Search results for ""author john o'donohue""

The perfect gift for anyone in your life, or a wonderful source of comfort for the self - this is a wonderfully heartfelt collection of thoughts and blessings that will heal, inspire, comfort and move. When you need a poem or a blessing to find strength, whatever the occasion, this is a rich source - and something to be turned to time and time again...'This book is golden' -- ***** Reader review'Every family should have a copy of this book on their shelf' -- ***** Reader review'What a perfect companion to the challenges that come from being human' -- ***** Reader review'A beautiful book that I keep sharing with others' -- ***** Reader review'A book you will pick up time and time again for inspiration, for comfort and to be uplifted' -- ***** Reader review***************************************************************************************'We have fallen out of belonging. Consequently, when we stand before crucial thresholds in our lives, we have no rituals to protect, encourage and guide us as we cross over into the unknown. For such crossings, we need to find new words. What is nearest to the heart is often farthest from the word. This book is an attempt to reach into that tenuous territory of change that we must cross...'In sharing words of profound grace and wisdom, master storyteller John O'Donohue - author of the international bestseller Anam Cara - offers in Benedictus blessings to shelter us as we confront the many challenges we face on our journey through life.We are living in an anxious world - a world so often dominated by unwelcome change, unhappiness, uncertainty and even despair. Now, more than ever, we need this collection of blessings and thoughts, covering areas such as Beginnings, Desires, States of the Heart, Callings and Beyond Endings - it is a vision of hope and belonging for this sometimes troubled world.There are blessings in this book - for birthdays, anniversaries, deaths and many more. Some are long, some are short but all touch the heart.

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In The Four Elements, poet and philosopher John O'Donohue draws upon his Celtic heritage and the love of his native landscape, the west of Ireland, to weave together a tapestry of beautifully evoked images of nature. As John explores a range of themes relating to the way we live our lives today, he reveals how the energy and rhythm of the natural world - its innocence and creativity, its power and splendour - hold profound lessons for us all. With a foreword written by his beloved brother Pat, this illuminating treasury is a unique collection of reflections inspired by the ancient wisdom of this earth.

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In this powerful, evocative collection, master storyteller John O'Donohue explores themes of love and loss, beginnings and endings. Inspired by the ancient wisdom of the Celtic tradition and the rugged, majestic landscape of his birth, the west of Ireland, here he also creates a unique vision of a place and time, and the echo of a memory that will never fade.

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When Saint Patrick first came to Ireland in the 5th century AD, he encountered the Celtic people—with their flourishing spiritual tradition, already thousands of years old. Where the Christians worshiped one God, the Celts had many—and in fact, found divinity all around them: in rivers and hills, the sea and sky, and in every kind of animal. The Celtic reverence for the spirit in all things, and their celebration of the continuous mysteries of everyday existence, survive to this day—a vibrant spiritual legacy unique in the Western world. On Anam Cara, Irish poet and scholar John O'Donohue blends philosophy, instruction, and spiritual insight, taking you inside this remarkable spiritual synthesis. O'Donohue shares secrets from a world where the Fates are not feared, and where God's passionate side is celebrated. These secrets will help you to reconnect with the world around you and the treasures hidden within your soul. In the oral tradition so beloved of the Celts, O'Donohue shares an intuitive approach to spirituality that takes you beyond spiritual "programs" to a place where your heart can be truly nourished and healed. You will learn authentic Irish prayers and blessings; how to discover your individual nature; awakening the senses as "thresholds of the spirit"; understanding the "secret divinity" in your relationships; how the Irish "hospitality" toward death can help you become more compassionate, generous, and fearless; and much more. Tracing the cycles of life and nature, this insightful session draws from the holy waters of Ireland's spiritual heritage—from the Celts and their Druid shamans, the imbas (inspirational sagas) of the wandering bards, and the sacred fountainhead of the Christian monasteries. Join John O'Donohue for a journey to the "island of saints and scholars" where you will discover your own Anam Cara—"soul friend." Course objectives: List some central beliefs of Celtic wisdom • Compile a list of poems that offer hope and inspiration • Recite myths and legends from Celtic history • Discuss new perspectives on life, work and death

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Drawing from his own Celtic wisdom and the writings of Keats, Rilke, Thomas Aquinas, and others, this Irish poet offers listeners the opportunity to truly experience the beautiful, which, in his opinion, is to experience unity with the Divine.

