 Cosmology sounds heavy, boring, and like a science lesson most people would want to avoid. I recommend a number of books relating to cosmology that I have found to be fun to read, not to mention enlightening, and often mind-boggling. These books I have read and which I recommend, combine the science with a story, almost like a detective story or a novel as they follow brilliant people on the exciting pursuit of new discoveries and truth. Not only can these books actually be "fun" to read, the awesome nature of the creation story, even as seen from the perspective of a scientist, can alter and expand the mind and create a "peak experience" or "Aha!" of the wonder of creation and the transcendental nature of reality. Outer space and inner space have a lot in common. If you even think this area might interest you, try reading at least one of the top books we recommend in this area. 
$15.00PaperbackThe Dancing Wu Li Masters: An Overview of the New PhysicsGary ZukavThis is the book I recommend for everyone. Although the book was first published in 1979, and there have been new developments in cutting edge quantum physics and cosmology since then, neither the basic laws of nature, nor the essence of consciousness, have changed in the last quarter of a century. The book is cleverly written and brilliantly organized. All the really big and important issues and concepts are included. The book captures the joy and astonishment of the author on his personal journey of understanding. My favorite quote is: "There are even more interpretations of quantum mechanics, but all of them are weird in some way. Quantum physics is stranger than science fiction". His explanation of the "split screen experiment" which demonstrates the dual nature of light (wave and particle) is really important and made very comprehensible. One of my heroes, Richard Feynman, has been quoted as saying nothing is more profound or important in studying physics than the split screen experiment. This is the book that gives the non-scientist the best tools for connecting consciousness and physical reality. We think this book is so important we have included it in our categoryBooks You Can’t Live Without. Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$15.95PaperbackThe Tao of PhysicsFritjof CapraThis is another classic in this genre. I found this book to be a little bit more scholarly and thus a little less readable and not quite as enjoyable as the Wu Li Masters. Nevertheless it is highly recommended and he does a great job of providing a synopsis of Eastern thought along with a lucid description of modern physics. The author, himself, in the first paragraph of the epilogue, provides a much better summary in a far more concise manner than I can: "The Eastern religious philosophies are concerned with timeless mystical knowledge which lies beyond reasoning and cannot be adequately expressed in words. The relation of this knowledge to modern physics is but one of its many aspects and, like all the others, it cannot be demonstrated conclusively but has to be experienced in a direct intuitive way. What I hope to have achieved to some extent, then, is not a rigorous demonstration, but rather to have given the reader an opportunity to relive, every now and then, an experience which has become for me a source of continuing joy and inspiration; that the principal theories and models of modern physics lead to a view of the world which is internally consistent and in perfect harmony with the views of Eastern mysticism."(Emphasis added.) Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$13.95PaperbackFeynman's Rainbow: A Search for Beauty in Physics and in LifeLeonard MlodinowI found this book while on vacation browsing in a bookstore. Richard Feynman is one of my heroes, and you will find my very enthusiastic reviews and recommendations of Feynman’s books elsewhere in this catalogue. The author, Mlodinow, as a kind of wunderkind in physics, went to the California Institute of Technology to begin a postdoctoral fellowship. There he met Richard Feynman, who was in losing battle with cancer. Although their relationship began with questions about physics, it broadened and deepened. This is a story that is about human nature, love, the search for truth, God, and everything else worth thinking about, talking about, and writing about. Sometimes a seeker does not even know he is seeking; yet clearly he is on his proper path. This is a story about how an awakening can occur under circumstances that are far away from an ashram or a monastery. The author’s life took an interesting path after this encounter, and I won’t spoil the surprise by revealing it. Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$60.00HardbackMagnificent UniverseKen CroswellThe awesome wonder of the cosmos has inspired the human imagination for millennia: what we learn about the cosmos tells us not just where we are, but who we are and now, at the turn of this millennium, thanks to science and technology that were unimaginable only a century ago, a rich new portrait of our universe has emerged. Magnificent Universe is the most complete, authoritative, and lavish celebration of the heavens ever created. No other book approaches its range of photographs, produced with uncompromising quality on a majestic scale. With more than one hundred full-color portraits, Magnificent Universe allows you to experience for yourself the beauty of the planets, moons, comets, constellations, stellar nurseries, red giants, WP, spiral galaxies, and quasars — all the way to the edge of space and time. Harvard-trained astronomer Ken Croswell stunned readers around the world with his previous book, Planet Quest, which Sir John Maddox called "a thrilling account of the discovery of planets in the solar system and elsewhere that stands out for its human interest and its accuracy." Now, after years of meticulous research, Dr. Croswell has brought together outstanding photographs from leading observatories around the world as well as from an armada of interplanetary spacecraft. Images from the Hubble Space Telescope have been digitally reprocessed to create a degree of definition never seen before. With these superb photographs, he guides us through lucidly organized chapters on the planets, the stars, the galaxies, and the universe. Unique color-coded tables on the planets, moons, brightest stars, nearest stars, and Local Group galaxies appear in a useful reference section, along with a glossary and suggestions for further reading. Magnificent Universe catapults you through the vistas of space that future generations will explore. It is a landmark in the scientific visualization of the cosmos—one that will surely inspire artists, philosophers, and adventures of the next century. 
