Kabbalah and Healing by Maggy Whitehouse leads readers on a fascinating, personal tour of various aspects of the Kabbalah. As the subtitle states, she focuses on transformation that can lead to equilibrium and health.
A Mystical Guide to Transforming the Four Pivotal Relationships for Health and Happiness.
Whitehouse employs a personal point of view that will connect directly with the reader. She speaks to readers as if they were there with her. In addition, she uses examples from her own life, further enhancing her connection with the reader. The read is very pleasant and tailored to be understood by most readers.
Whitehouse sets the stage with a brief discussion of the human mind, defining and comparing the ego, super ego, and even the soul, supporting her arguments with theories put forth by Jung and Freud.
Whitehouse sees balance as a primary aspect of well-being and healing.
The author focuses on the Tree of Life, which she explains is a map of a balanced pathway for obtaining equilibrium. That transformation is achieved through a relationship between four aspects represented in the Tree: God, self, others, and the earth. Most of the book is a step-by-step process that leads to understanding the Tree of Life supported by examples that explain the Tree and Jacob’s ladder.
This process for understanding the Tree is extremely detailed and is supported with specific examples. Because of the complex nature of the journey towards balance, it might help readers to have printed copies of the Tree on which to follow along and make notes to refer to later.
One of the most interesting aspects of the discussion is that elements of the Tree of Life are intrinsically interconnected with various major religions. Although the Tree of Life is an elemental part of the Jewish religion, it is decidedly universal. Even though it is an ancient map, it is still relevant today and will no doubt continue to be so into the future.
Whitehouse seamlessly connects her doctrine with standard astrology, karmic patterns, and chakras, thus underscoring the universal nature of the Kabbalah and its ability to lead to the discovery of the true self and its connection to the universe.
Kabbalah and Healing will leave readers with a feeling of wholeness, a belief that the entire world and all that it houses are interconnected in some mystical way.
The author claims that her engagement with the Kabbala and the Tree of Life aided in her recovery from a serious illness. However, it could be said that the Kabbalah could engender something on a much larger and more universal scale. Perhaps interacting with the Kabbala and assimilating the feeling of balance and interconnectedness could do much more than simply heal one person. It could be said that the greatest illness on this planet is the othering of people and races and societies and countries. Perhaps engendering personal balance and a feeling of oneness could help heal the planet with acceptance and unification.
Kabbalah and Healing is a well-written book that will no doubt create an urge to learn more about the Kabbalah, the self, and the universe. It’s a great place to begin a study of the Kabbalah that most readers will be able to understand and enjoy.