The doctor said, "Don't try it -you could die on the operating table." A scary thought, but the alternative was worse

""Something very ancient and very new is being presented here Gary Stamper is bringing together many disciplines, much experience, fine scholarship, and good writing style too.""
-Richard Rohr, OFM, Center for Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and author of "Wild Man to Wise Man" and "Adam's Return"
""Gary Stamper has done a masterful job of pulling together various integral and visionary shamanic approaches to assist the change that is greatly needed for not only men of all ages but also for the masculine that is ready to be activated within us all.""
-Linda Star Wolf, author of six books, including "Visionary Shamanism: Activating the Imaginal Cells of the Human Energy Field"
"Awakening the New Masculine "is a brave, exciting and significant contribution to one of the most important aspects of our time- the birth of a New Sacred Masculine capable of being fiercely and tenderly protective of the world and human life.""
-Andrew Harvey, Author of "The Hope a Guide to Sacred Activism"

"Awakening the New Masculine" is a bridge from the first wave of the mythopoetic men's movement of the last twenty-five years to what is only now beginning to emerge. Gary Stamper points the way to the second wave of men's work with humor, intelligence, and the kind of compassion that holds men accountable-daring, insisting, and giving them the tools they need to step up to a new way of being men.

You're going to awaken to the real possibility of becoming the man you've always known you could be, stepping into the truth of who you are in your fullness, cultivating potentials that have called to you, bringing your full presence and awareness to every moment for yourself, your loved ones, and the planet.

In October of 1563, 18-year old Anne Mylner was herding cows near her home when she was suddenly enveloped by a white cloud that precipitated a months-long illness characterized by sleeplessness, loss of appetite, convulsions, and bodily swelling. Mylner's was the first of several cases during the reign of Elizabeth I of England that were interpreted as demon possession, a highly emotional experience in which an afflicted person displays behavior indicating a state of religious distress. To most Elizabethans, belief in Satan was as natural as belief in God, and Satan's affliction of mankind was clearly demonstrated in the physical and spiritual distress displayed by virtually every person at some point in his or her life. This book recounts 11 cases of Elizabethan demon possession, documenting the details of each case and providing the cultural context to explain why the diagnosis made sense at the time. Victims included children and adults, servants and masters, Catholics and Protestants, frauds and the genuinely ill. Edmund Kingesfielde's wife, possessed by a demon who caused her to hate her children and to contemplate suicide, was cured when her husband changed his irreverent tavern sign (depicting a devil) for a more seemly design. Alexander Nyndge, possessed by a Catholic demon that spoke with an Irish accent, was cured by his own brother through physical bondage and violence. Agnes Brigges and Rachel Pindar, whose afflictions included vomiting pins, feathers, and other trash, were revealed as frauds and forced to confess publicly, their parents being imprisoned for complicity in the fraud. All these cases attest to a powerful need to ascribe some moral significance to humansuffering. Allowing the sufferer to externalize and ultimately evict the "demon" as the cause of his or her affliction bestowed some measure of hope--no mean feat in a world with such widespread human distress.

New Religious Movements: A Guide for the Perplexed examines the phenomenon of new faiths and alternative spiritualities which has become a feature of the contemporary world. Those interested in the spiritual dimension to life are no longer limited to the major world faiths, but can draw upon a rapidly-expanding range of new religions. Some of these are derived from the major religions, some are a re-working of ancient traditions, while others signify a completely new departure in spiritual experience. This book analyses the concepts we use to discuss new religions, and surveys a range of different movements which were established in the second half of the 20th century. Paul Oliver explores the organization of the movements, and the psychological aspects of life within them; the distribution of power and authority within movements; the position of women in relation to such organizations, and finally, the nature of the evolution and expansion of such movements in relation to post-modern society. This book is ideal for students wishing to understand the more perplexing elements of this contemporary phenomenon. >

The popular Wiccapedia gets the ultimate companion journal!   A Book of Shadows is a journal that witches keep close at hand for jotting down their spells—and this beautiful keepsake edition, by the authors of Wiccapedia, is the perfect accompaniment to that popular guide for modern witches. A concise first section features basic information on essential tools for spells, key herbs and crystals, moon phases and magick, and a wheel of yearly Wiccan holidays. Over 225 pages of journal pages follow, where you can record all the details of your spellcraft such as the date, the phase of the moon, the ingredients . . . and the results.  

