Uncertainty is an everyday aspect of existence for the Maasai of East Africa. They take ritual precautions against mystical misfortune in their small and dispersed villages, and place community life in the hands of elders whose collective wisdom is underpinned by a belief in a moral, supreme and unknowably provident god. This stability is, however, edged with concern for secret malcontents who might seek to create havoc through sorcery and whose elusive magic lies outside the elders' power. "Time, Space and the Unknown" follows on from "The Maasai of Matapato and The Samburu" to show how uncertainty and misfortune influence the social life of the Maasai.

1923. Volume 11 of 14. The 16th Century: Mystic Philosophy, Words and Numbers through Summary and By-Products. The aim of this set is to treat the history of magic and experimental science and their relations to Christian thought during the first thirteen centuries of our era, with special emphasis upon the 12th and 13th centuries. Magic is understood under the broadest sense of the work, as including all occult arts and sciences, superstitions and folklore. The author believes that magic and experimental science have been connected in their development, and within these pages will attempt to prove the same.

1923. Volume 11 of 14. The 16th Century: Mystic Philosophy, Words and Numbers through Summary and By-Products. The aim of this set is to treat the history of magic and experimental science and their relations to Christian thought during the first thirteen centuries of our era, with special emphasis upon the 12th and 13th centuries. Magic is understood under the broadest sense of the work, as including all occult arts and sciences, superstitions and folklore. The author believes that magic and experimental science have been connected in their development, and within these pages will attempt to prove the same.

Magic is an ultimate act of presumption. It is tricky, powerful, and often dangerous."

The author of Skin Folk and Brown Girl in the Ring, Nalo Hopkinson is renowned for combining urban literary sensibilities with the rich lore of African-Caribbean cultures. Now, in a powerful anthology of nineteen original stories that explore the perils of personal magic, she brings together some of the most honored voices in modern fantasy and brilliant new talents of African Diaspora fiction. Exploding the myths of zombies and voodoo curses, these narratives range from the ancient rites of the Ibo to the bellies of slave ships, from '20s Jim Crow to '60s Black Power, from unmarked graves at midnight to quiet suburbs at dawn-and prove that where heartache and faith meet, you will find the crossroads for conjuring magic.

Stories included in this collection are:

"Daddy Mention and the Monday Skull," by Andy Duncan
"Rosamojo," by Kiini Ibura Salaam
23 "Lark till Dawn, Princess," by Barth Anderson
"Heartspace," by Steven Barnes
"The Prowl," by Gregory Frost
"Fate," by Jenise Aminoff
"Trial Day," by Tananarive Due
"The Skinned," by Jarla Tangh
"Death's Dreadlocks," by Tobias S. Buckell
"Asuquo, or The Winds of Harmattan," by Nnedima Okorafor
"The Horsemen and the Morning Star," by Barbara Hambly
"She'd Make a Dead Man Crawl," by Gerard Houarner
"Cooking Creole," by A. M. Dellamonica
"White Man’s Trick," by Eliot Fintushel
"The Tawny Bitch," by Nisi Shawl
"Bitter Grounds," by Neil Gaiman
"Shining through 24/7," by devorah major
"Notes from a Writer’s Book of Cures and Spells," by Marcia Douglas
"How Sukie Cross de Big Wata," by Sheree Renee Thomas

With an introduction by Luisah Teish, spiritualist and author of Jambalaya: The Natural Woman's Book of Personal Charms and Practical Rituals

