Faranak's library
On this page, you can have a tiny peek into my personal library. As a researcher on feminine consciousness, mysticism and alchemy, most of the books you will find will be on these subjects. I have a deep appreciation for multi-layered books that bridge Soul and science, the visible with the invisible, and have respect to the few authors who dare to venture in this area. But amongst my favourites are deep poetic books written from the Soul so you will find both here.
Anahita: a History and reception of the Iranian water goddess by manya saadi-nejad
An excellent historical and scriptural research on the Persian (pre) Zoroastrian Goddess Anahita. Saadi-Nejaad takes the reader into the pores of the Zoroastrian scriptures where Anahita is mentioned and shows with impeccable scholarship the importance of this deity in the Zoroastrian cosmology. Highly recommended for scholarly research in this area.
Dancing in the Flames by marion woodman and elinor dickson
My absolute favourite and always recommended book in my practice and myth-work. Marion Woodman is one of my favourite Jungian authors and this book is my personal most loved of her works. The title of this book says it all: Dancing in the Flames is about the process of transformation induced, and led by the archetype of the dark goddess in (wo)men’s psyche. It is an antidote to the bypass in new age spirituality and an anecdote to the importance of suffering, death and re-birth in the chthonic depths of the psyche.
The Wedding of Sophia by Jeffrey Raff
Jeffrey Raff ventures into the depths of ‘psychoidal alchemy’ and into places Jung most likely knew very well but did not elaborate much in his writing. Raff gives permission to the analysand to bring their mystical dimension fully into the analytical work, without apology for the often awe-inspiring states these mystical states can bring to the seeker. This book almost literally fell off a shelf in a time where my mystical Sufi experiences were colliding with my analytical work, and so in many ways came as a saviour in a time of great confusion.
The Return of the Feminine and the World Soul by LLewellyn Vaughan-Lee
With the rise of the feminine, many books have been written on this subject. As a researcher I have not come across an author with a more pure, simple and deep understanding of the rise of the Feminine. Llewellyn takes us deeper beyond ourselves and our personal quest, into the realm where our Soul is connected to the World Soul and how the rise of the feminine is not complete without a deep understanding of the interconnectedness of our awakening consciousness. As a Sufi teacher and mystic, Llewellyn's understandings of the rise [and traps] of this emerging consciousness are of deep value in a time of increasing complexity.
the collected works of carl gustav jung
For those that are somewhat familiar with Carl Jung; reading his Collected Works lifts one into the deep psyche and mind of one of the great people of modern time. What Carl Jung opened up and gave back to the West was nothing less than the Soul and our innate connection to the Feminine and the light within matter. He freed the Western image of God from the patriarchal imprisonment of a power-driven Christianity and gave back to man true Gnosis in a way (s)he could work with deep within the psyche. He translated the incredibly difficult language and symbolism of ancient Alchemy into psychology and gave man and woman back a birthright; to incarnate the Self in matter. We can read and listen to all the post-Jungian literature but withour reading Jung as primary material, much of our knowledge will fall into the danger of a superficial understanding.
[This is an image of the Dutch version but there is ofcourse also the English one]
the dream of the cosmos
by anne baring
Once in a blue moon, a few important authors and scholar dare to venture into the realm of creating 'Great Books'. Great Books are books that bring together a deep soulful and scientific understanding of human evolution, and announce with the in-depth research and understanding the dawn of a new era. Anne Baring has done such work. This book is the most comprehensive and multi-layered works on the history of human consciousness in the light of the return of Feminine and the Soul. It will not be a book you will read over the weekend - rather, it will be a work of craftsmanship with scholarly substance to treasure and to study over time.
The unknown she, by hilary hart
This is a poetic yet deeply personal homage to the mystery of the emerging feminine consciousness. Hilary takes us both through her own quest as well as the collective search for the deep feminine that lies in the heart of many men and women of our time. She has interviewed 8 different 'faces' (7 women and 1 man) that embody a certain aspect of the 'dark and mysterious feminine'. This book reads like a fragrant poem and belongs to those that are seeking the Feminine with an open heart; with an unknowing rather than a knowing. With a curiosity and openness rather than a pre-determined idea of what and who the Feminine is.
'In the silence of the night comes the Unknown She,
whispering sweetly; come dance with me..'
- Maata Lynn Barron
inanna - queen of heaven and earth by diane wolkstein & samuel kramer
Inanna is a deity from ancient Sumeria and one of the first Goddesses that humanity has found scriptures about. The figure of Innana goes back to the bedrock of feminine consciousness, where the first differentiation in consciousness emerged in the feminine after the Lunar era of the Great Mother. This book has the original Hymns as well as deep and insightful interpretations for modern women. There is a certain magic in reading the Hymns of Inanna, it can open up ancient memory and bring us to those wonderful and terrible places deep within the spirit of the depths.
at work...
This page is still under construction...more books will be added soon!
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