{"product_id":"discovering-your-souls-purpose-isbn-9780143130857","title":"Discovering Your Soul's Purpose","description":"\u003cb\u003eA new edition of the classic guide to using the spiritual and psychological insights of renowned mystic and psychic Edgar Cayce to find your authentic mission in life. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe medical clairvoyant Edgar Cayce (1877-1945) left the world a wealth of intuiitive readings on everything from health and spirituality to psychology and past lives. Now the most significant teacher of Cayce's teachings, Mark Thurston, updates and revises his classic book,\u003ci\u003e Discovering Your Soul's Purpose\u003c\/i\u003e, to help you use the Cayce teachings in the twenty-first century to find greater purpose in your relationships, career, and overall mission in life.\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\"Mark Thurston introduces the full range of Edgar Cayce's work in a contemporary and refreshingly straightforward manner.\"\u003cb\u003e --Sidney D. Kirkpatrick, author of \u003ci\u003eEdgar Cayce: An American Prophet \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"What of serious and lasting value can be found in the voluminous Cayce readings? No one is better qualified to answer this question than Mark Thurston ... the leading scholar on Cayce.\" \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e--K. Paul Johnson, author of \u003ci\u003eEdgar Cayce in Context \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eMark Thurston, Ph.D.\u003c\/b\u003e is an educator, psychologist, and author of more than a dozen books about personal spirituality, dream psychology, meditation, and mind-body well-being.  Among his publications are \u003ci\u003eThe Essential Edgar Cayce\u003c\/i\u003e (2004) and W\u003ci\u003eilling to Change: The Journey of Personal Transformation\u003c\/i\u003e (2005). Mark worked for the Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) and Atlantic University in Virginia Beach, Virginia, for 36 years.  In 2009 he moved into a new phase of his own soul's purpose, becoming the Director of Educational Programs for George Mason University's Center for the Advancement of Well-Being. In that capacity he focuses on teaching undergraduate and graduate courses about consciousness, mindfulness, and the science of well-being. Mark and his wife of many decades Mary Elizabeth Lynch are co-founders of the Personal Transformation and Courage Institute, a non-profit educational organization begun in 2000 which offers small-group learning intensives. Mark and Mary Elizabeth are parents to two adult children.Chapter 1\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Cooperation, Meaning, and Mission\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Not my will but Thine, O Lord, be done in me and through me. Let me    ever be a channel of blessings, today, now, to those that I contact    in every way. Let my going in, my coming out be in accord with that    Thou would have me do, and as the call comes, \"Here am I, send me,    use me.\" (262-3)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This prayerful affirmation provides a perfect foundation for    understanding Cayce's approach to finding one's personal mission. It    addresses free will, the importance of making a contribution to the    well-being of others, and the sense of a call to a higher purpose.    Cayce offered these words as a focal point for meditation, linked to    the first step in the A Search for God soul-growth sequence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In a sense, this affirmation about cooperation is a distillation of    this entire book and the systematic steps to discover your soul's    purpose. It invites you to understand the word cooperation in a    distinctly spiritual way-something that hinges on right use of your    free will. The affirmation invites you to consider how your own    happiness and fulfillment are linked to the well-being of others.    And the affirmation underscores how deep cooperation depends upon    having an orientation of willingness in your life-willingness to    respond to life as an interconnected whole with which you can    cooperate.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Cooperation means more, though, than just being open to connections    to something bigger than yourself. It is also about cooperating with    yourself, as strange as that may sound. Consider for a moment how we    often don't cooperate with ourselves. Most fundamentally, that    noncooperative spirit is expressed as self-judgment and    self-criticism. We are usually our own worst critic! And it's quite    revolutionary to turn this tendency around and practice profound    self-acceptance. Ultimately this first step-the shift to    self-cooperation and healthy self-love-makes it possible for us to    go on a search for meaning and purpose.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What does it feel like to practice self-acceptance? That kind of    internal cooperation might feel spacious. We give ourselves the gift    of having room to breathe, so to speak. Most of the time, our    self-judgment and voices of self-criticism crowd in on us, leaving    us feeling trapped and disappointed in life. On the other hand, when    we can love ourselves and give ourselves the benefit of the doubt,    that gentleness creates a whole new environment in which we can    start to flourish. Just being kind to ourselves, just having deep    respect for ourselves-these expressions of self-cooperation really    are step number one in trying to find the soul's calling.    Self-cooperation sets the stage for us to be able to address the    deepest need of the soul: the need for meaning.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Meaning and the Soul\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What do we need to survive? The list of obvious answers includes    air, food, and shelter. We can never deny the inescapable fact that    we have physical bodies, and survival depends on meeting their basic    requirements.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e However, something else distinguishes us from other creatures who    have physical needs. That extra ingredient is an individual soul,    and like the physical body, it must be nurtured to survive. The    human soul may be invisible to scientific instruments, but each of    us experiences its reality daily. Each time we say \"I\" to ourselves,    we feel the presence of the soul. Every instance of aspiration,    enthusiasm, or free will is an expression of our own soul nature.    And yet, as real and immediate as the soul may be, it still needs    nourishment and sustenance each day.