"When reading the Russian originals of these books I have very strong bodily sensations — a wave of cold air running up and down my back and I get chills all the time…
— Dr Leo Sharashkin
About Dr Leonid Sharashkin
Series Editor and Co-translatorFounder of Ringing Cedars Press — the Publisher of the Ringing Cedars Series in English
During the 3-year translation process of the Ringing Cedars Series, Leonid checked every sentence of the English against the original Russian for the "feeling" content and emotional impact. The English translation has been refined until the same powerful response could be felt.
Dr Sharashkin explains:
"In the Russian original these books have a very special vibration. Most Russian/English translations do not match the energy of the original. Yes — the meaning is there — the words are there — but the experience of reading these books — and of crying or laughing — or having an inner transformation happening within you when you read — is completely absent from most English translations. Part of the reason is that a professional translator is working for money — and the element of inspiration is often missing.
"The Russian language is really a language of the heart. It's of the same age as Sanskrit — so when you translate from this "language of the heart" into the English language — which is very pragmatic, very well-structured, very logical — it's really the language of the mind — you cannot just be translating words or even meanings of words — you need to be translating the experiences, the images, the feelings that stand behind the words.
"When reading the Russian originals of these books I have very strong bodily sensations — a wave of cold air running up and down my back and I get chills all the time — so there was this need to rework the translation until the energy and vibration of the translation matched that of the original.
Leonid Sharashkin PhD (Forestry) MPA (Natural Resources Management) wrote his doctoral dissertation on the spiritual, cultural and economic significance of the Russian dacha gardening movement, at the University of Missouri at Columbia.
After receiving a Master's degree in Environmental Policy and Natural Resources Management from Indiana University at Bloomington, he headed the Conservation Finance and Economic Programme of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF Russia) in Moscow. During this time he also served as editor of Russia's largest environmental magazine, The Panda Times.
Together with his wife, Irina Sharashkina, he has translated into Russian Small is Beautiful and A Guide for the Perplexed by E.F. Schumacher, The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird, The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff and Birth without Violence by Frederick Leboyer.
Dr. Sharashkin is involved in a number of projects which promote self-reliant, sustainable lifestyle choices based on the integration of human habitat with agroecosystems. He also travels internationally speaking on these topics and has recorded a collection of DVD's available HERE.
Dr Leonid Sharashkin is available to speak at International Conferences and Events and for Radio and TV appearances.
He may be contacted via email "office@ringingcedars.com"