Product Description

Make a spiritual journey through this beautiful collection of blessings, prayers and meditations about the creatures, wild and tame, that inhabit our world. These moving contributions about all types of animals--playful dogs and beloved cats, giant whales and powerful elephants, tiny insects and delicate birds--are drawn from many faith traditions, including Native American, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Buddhist.

A special section also provides animal blessing ceremonies you can use to memorialize the loss of a companion animal, offer prayers for an animal suffering illness or injury or simply recognize the spiritual connection we create when we fully appreciate another member of God's creation.

Contributors include:
* Basho
* ElizabethBarrettBrowning
* Feng Chih
* James Dickey
* Meister Eckhart
* St. Francis of Assisi
* Joy Harjo
* Stanley Hauerwas
* Jane Hirshfield
* Galway Kinnell
* D. H. Lawrence
* John Muir
* Rumi
* Albert Schweitzer
* Rabindranath Tagore
* Evelyn Underhill
* Walt Whitman
* and many more

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #566549 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 238 pages

Review
"Gives voice to the unspoken yet eloquent expressions of prayer and praise offered daily in the Animal Kingdom. The sights and sounds of the poetic imagery linger long after we close this book." -- Nancy Sohn Swartz, author of In Our Image: God's First Creatures and How Did the Animals Help God?

"A jewel box of comfort and ecstasy, reverence and wisdom. Powerful testimony to the different ways that animals inspire us to worship our Creator." -- Sy Montgomery, author of The Wild Out Your Window

"A threshold to a deeper understanding of God.... Allows us to experience the relationships God has created between creatures in this Sacred Circle of life." -- Rt. Rev. Mark MacDonald, Episcopal bishop of Alaska

"Delightful ... lovely ... timeless.... A book that pet lovers will treasure." -- Diana L. Guerrero, author of What Animals Can Teach Us about Spirituality; founder of Ark Animals

About the Author
Lynn L. Caruso is an educator, poet and wildlife advocate. She has led writing workshops in Spokane, Washington, and served as a judge for the Northwest Writer's Conference. Her poetry has been published in national journals and magazines.

Customer Reviews

Full of Spirit and Wisdom
I wanted a book I could use to lead prayers for my dog, dogs that I volunteer with at the shelter, and the animal world at large. This book fits the bill perfectly. Poems, prayers, and blessings from many different faiths (buddhism, native american, protestant, jewish, many differnet ones. Deep and meaningful prose from a variety of authors. Beautiful!

Truly a treasure
As a collector of poems, quotes, and tributes to beloved pets, I plan to keep this beautiful volume close at hand for browsing, comfort and inspiration. The author has done a wonderful job of compiling literature from many faiths and representing all animal species. As I am anticipating having to say goodbye to a much beloved dog, I found the passages suitable for memorials very meaningful and uplifting.

Wonderful for so many occasions
This is a beautiful hardcover book that is great for families, and a perfect gift if someone has a new pet or has lost a pet, or for anyone who loves animals. It has blessings and ceremonies appropriate for children when a pet dies. It has blessings for special events in your pet's life and beautiful poetry about wild animals, too. Appropriate for Christians and all world religions.