Books, books and more books. Reading maketh a man, as he reads, he thinks. Books were my friends, my inner world, my refuge. I live outself myself when I read deeply. Wisdom is not gained through mere living, but through reading the thoughts of great thinkers.
The list that makes a difference in my life:
* Norman Vincent Peale - a priest, he was one of the pioneers in positive thinking philosophy
* Dr Thomas Harris - “I’m OK, You’re Ok “- A book about transactional analysis, a theory of personality and a systematic psychotherapy for personal growth and personal change
* Sigmund Freud - father of neurology
* Carl Jung - Freud’s student
* Many of the great classics : Thomas Hardy, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, George Evans, Jonathan Swift, William Wordsworth, Emily Bronte, H.G Wells, George Bernard Shaw, John Donne
* Shakespeare - the one that has impacted me was “King Lear”
* R.K.Narayan
* V.S.Naipul
* Raold Dahl - incredible story teller
* JK Rowlings - Harry Porter reignites the child in me
* Doris Lessing - a powerful feminist writer
* Anthony Robins - Awaken the Giant Within
* Thomas Cox - There Are No Limits
* Nick Williams - Unconditional Success
* Kristine Carlson - Don’t Sweat The Small Stuffs For Women
* Dr Robert Anthony - Beyond Positive Thinking
* Napeolon Hill - Think and Grow Rich
* Dr Joe Vitale - Spiritual Marketing
* Kryon - teaches about Spiritualism and the Universe
* Jane Roberts - a pioneer in channelling messages from the spiritual world
* Master Choa Kok Sui - founder of Pranic healing
There are countless many others that I cannot remember but the lessons remain imprinted in my mind.
In addition, there is ONE woman I have great admiration for and that is Oprah Winfrey. From her I learned how to think gratefully, she said in one of her shows, each morning when you wake up, think of 5 things that you can be grateful for. I draw great inspiration from her, for she rose so high in life despite her adversity. If you read about her struggles, and you look at her today, THERE IS NO REASON, why any woman can ever say she can’t do it. She has given back so much to society with her abundance and there is a huge lesson here. I had thought it was just a Hollywood ra-ra but she is real and living.
Mahatma Gandhi was an amazing man with an amazing story. How could a man have moved an entire nation of people, singlehandedly to rise and bring down the british empire. And he taught about forgiveness, about courage, and humility. Incredible story of self-empowerment. He empowered his people to exercise non violence in the fight for independence. How admirable is that?
