Journey to the Heart: Daily Meditations on the Path to Freeing Your Soul by Melody Beattie
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Journey to the Heart: Daily Meditations on the Path to Freeing Your Soul

by

Melody Beattie

(Author)

4.8

-

4,646 ratings


Journey to the Heart by New York Times bestselling author of Codependent No More, Beyond Codependency, and Lessons of Love, contains 365 insightful daily meditations that inspire readers to unlock their personal creativity and discover their divine purposes in life.

“Melody Beattie gives you the tools to discover the magnificence and splendor of your being.” –Deepak Chopra, author of Jesus and Buddha

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ISBN-10

0062511211

ISBN-13

978-0062511218

Print length

384 pages

Language

English

Publisher

HarperSanFrancisco

Publication date

December 31, 1995

Dimensions

5.5 x 0.96 x 7.38 inches

Item weight

14.4 ounces


Product details

ASIN :

B00BS8SVJ0

File size :

1861 KB

Text-to-speech :

Enabled

Screen reader :

Supported

Enhanced typesetting :

Enabled

X-Ray :

Enabled

Word wise :

Enabled


Editorial reviews

From Booklist

Beattie, whose The Language of Letting Go (1991) was a best-seller, now slices her message into 365 daily aphorisms, or as she calls them, meditations. There's nothing much wrong with this book as volumes of New Age philosophy go, but it doesn't break any new ground, either. The framework derives from an actual automobile trip that Beattie took across the West with stops at mystical sites such as Sedona, Arizona, and Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. This is no travelogue, however. Neither is it like her previous books, which were, as Beattie testifies, "grounded in pain." The focus here is on discovering a new way to live through joy and hope. The meditations themselves, however, are hardly fresh: "Worrying doesn't help. Our worries are self-punishment, a form of not forgiving ourselves, not loving ourselves, not trusting." Or, "Right now, this moment, things are working out. . . . Everything is working out, moving forward, evolving." It is only through a certain amount of repetition that Beattie can come up with 365 of these meditations. Perhaps best known for Codependent No More (1989), Beattie has added the New Age crowd to her followers. Expect demand where crystals glimmer. Ilene Cooper

Review

Beattie whose The Language of Letting Go (1991) was a best-seller, now slices her message into 365 daily aphorisms, or as she calls them, meditations. There's nothing much wrong with this book as volumes of New Age philosophy go, but it doesn't break any new ground, either. The framework derives from an actual automobile trip that Beattie took across the West with stops at mystical sites such as Sedona, Arizona, and Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. This is no travelogue, however. Neither is it like her previous books, which were, as Beattie testifies, "grounded in pain." The focus here is on discovering a new way to live through joy and hope. The meditations themselves, however, are hardly fresh: "Worrying doesn't help. Our worries are self-punishment, a form of not forgiving ourselves, not loving ourselves, not trusting." Or, "Right now, this moment, things are working out. . . . Everything is working out, moving forward, evolving." It is only through a certain amount of repetition that Beattie can come up with 365 of these meditations. Perhaps best known for Codependent No More (1989), Beattie has added the New Age crowd to her followers. Expect demand where crystals glimmer. -- Booklist

From the Inside Flap

In the spirit of her bestselling The Language of Letting Go, America's most beloved inspirational writer guides us on a sacred journey as we learn to expand our creativity, embrace our powers, and open our hearts. Writing with the same warmth, honesty, and compassion that has attracted such a loyal following, Melody Beattie now charts an new path toward spiritual growth and renewal. In 365 insightful and delightfully warm daily reflections, Journey to the Heart will comfort and inspire us all as we begin to discover out true purpose in the world and learn to connect even more deeply with ourselves, the creative force, and the magic and mystery in the world around and within us.

From the Back Cover

In the spirit of her bestselling The Language of Letting Go, one of America's most beloved inspirational writers guides us on a sacred journey as we learn to expand our creativity, embrace our powers, and open our hearts.Writing with the same warmth, honesty, and compassion that has attracted such a loyal following, Melody Beattie now charts a new path toward spiritual growth and renewal. In 365 insightful and delightfully warm daily reflections, Journey to the Heart will inspire us all to discover our true purpose in the world and learn to connect even more deeply with ourselves, the creative force, and the magic and mystery in the world around and within us.

About the Author

Melody Beattie is the New York Times bestselling author of Codependent No More, Beyond Codependency, and The Lessons of Love.

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Sample

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Journey to the Heart By Melody Beattie

Chapter One

JANUARY 1

Honor the Beginning

Beginnings can be delicate or explosive. They can start almost invisibly or arrive with a big bang. Beginnings hold the promise of new lessons to be learned, new territory to be explored, and old lessons to be recalled, practiced, and appreciated. Beginnings hold ambiguity, promise, fear, and hope.

Don't let the lessons, the experiences of the past, dampen your enthusiasm for beginnings. Just because it's been hard doesn't mean it will always be that difficult. Don't let the heartbreaks of the past cause you to become cynical, close you off to life's magic and promise. Open yourself wide to all that the universe has to say.

Let yourself begin anew. Pack your bags. Choose carefully what you bring, because packing is an important ritual. Take along some humility and the lessons of the past. Toss in some curiosity and excitement about what you haven't yet learned. Say your good-byes to those you're leaving behind. Don't worry who you will meet or where you will go. The way has been prepared. The people you are to meet will be expecting you. A new journey has begun. Let it be magical. Let it unfold.

All parts of the journey are sacred and holy.

Take time now to honor the beginning.

JANUARY 2

Map Your Own journey

Go on your own journey. Don't let others hold you back; don't hold them back. Don't judge their ourney, and don't let them judge yours.

