The Duke of Zhou ́s catalogue of dreams is the oldest known text on the interpretation of dreams. Being 3100 years old, it ́s principles and advice on the meaning and interpretation of dream images yield as valid results and council as in it ́s own day. By studying the meaning of the different images, the reader not only is able to gain valuable insight on the meaning of his dreams, but also can deduce the basic patterns and principles of the "Language of Dreams" itself.

This fascinating and accessible book offers a comprehensive overview of dream interpretation theory and modern dream science, presenting an argument for dreamwork as a means to better understand emotional challenges and achieve personal growth. Bridging the gap between cognitive-behavioral therapies, psychoanalysis and depth psychology, the book explores topics like lucid dreams, end-of-life dreams, cross-cultural dream analysis and Freudian and Jungian models of dream interpretation. The authors offer a new model for better understanding dreams based on symbol formation, narrative structure and current neurophysiology, with the aim of reinvigorating the way we value dreams and their importance to individuals and society. The Wisdom of Dreams can be of great interest to analysts and therapists, including psychiatrists, psychologists, sleep researchers, social workers and counselors, as well as anyone interested in working with their dreams for greater personal clarity and self-understanding.

This book on the interpretation of dreams dates back to the late Tang Dynasty of Imperial China, about 1100 years ago. It provides the essence of a vast number of case studies conducted by the ancient Chinese. People would be invited into Temples and Monasteries and have their dreams recorded. The subsequent events in these people lives were then compared with the dreams they had. The dream symbols were then categorised and the quintessence of their respective meaning written down for futher reference. Until this day the patterns found and recorded prove to be as valuable and accurate as in the day they were recorded, just the images to the symbols may have changed. With this book, you can explore the landscape of your own dreams and gain insight into the messages they provide for your future.

This book partakes of a long tradition of dream interpretation, but, at the same time, is unique in its cross-cultural and interdisciplinary methods and in its mix of theoretical and analytical approaches. It includes a great chronological and geographical range, from ancient Sumeria to eighteenth-century China; medieval Hispanic dream poetry to Italian Renaissance dream theory; Shakespeare to Nerval; and from Dostoevsky, through Emily Brontë, to Henry James. Rupprecht also incorporates various critical orientations including archetypal, comparative, feminist, historicist, linguistic, postmodern, psychoanalytic, religious, reader response, and self-psychology.

This encyclopedia is the perfect guide to the weird, magical, superstitious, and supernatural beliefs of people from all over the world. This book is devoted to those human beliefs that fall in the "gray zone" between science, religion, and everyday life-call them superstitious, supernatural, magical, or just wrong. In an often incomprehensible world where lightning or plague could end life quickly or drought could condemn a poor family to agonizing death, superstitious beliefs gave people a feeling of understanding or even control. They have continued to shape societies and cultures ever since. This book covers a range of superstitious, supernatural, and otherwise unusual beliefs from the ancient world to the early 19th century. More than 100 entries explain beliefs, discuss historical evidence, and explain how each belief differs across cultures. This book is a perfect gateway for anyone curious about superstitious and magical beliefs, with topics ranging from the everyday, such as dogs and iron, to legendary figures, such as Hermes Trismegistus and the Yellow Emperor.

A study of prohibitions: why they fail, how they begin, what causes them, who benefits, the methods and results. Drug wars are not only failures, they are counterproductive and are associated with regime change. They are motivated by political jealousy, social disruption, bad medicine, economic greed and religious hysteria.

Wandering Spirits is a translation and study of the most comprehensive work on dream culture in traditional China - Lofty Principles of Dream Interpretation (Mengzhan yizhi), compiled in 1562 by Chen Shiyuan and periodically reprinted up to the modern era. This unique treatise compiles various theories, Chen's own comments concerning the nature of dreams and their role in waking life, and almost seven hundred examples assembled from a wide range of literary sources. This translation is accompanied by a full-length introduction that surveys the evolution of Chinese dream culture and the role of Chen Shiyuan and his encyclopedia.

Backstreet Boys were the biggest band in the world for a short while and that period is documented on their first hits compilation, 2001's The Hits: Chapter One. Twelve years later came Essential Backstreet Boys, a double-disc set that has all 13 songs from The Hits, along with another 16 songs -- generally, songs that came after 2001, when BSB started to slide down the charts. There were hits -- 2005's "Incomplete," 2007's "Inconsolable" -- that just showed up on the Adult Contemporary charts; a fair approximation of where the group wound up in their second decade. Essential Backstreet Boys traces this evolution, filling in a few more details of those early hit-making years, which makes this worthwhile for the dedicated fan, but many listeners may find either The Hits, or the variety of budget-line collections released since, to be a better bet as they contain the hits and nothing but. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Covering wide-ranging topics from the arts and entertainment to customs and traditions from the ancient imperial and modern eras, Historical Dictionary of Chinese Culture provides more than 300 separate entries along with a comprehensive chronology, glossary of Chinese cultural terms, and an extensive bibliography of Western and Chinese-language sources. Dictionary entries of the decorative and fine arts include ceramics and porcelains, handicrafts, jade and seal carving, jewelry, and painting. The literary subjects range from fiction to non-fiction, but especially poetry. Major entertainment venues of cinema and film, classical puppetry, and theater, both ancient and modern are also covered. In addition to the arts, the authors include major customary practices from childbirth and childrearing to marriage and weddings to funerals and burial practices. Other aspects of the culture are also examined, including crime, foot-binding, pornography, and prostitution, and the government policies aimed at their eradication. Throughout the text, Chinese-language translations of key terms are presented in italics and parenthesis, along with biographies of figures central to the creation of China’s magnificent cultural heritage.