NEW EDITION The Science Delusion is the belief that science already understands the nature of reality. The fundamental questions are answered, leaving only the details to be filled in. In this book (published in the US as Science Set Free), Dr Rupert Sheldrake, one of the world's most innovative scientists, shows that science is being constricted by assumptions that have hardened into dogmas. The 'scientific worldview' has become a belief system. All reality is material or physical. The world is a machine, made up of dead matter. Nature is purposeless. Consciousness is nothing but the physical activity of the brain. Free will is an illusion. God exists only as an idea in human minds, imprisoned within our skulls. Sheldrake examines these dogmas scientifically, and shows persuasively that science would be better off without them: freer, more interesting, and more fun. In The God Delusion Richard Dawkins used science to bash God, but here Rupert Sheldrake shows that Dawkins' understanding of what science can do is old-fashioned and itself a delusion. 'Rupert Sheldrake does science, humanity and the world at large a considerable favour.' The Independent 'Certainly we need to accept the limitations of much current dogma and keep our minds open as we reasonably can. Sheldrake may help us do so through this well-written, challenging and always interesting book.' Financial Times

Three of the most original thinkers of our time explore issues that call into question our current views of reality, morality, and the nature of life.

- A wide-ranging investigation of the ecology of inner and outer space, the role of chaos theory in the dynamics of human creation, and the rediscovery of traditional wisdom.

In this book of "trialogues," the late psychedelic visionary and shamanologist Terence McKenna, acclaimed biologist and originator of the morphogenetic fields theory Rupert Sheldrake, and mathematician and chaos theory scientist Ralph Abraham explore the relationships between chaos and creativity and their connection to cosmic consciousness. Their observations call into question our current views of reality, morality, and the nature of life in the universe. The authors challenge the reader to the deepest levels of thought with wide-ranging investigations of the ecology of inner and outer space, the role of chaos in the dynamics of human creation, and the resacralization of the world. Among the provocative questions the authors raise are: Is Armageddon a self-fulfilling prophecy? Are we humans the imaginers or the imagined? Are the eternal laws of nature still evolving? What is the connection between physical light and the light of consciousness?

Part ceremony, part old-fashioned intellectual discussion, these trialogues are an invitation to a new understanding of what Jean Houston calls "the dreamscapes of our everyday waking life."

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 - experiences for which all spiritual seekers seek. Dr Rupert Sheldrake, writing as both a scientist and a spiritual explorer, 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 around the world to show how we may tune into more-than-human realms of consciousness through psychedelics, such as ayahuasca, and by taking cannabis. He also shows 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 all inside brains and essentially illusory? Or can we really make contact with forms of consciousness greater than our own? We are in the midst of a spiritual revival. This book is an essential guide.

Rupert Sheldrake's theory of morphic resonance challenges the fundamental assumptions of modern science. A world-famous biologist, Sheldrake proposes that all self-organizing systems, from crystals to human societies, inherit a collective memory that influences their form and behaviour. Rather than being ruled by fixed laws, nature is essentially habitual. All human beings draw upon a collective human memory, and in turn contribute to it. Even individual memory depends on morphic resonance rather than on physical memory traces stored within the brain. Morphic resonance works through morphic fields, which organize the bodies of plants and animals, coordinate the activities of brains, and underlie mental activity. Minds are extended beyond brains both in space and time. This fully-revised and updated edition of The Presence of the Past summarizes the evidence for Dr Sheldrake's controversial theory, reviews new research, and explores its implications for biology, chemistry, physics, psychology and sociology. In place of the mechanistic worldview that has dominated biology since the nineteenth century, this book offers a revolutionary alternative, and opens up a new understanding of life, minds and evolution.

"Matthew Fox might well be the most creative, the most comprehensive, surely the most challenging religious-spiritual teacher in America."--Thomas Berry

"Rupert Sheldrake continues to chart a new course in our understanding of the non-local mind that connects all of us."--Deepak Chopra

Many people believe in angels, but few can define these enigmatic spirits. Now visionary theologian Matthew Fox and acclaimed biologist Rupert Sheldrake--pioneers in modern religious thinking and scientific theory--launch a groundbreaking exploration into the ancient concept of the angel and restore dignity, meaning, and joy to our time-honored belief in these heavenly beings.

