Mala of the Heart; 108 Sacred Poems

Edited by Ravi Nathwani and Kate Vogt Mala of the Heart; 108 Sacred Poems is a collection of multi-cultural and multi-spiritual poems which can help one on their spiritual journey.  One can read these poems from front cover to back cover and be taken on a spiritual journey through their heart, or the reader can simply pick up the book and choose a page at random and be filled with with the crystalline beauty contained therein.

The authors of these poems come from all over the world.  They are poets, sages, some even royalty.  Some authors have more than one poem, others one only.  But the poems total 108 as there are 108 beads on a traditional meditation mala.  The poems vary in length and writing style, some being directly spiritual and religious, others more analogous. 

There is a forward by Jack Kornfield of the Spirit Rock Meditation Center that can help the reader understand how one can use the beauty of these words in their life.  There is also an introduction by the editors that describes the origins of some of the poetry, some of the authors and the book in general.  The end of the book does include a short, paragraph long biography of the poets which is lovely and gives that much more meaning to the book and poems.  This also allows the reader to find other poetry from a poet should a connection be felt with a desire to read more by that person. 

Reading this book and the beauty contained within will help the reader open their heart to the world and to whatever form of deity the reader celebrates.  These words can be used as encouragement, healing, as mantras for life and even in meditation.  These are words to be savored and celebrated, shared with loved ones and remembered.

I cannot possibly recommend this book enough.

~review by Jessica Elizabeth

Edited by: Ravi Nathwani and Kate Vogt
130ppg; $13.95
New World Library; 2010