Rating: 
Summary: A New Look at Yoga
Review: I have been teaching and practicing yoga for more than 15 years and I was floored to discover all that I didn't know about yoga. This book reaches into the soul of yoga and extracts a bright, shining truth: yoga is the path to yourself. I have heard this many times in many ways, so it was nothing new - intellectually, but McAfee brings this out with such clarity, authority and tangible reality that my entire being, not just my intellect, was forced to acknowledge this fundamental truth. McAfee then takes us down the path, pointing out items of mystery and beauty along the way, while shining the light of truth so forcefully that the mysteries unfold before our eyes.I only wish that I had read this book when I first began my practice of yoga. It would have made my current task of unlearning everything so very much easier.
Rating:
Summary: A New Look at Yoga
Review: I have been teaching and practicing yoga for more than 15 years and I was floored to discover all that I didn't know about yoga. This book reaches into the soul of yoga and extracts a bright, shining truth: yoga is the path to yourself. I have heard this many times in many ways, so it was nothing new - intellectually, but McAfee brings this out with such clarity, authority and tangible reality that my entire being, not just my intellect, was forced to acknowledge this fundamental truth. McAfee then takes us down the path, pointing out items of mystery and beauty along the way, while shining the light of truth so forcefully that the mysteries unfold before our eyes. I only wish that I had read this book when I first began my practice of yoga. It would have made my current task of unlearning everything so very much easier.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reading! Thoroughly recommended!
Review: Prolific author and seeker John McAfee in his provocative new book, Into the Heart of Truth, leads the reader to an understanding of real truth. Since truth is interpreted through our own conditioning---beliefs, fears, cravings and anticipations---how do we determine absolute truth? The answer is Relational Yoga, based on the principle of bringing the practice of yoga into our everyday activities. This eye-opener is divided into three parts, all designed to enable us to understand and discover who we are. Part One, The Importance of Relationship, points out that "It is through relationship that we assert our personal identities, and it in the mirror of relationship that we see ourselves and know our natures." Part Two of In the Heart of Truth, The Fabric of the Self, discusses the conclusions we all form about ourselves---how and where self-image is created, and why. Mr. McAfee writes, "Any serious, earnest approach to the question "Who am I?" must begin with an understanding of this image of ourselves we have created." Further, he suggests that our image of ourselves is dynamic, fluid and always changing based on our relationships. The end section, Relational Yoga, is a compilation of thousands of years of wisdom that (perhaps) began with the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. We learn that, "...Relational Yoga is a mechanism of profound change--not just relationships to our loved ones, but our relationship to all of life." A further understanding of Patanjali's wisdom can be found in Beyond the Siddhis---see my review. John McAfee has given us enlightenment. Into the Heart of Truth illuminates the path to self-understanding and truth!
Rating:
Summary: A treasure trove of insight and meaning
Review: Rarely does an author turn a subject upside down without losing the fundamental meaning and purpose of the subject. But this is what author John McAfee has done with the subject of yoga. With loving tendersness, "Into the Heart of Truth" strips yoga of its accumulated baggage left by centuries of cults of personalities and leaves the bright, shining core of yoga in all of its magnificent splendour. Yoga and life are seen to be one moving vehicle, and the movement discloses beauty beyond descxription. Every yoga student, teacher, scholar or guru should keep this book at their side for constant refference and reminder that yoga is a powerful tool for self awareness.
Rating:
Summary: A treasure trove of insight and meaning
Review: Rarely does an author turn a subject upside down without losing the fundamental meaning and purpose of the subject. But this is what author John McAfee has done with the subject of yoga. With loving tendersness, "Into the Heart of Truth" strips yoga of its accumulated baggage left by centuries of cults of personalities and leaves the bright, shining core of yoga in all of its magnificent splendour. Yoga and life are seen to be one moving vehicle, and the movement discloses beauty beyond descxription. Every yoga student, teacher, scholar or guru should keep this book at their side for constant refference and reminder that yoga is a powerful tool for self awareness.
Rating: 
Summary: Who is he writing to?
Review: This book has wonderful illustrations: figures from eastern spiritual traditions that capture all the mystery and complexity of the subject. Unfortunately, the author does not refer to these figures or incorporate their complexities into his text. I always bristle when someone starts going on about what "We" think and feel. This author's overuse of the "We" construction is particularly annoying because the audience he envisions is a collection of besotted sensualists. No, Mr. McAfee, my personal relationships do not all eventually disintegrate into jealousy and possessiveness. I am very sorry for you if yours do. At one point, McAfee suggests that the reader go to a cocktail party and refrain from drinking, "just as an experiment" to see how stupid everyone else sounds. Who over the age of 25 has not had this experience? Furthermore, these admonitions strike me as awfully self-righteous. We all have our own personal demons. It seems quite odd that someone writing a book purporting to be about the yoga of relationships would assume, as McAfee does, that his readers have never questioned the nature of the self, or even that they do not understand that the image of the self carried in the conscious mind is an illusion. This idea is the very heart of yoga. There is little substance in this book. The author's comments about meditation at the conclusion are worthwhile, but most students of yoga will already be aware of the techniques he suggests. If you are interested in the concept of the self in yoga, I suggest "Raja-Yoga," by Swami Vivekananda. This an astonishingly insightful series of essays written around the turn of the century followed by a very cogent commentary on the Sutras of Patanjali.
Rating:
Summary: Who is he writing to?
Review: This book has wonderful illustrations: figures from eastern spiritual traditions that capture all the mystery and complexity of the subject. Unfortunately, the author does not refer to these figures or incorporate their complexities into his text. I always bristle when someone starts going on about what "We" think and feel. This author's overuse of the "We" construction is particularly annoying because the audience he envisions is a collection of besotted sensualists. No, Mr. McAfee, my personal relationships do not all eventually disintegrate into jealousy and possessiveness. I am very sorry for you if yours do. At one point, McAfee suggests that the reader go to a cocktail party and refrain from drinking, "just as an experiment" to see how stupid everyone else sounds. Who over the age of 25 has not had this experience? Furthermore, these admonitions strike me as awfully self-righteous. We all have our own personal demons. It seems quite odd that someone writing a book purporting to be about the yoga of relationships would assume, as McAfee does, that his readers have never questioned the nature of the self, or even that they do not understand that the image of the self carried in the conscious mind is an illusion. This idea is the very heart of yoga. There is little substance in this book. The author's comments about meditation at the conclusion are worthwhile, but most students of yoga will already be aware of the techniques he suggests. If you are interested in the concept of the self in yoga, I suggest "Raja-Yoga," by Swami Vivekananda. This an astonishingly insightful series of essays written around the turn of the century followed by a very cogent commentary on the Sutras of Patanjali.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but I find something a bit odd...
Review: While a bit ambiguous in some parts the book over all would be a great complement to anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the self and especially so when combined with their YOGA practice.
I find it odd that the first review thanks the author directly as if they know him and that many of the first reviews only point out the "greatness" of the book. With apparently no critical view points at all. The second is from some one from the same area where the relational yoga center (The place where the author trains) is based out of. The third is from a Jennifer Irwin from WA which happens to be the same name as the person who directed the relational yoga DVD. They are also written within days of each other. I do find this odd and concerning... while I have seen the "review bating" done before I would not expect it from this source IF THIS IS indeed what has taken place. It would be like a movie star and their family being the ones to determine their oscar worthiness.
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