The Toltec Art of Life and Death

I love this book! Yes, it’s very very odd, at times leaning toward self indulgent meandering however remember he was in a serious fight between life and death. He would have died in the medically induced comma, happily!, but his shaman mother, Sarita was not about to let him.In one of his previous books he explains the slim but so important difference between knowledge and knowing.. we Know in our deepest selves using Knowing. We are born with our Knowing heart and before we find words to categorize and represent ourselves and our discoveries we are pure in that respect..Once we acquire words however, our lives are overtaken with a search for more and more knowledge, the word has a vast power we fail to comprehend. In the beginning was the word. We are not impeccable with our words and our irresponsible use of knowledge is killing the earth.This book is more of novel than his previous books, but relevant and creative at once! It’s a lot of fun to read if you are a spiritual seeker and appreciate the wisdom Don Miguel Ruiz offers.

At this stage of my life (70 years of age); I first read this book in the early 2000s. I enjoyed it then, but thought of it as some additional work of a favorite author. I re-read the book now (2023), because the reality of death, and its process are now much more relatable. Beautifully written, and capable of touching the heart, Don Miguel and Barbara bring insight to this chapter of my life. To say the story is profound is a gross understatement. What it is, to me, is a primer on how to look upon the process of dying, and appreciate life for all it offers.

Very, very thought provoking,especially for those who maybe experiencing death in the near future. Miguel Ruiz does a wonderful job of causing the reader to think of on a subject not often thought about, Death.

It was a pretty good story.

What we have here, at least so far, is the story of his long near death experience after his 2002 heart attack. In the story, and I believe in life his mother has the power and skill to meet him in dreams, and it is her intent that he survive the heart attack, even after he himself has accepted his death. Reading this my thoughts bounce around a lot on their own. How would this book read to someone who just picked it up cold, someone who had never heard of Miguel or The Four Agreements. Surely, at some point, such a person, probably many of them will read this book. I try to imagine how such a person will read it and I can't. For the past thirteen years I have been deeply involved with Miguel and his apprentices and other students. For the past forty I have been investigating the body of thought of which his work is a part. In this book I am finding the answers to every damn question I had left. I cannot read an account of how he discovered a teaching without going through how that teaching has played out in my own life. Another line of thought is how his collaboration with Barbara Emrys has played out. I was her student for two years, and I have read her other books. she is a beautiful, brilliant woman and she writes like a dream. Miguel likes to work with collaborators. On The Four Agreements he collaborated with Janet Mills, and that collaboration yielded very different results. The Four Agreements is clear, simple direct. This book is a long surreal fever dream, and every reader will read a different book, because Barbara is not his only collaborator. All of us are.

I have been a fan of Ruiz's writings ever since I read The Four Agreements. What I like about his work is that it has both a practical, down-to-earth component that can be immediately tested in real life, and also a more metaphysical component that reflects a Mesoamerican worldview. The practical component has always resonated with me because his psychology of of self-understanding and self-improvement aligns nicely with established ideas in modern psychology. As for the metaphysical part, most days the best I can say about it is, "Wouldn't that be interesting if that were true?"The Toltec Art of Life and Death departs somewhat from Ruiz's earlier books in that he emphasizes the metaphysical aspects of his worldview. Furthermore, he shares how he came to see the world the way he does by revisiting various turning points in his life. At the same time, he clearly states that what he is presenting is a *story*, which means that not everything needs to be taken literally. So it is up to the reader to decide whether some aspect of Miguel Ruiz really left his body during the weeks he spent in a coma, interacting in a sort of spirit-world with his mother (who entered that world through a trance) and with other beings who are not part of our physical world. I found his story absolutely, fully engaging, and I feel like I know Miguel Ruiz much better now after reading this book. He is even more human and more nagual to me now than he has ever been.

As always I love Don Miguel's work. This is my absolute favorite. In it I recognized a lot of my own journey and insights. Often I found myself drifting off into my own dream after reading something only to return to reading to find the book speaking of what I had just dreamt.If you are a practioner the Toltec way of life I believe you will enjoy this book. I definitely want a hard copy as I got the kindle edition. Don Miguel is a master at unweaving the threads that bind us and showing us the path to freedom that is present for us all.I believe this book makes it clear how practice makes the master. I laughed & cried & felt completely absorbed in his dream as if living it.When I first began the book I thought I was not going to like it but was quickly transported into a beautiful story.It may not be for everyone but to me was a wonderful journey. The poetry of Rumi has often taken me to that place of the great empty that is so full. Don Miguel's work leads in that direction. But...he leaves that up to you...with great love...Just loved

The book is in fantastic shape and I saved a lot buying it second hand. You'd never know to look at it. Been wanting this book for a long time. Delighted to have it.

WOW I found his account and experience in the coma really helped me to reflect on my own life and the moment s that have made me who I am today- the importance of Truth over and above all else

Wahrheit ist wie eine Geliebte.Man muss offen für sie sein...Die Kreation von Kommunikation zwischen Autor und Leser ohne dass es darum geht sich selbst zu produzieren.

I am always amazed at the lessons and insight I learn from don Miguel. I'm so grateful that he shares the ancient teachings of his ancestors!

O am still reading this wonderful book full of knowledge, profund teachings