- Author
- Daniel Meurois-Givaudan
- Title
- Ce Clou que J'ai enfoncé, une exploration du sentiment de culpabilité
- Info
- 303 p. - € NA.
- Additional info
- La Perséa, 2004
If there is a book that can really open hearts and minds, and lead to a new direction in life, is “This Nail I Hammered” by Daniel Meurois-Givaudan.
This is the incredible and touching (auto)biography of Nathanaël, the man that was appointed to hammer the nail onto Jesus’ cross, and that the author collected from the Akashic Records (where the knowledge of human experience and the history of the cosmos are stored).
This is not a religious book but the story of an evolution, of a growth, of lessons learnt.
Daniel Meurois-Givaudan, author and therapist known for his out-of-body experiences and Akashic Records readings, got in touch with Nathanaël’s soul who allowed him to find out and reveal to the world the significant meaning of his own evolution (and, in general, of the evolution of all human beings). The author chose to write the book in first person, in order to create a sense of intimacy and familiarity with the reader, choice that perfectly works.
This is a book to read with your heart and not with your mind, although it will make you reflect a lot. Its message will reach and be felt by those who are ready to open up and be truly honest with themselves.
Only when we take full responsibility for what happens to us, and we love and forgive ourselves, we can heal and be happy.
Nathanaël was born in a tiny village of Judea, at the time of Emperor Tiberius. Son of a stone-cutter and member of a large family, he was born crippled and this feature haunted him all his life, making him feel useless and an abomination. When his parents died, he started working here and there in order to survive, until one day Romans hire him to fix the sentenced to death to the cross.
Who would have imagined that he’d be the one to hammer the nails onto Jesus’ cross? Nathanaël had heard some rumours about this man that everybody called “rabbi”, but never really give any importance to them. And yet, in front of the cross, this man smiles at him and with the sweetest of the voices he says, ‘So, is it you, Nathanaël?’. The man’s eyes, his voice and smile are just too much for Nathanaël to handle, and he doesn’t manage to finish his job.
From that day forward, Nathanaël’s haunted by what he’s done, and starts wandering about, meeting different people – including apostle John, who appears as the sweetest and wiser of the men – and living experiences that will influence greatly his current and future lives.
I cannot say more because I don’t want to spoil the reading, as so many things happen and they are all so significant and touching that need to be individually experienced, but I want to share little quotes from this wonderful book:
‘Listen… There are people that spend their whole life refusing to enter the doors opening in front of them. They can’t hear because they don’t want to hear… Because it takes courage to hear, do you understand? Life continuously speak to us. There is no human being that doesn’t receive signs showing them where they should go… Or where they shouldn’t. To some, life speaks louder than others. Maybe you’re one of them… But I can’t believe that you’re one of those who decided not to listen, and to run away from all the gifts of life. Can’t you see that everything brought you here, today, and not somewhere else?’
‘The Eternal does not have any wishes to punish us through the life we receive. Punishment, revenge, atonement… they’re just human words! And words are not reality but just what, of reality, we want to believe; then we end up manifesting it! If you absolutely want to be punished for something, then be sure that you will make it happen… But YOU will be the one who decides the penalty, and who feeds it in your mind and your heart.’
‘You can keep on complaining, and build on your disillusions; you can leave this world tomorrow morning, and decide to cling to your acrimony until you can wear your next mask… or you can say yes to every moment that you are living.’
Either that you believe in reincarnation and out-of-body experience or you don’t, this amazingly-written book reads like a novel and carries many precious and heart-warming messages that could change the lives of those who are willing to open their hearts and minds.
The big question of the book is, ‘Who is the real victim?’
Nathanaël lives a miserable life, thinking that life’s been unjust to him and that he doesn’t deserve to be happy, but at the same time he is very judgmental and passive, and even when he could do something to change the course of his events, or when some people show him love and compassion, he shuts his heart.
During his journey he will realise that he’s the one who made his own life as it is, that somehow he chose to live that way… so who’s the real victim? And who’s the persecutor?
Our soul is here to learn and evolve, therefore everything that happens to us serves that purpose, even when we don’t realise it (which happens practically all the times).
It’s easier to blame life and people when things don’t go as we – consciously* – expect, but behind expectations often lay fear, mistrust, self-devaluation, and a sense of perpetual lack. We often waste our life running after “more” rather than appreciate what we have and make the best of it: “When you drop your expectations that a person, a situation, a place, or an object should fulfil you, it’s easier to be present in this moment because you’re no longer looking to the next one. Most people want to get what they want, whereas the secret is to want what you get at this moment.” (Eckart Tolle)
This book offers a great occasion to reflect and look into ourselves, and to start living life through a new perspective, because when it all makes sense – and it all does, because everything happens for a reason as the story of Nathanaël eminently shows – our life becomes truly meaningful.
* According to Dr. Bruce H. Lipton, our subconscious mind controls 95% of how our circumstances manifest, and only 5% is controlled by our conscious mind. This means that if we consciously focus on a goal, it will be hard to achieve it if our subconscious is not aligned with our conscious mind.
