The four Volumes (the fourth being the reference material) have been some two decades in the making and represent the fruits of over half a century of exploration and research in science and the Perennial Philosophy. Drawing on a galaxy of world-class authorities, the result is a closely woven garment that lights up the night sky in the fields of science and philosophy, religion and art. Conveniently presented in three distinct, yet interlinked, Volumes it traces the path of esoteric philosophy and occult science (the kernel of the Wisdom Tradition) in modern idiom explaining how they complement Western science. Evidence from a wide range of sources—scientific, medical, philosophical, religious, and cultural—is put forward to argue the case that humans are spiritual beings, primarily, and not merely complicated biological machines or evolved monkeys. Especially, that consciousness is not the product of matter but the primary ‘element’ from which all else emanates. This process and its underlying mechanisms are described in stepwise detail with much clarity.

Further information on Volumes I, II and III is detailed on separate Advance Information sheets but, in outline, the subject matter is organized as to:

Volume I: A Panoramic Survey — Science Contrasted with the Perennial Philosophy on Consciousness and ManVolume II: Peering Down the Microscope — Man’s Internal LandscapesVolume III: Gazing Through the Telescope — Man is the Measure of All ThingsVolume IV: Definitions, Glossary, Profiles, Bibliography, Index

In these Volumes, readers will discover their own essential nature since it takes Socrates’ aphorism ‘Man, Know Thyself’ as its keynote. It is true to say that once the ground set out in this trilogy is surveyed, readers are better able to clarify their own beliefs and understanding and to know what is uniquely important to them. For this reason, as the various endorsements point out, it is not a ‘passive’ read but a distinctly participative and engaging one.

These Volumes, spanning the time periods from antiquity to the modern age, possess a breadth and profundity one rarely sees in modern esoteric literature. They expound the esoteric philosophy and occult sciences from arcane sources to the latest expositions from worldwide sources and diverse cultures. Moreover, the author explains their indispensable complement (not alternative) to science, whilst at the same time supporting their affirmations with evidence and references.

Whilst on Earth, we may well ‘see through a glass darkly’, but in this work Edi Bilimoria uses his scientific-philosophic background not only to ‘pierce through’, but to throw into relief the difference between true science and pseudo-science, true mysticism and mock mysticism. Whereas mainstream science can hardly disagree with what the best of science has discovered through its own methods of theoretical analysis and laborious experimentation, yet the deeper philosophical and metaphysical implications have barely penetrated the still predominant materialistic paradigm of science. The author examines this paradigm against the background of the perennial wisdom and finds it sadly lacking, but he provides much optimism finding harbingers of hope in the dawning of a new epoch of spirituality in the wake of the turbulence of recent world events. The 2020 Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is one obvious harbinger—sounding an alarm bell to mankind to reorient its sense of values away from unbridled technology and heartless commercialism back to the timeless realities with which these Volumes are concerned.

The author questions what it truly means to be a human being at all levels from spirit, through soul to body. Questions concerning destiny, purpose, and continuity of consciousness after death are explained with considerable evidence and no preconceptions.

Edi Bilimoria

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