Daughter of Fire: A Diary of a Spiritual Training with a Sufi Master

By Irina Tweedie

Book Overview

Little did Irina Tweedie know that her trip to India in 1959, at the age of fifty-two, would mysteriously lead her to a Sufi Master, and set her upon a journey to the "heart of hearts," the Sufi path of realization.Her teacher's first request of her was to keep a complete diary of her spiritual training--everything, all the difficult parts, even all the doubts. He predicted that one day it would become a book and would benefit people around the world.This diary spans five years, making up an amazing record of spiritual transformation ... the agonies, the resistance, the long and frightening bouts with the purifying forces of Kundalini, the perseverance, the movements towards surrender, the longing, and finally the all-consuming love.From a psychological viewpoint, the diary maps the process of ego dissolution, gradually unveiling the openness and love that reside beneath the surface of the personality.Mrs. Tweedie is the first Western woman to be trained in this ancient yogic lineage. Her story and experience testify that this teaching system can still be powerfully transformative today in our modern world.First published in its abridged form as Chasm of Fire (which has sold over 100,000 copies and has been translated into six languages), Daughter of Fire is a unique account of a spiritual training with a Sufi Master and is the most detailed account of the relationship between disciple and teacher that exists in Western Literature. Written in diary form, this title has already sold over 30,000 copies worldwide and is now being published through The Golden Sufi Center.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0963457454
• ISBN13: 9780963457455
• Release Date: June 1995
• Publisher: Golden Sufi Center
• Length: 822 Pages
• Weight: 2.52 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Not a path for the average joe

This book is the narrative of one woman's extraordinary perseverance on her spiritual path; clearly illustrates the essence of a true spiritual life - it's not about coddling and self-fulfillment - but rather the grace-given will to transcend the illusions and self-imagery of the ego. "No one is the beloved of God", said one illumined being. What this means is that, WE must love God! We must surrender ourselves, not the other way around, to realize anything. The tests Ms. Tweedie's teacher puts her through are precisely the elements necessary for her to penetrate the veil of the ego, and to ultimately go beyond the illusion of "self" and "other", into the heart of Love itself - God, Consciousness, Radiant Being. She describes her experiences in detail and with rigorous honestly uncommon in most "spiritual" books. There's no fluffly, new-age stuff in here. It's the real deal.

Spiritual autobiography

Daughter of Fire,an incredible account of spiritual experiences.Step by step and day by day the progression in acquiring spiritual powers is described in detail.After what has been written in poetic Persian literature this is the first time in English literature the spiritual experiences of sufism have been revealed.Sufism has been described to be the religion of humanity without distinctions and boundaries.As the sufi master of Mrs Tweedie 'Bhai Sahib' relates "The roads to God are as many as human beings" .It is about ultimately merging with "The Creator" no matter which religion we belong to.

A true unedited spiritual path.........

A true spiritual path is never easy and is never what we expect. Everyone's process is different because people are different. Irina's experience is true and unedited and what she experienced was for her and her only. But a lot of what she experienced is common to others that are on a mystical/spiritual path. Being on a very similar path myself, I would like to be bold enough to validate her book and experiences and how neccessary that they are. To achieve high spirituality is NOT an easy path, but VERY worth it. The highs and the lows of it are all relative to each other. This book is a perfect example for someone that would like a TRUE idea of what that type of path is all about. I keep this book handy all of the time. The more I read it over and over, the more I learn. I recomend it highly. But you need to stick with it and get through it..... just as with anything else.

Daughter of Fire

Excellent book. Although some might believe that Sufism cannot be separate from Islam and should be limited to those of the religion, this book instead presents the understanding that mysticism, including Sufism, is available to all who seek with sincerity. There is nothing within it that contradicts the teachings of Islam, nor any of the other major religions. It is not a book for those who are simply seeking an easy template upon which to base their own spiritual lives upon, but rather, recommended for those who are pulled into the mystic life by something within themselves. . . and often in spite of themselves. It is also a good preparation for beginners, in showing that the true teacher is often not what one expects a teacher to be, and that the experiences of the mystical path are not limited to those that one hopes for. Those already on a genuine Sufi/mystic path might find much to relate to. Heartily recommended.

An amazing diary of genuine spiritual transformation!

Irina Tweedie's diary of her experiences with her Sufi Master and Teacher lifts us beyond any one religious viewpoint, beyond set ideas about enlightenment, and catapults us into realizing what a one-pointed focus and continual surrender it takes to become a spiritual master. Mrs. Tweedie's disarming humility and intimate experiences during her years of training in India with her Sufi Master will expand the mind and heart of virtually anyone who is interested in a spiritual life. She is the first Western woman to be trained in this ancient yogic lineage. This detailed diary spans five years of the agonies, resistance, fright, and doubt that Mrs. Tweedie went through as she gradually opened to the love that surpasses all understanding.Daughter of Fire was such a catalyst for me that I spent several weeks listening and talking to Mrs. Tweedie in London. The author is a living demonstration of the rare synthesis of Spiritual Truth and Spiritual Love. Daughter of Fire sits close to my meditation chair where I frequently open it to catch another wave of the wisdom and love that radiate from its pages. I expect to keep reading it for the rest of my life.What a rare opportunity to recognize and begin to dissolve the resistance of our own personalities to spiritual direction-and to release this all- too-familiar barrier to our spiritual illumination. I wholeheartedly recommend this rare and beautiful book of wisdom and spiritual understanding. I consider it one of the greatest of all contemporary spiritual literature.