How do trances, visions, prayer, satori, and other mystical experiences “work”? What induces and defines them? Is there a scientific explanation for religious mysteries and transcendent meditation?John Horgan investigates a wide range of fields — chemistry, neuroscience, psychology, anthropology, theology, and more — to narrow the gap between reason and mystical phenomena. As both a seeker and an award-winning journalist, Horgan consulted a wide range of experts, including theologian Huston Smith, spiritual heir to Joseph Campbell; Andrew Newberg, the scientist whose quest for the “God module” was the focus of a Newsweek cover story; Ken Wilber, prominent transpersonal psychologist; Alexander Shulgin, legendary psychedelic drug chemist; and Susan Blackmore, Oxford-educated psychologist, parapsychology debunker, and Zen practitioner.Horgan explores the striking similarities between “mystical technologies” like sensory deprivation, prayer, fasting, trance, dancing, meditation, and drug trips. He participates in experiments that seek the neurological underpinnings of mystical experiences. And, finally, he recounts his own search for enlightenment — adventurous, poignant, and sometimes surprisingly comic. Horgan’s conclusions resonate with the controversial climax of The End of Science, because, as he argues, the most enlightened mystics and the most enlightened scientists end up in the same place — confronting the imponderable depth of the universe.

    Design for Information critically examines other design solutions —current and historic— helping you gain a larger understanding of how to solve specific problems. This book is designed to help you foster the development of a repertoire of existing methods and concepts to help you overcome design problems. Learn the ins and outs of data visualization with this informative book that provides you with a series of current visualization case studies. The visualizations discussed are analyzed for their design principles and methods, giving you valuable critical and analytical tools to further develop your design process. The case study format of this book is perfect for discussing  the histories, theories and best practices in the field through real-world, effective visualizations. The selection represents a fraction of effective visualizations that we encounter in this burgeoning field, allowing you the opportunity to extend your study to other solutions in your specific field(s) of practice. This book is also helpful to students in other disciplines who are involved with visualizing information, such as those in the digital humanities and most of the sciences.

    We live in a world of vivid colors, and color marks our psychological and social existence. But for all color’s inescapability, we don’t know much about it. Now authors David Scott Kastan and Stephen Farthing offer a fresh and imaginative exploration of one of the most intriguing and least understood aspects of everyday experience.Kastan and Farthing, a scholar and a painter, respectively, investigate color from numerous perspectives: literary, historical, cultural, anthropological, philosophical, art historical, political, and scientific. In ten lively and wide-ranging chapters, each devoted to a different color, they examine the various ways colors have shaped and continue to shape our social and moral imaginations. Each individual color becomes the focal point for a consideration of one of the extraordinary ways in which color appears and matters in our lives. Beautifully produced in full color, this book is a remarkably smart, entertaining, and fascinating guide to this elusive topic.

    Patterns of Home promises to become the "design bible" for homeowners and architects. The 10 patterns described in the book -- among them, "capturing light" and "the flow through rooms" -- are drawn from hundreds of principles and presented with clarity by the authors, renowned architects who have designed homes together for more than 30 years.Patterns of Home will jump-start the design process and make the difference between a home that satisfies material requirements -- and one that meets the personal needs of "home."-- Insightful tours of 33 homes that bring essential design concepts to life-- 300 photos and 50 illustrations illustrate the patterns

    And when he finds this God he tells his brothers, saying: “If I had not come and spoken to you, you would have no sin, but now you have no excuse for your sins.” God reveals himself to man as his eternal contemporary, saying: “Unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins,” but man finds it almost impossible to keep the tense. He thinks of God in the third person, addresses him in the second person, but can only know God in a first person, present tense experience. Just imagine - no one can sin until God reveals himself to the individual in a first person, present tense experience. Only then can man have no excuse for his sin. And when one who finds God tells his brothers, he receives no greater reception than the first one did, because they see him as a man of flesh and blood, and cannot see this invisible being who says: “I came down from heaven.” Man is looking for Christ to come from without, but his revelation is whispered from within.

    From afar, it looks like they did it with ease...but the truth is much more complicated."--InnerFidelityFor everyone who didn't win the venture capital lottery,or everyone who wasn't born with a trust fund,for everyone who doesn't have rich relatives...This is the story of how real start-ups work. This is how to turn a dream into a multimillion dollar business—without selling out, without spending a mint on marketing, and without losing your sense of humor.Meet Schiit Audio, a company born in a garage that went on to change the face of high-end personal audio—challenging the idea that everything must be made in China, rejecting old ideas about advertising and social awareness, and forging our own unforgettable brand. This is our (improbable) story.Here’s to your own stories—and your success!

