The Spiritual Mechanics of Mind

Book review on

Soul-centered healing

by Tom Zinser (2012)

Reviewed by Alan Sanderson, 2011 published in Network Review No 107

Soul-Centered Healing is an extremely important book.  It shows the way, as never before, to a working understanding of the spiritual mechanics of mind.  It does this clearly and directly, and it tells in detail how information from a channelled spirit guide, repeatedly tested in the consulting room, was used to resolve complex psychological problems.  With this publication, Thomas Zinser takes a giant stride towards the new paradigm for which so many are longing. I believe Soul-Centered Healing is worthy to rank with De Motu Cordis and The Principia as a beacon in the history of profound (and useful!) ideas.

Thomas Zinser had no thoughts of soul when, in 1983, he resigned from his post as staff psychologist at a private mental hospital to set up in psychotherapeutic practice.  In this enthralling, beautifully written book, Zinser describes his Odyssey.  It begins with his early experiences working with multiple personality disorder and concludes 25 years later with the final homecoming as a confident, many-faceted therapist with a conviction in the primacy of spirit in the human physical experience.  To his homecoming Zinser brings a carefully-woven tapestry, with a picture of coherence and power such as no psychologist has previously provided.  It is a soul tapestry and it carries great implications, not only for psychotherapy and the understanding of personality, but for the spiritual dynamics of the cosmos.

How did it happen?  I almost put, 'By Divine intervention.'  Surely not by chance.  There could have been no book without Gerod, the genie of the story.

Soul-Centered Healing has three parts:

  • To the Boundary of Spirit.
  • Healing the Inner World.
  • Soul Dimensions.

In Part 1, Zinser introduces the reader to sub-personalities, those parts of the self that carry unresolved pain and trauma. He starts with the discovery that one of his patients possesses many distinct personalities. Intrigued and challenged, he immerses himself in the study of multiple personality disorder. He begins to treat others diagnosed with MPD. Then, at a conference in 1985, he learns from John and Helen Watkins about ego state therapy. It's an approach that recognizes that everyone possesses ego-states, and that hypnosis can be used to work directly with these parts of the self for healing. In this view, MPD is on the extreme end of the same continuum. Ego state therapy became the mainspring of Zinser's therapeutic approach. 

Opening up these inner worlds of sub-personalities, however, triggers many blocks and defences and leads to deeper confusion. It culminates in a session where Zinser cannot tell whether he is dealing with a sub-personality or a separate entity who has taken over the client's body. With so many clients, this deeper level work was leading to an impasse.

This is when an unexpected door opened. A woman, claiming to channel a spirit guide, offered Zinser an opportunity to communicate directly with this spirit through automatic writing. He accepts the offer and he meets Gerod. In further meetings, he learned that Gerod had access to his clients' inner worlds and could clarify the cause of difficulties and how best to resolve them. This proved to be an immense source of help and new learning.  Over the course of 14 years, Zinser and Gerod were to meet over 650 times. Soon they were communicating in speech, which led to a much faster and freer dialogue.  Zinser consulted Gerod on most of his clients and constantly checked his predictions, which he found to be reliable.  Gerod gave much information on ego states and on the types of attaching spirits. 

Part 2, 'Healing the Inner World,' focuses on the individual and the inner world of ego states and the beneficial forces available for working with them.  Zinser writes:

Gerod's information about these clients and the different sources of blocking revealed within each client a dynamic and complex inner world.  Ego states were still a primary focus of healing, but Gerod's view of these parts of the self was a radically different understanding than my own.  I also learned from Gerod about the protective part of the mind and the higher self, one a significant source of blocking and the other a direct connection to the Divine.  Each came to play a significant role in the healing process of ego states.  It took thousands of client sessions and hundreds of talks with Gerod to identify these parts of the self, establish a common language and understanding about them, and learn how to incorporate them into the healing process.' 

In Part 3, 'Soul Dimensions,' we enter the realms and phenomena beyond the ego and its sense perception. These include past lives, good and evil, attachment or intrusion by spirits, and the primal forces of Darkness and Light. With Gerod's help and guidance, Zinser is able to work with his clients at these energetic, psychic and spirit levels. Soul-Centered Healing is the story of what Zinser learned about these dimensions through repeated observation and the healing methods that grew out of this work.

What are the implications of Soul-Centered Healing for the treatment of emotional disorder and the vast field of mental illness?  That is one of the many questions that crowd around us clamouring for answers.  What is needed now is for those of us who work in the field to test Zinser's findings.

What more can be said?  Quite simply, 'Read it.'  Read it for the well-told story.  Read it for the joy of being present as two souls, one on each side of the Great Divide, discuss the wonders of the soul as it breathes the Darkness and Light of the universe.  Read it for the excitement of holding an unfolding piece of history in your hands.

Dr. Alan Sanderson is President of the Spirit Release Foundation. A longer version of this review can be found under Members' Articles on the website. 

(order this book from amazon.co.uk)