Lena Phoenix
Encyclopedia
Lena Phoenix is the American author of the award-winning novel The Heart of a Cult
. She graduated from the Naropa University
Inter-Arts Program in 1998. She is married to Steven Sashen
and a resident of Boulder, Colorado
.
The Heart of a Cult
won Independent Publisher's 2007 Visionary Fiction Silver Medal
.
The Heart of a Cult
The Heart of a Cult is a 2006 novel by American author Lena Phoenix. It was inspired by her personal experiences in the alternative spiritual realm. The book is written in the style of a personal diary and a segment of the life of thirty year-old Michelle Thomson, who, during a period of...
. She graduated from the Naropa University
Naropa University
Naropa University is a private American liberal arts university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1974 by Tibetan Buddhist teacher and Oxford University scholar Chögyam Trungpa, it is named for the eleventh-century Indian Buddhist sage Naropa, an abbot of Nalanda.Naropa describes itself as...
Inter-Arts Program in 1998. She is married to Steven Sashen
Steven Sashen
Steven Sashen is an American Transformational Entrepreneur.-Biography:Steven designed , theindustry-standard word processing software for film and television...
and a resident of Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
.
List of works
- The Heart of a CultThe Heart of a CultThe Heart of a Cult is a 2006 novel by American author Lena Phoenix. It was inspired by her personal experiences in the alternative spiritual realm. The book is written in the style of a personal diary and a segment of the life of thirty year-old Michelle Thomson, who, during a period of...
, (2006 Garuda, Inc. Trade Paperback). Phoenix's first novel was inspired by her personal experiences in the alternative spiritual realm. The book is written in the style of a personal diary. It chronicles thirty year old Michelle Thomson, who during a period of unemployment goes to a spiritual seminar. The seminar experience leads her into the depths of a cultCultThe word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
, from which she must win her freedom. The cult experience is not all bad, nor all good, for Michelle, with her entrapment she learns and grows.
Set adrift by sudden unemployment, web designWeb designWeb design is the process of planning and creating a website. Text, images, digital media and interactive elements are used by web designers to produce the page seen on the web browser...
er Michelle Thomson is at an impasse in her life when she is introduced to a charismaCharismaThe term charisma has two senses: 1) compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others, 2) a divinely conferred power or talent. For some theological usages the term is rendered charism, with a meaning the same as sense 2...
tic spiritualSpiritualitySpirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
teacher known only as Ma. Though initially skeptical, Michelle is soon captivated by Ma’s energy and insight and begins to find new meaning both in Ma’s teachings and as a member of her insular community. While at first she blossoms under Ma’s guidance, when Michelle uncovers deception at the heart of all she has come to believe in, she is forced to face the ultimate test any spiritual teacher can give.
The Heart of a Cult
The Heart of a Cult
The Heart of a Cult is a 2006 novel by American author Lena Phoenix. It was inspired by her personal experiences in the alternative spiritual realm. The book is written in the style of a personal diary and a segment of the life of thirty year-old Michelle Thomson, who, during a period of...
won Independent Publisher's 2007 Visionary Fiction Silver Medal
Independent Publisher Book Award
The Independent Publisher Book Awards , launched in 1996, are designed to bring increased recognition to titles published by independent authors and publishers...
.
Critical Reaction
- Review - The Daily Camera.
- Review - Cultic Studies Review.
- Review - Midwest Book Review.
- Review - Enfuse Magazine.
- Review - Chicago Center for Literature and Photography.