Bøger udgivet af Hays (Nicolas) Ltd ,U.S.

Jeffery Raff illustrates the spiritual nature of Jungian psychology and the debt it owes to the tradition of esoteric religion. Unlike other books on Jung and alchemy which contain a psychological interpretation of alchemical material, this work uses alchemy to understand the three cornerstones of Jungian spirituality -- the self, the transcendent function, and active imagination. Through the interpretation of alchemical imagery, Raff explains the nature of these three concepts and illustrates how together they form a new model of contemporary Western spirituality. This book is also unique in selecting alchemical texts for analysis that are relatively unknown and which, for the most part, have never been interpreted. In addition, he presents two new concepts -- the ally and the psychoid realm. Using these ideas, and the new understanding that they offer, it is possible to apply alchemical imagery to transpsychic experience; that is, to a world of spirits which may not be reduced to psychological concepts. By including this realm in the study of alchemy and Jungian thought, it is possible to gain insights into the nature of visionary and ecstatic experiences that form part of the path of individuation -- the road to completion.

Scientists and mystics throughout history have realized that every human being is a carrier of opposite and complementary life energies. Given a variety of names -- yin and yang, poetic and rational, emotional and intellectual, feminine and masculine -- these energies exist in everyone, regardless of sex. Androgyny involves recognizing the eternal flux of these opposing energies within us.On a journey that takes us through Taoism, Gnosticism, Kabbalah, Alchemy, Astrology, Tibetan Tantra, Kundalini Yoga, and the works of Plato, Freud, and Jung, June Singer shows how crucial awareness of the androgynous soul has been to those inquiring into the mysteries of human nature. Consciousness of our own androgyny can lead to a new sense of personal unity within the larger universe. It is no accident that men and women today are expressing previously undeveloped sides of their natures.One of the most thorough investigations of the subject in the current literature, Androgyny is full of psychological and spiritual insights that speak to today's sexual confusion. Singer shows how we can embrace both complementary and contradictory attitudes toward sex and gender. Finally, she proposes a range of choices by which we can identify ourselves, secure that the masculine/feminine interaction within each of us is not only normal but the dynamic factor in our wholeness.

The Sepher Yetzirah or "Book of Formation," although very short, is probably the most important of the Kabalistic texts. Its secrets were passed on in the Hebrew oral tradition until it was written down in the 2nd century BCE. It lays out the principles of Kabalistic cosmology and the Tree of Life, how humankind (the microcosm) reflects the Divine (the macrocosm). It also sets forth the Hebrew doctrine of Logos--the creation of the world in numbers, letters, and sound, and therefore is a seminal text for all serious magicians. Stenring has made a word-for-word translation from several texts.choosing only those parts which he believed to be authentic. He reveals the text's secrets in his diagrams, tables, and extensive notes. His "Master Key" to the theoretical and practical Kabala is a diagram of the correspondences between the English and Hebrew alphabets and is not found in other translations of the Sepher Yetzirah. Also unique in this translation is Stenring's assignment of certain tarot cards to the paths on the Tree of Life. Several authors have done this before, but Stenring asserts that he arrived at his correspondences on his own. The introduction by Waite surveys the historical background of the Sepher Yetzirah translations and the import of this foundational Kabbalistic text. R.A. Gilbert's foreword provides background information on Waite's interest and involvement with Stenring's translation.