Rating: 
Summary: This guy is pulling your arm!
Review: In this junk-science based book, Hawkins relies on the method of "applied kinesiology" to determine the power of many aspects of life. Unfortunately, not only have double blind scientific studies of this technique shown it to produce results no better than random, but a review of research papers published by the International College of Applied Kinesiology from 1981 to 1987 found that none of the studies which supposedly support it used adequate statistical analyses. So there is no science behind it, just testimonials.
Even ignoring the use of this invalid technique, many of Hawkins' examples are absurd and show very shallow research on his part. In one example he states that more simple cultures rank in the low 200s vs. the more advanced cultures in the 300s where the main form of entertainment is watching TV! Many studies have shown that people who are living in a more simple traditional culture are happier, healthier and less stressed but that when they begin to adopt "modern" ways their health deteriorates, alcoholism, drug abuse and crime all skyrocket. Surely joining us folks who calibrate higher should only bring good things to those unfortunate traditional cultures! Just ask a Native American!!
Another clunker is Hawkins' example of Wal-Mart as a high calibrating business. Excuse me, is this the same behemoth that has spread like a cancer across the country putting small family owned stores out of business by selling mass-produced crap? That has had numerous complaints of union-busting and employee mistreatment and which was being sued by the US Department of Labor for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act for not paying overtime to employees? This is a high-calibrating win/win company?
Another dud is Hawkins' incorrect examples concerning treatment of alcoholism. While extolling AA to high heaven, he ignores the studies which have shown that alcoholics have the same success rate trying to quit by themselves, using psychotherapy, rational treatments, or AA (around 5%). AA is the only therapy which insists that a person must "better themselves" or promotes a transcendent spiritual/religious "cure", yet it has no better sucess rate than the alcoholic who just quits or enrolls in a program that stresses a rational approach. Why should AA calibrate so high when it is no better than any other approach? Probably because it fits in with the author's paradigm.
The rest of his conclusions could have been reached with plain common sense: forgiving is better than resenting, joy is better than anger...like I really needed this book to tell me that?
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant Bridge between Science and Spirit
Review: David Gleick and others have been knocking on this door for a long time. Dr. Hawkins finally bridges the gap between science and spirit with this brilliant description of the nature of human reality.Dr. Hawkins has discovered that the kinesiological response of the muscles, which was formerly thought to be localized to one person, is actually a response of universal consciousness. For example, it has long been the practice of many alternative health practitioners to use a muscle response to discover the source of physical ailments in the body. You hold one arm out to the side at shoulder height, hold an object up against your middle, and if you are allergic to that object (e.g., a carrot) you will not be able to continue to hold your arm out straight if someone puts just very slight pressure on your arm. In other words, if you are allergic to the carrot, your muscles go weak when you hold it, and the strongest man in the world wouldn't be able to resist the slightest pressure from the practitioner. You can also take a picture of Hitler -- in a blind test where neither tester nor testee knows who is the subject in the picture -- and hold it up against your middle, and your arm would also go weak. You can repeat this test with a room full of hundreds of subjects. Use a picture of Ghandi, the arm stays strong. Hitler, weak. Mother Theresa, strong. Sadam, weak. Hence the verifiability of a connected human consciousness. From there, Dr. Hawkins develops the focal point of this book, the scale of consciousness, his arbitrary creation of a scale from zero to 1,000 with 1,000 representing the most advanced consciousness level possible for humankind, that of Christ, Buddha, Krishna, and a very few others. This book provides profound (and verifiable) insight into the nature of human evolution and spiritual development. This is a book to spend time with, to get to know, to be read over and over and over in random order. Not a book for the religiously fixed or academically uninquisitve mind. But for those who have continuously pushed themselves beyond the limits of their own beliefs, be prepared for a joyful surprise.
Rating:
Summary: Facinating stuff
Review: Not only is it facinating, but essential to know and understand if we are to understand ourselves. I also recommend, The Little Guide To Happiness.
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Summary: The BIG POINT is that you can improve your life with this!!
Review: The book is great, a very interesting discussion and explanation of human consciousness that makes sense and can be applied to your life. There is a testing procedure described in here that is used by many "in the know" but not so well known by far too many people. Called muscle testing (some use fancier names), this book teaches an easy way to answer questions that you would not know you can have answered. Like, "are this person's motives to help me?", "Is this person lying?", and really the sky is the limit to what you can ask. There is also a description of a scale of consciousness & truth that you can "calibrate" people, places, things, etc., with to determine the level of quality of consciousness or truth. I heard about this book from Wayne Dyer, who also wrote a blurb saying it was one of the most important books he had read in several years. Dr. Dyer feels so strongly about this book that he sells it for his cost at his seminars. He is right to be so enthusuastice about it. It is a HUGELY valuable book that can make a HUGE change in your life. If you are wondering whether to buy it, BUY IT!! It is one of the best books I have ever seen on this topic and perhaps more importantly there are very few books on this topic that are written for the public. Also highly recommended is "Effortless Wellbeing: The Missing Ingredients for Authentic Wellness" by Evan Finer, as a great how-to book for feeling well in your life.