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What is the air, food, and shelter of the soul? What keeps it alive    and active? The answer is meaning. The human soul grows and develops    as it can make sense of life and set aspirations for the future.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Edgar Cayce readings returned to this point time and again as    they advised people how to find happiness. The hundreds of people    who received his guidance were given a promise that everything about    life is meaningful. That promise extends to each of us. We are    assured there is a rhyme and a reason to what happens to us.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e When we stop to think about it, this is an amazing promise. So much    goes on in our world that seems senseless. It's easy to be cynical    because every day we are likely to learn about or directly encounter    cruelty, dishonesty, and injustice. Not only do things often appear    to be unfair, it's easy to conclude that nothing is really in    charge, that life is random and pointless.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In almost every century of human history, some individuals have made    a special effort to point out the signs of despair and chaos. They    voice an ancient cry of hopelessness. However, other people have    been able to look at the same events and conditions with a different    perspective. They have spoken and written about the meaning of life.    They have seen how both pleasant and unpleasant experiences are    purposeful.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e If we look at the twentieth century as an example-the century in    which Edgar Cayce did his work-we can see both sides of the debate.    For example, the first fifty years saw great tragedies and    disasters, including two world wars and a global economic    depression. There were ample reasons to despair. Yet during those    same fifty years, there lived pioneers of a renewed sense of meaning    for our own postindustrial society. Since then we have built on the    creativity of these key individuals. Let's look briefly at three of    them-Carl Jung, Edgar Cayce, and Viktor Frankl-and the new ideas    they presented about the meaning of life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Carl Jung and the Process of Individuation\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Carl Jung was the founder of analytical psychology. A contemporary    of Cayce, he was born in 1875, just two years before the clairvoyant    whose work parallels his so closely. The son of a Swiss clergyman,    Jung trained as a psychiatrist.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In his early professional years he was a supporter and protŽgŽ of    Sigmund Freud. A rift, however, developed between the two, primarily    over the question of the unconscious mind. Freud viewed the hidden    side of the psyche as driven by repressed sexuality. And while Jung    did not deny the findings of his teacher, colleague, and friend, he    felt that something more lay within the unconscious aspect of every    person. Research with his patients and the study of his own dreams    convinced him that the unconscious also contains innate impulses    toward wholeness and mental health.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Out of Jung's long career as a psychiatrist, teacher, and writer    developed a psychology of the human soul. Rather than seeing    spirituality and religion as an evasion of mental health, he    recognized the need for psychiatry and faith to find a common    ground. For him the answer lay in a synthesis of Eastern and Western    religious traditions. He recognized that each of these two great    streams of spirituality had something vital to offer humanity in its    search for meaning.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Much of the history of the Western hemisphere has emphasized our    physical existence as individual beings and the historical fact of    the Christ. Jung felt that Christians are most likely to look    outside themselves for a divine presence who can bestow grace. In    contrast, the East has featured universality, timelessness, and the    inner life. Jung put it this way: \"The Oriental knows that    redemption depends on the work he does on himself. The Tao grows out    of the individual.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What is this mysterious Tao? Some have translated it as God or    Providence. However, Jung believed that the best interpretation is    meaning. In other words, those of us who live in the West must learn    to appreciate that meaning grows out of our own individuality and    the work that we do within ourselves. For Jung there was a great    disadvantage in the Western approach to imitate Christ. Even though    the Christ may have \"embodied the deepest meaning of life    [nevertheless] . . . we forget to make real our own deepest    meaning.\" We can easily forget the task of self-realization. In fact    it's often convenient to avoid what would be most meaningful to us    as individuals and to take the path of least resistance. Jung    imagines that if Jesus had evaded self-realization, he would have    become a respectable carpenter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e One of Jung's books, a collection of essays on the quest for meaning    in life, is appropriately titled Modern Man in Search of a Soul. He    came to believe that the deepest part of the mind is    transpersonal-extending beyond the bounds of one individual. This    level of the \"collective unconscious\" is a common trait of all    humanity. Within these deep strata of the mind are universal    patterns that can shape and direct the development of our lives.    Jung called them \"archetypes,\" the most important of which is the    Self.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What is this curious component called the Self? What role does it    play in the search for a meaningful life? According to Jung, this    universal pattern of wholeness, the Self, lives within each of us.    We might be tempted to say that it is sleeping inside us, but    perhaps it is we who are asleep in our daily, familiar    consciousness!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Even though the Self is universal, it is expressed within every one    of us in a different way. Each soul has its own special potential    and gifts. However, the discovery process takes considerable time    and allows no shortcuts. By working diligently throughout our lives,    we can respond to and receive this inner wholeness into our    conscious awareness. For Jung this is the essential purpose and    meaning of life: to fulfill the potential of our own authentic    being.