Aspirin, the world's most widely used drug, is based on compounds originally extracted from the bark of a willow tree, and more than a quarter of medicines found on pharmacy shelves contain plant compounds. Now Western medicine, faced with health crises such as AIDS, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer, has begun to look to the healing plants used by indigenous peoples to develop powerful new medicines. Nowhere is the search more promising than in the Amazon, the world's largest tropical forest, home to a quarter of all botanical species on this planet—as well as hundreds of Indian tribes whose medicinal plants have never been studied by Western scientists. In Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice, ethnobotanist Mark J. Plotkin recounts his travels and studies with some of the most powerful Amazonian shamans, who taught him the plant lore their tribes have spent thousands of years gleaning from the rain forest.For more than a decade, Dr. Plotkin has raced against time to harvest and record new plants before the rain forests' fragile ecosystems succumb to overdevelopment—and before the Indians abandon their own culture and learning for the seductive appeal of Western material culture. Tales of a Shaman's Apprentice relates nine of the author's quests, taking the reader along on a wild odyssey as he participates in healing rituals; discovers the secret of curare, the lethal arrow poison that kills in minutes; tries the hallucinogenic snuff epena that enables the Indians to speak with their spirit world; and earns the respect and fellowship of the mysterious shamans as he proves that he shares both their endurance and their reverence for the rain forest. Mark Plotkin combines the Darwinian spirit of the great writer-explorers of the nineteenth century—curious, discursive, and rigorously scientific—with a very modern concern for the erosion of our environment and the vanishing culture of native peoples.

    Exploring the Amazon Basin in search of mythical shamanic hallucinogens, they encounter a host of unusual characters—including a mushroom, a flying saucer, pirate Mantids from outer space, an appearance by James and Nora Joyce in the guise of poultry, and translinguistic matter—and discover the missing link in the development of human consciousness and language.

    Mona Lisa Schulz reveals innovative, fresh, and exciting ways to tap into intuitions that have the power to improve your health and save your life.Like Spontaneous Healing and Anatomy of the Spirit, this book gives new insights into the intimate connections between the mind, body, and emotions. Like The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, it provides astonishing new perspectives on what science has uncovered about the powers of the mind and cellular memories. Dr. Schulz relates how her clients have used intuition to gain insight into the underlying meaning of their life challenges, stories that will inspire you to learn your own body's unique perceptive language. By learning to read your sensations, memories, and the signals of distress and disease, you can strengthen your mind-body consciousness and empower yourself to create a healthier, happier life.

    As Martin writes, sages are the "primary keepers and transmitters of wisdom, culture, values, and spirituality." Martin's free-verse interpretation captures the ancient spirit of Lao Tzu's text, yet speaks directly to modern readers. The text is accompanied by a visual interpretation of the Tao in more than 50 original ink-brush drawings. Like the Parent's Tao and Couple's Tao before it, the Sage's Tao has the hallmarks of a classic. "You have ceased trying /To tie up all loose ends./You have discovered/That life does not need to be neat/You have more questions than answers,/And this is a great delight to you./You trust the mystery of life/Without having to possess it." - from the book

    Sitting quietly can teach many ways to accept life, meet pain, age gracefully, and die without regret. The book encourages sitting quietly every day.Topics include: Sit Quietly; Care For Your Body; Accept Your Feelings; Give Thoughts Room; Pain is Natural; Be Who You Are; Live Each Moment Well; Love Indiscriminately; Listen to Others; Be Surprised; Wonder; Live gratefully; Do No Harm; Benefit life; A Wish for The World. The book is for people of any faith, religion, race, nationality, gender, relationship status, capacity, or meditation background.

    Through its extensive communication with the brain and body, the heart is intimately involved in how we think, feel, and respond to the world. Expanding on their breakthrough book, The HeartMath Solution, the authors offer heart-based techniques and guidelines for living from the heart, which connects the puzzle pieces of our purpose and fulfillment. The book provides information and simple practices for accessing our heart’s intuitive guidance to connect with our highest choices for better outcomes. Our choices are especially important through these changing times because they constantly create or disrupt our peace, happiness and self-security. Our thoughts and feelings influence the chemistry that regulates much of our health — how we feel, for better or worse. Our thoughts, feelings, emotions and attitudes are just frequencies that we can learn to change — once we put our heart into our intention. Heart Intelligence provides practices to replace fear with the attitude of intelligent concern (managed concern) which leaves us in charge and more attuned to intuitive direction. We learn the benefits of practicing simple coherence techniques a few times a day for boosting resilience and emotional balance; making appropriate choices; and clearing our mind from anxiety or overwhelm when needed. It is through deepening our heart intelligence, coherence and connection that humanity will be able to shift from separation to cooperation resulting in higher solutions to our personal and global problems.

    And indeed, the servant will speak words that are displeasing to Allah, due to which he will not he given a good condition, but (instead) be thrown into the Hellfire."(Bukhari)This book highlights those sins that seem so light on the tongue yet so grave on the scale and offers practical advice on how to keep the tongue in check.