With her trademark gifts of both humor and insight, she offers a vision that transcends the either/or ideologies on both sides of the gender debate. Brilliantly structured into three distinct parts, Part One explores how history is carried forward through the stories a culture tells and values, and what we can do to balance the scales.
What story would Eve have told about picking the apple? Why is Pandora blamed for opening the box? What about Cassandra, who could see the future but was never believed? Elizabeth Lesser explores these questions, suggesting that if women's voices had been equally valued throughout history, our myths and stories would champion compassion and caretaking over vengeance. This work delves into the narratives that shape our culture—origin tales, guiding myths, and parables about gender, power, love, and values—most of which have been authored by men. Though many of these stories have become outdated, they persist in influencing us. The book envisions a world where women also tell these stories, sharing authentic voices and becoming protagonists in defining humanity. Lesser, who has navigated both spiritual and feminist paths, merges these perspectives with humor and insight. Structured in three parts, the first examines how cultural stories shape history and how to rebalance them. The second expands the definition of courage and strength for women, while the third offers tools for inner strength, emphasizing that cultural change begins within. This beautifully balanced exploration invites all readers to reflect, grow, and collaborate toward a better world.
In 1977, Elizabeth Lesser cofounded the Omega Institute, now America's largest adult-education center focusing on wellness and spirituality. Working with many of the eminent thinkers of our times, including Zen masters, rabbis, Christian monks, psychologists, scientists, and an array of noted American figures--from L.A. Lakers coach Phil Jackson to author Maya Angelou--Lesser found that by combining a variety of religious, psychological, and healing traditions, each of us has the unique ability to satisfy our spiritual hunger. In The Seeker's Guide, she synthesizes the lessons learned from an immersion into the world's wisdom traditions and intertwines them with illuminating stories from her daily life. Recounting her own trials and errors and offering meditative exercises, she shows the reader how to create a personal practice, gauge one's progress, and choose effective spiritual teachers and habits. Warm, accessible, and wise, this book provides directions through the four landscapes of the spiritual journey: THE MIND: learning meditation to ease stress and anxietyTHE HEART: dealing with grief, loss, and pain; opening the heart and becoming fully aliveTHE BODY: returning the body to the spiritual fold to heal and overcome the fear of aging and deathTHE SOUL: experiencing daily life as an adventure of meaning and mystery