Reviews (5)

An excellent manual ... if you know what you're reading.
When we take into consideration what this book is supposed to be, that is, a guide to deeper and more productive inductions, the Handbook fills this niche very well.

Those who purchase this book expecting to pour over case after case of imperical data proving the efficacy of hypnotherapy are obviously incapable of reading editorial reviews.This book is not intended to be a scientific journal of double blind tests and control experiments.Indeed, neither the authors nor any reviewer claim such.As has been made clear, this Handbook is merely meant to augment the therapist's own style and present alternatives to techniques for patients that prove to be resistant or not as highly suggestible as others.

For imperical data, consult the New England Journal.For those who have actually studied hypnosis and wish to help their clients break through barriers they thought unachievable, the Handbook is a valuable asset.

An excellent manual ... if you know what you're reading.
When we take into consideration what this book is supposed to be, that is, a guide to deeper and more productive inductions, the Handbook fills this niche very well.

Those who purchase this book expecting to pour over case after case of imperical data proving the efficacy of hypnotherapy are obviously incapable of reading editorial reviews.This book is not intended to be a scientific journal of double blind tests and control experiments.Indeed, neither the authors nor any reviewer claim such.As has been made clear, this Handbook is merely meant to augment the therapist's own style and present alternatives to techniques for patients that prove to be resistant or not as highly suggestible as others.

For imperical data, consult the New England Journal.For those who have actually studied hypnosis and wish to help their clients break through barriers they thought unachievable, the Handbook is a valuable asset.

Handbook of Hypnotic Inductions
The encyclopedic nature of this text shows a careful and complete overview of the field in addition to the practical applications gleaned from years of actual use of these methods. This book a must-have for the practitioner looking to enhance their therapeutic techniques.

Reviews (3)

One of the few books that focus on NLP as it was meant to be
If one would make of the great NLP modellers, Robert Dilts will certainly be part of the list.As well as he would make it to the top 5 list of NLP's great writers.Being one of the sudents of Dilt's Modeling & Epistemology class at NLP University, I'm quite familiar to Dilt's ideas about modelling. Much of the thinking explained in this explains the process I've been going through while writing "7 steps to emotional intelligence". The great point of NLP modelling is that it focusses on people that are excellent in a certain area (have a certain competence, supported by certain beliefs)- this book describes how you derive "the pattern that connects" by studying several experts in a domain. You get the "how" as well as examples of NLP modelling.The only problem is that it takes a considerable level of NLP skills before you can put this book into practice.

The most generative topic in NLP...
I ordered this book last year and have read it many times over. Robert succeeds in s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g out not only how to model, but how to detect patterns and replicate them. Patterns both cognitive and/or physical. He provides a framework upon which to organize all of your resources (NLP and otherwise) to get exactly what you want. What if you looked at the world in a way that everything around you was yours for the *learning* such as things which we label as 'talents', 'athletic skill', or even 'IQ'? What if everyone is truly an example of excellence, and you had the key to replicate that excellence?

I recently went to Rex Sikes' outstanding Master Prac / Modelling Seminar. This book is a welcome addition to the material presented by Rex. For those who haven't signed up for his seminar yet, this is the best book on modelling I've found.

Through modelling, the world is your oyster.

Reviews (6)

Mediocre but solid
I consider this to be your typical run of the mill NLP book. It's solid in its approach, addresses the key pieces and is well written. But it doesn't stand out.

another shallow pointless NLP book
disclaimer: I studied with Steve Andreas when he was at the top of his form and I think it was the best general experience of NLP that I have experienced, perhaps with the one exception of Richard Bandler in a peak moment.

having said that: NLP must have the worst literaure ever generated by a discipline which imagines that it should be taken seriously.

This book is simply awful, not much more or less awful than every other NLP book out there. Whatever NLP is, it doesn't translate to the written word... maybe no more than Jimi Hendrix transcriptions translate Jimi Hendrix... this detritus, and that's all it should be labelled as, this compost of concept, has all of the impact that hearing Voodoo Child played on an insipid string synthesizer at half tempo in a bloodless shopping mall out in the midwest somewhere... only much less interesting...