Given the degree of popular fascination with Gnostic religions, it is surprising how few pay attention to the one such religion that has survived from antiquity until the present day: Mandaism. Mandaeans, who esteem John the Baptist as the most famous adherent to their religion, have in our time found themselves driven from their historic homelands by war and oppression. Today, they are a community in crisis, but they provide us with unparalleled access to a library of ancient Gnostic scriptures, as part of the living tradition that has sustained them across the centuries. Gnostic texts such as these have caught popular interest in recent times, as traditional assumptions about the original forms and cultural contexts of related religious traditions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, have been called into question. However, we can learn only so much from texts in isolation from their own contexts. Mandaean literature uniquely allows us not only to increase our knowledge about Gnosticism, and by extension all these other religions, but also to observe the relationship between Gnostic texts, rituals, beliefs, and living practices, both historically and in the present day.

India and the Occult explores the reception of Indian spirituality among Western occultists through case studies. Rather than focusing on the activities of Theosophical Society, India and the Occult looks at the 'hard-core' occultism, in particular the British 20th century currents associated with Aleister Crowley, Dion Fortune, Kenneth Grant, etc.

Faunalia is a controversial Pagan festival with a reputation for being wild and emotionally intense. It lasts five days, 80 people attend, and the two main rituals run most of the night. In the tantalisingly erotic Baphomet rite, participants encounter a hermaphroditic deity, enter a state of trance and dance naked around a bonfire. In the Underworld rite participants role play their own death, confronting grief and suffering. These rituals are understood as "shadow work" - a Jungian term that refers to practices that creatively engage repressed or hidden aspects of the self. Sex, Death and Witchcraft is a powerful application of relational theory to the study of religion and contemporary culture. It analyses Faunalia's rituals in terms of recent innovations in the sociology of religion and religious studies that focus on relational etiquette, lived religion, embodiment and performance. The sensuous and emotionally intense ritual performances at Faunalia transform both moral orientations and self-understandings. Participants develop an ethical practice that is individualistic, but also relational, and aesthetically mediated. Extensive extracts from interviews describe the rituals in participants' own words. The book combines rich and evocative description of the rituals with careful analysis of the social processes that shape people's experiences at this controversial Pagan festival.

Discusses the ideas and impact of 27 atheists, agnostics, and secularists whose ideas have shaped society over the last 200 years. In the opinion of many critics and philosophers, we are entering an age of atheism marked by the waning of Christian fundamentalism and the flourishing of secular thought. Through alphabetically arranged entries written by expert contributors, this book profiles 27 iconic figures of unbelief whose ideas have shaped American society over the last 200 years. Included are entries on influential figures of the past, such as Albert Einstein and Voltaire, as well as on such contemporary figures as Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. Each entry discusses the ideas and lasting significance of each person or group, provides sidebars of interesting information and illuminating quotations, and cites works for further reading. The volume closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students in social studies and history classes will welcome this reference as a guide to the ideas central to the American separation of Church and State and to many of the political debates at the heart of society today. Each entry discusses the ideas and lasting significance of the person or group, provides sidebars of interesting information and quotations, and closes with a list of works for further reading. The volume ends with a selected, general bibliography. Students in history and social studies classes will welcome this reference as a guide to the American separation of Church and State and to the ideas central to contemporary political debates.

When two dolphin lovers, Zeeep and Eeeoo-vowing to be together forever -lose their lives in a poacher's snare, they learn their next lives will be on land: Eeeoo becomes Sabrina, a comatose little girl in Montreal, Canada and Zeeep becomes Xico, a flea-ridden dog in a tiny village in Brazil. It seems the two will never be together but the magic of fate relies on a higher knowing. This crossover novel leads the reader on adventures with Xico the dog through mystical travels visiting Otherworldly dimensions, learning the world of healing. The two lovers eventually reunite in Brazil where a famous shaman and psychic surgeon lives. When they meet again, Xico has learned to be a medium and is helping the shaman. He lovingly helps to initiate the healing of Sabrina. When Sabrina's desperate mother steals Xico and takes him to Canada to be with her daughter, the Brazilian villagers rally together to get their "healing dog" back so he can do his God-given job.

Fulfill your innermost dreams and ambitions by turning up the volume on your intuition and re-connecting with your Inner Genius. Executive coach Liz Tran asks you to train yourself to listen to and be guided by your innermost voice. From tech to spiritual leadership and executive coaching, Tran has charted her own path by learning how to tune into her intuition and be true to her Inner Genius. Informed by ancient sources of wisdom like Zen, Reiki, astrology, and Stoicism, The Karma of Success invites you to validate the unique goals and ambitions you set for yourself and ultimately, are destined to achieve. You'll learn the Four Pillars of Spiritual Strategy - inquiring inward, manifesting mindfully, enriching your energy, and becoming brilliant - and be guided by the stories of people who have looked inward to find meaning and success. So whether you're trying to start your own business, heal your inner child, or just figure out how to get through the next Mercury in retrograde, The Karma of Success will help you find your way.