What do you think?
Rate this book
7 Paths to God: The Ways of the Mystic
In this book, Joan Borysenko tells you how a mystical moment can strike at any time when you are fully present in the when looking at a beautiful full moon, a sunset, walking in nature, or looking into the eyes of a child. When you are fully present in the moment, you will be filled with a sense of awe, and beauty, and feel fully connected with the universe. An excerpt from the "Just as many rivers lead to the sea, there are many paths to God. Each of the seven primary energy centers of the human body, the chakras, corresponds to a specific path." In this book, those paths are outlined, complete with spiritual exercises, giving the reader a sense of the most fruitful direction for their journey. You will learn that you don't have to go to Nepal or go climb a mountain to have a mystical moment, but in learning how to be fully present in your everyday life, you will find that mystical moments can be found in the mundane, the ordinary, or also in the extraordinary.
144 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1997
3 people are currently reading
115 people want to read
About the author
Joan Borysenko
71 books100 followersThis distinguished pioneer in integrative medicine is a world-renowned expert in the mind/body connection.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 6, 2018
Do you just love “the seven planets of our solar system”? Do you want more than your day-to-day mystical life of “manifesting jaguars”? Have you “depleted the adrenals so severely” that you desperately need “the lifeforce that enlivens living things”? (isn’t that from Star Wars?)
Well, this book offers power numbers, eggs of light, and lots of lifeforce energy.
But wait, there's more!
“When will and intention are developed through living a disciplined life, according to rules that we consider a divine template for right living, tremendous personal power results. [...] They include such gifts as prophecy, healing, bilocation, mind reading, and the ability unto levitate or walk on water.”
That's right: you will end this book levitating in two places at once, reading minds.
And that power is within you! “The source of healing power [is, first] the healer’s own adrenal glands. And the adrenals are indeed the furnace that generates lifeforce energy.” Yet tragically, sometimes “an individual disconnects from the flow of divine energy”.
Today, you might be stuck with flaws that “prevent the flow of lifeforce energy-leading to fatigue, disease, and depression”, but once we have “harvested the wisdom from our wounds”, we will be
“manifesting abundance financially”.
Don't you know that there are “psychic healers that practice in the Phillippines [sic] [...] able to reach through a person’s energy body and pull out diseased tissue as an energy form”? It must be true! It makes perfect sense! Everyone knows that an energy body and an energy form are real things. Haven't you seen Star Trek?
Yes, “the Universe will provide all that is required materially and spiritually for our success”. If you're poor, you can't find god, but you just have to want to be rich. You have to will it! Name and claim it! All the smart people are "manifesting jaguars". It's easy, really, since “for as long as we are passionate about our dream, we will have the energy to bring it into manifestation.”
If you've been the victim of horrific violence or tragedy, this book offers a wonderful answer: there is no such thing as evil, so the crime you endured was necessary for the greater good. “How can rape, murder, war, and illness be loving acts? [...] all events happen for the greater good, that nothing is accidental or without the capacity to spur our evolution as loving co-creators with God.” (Aside: this a horrible and repugnant claim that the book makes, which, if you have been hurt, you need to know IS NOT TRUE. Evil and cruelty has no justification, and you deserve to be safe and whole.)
If we collectively agree to not look at evil, then “Together we can bring a new world, a time of heaven on earth into being.” If we can "manifest jaguars", we can do anything - and we can definitely manifest jaguars, right?
Does it look like that is nonsense? Does it look like you don't have a jaguar in your garage? Then stop seeing through your regular eyes, because “we see things not through our physical eyes, but through the wisdom eye”.
Can you take on other people's lives? Literally? The author can. “I felt as if I were in her skin” “I wonder to myself how Mary Magdalene-one of my heroines-might have responded. In that process I actually begin to merge with her.” Yes, actually - not just as metaphor.
What's more, this all has medical justification! She even consults with someone who is a
“[she is a] medical intuitive”, which is definitely a real thing. Any medical scientist knows that “the thymus regulates the boundary between earth and heaven”.
“Lifeforce energy [which is definitely a real thing and definitely not from Star Wars] is distributed through the body by seven chakras or energy transformers”. And there's more: “the coiled energy that lies at the base of the spine that can suddenly rise to the crown chakra and bring enlightenment”. This is the system that “the Great Mysterious, as the Lakota call the Creator [they don’t], has hardwired into our bodymind”.
What is a bodymind? Well, I'm not sure, and it's never mentioned again.
Have you cooked eggs? Great! This book advises using eggs, but made of light. “Place him or her in the egg of light” “enclosing them in the egg of light” “Then enclose them in a bubble of light, and send them into the divine light.” What is an egg of light? I don't know, and it might be a secret, because that's never explained.
“For this is the vision that unites all seven paths and creates the rainbow bridge to a new earth and a new heaven.” [left unexplained is whether this is the rainbow bridge to Asgard of Norse mythology - and if it is, does that mean the rest of Norse mythology is true?]
