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Rating: 
Summary: Gave me peace.
Review: As someone who's been on an extraordinary mystical journey over the past year, Sophy Burnham's book detailing her own experiences, interwoven with those of the great mystics, was a great solace. As she so exquisitely notes, you have to ask yourself, repeatedly, "Am I crazy?" even while you KNOW that you are not.Though I originally checked the book out of the Georgetown Public Library, I am ordering it immediately, so that I can pass it around to famly members who need to understand who I am, and where I am going. And as a writer myself (THE DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM OF LOVE/NAL trade, Sept., 2003), I was tremendously impressed by the control of her language and the structure of the narrative. I am so grateful. Thank you, Sophy Burnham Josephine
Rating:
Summary: Gave me peace.
Review: As someone who's been on an extraordinary mystical journey over the past year, Sophy Burnham's book detailing her own experiences, interwoven with those of the great mystics, was a great solace. As she so exquisitely notes, you have to ask yourself, repeatedly, "Am I crazy?" even while you KNOW that you are not. Though I originally checked the book out of the Georgetown Public Library, I am ordering it immediately, so that I can pass it around to famly members who need to understand who I am, and where I am going. And as a writer myself (THE DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM OF LOVE/NAL trade, Sept., 2003), I was tremendously impressed by the control of her language and the structure of the narrative. I am so grateful. Thank you, Sophy Burnham Josephine
Rating: 
Summary: well grounded, but sometimes off in space
Review: In this fairly well researched and documented book, Burnham offers evidence and hope for mystical experiences. She offers concrete suggestions for increasing one's spirituality and balances them with humble quotes from gurus like the Dali Lama so as to keep things in perspective. At times she's a bit dogmatic and draws conclusions based more on emotion than intellect, and in parts, it seems like the book was written more for her own therapy, so it would be to one's benefit to read other books of this nature and not view this one alone as an authoratative work on this subject.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully written and enthralling.
Review: Sophy Burnham's "ecstatic journey" traces every twist and turn of the mystical path, from the divine revelations received by biblical figures and medieval saints to the cosmic experiences of ordinary contemporary people and her own transformative moment at Machu Picchu in Peru. Some of these are well-known stories and some come from letters that Burnham has received from her readers. These mysteries, known and unknown, describe the fiery light of God's love, the flash of complete understanding that cannot be put into words, the melding of self with every part of creation. Their stories alternately fill me with awe and discouragement. Awe, because these experiences prove for me that God is more wonderful than anything I can imagine. Discouragement, because these tales stir up those old longings for divine revelation which I thought I had replaced with contentment and inner peace. For those of us who are on the quiet mystical path, Burnham assures us that we are in good companpy. When she interviewed the Dalai Lama, asking him if he was enlightened, he replied: "'Me? No, no, no,' and broke out laughing. 'I personally have no experience of the Awakening Mind,' he confided happily." I found this to be one of the most reassuring passages in the book, along with Burnham's observation that "A mystical experience does not always come as a vision of light or an ecstasy or sense of union. Sometimes it is marked by the most fragile 'knowing,' like a ripple on the surface of a lake." In her description of what the Buddhists call "emptiness" or "luminosity of mind," Burnham says, "This is the state in which you hear music as if the notes were falling stars. Then everything and everyone around you is seen as holy, and nothing exists except the holiness, the sacred gound. Nothing is dirty anymore, or despicable." Perhaps I don't need to experience this holy state firsthand. I can read passages like this and catch a glimpse of the world through the eyes of the person who has experienced it. THE ECSTATIC JOURNEY is one of those books that induces a deep awareness of the sanctity of all Creation. --Emily L. VanLaeys, author of DREAMWEAVING: USING DREAM GUIDANCE TO CREATE LIFE'S TAPESTRY
Rating:
Summary: A solid work on a fascinating subject ... but
