Mystic Tea


Book Description

A community of quirky, mismatched, and endearing women struggle to find meaning and purpose on a ramshackle monastery in upstate New York. Having spent their lives in service to a church that seems to no longer serve them, they are confused about their own futures and the future of the entire monastery. Led by Mike, the practical no-nonsense prioress, and Augusta, the grand ancient mystic hermit, they are joined by Gemma, a self-punishing novice, and Arielle, a firebrand jailhouse conversion who was sent there out of rehab by a "sort of angel." The personalities, commitments, philosophies and beliefs of these and all the characters conflict and converge in ways at once perilous and enlightening. Throughout the tempestuous journey, Augusta's magical sacred teas draw the inevitable closer and closer. Mystic Tea is a contemporary love story between young and old, franchised and disenfranchised, pedestrian and mystic. Most of all, it is a story of female empowerment as the women find the courage to confront epic challenges, creating a surprising future from the oppressive ashes of the past. It will make you smile as much as it will make you think.




Reading Tea Leaves


Book Description

Find your fortune sip by sip Reading Tea Leaves is your ultimate guide to the ancient art of tasseography—divination with tea leaves. Traditionally a practical, everyday form of divination often practiced by women, tea-leaf reading gave glimpses into the drama of daily life—who was stopping by after supper and if a letter was on the way. The process is simple: brew yourself a cup of loose-leaf tea, settle down somewhere comfy, and sip it intentionally. Once you’ve reached the bottom of the cup, the tea leaves that remain will take the form of shapes and symbols that can give you guidance, spark your intuition, and even give you a hint of the future. Originally published by an unnamed "Highland Seer" in the early 20th century this new edition has been updated for modern readers and features a foreword by tasseography experts Leanne Marrama and Sandra Mariah Wright. Reading Tea Leaves will teach you everything you need to know to begin reading the leaves yourself. Inside you’ll find a dictionary of symbolic meanings to help you successfully interpret the images you see in the cup, along with ten illustrated example readings to allow you to hone your interpretive skills. Reading Tea Leaves is a warm-hearted invitation to celebrate the small, magical moments we encounter every day.




The Book of Tea


Book Description

The Book of Tea is a brief but classic essay on tea drinking, its history, restorative powers, and rich connection to Japanese culture. Okakura felt that "Teaism" was at the very center of Japanese life and helped shape everything from art, aesthetics, and an appreciation for the ephemeral to architecture, design, gardens, and painting. In tea could be found one source of what Okakura felt was Japan's and, by extension, Asia's unique power to influence the world. Containing both a history of tea in Japan and lucid, wide-ranging comments on the schools of tea, Zen, Taoism, flower arranging, and the tea ceremony and its tea-masters, this book is deservedly a timeless classic and will be of interest to anyone interested in the Japanese arts and ways. Book jacket.




Mystic's Touch


Book Description




The Sublime Transformation of Vera Wright


Book Description

This book challenges the notion that great saints and prophets have disappeared from the earth. The spiritual awakening of a quirky sixty-plus beautician named Vera Wright, in a quiet New Jersey town, surprises not only Vera herself, but everyone she knows and meets, including the Pope. This is an inspiring and entertaining account of how one person's astonishing transformation can transform the world.




Leela


Book Description

The only thing that I’m certain about is my presence. I exist. I experience the world all the time. I see, hear, smell, taste and touch. The world also brings a range of emotions and thoughts in me. Just because I experience the world, does it make it real? What about other people and even God? Are they all appearances and a play (Leela) in the field of the one presence? This book is a metaphorical story of my journey of exploration into the play of Appearance and Presence with Maya as my companion. While in appearance, this journey is undertaken from Goa to Mumbai in India, the real journey is in your mind when you travel with me through the book. Make this book your journey, accompanied by Maya. Then a new window will open and change how you see, discern and respond to the play of appearances and presence.




Modern Day Mystic


Book Description

Can we really bend spoons with our minds? Do regular people have prophetic dreams? Can spirits speak to us from beyond? What does it really mean to be "enlightened?" How you can develop "healing hands." Author Thomas Lyons has seen it all and shares hundreds of stories of mystical experience.




The Mystic's Accomplice


Book Description

The first historical mystery in award-winning author Mary Miley's 1920s Chicago-set series introduces reluctant sleuth Maddie Pastore and takes readers into a dark and dangerous world of mobsters, speakeasies and seances. It's 1924, and Maddie Pastore has it made. A nice house, a loving husband with a steady job - even if it is connected to Chicago's violent Torrio-Capone gang - and a baby on the way. But then Tommy is shot dead, and she learns her husband had a secret that turns her life upside down. Penniless and grieving, Maddie is only sure of two things: that she will survive for the sake of her baby, and that she'll never turn to the mob for help. So when she's invited to assist a well-meaning but fraudulent medium, she seizes the chance. She's not proud of her work investigating Madam Carlotta's clients, but she's proud of how well she does it. When Maddie unearths potential evidence of a dark crime, however, she faces a terrible dilemma: keep quiet and let a murderer go unpunished, or follow the trail and put herself and her baby in mortal danger . . . With its Prohibition-era setting, lively characters and enthralling historical detail, The Mystic's Accomplice is an ideal pick for readers who enjoy 1920s-set mysteries.




The Cup of Destiny


Book Description

Reading tea leaves is a traditional divinatory method passed on through generations. The Cup of Destiny reveals the secrets of this ancient method, allowing you to make predictions for yourself and your friends. This kit includes a beautiful, decorated cup and saucer for making readings, and an illustrated book explaining how to interpret the patterns you will find in your cup. The first part of the book describes the ritual of turning the cup counter-clockwise and draining the left-over tea into the saucer. It goes on to explain the meanings of over 200 of the signs and symbols you are likely to see in the leaves when making a reading. The explanations accompanying these allow you to relate them to real events and future possibilities, providing clear insights which can be startlingly accurate: a heart near the rim of the cup means that love is not far away, while a cake may signify a celebration or a party. So, have a cup of tea and see what the leaves have to say about your future!




The Chinese Art of Tea


Book Description

First published in 1985, The Chinese Art of Tea is an exploration into the history of tea and the Chinese art of tea, known as ch’a-shu. The book begins by delving into the history and legends surrounding tea before moving on to a study of the Emperor Hui Tsung’s treatise on tea and approaches to tea during the Ming Dynasty. It discusses tea gardens, teahouses, the relationship between tea and ceramics, and the connection between tea and health. The book also features a detailed manual for practising the art of drinking tea, including advice for choosing tea, buying tea, different types of infusion and drinking vessels, and the attitude required for obtaining the fullest satisfaction from tea. The Chinese Art of Tea is ideal for anyone with an interest in the history and art of drinking tea, and the social and cultural history of China.