We have to wait to know all that “when we have been reborn to the Spirit World” [I’m not certain what she means by “Spirit World”, and she doesn’t mention it again.]
- - -
In summary, this is a broad work of cultural appropriation that on rare occasions betrays an awareness that it contradicts each religion it draws from.
Its Introduction is revealing: its source on Lakota religion is not Lakota (Google describes him as a “new age musician”), its source on Chinese medicine and philosophy is not Chinese, and its sources on chakras and yoga are not Indian.
Bad sources give inaccurate information, like this: “According to Lakota wisdom, each of us is accompanied through life by 48 guardian angels. Twelve are with us at any given time, and the shift changes every seven days with the phases of the moon.” [This is justified by an actual footnote which cites it to the author’s white new age musician.]
The introduction says mystical experiences “are indescribable even in metaphor”. The remainder of the book is her descriptions of mystical experiences.
Well, this book offers power numbers, eggs of light, and lots of lifeforce energy.
But wait, there's more!
“When will and intention are developed through living a disciplined life, according to rules that we consider a divine template for right living, tremendous personal power results. [...] They include such gifts as prophecy, healing, bilocation, mind reading, and the ability unto levitate or walk on water.”
That's right: you will end this book levitating in two places at once, reading minds.
And that power is within you! “The source of healing power [is, first] the healer’s own adrenal glands. And the adrenals are indeed the furnace that generates lifeforce energy.” Yet tragically, sometimes “an individual disconnects from the flow of divine energy”.
Today, you might be stuck with flaws that “prevent the flow of lifeforce energy-leading to fatigue, disease, and depression”, but once we have “harvested the wisdom from our wounds”, we will be
“manifesting abundance financially”.
Don't you know that there are “psychic healers that practice in the Phillippines [sic] [...] able to reach through a person’s energy body and pull out diseased tissue as an energy form”? It must be true! It makes perfect sense! Everyone knows that an energy body and an energy form are real things. Haven't you seen Star Trek?
Yes, “the Universe will provide all that is required materially and spiritually for our success”. If you're poor, you can't find god, but you just have to want to be rich. You have to will it! Name and claim it! All the smart people are "manifesting jaguars". It's easy, really, since “for as long as we are passionate about our dream, we will have the energy to bring it into manifestation.”
If you've been the victim of horrific violence or tragedy, this book offers a wonderful answer: there is no such thing as evil, so the crime you endured was necessary for the greater good. “How can rape, murder, war, and illness be loving acts? [...] all events happen for the greater good, that nothing is accidental or without the capacity to spur our evolution as loving co-creators with God.” (Aside: this a horrible and repugnant claim that the book makes, which, if you have been hurt, you need to know IS NOT TRUE. Evil and cruelty has no justification, and you deserve to be safe and whole.)
If we collectively agree to not look at evil, then “Together we can bring a new world, a time of heaven on earth into being.” If we can "manifest jaguars", we can do anything - and we can definitely manifest jaguars, right?
Does it look like that is nonsense? Does it look like you don't have a jaguar in your garage? Then stop seeing through your regular eyes, because “we see things not through our physical eyes, but through the wisdom eye”.
Can you take on other people's lives? Literally? The author can. “I felt as if I were in her skin” “I wonder to myself how Mary Magdalene-one of my heroines-might have responded. In that process I actually begin to merge with her.” Yes, actually - not just as metaphor.
What's more, this all has medical justification! She even consults with someone who is a
“[she is a] medical intuitive”, which is definitely a real thing. Any medical scientist knows that “the thymus regulates the boundary between earth and heaven”.
“Lifeforce energy [which is definitely a real thing and definitely not from Star Wars] is distributed through the body by seven chakras or energy transformers”. And there's more: “the coiled energy that lies at the base of the spine that can suddenly rise to the crown chakra and bring enlightenment”. This is the system that “the Great Mysterious, as the Lakota call the Creator [they don’t], has hardwired into our bodymind”.
What is a bodymind? Well, I'm not sure, and it's never mentioned again.
Have you cooked eggs? Great! This book advises using eggs, but made of light. “Place him or her in the egg of light” “enclosing them in the egg of light” “Then enclose them in a bubble of light, and send them into the divine light.” What is an egg of light? I don't know, and it might be a secret, because that's never explained.
“For this is the vision that unites all seven paths and creates the rainbow bridge to a new earth and a new heaven.” [left unexplained is whether this is the rainbow bridge to Asgard of Norse mythology - and if it is, does that mean the rest of Norse mythology is true?]
We have to wait to know all that “when we have been reborn to the Spirit World” [I’m not certain what she means by “Spirit World”, and she doesn’t mention it again.]
- - -
In summary, this is a broad work of cultural appropriation that on rare occasions betrays an awareness that it contradicts each religion it draws from.
Its Introduction is revealing: its source on Lakota religion is not Lakota (Google describes him as a “new age musician”), its source on Chinese medicine and philosophy is not Chinese, and its sources on chakras and yoga are not Indian.
