Religion : Mysticism

Make no "myth-take"athis book is indispensable. "The Complete Idiotas Guide to World Mythology" explores the gods and goddesses, heroes and heroines, monsters and angels of the myths from every corner of the globe. Additionally, it explores the parallels between every culture and the striking similarities in mythic figures and the structure, action, wording, and result of the stories themselves. a Covers Egyptian, Celtic, Teutonic, Norse, Japanese, Mexican, Native American, and other myths a Features information on The Heroas Journeyathe cycle of myth according to Jung, Campbell, and others a Appendixes include a glossary of terms and both a general and a subject Index more...

Price: $18.95

From sacred mountains and places of pilgrimage to visions and out-of-body travel, this reference explores unusual and unexplained physical events, apparitions, and other phenomena rooted in religious beliefs. Each entry features a balanced presentation and includes a description of the phenomenon, the religious claims surrounding the occurrence, and a scientific response. more...

Price: $19.95

The islands of Britain have been a crossroads of gods, heroes, and kings-those of flesh as well as those of myth-for thousands of years. Successive waves of invasion brought distinctive legends, rites, and beliefs. The ancient Celts displaced earlier indigenous peoples, only to find themselves displaced in turn by the Romans, who then abandoned the islands to Germanic tribes, a people themselves nearly overcome in time by an influx of Scandinavians. With each wave of invaders came a battle for the mythic mind of the Isles as the newcomer's belief system met with the existing systems of gods, legends, and myths. In Gods, Heroes, and Kings, medievalist Christopher Fee and veteran myth scholar David Leeming unearth the layers of the British Isles' unique folkloric tradition to discover how this body of seemingly disparate tales developed. The authors find a virtual battlefield of myths in which pagan and Judeo-Christian beliefs fought for dominance, and classical, Anglo-Saxon, Germanic, and Celtic narrative threads became tangled together. The resulting body of legends became a strange but coherent hybrid, so that by the time Chaucer wrote "The Wife of Bath's Tale" in the fourteenth century, a Christian theme of redemption fought for prominence with a tripartite Celtic goddess and the Arthurian legends of Sir Gawain-itself a hybrid mythology. Without a guide, the corpus of British mythology can seem impenetrable. Taking advantage of the latest research, Fee and Leeming employ a unique comparative approach to map the origins and development of one of the richest folkloric traditions. Copiously illustrated with excerpts in translation from the original sources, Gods, Heroes, and Kings provides a fascinating and accessible new perspective on the history of British mythology. more...

Price: $47.25

The bestselling author of The Hidden Jesus presents a groundbreaking new portrait of one of Christianity's best-loved saints. Acclaimed biographer Donald Spoto strips away the legends from the life of Francis of Assisi to reveal the true story of a man who has too often been obscured by pious iconography. Drawing on unprecedented access to unexplored archives, plus Francis's own letters, Spoto places Francis within the context of the multifaceted ecclesiastical, political, and social forces of medieval Italy, casting new light on Francis and showing how his emphasis on charity as the heart of the Gospel's message helped him pioneer a new social movement. This nuanced portrait reveals the multifaceted character of a man who can genuinely be said to have changed the course of history. more...

Price: $14.00

Gene Edwards, the master storyteller, has gathered together the writings of three Christian mystics from the 17th century: Michael Molinos, Madam Guyon and Francois Fenelon. The writings of these 'masters of the spiritual way' will be as lamp posts leading the weary traveler towards that secret place lovingly created by the Father. more...

Price: $9.79