Title: The future of the ancient world : essays on the history of consciousness /
Authors: Naydler, Jeremy.
Publisher: Inner Traditions,
Year: 2009
Subjects: Spirituality; Consciousness Religious aspects
Abstract: The Future of the Ancient World sheds new light on the evolution of consciousness from antiquity to modern times. The twelve essays in this book examine developments in human consciousness over the past five thousand years that most history books do not touch. In ancient times, human beings were attuned to the invisible world of the gods, spirits, and ancestors. Today, by contrast, our modern scientific consciousness regards what is physically imperceptible as unreal. Our experience of the natural world has shifted from an awareness of the divine presence animating all things to the mere scientific analyses of physical attributes, a deadened mode of awareness that relies on our ability to believe only in what we can see. In these richly illustrated and wide-ranging essays that span the cultures of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, and the early Christian period, Jeremy Naydler shows how the consciousness that prevailed in ancient times may inspire us toward a future in which we once again reconnect with invisible realms. If the history of consciousness bears witness to the loss of visionary and participatory awareness, it also shows a new possibility - the possibility of developing a free and objective relationships to the spirit world. Naydler urges us not only to draw inspiration from the wisdom of the ancients but also to carry this wisdom forward into the future in a renewed relationship to the spiritual that is based on human freedom and responsibility. -- from back cover.
Contents: Pt. 1. Beyond what the eyes can see -- The restitution of the ear -- The heart of the lily -- The soul of the weather -- The reality that is not there -- Pt. 2. Deepening our foundations : the gods and ancient Egypt -- Ancient Egypt and the soul of the West -- On the divinity of the gods -- The artist as priest : reflections on the sacred art and culture of ancient Egypt -- Ancient Egypt and modern esotericism -- Pt. 3. The path of consciousness -- Being ancient in a modern way : divination in the light of the history of consciousness -- The future of the ancient world -- Christ and the gods -- Pathways into the future from the deep past.