MSI Press Blog

  Shai Tubali approached us with the concept of a book about mind expansion, a topic he had been leading workshops on, after his first book with us, The Seven Wisdoms of Life , became popular and a finalist in the Book of the Year competition. As a publisher, having worked with him before, we knew what the tasks would be, including careful copyediting since English is not Shai's native language though he does a wonderful job of writing, i.e. producing literate text, which not all native speakers can do. So, the production of this book was almost routine -- except for the title. Up until almost the day of publication, he and we, together, were searching for a title that would work: short, clear, consistent with content, and appealing. Originally, the title was longer: hard to file, hard to look up, and clear but at what cost. Then, we played with making a form of the title into a subtitle, and that worked. Now, though, we really needed a title. Bliss came up very quickly, but what a

Julie Gentile, author of the much-awarded book, 108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas , recently wrote a column, " Tune into Your Bliss Breath ," for Mindful Movements . In it, she reminds us that every bliss breath is an opportunity to pause and notice, to learn about what helps--and what happens when--you relax. Read Julie's column to read understand what she means by bliss breath and how it can help you relax. Indeed, this is a welcome post in these stressful times. Many thanks to Julie for sharing it. About Julie Julie M. Gentile is a full-time working mama, certified and Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher, author of numerous health and wellness articles, and professional editor and writer. She has been practicing yoga and meditation for a decade and leading yoga classes since 2011. Her journalism background and her own wellness journey have shaped her recent work to inspire others to stand up for their self-care. Julie’s book,  108 Yoga an

  Excerpt from A Guide to Blis s - Preface Fourteen years ago, when I was twenty-three years old, I underwent an intense, world-shattering expansion of consciousness for a few long months. It took place in the midst of a fervent spiritual search. Until then, my three years of seeking had granted me only brief glimpses into broader states of consciousness. Those glimpses far from quenched my ever-increasing thirst. This time, something else erupted within me, or so it seemed. This expansion, which permeated my entire being, did not dissipate, but rather grew day after day without any substantial effort on my part. It seemed like the only thing I was expected to do from then onward was observe the happening and not interfere.  Back then I lived at my parents’ house. For a whole year, I remained enclosed in my small room, only leaving the house from time to time to wander about for hours and curiously examine my new relationship with the world. Of course, at that time I did not d

  Just released: the hard cover of edition of A Guide to Bliss by Shai Tubali. Read more posts about Shai and his books HERE .                                                                       Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter                           Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .

There is too much stress, anger, anxiety, and depression today. We all need a counterbalance to them, some sunshine among the shadows, and some MSI Press authors have written just those kinds of books: either ones to help cope or ones to help achieve happiness. This blog posts focuses on the latter, including self-care because without good self-care, it is indeed difficult to achieve happiness. 57 Steps to Paradise For more posts on Patricia Lorenz and her work, click HERE . 108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas For more posts on Julie Gentile and her books, click HERE . A Guide to Bliss For posts on A Guide to Bliss , chick HERE . A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing For more posts on Joanna and her books, click HERE . Creative Aging For more posts on Joanna and her books, click  HERE . God Speaks into Darkness For more posts on Bennett and his books, click HERE . Good Blood: A Journey of Healing For more posts on Irit and her book, click HERE . Harnessing the Power of Grie

A sharing  S ., 20 years old, completely inexperienced in spiritual practices and in therapeutic processes, after her first experience expanding a positive emotion.  When I was asked, at the beginning of the process, to revive the most positive experience in my life, the first image that came into my mind was the day on which I had parachuted for the first time. I had been waiting to jump from the tiny plane; my entire body was already outside of it, and I had felt sure of myself—happy, free and limitless. I had felt that it would be much better to be up in the sky than down on the ground. When I took the leap, it was like floating, and my entire body felt fresh and alive. I was particularly excited while hovering over the sea and seeing the green areas all around. I identified the emotion as “Freedom” and located it in my heart. It felt like confidence and also, lightness, as if all my cells were opening up. The shape was a circle; the color, pink; the feeling, lighthearted

  Excerpt from A Guide to Bliss Expansion and the Creation of the World Let us now “expand” the context in which the principle of expansion is activated. In the teachings of Ha’Ari (Isaac Luria, 1534-1572), which to this day are considered the prime interpretations of the Kabala, the process of creation is presented as a process of contraction. The infinite divine light contracted itself, more and more, into structures, and this is, in fact, the created world as we know it: a denser, or more contracted, divine light. Matter is, in effect, a condensed or contracted spirit.  From this astounding point of view, we can perceive the entire universe as narrow channels through which divine energy flows, as formations containing a condensed divine light. Each form and every structure are nothing but an “entrapped” light, a light that was limited so as to create and make visible the form or the structure. Hence, contraction was a necessity in the original divine creation. Without it, cr

