Why we need a materialist spirituality for the secular left, and how to build one. The left commonly rejects religion and spirituality as counter-revolutionary forces, citing Marx’s famous dictum that "religion is the opium of the people." Yet forms of spirituality have motivated struggles throughout history, ranging from medieval peasant uprisings and colonial slave revolts, to South American liberation theology and the US civil rights movement. And in a world where religion is growing, and political movements are ridden with conflict, burnout, and failure, what can the left learn from religion? Red Enlightenment argues not only for a deepened understanding of religious matters, but calls for the secular left to develop its own spiritual perspectives. It proposes a materialist spirituality built from socialist and scientific sources, finding points of contact with the global history of philosophy and religion. From cybernetics to liberation theology, from ancient Indian and Chinese philosophy to Marxist dialectical materialism, from traditional religious practices to contemporary art, music, and film, Red Enlightenment sets out a plausible secular spirituality, a new socialist praxis, and a utopian vision.

Fictions of Enlightenment is the first book to examine the fascinating and intricate relationship between Buddhism and the development of Chinese vernacular fiction. Qiancheng Li brings Buddhist models to bear on the vision, structure, and narrative form of three classics of late imperial literature—Journey to the West, Tower of Myriad Mirrors, and Dream of the Red Chamber—arguing that by fashioning their plots after the narratives of certain Mahāyāna sutras, the novelists transformed Buddhist concepts into narrative structures. Within the traditional Chinese novel Li even defines a new genre: the fiction of enlightenment.

Shocks, from natural disasters to military catastrophes, have long been exploited by the state to impose privatization, cuts and rampant free markets. This book argues that the left can use such moments of chaos to achieve emancipation. Graham Jones illustrates how everyone can help to exploit these shocks and bring about a new world of compassion and care. He examines how combining mutually reinforcing strategies of ‘smashing, building, healing and taming’ can become the basis of a unified left. His vivid personal experience underpins a compelling, practical vision for activism, from the scale of the individual body to the global social movement. This bold book is a toolkit for revolution for activists and radical millennials everywhere.

In Making the World Safe, historian Julia Irwin offers an insightful account of the American Red Cross, from its founding in 1881 by Clara Barton to its rise as the government's official voluntary aid agency. Equally important, Irwin shows that the story of the Red Cross is simultaneously a story of how Americans first began to see foreign aid as a key element in their relations with the world. As the American Century dawned, more and more Americans saw the need to engage in world affairs and to make the world a safer place--not by military action but through humanitarian aid. It was a time perfectly suited for the rise of the ARC. Irwin shows how the early and vigorous support of William H. Taft--who was honorary president of the ARC even as he served as President of the United States--gave the Red Cross invaluable connections with the federal government, eventually making it the official agency to administer aid both at home and abroad. Irwin describes how, during World War I, the ARC grew at an explosive rate and extended its relief work for European civilians into a humanitarian undertaking of massive proportions, an effort that was also a major propaganda coup. Irwin also shows how in the interwar years, the ARC's mission meshed well with presidential diplomatic styles, and how, with the coming of World War II, the ARC once again grew exponentially, becoming a powerful part of government efforts to bring aid to war-torn parts of the world. The belief in the value of foreign aid remains a central pillar of U.S. foreign relations. Making the World Safe reveals how this belief took hold in America and the role of the American Red Cross in promoting it.

What if one day you discover everything you have ever believed about world and relationships was a lie? Imagine everything you have ever been taught concerning women and how to engage them was fabricated? What if you discovered your family, the media, the film industry, the music industry, women, as well as the government were greatly invested in your miseducation? The Gentlemen's Book Of Enlightenment seeks to explore these questions and reveal a truth that has been hidden in plain sight. Men were bred to be utilities and are disposable. Weather through war, taxes, marriage, children, divorce, alimony, or child support men are forced to sacrifice their happiness and live a life of servitude in many if not all these areas. The reality is men are not valued as people. Men receive value based on what they can provide. This book is a guide to help men avoid the pitfalls of a society who has laid various traps in the minefield we call life. Join us on this journey as we discover the truth in chapters like "Love Vs. Respect", "What Does She Have To Offer You", and "You Will Never Make Her Happy". This book seeks to enlighten men and help start their journey to true happiness and walk away from system that only wants to keep them in bondage.

An investigative reporter explores an infamous case where an obsessive and unorthodox search for enlightenment went terribly wrong. When thirty-eight-year-old Ian Thorson died from dehydration and dysentery on a remote Arizona mountaintop in 2012, The New York Times reported the story under the headline: "Mysterious Buddhist Retreat in the Desert Ends in a Grisly Death." Scott Carney, a journalist and anthropologist who lived in India for six years, was struck by how Thorson’s death echoed other incidents that reflected the little-talked-about connection between intensive meditation and mental instability. Using these tragedies as a springboard, Carney explores how those who go to extremes to achieve divine revelations—and undertake it in illusory ways—can tangle with madness. He also delves into the unorthodox interpretation of Tibetan Buddhism that attracted Thorson and the bizarre teachings of its chief evangelists: Thorson’s wife, Lama Christie McNally, and her previous husband, Geshe Michael Roach, the supreme spiritual leader of Diamond Mountain University, where Thorson died. Carney unravels how the cultlike practices of McNally and Roach and the questionable circumstances surrounding Thorson’s death illuminate a uniquely American tendency to mix and match eastern religious traditions like LEGO pieces in a quest to reach an enlightened, perfected state, no matter the cost. Aided by Thorson’s private papers, along with cutting-edge neurological research that reveals the profound impact of intensive meditation on the brain and stories of miracles and black magic, sexualized rituals, and tantric rites from former Diamond Mountain acolytes, A Death on Diamond Mountain is a gripping work of investigative journalism that reveals how the path to enlightenment can be riddled with danger.

