MY REVIEW OF AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI BY PARAMAHANSA YOGANANDA

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

In his superb book, Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda tells his life from childhood to old age.

What surprised me was his open-mindedness and his respect for all religions. Thanks to him, I learned more about a German Catholic woman, named Therese Newman. She had the stigmata and every Friday her body oozed blood. Furthermore, she did not eat or drink. Her only nourishment was a consecrated host every morning.

What attracted Paramahansa Yogananda to Therese Newman, who at the time was little known even in her own country, is a mystery. Perhaps, great mystic souls have the ability to communicate with each other telepathically.

The account Paramahansa Yogananda gives of his meeting with Therese Newman is so vivid and detailed that I cannot doubt it is not true.

In his autobiography, Paramahansa Yogananda tells many miracles. Most of them were performed by people who were initiated into the discipline called Kriya Yoga.

He exported Kriya Yoga to the West and gave rise to an interchange of ideas between East and West.

Deep down, Autobiography of a Yogi reveals that man is nothing but energy!

Ettore Grillo, author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily (English edition)

– A Hidden Sicilian History (English edition)

– The Vibrations of Words (English edition)

– Travels of the Mind (English edition)

– Una Storia Siciliana Nascosta (edizione in lingua italiana)

– Viaggi della Mente (edizione in lingua italiana)

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF INTRODUCING MIND & BRAIN BY ANGUS GELLATLY AND OSCAR ZARATE

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

Mind & Brain by Angus Gellatly and Oscar Zarate is a thought provoking book.

Professor Angus Gellatly describes the studies on the brain that scientists have been doing over time. Experiments on animals and primates seem to show that human behavior originates in the brain, which is the house of emotions.

It seems that the brain regulates human actions. It retains the memory of individual experiences and acts consequently. Brain memory is similar to the ‘engrams’ that L. Ron Hubbard describes in his book, Dianetics.

Angus Gallantly makes no mention of the existence of the soul. I have described something about the interaction between body and mind or soul in my books Travels of the Mind and The Vibrations of Words. However, I consider Mind & Brain by Angus Gellatly and Oscar Zarate a good starting point for further studies on the existence or not of the soul, which possibly governs the human body, including the brain.

Ettore Grillo, author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily (English edition)

– A Hidden Sicilian History (English edition)

– The Vibrations of Words (English edition)

– Travels of the Mind (English edition)

– Una Storia Siciliana Nascosta (edizione in lingua italiana)

– Viaggi della Mente (edizione in lingua italiana)

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF IN GOD’S HANDS BY POPE JOHN PAUL II

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

Pope Karol Wojtyla, in his will, asked that his spiritual diaries be burned upon his death, but his secretary did not; instead, he presented them to the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints.

Later, the notebooks were published in Polish, and then translated into several languages. I read the English edition.

The spiritual diaries range from 1962 to 2003, before and after Karol Wojtyla became a Pope.

Reading this book, I have been surprised that he attended the gatherings not as the supreme head of the Catholic Church, but as a simple participant. The retreats were led by others, usually a bishop or an archbishop, not by him! This shows how humble he was.

In his diaries, the word ‘meditation’ is recurrent. Obviously, during the spiritual retreats he meditated. I thought that the term ‘meditation’ only belonged to the Eastern religion. As a child, I learned that prayer was enough to get to heaven. Apparently, also Catholics meditate. I think Pope John Paul II meditated on the Bible, but who knows what was hidden in his great, noble, and humble heart!

Ettore Grillo, author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily (English edition)

– A Hidden Sicilian History (English edition)

– The Vibrations of Words (English edition)

– Travels of the Mind (English edition)

– Una Storia Siciliana Nascosta (edizione in lingua italiana)

– Viaggi della Mente (edizione in lingua italiana)

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF NOT FOR SELF BY JOSEPH CACIBAUDA

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

The novel, Not for Self, is set in the American state of Illinois at the time of the mass emigration from Europe to the United States, at the beginning of the last century.

A few immigrants move from Sicily to Marion, Illinois, to work in the coalmines. The work is hard, dangerous, and harmful to health, but it is better than starving. One of these Sicilian immigrants, Jack Valenti, does not like the job in the coalmine. He opens a bar where he serves soft drinks and alcoholic beverages.

Business is very good for him, but before long, he runs into the law that prohibits the sale of alcohol in the United States of America. He starts bootlegging alcohol, but has not come to terms with the Ku Klux Klan, a secret society that leaves him no way out.

Joseph Cacibauda’s novel is compelling and well written. It is also an insight into the American history of that time.

Ettore Grillo, author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily (English edition)

– A Hidden Sicilian History (English edition)

– The Vibrations of Words (English edition)

– Travels of the Mind (English edition)

– Una Storia Siciliana Nascosta (edizione in lingua italiana)

– Viaggi della Mente (edizione in lingua italiana)

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF ZORBA THE GREEK BY NIKOS KAZANTZATIS

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

The British writer, Evelyn Beatrice Hall once wrote: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” The same goes for my review of Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzatis. I say, “I do not agree with your book, Nikos Kazantzatis, but I respect you.”

The main character in his book is a Macedonian, named Zorba, who goes to the island of Crete with his boss to operate a lignite mine. They share the same hut, and Zorba tells him his life story, which is based on contempt for religions, priests, monks, and anything that sounds clerical. According to him, man should just enjoy life and live as if God did not exist.