New updated and expanded edition of the groundbreaking book that ignited a firestorm in the scientific world with its radical approach to evolution
- Explains how past forms and behaviors of organisms determine those of similar organisms in the present through morphic resonance
- Reveals the nonmaterial connections that allow direct communication across time and space
When "A New Science of Life" was first published the British journal "Nature" called it "the best candidate for burning there has been for many years." The book called into question the prevailing mechanistic theory of life when its author, Rupert Sheldrake, a former research fellow of the Royal Society, proposed that morphogenetic fields are responsible for the characteristic form and organization of systems in biology, chemistry, and physics--and that they have measurable physical effects. Using his theory of morphic resonance, Sheldrake was able to reinterpret the regularities of nature as being more like habits than immutable laws, offering a new understanding of life and consciousness.
In the years since its first publication, Sheldrake has continued his research to demonstrate that the past forms and behavior of organisms influence present organisms through direct immaterial connections across time and space. This can explain why new chemicals become easier to crystallize all over the world the more often their crystals have already formed, and why when laboratory rats have learned how to navigate a maze in one place, rats elsewhere appear to learn it more easily. With more than two decades of new research and data, Rupert Sheldrake makes an even stronger case for the validity of the theory of formative causation that can radically transform how we see our world and our future.

The bestselling author of "Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home" offers an intriguing new assessment of modern day science that will radically change the way we view what is possible.
In "Science Set Free" (originally published to acclaim in the UK as" The Science Delusion"), Dr. Rupert Sheldrake, one of the world's most innovative scientists, shows the ways in which science is being constricted by assumptions that have, over the years, hardened into dogmas. Such dogmas are not only limiting, but dangerous for the future of humanity.
According to these principles, all of reality is material or physical; the world is a machine, made up of inanimate matter; nature is purposeless; consciousness is nothing but the physical activity of the brain; free will is an illusion; God exists only as an idea in human minds, imprisoned within our skulls.
But should science be a belief-system, or a method of enquiry? Sheldrake shows that the materialist ideology is moribund; under its sway, increasingly expensive research is reaping diminishing returns while societies around the world are paying the price.
In the skeptical spirit of true science, Sheldrake turns the ten fundamental dogmas of materialism into exciting questions, and shows how all of them open up startling new possibilities for discovery.
"Science Set Free" will radically change your view of what is real and what is possible.

"From the Hardcover edition."

Explains how self-organizing systems, from crystals to human societies, share collective memories that influence their form and behavior
- Includes new evidence and research in support of the theory of morphic resonance
- Explores the major role that morphic resonance plays not just in animal instincts and cultural inheritance but also in the larger process of evolution
- Shows that nature is not ruled by fixed laws but by habits and collective memories
In this fully revised and updated edition of "The Presence of the Past," Cambridge biologist Rupert Sheldrake lays out new evidence and research in support of his controversial theory of morphic resonance and explores its far-reaching implications in the fields of biology, chemistry, physics, psychology, and sociology.
His theory proposes that all self-organizing systems, from crystals to human society, inherit a collective memory that influences their form and behavior. This collective memory works through morphic fields, which organize the bodies of plants and animals, coordinate the activities of brains, and underlie conscious mental activity. Sheldrake shows how all human beings draw upon and contribute to a collective human memory and that even our individual recollections depend on morphic resonance rather than physical storage in the brain. He explores the major role that morphic resonance plays not just in animal instincts and cultural inheritance, such as religion and ritual, but also in the larger process of evolution, which Sheldrake shows to be more an interplay of habit and creativity than a mere "survival of the fittest."
Offering a replacement for the outdated, mechanistic worldview that has dominated biology since the nineteenth century, Sheldrake's new understanding of life, matter, and mind shows that rather than being ruled by fixed laws, nature is essentially habitual. And because memory is inherent in nature, he explains, in order to survive successfully for generations to come, we will have to give up our old habits of thought and adopt new ones: habits that are better adapted to life in a world living in the presence of the past--as well as the presence of the future.

In this pioneering book Rupert Sheldrake shows how science helps validate seven practices on which all religions are built, and which are part of our common human heritage: * Meditation * Gratitude * Connecting with nature * Relating to plants * Rituals * Singing and chanting * Pilgrimage and holy places. The effects of spiritual practices are now being investigated scientifically as never before, and many studies have shown that religious and spiritual practices generally make people happier and healthier. Rupert Sheldrake summarizes the latest scientific research on what happens when we take part in these practices, and suggests ways that readers can explore these fields for themselves. For those who are religious, Science and Spiritual Practices will illuminate the evolutionary origins of their own traditions and give a new appreciation of their power. For the non-religious, this book will show how the core practices of spirituality are accessible to all, even if they do not subscribe to a religious belief system. This is a book for anyone who suspects that in the drive towards radical secularism, something valuable has been left behind. Rupert Sheldrake believes that by opening ourselves to the spiritual dimension we may find the strength to live more wholesome and fulfilling lives.