Review: This book examines Burnham's personal spiritual journey. Raised Episcopalian, she slid into atheism to be more like her husband. During 20 years of marriage, her secret attachment to prayer led to a yearning to "know God." Then a journalism assignment sent her to a sacred site in Peru where she had a revelation that merged her briefly with God and showed light pouring off people and the landscape. Returning home, she ended her marriage and devoted herself to further progression on her spiritual path. I respected the book for its collected information on the mystical experience. Also, aside from Sinetar's book Ordinary People As Monks And Mystics, there aren't many books about contemporary mystics trying to survive in today's corrupt society - a fascinating subject. On the other hand, I found aspects of this book hard to like. Some of my uneasiness centers on her falling "intensely, violently, passionately" in love with an Englishman she met on her Peru trip even though she and he were married to different people - and she saw no problem with visiting him later in England. She doesn't include anyone's reactions - not the Englishman's, not his wife, not her husband, not her children, not his children if he even had any. She does mention in connection with her children that she left out their reactions to protect their privacy - which excuses the book's solipsistic feel. Even so, it avoids exploring material that could have been extremely comforting and valuable to other spiritual seekers: what happens when your loved ones don't understand the "new you" after a mystical experience? I wish she had given us some sharper details on her own experience: some of her journal entries perhaps or some actual anecdotes or conversations. It would have been a braver book if she had given a fuller picture of herself but instead she kept it kind of "academic" with summary bits of her own life intruding only to shape the collected information on mysticism (which is valuable, too, I admit). So, yes, I recommend the book. But with some reservations.
Rating:
Summary: A solid work on a fascinating subject ... but
Review: This book examines Burnham's personal spiritual journey. Raised Episcopalian, she slid into atheism to be more like her husband. During 20 years of marriage, her secret attachment to prayer led to a yearning to "know God." Then a journalism assignment sent her to a sacred site in Peru where she had a revelation that merged her briefly with God and showed light pouring off people and the landscape. Returning home, she ended her marriage and devoted herself to further progression on her spiritual path. I respected the book for its collected information on the mystical experience. Also, aside from Sinetar's book Ordinary People As Monks And Mystics, there aren't many books about contemporary mystics trying to survive in today's corrupt society - a fascinating subject. On the other hand, I found aspects of this book hard to like. Some of my uneasiness centers on her falling "intensely, violently, passionately" in love with an Englishman she met on her Peru trip even though she and he were married to different people - and she saw no problem with visiting him later in England. She doesn't include anyone's reactions - not the Englishman's, not his wife, not her husband, not her children, not his children if he even had any. She does mention in connection with her children that she left out their reactions to protect their privacy - which excuses the book's solipsistic feel. Even so, it avoids exploring material that could have been extremely comforting and valuable to other spiritual seekers: what happens when your loved ones don't understand the "new you" after a mystical experience? I wish she had given us some sharper details on her own experience: some of her journal entries perhaps or some actual anecdotes or conversations. It would have been a braver book if she had given a fuller picture of herself but instead she kept it kind of "academic" with summary bits of her own life intruding only to shape the collected information on mysticism (which is valuable, too, I admit). So, yes, I recommend the book. But with some reservations.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully written and enthralling.
Review: This is a book I am most impressed by, because never have I seen such an impressive description of the pathways of great and lesser-known mystics over the years.
Sophy Burnham writes from an intensely personal perspective, focusing heavily on her own experiences throughout, and the way in which she writes is touching to me even though I find it impossible to imagine what occurs in the lives of mystics except as a dream. Sophy shows throughout that she can characterise the mystical way with remarkable clarity throughout, always using real-life examples that she has read about herself, from times before the birth of Christ right up until this very day. She shows clearly the simplicity and beauty in the lives of the mystics that is so touching and intriguing in today's world. And Sophy Burnham is far better than anyone I have read at expressing the work done by these mystical figures when in action, as opposed to prayer.
At the same time, Sophy Burnham shows clearly what guideline are needed to develop this pathway and is exceptionally effective at demonstrating the qualities a mystic must have. Given the intense focus on her own life, it is not surprising that she can relate these msytical experience to everyday life perfectly.
This is a perfect book to read if you want your first insight into the lives of great spiritual figues past and present.
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