An interesting and informative change of pace

This book follows on from "Using Your Brain for a Change", a book based on Bandler's 1982 seminars.It's therefore a good idea to read "Using Your Brain..." before coming to this one so that you get the full benefit of the plot, so to speak.

Having said that, whilst the Andreas' willingly acknowledge their indebtedness to Bandler, this is very much their own book.

It includes plenty of information on subjects such as Timelines, the Swish pattern, eliciting criteria and submodalities - stuff that was relatively new and novel when it was first published, in 1987, but how does it look fourteen years later?
In my opinion it is still pretty relevant, and I'd expect that will have something to offer all but the most experienced NLPers, either in the sections on "life skills" or on the more directly therapy-oriented sections that deal with compulsions, destructive behaviour, etc.

One word of caution: This book is *not* presented in the same chatty style that characterises many of the Andreas' other books (including "Using Your Brain ...").The authors explain the reason thus:

This book is more technological than most, because we know that detailed technology gets results, and that the "coldest" technology can be delivered with humanity and respect.

Reviews (11)

It's subtle but powerful
As a teacher of business writing, I do not recommend this book to all my students; I only recommend it to the ones who are serious and want to take that extra step. I tell them that this is a book that shows you how to pay close attention to the words you use, whether speaking or writing, so that you maximize the impact you have on the specific person you are communicating with.

I applied some of the concepts in the book to a case study in a writing workshop I teach. Students are fascinated by it. They often say things like, "I can't believe something so subtle could be that powerful," and, "I wish I had known about this when I had so much trouble getting my previous boss to even listen to me."

The theories in the book result from research in neuro-linguistic programming. They use fancy concepts such as profiles, filters, and meta programs. But the author translates it all in a way that makes it easy to understand. And she gives hundreds of examples of how you can apply it to situations at work where you need people to listen to you, understand you, and even agree with you.

If you work in human resources, this book is especially valuable because the author provides many examples of assessing how people think. This can be used to match people to the right jobs and to help them improve their interpersonal communications.

I rated this book 5 stars because I think it is superior in all categories for a specialized communications textbook: powerful ideas, insightful author, meticulous exposition, and reasonable price.

Words and Influence
I too thought I was a good communicator.Without direction, which this book provides, I probably would have continued to underperform in this critical area.

An example: my boss is an "away-from", risk-averse individual.Until I learned to couch my words in a similar vein, he often misinterpreted and became angry with me.Now, I am happy to say we are talking more freely, with greater understanding, than ever.

The categories of influence outlined here are insightful and pratical.Some are obvious, but many hours of thoughtful observation on who is saying what, and how, could pass before one might catalog these nuggets in their entirety.

Thank goodness I discovered this fine resource.It already has repaid me in dividends of good will and understanding greater than the modest cover price.

Thankyou Rose!

Applicable in Sales, Business, Relationships, and Life
Rather than discuss the technical aspects of this book...

Through using the LAB Profile, I've become a better salesperson, businessman, friend, and father.

Reviews (7)

Very good book!
I really like the way the techniques are explained & created.

This is a very good way to learn submodalities and NLP, great introduction overall.

The most interesting part is that the focus is on areas of personality and not complex goal/mission oriented stuff (and that's good, trust me:).

Disappointing
A small book that covers a subset of the material in "Using your Brain for a Change", plus the Swish Pattern.There are a few short transcripts of Bandler, but otherwise the book is in the words of Will MacDonald.I found it too superficial to be of any use.The same material has been covered much more effectively in other books.

A supplemental text only... summary; a few examples
Read even the positive reviews here VERY carefully -- this is NOT going to be a helpful volume for learning to "change... sounds of your critical voice" unless you are simultaneously taking a training workshop (if then).

Reviews (12)

A solid and competent sourse of information
This is a book that belongs to any psychologist's book shelf; well-organized and informative. I have found so far a reference to every condition I needed to find reference about; even case on the "bashful bladder" is there.

I highly recommend it.

