"Interfacing with the spirit world is fairly easy.... The lands beyond the veil are part and parcel of our nature," says Penczak (City Magick). Here he makes a convincing case for such a world, detailing a multitude of ways not only to contact, but also to communicate with the entities who inhabit it. He gently argues that the spiritual dimension (heaven and hell in the most simplified forms) perennially exists in every culture, and that we, too, are spiritual beings. ("If our spirits are here, there are many other spirits, in other realms, experiencing other things.") Penczak leaves no spirit untouched: angels, ascended masters, deities, ancestors, soul groups, power animals, elementals, devas, constructs and ghosts can be contacted by such means as ritual, channeling, shape-shifting, riding (as in Voodoo) and walking in, to name but a few. Penczak wisely does not throw the door open to any and all such spiritual entities. He repeatedly provides checkpoints and signposts to discern which spirits are interested in one's higher good, and he emphatically rejects abdicating one's spiritual authority in any case. It would be hard to imagine a more complete guide for getting to know such companions who want to help, befriend or teach us. Numerous exercises, primarily forms of meditation, visualization and ritual, make this a very practical manual. This work can benefit those of any faith who can comfortably trust that divine aid may come in many forms. (Mar.)
Forecast:Although the New Age market has cooled somewhat since the mid-1990s, this book will be jump-started by its status as a selection of the One Spirit Book Club.