Witchcraft is a subject that fascinates us all, and everyone knows what a witch is - or do they? From childhood most of us develop a sense of the mysterious, malign person, usually an old woman. Historically, too, we recognize witch-hunting as a feature of pre-modern societies. But why do witches still feature so heavily in our cultures and consciousness? From Halloween to superstitions, and literary references such as Faust and even Harry Potter, witches still feature heavily in our society. In this Very Short Introduction Malcolm Gaskill challenges all of this, and argues that what we think we know is, in fact, wrong. Taking a historical perspective from the ancient world to contemporary paganism, Gaskill reveals how witchcraft has meant different things to different people and that in every age it has raised questions about the distinction between fantasy and reality, faith and proof. Telling stories, delving into court records, and challenging myths, Gaskill examines the witch-hunts of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and explores the reinvention of witchcraft - as history, religion, fiction, and metaphor. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Selected by "Choice" magazine as an Outstanding Academic Book for 2001The highly-acclaimed first edition of this book chronicled the rise and fall of witchcraft in Europe between the twelfth and the end of the seventeenth centuries. Now greatly expanded, the classic anthology of contemporary texts reexamines the phenomenon of witchcraft, taking into account the remarkable scholarship since the book's publication almost thirty years ago.Spanning the period from 400 to 1700, the second edition of "Witchcraft in Europe" assembles nearly twice as many primary documents as the first, many newly translated, along with new illustrations that trace the development of witch-beliefs from late Mediterranean antiquity through the Enlightenment. Trial records, inquisitors' reports, eyewitness statements, and witches' confessions, along with striking contemporary illustrations depicting the career of the Devil and his works, testify to the hundreds of years of terror that enslaved an entire continent.Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, Thomas Hobbes, and other thinkers are quoted at length in order to determine the intellectual, perceptual, and legal processes by which "folklore" was transformed into systematic demonology and persecution. Together with explanatory notes, introductory essays--which have been revised to reflect current research--and a new bibliography, the documents gathered in "Witchcraft in Europe" vividly illumine the dark side of the European mind.

The creative nature of the "Soul": On its own plane, the soul knows no separation, and the factor of synthesis governs all soul relations. The soul is occupied not only with the form that the vision of its objective may take, but with the quality or the meaning which that vision veils or hides. The soul knows the Plan; its form, outline, methods and objective are known. Through the use of the creative imagination, the soul creates; it builds thought-forms on the mental plane and objectifies desire on the astral plane. It proceeds then to externalize its thought and its desire upon the physical plane through applied force, creatively actuated by the imagination of the etheric or vital vehicle. Yet because the soul intelligence, motivated by love, it can (within the realized synthesis which governs its activities) analyze, discriminate and divide. The soul likewise aspires to that which is greater than itself, and reaches out to the world of divine ideas, and thus itself occupies a midway position between the world of ideation and the world of forms, This is its difficulty and its opportunity. This compilation from the books of Alice Bailey seeks to increase understanding of the immortal soul, addressing it's many aspects under sixty two headings.

The devil is the most charismatic and important figure in the blues tradition. He's not just the music's namesake (""the devil's music""), but a shadowy presence who haunts an imagined Mississippi crossroads where, it is claimed, Delta bluesman Robert Johnson traded away his soul in exchange for extraordinary prowess on the guitar. Yet, as scholar and musician Adam Gussow argues, there is much more to the story of the devil and the blues than these cliched understandings. In this groundbreaking study, Gussow takes the full measure of the devil's presence. Working from original transcriptions of more than 125 recordings released during the past ninety years, Gussow explores the varied uses to which black southern blues people have put this trouble-sowing, love-wrecking, but also empowering figure. The book culminates with a bold reinterpretation of Johnson's music and a provocative investigation of the way in which the citizens of Clarksdale, Mississippi, managed to rebrand a commercial hub as ""the crossroads"" in 1999, claiming Johnson and the devil as their own.

Naqada is a sleepy little town in Upper Egypt, that gives its name to a crucial period in the prehistory of Egypt. In 1895, William Matthew Flinders Petrie, the 'father' of Egyptian archaeology, stumbled upon a necropolis, belonging to a very ancient city of several thousand inhabitants. With Petrie's usual luck, he'd made yet another archaeological find of seismic proportions -- not just an ancient city a quarter the size of Ur in Mesopotamia, a rare enough find, but the capital of the earliest state established in Egypt! Petrie's fateful walk through the desert led him to a lost city, known to the Greeks as Ombos, the Citadel of Seth. Seth, the Hidden God, once ruled in this ancient place before it was abandoned to the sands of the desert. All this forbidden knowledge was quickly reburied in academic libraries, where its stunning magical secrets had lain, largely unrevealed, for more than a century -- until now.