Rating: 
Summary: A misuse of a valid technique...
Review: I have a rule: never take seriously anything that discusses quantum physics unless it contains equations. Although Dr. Hawkins makes numerous references to "advanced theoretical physics" he never ties it to anything in his work. Thus the book is full of questionable science. (For a really good book tying quantum phenomena to consciousness, see "The Physics of Consciousness" by Evan Harris Walker.) For example, when he gives the power, in megawatts, of a negative and positive thought, there is no discussion of how he derived those numbers. Nor is there any real explanation of how he derived his scale of levels of consciousness or why it is logarithmic. Nor are all of his terms mutually exclusive. It seems to me he has built a self-referential system that is true because the system tests as true using kinesiology. Whis is unfortunate, because I have seen kinesiology used to diagnose serious illnesses. Yet in the hands of untrained people who might be working an agenda, this could be, to be charitable, misleading. And why would just reading his book increase one's level of consciousness? What will be the noticeable effects upon one's outer life? I also have a problem with his use of the term "strange attractor." It seems clear he has little understanding of chaos theory, since a "strange attractor" is a mathematical abstraction that explains certain observed phenomena. He treats is as though it is a real, physical entity, and goes on to discuss "attractor fields" as though they are real and measurable. Even the discussion in "Chaos" by James Gleick, which is a brilliantly written book for the layman, goes beyond what Dr. Hawkins knows. A more complete discussion can be found in "Fractals Everywhere" by Michael Barnsely. Read these, then see if anything Hawkins says makes sense as anything other than an analogy. A simple magnetic field would be a better analogy, however. Something else I have always wondered about is why organically-grown fruit and such are always so much better for us than those grown with fertilizers. I can understand the harm of pesticides, but not simple inorganic chemicals that are transformed by biological processes. And why has life expectancy increased so dramatically in countries that use both chemical fertilizers and pesticides? If these things are so inimical to life, why don't they kill us quickly? Hawkins' discussion of the value of twelve-step groups is quite good, and he even has his points about consciousness. However, as for much of the rest of his work, I just don't like something so poorly substantiated to be offered as good science. I'd like to see his statistics on the double-blind studies, for example. So read this with a critical eye and questioning mind if you read it at all.
Rating: 
Summary: Thought Provoking Ideas On Consciousness & Kinesiology
Review: This is a very thought-provoking book, as it explores the use of applied kinesiological methods to measure levels of truth and consciousness. The author has seemingly discovered a continuum in which consciousness becomes either increasingly expansive and inclusive or increasingly destructive to life at descending levels. He describes a methodical approach to using kinesiology to test for the level of consciousness of a person, book, concept, or group, as well as to test for the truth or falsehood of precise statements. He also describes factors that can invalidate a muscle test, which make it apparent that it is easy to yield invalid and unreliable results. In fact, the author indicates that persons with a consciousness below a certain threshold can't get reliable results. Hawkins' research has shown most of humanity to function below the threshold necessary for "power" rather than "force" to be expressed. This is just one significant problem in applying the author's model. Another is the reality that most people fluctuate in their consciousness from one moment to another. Hawkins' use of kinesiology to examine political figures and historical persons and issues has also yielded some suspect results. I think it would have been more useful if he had used the method to rate individuals that neither the tester or subject (or the general public) had ever heard of, such as a common killer or an unheralded charity volunteer. Despite the flaws in methodology and some overly simplistic conclusions drawn by the author, this is a very readable and insightful book. It provides a wonderful perspective about the nature of consciousness and holism, encouraging readers to explore the topic further and to practice the muscle testing methods in one's own life. Hawkins has done some important research, though it is important that those reading about and applying his methods recognize some of the potential pitfalls in the methods and conclusions. Hawkins displays much enthusiasm for his ideas and methods, which leads him to overlook or minimize some areas that may need to be refined or clarified.