$14.00PaperbackGod in the Equation: How Einstein Transformed ReligionCorey S. PowellThe author does a great job of taking the reader through the progression of how, beginning with the insights of Einstein and continuing throughout the 20th century, the scientific community has discovered that the mechanical, Newtonian based model of the universe does not tell the real story, and that reality has more to do with unseen forces (dark matter, cosmological constants etc.) that seem to be more consciousness based than matter based. If I had to take one statement from this book that made the book exciting and worthwhile, it was this revealing statement about the nature of time. I don't have the exact quote, but this is a pretty accurate paraphrase: If you were present just after the big bang occurred, and you called that moment today, it would be the only today without a yesterday. I can't explain why I found this statement so illuminating, but for me it created an understanding of how time is a relative fourth dimension. The author chose the following for the book jacket: He wanted to know where our world comes from and where it was going. He wanted to understand how the remote stillness of the heavens relates to the erratic, ever–changing events here on earth. Above all, he wanted to know if the answers to these questions would bring him closer to a higher authority. So Einstein put GOD IN THE EQUATION. If you have any interest at all in quantum physics, cosmology, and how the world's greatest scientific minds in the 20th Century tried to approach God and the questions of why we are here and what is reality, you must read this book!! Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$19.95PaperbackThe Extravagant UniverseRobert P. KirshnerThe author presents the most current discoveries (written in 2002) by the world's leading astronomers, which have lead to some astonishing conclusions. Incredibly, it appears that we live in a universe whose expansion is speeding up. Not only that, but everything in the universe is moving away from everything else in the universe at an accelerating rate. The ramifications of this discovery are quite mind–boggling. In this book we discover that our universe is controlled by dark energy, which means that something weird and wonderful is going on in empty space. As we go full circle, those scientists at the vanguard of learning are coming back to the Vedic conception that creation is a product of the vacuum. The author, Kirshner, is a Harvard professor and is a skilled writer who helps the reader to get into the joy and excitement of discovery and helps us to understand the political and competitive nature of those scientists competing to be the first and the best in their field. I highly recommend this book for its incredible insights, its readability, and the ease with which extremely complex subjects are made understandable to non–scientist readers like myself. If you want to begin to understand "dark matter" and "dark energy" this book will help you to accomplish this goal. Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$15.95PaperbackThe Hand of God: Thought and Images Reflecting the Spirit of the UniverseMichael Reagan, et alFounder of Lionheart Books, Reagan has produced the ideal smaller coffee-table book for the 21st century. The Hand of God combines dozens of dazzling images of starscapes and far planets captured by the Hubble telescope with reflections on the self, the stars, and the universe, from writers as various as Oscar Wilde, Albert Einstein, Annie Dillard, and Edward Taylor. To Reagan's credit, the writers selected are admirable, and the quotations from their works are well chosen, but the images alone are worth the price of admission and are as profound as the writings that surround them. Highly recommended.