'A wonderful book by a fabulous author, very highly recommended.' Louise DouglasA tale as old as time. A spirit that has never rested.Present day As a love affair comes to an end, and with it her dreams for her future, artist Selena needs a retreat. The picture-postcard Sloe Cottage in the Somerset village of Ashcombe promises to be the perfect place to forget her problems, and Selena settles into her new home as spring arrives. But it isn't long before Selena hears the past whispering to her. Sloe Cottage is keeping secrets which refuse to stay hidden. 1682 Grace Cotter longs for nothing more than a husband and family of her own. Content enough with her work on the farm, looking after her father, and learning the secrets of her grandmother Bett's healing hands, nevertheless Grace still hopes for love. But these are dangerous times for dreamers, and rumours and gossip can be deadly. One mis-move and Grace's fate looks set... Separated by three hundred years, two women are drawn together by a home bathed in blood and magic. Grace Cotter's spirit needs to rest, and only Selena can help her now. USA Today bestselling author Judy Leigh writing as Elena Collins, brings you this unforgettable, heart-breaking, gripping timeslip novel set in a world when women were hung as witches, and fates could be sealed by a wrong word. Perfect for fans of Barbara Erskine, Diana Gabaldon and Louise Douglas. Praise for Elena Collins: 'A profoundly moving, beautifully written and emotional story that skilfully combines two time frames into one unputdownable book. I was completely immersed in Grace's story from the beginning: despite it taking place 400 years ago. The modern day storyline was also delightful with some wonderful characters. In short a wonderful book by a fabulous author, very highly recommended.' Louise Douglas

This book reflects on Western humanity's efforts to escape from history and its terrors--from the existential condition and natural disasters to the endless succession of wars and other man-made catastrophes. Drawing on historical episodes ranging from antiquity to the recent past, and combining them with literary examples and personal reflections, Teofilo Ruiz explores the embrace of religious experiences, the pursuit of worldly success and pleasures, and the quest for beauty and knowledge as three primary responses to the individual and collective nightmares of history. The result is a profound meditation on how men and women in Western society sought (and still seek) to make meaning of the world and its disturbing history.

In chapters that range widely across Western history and culture, "The Terror of History" takes up religion, the material world, and the world of art and knowledge. "Religion and the World to Come" examines orthodox and heterodox forms of spirituality, apocalyptic movements, mysticism, supernatural beliefs, and many forms of esotericism, including magic, alchemy, astrology, and witchcraft. "The World of Matter and the Senses" considers material riches, festivals and carnivals, sports, sex, and utopian communities. Finally, "The Lure of Beauty and Knowledge" looks at cultural productions of all sorts, from art to scholarship.

Combining astonishing historical breadth with a personal and accessible narrative style, "The Terror of History" is a moving testimony to the incredibly diverse ways humans have sought to cope with their frightening history.

This thought-provoking collection of magical texts from ancient Egypt shows the exotic rituals, esoteric healing practices, and incantatory and supernatural dimensions that flowered in early Christianity. These remarkable Christian magical texts include curses, spells of protection from "headless powers" and evil spirits, spells invoking thunderous powers, descriptions of fire baptism, and even recipes from a magical "cookbook." Virtually all the texts are by Coptic Christians, and they date from about the 1st-12th centuries of the common era, with the majority from late antiquity. By placing these rarely seen texts in historical context and discussing their significance, the authors explore the place of healing, prayer, miracles, and magic in the early Christian experience, and expand our understanding of Christianity and Gnosticism as a vital folk religion.

This book reflects on Western humanity's efforts to escape from history and its terrors--from the existential condition and natural disasters to the endless succession of wars and other man-made catastrophes. Drawing on historical episodes ranging from antiquity to the recent past, and combining them with literary examples and personal reflections, Teofilo Ruiz explores the embrace of religious experiences, the pursuit of worldly success and pleasures, and the quest for beauty and knowledge as three primary responses to the individual and collective nightmares of history. The result is a profound meditation on how men and women in Western society sought (and still seek) to make meaning of the world and its disturbing history.

In chapters that range widely across Western history and culture, "The Terror of History" takes up religion, the material world, and the world of art and knowledge. "Religion and the World to Come" examines orthodox and heterodox forms of spirituality, apocalyptic movements, mysticism, supernatural beliefs, and many forms of esotericism, including magic, alchemy, astrology, and witchcraft. "The World of Matter and the Senses" considers material riches, festivals and carnivals, sports, sex, and utopian communities. Finally, "The Lure of Beauty and Knowledge" looks at cultural productions of all sorts, from art to scholarship.

