December, 2007                    Carol Adrienne, Ph.D.

    My holiday gift to you this month is a recommendation for three hot-off-the-press books, which I have found very interesting, and thought you would, too. You could buy them as gifts, or start hinting for yourself.

The first book is The Science of Leonardo:  Inside the Mind of the Great Genius of the Renaissance, written by Fritjof Capra, founder of The Center for Ecoliteracy and the author four booksm such as The Tao of Physics. 

I attended a private book party for the author, and was fascinated to hear some of the inside information on this great artist and inventor’s life. Capra told us that he has long been drawn to the revolutionary scientific thinking of the man who embodied the concept of a Renaissance man.  Fortunately, Capra, who is Austrian, reads and speaks Italian,  He traveled to Italy and other locations to read original texts and talk with historians and scholars.

Capra, himself a systems thinker and author of several books on the subject, believes that Leonardo, rather than Galileo, arguably deserves to be called the first modern scientist—and certainly a systems thinker.  Most popularly known as a painter, his revolutionary style was based on acute observation and rendering, subtle use of gesture, color, chiaroscuro, and accurate landscapes. Despite his massive collection of writing and detailed drawings of inventions for every kind of machine, his hundreds and hundreds of technological advances would not be realized until centuries later—in part, due to his insistence on secrecy.

The scope of work accomplished by Leonardo--as painter, inventor, sculptor, mathematician, poet, writer, musician, civil and military engineer, architect, city-planner, symbolist, geometrist, stage designer, anatomist, botanist, geologist, and humanist--is staggering. 

Leonardo exhibited the set of mental attributes of genius identified by modern psychologists, such as extraordinary curiosity, capacity for intense concentration over long periods of time, and the ability to work on several problems simultaneously. Capra writes, “He could also memorize large amounts of information in the form of a coherent whole, a single gestalt…[for example,].Leonardo would follow people with striking facial features for hours, memorize their appearance, and then draw them when he was back in his studio, reportedly with complete accuracy.”

Like those of us who have or have had “day jobs” in order to pursue our passions, Leonardo “always sought to find stable situations with regular incomes that allowed him to engage in his intellectual pursuits relatively undisturbed…”

Leonardo da Vinci (his full name at birth was Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci after his father) was born April 15, 1452 and died May 2, 1519.  He was the illegitimate son of Messer Piero Fruosino di Antonio da Vinci, a Florentine notary and Caterina, a peasant.  Because of his lowly birth, he was not allowed to attend higher education. Interestingly, this forced the young man to turn to nature and real life as a source of his education, honing his exceptional talent for observation, and developing a constant striving to educate himself.

His father showed his son’s early drawings to the master artist Andrea del Verrochio, who took the young Leonardo into his workshop (bottega.)  “The Florentine bottega of the fifteenth century,” writes Capra, “fostered a unique synthesis of art, technology, and science, which found its highest expression in Leonardo’s mature work.” 

Once I started reading this book, I couldn’t put it down. In my undergraduate years, I majored in Art History, so it was also thrilling for me to read the names of Leonardo’s contemporaries whom I had studied. 

Of course, I also had to do a quick numerological look at Leonardo’s birth name and birthdate!  By birth a 4—Leonardo perfectly demonstrates that number’s practicality,  manual dexterity, mechanical genius, and attunement to the natural world. His day of birth 15 (6) accounts for his magnetic and charming personality, and his love of fine things and color.  The full name of Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci gives him a 3 Destiny—foretelling a life filled with creativity, investigation and synthesis, intellectual discussion, the arts, and constant curiosity.  In this name, his Heart’s Desire is 8—the engineer and problem-solver!  His ruling passion is 9, the number of the Universal Man, which was the highest ideal of the Renaissance. 

If we use his most commonly known name-- Leonardo da Vinci-- his Destiny becomes the master number 11—the Inspirer. With this name, his Heart’s Desire is 1 and his Personality number is 1—the number of the leader, pioneer, inventor, a singular individuality--a man of fierce independence and intellectual supremacy.

Read the book! It’s in bookstores now and on amazon.com. (Doubleday $26.00.)
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The second book I want to share with you is utterly modern, but is also another “insider book.”  My good friend, Mel Lavine, has just published his provocative and entertaining behind-the-scenes story of his fifty years as a journalist—A Strange Breed of Folks—Tales from the World’s Second Oldest Profession. 

Starting out after World War II, Mel secured a position on a small town newspaper, The Humboldt Times in Eureka, California. He writes, “Most people had an alibi for living in Eureka.  Mine was to escape another Maine winter.”  Struggling through a variety of up-hill battles and great uncertainty, he went from there to top writing jobs at CBS--the then newly-emerging medium of television. He writes about interviewing celebrities like Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan among others, and working with some of the top names in the business—people like Walter Cronkite, Charles Kuralt, and Barbara Walters.  But the stories in this book are also about the reporters, editors, and producers whom he knew intimately, and with whom he shared many experiences.  It’s a quick and entertaining read. 

Mel Lavine lives in Berkeley, California.  You can order a copy of A Strange Breed of Folks from www.amazon.com (Beaver’s Pond Press $20.00.)

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The third book I’m recommending is called, Beyond the Secret—Spiritual Power and the Law of Attraction, by Dr. Lisa Love.  I had lunch with Lisa while she was here on her book tour.  Since the publication of The Secret, everyone has been talking about the Law of Attraction.  But have you been wondering why your affirmations aren’t working? Do you wonder when your ship is going to come in?

With great clarity and practical suggestions, Lisa’s book addresses the problems of why we don’t manifest what we think we want.  She points out that the Law of Attraction is more than positive thinking or a plan to get rich quick. Beyond the Secret reveals how too often our ego takes over when we use the Law of Attraction and how that sidetracks us from true spiritual pursuit.

In her book she inspires readers to see beyond the individual ego and to attract and retain objects and events that will be beneficial to ourselves and to others.

    Beyond the Secret teaches readers how to:

•  Understand what Spirit wants for you in this life
•  Use the Law of Attraction to gain insight into yourself and your destiny
•  Create and maintain a deeply satisfying sense of spiritual fulfillment.
  

Lisa Love is also a life coach and therapist specializing in sexual and physical abuse, a radio host, and a syndicated columnist.  She has graduate degrees in marriage, family, and child counseling; transpersonal psychology; spiritual psychology; and esoteric philosophy.  Lisa was a pioneer in teaching meditation over the Internet through America Online, and seven years ago founded the website SoultoSpirit.com (which is how I originally met her.)  She lives in southern California.

You can order her book, Beyond the Secret, on www.amazon.com or www.doctorlisalove.com.
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I think as we head into the New Year, that another great gift idea would be a Primary Life Chart—for the person who may be in transition or even new to numerology!  Remember, you can order these 25-plus page charts directly from my web site at www.caroladrienne.com. 

Or, if you already have a Primary Chart, you can order a two-year Forecast for 2008 and 2009.  Each chart is only $19.95, and you can pay through your PayPal account or credit card.  Remember to use the person’s birth date and full, original BIRTH name as shown on the birth certificate.  Don’t worry, if you get the name wrong, we’ll send you a replacement chart at no extra cost. 

Happy Holiday!
Carol Adrienne
Carol Adrienne, Ph.D. is an intuitive counselor and life coach who has helped thousands of people work through doubt, procrastination, and obstacles to create the life they want to live. Private consultations and coaching available. Contact her at
Carol@caroladrienne.com

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