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In this eagerly awaited follow-up to his international bestsellers Anam Cara and Eternal Echoes, John O'Donohue turns his attention to the subject of beauty - the divine beauty that calls the imagination and awakens all that is noble in the human heart.In these uncertain times of global conflict and crisis, we are riven with anxiety; our trust in the future has lost its innocence, for we know now that anything can happen from one second to the next. In such an unsheltered world, it may sound naive to suggest that this might be the moment to invoke and awaken beauty, yet this is exactly the claim that this book seeks to explore.DIVINE BEAUTY is a gentle but urgent call to awaken. O'Donohue opens our eyes, hearts and minds to the wonder of our own relationship with beauty. Rather than 'covering' this theme, he uncovers it, exposing the infinity and mystery of its breadth. His words return us home to the dignity of silence, the profundity of stillness, the power of thought and perception, and the eternal grace and generosity of beauty's presence. In this masterful and revelatory work, O'Donohue encourages our greater intimacy with beauty, and celebrates it for what it really is: a homecoming of the human spirit.As he focuses on the classical, medieval and Celtic traditions, on art, music, literature, nature and language, O'Donohue reveals how beauty's invisible embrace invites us towards new heights of passion and creativity. DIVINE BEAUTY is an exquisite treasury of Forms of the Beautiful. Its surface employs narrative, image, anecdote and myth, while into the silence of its subtext are sown seeds of reflection that gradually blossom in the heart.

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From a precious oral tradition rooted over 2,500 years in Ireland's past, John O'Donohue's Celtic Wisdom Trilogy brings you this vibrant spiritual legacy, unique in the Western world. A liberating feast of authentic blessings, insights, and teachings, brought to life by this acclaimed poet, teacher, and Catholic scholar. The Celtic Wisdom Trilogy includes three full-length sessions: The Inner Landscape Our bodies are mere outlines of a vast and complex interior world, a landscape of contradiction and mystery. The Inner Landscape explores the themes of self-exile and hardship, and the Celtic way of welcoming paradox and finding precious light in the darkest valleys of our inner terrain. The Divine Imagination Too often we remain distanced from what is truly sacred—the world around us and the divine imagination that created it. Here John O'Donohue immerses us in the greatest miracle of Celtic spirituality, namely its tradition of experiencing the divine as a lyrical, tender, creative force not visible, but always present in all things. The Invisible World The ancient Celts sensed an invisible world around them, the great unknown from which they came and the source of eternal wonder in their lives. Through prayer, O'Donohue teaches, we may enter directly into this secret immensity and escape the psychological prisons we create for ourselves. With prayers, blessings, poetry, and teachings.

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There is a divine restlessness in the human heart today, an eternal echo of longing that lives deep within us and never lets us settle for what we have or where we are. Now, in this exquisitely crafted, inspirational book, John O'Donohue explores that most basic of human desires - the desire to belong. It is a desire that constantly draws us towards new possibilities of self-discovery, friendship and creativity. In Eternal Echoes John O'Donohue embarks upon a journey of discovery into the heart of our post-modern world - a hungry, homeless world that suffers from a deep sense of isolation and fragmentation. With the thousand-year-old shelter of divine belonging now shattered, we seem to have lost our way in this magical, wondrous universe. Here, as we explore perennial themes and gain insight from a range of ancient beliefs, we draw inspiration from Ireland's rich spiritual heritage of Celtic thought and imagination. It is a heritage of profound, mystical wisdom that will open pathways to peace and contentment, and lead us to live with creativity, honour and compassion the one life that has been given to us.Destined to become a timeless classic of vision and hope, this is an imaginative tour de force by one of today's most inspirational writers.

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Conamara in the West of Ireland has a strange and beautiful landscape - a landscape of intense contrasts uniquely dependent on light and shade. In daylight, a subtle radiance of gentle colours envelops the place. Yet on the threshold of darkness, the fading light reveals an almost haunted vista of mysterious beauty.In this exquisitely crafted collection of poetry, John O'Donohue evokes the vital energy and rhythm of the Conamara landscape, engaging with earth, sky and sea, and the majestic mountains that silently preside over this glorious region. Here too, as he draws upon the ancient memory and history of this sacred place, he focuses upon the power of language and the vagaries of human need and passion, tenderly revealing the fragile vulnerability of love and friendship.Written with penetrating insight and a deftness of touch, Conamara Blues offers a unique, imaginative vision of a landscape steeped in mystery and legend - a landscape of hope and possibility that is at once both familiar and unknown.

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"In this twenty-fifth anniversary edition, you will find John a "soul friend" on your own journey through life, offering support and solace, clarity, and consciousness-expanding narratives that invite you to experience relationships with people, nature, and even your inner world in new ways that nurture well-being and resilience in these challenging times." -Daniel J. Siegel, MD, Neuropsychiatrist and New York Times Bestselling AuthorA special twenty-fifth anniversary edition of the classic work of Celtic spirituality and mysticism by beloved poet and philosopher, John O'Donohue, with a new introduction by the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, an afterword by the late author's brother, Pat O'Donohue, and insightful material from O'Donohue's circle of close friends.In this revered classic, John O'Donohue excavates themes of friendship, belonging, solitude, creativity and the imagination, among many others. Widely recognized for bringing Celtic spirituality into modern dialogue, his unique insights from the ancient world speak with urgency for our need to rediscover the thresholds of the soul.With lyrical wisdom and fluency, O'Donohue encourages pathways of discovery to come home to the natural rhythm in ourselves in sacred connection with one another and the landscapes we inhabit. This timeless collection nourishes the heart and elevates the spirit. It is "a book to read and reread forever." (Irish Times)

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