Do you think Bobbys adventures are over? Think again; not a chance! Get ready for the grand finale of all adventures as you become spellbound in Siberia, The Land that never Sleeps. Little dudes and dudettes hang on to your Lucky Baseball Caps, once again, as you take a leap of faith with Bobby and his pals into the vast and mysterious Siberian wilderness. What happens when you come face to face with a Goligoom? Lets find out, this is a terrific ride, a ride that you will never forget! Its so Rad!

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2018 ONE OF THE ECONOMIST'S BOOKS OF THE YEAR "My new favorite book of all time." --Bill Gates If you think the world is coming to an end, think again: people are living longer, healthier, freer, and happier lives, and while our problems are formidable, the solutions lie in the Enlightenment ideal of using reason and science. By the author of the new book, Rationality. Is the world really falling apart? Is the ideal of progress obsolete? In this elegant assessment of the human condition in the third millennium, cognitive scientist and public intellectual Steven Pinker urges us to step back from the gory headlines and prophecies of doom, which play to our psychological biases. Instead, follow the data: In seventy-five jaw-dropping graphs, Pinker shows that life, health, prosperity, safety, peace, knowledge, and happiness are on the rise, not just in the West, but worldwide. This progress is not the result of some cosmic force. It is a gift of the Enlightenment: the conviction that reason and science can enhance human flourishing. Far from being a naïve hope, the Enlightenment, we now know, has worked. But more than ever, it needs a vigorous defense. The Enlightenment project swims against currents of human nature--tribalism, authoritarianism, demonization, magical thinking--which demagogues are all too willing to exploit. Many commentators, committed to political, religious, or romantic ideologies, fight a rearguard action against it. The result is a corrosive fatalism and a willingness to wreck the precious institutions of liberal democracy and global cooperation. With intellectual depth and literary flair, Enlightenment Now makes the case for reason, science, and humanism: the ideals we need to confront our problems and continue our progress.

This is a new release of the original 1960 edition.

Foreword Today, teacher Phillz Mah uses all the learning he has been in contact with in his life to express the profound laws of the universe in a manner that is easy to understand. The intention is that we can master these skills to help ourselves. We all have a talent lurking in our inner soul, and if we understand how the universe operates, we have a key to unlock the door of the subconscious, and then unleash our talent and gift. The book you are holding now coincides with the basic theories of hypnotherapy, regression therapy, and Life Between Lives spiritual regression therapy that I have studied throughout my life. I believe it will give you a new understanding on your inner consciousness and the universe after reading it – and enlighten you on how to achieve your life goals! Dr. Teoh Hooi Meng SQHP FMAPsy LBLt International Master Trainer of Spiritual Regression Therapy and Hypnotherapy Through the years of the author’s practice and research on Eastern meditation systems and Western scientific studies, he reviews the true existence meaning of human beings. This book gives clear guidance and understanding to readers on the method to return to their origin consciousness state, and discover their role and gifts in the universe. Mr. Bey Ye Xun Managing Director Oriental Unity Development Group Preface Have you ever wondered why we ‘appear’ in this realm and this Earth dimension? And whether our existence has any special meaning? Many ancient scriptures have been written about these questions. But the purpose of this book is mainly to teach you a simple method to guide you back into your original consciousness realm, and let you discover your origins and inherent cosmic gifts for yourself. I hope that once you have understood the energy principles of the universe and taken the steps outlined in this book, you will discover your origin energy existence and benefit tremendously from this. True enlightenment can only be obtained through one’s self-discovery and understanding. Thus, I hereby wish you a happy reading journey and a happy origin self-discovery journey. Bon voyage… In the Universe realm, nothing can be more important and relevant than returning to one’s origin nature. Because the existence of the Universe is as natural as its origins. Contents The beginning… Preface Foreword The Foundation Realm What actually exists in the universe? Does the universe that we know really exist? If it exists, in what form does it exist, and where does it exist? Now, since ‘I’ already exist in the universe, what should ‘I’ try to accomplish? And what is the meaning of it? The Practicing Realm Okay, let's start! The journey of discovering your true self… What is meant by the most original form of our energy existence? And what is its unique value and gift? Here I share my inner journey experience, and how I discovered my original cosmic talent. After the discovery… Choices and Wisdoms The Universal Laws The Law of Cause and Effect The Law of Attraction The Law of the Energy of Love - The Power of Gratitude The Law of ‘Nature’ The Sublimations Realm Wisdom Tool for Sublimation of Wisdom – The Reference List of Self-Realization Postscript - If today is the last day of your life, how would you live? And what would you do? - Focus and balance Further Reading Recommendations: Author's epilogue: About the Author