Stimulating and often startling discussions between three friends, all highly original thinkers: Rupert Sheldrake, controversial biologist, Terence McKenna, psychedelic visionary, and Ralph Abraham, chaos mathematician. Their passion is to break out of paradigms that retard our evolution and to explore new possibilities. Through challenge and synergy they venture where few have gone before, leading their readers on an exciting journey of discovery. Their discussions focus on the evolution of the mind, the role of psychedelics, skepticism, the psychic powers of animals, the structure of time, the life of the heavens, the nature of God, and transformations of consciousness.

"Three fine thinkers take us plunging into the universe of chaos, mind, and spirit. Instead of leaving us lost, they bring us back with startling insights and more wonder than we knew we had." --Matthew Fox, "Original Blessing and Sheer Joy"

"A jam-session of the mind, an intellectual movable feast, an on-going conversation that began over twenty years ago and remains as lively and relevant today as it ever was. Sadly, Terence had to leave the conversation a little earlier than planned. But the appearance of this book of trialogues at this critical, historical juncture is a reaffirmation of the potency of the optimistic vision that the trialogues express." --Dennis McKenna, brother of the late Terence McKenna

Rupert Sheldrake is a biologist and author of many books including "The Sense of Being Stared At, And Other Aspects of the Extended Mind." Ralph Abraham is a mathematician, one of the pioneers of chaos theory and the author of several books including "Chaos, Gaia, Eros: A Chaos Pioneer Uncovers the Three Great Streams of History." The late Terence McKenna was a scholar of shamanism, ethno-botanist, psychedelic researcher and author of many books including "Food of the Gods and True Hallucinations."

Have you ever had a premonition, the feeling of being watched, or a telepathic experience? Renowned biologist Rupert Sheldrake explores the intricacies of the mind and discovers that our perceptive abilities are stronger than many of us could have imagined.

Rupert Sheldrake outraged the scientific establishment in the early 1980s with his hypothesis of morphic resonance, and his book A New Science of Life was denounced by the journal Nature as ?the best candidate for burning there has been for many years?. With his academic career torpedoed, Sheldrake has become the champion of ?the people's science?. Books such as Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home and The Sense of Being Stared At have won him popular acclaim and continued academic opprobrium in equal measure. In "Sheldrake and his Critics" (a special issue of the Journal of Consciousness Studies), Sheldrake summarizes his case for the ?non-visual detection of staring? and his claims are scrutinised by 14 distinguished researchers, to whose commentaries Sheldrake then responds. Anthony Freeman, in his editorial introduction, explores the concept of ?heresy? in science and in religion and asks why it provokes such hostility.

The chasm between science and religion has been a source of intellectual and spiritual tension for centuries, but in these ground breaking dialogues there is a remarkable consonance between these once opposing camps. In Natural Grace, Rupert Sheldrake and Matthew Fox show that not only is the synthesis of science and spirituality possible, but it is unavoidable when one considers the extraordinary insights they have both come upon in their work. Sheldrake, who has changed the face of modern science with his revolutionary theory of morphic resonance, and Fox, whose work in creation spirituality has had a significant impact on people's sense of spirit, balance each other with their unique yet highly complementary points of view. In these inspired dialogues a variety of ancient topics--including ritual, prayer, and the soul--are freed from the past and given new power for the future in the liberated universe Fox and Sheldrake show us.

Dr Rupert Sheldrake is the world's leading expert in research into the phenomenon of the psychic abilities of domestic animals. In September 1996 he presented the latest results of his studies to a conference a t Cambridge University. This triggered an explosion of media interest across the world. Dr Sheldrake has been beseiged by TV companies, news papers and magazines clamouring to know more. Long series of experiments have proved that dogs have a telepathic o r psychic link, or a 'sixth sense', with their owners. Dr Sheldrake's surveys reveal that the majority of dog owners believ e their pet is sometimes telepathic with them and 46% say that the dog knows when a member of the family is coming home. The book also cover s experiments showing psychic powers of cats, ponies, monkeys, pigeons and parrots and gives guidelines for readers to do their own research with their pets. Dr Sheldrake examines the unexplained powers of wild animals and loo ks at human psychic phenomena suggesting that we can stop seeing these powers as 'paranormal' and see them as normal, part of our biological heritage which have been lost because of language, civilization and r ationalism

Two controversial authors debate the nature and methods of science, its dogmas, and its future. Rupert Sheldrake argues that science needs to free itself from materialist dogma while Michael Shermer contends that science, properly conceived, is a materialistic enterprise; for science to look beyond materialist explanations is to betray science and engage in superstition. Issues discussed include: materialism and its role in science, whether belief in God is compatible with a scientific perspective, and parapsychology. Michael Shermer is Editor-in-Chief of "Skeptic "magazine and the author of numerous books including "Skeptic."Rupert Sheldrake is a biologist and author of ten books including his most recent, "Science Set Free," which challenges scientific dogma.