Death, Our Last Illusion


Book Description

Beginning with the latest science on the near-death experience, this resource explores the passage through physical death to the states of conscious being beyond. Traditional sources are compared with findings of science and medicine, and psychology from Jung and Piaget to Wilber.




The Last Illusion


Book Description

A kaleidoscopic tale inspired by a legend from the medieval Persian epic "Book of Kings" follows the coming-of-age of a feral Middle Eastern youth in New York City on the eve of the September 11 attacks. By the award-winning author of Sons and Other Flammable Objects. 25,000 first printing.




Death Valley and the Amargosa


Book Description

This is the history of Death Valley, where that bitter stream the Amargosa dies. It embraces the whole basin of the Amargosa from the Panamints to the Spring Mountains, from the Palmettos to the Avawatz. And it spans a century from the earliest recollections and the oldest records to that day in 1933 when much of the valley was finally set aside as a National Monument. This is the story of an illusory land, of the people it attracted and of the dreams and delusions they pursued-the story of the metals in its mountains and the salts in its sinks, of its desiccating heat and its revitalizing springs, and of all the riches of its scenery and lore-the story of Indians and horse thieves, lost argonauts and lost mine hunters, prospectors and promoters, miners and millionaires, stockholders and stock sharps, homesteaders and hermits, writers and tourists. But mostly this is the story of the illusions-the illusions of a shortcut to the gold diggings that lured the forty-niners, of inescapable deadliness that hung in the name they left behind, of lost bonanzas that grew out of the few nuggets they found, of immeasurable riches spread by hopeful prospectors and calculating con men, and of impenetrable mysteries concocted by the likes of Scotty. These and many lesser illusions are the heart of its history.




Death Is An Illusion


Book Description

Martinus will become much more prominent as a spiritual teacher, thanks to Else Byskov's clear summary of his life and teachings. Death Is An illusion is a timely introduction to the Danish 20th century mystic, Martinus (1890-1981) whose teachings have a sound picture of the cosmos and a perspective about the human future based on the evolution of consciousness. Martinus cosmology is an all-embracing world picture, a spiritual science that describes and analyses the spiritual laws of life. It leads to an optimistic view of life, and it provides the basis for a harmonious and empathetic relationship to all people and all living things.




The Last Illusion


Book Description

Irish sleuth Molly Murphy is hired to protect none other than Harry Houdini after the on-stage death of a magician's assistant, in the latest in Bowen's award-winning series. Martin's Press.




The Illusion of Death


Book Description

In this exploration, J. Thomas Devins connects three controversial religious topics (Jesus's resurrection, Shroud of Turin and rainbow body) using their common denominator, the science of the atom. As weird, preposterous and outrageous as it sounds, we each have the capacity to dissolve our body into its atomic parts. That which happened to Jesus on the first Easter Sunday is within the capability of each human being that is willing to follow a structured, disciplined mind training lifestyle. Thousands of practitioners, mostly Tibetan Buddhists, have gracefully exited the planet, like Jesus, without leaving a corpse behind, even in modern times. The human body is but proxy for the human mind. The book is transformational for the reader and a major wakeup call to science and religion. 1) It replaces the notion of a transcendent God with the workings of the human mind. 2) Abrahamic religions, particularly Christianity, must rethink their foundational doctrines. The words of Genesis 3:19, ..".to dust you shall return" can't be universally applied. 3) Mainstream science must end its negative bias against the paranormal in its rigid methods of inquiry. The book brings the known paranormal experience that is frequently demonstrated in the laboratory by fringe science into the light of the real world. 4) The book elevates the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas into prominence. Thomas is the only Gospel that accounts for the resurrection/rainbow body phenomenon and the role of the mind. Connecting the dots, Devins concludes that we are all here, on the planet, because we intend to be here. It is in this knowledge we find the reality of reincarnation and the law of karma; sticky issues which religion and science also need to address. A lifelong Catholic, scientifically educated, and graduate of the school of hard knocks, Devins concludes that the book's revelations will be largely ignored by religion and science. Religion because it is too heavily invested in the biblical notion of death to change. Science because of its engrained attitude against the paranormal. Timely change, if it is to happen, must come from a fiery, renewed attitude of truth seeking that initiates in the Sunday morning pew.




