St. Joseph of Copertino began having mystical visions at the age of seven, but it was not until he began practicing his faith as a Franciscan priest that he realized the full potential of his mind's power over his body-he was able to levitate. Throughout his priesthood St. Joseph became famous for frequent levitations that were observed on hundreds of occasions and by thousands of witnesses, including many skeptics. Michael Grosso delves into the biography of the saint to explore the many strange phenomena that surrounded his life and develops potential physical explanations for some of the most astounding manifestations of his religious ecstasy. Grosso draws upon contemporary explorations into cognition, the relationship between the human mind and body, and the scientifically recorded effects of meditation and other transcendent practices to reveal the implications of St. Joseph's experiences and abilities.

Current mainstream opinion in psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy of mind holds that all aspects of human mind and consciousness are generated by physical processes occurring in brains. Views of this sort have dominated recent scholarly publication. The present volume, however, demonstrates empirically that this reductive materialism is not only incomplete but false. The authors systematically marshal evidence for a variety of psychological phenomena that are extremely difficult, and in some cases clearly impossible, to account for in conventional physicalist terms. Topics addressed include phenomena of extreme psychophysical influence, memory, psychological automatisms and secondary personality, near-death experiences and allied phenomena, genius-level creativity, and 'mystical' states of consciousness both spontaneous and drug-induced. The authors further show that these rogue phenomena are more readily accommodated by an alternative 'transmission' or 'filter' theory of mind/brain relations advanced over a century ago by a largely forgotten genius, F. W. H. Myers, and developed further by his friend and colleague William James. This theory, moreover, ratifies the commonsense conception of human beings as causally effective conscious agents, and is fully compatible with leading-edge physics and neuroscience. The book should command the attention of all open-minded persons concerned with the still-unsolved mysteries of the mind.

IN EVERY LIFE THERE IS A HIDDEN PLOT, a story going on behind the scenes that wants to be told. And it's often told in the language of dreams, coincidences, intuitions, and strange leaps beyond time and space. In a series of vignettes, philosopher Michael Grosso explores the odder experiences of his life-involving ghosts, UFOs, and the like-that extended his perceptions of reality. It's an adventure in soulmaking and the unexpected ways the hidden self within tries to speak to us. "Much more than a guidebook to the art of soulmaking, Michael Grosso's new volume sparkles with seminal insights and mind-stretching speculations concerning the soul-building potential of close encounters of the strange kind. Grosso's narrative gifts are superb and the stories he tells beguile us with their undeniable mysteries like an unforgettable exotic perfume." - Ken Ring, author of "Heading Toward Omega" "Michael Grosso, a philosopher by trade, has long been interested in unusual or anomalous events...out of an ardent desire to 'remake' his soul. This 'soulmaking' process, which led to the title of this enchanting little book, is seen as the central life task for any thinking person." - Sam Menahem, author of "When Therapy Isn't Enough" MICHAEL GROSSO studied classics and received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Columbia University. Formerly a philosophy professor at Marymount Manhattan College and the City University of New Jersey, Grosso is an independent scholar interested in psychophysical anomalies and their use in everyday life. He is the author of several books, including "Experiencing the Next World Now," and a co-author of "Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century."

Everyone has seen the popular television programmes featuring mediums who speak with those in the 'beyond'. According to author Michael Grosso the spirits they are communicating with aren't only real, they are capable of being reached without the help of James Van Praagh or Johnathan Edwards. In EXPERIENCING THE NEXT WORLD NOW, Grosso proposes that the reason channelers are able to contact the dead is the 'Next World' is inexorably intertwined with the physical world. In addition to discussing compelling evidence for the afterlife, Grosso shows how common features of existence, such as creativity, are really bridges to the plane inhabited by the dead. Leaving the body, communicating with loved ones who have passed on and 'tasting' the power of light are all tried-and-tested experiments that are open to anyone. This book provides readers with the framework for using them to explore what was once thought unexplorable. Showing us that whatever survives death is just as reachable as it is close, EXPERIENCING THE NEXT WORLD NOW is a gateway to the ultimate adventure of consciousness.