Mind pablum for the gullible
Mr Hammond refers favorably to the impossible claims of Milton Erickson.In fact Erickson's published accounts of his cases involve impossible-to-believe coincidences and improbabilities that raise the question:How come nobody else has ever claimed such results? (see Hypnotism Then and Now, p. 119)
Robert Baker disproved hypnotism in spades. (see They Call It Hypnosis)
And in The Disinformation Cycle, p. 40, I wrote,"If hypnotism existed, somebody would have proven it by now.Hypnotism has never been demonstrated to exist, and almost certainly does not exist."Anyone who thinks otherwise should ask himself:How come the one incontrovertible demonstration of hypnotism's reality, that could not be explained away as playacting, self-delusion or "trying harder," remains as unattainable today as it was in Anton Mesmer's time?
As with all other paranormal and pseudo-medical delusions, believers in hypnotism tend to be impervious to an infinite amount of evidence that all credible positive results are attributable to the placebo effect.This book is useful to any humbug who wishes to prey on the gullible by claiming abilities that do not exist.

Reviews (3)

Comprehensive Manual - Highly Recommended
"You can, by just saying some words, send people into wild and wonderful places and give them altered experiences, and possibly change their lives, empower them with new abilities and much more."

This is a well-researched book on hypnotic language patterns.The first part of the book provides an in-depth analysis of perception, communication, hypnotic language and trance states.

The rest of the book provides examples demonstrating applications and effect of hypnotic language patterns.

The purpose of hypnotherapy is to help the individual dissolve inner limitations which are creating the problem.Since these limitations arise from one's perception, hypnotic language is for the most part directed at altering one's perception, helping the individual to rise above the limitation and become aware of the solution.

Many examples in this book include metaphors where specific hypnotic language patterns have been incorporated.The author provides an insightful analysis of the problems presented together with hypnotic language patterns used and the solutions that manifested as a result of them.

At the end of the book is an overview of the Milton Model - meta-model violations: deletions, distortions, generalizations, complex equivalences, cause-effect, etc. followed by specific language patterns for artful vagueness: double binds, phonological ambiguities, embedded commands, conversational postulates, etc.

Must have text into the study of hypnotic language
The structural and academic (rather clinical) approach adopted by the author successfully chunk down rather coarse and large concepts into tasty , easy to swallow chewy bits.
A must have text for further practice of both the meta and milton model interventions. Tons of examples that you can use even on yourselves...now...won't you?

Reviews (22)

Hypnosis Transcendent
This is an excellent resource for almost any therapy-minded hypnotist or hypnotism-minded psychotherapist, even one with experience. Before my first slow reading a couple of years ago, I knew many of the well-known approaches and techniques Elias lays out and explains in this wonderful book. But there's always the possibility of yet more elegant ways to work, so I found myself, bit by bit, expanding my whole idea of the profundity of the healing attainable in a one-on-session as I worked my way through.

It is, of course, not a book I could just sit down and read through. It's a textbook/workbook for Elias' full hypnosis/NLP certification class, so I'd expect careful readers to expect to stop and think and practice.So I spent time with it, and it seeped into me. Then, as is the way of men, I forgot about it for a while, although lots stayed with me in my client sessions, which had changed and evolved for many reasons, one of which what I had gained from my reading of Elias. I've picked up some of the language ( I love the Higher Self text, and use some variant of it every session. It's a great place to start working any other technique. Now, two years later, I've gone through it again, and I appreciate what Elias has done even more.I'm getting another leap forward out of it.

It comes from a different perspective from the vast majority of hypnosis schools that teach more or less a standard curriculum of quite valuable and useful info and practices. What Elias teaches is how to put those same techniques and various NLP methods, in the context of spiritual healing. It's not just another step. It's a whole other dimension of practice. What's the therapist's task? "Learning to awaken from the dominance of the fixating thinking mind, from the limiting trance state." Nor need we merely substitute a slightly better trance state for the one the client came in with. That would be to fall for the "self-improvement trap." Oh no, we can have much more fun than that. Elias is among the masters who recognize that everyday realities are trance states. What about the beliefs we have held from childhood about how everything is - our dearest truths? Milton Erickson said, probably more than once,"the deepest trance you'll ever be in is the family trance."
So Elias says: "The goal of transpersonal therapy is to wake up to our OKness, not to solve problems within the realm of the reactive mind theater." So placing the concept of the client's core purity (or inherent divinity) at the center of every session, allowing it to pervade every aspect, helps break the client's habitual trance (the deep-grooved neural trails they came with), while offering a state of realization to the client that is at least an onion layer closer to where they'd really like to be. And they really would, you can bet on it. Every one.

