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Even though our physical bookstore is closed, we will continue to keep our website up and running. We will also continue our monthly newsletter.

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Tony Kainauskas
4263 Pilgrim Way
Jacksonville FL 32257

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Len and Tony

Len and Dena have just sold their house in Fairfield and are making a permanent move to Arizona., Len will not be reviewing books this month due to the move. He should be back again for our October newsletter.

Below are 2 new titles, that I have yet to read... but I feel they would be of interest to our newsletter readers

Myths of the Asanas: The Ancient Origins of Yoga [Paperback]
Alanna Kaivalya (Author), Arjuna van der Kooij (Author), Manorama (Afterword), Shiva Rea (Foreword)

“Practitioners around the world reap the physical benefits of yoga, assuming poses and frequently calling them by their Sanskrit names. While many know that hanumanasana is named for the deity Hanuman, few understand why this is the case. Behind each asana and its corresponding movements is an ancient story about a god, sage, or sacred animal, much like Aesop’s fables or European folktales. Myths of the Asanas is the first book to collect and retell these ancient stories. The myths behind yoga’s spiritual tradition have the power to help students of all levels realize their full potential. Meditating on the tolerance of trees while standing in tree pose can help one become more tolerant. Learning how the disfigured sage Astavakra came to be the teacher of a king can liberate us from anxieties about our external appearance and our self imposed limitations. Marveling at Hanuman’s devotion to Ram can serve as a source of spiritual strength and determination. With more than sixty beautiful illustrations to frame the stories, Myths of the Asanas will add a new dimension to your practice and study of yoga.”

The Journey Home: Autobiography of an American Swami [Hardcover]
Radhanath Swami (Author)

Within this extraordinary memoir, Radhanath Swami weaves a colorful tapestry of adventure, mysticism, and love. Readers follow Richard Slavin from the suburbs of Chicago to the caves of the Himalayas as he transforms from young seeker to renowned spiritual guide. The Journey Home is an intimate account of the steps to self-awareness and also a penetrating glimpse into the heart of mystic traditions and the challenges that all souls must face on the road to inner harmony and a union with the Divine.

Through near-death encounters, apprenticeships with advanced yogis, and years of travel along the pilgrim’s path, Radhanath Swami eventually reaches the inner sanctum of India’s mystic culture and finds the love he has been seeking. It is a tale told with rare candor, immersing the reader in a journey that is at once engaging, humorous, and heartwarming.”

Both titles are published by Mandala Publishing.

What I miss most about the store is my personal connection to my customers.

My excitement for a wonderful book passed on to them

The sharing of anticipation of reading  something new and wonderful.

A sharing that was not on a superficial retail level , but developed from a deep place of connection.

Whenever I felt a book had a profound effect/change on my life, I would put it by the register and tell everyone about it.

This is what I miss most.

And if I still had the store, the book that would be the one I would pass on to others today would be

Perfect Brilliant Stillness by David Carse

David’s book is similar in style to the  teaching that was developed by Jed McKenna.

This is not a flowery New Age book of smelling flowers and living peacefully with nature...

but a destruction of everything that we thought was “me” and all that we thought was important(goals, future, relationships, 401K’s)

Written with blunt humor and total honesty.. if you like death and funerals( no blissful near death experiences attached) than  this book is for you. But be forewarned... the you who favors this book, if the words ring true may not live to tell the tale.

This a non-sentimental non-flowery look at the process of understanding just what Awakening is( the total destruction of any sense of personal self) Not mysticism, nor majestic heights but a death and rebirth to nothingness

For the hardcore identity who is tired of this Holographic Universe.

Filled with many wonderful quotes by Rumi,Ramesh Balsekar, Nisargadatta, Ramana Maharishi, Robert Adams, Adyashanti and many others.

Be truthful to yourself... on a deep primordial level we all know how it ends.

For our out of town customers who have never visited our former bookstore, I have placed some photos on my Face book page. If you have visited our former store , the 25 pictures may bring back some nice memories.

Thank you Judy Barr-Shimon for the photos.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1200000502
&ref=search#!/profile.php?id=1200000502&v=photos&ref=search

Some thoughts on losing one’s identity

Naively thinking this was child’s play, I invited in this emptiness

Not fully understanding that losing one’s false identity can be a messy business

At times my person hood feels extinguished
my heart ripped out.

I long for this emptiness to fill
even if it be with sadness

I watch Maya toying with me
laughing at my vulnerability

Is this what I have longed for?

Well yes, but just a few more steps...

then what ? Jump or retreat?

You willingly came to this cremation, Tony
Why this hesitation now?

Please do not let this fear stop you from laying down all.

Relax do not doubt-- it is not that complicated,
It is quite simple

It is just a
A softening of the hard edges,
An abandonment of self interest

and the death I used to fear is just a substance-less shadow.

Love

Tony