by Stephen Aronson (Author)
This book examines the burning existential questions of meaning and the mystery of consciousness from a scientific and psychological perspective. It is authored by a seasoned psychotherapist, whose career was inspired both by the famed analyst C. G. Jung and the mystic G. I Gurdjieff. However it does not have the character of scientific discourse-it is more a personal odyssey through the author's world, stretching back to his earliest years, spanning his professional career and dipping into the recent events of his life. It is peppered with compelling personal experiences, psychological insights and spiritual discoveries. It draws a map of the invisible reality that governs our lives, shapes our nature and perhaps determines our fate.
The author does not regard Science and Spirituality as conflicting perspectives, but as complementary views of a common reality, each looking at different sides of the same equation. He has no doubt that the two can be reconciled by direct experience of a higher quality of awareness-one which can look simultaneously towards the World without and the World within. In his words, "Moving in this direction can lead to an experience of oneself as part of the Universe, and the Universe as a reflection of oneself. When this happens, there may appear a profound sense of participation in the mystery of existence through a Consciousness that seeks to know Itself and Its purpose in existing."