Combining astonishing historical breadth with a personal and accessible narrative style, "The Terror of History" is a moving testimony to the incredibly diverse ways humans have sought to cope with their frightening history.

These days, development inspires scant trust in the West. For critics who condemn centralized efforts to plan African societies as latter day imperialism, such plans too closely reflect their roots in colonial rule and neoliberal economics. But proponents of this pessimistic view often ignore how significant this concept has become for Africans themselves. In "Bewitching Development," James Howard Smith presents a close ethnographic account of how people in the Taita Hills of Kenya have appropriated and made sense of development thought and practice, focusing on the complex ways that development connects with changing understandings of witchcraft.
Similar to magic, development's promise of a better world elicits both hope and suspicion from Wataita. Smith shows that the unforeseen changes wrought by development--greater wealth for some, dashed hopes for many more--foster moral debates that Taita people express in occult terms. By carefully chronicling the beliefs and actions of this diverse community--from frustrated youths to nostalgic seniors, duplicitous preachers to thought-provoking witch doctors--"Bewitching" "Development" vividly depicts the social life of formerly foreign ideas and practices in postcolonial Africa.

Magic and Medieval Society presents a thematic approach to the topic of magic and sorcery in Western Europe between the eleventh and the fifteenth century. It aims to provide readers with the conceptual and documentary tools to reach informed conclusions as to the existence, nature, importance and uses of magic in medieval society. Contrary to some previous approaches, the authors argue that magic is inextricably connected to other areas of cultural practice and was found across medieval society. Therefore, the book is arranged thematically, covering topics such as the use of magic at medieval courts, at universities and within the medieval Church itself. Each chapter and theme is supported by additional documents, diagrams and images to allow readers to examine the evidence side-by-side with the discussions in the chapters and to come to informed conclusions on the issues. This book puts forward the argument that the witch craze was not a medieval phenomenon but rather the product of the Renaissance and the Reformation, and demonstrates how the components for the early-modern prosecution of witches were put into place. This new Seminar Study is supported by a comprehensive documents section, chronology, who's who and black-and-white plate section. It offers a concise and thought-provoking introduction for students of medieval history.

'Gripping ... a story of loss, ambition, misogyny, family love and what it means to belong ... evocative and atmospheric' Irish Times 1324, Kilkennie: A time of suspicion and conspiracy. A place where zealous men rage against each other - and even more against uppity women A woman finds refuge with her daughter in the household of a childhood friend. The friend, Alice Kytler, gives her former companion a new name, Petronelle, a job as a servant, and warns her to hide their old connection. But in aligning herself with a powerful woman, Petronelle and her child are in more danger than they ever faced in the savage countryside ... Tense, moving and atmospheric Her Kind is vivid reimagining of the events leading to the Kilkenny Witch Trial. __________ 'Masterful ... Boyce delicately unfolds this atmospheric, magical thriller with pace and juice, while also making sure that the sentiments (vilification of women, policing of female biology) echo through time' Sunday Independent 'Shines a light on women who have been silenced. This tightly paced novel confirms Boyce as an important voice in Irish literature' Louise O'Neill 'Sings of these modern times' RTE Guide 'Pulls us into a world both seductively alien, yet uneasily, all-too-humanly, familiar' Mia Gallagher 'The plot is pacey and menacing, and the writing is clear, sharp and studded with glistening phrases ... a wonderful shout through time' Nuala O'Connor 'Beautifully absorbing ... highly recommended' Hot Press 'Moving and atmospheric' Irish Country Magazine 'Enthralling' Irish Examiner 'Niamh Boyce has taken a bleak and dismal period and sent a bolt of beautiful and revealing light into the darkness' John MacKenna

