Passionate Presence: Experiencing the Seven Qualities of Awakened Awareness

Rating:
Summary: A clear and simple message
Review: This book makes no promises for how we can be better people. No fairytailes about enlightenment or achieving. Written in a simple and transparant language, Catherine Ingram brings you to that which is here for everyone, directly available on every moment: silent presence. It is wonderful to read a truth we all know off, no more, no less. How could we ever think we need anything more than this?

Rating:
Summary: Profound and Original
Review: This book will be categorized with books on spiritual development, meditation, enlightenment, etc. Ms. Ingram's book is like others in this category only in the most superficial way. The book is an original view of thought and awareness, derived entirely from one very evolved and articulate person's unique experience. It is our good fortune that she has a scientist's mind and a poet's heart and has taken the time to create this profound and beautiful book.

Rating:
Summary: Food for the soul
Review: This lovely book shares the wisdom of a teacher of silent meditation and Dharma Dialogues on awakened awareness. It is truly food for the soul.

Catherine Ingram describes her personal experiences in seeking and finding peace in the Now. While mindfulness meditation was a major path, a spiritual teacher catalyzed major shifts in her consciousness. Ingram now teaches mindfulness, through silence, through shared lessons, and (even through the pages of this book) through her personal centeredness.

Seven topics are highlighted: Silence, Tenderness, Embodiment, Genuineness, Discernment, Delight and Wonder. Each is illustrated with lovely stories of Ingram and other seekers on the Path.

Particularly helpful for healing are suggestions for acknowledging the presence of an inner observer who is detached even in the midst of crisis and suffering; for treasuring each present moment rather than living in the past or future; and for accepting that we need not torture ourselves with guilt and remorse because each of us has a lifetime of lessons to learn - and each experience offers us opportunities to develop deeper compassion for others who have their own lessons and make mistakes that may impact negatively on us. We can fester in negative reactions to life that is past or in our anxieties about our future life - or we might just let go of the negativity and move on to the ever-present Now.

I was surprised to discover this book was immediately helpful in finding a stronger connection with my own center of quiet awareness.

There is also a pleasant current of practical advice.

I warmly recommend this book for a good read and re-read.


Rating:
Summary: A Sigh of Relief
Review: When I think about the teachings in Passionate Presence, the word that comes to me is RELIEF: Relief from the burdening belief that one must make a prodigious effort in order to live an awakened life; relief from the burden of ideas of what an "enlightened" person should be like; and relief from the burden of believing one's "I" stories. Once the reader understands the concept of letting go of beliefs, explained so artfully in early chapters, the qualities and experiences that are described in the rest of Passionate Presence are immediately available.
Catherine Ingram's lovely images and stories entice the reader back to the awareness of the moment. She has crafted an artful companion for one who desires to live in the mystery and beauty of an awakened life.

Rating:
Summary: A Sigh of Relief
Review: When I think about the teachings in Passionate Presence, the word that comes to me is RELIEF: Relief from the burdening belief that one must make a prodigious effort in order to live an awakened life; relief from the burden of ideas of what an "enlightened" person should be like; and relief from the burden of believing one's "I" stories. Once the reader understands the concept of letting go of beliefs, explained so artfully in early chapters, the qualities and experiences that are described in the rest of Passionate Presence are immediately available.
Catherine Ingram's lovely images and stories entice the reader back to the awareness of the moment. She has crafted an artful companion for one who desires to live in the mystery and beauty of an awakened life.

Rating:
Summary: Poetic, elegant, pragmatic
Review: With simple, skillful strokes Catherine Ingram paints a landscape of Awareness that gifts the reader with a rich understanding of the qualities of silence, tenderness, embodiment, genuineness, discernment, delight and wonder. Ms. Ingram's work is compelling, as she helps us turn a fine ear toward our own heart's intelligence. I highly recommend this book.