Letters to Vanessa: On Love, Science, and Awareness in an Enchanted World

Although written in the form of letters from a father to his daughter, this book is a great read for anyone interested in modern physics, neuroscience, and biology and their relationship to spirituality. If the "Dear Vanessa" is removed from the beginning of each chapter the letters take on a universal audience. By writing as if to a teenage daughter, the explanations of advanced scientific concepts and mindfulness practices become accessible to the general reader. Hayward re-enchants our world by showing how something he calls awareness-feeling-energy fills all of space. He shows how changing the way we think about the world can allow us to see the universe as alive and full of awareness. Three of the chapters in the book are what Hayward calls Interludes where he describes meditation practices derived from Buddhism that are aimed at helping the reader make the concepts described intellectually become integrated into consciousness. The bibliography is divided into chapters so the reader can pursue any concept discussed as far as desired. A great book for anyone interested in the topic.

While in Atlanta, I happened upon this book. I threw it in a pile and sat down to sip coffee and find somethng to read in my dead time. I glanced through my titles and nothing "grabbed" me. Just then my beeper went off and dead time became live time as I had to get to work for a client...Upon returning to the NY area, I searched for this book just to finish my perusal. After about a two week search i found it. And when I sat down with a cup of coffee this time, I could not believe the information in this book. It is so well put together that the word Vanessa could have easily been replaced by my name! The book is a must read and is just gaining popularity in some circles. I absolutely love this material. In fact I have purchased 16 copies to give as gifts to freinds and relatives! Pick it up! You won't put it down!

As the father of a 17 year old daughter, I admit this author "peaked my interest" with his introduction of 'Drala energy' on page 17 of, Letters to Vanessa. According to Dr. Hayward, in the pre-Buddhist traditions of Tibet, dralas were the energies which sought, ". . .to harmonize the world and heal the fragmentation of it." By explaining with words in letter form the relationship of energy to matter, the power expressed begins like a vortex to wrap loving arms around his little girl as well as the reader. We read the words but feel the enchanting harmony of the invisible "I'll always be there for you" love shared between a Dad and his daughter. To someone like me who's been trying to explain [to daughters] Einstein's quip that, "Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted, counts," this book was Drala sent. We live in a world where most all that matters is invisible - teaching that to my "material girl," has become much easier now. This is a book for young women on the very edge of adulthood, and for Dad's trying to learn to Let Go . . . Trust me, fellas, none of us ever get very far apart. Please read this book, it's worth it. . . MR

In a series of letters written to his daughter, Vanessa, the author allows the reader to "live within his dream." His own invisible love, a spiritual concept, is vividly explained through the physics of how energy becomes Matter, and all Matter is Energy. From pre-Tibetan Buddhism to current and future theories on the "nature" of quanta, the scientist meets the mystic in language the layman can understand. Since our reality is based on our beliefs and our beliefs are based on our perceptions and our perceptions, in turn, make up what we think - What we "think" to be belief-able makes up what we take to be true and this becomes reality. BUT FAITH is a substance, a belief system born in Trust. Mark Twain said, "Faith is believing when you know it ain't true." Like love, trust is invisible but can be understood to exist as energy in the pages of this book. "Trust me, you'll like it," is an old Sales cliche BUT, If you Trust me, you WILL like it - because you've invested the Energy to believe. Keep Smilin', Mike