I love this book:

I read it in a few sittings. It is one I will read and to which I will refer again and again. So, I offered the author the opportunity to answer a few interview questions from me and to do a reading from the book for us. He said YES! Those gems are below, but first, here is my Goodreads review of The Ancient Book of Magic Secrets: An exploration into being human:

Writing part philosophy, part theology, part evolutionary theory, part art history, part novella, part history of the earth, part anthropology, part spirituality (especially Native Peoples), the author goes to great lengths to ask his central questions: Why are we here? What is the order of the cosmos?

In speaking of the ancient “White Shaman” cave painting on the “canyon wall of the lower Pecos River near its confluence with the Rio Grande in deep West Texas” he muses:

“And if, as the story goes, the people gathered there to dance with the drums and the ancestors who were painted on the wall and to listen to the story and the chanting, then no doubt, those people were moved to remember who they were and how they came to live in this place and what they might be able to do next if they all came together and focused on a plan and stayed in harmony with the stars and with the earth and with the flower road.”

This is the point the author makes throughout this book, thick with facts. The bibliography is six pages long, and in itself, contains at least a year’s stack of worthy reading.

I really fell in love with the author’s style while reading this line on page 114: “But then there’s entropy. What a buzz kill.” I laughed out loud, as I did many times. This, following pages of evolutionary thought, the case he makes for universal symbiosis, and such posits as “Maybe the universe came into being with a shriek of joy….”

If thought-provoking is the author’s intent, he’s done that. If synthesizing some of human’s most complex subjects into digestible snippets is the goal, he’s done that. If creating a believable, lovable, quirky character with a conflicted personality is the goal, he’s done that. He’s even managed to successfully combine fact and fiction–a love story, even–one that resonates with all who have loved. But most of all, the author has called his readers to consider his questions and perhaps, to dance together, focus on a plan, and stay close to the flower road.

~d. ellis phelps

A Reading by the Author

An Interview with the Author

D: There are six pages of bibliography in your book.  Have you read all those books?  Do they represent your leisure reading list or did you read them in preparation for writing The Ancient Book of Magic Secrets?

Rohn: I have read all those books, some I skimmed more than others.  I still have them in a special place in my library.  They were my companions on this journey.  Every subject that I chose to write about had its own way of telling its story.  Those books were my guides and my mentors. 

D: You say the writing of The Ancient Book of Magic Secrets was an assignment you gave yourself.  Can you say more about why you took on this project, how long ago you knew you wanted to make it happen, and how long it took you to write it?

Rohn: It took 6 years to write the book and another 2 years muddling about with editing and trying to find a publisher.  I wrote it because I had to say something and because I had to heal something.  It wasn’t an assignment, it was a quest, a hero’s journey, a challenge that I needed in my life.  Writing the book was only one part of the quest, getting it published was another.  Finding its audience was (is) the third part.  I took it on because I had to do something big and heroic and almost impossible.  I was desperate for that. 

D: In the book, you point repeatedly to how civilization might change if we all “stayed close to the flower road.”  Can you say more about what you mean by that and how you see that change happening?  I mean, do you really see it as a possibility?

Rohn: My main aim and purpose for the book was to somehow elicit a feeling of gratitude in the reader.  We really are quite a species and we should be proud of who we are.  We should celebrate it.  We should notice it.  Gratitude is one of those beautiful feelings that can also dissolve greed and anger.  If we practiced feeling gratitude more than we practiced doing stupid stuff then I’m pretty sure we would see a fundamental change in human society.  What is the potential?  The potential is to create heaven on earth for all.  Let’s take it on humans.  Let’s take the challenge because it means something very personal for each person.

D:  I happen to know that some of your ancestors were ministers ordained by traditional religious institutions. Do you see your writing as a kind of ministry? Do you think of yourself as a spiritual person?  Describe your personal theology. 