Bad sources give inaccurate information, like this: “According to Lakota wisdom, each of us is accompanied through life by 48 guardian angels. Twelve are with us at any given time, and the shift changes every seven days with the phases of the moon.” [This is justified by an actual footnote which cites it to the author’s white new age musician.]
The introduction says mystical experiences “are indescribable even in metaphor”. The remainder of the book is her descriptions of mystical experiences.
June 12, 2010
Borysenko's straightfoward prose makes sense of the cloudy ideas surrounding the ideal of the mystic. Can one really live as a mystic in the modern world? Not only does she answer yes, she lays out how to tell what mystical path you're most drawn to, how to live that path, and how to nurture yourself. A handy guide on one's journey.
February 6, 2025
A nice little book that states the interconnectedness of all human traditions, cross referencing scriptures and concepts from different religions and cultures. I appreciate that the author points out that no path is more advanced than the other. She wonderfully explains the seven chakras by adding similar concepts from Native Americans’ seven directions and different yoga paths of the Hindus. It not only helps me to remember the different energies in each chakra, but also proves that no energy is more advanced than the other. It offers more tools to look at the chakras other than the linear interpretation: traditionally one would connect the lower chakras to our animal instincts and the upper ones to our connection to the devine, and the kundalini rising path seems linear too. However, maybe the concept that our animal side is inferior and the opposite of divinity should be reexamined.
1. Root chakra, Direction Down, Earth-centered spiritual, caretaker of the land
2. Direction South, summer, fruit bearing, Tantra Yoga, being secure enough to receive and give our creative energy
3. Passion to serve, Direction East, spring, direction of the rising sun, fiery powerhouse of action, Karma Yoga
4. Heart chakra, Direction Within, Bhakti Yoga-devotion, meeting point of earth and heaven, see god in ourselves and in others
5. Direction North, winter, Raja Yoga-moral disciplines, carrying out the law, aligning human will to god’s will-but is it really god’s will?
6. Direction West, fall, setting sun, ego death, Jnana Yoga-path of insight
7. Direction Above, non attachment, God-Union through grace rather than works
“We are each working with the energy of all seven directions, all seven chakras, but in my experience each of us has one primary and one secondary, or supporting, path on which we concentrate the majority of our energies. Our primary path is the one through which our major contribution to the world will be made. It comes naturally to us.” “Our secondary spiritual path is often based on a wound whose healing will develop qualities that we need in support of our primary purpose.”
1. Root chakra, Direction Down, Earth-centered spiritual, caretaker of the land
2. Direction South, summer, fruit bearing, Tantra Yoga, being secure enough to receive and give our creative energy
3. Passion to serve, Direction East, spring, direction of the rising sun, fiery powerhouse of action, Karma Yoga
4. Heart chakra, Direction Within, Bhakti Yoga-devotion, meeting point of earth and heaven, see god in ourselves and in others
5. Direction North, winter, Raja Yoga-moral disciplines, carrying out the law, aligning human will to god’s will-but is it really god’s will?
6. Direction West, fall, setting sun, ego death, Jnana Yoga-path of insight
7. Direction Above, non attachment, God-Union through grace rather than works
“We are each working with the energy of all seven directions, all seven chakras, but in my experience each of us has one primary and one secondary, or supporting, path on which we concentrate the majority of our energies. Our primary path is the one through which our major contribution to the world will be made. It comes naturally to us.” “Our secondary spiritual path is often based on a wound whose healing will develop qualities that we need in support of our primary purpose.”
May 16, 2015
The author is well versed on each of the Paths she explains in this book. It seems to be written by a person from a decidedly Jewish upbringing. I don't have a problem with this as it gave some insights to that religious view while also giving other religious traditions to draw from in regards to the 7 paths. I found it very helpful to have this perspective laid out in detail so that I can understand others motivations as well as myself.
October 20, 2011
An easy to read, digest and put into action overview of seven common paths taken to have the experience of direct connection with the Divine, it's especially valuable for its guidance on how to tell which path or paths you most resonate with, and for its variety of simple suggested practices for each path.
December 7, 2017
The author delineates seven possible ways that we, in our human behavioral inclinations, seek God-ness and practice spirituality. There is a tendency to see aspects of oneself in each described path but by the end of this short book I felt some resonance with a primary and secondary path.
August 7, 2023
Great explanations of spiritual paths based in love kindness, and compassion. I appreciated how the author shared various religions and practices in an informative way. Borysenko created spiritual envy.
January 8, 2014
A lovely book. The description on the back of the book does not do it justice.
March 6, 2013
Enlightening and inclusive of the mystical traditions of all major religions
Read
October 23, 2024Read 6/20
August 12, 2025
This is a good summation-book about spirituality. It combines Eastern & Western religions, to show an overarching idea about energy and the ones people prefer to use to attain Heaven or enlightenment. Very unifying in it purpose & in its effect!
March 17, 2015
Exploration of practices (7) from a variety of mystical traditions to connect ot the Divine. Exercises and ways to implement.
October 21, 2023
Reading short to get my goal
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews