The “positive thinking” approach to self-improvement has recently converted a whole new generation thanks to Rhonda Byrne’s bestselling book “The Secret”. From reading Steven Heller’s “Monsters and Magical Sticks” in my late teens through to the recent “Soulcraft” by Bill Plotkin, I have ingested a steady stream of such thinking and while I can appreciate the slickness of Rhonda Byrne’s packaging, I don’t find a whole lot that’s new in it. Having said that, I can immediately name three people (all women if that is significant) who claim to have had their lives significantly altered by reading “The Secret”.
To that I can now add a fourth – Louise Langley, author of “The Sacred Quest”. Louise begins her tale as she is contemplating a separation from a husband she admits has done nothing wrong. Clearly, however, there are fundamental spiritual and psychological changes taking place within the author’s psyche and a constant thread through the book – admitted, as is so much else in this book, bravely and openly – is her emotional turmoil as she struggles to understand the changes that are ripping her old self apart. The number of times that someone (usually the author herself) is described as crying is phenomenal and the sense of a life turned upside down, palpable.
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I always regard The Temple booklet as being like a taster menu in your favourite posh restaurant. You know that you generally like what they serve but each new supplement brings its own surprises. The helpings are small but introduce you to ideas that you might not have ordered yourself. Some of the servings are complete in their own right but others point the way to a “full-size” version with the taster letting you know what you can expect from the bigger dish.