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Summary: Spiritual Tolitarianism
Review: This book has many good philosophical/spiritual concepts mixed in with much that is questionable. I question the fact that according to the author this book calibrates at a higher level than most of the world's greatest literature and spiritual writings. Perhaps a subjective bias crept in when Mr. Hawkins started calibrating his own book. I also think that this type of material creates a methodology for the judgement of others. After all no one objects when Mr. Hawkins states that Hitler has a low level of calibration, but they might object if Mr. Hawkins calibrates their own political or spiritual leader as low on the scale. Perhaps anyone Mr. Hawkins does not agree with could find themselves low on the calibration scale (as calibrated by him). Calibration creates a form of spiritual elitism. Of course in all humility, a man like Mr. Hawkins would not say come out and say he himself calibrates higher than anyone else, but the implication is there. This questionable "scientific" method could also be used as a way to justify judging or even punishing others. It kind of reminds me of the tests they used to determine if someone was a witch or not. It also smacks of the "God is on our side" mentality. In the past we knew he was on our side because our religious leaders said so, now we know Why? because we calibrated it. I also think some of the so called stats Hawkins uses (e.g. for every one "Avatar" at a high level (1000) a gazillion negative people are counterbalanced) comes straight out of a subjective fantasy land. Mr. Hawkins recently lead a seminar for a bookstore in the Chicgo area. There was a V.I.P. meal with a high admission fee for this event. It seems strange that Jesus (calibration level 1000) never had V.I.P. dinners with expensive admission fees. He hung out with people (publicans, prostitutes, tax collectors, etc) with very low calibration levels. He told us not to judge (or in other words "calibrate") others. He just told us to love them. If he was so highly evolved (a 1000 on Mr. Hawkin's scale) and so in touch with the truth, how come he said "judge not that you be not judged". I am not a christian, but I believe Jesus basic teachings and he never mentioned calibrating people. Another issue I have with this whole testing thing is didn't Jesus say we needed faith. Why would anyone need faith if AK testing could determine the absolute truth of everything. We could just test whether or not there is a God and belief could be a thing of the past. It would greatly simplify all the great mysteries of life. We could also then establish a state religion based on AK testing. No one could disagree because after all we tested it and we KNOW what is the truth. I know there are Hawkins fanatics so I am going to keep this review anonymous because I do not want to get into a mud slinging contest. However, I am sure someone will say I calibrate low, because I am not jumping on the Hawkins bandwagon. In conclusion, I believe Mr. Hawkins is on the right track with some of his spiritual ideas, but I think he is using the tool of Applied kinesology to forward his own views and agendas and establish a following. I think that there really are no simple answers to all of life's questions and this book could lead to some possibly dangerous fascistic and simplistic viewpoints.
Rating:
Summary: Will Provoke You
Review: I just went through 8 spirtual books in a two week period. This was the last one I read and it certainly provoked me the most. Dr. Hawkins makes lots of claims which readers will judge. However, what's unique about his book is that Dr. Hawkins gives a method whereby you can evaluate the validity of what he says. (And in the second and third books of the series he's much more exact about how to do it). For example, he says that Consciousness can be represented on a scale going from 1 to 1000 with 1000 being the level of Krishna, Jesus and Buddha. He also says that enlightment begins at 600 and integrity (taking responsibility for your life) begins at 200. The human race currently calibrates at 207 - with only 22% being above 200. And, of course, numerous other statements are made that will provoke you. I was taken back by his statement that A Course in Miracles calibrates at 600 while Power versus Force calibrates at 850 - and the third book in the series calibrates at 999.8. Interesting, but every statement he makes should be testable by anyone who is above 200. Again, as I said, it's guaranteed to provoke you -- whether positive and negative. And books that provoke you can often help you with profound paradigm shifts. That's why I gave it a five star review.
Rating:
Summary: Good but not completely convincing
Review: I really like the ideas presented in this book. With various types of research, Hawkin's discusses the mysterious side of our psyche in a "scientific" manner. The conclusions he makes are very interesting but not completely convincing. For a better and more convincing explanation of our how our mind works, I'd suggest, "The Ever-Transcending Spirit" by Toru Sato. The ideas are not the same although there is some overlap. But Sato has a knack for explaining these things in a way that makes a lot of sense to a wider variety of people. This book is definitely worth a read though!
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Summary: One of the 10 most important books you will ever read
Review: Did you ever have the feeling that most of our culture is pure BS. Well, there is now a way to prove it, and David Hawkins is showing us how. It is interesting to read the negative reviews of this book and test for the level of the author. They only confirm exactly what David Hawkins communicates so well. Only 20% of the population can use kinesiology for testing, and if you are not at that level you just won't get it without serious desire and effort on your part. This book is not for everyone. If you are at the level necessary to benefit from this knowledge, it will be tremendously validating and quite uplifting. If not, it will be quite devastating to the ego and it will fight tooth and nail to invalidate the message. As Hawkins says in his third book, the ego will filter from perception all things that do not fit its reality. I taught my teenagers to use this technique. They took to it like ducks to water. It not only helps them with the BS of peer and cultural pressure, but cuts down on arguments by my saying well, lets just test it.
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