Blessings of the Cosmos:

Benedictions from the Aramaic Words of Jesus

by Neil Douglas-Klotz

Aramaic—the language Jesus and his disciples spoke—has captured the imagination of Christians around the world. Since the publication of his 1990 bestseller Prayers of the Cosmos, Dr. Neil Douglas-Klotz has been recognized as a foremost expert at uncovering the rich layers of meaning and wisdom found in Jesus’ original words.

If we could travel back to the world of ancient Palestine and hear
Jesus teach in his native tongue, what would we learn? Through
his insightful translations from the Aramaic language that Jesus
and his disciples actually spoke, acclaimed scholar Neil Douglas-
Klotz uncovers the rich layers of meaning and wisdom found in Jesus’
original words.

In Blessings of the Cosmos, this renowned scholar presents Jesus’ best-loved benedictions, including:

• His last messages to the disciples, including the “great commandment” on love, the “many mansions” teaching, the blessing of “greater works,” and more
• How to find the divine presence in unexpected places
• Invocations of light, joy, peace, and faith
• A wealth of body-based practices designed to bring spiritual
energy and insight
• An 80-minute CD with many guided prayers in Aramaic

Whether for personal inspiration or use in communal worship and rites
of passage, with Blessings of the Cosmos, readers now have a heart-opening
prayerbook that will ever deepen their experience of the divine.

Neil Douglas-Klotz, Ph.D. is internationally known in the fields linking religious studies, spirituality, and psychology, with a specialty in the Aramaic Christian, Jewish mystical, and Sufi traditions. Currently co-chair of the Mysticism Group of the American Academy of Religion, his books include The Genesis Meditations (Quest, 2003), The Sufi Book of Life (Penguin Compass, 2005), and
The Hidden Gospel (Quest, 1999). Neil Douglas-Klotz resides in Edinburgh, Scotland and directs the Edinburgh Institute for Advanced Learning.

Released April 2006 from Sounds True, $18.95 book plus CD.

To purchase, go directly to our secure online shop.

Cover design "Sacred Heart" by Br. Robert Lenz, ofm: 'The Sacred Heart, or the heart of Christ, has been a familiar image in the Catholic Church for several centuries. In the seventeenth century, Margaret May, a French mystic had a vision of the Christ revealing his heart to her. Ever since then, religious artists have struggled to depict what she saw.

'In the first half of the twentieth century, another French mystic, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, raised the image of the Sacred Heart to more cosmic dimensions. Teilhard was a Jesuit priest and a paleontologist whose life work was doing research on the origins of the human race -- a research which lifted his soul to mystical heights. For Teilhard, the Christ was a divine fire that was capable of penetrating everything -- bringing all creation ever closer to God. In his personal journal he wrote, "Heart of Jesus, Heart of Evolution," and "the Sacred Heart is the Center of Christ, who centers all on himself."

'In Popol Vuh, the ancient Mayan account of creation, the Creator of all is called "Heart of the Heavens, Heart of the Earth." The Mayan image is similar to Teilhard’s. This icon combines both images -- a Mayan Christ bursts from the blazing heart of the cosmos, carrying his flame reaching out drawing all into his creative fire.'