About the Book
LOVE LIVE 101: WHAT NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES AND THE MYSTICS TEACH US ABOUT LOVE, ROMANCE AND THE SCHOOL OF LIFE
BY DANIEL FLYNN
Focusing on an area that is near and dear to all, but especially to a college-age adult, Love Life 101 explores the "bigger picture" context for our lives and then looks at our romantic relationships and sexuality from that perspective. To explain this bigger picture, Love Life 101 draws heavily on two sources:
- The "20/20 hindsight" perspective of near-death experience ("NDE") life reviews. In life reviews, which occur during some but not all NDEs, the NDEer typically re-experiences the events in his or her life from different perspectives and in the presence of a Being of Light. Viewed as a whole, the existing research on NDE life reviews sheds a light on what is important and what is not about choices we typically make in the course of a lifetime.
- Universal concepts taught by mystics of all religious traditions, cultures and eras. Rabbi Herbert Weiner, the author of Nine and a Half Mystics: The Kabbala Today, once observed that the religious traditions of the world are very, very different --- on the surface, but the deeper one goes into the mystic aspects of these traditions, the more they tend to look the same. Other scholars have made similar observations. These universal concepts echo the insights gained from study of the NDE life reviews.
Love Life 101 shows how awareness of factors - such as who we truly are, why we are here, and how we are connected to each other - can make the difference between a meaningful love life and an often painful waste of time. Insights learned from hundreds of near-death experiences (NDEs) and the mystic perspective shared by spiritual luminaries of all religions, cultures, and eras reveal how our physical and spiritual realities are intertwined. We cannot properly understand our physical world choices if we are oblivious to the spiritual world context in which they arise. Awareness of this "bigger picture" helps us find our life partner, have a more graceful love life and reduce the level of pain and missteps we encounter.
Love Life 101 creates a step-by-step guide for applying the profound benefits of NDEs and the mystic traditions in romantic relationships. Exercises are provided at the end of each chapter to help the reader explore what the 'bigger picture" perspective would mean for his or her life. Also provided are extensive endnotes, an index and glossary.
RECENT EDITORIAL REVIEWS
ForeWord Clarion Review:
Four Stars (out of Five)...This how-to book offers relationship counsel and advice on how to develop meaningful, balanced lives. To emphasize his premise that all living beings are connected with one another and to a loving God, Flynn includes numerous testimonies from people who have witnessed near-death experiences. He believes that everyone has access to guidance and resources from the spiritual realm but asserts, 'Our challenge is to learn to ask for them, recognize them and work with them."
According to Flynn, each person's spirit decides upon a particular path to explore as it prepares to be reborn in human form. The choices made by the entity during the course of a human lifetime determine the degree of spiritual advancement or regression that occurs. ... Some people will continue to chase after material success, while others learn that 'the purpose that will bring everything into true focus is to know God on an intimate basis."
Furthermore, the author believes that we must learn to distinguish the desires of the ego self from the more enlightened options guiding the 'true self." As the ego acts in self-interest, spiritual progress is inhibited... According to Flynn, 'Our true self, however, knows that it is eternal and connected to everyone else."
Inasmuch as Flynn's worldview reflects an inclusive universe, he often refers to and quotes from the texts of multiple religions-Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity, to name a few. ...[E]ach chapter of the book ends with questions that are aimed at helping readers evaluate their current circumstances and recognize their habitual behavior in relationships. Additional support materials include reference notes, appendices, and a bibliography.
Even those who question the validity of spiritual near-death experiences may find themselves persuaded by the author's appeal to find a middle ground-one that is based on acceptance and tolerance.
Margaret Cullison
Midwest Book Review:
When you're close to losing it, it can be quickly clear that you need to love life. "Love Life 101: What Near-Death Experiences and the Mystics Teach Us About Love, Romance, and the School of Life" is a spiritual and inspirational read, encouraging readers to embrace the love in their lives and the bigger picture that their relationships forms. "Love Life 101" is a strong pick for new age spirituality collections looking for another perspective on the importance of romance.
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1 Herbert Weiner, Nine and a Half Mystics: The Kabbala Today (Touchstone 1997).