Ways to Go Beyond and Why They Work: Seven Spiritual Practices for a Scientific Age

We are in the midst of a spiritual revival. This book is an essential guide. "Wonderfully clear and inspiring... I regard this as one of the most important books of our generation." -Larry Dossey, MD, author of One Mind "... a rare and needed voice in an apocalyptic time like ours. The practices he espouses do not take us out of the world but put us back in." -Matthew Fox, author of Original Blessing "An affable, erudite manual..." -The Times Literary Supplement To go beyond is to move into a higher state of consciousness, to a place of bliss, greater understanding, love, and deep connectedness, a realm where we finally find life's meaning. Scientist and spiritual explorer Rupert Sheldrake looks at seven spiritual practices that are personally transformative and have scientifically measurable effects. He combines the latest scientific research with his extensive knowledge of mystical traditions to show how we may tune into more-than-human realms of consciousness through psychedelics such as ayahuasca, and how everyday activities can have mystical dimensions, including sports and learning from animals. He discusses traditional religious practices such as fasting, prayer, and the celebration of festivals and holy days. Why do these practices work? Are their effects solely inside our brains and essentially illusory? Or can we really make contact with forms of consciousness greater than our own? Dr. Rupert Sheldrake is a biologist and the author of more than ninety technical papers and fourteen books, including Science Set Free. After studying at Cambridge and Harvard Universities, he worked in Hyderabad, India, as principal plant physiologist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, and lived for two years in the Benedictine ashram of Father Bede Griffiths. From 2005 to 2010, he was director of the Perrott-Warrick Project for the study of unexplained human and animal abilities, funded by Trinity College, Cambridge. He is currently a Fellow of the Institute of Noetic Sciences in Petaluma, California, and of Schumacher College in Dartington, Devon, UK. He lives in London with his wife Jill Purce, with whom he has two sons.