All persons are free to have the experiences their souls lead them to. Many of us started our journey by having the experiences others thought we should. Some of us tried to dictate the lessons and adventures of others, too. This caused pain and confusion for all. Learning those lessons, the lessons of setting each other free, became an important part of our journey But now we're on to a new part.

Pack your bags. Get out your map. Don't worry about where you'll go and what you'll see. Go where your heart leads. Your soul knows the way. It will speak quietly through the voice of your heart, your wisdom, your intuition. Listen to the voice, the quiet voice within, that assures you you're safe. You will meet and learn from everyone you need to along the way. Don't limit your own experiences. Don't limit the experiences of those you love, or those you meet along the way.

Start today to follow your heart.

Map out your own journey.

Have the adventure of a lifetime.

Continues...

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About the authors

Melody Beattie

Melody Beattie

Melody Beattie is one of America’s most beloved self-help authors and a household name in addiction and recovery circles. Her international bestselling book, Codependent No More, introduced the world to the term “codependency” in 1986. Millions of readers have trusted Melody’s words of wisdom and guidance because she knows firsthand what they’re going through. In her lifetime, she has survived abandonment, kidnapping, sexual abuse, drug and alcohol addiction, divorce, and the death of a child. “Beattie understands being overboard, which helps her throw bestselling lifelines to those still adrift,” said Time Magazine.

Melody was born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1948. Her father left home when she was a toddler, and she was raised by her mother. She was abducted by a stranger at age four. Although she was rescued the same day, the incident set the tone for a childhood of abuse, and she was sexually abused by a neighbor throughout her youth. Her mother turned a blind eye, just as she had denied the occurrence of abuse in her own past.

“My mother was a classic codependent,” Melody recalls. “If she had a migraine, she wouldn’t take an aspirin because she didn’t do drugs. She believed in suffering.” Unlike her mother, Melody was determined to self-medicate her emotional pain. Beattie began drinking at age 12, was a full-blown alcoholic by age 13, and a junkie by 18, even as she graduated from high school with honors. She ran with a crowd called “The Minnesota Mafia” who robbed pharmacies to get drugs. After several arrests, a judge mandated that she had to “go to treatment for as long as it takes or go to jail.”

Melody continued to score drugs in treatment until a spiritual epiphany transformed her. “I was on the lawn smoking dope when the world turned this purplish color. Everything looked connected—like a Monet painting. It wasn’t a hallucination; it was what the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous calls ‘a spiritual awakening.’ Until then, I’d felt entitled to use drugs. I finally realized that if I put half as much energy into doing the right thing as I had into doing wrong, I could do anything,” Beattie said.

After eight months of treatment, Melody left the hospital clean and sober, ready to take on new goals: helping others get sober, and getting married and having a family of her own. She married a former alcoholic who was also a prominent and respected counselor and had two children with him. Although she had stopped drinking and using drugs, she found herself sinking in despair. She discovered that her husband wasn’t sober; he’d been drinking and lying about it since before their marriage.

During her work with the spouses of addicts at a treatment center, she realized the problems that had led to her alcoholism were still there. Her pain wasn’t about her husband or his drinking; it was about her. There wasn’t a word for codependency yet. While Melody didn’t coin the term codependency, she became passionate about the subject. What was this thing we were doing to ourselves?

Driven into the ground financially by her husband’s alcoholism, Melody turned a life-long passion for writing into a career in journalism, writing about the issues that had consumed her for years. Her 24-year writing career has produced fifteen books published in twenty languages and hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles. She has been a frequent guest on many national television shows, including Oprah. She and her books continue to be featured regularly in national publications including Time, People, and most major periodicals around the world.

Although it almost destroyed her when her twelve-year-old son Shane died in a ski accident in 1991, eventually Melody picked up the pieces of her life again. “I wanted to die, but I kept waking up alive,” she says. She began skydiving, mountain-climbing, and teaching others what she’d learned about grief.

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Reviews

Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5

4,646 global ratings

Joseph J. Truncale

Joseph J. Truncale

5

A wonderful insightful book of 365 daily meditations you should check out.

Reviewed in the United States on April 4, 2023

Verified Purchase

As someone who has been a voracious reader for more than 7 decades of the thousands of books I have read (and wrote reviews on) one of my favorite genres has been self-improvement quote and meditation types of books. This is why when I saw this 374-page soft cover book for a bargain price on Amazon I immediately purchased it.

This excellent and educational volume has a self-improvement quote along with a short essay to meditate by for every day (365) of the year. Though there is a lot of repeat advice; nevertheless, the advice is upbeat and positive providing the reader with inspiring and loving meditations.

The following is a very small sample of what you will find in this fantastic book: “Love yourself until it is real, the universe is abundant, find healing and magic within yourself, discover the power of meditation, cherish each moment, you are s perfect balance of Yin and Yang, find humor in it, value passion, let your creativity blossom, clear out the clutter, value each moment, and open your heart to Universal love.

This book has so many gems of advice that you will find yourself coming back to the ones most meaningful to you. If you love meditation, quote and self-help books, this is one you will want to check out. I loved it. Rating: 5 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Zen Poetry Moments: Haiku and Senryu for special occasions).

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15 people found this helpful

AP - Northern IL

AP - Northern IL

5

Helps with daily life issues.

Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2024

Verified Purchase

I had read previous books by this author long ago and thought it would be repetitive. I was very pleased that daily readings are very applicable to life issues with very positive messaging. It's calming and has very good messages to lead a less stressful life.

Kimberly Harvey

Kimberly Harvey

5

EVERYONE NEEDS THIS BOOK

Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2024

Verified Purchase

I have this book and absolutely love it. I have also given it as a gift a few times and have received great feedback about it as well. Amazing for a daily practice of mindfulness, recentering and learning to open your heart. So beautiful :) you won’t regret this purchase!

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