This work is a lovely resource that should add something valuable to almost anyone's practice. His way of doing Parts Therapy is the best I've seen, and he adds clarity to what regression therapy is all about. Lots of other goodies. Go look if you want to play.
Great material. Great point of view. Along with Dave Elman's book, the astonishing Rossi-Cheek Mind-Body Therapy, TranceFormations, by Bandler and Grinder, this has been one of the hypnosis books I've been most influenced by. It shows compassion for clients, hypnotists new and old, and all other sentient beings.

Informative.Just get past the horrible editing!
I had a very difficult time getting through this book.The editing is non-existent. There are several typos and errors on every page and most of the pages were crooked. The writing style is also very choppy:From one topic and chapter to another with absolutely no lead-in. A weak and somewhat usefull section on Archetypes but other than that, boring stuff and very painful to read. Strange book indeed!

Reviews (5)

Bad science
Ive never been comfortable with this writers attempts to prove that NLP is scientific, and in that respect this book is worst than most.For example, on page 90 Dilts writes

"The quality of information that we have in our senses is somehow coded more precisely for the real experience than the imagined one, and that's what makes the difference."

Of course that first phrase doesnt make a lot of sense because the information goes THROUGH our senses to our brain.Information isnt stored IN our senses,But that is only half of the problem.The other half is this (it was written about two years AFTER Sleight of Mouth was published)

"We also need to know whether there are reliable ways to distinguish a true memory from a false one.As of now, there are not, although many behavioural and neuro-imaging studies are attempting to find one."

This comes from a 2001 article co-authored by Elizabeth Loftus.
And Elizabeth Loftus, Professor of psychology at the University of Washington, in Seattle, is one of the worlds leading experts on false memory.

So who can we believe?A bloke with no specialist qualifications or experience, or a professor of psychology and inventor of the famous/infamous "shopping mall" experiment?

Groupies will no doubt invent reasons why Mr Dilts must know better than erveryone else.But the smart money is on the Prof.

Ben Johnson once told a would-be author

"Your book os good and original.But the the good parts aren't original, and the original parts aren't good"

Same thing applies here.

Why wait so long?
I can't really understand why Mr Dilts thought he had to write this book at all since what it does is re-present some of the most basic NLP techniques as though they were something brand new.Mr Dilts actually tells us at one point that the ideas he is explaining were formulated in 1980 or thereabouts and so it seems sort of strange that this book came out in 1999.Why wait so long?And why go over again material which because of the long delay is now the core material for every book that calls itself an introduction to NLP?
BTW it is slightly inaccurate to suggest that Mr Dilts is anything less than a "well established" author on NLP.He was involved with the group at Santa Cruz which originally developed NLP, and his earliest books date back at least as far as 1980 when he wrote 'NLP Volume 1' along with Bandler, Grinder and Judith DeLozier.At least ten of his books, probably more, are still in print.Are there any other NLP writers who can rival those statistics?

Accelerates past the mediocre NLP attempts
Big fonts, humorous approach and a high-degree of practicability makes this book an easy read. You'd learn strategies like Chunking, Reframing and Heirarchy of Criteria which easily create environments of belief change and cooperation in almost any encounter.

In contrast to the more established authors on the genre, Dilts takes NLP from the "mysical heights" and magically transforms it into knowledge that total newbies can comprehend in just a day.

Editorial Review

Reviews (103)

Who could tell?
It does look like a cheap paperback and it doesn't cost much, indeed. There the similarity with the cheap-looking paperback ends. The book is really grand; it laied a foundation for a whole new trend in psychological thought. There since have been numerous books about the subconscious mind and the way it's working, but it all started with The Power of Your Subconscious Mind.

Help to be positive & get over fears *Spiritual & Scientific
A friend lent me this book because of he said it helped him. This book uses a lot of great stories, anaologies & some bible lines. I'm not of any religious demonination so I just go past those bible passages which are very few.