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Even though all of this may sound vague, one of Jung's greatest    contributions was to provide a map of the journey to wholeness. He    called this adventure the process of individuation. It is a path to    self-realization and meaning that is available to everyone, but few    people walk it to the end.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Generally speaking the process of individuation takes place over two    phases of life that are divided at roughly age forty. The so-called    midlife crisis marks the opportunity to move into the second and    more difficult aspect of individuation, and most people get bogged    down or diverted at this point. Success in phase two requires    something in addition to courage and wisdom. During the years    preceding forty, there must have also been the development of a    healthy persona.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In Jungian terms the persona is a mask, or a series of masks, we    wear in life. It is a way of adapting to the demands of society. No    doubt this facade can become dishonest and inauthentic, but Jung    proposed that it's possible to develop a healthy persona. It is a    marvelous accomplishment to move through the challenges we face    between puberty and age forty and come out with a sound, balanced    self-image. It means steering a course between many conflicting    demands. This period of approximately twenty-five years is full of    conflicting life choices: freedom versus commitment, planning versus    spontaneity, privacy versus intimacy, just to name a few. According    to Jung, it's probably not best to strive for wholeness during this    first phase of the individuation process. That important work comes    in phase two. Instead the young adult develops a healthy persona by    temporarily focusing on just a few qualities, picking one side of a    pair of opposites over the other side. During phase one we adopt an    orientation toward life-choosing between what he called introversion    and extroversion. And we begin to strengthen and sharpen certain    talents and skills, even if it means that other sides of ourselves    must be temporarily ignored. The result can be a reasonably healthy,    productive individual who has positive ego strength and is prepared    for the more difficult tasks that come after age forty.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e During the second phase of life we have the chance to discover a    deeper and more personal meaning to life. This is the time in which    we strive for wholeness and begin to complement our obvious talents    and strengths with their forgotten opposites. The accomplished    organizer discovers a richer meaning to life by experiencing    spontaneity. The emotional, feeling-oriented person explores the    kind of meaning that comes from logic and analysis.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e How prepared are we for this difficult venture? How many people know    how to find their personal meaning in life after this turning point    around age forty? Jung wrote: \"Wholly unprepared, they embark upon    the second half of life. Or are there perhaps colleges for    forty-year-olds which prepare them for their coming life and its    demands as the ordinary colleges introduce our young people to a    knowledge of the world? No, thoroughly unprepared we take the step    into the afternoon of life.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jung's life work was to create a map to guide modern men and women    through those uncharted waters. His spiritual psychology largely    concerns the process of individuation. His system teaches how to    find one's personal meaning in life. That task of individuation has    two steps to be taken after age forty. First we must become more and    more aware of those sides of ourselves that have been ignored. It    requires courage to look at parts of the soul that we have    disregarded for many years. However scary it may be, those hidden    aspects have a great gift to offer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The second step of individuation is the quest for wholeness. In step    one we recognize the forgotten parts of ourselves; in step two we    embrace them and find a place for them. They will enrich us and    bring us to new revelations about the meaning of life. That meaning    comes from the realization of uniqueness and individuality. This is    the highest goal in Jungian psychology: the development and    awakening of one's own distinctive, special personhood.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Edgar Cayce and the Mission in Life\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e As great and helpful as Jungian contributions undoubtedly are, the    ideas and philosophy of the Cayce readings add extra dimensions.    Remember, these two great men worked during the same years, an ocean    apart and apparently unaware of each other. Both dedicated their    lives to helping people find meaning and purpose. Both understood    the significance of the spiritual side of humanity. How, then, can    their contributions be merged to give us the clearest and most    valuable guidance for finding our own meaning in life?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e No evidence suggests that Cayce was consciously aware of Jung's    ideas. Nevertheless, Jung's own model of the collective unconscious    implies that the clairvoyant Cayce might have drawn from the same    source as Jung's inspiration.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Certain marked differences in the lives of these two men make it all    the more astonishing that their philosophies of life contain so many    close parallels. Where Jung completed rigorous academic programs,    including a medical degree, Cayce's formal education only went as    far as eighth grade. He was largely a self-taught man. Where Jung's    colleagues and associates were among the most influential in Europe,    Cayce's friends and supporters were most frequently common folk. And    yet both of them made use of their remarkable talents to help other    people find meaning in life. Their systems of thought and insights    about human nature complement each other. Let's examine some of the    ways that Cayce's readings added ingredients that enrich Jung's    concept of personal individuation.","brand":"Tarcher","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46299892613349,"sku":"NP9780143130857","price":17.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780143130857.jpg?v=1767725188","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/discovering-your-souls-purpose-isbn-9780143130857","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}