"[P.D. Ouspensky's] yearning for a transcendent, timeless reality—one that cancels out physical disintegration and death—figures into science at some fundamental level. Einstein found solace in his theory of relativity, which suggested to him that events are ever-present in the space-time continuum. When his friend Michele Besso passed on shortly before his own death, he wrote: 'For us believing physicists the distinction between past, present, and future is only an illusion, even if a stubborn one.'" —from Magic, Mystery, and Science The triumph of science would appear to have routed all other explanations of reality. No longer does astrology or alchemy or magic have the power to explain the world to us. Yet at one time each of these systems of belief, like religion, helped shed light on what was dark to our understanding. Nor have the occult arts disappeared. We humans have a need for mystery and a sense of the infinite. Magic, Mystery, and Science presents the occult as a "third stream" of belief, as important to the shaping of Western civilization as Greek rationalism or Judeo-Christianity. The occult seeks explanations in a world that is living and intelligent—quite unlike the one supposed by science. By taking these beliefs seriously, while keeping an eye on science, this book aims to capture some of the power of the occult. Readers will discover that the occult has a long history that reaches back to Babylonia and ancient Egypt. It proceeds alongside, and frequently mingles with, religion and science. From the Egyptian Book of the Dead to New Age beliefs, from Plato to Adolf Hitler, occult ways of knowing have been used—and hideously abused—to explain a world that still tempts us with the knowledge of its dark secrets.

The subject of occultism, by which we mean those sciences, called transcendental and magical, a knowledge of which has been transmitted and accumu¬lated in secret, or is contained in books that have an inner or secret meaning, has been very fully dealt with during recent years by various students of eminence. But the works of these well-equipped investigators are, in most instances, unsuited to an elementary reader, and they are all somewhat expensive. It has remained for the results of their studies to be condensed into a port¬able volume, which shall conduct the inquirer into the vestibule of each branch of "the occult sciences," and place within his reach the proper means of prosecuting his researches further in any desired direction. It is such an unpretending but useful task which we have set ourselves to perform in the present volume, which em¬braces, as we would claim, in a compressed and digested form, the whole scope of occult knowledge, expressed in the language of a learner.

Given his energetic involvement in practical initiatives and extensive lecturing, Rudolf Steiner had little time to write books. Of those he did write - belonging almost entirely to the earlier years of his work - four titles form an indispensable introduction to his later teaching: Knowledge of the Higher Worlds, Theosophy, The Philosophy of Freedom and Occult Science. The anthroposophy of Rudolf Steiner is not a theoretical system, but the results of research based on direct observation. As Steiner's research was so vast and conducted over such a long period of time, no single book can be said to contain the whole of his spiritual teaching. However, of all his books Occult Science comes closest. Steiner even referred to it as 'an epitome of anthroposophical spiritual science'. The book sets out, in systematic order, the fundamental facts concerning the nature and constitution of the human being and, in chronological order, the history of the universe and man. Whereas the findings of natural science are derived from observations made through the senses, the findings of spiritual science, or anthroposophy, are 'occult' inasmuch as they derive from direct observation of realities which are hidden to everyday perception. And yet these elements of humanity and the universe form the foundation of the sense world. A substantial part of Occult Science is occupied by a description of the preliminary training which is necessary to make such spiritual observations. Although Occult Science is not all-inclusive, it is indispensable to any serious student seeking to master Rudolf Steiner's extraordinary philosophy.

Islamicate Occult Sciences in Theory and Practice brings together the latest research on Islamic occult sciences from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, namely intellectual history, manuscript studies and material culture. Its aim is not only to showcase the range of pioneering work that is currently being done in these areas, but also to provide a model for closer interaction amongst the disciplines constituting this burgeoning field of study. Furthermore, the book provides the rare opportunity to bridge the gap on an institutional level by bringing the academic and curatorial spheres into dialogue. Contributors include: Charles Burnett, Jean-Charles Coulon, Maryam Ekhtiar, Noah Gardiner, Christiane Gruber, Bink Hallum, Francesca Leoni, Matthew Melvin-Koushki, Michael Noble, Rachel Parikh, Liana Saif, Maria Subtelny, Farouk Yahya, and Travis Zadeh.

An Outline of Occult Science is Rudolf Steiner's thesis discussing the unknown, the nature of mankind, and his belief that science may be used to explain the unusual phenomena known as the occult. First published in 1910, this book strives to define, categorize and explain various manifestations of the occult. The author concedes at the opening of the book that many otherwise open-minded and receptive individuals immediately recoil from the concept of the the unknown, especially in relation to attempts to investigate it scientifically. After introducing the occult, Steiner delves into explaining the two worlds he thought comprised the reality we live in. The natural world, that which is visible and readily perceivable around us, and the spiritual world, where the unexplained phenomena arise. The nature of man as a bodily being, and how his physical self bridges the gap between these two worlds, is much detailed. Famous as a literary critic, Rudolf Steiner's interest in the occult phenomena meant that much of his later life was characterized by research into spiritual texts. He passionately believed that much of the strange, paranormal or occult phenomena human beings have observed have a spiritual yet scientific explanation: it is with this essential belief in mind that Steiner attempts to persuade the reader. Although unusual in subject matter, An Outline of Occult Science is written in an accessible style. What would otherwise be dry and inscrutable is made interesting and exotic by Steiner, who was used to writing for a popular audience in his career as a literary critic. This edition of his book contains all of his original notes, which are appended at the conclusion for ease of reference.

God has created this world and everything in it has a meaning. It is for man to discover these hidden meanings or messages and decipher them, for his own good. Ancient civilisations like those of the Hindus, Greeks, Romans, Chaldaeans, Chinese and Sumerians considered these hidden meanings to be of vital significance in the context of the destiny and personality of human beings. Dreams, omens, moles on a person's body, twitching of certain parts of the body, handwriting -- all have a hidden meaning for us to discover. What sun sign we are born under and how it affects our personality and life; the use of lucky charms and Tantric articles to mitigate evil influences and attain good health, wealth and happiness; modern yantras like Crystal Ball Gazing and the Mystic Eye, are all dealt with in this book in a simple and interesting manner for the uninitiated reader, as well as for astrologers, palmists and others.

The essays in this volume present a collective study of one of the major problems in the recent history of science: To what extent did the occult 'sciences' (alchemy, astrology, numerology, and natural magic) contribute to the scientific revolution of the late Renaissance? These studies of major scientists (Kepler, Bacon, Mersenne, and Newton) and of occultists (Dee, Fludd, and Cardano), complemented by analyses of contemporary official and unofficial studies at Cambridge and Oxford and discussions of the language of science, combine to suggest that hitherto the relationship has been too crudely stated as a movement 'from magic to science'. In fact, two separate mentalities can be traced, the occult and the scientific, each having different assumptions, goals, and methodologies. The contributors call into question many of the received ideas on this topic, showing that the issue has been wrongly defined and based on inadequate historical evidence. They outline new ways of approaching and understanding a situation in which two radically different and, to modern eyes, incompatible ways of describing reality persisted side-by-side until the demise of the occult in the late seventeenth century. Their work, accordingly, sets the whole issue in a new light.