make our marriage an open one. My friends and family said he’s not him anymore and legally you need to disconnect, so I did.

Doing the Morning Pages exercise every morning for a year, along with going through the book and doing several exercises per week, got me back into the world and served as therapy. Julia’s gentle guidance and the growth and learning from the insightful exercises healed me and lead me back to multidimensional myself.

The Artist’s Way is a book, well, it’s really more of a self-directed workshop, anyone could embark on at anytime.

The Celestine Prophecy: An Adventure by James Redfield

So many people suggested I read this book, that I did. An adventure story that taught me coincidences never are, and how when we are in alignment synergy is everywhere. This concept fascinated me and made me more aware of how the unseen is constantly sending us messages, clues and support on our quests.

It’s a bit self-help book meets fiction novel delivering a deep spiritual message. Highly recommend!

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

A spiritual version of the hero’s journey, The Alchemist teaches the ultimate lesson via a colorful and engaging story. I won’t giveaway the teaching, so just go grab a copy and enjoy the quick read yourself.

If you haven’t read this book yet, go get it. It’s beautiful.

The Bible

Although I had heard numerous Bible verses read during Mass at church over and over every year, I never really connected with them until much later in life when I started reading the Bible on my own. It was in these private reading times that I understood the symbolism of the stories in the Old Testament and could feel the messages embedded in the New Testament.

The year I read the Bible, I also recall having vivid lucid dreams of many of the stories where I was one of the characters. Sometimes I would wake up swearing I was wearing the scratchy material and a sweaty, hot sand mixed with the faint smell of fish scent in the air.

It definitely holds a certain frequency if you allow your self to be present to all the levels it’s communicating.

Let me know if you read any of these, and what your take away, learning or experience was with them.