This book is a combination - New Thought meets Freud. The author describes how our conscious and subconscious minds interact to determine our lives and health. Unfortunately, the psychology overshadows the spiritual.
The description of quantum mechanics is clumsy. Chapters on hypnosis, consciousness, and the body/mind connection are long-winded and dull (I felt like I was sitting through Psych 101 again). Much of it was unnecessary - is there anybody out there who still doesn't know that we need to reduce stress, eat nutritious foods, and get exercise in order to be healthy? Of course our mental attitude plays a role.
The book was disappointing - it's a rehash of old news. If you are familiar with Ernest Holmes, Napoleon Hill, Wallace Wattles, Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Allan Cohen, Stuart Wilde, Victor Boc, Louise Hay, etc., you will find very little new meat in this book. I was particularly troubled by the chapter on prosperity; much of it seems to be taken nearly word for word from other authors.
Instead of this book, I recommend "The Power of Your Subconscious Mind" by Joseph Murphy. "Self-Hypnosis" by Alman and Lambrou, and "Your Heart's Desire" by Sonia Choquette are also good choices.
Marta Hiatt writes in the tradition of the great 20th century metaphysicians like Dr Joseph Murphy, Florence Scovel-Shinn and Catherine Ponder, but her style is thoroughly updated for the 21st century and her work is firmly grounded and integrated in psychology - she also draws on the experience she has acquired as a marriage and family therapist.
In the first part, The Evolution Of Consciousness, she explains how the mind works, while the second part provides Techniques For Transformation such as affirmation, self-hypnosis, imagination, visualization and the goal of it all: cosmic consciousness. A rich array of helpful affirmations are provided, plus the best ways of using them, and there's a chapter on proper nutrition, stress and exercise.
The appendices include detailed information for relaxation plus suggestions for self-hypnosis. There are apposite quotes and bibliographic references throughout the text, as well as an extensive bibliography and index, and the book is well-illustrated with figures explaining various aspects of consciousness.
The secret to success is learning how to transform one's inner landscape so your life fulfills your highest promise. This book, a classic of the genre, informs you how to do this in an intelligent but easy-to-understand manner and is the best I have encountered in quite some time. I highly recommend it.