This book is great in how it uses a lot of scientific studies & pyschology to help makes it's point. It only uses religion & the golden rules to say that that has been known for centuries. He even quotes many well known sucessful people such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Thomas Edison & even Marcus Aurelius.It's not written with just fluff. The book is easy to read & not pompous in any way. It also never puts you down for any bad habits or thinking.

The only time he seems to slip when he advises you how to deal with people who enjoy misery or use manipulation to force people through guilt, fear, etc. to do their desires.He seems to disain those people. At least he has good advice to use love & never to allow them to "get" to you. He knows hate does not conquer hate/fear, only love is your own recourse. You don't have to even like someone or to be their friend or be forced to have them in your life to purely love people & wish them well & happiness. That alone will help you to be serene, calm & have a better perspective in life. He knows when you hate someone for whatever reason, they WILL know you do subconsciously & will subconsiously hate you back. This can be a great hindrence especially if it's a boss. You must get over it & not hate them & try to see the best in them. You don't have to want to be their friend, but just keep their good attributes in your mind & wish them happiness in life. There is no evil in anyone, there is only hurt, fear, grief, feeling neglected & depression that makes people lash out. No one is above those feelings sometime in their life.

Reviews (4)

Fun and Effective Way to Learn Hypnotic Language
This is a set of 52 playing cards, each one containing one hypnotic language pattern and an example of how you may use it.

Words which constitute embedded commands are marked with italic letters on the cards.

The cards come with all instructions you need to begin practice using hypnotic language patterns.You can carry them with you and use them as "flash cards" to help you memorize the patterns, or even better play games with your friends, where each person in turn has a chance to come up with some fun ideas.

Here are examples from three Zebu cards:

* * *

Eventually ...

Eventually everything comes to pass.Eventually what I want to direct your attention to will probably come to pass as well.Eventually you will develop a deep understanding of these difficult events in your life, and you will find some hidden value in them.Eventually, indirect language patterns will become second nature to you.Imagine that.

* * *

I don't know if _____.

I don't know if you're going to like this game better than any other learning game you've ever played.I don't know what things in particular you will enjoy the most.I really don't know if this experience is going go change your life.Don't ask me, I don't know.

* * *

Maybe you haven't ..., yet.

Maybe you haven't, maybe you have, who knows, I'm just making an observation, but when that yet comes along, there's a strong implication that sooner or later you're going to!Maybe you haven't decided to buy copies of Zebu for all of your friends ... yet.Who knows?There's still time ... It's just an observation.

People can enjoy learning, can't they?
Wow, this powerful little pack of playing cards makes learning hypnotic language patterns actually fun. There are many ways to use them. I play solitaire with them and practice using the pattern on whatever card I flip.

If you want to learn these powerful language patterns naturally - consider this a tiny investment. They will make you more persuasive right away.

Reviews (2)

Life changing stuff
The quality of your life is a reflection of the beliefs you have running around in your brain.

Mind Lines is the best book I have read that describes the magic of NLP and the profound impact reframing limiting beliefs can have on one's life.

Limiting beliefs are toxic ideas that hold us back from being who we truly are. They distort a person's map of reality one uses to navigate through life. Brains make meanings and associations very quickly at an unconscious level. Once the belief has been formed it drops into your unconscious and runs your life. Some beliefs are good, others can derail your life.

Because of the powerfully pervasive nature of beliefs, we need to step in and 'undo' beliefs that don't serve us well.

I read this book at a stressful time in my life. I had just had a relationship fail on me that was important to me, my life wasn't going anywhere except where it was programmed to go - nowhere.

Mind Lines helped me pull apart the limiting beliefs quickly and easily. No visulisation exercises, no repeating of affirmations for weeks (although there's nothing wrong with those exercises). Some of the reframe shifts are so freeing that I began to reassess my entire life in light of the new way of looking at things I had gained.

I'm not fantasticlally rich or married to a supermodel (yet!) but I sure do feel like I have more control over my life.

The short synopsis: get this book!

Reviews (7)

How come....

I previously read the "How to use the Laws of Mind", and as in that book, I recognized that the ideas and even the examples of this book were written in another book series; The Words (I, II), The Letters and The Flashes from Said Nursi. (in a more better, structured and detailed way) If you like this book, you'll love those as well....

