Naomi's Books I have to say that I still love the opportunity that writing gives me. I still have an insatiable curiosity and all of my books have all been written with a single common aim, namely to answer my own questions.
I became interested in the purpose function and practice of meditation and have written several beginners guides on the subject. In 1975 was thrown into the chaotic world of chakra energy and in the spirit of a personal quest I have once again written several times on the subject. I have written on dowsing through an extended interest in the subtle energies and my own curious encounters with the pendulum since I was eleven. Much later in my life I became deeply fascinated in the spirituality of ancient Egypt which led to two books with Egypt in mind. Along with a passion for Egypt came a passionate search for the historical role of the priestess. This quest led to a two year intensive immersion in research and contemplation and of course another book. Alongside the ebb and flow of particular interests, my fascination with symbolism has been constant. This interest naturally flowed into the particular symbolism of the Tarot which I have written on several times without ever finding the last word on the subject. I learned early on that symbolism is to be applied and where better to apply symbols than through the Tree of Life. I have enjoyed a twenty five year love affair with Qabalah which has only just borne fruit in a new book to be launched next year.
I feel that the list of titles rejected for publication is as interesting as those that actually passed the publishing gauntlet. The Eye of Re, Kingship and the Gods was thought to be 'too esoteric' but it bears a close relationship to the now highly successful and popular genre of books headed by writers such as Robert Bauval and Graham Hancock dealing in stars, stones, and prophecy. My suggestions for books on kundalini were turned down as being 'too difficult' some ten years ago but this is now a subject of increasing popularity and significance. My children's stories were stonewalled with the reply that there was, 'no such market.' My newest book The Aquarian Qabalah has been on my computer as a course for over a decade. All earlier attempts to bring it to a wider audience failed. I was told, there was ' no interest' in Qabalah. As in life, so in publishing - timing is everything. So perhaps I will use the website as a home for fragments of my rejected titles which mean as much to me as those that actually made it to the finishing post
When I stand back and look at the titles I have written, the interwoven threads of my life become self evident. Today these subject areas are commonplace but when I started writing in the late eighties these interests were considered to be a little odd. My first book Meditation The Inner Way reflects my early attempts to understand meditation. Though superceded by many better books by far better equipped authors, it contains a Qabalistic series of meditations which I still feel are valuable. While struggling to understand the purpose and effects of meditation, I was also attempting to understand and integrate the effects of a devastating and manipulated chakra awakening At the time there were few books on the subject. I think that The Elements of the Chakras (1990) was among the first of its kind written for a Western audience. Though it has since been swamped by a huge outpouring of books on the subject, I still think that the text and exercises are serviceable. Following the success of The Elements of the Chakras I was asked to write A Beginners Guide to Chakras which has served as a helpful introduction to the subject.
With the demise of Element Books, my Element titles were unavailable for a while. Thorsens have now reprinted The Elements of the Chakras in the First Principles series. I am delighted by their production which has visual impact and added interest. Despite the large number of books on the subject, I do not feel that the last word has been written on the matter. Speaking personally I still feel that this is an area of great importance. My own spiritual awakening was precipitated by allowing another person to 'work' on my chakras - something now commonly undertaken in the name of chakra therapy. I have never written about this experience or the difficulties it created for me, but understanding the downside of misplaced, misguided or misapplied chakra work is also important too.
The reader perhaps needs to remember that there is often a significant gap between the agenda of the publisher and the agenda of the writer. It has to be said that the publisher usually gets the upper hand, so I welcome the opportunity to raise issues that have not figured in my printed work. I also feel that after the 'beginners guides'- which are plentiful and often in work-book form, there is something of a chakra wasteland. These first level books provide plenty of practical guidance, but what next! Chakra work is deeply transformative.- it precipitates a new level of questing. I think perhaps we have concentrated on technique at the expense of providing a spiritual or philosophical framework in which to contain and hold the process of transformation. My own awakening which was the direct result of applied pressure to the subtle bodies created many difficulties for me both psychologically and physically. On the positive side, this awakening took me into the Western Mystery tradition, so on balance I am now thankful. But having been the passive recipient of manipulative chakra work, I also understand the difficulties that this can bring. How to use Naomi's Books To get the most from my books I suggest you use the titles in the following sequence.
1. Teach Yourself Meditation - This book provides a basic guide to meditation in theory and practice. This spiritual discipline serves as a foundation for all subsequent endeavour.
2. Teaching Yourself Tarot (available as an e-book) - This book introduces Naomi’s perspective on Tarot and inspires the reader to take up the quest for self- realisation.
3. The Chakras - Any of Naomi’s books on the chakras provides a theoretical and practical foundation in this important area.
4. The Watkins Tarot Handbook – This develops the approach presented in TYT and takes the reader towards using the Tarot in conjunction with the Tree of Life.
5. The Aquarian Qabalah (re-issued as The Kabbalah Experience) - This book presents the reader with a Mystery School curriculum using the Tree of Life and the Tarot together as an initiatory sequence. The book builds on the practical material contained in the previous titles and invites the reader to apply meditation to the symbolic structure of the Tree, to the images of the Tarot and to the subtle anatomy of the energy system.
|