Rohn: I grew up in the church where my father was the minister so, yeah, it affected me from a young age but at around twenty, I went through a massive transformation and left church, Christianity, religion, and even spirituality behind.  I figured if there was truth (and there must be otherwise – hey what the heck) then it had to be accessible, it had to be available.  It had to somehow be a real experience.  “Truth is the consciousness of bliss” came in at that point.  I was very into experiencing truth not just talking about it.  It was a brand new phase for me and exhilarating.  I had never experienced anything like that before.  Yeah, my quest became to find truth, or as don Juan put it in the Carlos Castaneda books that were popular at the time, a separate reality.  I didn’t know what that was of course and the LSD I took at the time showed me very clearly how much I didn’t know.  So, I don’t really have a theology or a spirituality I just want to experience truth.  I practice for that.  I consider it a life skill.  

D:  You’ve created a quirky character who rides a bicycle everywhere he goes.  Is the character autobiographical?  How close are his experiences to those of your own?  

Rohn: Very close.  I don’t know how to write fiction.  Actually, I modeled Han after several people I’ve known but mostly me, it’s true.  I really do ride my bike everywhere and have great adventures.  And I do often think of myself as some kind of Comanche horseman out on a quest or hunting astride my swift steed. 

D: How do you spend your time?  Do you have a formal writing practice?  Describe yourself in your surroundings.  Where do you live? What does a typical day look like for you?

Rohn: I’m fortunate to have a house with running water, electric lights, and a roof.  Not only that, there are other houses around with other people.  There are cafes and streets and telecommunication networks.  It’s almost like a highly civilized habitat.  That suits me fine even though I’m not very civilized, it just makes things more convenient.  I can pass for a normal city dweller most days, I’ve practiced it for years.  I don’t have a formal writing practice but every day I try to train my brain to see like a writer and listen like a writer and think like a writer.  The muse can’t be caught or confined, she only sings when she’s free.  Yeah, so almost every morning the neighbors and the local gas station guys and all the commuters along my route towards downtown San Antonio get to see this bike rider riding swiftly along (as swiftly as possible) making his way among the streets and sidewalks of his great city.  I hear reports of sightings all over town from the guys in the bike shop.  Part of my summer ritual is to dive into the fish pond in my backyard when I get back from the bike ride all hot and sweaty.  That is a treat.  The baptismal experience. 

D:  Tell us about your writing on Substack.  How is that going for you? What are your favorite subjects to explore and write about? 

Rohn: My Substack newsletter the rohn report is going great.  I publish a new edition every week, usually on Thursday morning, and can’t help but feel the connection there with my father writing his weekly sermons for the Sunday morning congregation.  It’s a rhythm.  I actually like having a deadline even though I don’t use that word.  I hate that word.  But it’s self-imposed so it’s ok; it’s a rhythm and what I write about and how I write is a rhythm too.  It all comes together, including these days a podcast feature, in some magical way.  I’m in awe of it and feel very blessed and highly entertained.  I only have to apply a little bit of intention and the magic happens.  It’s true.

D:  Recently, you mentioned a Hindu saying: truth, consciousness, and bliss. Tell us what this means to you.  

Rohn: Back in the seventies when I was introduced to my mentor it was a common phrase amongst folks and used as a greeting (Jai Sat Chit Anand in Hindi).  Truth is the consciousness of bliss, bliss is the consciousness of truth, and consciousness is the truth of bliss – you get the point.  I have never lost my admiration and respect for that saying.  It’s beautiful, so simple and . . . so true.  Ha!

D: Do you think you’ll write another book? 

Rohn: I don’t have an ambition to write another book.  This is my book.  This is what I got.  This is what I can do.

D: What are your highest hopes for The Ancient Book of Magic Secrets?

Rohn: I want people to read it, like any author, and recommend it to their book club.  I want to be invited to present it at conferences, in classrooms, and at book festivals.  I want it to be recognized and respected.  I want it to change people’s lives.

D: What are your highest hopes for Rohn Bayes?

Rohn: My highest hopes for Rohn Bayes are to keep taking on the challenge of being Rohn Bayes.  Hey, no one else is going to do it and if you don’t step up and do it there will never be and will never have been a Rohn Bayes in the universe.  So, it’s a solemn responsibility.  What are the possibilities for Rohn Bayes?  Well, he could try removing all expectations from his mind and live in the moment, free and clear.  That would be cool and even if he doesn’t attain such a lofty goal I think he probably will have enjoyed his life much more for trying.

Namaste y’all!

d