Gods and Heroes is the first volume of the Itan—Legends of the Golden Age trilogy about the thousand-year story of the Yoruba people. It starts with the establishment of Ile-Ife by Oduduwa and the great sacrifice of the heroine Moremi. The ancient gods of Yorubaland, Obatala, Orunmila, Ogun, and Olokun all play their part, as well as the great heroes and heroines of antiquity—Oranmiyan, Sango, Oya, Oba Esigie of Benin, and Obanta of Ijebuland. The author uses the genre of the historical novel in a refreshing and imaginative fashion to present the whole tableau of Yoruba history. The result is a vast and rich panorama enlivened with traditional myths and legends seen through the eyes of a single Yoruba family and the Old Woman, the fabled storyteller.

"This book investigates the various ways that ancient Greek and Roman authors envisioned the end of the world and the role they gave to global catastrophes, both past and future, in shaping human history"--

The truth behind ancient myths and the return of the celestial conditions for a Golden Age of peace and abundance • Reveals the events preserved in myth that launched humanity into 12,000 years of struggle, selfishness, and false beliefs • Explores how we can initiate a new Golden Age through ancient Egyptian teachings on the creative power of our imaginations • Explains how our world system of economics, which benefits a few at the expense of the many, arose as a reaction to global catastrophe in prehistory Since the beginning of recorded history humanity has been in a continuous struggle over land and resources. It continues today despite the abundance we have created through scientific innovation and technology. Why such a struggle for resources exists has never been explained. Neither has the human drive to own, accumulate, and hoard. Edward Malkowski reveals that the answer lies in recognizing the reality behind humanity’s earliest myths. He shows that the opportunity is at hand to transcend these inherited selfish traits and return to a Golden Age of peace and abundance. Malkowski explores the hidden meaning behind stories such as the Epic of Gilgamesh, Plato’s Atlantis, and myths of a new sky and a new sun, of great floods and the death of the gods, and of the preceding Golden Age. He connects these myths to a real extinction event that occurred 12,000 years ago. He explains how the survivors--our ancestors--were catapulted from utopia into a world of scarcity, scarring the collective mind of humanity and initiating the struggle for resources in an attempt to regain our lost paradise. He shows how our world system of economics, focused on ownership and based on the false belief of separateness--benefitting a few at the expense of the many--arose as a reaction to this catastrophe. Drawing on the pre-catastrophe teachings preserved by the ancient Egyptians, Malkowski reveals that we are returning to a celestial configuration parallel to that of the past Golden Age. Through our collective DNA memory and the creative power of our imaginations, we can end our 12,000-year quest to regain paradise lost and launch a new Golden Age of unity, abundance, and equality for all humanity.

Upset it, with individual gods acting to protect their own positions in an established hierarchy and struggling to gain power over their fellows. The nature of their immortal but not vulnerable bodies, their pleasures, and their needs are considered. What did they eat, the authors ask, and did they feel pain? The second part of the book cites familiar traditions and littleknown texts to explain the relationship of the gods to the pharaoh, who was believed to represent.

"Constantine was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. The book explores the emperor's image as conveyed through literature, art, and architecture, and shows how Constantine reconciled the tradition of imperial divinity with his monotheistic faith. It demonstrates how the traditional themes and imagery of kingship were exploited to portray the emperor as the saviour of his people and to assimilate him to Christ. This is the first book to study simultaneously both archaeological and historical information to build a picture of the emperor's image and propaganda. It is extensively illustrated" --Provided by publisher.

The conviction that Nature was God's second revelation played a crucial role in early modern Dutch culture. This book offers a fascinating account on how Dutch intellectuals contemplated, investigated, represented and collected natural objects, and how the notion of the 'Book of Nature' was transformed.