The Illusion of Will, Self, and Time


Book Description

A Seminary Co-op Notable Book of 2016 William James is often considered a scientist compromised by his advocacy of mysticism and parapsychology. Jonathan Bricklin argues James can also be viewed as a mystic compromised by his commitment to common sense. James wanted to believe in will, self, and time, but his deepest insights suggested otherwise. "Is consciousness already there waiting to be uncovered and is it a veridical revelation of reality?" James asked shortly before his death in 1910. A century after his death, research from neuroscience, physics, psychology, and parapsychology is making the case, both theoretically and experimentally, that answers James's question in the affirmative. By separating what James passionately wanted to believe, based on common sense, from what his insights and researches led him to believe, Bricklin shows how James himself laid the groundwork for this more challenging view of existence. The non-reality of will, self, and time is consistent with James's psychology of volition, his epistemology of self, and his belief that Newtonian, objective, even-flowing time does not exist.




The Abyss of Human Illusion


Book Description

“To the novel—everyone’s novel—Sorrentino brings honor, tradition, and relentless passion.”—Don DeLillo “Sorrentino [is] a writer like no other. He’s learned, companionable, ribald, brave, mathematical, at once virtuosic and somehow without ego. Sorrentino’s books break free of the routine that inevitably accompanies traditional narrative and through a passionate renunciation shine with an unforgiving, yet cleansing, light.”—Jeffrey Eugenides “For a compelling, hilarious, and ultimately compassionate rendering of life in mid-20th-century America, forget the conscientious subjectors and take Gilbert Sorrentino at his golden Word.”—Harry Mathews “One of [Brooklyn]’s most intriguing and authentic homegrown talents, Sorrentino’s Bay Ridge deserves to be appreciated alongside Malamud’s Crown Heights, Arthur Miller’s Coney Island, Henry Miller’s and Betty Smith’s Williamsburg, Hamill’s and Auster’s Park Slope, and Lethem’s Boerum Hill.”—Bookforum Titled after a line from Henry James, Gilbert Sorrentino’s final novel consists of fifty narrative set pieces full of savage humor and cathartic passion—an elegiac paean to the bleak world he so brilliantly captured in his long and storied career. Mirroring the inexplicable coincidences, encounters, and hallmarks of modern life, this novel revisits familiar characters—the aging artists, miserable couples, crackerjack salesmen, and drunken soldiers of previous books, placing them in familiar landscapes lost in time between the Depression era and some fraudulent bohemia of the present . A luminary of American literature, Gilbert Sorrentino was a boyhood friend of Hubert Selby, Jr., a confidant of William Carlos Williams, a two-time PEN/Faulkner Award finalist, and the recipient of a Lannan Literary Lifetime Achievement Award. He taught at Stanford for many years before returning to his native Brooklyn and published over thirty books before his death in 2006.




The Last Illusion


Book Description

Once a novella bundled in 'Books of Blood' and 'Cabal,' Clive Barker's 'The Last Illusion' appears as a self-contained novel in this annotated edition.




Illusion of Life and Death


Book Description

Illusion is our life, our death. We are stuck in a dream world, but this is not a sweet dream. There is hope, but we must change. We must help ourselves, and help each other. 'Illusion of Life and Death' presents us with the complete path to enlightenment. It is a personal testament to the value and effectiveness of the Buddhist teachings and an empowering embrace of our own potential. Written to intrigue and inspire beginners, as well as nourish more experienced practitioners, 'Illusion' is essential reading for anyone interested in awakening to a happier, more enlightened world. Kyabje Dzogchen Pema Kalsang Rinpoche is one of the most eminent Lamas in Tibet and master of the Dzogchen teachings of Great Perfection. In this, his first volume of writings for a non-Tibetan audience, Kyabje Rinpoche shares what he describes as his 'entire teaching' in a style that is as much an oral teaching as a formal written instruction. 'Illusion of Life and Death' makes many profound Dzogchen teachings widely available in English for the first time.