All of the spiritual traditions agree that the best way to stay aroused to life is to dance to the music of the Blessed One. In Women in Praise of the Sacred: 43 Centuries of Spiritual Poetry by Women, editor and poet Jane Hirshfield has gathered an incredibly diverse anthology of hymns, poets, prayers, and songs. Each of the 70 women has found her own special way of practicing zeal. Among those singing these sacred tunes are Rabi'a, Hadewijch of Antwerp, H. D., Emily Dickinson, and Nelly Sachs.

Editor Robert Bly has assembled an excellent anthology of poems about the twists and turns of the spiritual path in The Soul Is Here for Its Own Joy. Rumi, Kabir, Lalla, Anthony Machado, Rainer Maria Rilke, and others give us plenty of reasons to practice zeal.