Manifest Your Destiny: Nine Spiritual Principles for Getting Everything You Want, the

Dyer is a well-known speaker and author of many self-help books, including Your Sacred Self. Here, he departs from the traditional format of the genre by deliberately omitting the affirmations, quotes and personal stories readers have come to expect. Instead, he provides a refreshingly simple, straightforward how-to manual. Beginning with the basic self-identification of the reader as a spiritual being, an ""infinite, limitless, immortal, universal and eternal energy temporarily residing in a body,"" Dyer moves through nine principles for attracting anything the reader desires. The first five principles deal with changing attitudes and beliefs about what is possible and impossible, trusting the divine energy that flows through everything and everyone in the world and seeing oneself as an inseparable part of that energy. The remaining principles teach specific techniques for meditating, detaching from expected outcomes and responding with gratitude and generosity to successful manifestations. Cautioning that people don't always know what will truly bring them the most happiness, Dyer advises concentration on manifesting ""the inner feelings"" desired rather than on whatever readers think will provide those feelings. When people learn to open themselves up to receiving, Dyer teaches, everything good will come to them, because they are already one with their wish and with the divine energy of the universe. The proof is in the pudding, of course, and learning from a professional chef always helps, but spiritual cooks who insist on doing it themselves should benefit from Dyer's thoughtful, well-articulated directions. (Apr.)