The Marquis de Puységur, Artificial Somnambulism, and the Discovery of the Unconscious Mind


Book Description

The Marquis de Puységur, Artificial Somnambulism, and the Discovery of the Unconscious Mind presents the first full English translation of a foundational text in the history of psychodynamic thinking, and provides a contextual explanation of its contemporary significance. Written by Puységur in 1784, Memoirs to Serve the History and Establishment of Animal Magnetism describes the author’s exploration and discovery of “artificial somnambulism,” a state that reveals insights into the subconscious mind. Building on the healing techniques of Franz Anton Mesmer, Puységur kept detailed notes on his practice with patients, including their names, symptoms, and follow-up information, providing a unique insight into his process. The full text of this original publication is presented here, complemented by a historical introduction and editor’s notes. The Marquis de Puységur, Artificial Somnambulism, and the Discovery of the Unconscious Mind will be of great interest to academics and scholars of psychoanalysis, psychotherapy, and the history of psychology, hypnosis, and mental health. It will also appeal to practicing clinicians.




The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts


Book Description

Mediumship dates back to the Greek Oracles and beyond, but millennia later nobody yet knows for certain what transpires when a medium enters a deep trance. Today, the practice of channeling spirit guides through hypnotized mediums is hotly debated. This strange phenomenon is either dismissed as a dubious parlor trick, or regarded as a form of communication between this world and the next. Many view "the guides" as a source of love and wisdom...but are they? For five years, Joe Fisher painstakingly investigated the claims of channelers and the mysterious voices that speak through them. The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts is his gripping journey into a realm of darkness and deception.




Trance Zero


Book Description

Psychotherapist Adam Crabtree shows how we live our lives caught up in a series of trances. For example, when we read we become less aware of the sounds around us, temporarily losing touch with our environment and sense of time. The same kind of effect occurs when we are deeply engaged in a conversation, lost in our own thoughts, enthralled in a creative moment, or immersed in lovemaking. While trances are necessary, enabling us to function at our jobs and in relationships with others, we can become trapped by them, and thus lose our ability to fully experience our lives and surroundings. In Trance Zero, Crabtree shows how to transcend the trance states that limit our everyday lives. He explains how to access a higher intuitive state, Trance Zero, which is characterized by being fully awake to the real condition of our existence.







Parapsychology


Book Description

Many people have experienced such unusual phenomena as dreams that later seem to correspond with unforeseeable events, thinking of a long-lost friend just before he or she unexpectedly calls, or the ability to "feel" the presence of deceased loved ones. What many do not realize is that these types of experiences have been researched for more than a century by eminent scientists, including Nobel laureates. Most of these researchers have concluded that some of these phenomena do occur, although we are far from explaining them to everyone's satisfaction. This book is the first in almost 40 years to provide a comprehensive scientific overview of research in the field of parapsychology, explaining what we know and don't know about so-called psi phenomena, such as "telepathy," "precognition" or "psychokinesis." Contributors evaluate the evidence for these phenomena, accounting for factors such as selective memory, wish fulfillment and incorrect methods or analyses, in some cases offering psychological, physical and biological theories. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.




Second Sight in the Nineteenth Century


Book Description

This book explores the phenomenon of second sight in nineteenth-century literature and culture. Second sight is a form of prophetic vision associated with the folklore of the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Described in Gaelic as the An-da-shealladh or ‘the two sights’, those in possession of this extraordinary power are said to foresee future events like the death of neighbour, the arrival of strangers into the community, the success or failure of a fishing trip. From the late seventeenth century onwards, rumours of this strange faculty attracted the attention of numerous scientists, travel writers, antiquarians, poets and artists. Focusing on the nineteenth century, this book examines second sight in relation to mesmerism and phrenology, modern spiritualism and anthropology, romance literature and folklorism and finally, psychical research and Celtic mysticism. Tracing the migration of a supposedly ‘Scottish’ tradition through various sites of nineteenth-century popular culture, it explores questions of nationhood and identity alongside those posed by supernatural phenomena.




Spiritualism, Mesmerism and the Occult, 1800–1920 Vol 1


Book Description

This edition provides an insight into the dark areas between Victorian science, medicine and religion. The rare reset source material in this collection is organized thematically and spans the period from initial mesmeric experiments at the beginning of the nineteenth century to the decline of the Society for Psychical Research in the 1920s.







History of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology


Book Description

This book chronicles the conceptual and methodological facets of psychiatry and medical psychology throughout history. There are no recent books covering so wide a time span. Many of the facets covered are pertinent to issues in general medicine, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, and the social sciences today. The divergent emphases and interpretations among some of the contributors point to the necessity for further exploration and analysis.