Wide Ranging Work on the Power of the Subconscious
I've read several of Dr. Murphy's books and it is clear that he was one of the great authorities on the power of the subconscious mind.My personal favorite is "Telepsychics," but this book is a nice introduction to the benefits of controlling your own thought patterns.In today's society, everyone has ample opportunity to consider themselves victimized in some way.If you are tired of these types of defeatist thought patterns, read this book to learn a new way.Although the author utilizes many Biblical references, this is not a book that is exclusively for Christians.This philosophy is extremely inclusive.My only complaint is that some of the material is naturally a bit dated, since the book was originally published 40 years ago.

All things are possible when you believe...
I don't have time to write much but I wanted to post a quick review because this book is wonderful and I hope this review will encourage someone to pick it up.I was first led to JM's teaching about 1.5 years ago and my life hasn't been the same since.I am always eager to read and learn from someone whos attitude is "don't have 'faith' in what I am saying, try it and prove it to yourself"! You will surely do so by following the principles in his books.

I particularly got a lot out of Chapter 16 where he gives an account of how someone achieved what is typically thought of as impossible.As he states powerfully, "if a man believe[s] he can experience [whatever his belief is].

God bless you even though you are no longer physically with us Joseph Murphy.I would be so happy if someone reads this, is encouraged to buy the book, follows the principles and has their life changed for the good just as mine continually has since understanding the laws of mind and of life.

Reviews (8)

Future Memory: Expanding the Boundaries of Your Mind
This is a "heavy" book that shakes up all preconceived notions we have of memory, space, time, creation, and consciousness. The insights are based on P.M.H. Atwater's near-death experiences (she had three) and her scientific research, which include several hundred interviews she conducted with others who had near-death experiences. The author boldly declares that "The brain can rearrange itself in as little as fifteen minutes, if excited in novel and creative ways. Time is accelerating. The atomic clocks have been reset 19 times since 1972. Recent shifts in the earth's magnetic and electric fields are affecting our immune systems, fatigue levels, and weather. To keep up with our changing times, we too must change. The future is now! Return to an awareness of the Spiral's Edge where all things can be seen. Guidance from your soul awaits."

This book requires you to be completely open to new theories regarding our existence. For example, P.M.H. Atwater explains how movies appear to be continuous but are just a series of still shots separated by periods of darkness. In the same way, a chord of music is really a series of notes separated by silence. Atwater theorizes that "The subconscious mind regularly absorbs more than a billion pieces of information per second," and that "our brains are so bombarded that less than 1 percent of what comes in ever reaches the conscious mind." These insights encourage you to be more aware of the space in things and the space in ourselves.

Future Memory is a tool to help you evolve to a higher level of consciousness. It allows you to be more receptive to new ideas and to become more comfortable with the cycles of life and death. You may not resonate with all of her theories; to do so will take time, requiring a complete shift of your paradigms and some first-hand experience. But the concepts are imbued with truth. For instance, "There are only two religions on this earth, the religion of love and the religion of fear," and "the only gospel we can ever know is the experience of God in our own heart ... Enlightenment is ongoing, not a plateau we achieve, as the term describes an evolutionary shift from one phase of brain function to another, opening the way for dimensions of experience without number and realm of spirit without end."

tall tales
I agree with the previous reviewer that the author's science is shaky at best. In fact, I don't know if I've ever read anything that took so many liberties with other people's theories and hypotheses; she embellishes, exaggerates, fabricates if necessary. Nevertheless, it's a worthwhile book. The author's experiences are fascinating, although they should be regarded with a little skepticism, judging from the way she handles information in general. This is unfortunate because it would be a wonderful book if she could maintain the trust of the reader. I recommend the book to all but the gullible; choose for yourself what parts of it are worth savoring and what parts are better off forgotten.

Reviews (14)

Skip It!
Wow. I was expecting at least some form of interesting analysis based on all the previous reviews. Sargant makes use of the science that was available to him at his time, which is obviously sorely outdated - (Although I was impressed that he understood the inherente flaws in psychoanalysis).
One example of how outdated the book is: "prefrontal leucotomy," the REMOVAL of the frontal lobes of the brain, is hailed by Sargant as a promising new practice.Again, Sargant can't be blamed for the time period in which he lived, but you don't have to waste your time reading this book.
I was thoroughly disappointed by the lack of thesis and the lack of any mildly persuasive arguments.
Skip this book!
I gave it one star because of the hilarious picture and caption on page 222. The picture shows two teenagers dancing at a concert with the caption: "Similar effects being produced in a nonreligious setting in Great Britain by the use of rhythmic drumming and dancing in the craze for "Rock and Roll."