They flew through the air, consorted with animals, and made pacts with the devil. Witches were as unquestioned as alchemy or astrology in medieval England; yet it wasn't until the midsixteenth century that laws were passed against them. Now a leading historian of crime and society in early modern England offers the first scholarly overview of witchcraft in that country in over eighty years, examining how tensions between church, state, and society produced widespread distrust among fearful people.
"Instruments of Darkness" takes readers back to a time when witchcraft was accepted as reality at all levels of society. James Sharpe draws on legal records and other sources to reveal the interplay between witchcraft beliefs in different partts in the social hierarchy. Along the way, he offers disturbing accounts of witch-hunts, such as the East Anglian trials of 1645-47 that sent more than 100 people to the gallows. He tells how poor, elderly women were most often accused of witchcraft and challenges feminist claims that witch-hunts represented male persecution by showing that many accusers were themselves women.
Prosecution of witches gradually declined with increasing skepticism among jurists, new religious attitudes, and scientific advances that explained away magic. But for two hundred years, thousands participated in one of history's most notorious persecutions. "Instruments of Darkness" is a fascinating case study that deepens our understanding of this age-old cultural phenomenon and sheds new light on one society in which it occurred.

Make your sabbat celebrations more meaningful and enjoyable with this exceptional book full of unique rituals designed to perfectly fit your needs, whether you re a solitary practitioner or part of a group. Jason Mankey provides three all-new rituals for every sabbat one for solitaries, one for covens, and one for large gatherings. Each ritual is flexible enough for you to pick and choose the components that best suit your intentions. Explore the history and traditions of all eight sabbats and discover why and how rituals became such an important part of Witchcraft. Learn the ins and outs of ritual practice, including guidance on planning, decorating, presenting, and adapting. Witch s Wheel of the Year is incredibly versatile for any Witch looking to enhance their craft and their connection to the sacred sabbats.

The essays in this Handbook, written by leading scholars working in the rapidly developing field of witchcraft studies, explore the historical literature regarding witch beliefs and witch trials in Europe and colonial America between the early fifteenth and early eighteenth centuries. During these years witches were thought to be evil people who used magical power to inflict physical harm or misfortune on their neighbours. Witches were also believed to have made pacts with the devil and sometimes to have worshipped him at nocturnal assemblies known as sabbaths. These beliefs provided the basis for defining witchcraft as a secular and ecclesiastical crime and prosecuting tens of thousands of women and men for this offence. The trials resulted in as many as fifty thousand executions. These essays study the rise and fall of witchcraft prosecutions in the various kingdoms and territories of Europe and in English, Spanish, and Portuguese colonies in the Americas. They also relate these prosecutions to the Catholic and Protestant reformations, the introduction of new forms of criminal procedure, medical and scientific thought, the process of state-building, profound social and economic change, early modern patterns of gender relations, and the wave of demonic possessions that occurred in Europe at the same time. The essays survey the current state of knowledge in the field, explore the academic controversies that have arisen regarding witch beliefs and witch trials, propose new ways of studying the subject, and identify areas for future research.

Contents Flavius Josephus' Terminology of Magic: Accommodating Jewish Magic to a Roman Audience, / Philip Jewell The Role of Grimoires in the Conjure Tradition / Dan Harms Hermetic/Cabalistic Ritual in Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus / Dana Winters Italian Cunning Craft: Some Preliminary Observations / Sabina Magliocco Walking The Tightrope: A Study Of Secret Astrologers In Mainstream Professions / J.A. Silver Frost Martyrs, Magic, and Christian Conversion / Patrick Maille "Worshiping the Devil in the Name of God"Anti-Semitism, Theosophy and Christianity in the Occult Doctrines of Pekka Siitoin / Kennet Granholm "The Witching Hour: Sex Magic in 1950s Australia" / Marguerite Johnson Reviews Obituaries

Investigation of literary and archaeological evidence in search of pagan sources for the Arthurian legend. `Darrah makes the valid point that episodes in the Arthurian romances read like motifs from the ancient mythologies...[he] reconstructs a lost British paganism, grounded in the rivers, hills and woods, and especially those grey monoliths...reminders of a cosmology vanished from this island. NIKOLAI TOLSTOY, DAILY TELEGRAPH `Contends, with a good deal of evidence, that the impact of pre-Christian Welsh, Irish, Scottish, Cornish and Breton religion is greater than has been previously thought... Extensively researched and well written.' CHOICE The origins of Arthurian romance will always be a hotly disputed subject. The great moments of the legends belong partly to dimly-remembered history, partly to the poets' imagination down the ages, yet there is another strand to the stories which goes back deeper and further: the traces of ancient pagan religion, found both in Arthurian heroes who have inherited the attributes of gods, and in episodes which reflect ancient religious rituals. Darrah's careful study of the thematic relationships of, particularly, the more obscure episodes of the romances and his identification of the relative geography of Arthurian Britain as portrayed in the romances will be valuable even to those who differ with his conclusions. His most original contribution to an unravelling of a pagan Arthurian past lies in his appropriation of the fascinating evidence of standing stones and pagan cultic sites. This is dark and difficult territory, but building on elusive clues, and tracing a range of sites, especially in south-west Britain, John Darrah hasadded a significant new dimension to the search for the sources of the legends of Arthur and his court. JOHN DARRAH has also written The Real Camelot.