My view is different: I cannot imagine the world and the universe devoid of God. For me God’s precepts are the only parameter to discriminate the good from the evil and live a good life. For me, Jesus is the lantern that illuminates the human beings’ way.

However, I respect Nikos Kazantzatis’s idea. On the other hand, something he says is right. Since we live in this world, we should enjoy worldly life as well.

Perhaps Buddha’s “Middle Way” is the best way to follow, for it avoids the extremes of the materialists and the spiritualists.

Ettore Grillo author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily

– A Hidden Sicilian History

– The Vibrations of Words

– Travels of the Mind

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF A FANTASTIC DISCOVERY BY ANTONIO ARRIGO

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

A Fantastic Discovery by Antonio Arrigo is a well-written and educative book. It tells the story of a great Sardinian scientist, Professor Brotzu, who discovered cephalosporin from which a powerful antibiotic is derived. The central government did not take into consideration his discovery. On the other hand, drug companies saw no profit potential from this antibiotic. Therefore, Professor Brotzu donated his discovery to the University of Oxford for the sake of science and humanity.

A Fantastic Discovery is a metaphor for life. How many intellectual works are unknown to the public even if they are the result of the creative genius of artists and scientists! However, the work of genius has its own inner energy, which cannot remain buried forever. This is the case of Professor Brotzu, who will remain alive in our hearts now and for future generations.

Ettore Grillo author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily

– A Hidden Sicilian History

– The Vibrations of Words

– Travels of the Mind

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF GAUDETE ET EXSULTATE BY POPE FRANCIS

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

In his apostolic exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, Pope Francis expounds that the call to holiness is for everybody. We don’t need to strive to be holy. We just have to live our ordinary lives by having God as the reference point.

According to Pope Francis, there are two subtle enemies of holiness: Gnosticism and Pelagianism.

The identity card of a Christian is Jesus’s sermon about the beatitudes. Pope Francis explains each beatitude in detail. For him, holiness is just to practice Jesus’s teachings about the beatitudes.

Pope Francis also stresses the importance of discernment. How can a human being know the ultimate truth, that is if something comes from the Holy Spirit or from the spirit of the world or from the devil? The ability of discernment is a God’s gift. If we turn to God, we will be able to discern reality as it is.

Ettore Grillo author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily

– A Hidden Sicilian History

– The Vibrations of Words

– Travels of the Mind

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF RUNNING TO RESURRECTION BY CLARK BERGE

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

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All great masters teach that the secret to get enlightenment is to live life here and now, neither in the past nor in the future. Running is not different from the walking meditation of the Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh, on the condition that you are alert and watch yourself while you are walking or running.

A marathon is also a metaphor of life. Clark Berge took part in the Half Moon Bay International Marathon, California, when he was 58 years old. It was hard to complete the marathon, but he finally arrived at the finishing line in time.

What I appreciate a lot in this book is Clark Berge’s homily to the baboons he met while running in South Africa. “There is something beautiful about just being a baboon, just being who you are,” he says to the baboons.

What a difference between a baboon and a man! The former cannot have split personality, while men often show themselves differently from what they are. Don’t you think that being sincere, honest, consistent with oneself, natural, and spontaneous is the real finish line which we should run for?

Ettore Grillo author of these books:

– November 2: The Day of the Dead in Sicily

– A Hidden Sicilian History

– The Vibrations of Words

– Travels of the Mind


http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF FACING YOUR GIANTS

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

LUCADO
Facing your Giants by Max Lucado has helped me overcome some of the challenges I have encountered in my life. While reading it, I have also looked inside myself to understand my real nature. I consider this book as powerful as psychoanalysis, maybe more.
A maxim in Max Lucado’s Facing your Giants impressed me a lot: “Focus on giants, you stumble. Focus on God, your giants tumble.” David could kill the giant, Goliath because he focused his attention on God, not on the giant who was facing him. Obviously, the giants are just metaphors that symbolize the difficult situations we encounter along our way.
I have applied this maxim to my ordinary life and I have to say that it has always helped me. Whenever I confronted a giant, that is a very difficult situation, I tried to overcome it not through my reasoning, but simply by trusting in God. Through God’s help, I have always succeeded, while through my reasoning, sometimes I lost.
I would recommend this book to whomever wants to proceed on their spiritual path toward the final destination, which is to be one with God.
Ettore Grillo, author of these books:
– A Hidden Sicilian History
– The Vibrations of Words
-Travels of the Mind

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo

MY REVIEW OF LOVE, SEX, MARRIAGE IN ANCIENT GREECE

Posted on by Ettore Grillo

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If it had been possible to rate this book six-star or even seven-star, I would have done it, definitely. Actually, reading Love, Sex, Marriage in Ancient Greece by Nikos A. Vrissimtzis is like being projected into life in archaic, classic, and Hellenistic Greece. It looks like reliving those eras!
Nikos A. Vrissimtzis describes the habits of the ancient Greeks in a simple way, and upholds his narrative with detailed reference to Greek literature and archaeological finds. Superb is his narration about symposiums where hetaeras took part. They were prostitutes of high rank, learned and above all of extraordinary beauty. Even Pericles fell in love with one of them, called Aspasia, and had a child from her.
Some commonplaces are debunked. There is no evidence that the famous poet Saffo was a lesbian. In my opinion she can be considered as the archetype of modern feminism.
Ettore Grillo, author of these books:
– A Hidden Sicilian History
– The Vibrations of Words
-Travels of the Mind

http://www.amazon.com/author/ettoregrillo