Battle for the mind
This book belongs on every bookshelf.Though, at times a little too technical for the lay readers, but the stuff inside are important for us to understand how people's belief patterns and behavior throughout life are susceptible to change by techniques employed by many professionals and establishments.This is a book that will be read and read over again.

Reviews (5)

Who is the subject of evolution?
With some reservations I found this compendium of disparate information a useful survey and a flying question mark about the meaning of the term 'evolution', a term long since fallen into a ditch whence it stumbles forth into still more confusion, with a black eye from the brain-dead Darwin debate. The number of wild pitches (the phantom index in most such books being high)is not out of hand. The New Age attempts to define the term 'evolution' are at their best as an indirect comment on Darwinian versions, but fail as soon as they attempt to remap its meaning in 'spiritual' terms. Nevertheless this text indicates the only avenue of approach, which is to map out just what creature it is that we are supposed to be explaining. And the answer is that we don't know. The temporary ongoing 'conclusion' is that we can't produce a theory of evolution because we haven't the foggiest what man's 'evolutionary psychology' really is. But one thing is clear, Darwinism is very far off the mark, and the current ostrich style of pontificating the subtle side of man out of existence in the name of Darwin's phoney theory can't go on forever. Or maybe it can. Scientists simply don't respond to suggestions that they don't have a grip on man, and who man is.
The standard problem with books like this (and this one is much better than most)is the 'passing of bad pennies', sudden passages of garbage in, garbage out. That is, metaphysical versions of occult or other 'spiritual' phenomena. The road is long and hard here, but, taken with reserve, we have grounds for protest at the amputation of man being enforced in an age of Big Science dogma.
One problem is that New Age thinking has spawned a category of 'self-evolution' and this has become the favorite of many gurus, and others. This attempt to appropriate the word 'evolution' adds still more confusion. The problem is that 'evolution' is confused with 'self-realization', the evolution of that self being unknown, a mystery of the descent of humans in the Paleolithic. Sometimes evolution and involution are confused or braided together. It is not true that realized men have a better understanding of evolution. Indeed, the legacy of gurus show they can't reckon their own history,let alone the large scale development of the species man. It is worth noting the legacy of German classical philosophy, as this suggests, prior to such figures as Hegel, the 'noumenal' aspect of the conscious subject. That insight might be helpful in putting the labyrinth in perspective, for the New Age field is littered with metaphysical zoo items mixed with the genuine insights into the sheer complexity of human nature that make the 'sociobiology crammed down our throats' an episode of primitive hi-tech cavemen. The implications of the Axial Age concept and data give one hint of the scale of 'macro evolution' that transcends even the insights of the Enlightened, for there we see the 'generated' aspect of world religion, acting beyond the realm of the oblivious yogi, what to say of the mechanized monotheist.
Usefully provoking book, taken with considerable caution.

Interesting Book
I gave this book 5 stars because it is very extensive in its scope - it is not, however, the final word on this topic, there is more - I guess there is always more and there are always even more amazing stories.The book explores different phenomena, some rather rare and unusual, as in the following excerpt:

"Thurston quoted a sister Margherita Cortonesi:

"On one occasion, among others, when [Sister Veronica] being in a trance state was reciting her Office alternately with some invisible being, she was observed gradually to stretch out until the length of her throat seemed to be out of all proportion in such a way that she was altogether much taller than usual.We, noticing this strange occurrence, looked to see if she was raised from the ground, but this, so far as our eyes could tell, was not the case.So, to make sure, we took a yard-measure and measured her height, and afterwards when she had come to herself we measured her again, and she was at least a span (ten inches or more) shorter.This we have seen with our own eyes, all of us nuns who were in the chapel."

