New Age culture is generally regarded as a modern manifestation of Western millenarianism - a concept built around the expectation of an imminent historical crisis followed by the inauguration of a golden age which occupies a key place in the history of Western ideas. The New Age in the Modern West argues that New Age culture is part of a family of ideas, including utopianism, which construct alternative futures and drive revolutionary change. Nicholas Campion traces New Age ideas back to ancient cosmology, and questions the concepts of the Enlightenment and the theory of progress. He considers the contributions of the key figures of the 18th century, the legacy of the astronomer Isaac Newton and the Swedish visionary Emanuel Swedenborg, as well as the theosophist, H.P. Blavatsky, the psychologist, C.G. Jung, and the writer and artist, Jose Arguelles. He also pays particular attention to the beat writers of the 1950s, the counterculture of the 1960s, concepts of the Aquarian Age and prophecies of the end of the Maya Calendar in 2012. Lastly he examines neoconservatism as both a reaction against the 1960s and as a utopian phenomenon. The New Age in the Modern West is an important book for anyone interested in countercultural and revolutionary ideas in the modern West.

This book explores an area of contemporary religion, spirituality and popular culture which has not so far been investigated in depth, the phenomenon of astrology in the modern west. Locating modern astrology historically and sociologically in its religious, New Age and millenarian contexts, Nicholas Campion considers astrology's relation to modernity and draws on extensive fieldwork and interviews with leading modern astrologers to present an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the origins and nature of New Age ideology. This book challenges the notion that astrology is either 'marginal' or a feature of postmodernism. Concluding that astrology is more popular than the usual figures suggest, Campion argues that modern astrology is largely shaped by New Age thought, influenced by the European Millenarian tradition, that it can be seen as an heir to classical Gnosticism and is part of the vernacular religion of the modern west.

This book explores an area of contemporary religion, spirituality and popular culture which has not so far been investigated in depth, the phenomenon of astrology in the modern west. Locating modern astrology historically and sociologically in its religious, New Age and millenarian contexts, Nicholas Campion considers astrology's relation to modernity and draws on extensive fieldwork and interviews with leading modern astrologers to present an invaluable contribution to our understanding of the origins and nature of New Age ideology. This book challenges the notion that astrology is either 'marginal' or a feature of postmodernism. Concluding that astrology is more popular than the usual figures suggest, Campion argues that modern astrology is largely shaped by New Age thought, influenced by the European Millenarian tradition, that it can be seen as an heir to classical Gnosticism and is part of the vernacular religion of the modern west.

When you think of astrology, you may think of the horoscope section in your local paper, or of Nancy Reagan's consultations with an astrologer in the White House in the 1980s. Yet almost every religion uses some form of astrology: some way of thinking about the sun, moon, stars, and planets and how they hold significance for human lives on earth. Astrology and Cosmology in the World's Religions offers an accessible overview of the astrologies of the world's religions, placing them into context within theories of how the wider universe came into being and operates. Campion traces beliefs about the heavens among peoples ranging from ancient Egypt and China, to Australia and Polynesia, and India and the Islamic world. Addressing each religion in a separate chapter, Campion outlines how, by observing the celestial bodies, people have engaged with the divine, managed the future, and attempted to understand events here on earth. This fascinating text offers a unique way to delve into comparative religions and will also appeal to those intrigued by New Age topics.

This collection addresses current controversies about the relationship between science and religion, in which Augustine is appealed to by opposing sides, showing his continuing relevance, as well as the subtlety and complexity of his views. Questions on evolution are especially focused on, and from a variety of perspectives, often with quite different conclusions between the essays. This is truly a conversation about Augustine, science, and religion.

The relationship between the human soul and the stars has been central to the spiritual and esoteric traditions of Western thought, and many other cultures, for thousands of years. Medieval Christians thought that heaven was located above the earth, beyond the stars. Our modern society, however, has largely severed the relationship between the human spirit and the sky. This book explores ideas, beliefs and practices which meet at the boundary of psychology and cosmology, the universe and human imagination. This book addresses this special relationship from a variety of challenging and inspiring approaches. The contributors include James Hillman, the founder of archetypal psychology and Jungian analyst; astrologer Liz Greene; Professor Neville Brown of Mansfield College, Oxford; Nicholas Pearson of the Temenos Academy; Professor Jarita Holbrook of the University of Arizona; Dr Angela Vos of the University of Kent; Bernadette Brady; Jules Cashford; Noel Cobb, the former editor of Sphinx; Cherry Gilchrist; Robert Hand; and Professor Richard Tarnas of the California Institute of Integral Studies.

This first volume comprehensively charts Western astrology from 30,000 BCE up to the 17th century, with particular focus on its magical, political and apocalyptic movements and use in everyday life throughout history. This is the first comprehensive examination of astrology's origins and examines the foundations of a major feature of popular culture in the contemporary west, one which has its origins in the ancient world. Campion explores the relationship between astrology and religion, magic and science, and explores its use in politics and the arts in a fascinating and readable fashion. The book's scope and depth is greater than any other comparable text. Beginning with theories of the origins of religion in sun-worship, it spans the period between the first Paleolithic lunar counters around 30,000BC and the end of the classical world and rise of Christianity. Campion challenges the idea that astrology was invented by the Greeks, and asks whether its origins lie in Near-Eastern religion, or whether it can be considered a decadent Eastern import to the west. He considers the evidence for reverence for the stars in Neolithic culture, Mesopotamian astral divination, Egyptian stellar religion, and examines attitudes to astrology and celestial prophecy in the Bible. He considers such artifacts as the mysterious, fifteen-thousand year-old "Venus of Lauselle", the reasons for the orientation of the pyramids, the latest theories on Stonehenge as a sacred observatory, Greek theories of the ascent of the soul to the stars and the Roman emperor Nero's use of astrology to persecute his rivals.

Human beings in all cultures have long used the sky to tell stories and weave myths that impart meaning to life on earth. The key to all such systems is symbolism, in which one thing is used to signify, imply, represent, or embody another. The papers included in this volume are all concerned, in one way or another, with various perceptions of the world of celestial phenomena as symbols. These explorations range from art history and analytical psychology to critiques and accounts of astrology, and roam from western to non-western cultures, as well as from the ancient world to the modern. The papers, most of which were given at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David Sophia Centre Conference in Bath, UK, in 2011, provide a valuable addition to the scholarly literature on our understanding of the origins, function, and nature of symbols, especially their use in relation to cultural applications of astronomy, astrology, and the sky.

When you think of astrology, you may think of the horoscope section in your local paper, or of Nancy Reagan's consultations with an astrologer in the White House in the 1980s. Yet almost every religion uses some form of astrology: some way of thinking about the sun, moon, stars, and planets and how they hold significance for human lives on earth. Astrology and Cosmology in the World's Religions offers an accessible overview of the astrologies of the world's religions, placing them into context within theories of how the wider universe came into being and operates. Campion traces beliefs about the heavens among peoples ranging from ancient Egypt and China, to Australia and Polynesia, and India and the Islamic world. Addressing each religion in a separate chapter, Campion outlines how, by observing the celestial bodies, people have engaged with the divine, managed the future, and attempted to understand events here on earth. This fascinating text offers a unique way to delve into comparative religions and will also appeal to those intrigued by New Age topics.

Vedic astrology arises out of ancient cosmology and is intimately linked to spiritual practices. Renowned and popular vedic astrologer Komilla Sutton teaches this ancient tradition to students all around the world through her webinars and books. This is her first and best-selling book, and it is aimed at beginners as well as astrologers think of moving from tropical to vedic astrology.

First issue of the Culture and Cosmos journal