After coming of age and graduating in the tumultuous sixties, Ahad Cobb found himself wandering without direction. A chance road trip with a friend led him to Ram Dass, thus beginning an enthusiastic journey of spiritual awakening and deep involvement with three spiritual communities originating in the sixties and still thriving today: the Ram Dass satsang, Lama Foundation, and Dances of Universal Peace. Sharing his opening to the inner life, his poetry and dreams, his spiritual passions and astrological insights, Ahad Cobb's memoir begins with his summer with Ram Dass and his satsang, immersed in meditation, devotion, and guru's grace. His path takes him to New Mexico, to a newly established intentional spiritual community, Lama Foundation, where he lives on the land for thirteen years, experiencing the disciplines and rewards of communal living and spiritual practice. At Lama, he is initiated into universal Sufism in the tradition of Hazrat Inayat Khan and the Dances of Universal Peace. He travels overseas to spend time with Sufis in Chamonix, Istanbul, Konya, and Jerusalem. After the birth of his son, Ahad moves off the mountain and serves as sacred dance leader and musician for 35 years in Santa Fe and later Albuquerque. When Lama Foundation is nearly destroyed by a forest fire in 1996, Ahad serves as a trustee, guiding the rebuilding of the community. He imparts insights from his personal work with Jungian analysis and trauma release, shares his search for and discovery of his soul mate, and details his twelve years of study with Hart DeFouw in the wisdom stream of Vedic astrology. Offering a poignant reflection on life lived from the inside out, and the delicate balance between spirituality and psychology, this memoir leads readers on an outer and inner journey steeped in poetry, music, astrology, dreams, inner work, and spiritual practice in the context of community devoted to awakening.

Exploring occultist, magician, poet, painter, and writer Aleister Crowley's longstanding and intimate association with Paris, Tobias Churton provides the first detailed account of Crowley's activities in the City of Light. Using previously unpublished letters and diaries, Churton explores how Crowley was initiated into the Golden Dawn's Inner Order in Paris in 1900 and how, in 1902, he relocated to Montparnasse. Soon engaged to Anglo-Irish artist Eileen Gray, Crowley pontificates and parties with English, American, and French artists gathered around sculptor Auguste Rodin: all keen to exhibit at Paris's famed Salon d'Automne. In 1904--still dressed as "Prince Chioa Khan" and recently returned from his Book of the Law experience in Cairo--Crowley dines with novelist Arnold Bennett at Paillard's. In 1908 Crowley is back in Paris to prove it's possible to attain Samadhi (or "knowledge and conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel") while living a modern life in a busy metropolis. In 1913 he organizes a demonstration for artistic and sexual freedom at Oscar Wilde's tomb. Until war spoils all in 1914, Paris is Crowley's playground. The author details how, after returning from America in 1920, and though based at his "Abbey of Thelema" in Sicily, Crowley can't leave Paris alone. When Mussolini expels him from Italy, Paris becomes home from 1924 until 1929. Churton reveals Crowley's part in the jazz-age explosion of modernism, as the lover of photographer Berenice Abbott, and many others, and how he enjoyed camaraderie with Man Ray, Nancy Cunard, Andre Gide, and Aimee Crocker. The author explores Crowley's adventures in Tunisia, Algeria, the Riviera, his battle with heroin addiction, his relationship with daughter Astarte Lulu--raised at Cefalu--and finally, a high-level ministerial conspiracy to get him out of Paris. Reconstructing Crowley's heyday in the last decade and a half of France's Belle Epoque and the "roaring Twenties," this book illuminates Crowley's place within the artistic, literary, and spiritual ferment of the great City of Light.