SADNESS, THE PAIN OF LIVING  Because we live in bodies which constantly change and interact with the world, we have feelings. We naturally have emotional reactions to what happens to us. Unpleasant experiences repulse us, moving us to withdraw to protect ourselves. Pleasant experiences energize us to seek more of what we desire. In our ever-changing world, we naturally feel joy as new life unfolds and sadness as the old and familiar passes away. Our sadness and sorrow are natural reactions that serve survival purposes. In fact, they are signs of intelligence. Animals live by their instincts, only in the present moment. Because we are conscious, we humans are aware of the passage of time, alert to loss and gain. We are aware of changes around us and their consequences on our wellbeing, and so we make adjustments. Hardwired into our brains is a built-in threat protection and safety-seeking system. In the experience of loss, sadness prepares us to let go of the past and prepare for

  In today's shared blog post, Shai Tubali, author of the award-winning book, The Seven Wisdoms of Life , and A Guide to Bliss , delineates  5 Tips For Keeping Your Brain Youthful and Flexible .

  From US Review of Books book review of Passing On; Preparing for the Afterlife: "...written beautifully in the descriptions of bliss, peace, forgiveness,  joy and beauty, both on earth and what others have described in the afterlife through their NDEs. The work about how to prepare for the afterlife, such as reading, meditation, being in nature and praying, is helpful as is the Appendix with its focus on afterlife characteristics."                                                  -Carol Anderson,  U.S. Review of Books Read the rest of the book review HERE . Read more posts about Passing On HERE . Read more posts about Joanna and all her books HERE .

Male and Female Energy [of the Third Chakra] The male energy of the third chakra can be symbolized by the sword: a powerful force that can break through any kind of obstacle and move persistently towards a goal. It never wavers, for it has a tremendous aspiration and the energy to follow it. We need this male energy when we have a vision that we wish to manifest in the world of time and space. The female energy of the third chakra can be symbolized by the shield. Just as we need a sword, we need a shield: the sword is needed for offense, while the shield is needed for defense. So, the female energy equips us with a protective shield, which can actually push away any kind of pressure and over stimulation. It can equip us with stillness when someone offends us, and it can equip us with persistence when we are being pressured to let go of our authenticity. The Seven Wisdoms of Life was selected as a finalist for Book of the Year Award in 2013 and the Best Books USA Award in 2

    Excerpt from  A Guide to Blis s - Your First Step into Expansion  Everything in this universe is a structure. Every phenomenon in this universe has frontiers and sidewalls, particular shapes, characteristics, and attributes. This does not apply only to visible forms— everyone knows that an African elephant possesses a shape, a color, a character, and a repetitive pattern of behavior—but also to subtler phenomena, such as thoughts, emotions, and sensations, as well as ideas, beliefs, symbols, and human patterns of behavior. In fact, even the universe has a structure, which we can reflect through our consciousness, and indeed, even our consciousness itself has a structure.  The discovery that everything has a structure, and therefore, that everything has a limit, is of crucial importance and goes far beyond mere philosophical implications. Actually, the moment one identifies a structure and its limitations, one can easily transcend it; dis covering that which lies beyond limi

Practice: The Expansion of Positive Emotions  Expanding a positive emotion can be a wonderful way to start your day. However, it can be performed in almost any situation and at almost all times. As emphasized in the introduction, it is highly recommended to try out expansion, at least in your first attempts, with a friend guiding you. Important: whenever you see this mark, “…” it is your sign to pause for a few seconds in order to either receive a response or settle into and deepen a new state .  1. Sit in a comfortable position and close your eyes. Allow your entire being to relax more and more. Breathe slowly and deeply… You are about to enter into your innermost Self… to enjoy a state of self-knowing, which is the sweetest and most wondrous state possible… Now, from this relaxation, let the moment or time in your life in which you experienced the highest level of happiness, elevation, and limitlessness rise to the surface of your mind. Recall the situation within yourself.

  From the chapter, "Ramadan," in  Road to Damascus  -  My first weeks in Damascus, I found any and every excuse to sit on the balcony adjoining our bedroom, writing letters, reading, watching the street action below or, best of all, just looking at the city. I knew this sight was one thing I would miss when we moved downstairs because there, the house across the street blocked most of the view. The balconies on our building were enclosed by a stone wall about three feet high and were, in typical fashion, surmounted by another foot or more of wrought iron, artfully twisted and bent into arabesque patterns. Some balconies were generously built and could seat a large family and visiting friends. However, even smaller balconies, like ours, were crowded with potted flowers - geraniums, rose bushes, jasmine, climbing vines and one or two caged songbirds Balcony floors were tiled and had a drain at one end. Mornings I would find Kawsar and other industrious housewives sluicing them