    Four years later it had already been through six printings, and he followed up over the next two decades with a series of even more successful how-to books that remain the gold standard for artists to this day.Creative Illustration is considered Loomis's magnum opus, which was aimed primarily at the professional-level illustrator. Divided into seven sections: Line, Tone, Color, Telling the Story, Creating Ideas, Fields of Illustration, and Experimenting and Studies, this book is filled with instructions, tips, insider experiences, and incredible illustrations.

    Japan Style introduces 20 special residences. With more than 200 color photographs, this book showcases the stunning beauty of old homes, and reveals how they are cared for by their owners.Traditional Japanese homes, with superbly crafted fine wood, great workmanship and seasonal interior arrangements, have an aesthetic of infinite simplicity. Unlike Japanese inns and historical buildings, the houses featured in this book are private property and are not open to public viewing. Japan Style offers a rare glimpse into the intimate world of the everyday Japanese and fascinating insight into the traditional architecture of Japan.

    It can be used in a variety of disciplines and is ideal for an introductory comprehensive undergraduate or graduate level course. Through its conversational, informal style it makes material that is often challenging for students both accessible and understandable. The Research Methods Knowledge Base, 3e covers everything from the development of a research question to the writing of a final report, describing both practical and technical issues of sampling, measurement, design and analysis.

    His uniqueness lies not only in the fact that at the young age of 19 and a half, he travelled to snow clad Himalayas from Kerala, and there he met and lived for several years with a ‘real-time’ yogi, Babaji, but also that he should undertake such an unusual and adventurous exploration, given his non-Hindu birth and antecedents.The metamorphosis of Mumtaz Ali Khan into Sri ‘M’, a yogi with profound knowledge of the Upanishads and deep personal insights, born of first hand experiences with higher levels of consciousness is indeed a fascinating story.The bonus for those interested in the secrets of yoga, meditation and sankhyan metaphysics is that Sri ‘M’ is still living and easily reachable. He leads a normal life, married with two children, wears no special robes and conducts himself without pomp or paraphernalia.Someone who met him recently said, “I expected a flashy godman and instead I saw a jean clad gentleman with a smile of his face, ready to discuss my problems. In five minutes flat, I said to myself, this is no ordinary man. The peace and tranquility that enters your system is tangible”.

    Gathering edible wild food is a lovely way to forge a connection to the earth. Mushrooms are the ultimate local food source; they grow literally everywhere, from mountains and woodlands to urban and suburban parks to your own backyard.The Complete Mushroom Hunter, Revised is a new edition of Quarry's successful Complete Mushroom Hunter. It will enrich your understanding of the natural world and build an appreciation for an ancient, critically relevant, and useful body of knowledge. Amateur mycologists and mushroom enthusiasts will find this is a guidebook for their passion. Mushroom guru Gary Lincoff escorts you from the mushroom's earliest culinary awakening, through getting equipped for mushroom forays, to preparing and serving the fruits of the foray, wherever you live. Inside you'll find: A brief, but colorful history of mushroom hunting worldwide; how to get equipped for a mushroom foray; a completely illustrated guide to the common wild edible mushrooms and their poisonous look-alikes -- where to find them, how to identify them, and more; how to prepare and serve the fruits of your foray, plus more than 30 delicious recipes; plus, dozens of colorful, priceless anecdotes from living the mushroom lifestyle.

    No Jobs. No friends. Just buckets of our own ignorance. Follow along in horror and hilarity as the family acclimates to the new small town way of life and the author bounces from jobs working in a school cafeteria to selling women’s clothing in a call center to opening a barbecue restaurant. Written in a smart, self-deprecating, salty style, Small Town Ho is all at once poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, full of the struggle of an ordinary family consisting of three boys, one big black lab, one assassin of a cat, and two very tired parents.

    

    It has drama, comedy, romance and even action! Who knew that a boy from a small town in India would one day become one of the most recognized actors in the world and go on to win various national and international awards for his contribution in the fields of cinema and the arts? A powerhouse of talent with over 530 films (and counting) in his repertoire, Anupam Kher stands out not only because of his iconic bald head, but also for his forthright views and opinions, however controversial they may be. He has always been distinct and offbeat. His autobiography is, too... for it is not just another chronological account of his life with behind-the-scenes looks at both Bollywood and Hollywood. It's also peppered with incredible life lessons that are bound to resonate with every reader. Here is a kaleidoscopic peep into the life and times of a true genius and forever entertainer.

    Presented by an expert in both traditions, the techniques of Reiki and the principles of shamanism are explained in simple, concise terms, then brought together using real-life examples to show how Reiki can be practiced within the shamanic journey. Supported by mastery exercises, references to other books, and internet resources, both novices and experienced practitioners will expand their knowledge and ability to help subjects clear old energies and accelerate their "soul purpose."