Practicing Conscious Living and Dying
Last Saturday I got a parcel with a copy of the book “Practicing Conscious Living and Dying“, by Annamaria Hemingway (see also her website practicingconsciouslivinganddying.com). I didn’t know her, but I got a letter from her last summer where she asked me if I were interested in receiving a copy once it had been published, and I said yes.
I’m very cautious of accepting new books, which involve the obligation of investing time to read them. I took the time for reading the last chapter, about Annamaria’s experience with the passing of her mother, and it is worth while reading (… I’ll certainly read the rest of the stories…).
Annamaria’s account is full of subtle observations, describing the role her mother played in her life – growing up in post-WW2 Italy, then moving to England, having a full life, the outbreak of skin cancer, the slow process of disease and dying. But besides the outer events, there is a whole world of inner contacts going beyond the physical existence, which Annamaria shows that they are more essential, going beyond the end of the physical frame. The outcome is not only the assurance of the continuity of existence beyond the physical, but a process of transformation deepening the lives of all those who had accompanied the process of transition.
The book contains 16 real-life “Stories of the Eternal Continuum of Consciousness”, showing death as an integral part of life. The description says: “They show how each of the individuals concerned has come to understand that death teaches us that the preciousness of life must be lived with a sense of purpose and meaning, as a celebration of our existence.”
You also might like to read the Lunar Messenger on “Death, Birth and Continuity“.
February 13th, 2008 at 1:20 am
It seems in many cases to be true, it takes death for us to really appreciate who and what we have in our lives. Elaine