acknowledgments
I bow to the Mystery that revealed itself as the vision for this book. The inquiry: How do you pray? has deepened my life. I am so grateful for all the prayers that have been said and sent to me. The ones in this book and the ones that arent. And to the seeds that have been planted in our hearts and not yet spoken. I express my deep appreciation to my guides, mentors, friends and family who have inspired and supported me in ways knowing and unknowing. Though I wont name them all here, I hold them dear in my heart. I am filled with gratitude for the books contributors who generously shared the voices of their hearts and souls so openly and tenderly.
And I express my deep appreciation to:
Paul Cohen, my publisher at Monkfish, who in his first email shared how his own vision was in alignment with How Do You Pray? and answered my prayer for the right publisher to bring this book out to the world;
My editor, Anastasia McGhee, for her depth of presence, patience, skill and support;
Danielle Ferrara, for the cover and layout and so much more;
Colin Rolfe, for the finishing touches;
Susan Slotter, my angels angel, who midwifed the birth of this vision from start to finish in a multitude of creative and technical roles, and held every aspect as sacred and brought that sacredness into form;
My soul coach, Patricia Flasch, who held the vision from the beginning and wrote the very first contribution;
Multidimensional thinker Michael Gelb, whose laser perception and guidance focused my intention, which has manifested in this book;
Nancy Andersen, who took my vision and created the original sanctuary website;
Marco Britt, for evolving the website and being of service;
Jason Rodriguez, for his creativity with the visual book;
Photographer Jennifer Esperanza, whose many photos illustrated the prayers and whose photo of a little girl praying captured the purity of the vision; Marcia Wieder, for offering me what I needed before I even asked;
Hubert Lee, for his brilliance with marketing and promotion;
Zuleikha, for her intuition and kindness;
Mirabai Starr, who held the torch to light my way, and overflowed with support and guidance;
Andrew Harvey, for his radical honesty and recommendations;
Dunya, for our ritual of morning tea and spiritual conversationsohbet;
Robyn Benson, for her care and for encouraging me to share;
Arjuna Ardagh and Sedena and George Cappannelli, for going the extra step;
BiBi Dietz, for her transcription wizardry;
Bob Keeton, for his audio and video genius and generosity;
Sr. Pascaline Coff and the Bede Griffiths International Literary Trust, for their support in bringing Fr. Bede Griffiths prayer to these pages;
Amritapriya and Steve Schmidt for Ammas Prayer;
Jalaluddin Rumi, Sufi mystic and poet whose words inspire me to listen and speak from my heart;
My mother Millie, who is a constant source of love, inspiration and support; the loving memory of my father Joseph, who is always with me;
My brother Ty and his wife Kathy; my brother Brian and my nephew Nic;
Lillian, my second mother and friend; children Austin and Becky and grandson Asher, who fill me with joy;
And lastly, my beloved husband Mark, who has supported me in ways too many to mention, and to whom I am forever grateful.
about the editor
celeste yacoboni is passionate about helping people discover a deeper experience of the sacred in their daily lives. Ordained as a Minister of Walking Prayer by the Center for Sacred Studies, Celeste leads How Do You Pray? workshops in which people share and experience different ways of connecting to a Source greater
than themselves. She also maintains a private practice in Santa Fe, New Mexico where she facilitates healing and transformation through her unique approach to spiritual coaching and her mastery of a number of the healing arts. With breath, touch, prayer and song she holds a space of awareness, presence and inspiration that allows her clients to experience a profound integration of body, mind, spirit and emotion. How Do You Pray? is her first book.
www.howdoyoupray.com
photo jennifer esperanza
contributors
sharif abdullah
Sharif Abdullah, JD, is an author and advocate for inclusivity and the social/ spiritual transformation of society. Sharif is a transformationist, working to align our global human societies with our common spiritual values. His vision and work for a world that works for all beings stems from his spiritual awareness and his experiences in over a hundred distinct cultures in over forty countries. Sharif is founder and director of Commonway Institute.
His books include The Power of One: Authentic Leadership in Turbulent Times, the award-winning Creating a World That Works for All and Seven Seeds for a New Society. Sharif is a graduate-level adjunct professor of conflict resolution at Portland State University, a senior advisor to Sarvodaya in Sri Lanka and is the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions.
www.commonway.org
patch adams
Patch Adams is best known for his work as a medical doctor and a clown and as a social activist who has devoted forty-two years to changing Americas health care system. He believes that laughter, joy and creativity are an integral part of the healing process. The Gesundheit Institute is a project in holistic medical care based on the belief that one cannot separate the health of the individual from the health of the family, the community, the world and the health care system itself. Patch created a hospitalfree for all peoplethat will be fully modern at 10 percent of the cost. The cleaning person and the surgeon will make the same salary$300/ monthand all permanent staff will live there as a communal village, eliminating 85 percent of the environmental footprint.
www.patchadams.org
sri mata amritanandamayi devi
Spiritual leader, humanitarian and visionary Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, known throughout the world simply as Amma, has served the world-community for decades, imparting wisdom, strength and inspiration. Through her extraordinary acts of love, inner strength and self-sacrifice, Amma has endeared herself to millions and inspired thousands to follow in her path of selfless service.
Receiving Ammas embrace, many feel inspired to offer selfless service to those in need. In this way, this simple yet powerful act as a mothers embracehas become both catalyst and symbol for the growing international network of humanitarian initiatives known as Embracing the World.
www.embracingtheworld.org
arjuna ardagh
Arjuna Ardagh is an Awakening Coach, writer and public speaker. He has trained more than 1,300 people to become facilitators of Awakening. He is the author of seven books, including the 2005 No. 1 national bestseller The Translucent Revolution , featured in O , the Oprah Winfrey magazine. His latest book , Better than Sex , is the complete introduction to Awakening Coaching. He has been a speaker at conferences all over the world and has appeared on TV, radio and in print media in twelve countries. He is a member of the Transformational Leadership Council. He lives with his wife, Chameli Ardagh, and their two teenage sons in California.
www.arjunaardagh.com .
chameli ardagh
Chameli Ardagh is a passionate practitioner of embodied feminine spirituality and the founder of the Awakening Women Institute. She is the initiator of an international network of Womens Temple Groups and the author of two books on feminine spirituality and embodiment.