In 1629, a Donna Hortenzia Ghini stated under oath that:

"Sister Lisabetta Pancrazi, formerly a nun in the same convent, told me that on one occasion, seeing that the said Sister Veronica when in ecstasy seemed taller than in her normal state, took a yard-measure and measured her height, and that after the said Sister Veronica came to herself she measured her again with the said yard-measure, and she found that she was half an arm's length shorter."

Among other religious who allegedly exhibited elongation, the Capuchiness Abbess Costante Maria Castreca was said to have grown a considerable height from the ground during a religious ecstasy; the Venerable Domenica dal Paradiso grew taller in trance, according to her spiritual director and confidants.Because such phenomena were not thought to be marks of holiness, they were noted simply because they were unusual.

I include such phenomena in this discussion because they indicate the body's responsiveness to altered states of mind.When consciousness is released from some of its ordinary constraints, whether in ecstasies or dissociated states, ligaments and muscles are sometimes liberated too.:

Encyclopedic, Compelling, but Not Entirely Convincing,
This is an ambitious book, and must have been a labor of love for Mr. Murphy. It is a thorough treatment of every conceivable mystical or healing arts practice, with plenty of anecdotal evidence, some of it well supported, some not. I say the book is not convincing because so much of this stuff is so bizarre that I need to "see it to believe it." For example, exhumed bodies of highly religious poeple, such as saints, that show no decomposition after years of being buried. How could that be possible? Without photographs you just have to take the witnesses' words as gospel...or not.

Reviews (1)

Reviews (23)

An Intense Read: Delightfully Brilliant & Engaging
This book is not for the casual reader, it's not an easy read (found myself frequently referring to the glossary and also rereading several sentences & even paragraphs to ensure I grasped all of it), it's intense, it's not so much as the way the book is written but it's the nature of the topic itself, it's complex (the book covers wide ranging topics ...Physics, Quantum Physics, Mysticism, Religion, Spirituality, Mind-Body Connection, Philosophy, Psychology...Etc.) nevertheless, Goswami has done a commendable job explaining some difficult concepts and putting forward his argument that our consciousness creates the material world. The book is delightful in the sense that every so often Goswami comes up with a neat little tale or a story or a quote or fable or a startling observation to illustrate his point.

I liked Part 1, where the concepts from old classical physics (some of the concepts felt very familiar but not the terminology for them ...Strong objectivity, Causal determinism, Locality, Material monism, Epiphenomenalism) are discussed and compared with quantum physics topics such as the Wave-Particle Duality, Quantum Jump, Quantum action-at-a-distance, Non-locality...Etc (there are several books that discuss quantum world but this is the only one that I have read that will discuss quantum physics keeping old physics as a backdrop). Part 1 leads (via The Philosophy of Monistic Idealism: this is what the book is about) into Part 2.

I liked Part 3, titled "Self-Reference: How the One Becomes Many", specifically the chapters about the Mind-Body problem and the search for the Quantum Mind (brain-mind has both classical and quantum components).

Part 4, titled "The Re-Enchantment of the Person" (although very informative and well researched) feels less focused; there are so many tangents to so many different ideas & topics, it feels diffused and deviated yet some how complete at the same time.

This is definitely worth reading, I recommend this book

Entertaining but simplistic
The book starts with a brief and incomplete introduction to quantum mechanics. It assumes you have no previous knowledge of the subject but I have to admit that, having prior knowledge of quantum mechanics, I found Goswami's introduction some what deficient. He conceals many interpretations of quantum mechanics and only speaks of the one interpretation that makes his thesis plausible - which undermines the strength of his argument.
He then goes on to explain the different hypotheses of material realism and also briefly explains the different theories of mind. One weakness in Goswami's book is his irritating usage of bed time stories to explain difficult concepts. I am sure he could have done that, as hundreds have done before him, without resorting to such distractions. I found the part where he talked about the 'quantum and classical selves' a very interesting and fresh notion. Understanding it definetly creates a place for a new conceptualisation of the relationship of consciousness to our brain/mind. The final chapter is basicly an exposition of goswami's own beliefs which he tries to convince us are the plausible conclusions of his thesis. I was left smiling and somewhat peacful but utterly not convinced. To me, it seems Goswami, following on the mood of his book, made a huge but irrational 'quantum leap'.

Reviews (1)