WATER MAGIC by Mary Muryn Book Review By Monika Dery The most famous, beautiful woman in the world to depend on her skin quality was definitely Cleopatra. The stories I´ve read about the "Milk Baths" and even "blood baths" make my hair curl. It´s amazing what a person will resort to when money is no object. However, she lived into her eighties and was known for her smooth skin even till that time...along with Gloria Swanson. Mary Muryn, author of Water Magic uses some of her recipes. According to Muryn, there´s no excuse for not having wonderful skin, a stable mind, effective sleep patterns, and a great love life. And these "procedures" all take place in and around the bathroom. Mary´s book takes us from the A to the Z of bathing and functional relaxation. She delves into the history of bathing and goes all the way to describe methods of sexual enhancement - since we all know that scent is an important "love trigger." According to Muryn, Hippocrates stated, "The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage every day." If we´d only listened to that advice over the last 2000 years, we´d all be in a different mind and body space today. We put up with more and more stress and therefore need more and more helpful hints on how to relax. Water Magic delves into meditation, recipes, masks, healing, homeopathy, and even into aboriginal use of herbs for health. Aside from the logical remedies for stress and fatigue, there´s even a recipe for Immortality, taken from the ancient Chinese pharmacoepia. Here is the main part of the recipe...I´m sure we could all use a bit of immortality! ------------------------------- 5 pieces of clear, round, polished quartz crystal water to cook shallots, honey and ferns Cook all together for a while and cool. Drink the liquid (remove crystals) while invoking the Lords of the Five Directions. Each crystal will enter one of the five major organs of the body: spleen, heart, kidneys, lungs and liver - and preserve it from decay. ----------------------- The recipe goes on from there, but you get the idea of some of the historical aspects of Water Magic. It turns out that crystals are often used today for healing purposes and this recipe may not be as far-out as we think! Water Magic is truly a book to lounge in the bath with, soaking up the legends, luxuriating in the essential oils, doing some metaphysical travelling, dreaming about the future and the past and in general, becoming a water baby with a new insight on life. Ms. Muryn´s research has paid off in spades for women of the world. Right up my alley! Back to the Writing Index