$15.95PaperbackThe Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate TheoryBrian GreeneI am not a scientist or a mathematician. I have many books about relativity, cosmology, quantum physics, and about the great physicists of the 20th Century. Some are better than others. For me "better" means readable and understandable. Given those two criteria, this is The Best. The author, Brian Greene, is either a better writer or a better teacher, or both. The book is easy to read and even easy to understand. Greene seems to have the knack of creating just the right analogies and/or illustrations to communicate difficult abstract concepts in a way that is concrete, interesting, and understandable. I got so excited about the way relativity and special relativity were explained and illustrated by example that I even tried to explain them to my wife. What I mean is that, for the first time, I felt that I had a clear enough understanding of the subjects and the examples that I could actually explain them to someone else. Parenthetically, my wife, Dena, who has not had an interest in reading books on this topic, picked this one up, read the preface, and decided she wants to read it. Dena, who edits my reviews, insisted that I include the following quote from the preface to the 2003 edition. Here it is: "When science is widely seen as an integral part of what makes us human, our own connections to the cosmos will be significantly strengthened; truly, science is the thread that weaves us all into the fabric of reality." If you want to come to a basic understanding about relativity and quantum physics and how the two can be reconciled in string theory this is the book for you. Not only will you learn things and gain insight and understanding into the universe as seen and described by the greatest scientists, you will probably even enjoy yourself. I did. It is lucid, readable, technical, and non-mathematical. More importantly it is fun to read. For the first time in my life "space-time" became more than an abstract concept to me. My view and understanding of physical reality has been dramatically broadened and taken to new depths (or is it heights?—actually now I clearly see depths and heights are pretty much artificial distinctions). String theory is very interesting. It makes the universe appear to be a vibrational orchestral composition. It fits in with what Hesse said, that the fundamental laws of creation are based on music and math. It is also simpatico with the underlying essence of many mystic and religious teachings. However, as the renowned physicist and early exponent of string theory, John Hagelin, once explained to me, once we go beyond the atom, to the level of quarks and beyond, none of these things are real, they are just theoretical constructs. In the book Greene talks about EinsteinŐs quest to "understand the mind of God" by understanding the laws of physics. My conclusion is that any approach taken by the rational mind or the intellect must always fall short of the ultimate goal. The ultimate truth can be experienced by the mystic, or at least so he or she claims, but it certainly cannot be communicated verbally. I recommend this book without hesitation. It is a remarkable book. Thank you Dr. Greene! Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$14.99PaperbackThe Holographic UniverseMichael TalbotI can’t believe this book was published 13 years ago and no one, until recently, told me to read it. I think this is one of the best and most significant books I have ever read. Granted, I have an interest in physics, the mind, paranormal abilities, and of course the nature of reality or consciousness, but this book is so well-written and contains so much research and leading edge theories that I believe anyone and everyone who would read this book would love it almost as much as I did. Michael Talbot, the author, combines personal experience as someone who has paranormal or psychic abilities with a deep knowledge of the latest thinking of physicists. On top of this he has done an incredible job of gathering data and compiling resources about the paranormal abilities of the mind that should convince even the most skeptical reader that reality is much more complex than most materialists would care to admit. His research is well footnoted and has provided me with a number of books or articles I am looking forward to reading. I couldn’t put this book down. I found it very thrilling and inspiring. Although I don’t necessarily agree with all of the author’s suggestions and/or conclusions about this being a holographic universe, it is certainly something worth thinking about. More importantly his thorough and scientific treatment and fantastic documentation of such things as psychic phenomena, out of body experiences, and near death experiences are thrilling and introduce us on very subtle and deep levels to the really important issues about the nature of life and/or the purpose or meaning of life. I am definitely adding this book to my "Top-ten" list of the best and most important books I have ever read. I can't wait to read some of his other books! Review by Len Oppenheim. 
$17.95PaperbackThe Yoga of Time Travel: How the Mind Can Defeat TimeFred Alan WolfI first saw and learned of Fred Alan Wolf when I saw the movie What the Bleep Do We Know? Wolf is the balding physicist with the white beard and eyeglasses sitting in front of the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco who was (in my opinion) the most entertaining of the expert commentators in this fine flick. Recently I attended a conference on "Physics and Consciousness" where Wolf was the keynote speaker and set the tone for the whole conference. He is brilliant, witty, and very entertaining. Wolf is one of the few mainstream physicists who has had the courage to bridge the narrow gap between leading edge quantum physics thought and spirituality. His clear exposition of the concept of the non-locality of consciousness and how consciousness exists outside of and independent of the brain is enough to make him a hero in my estimation. This book has enough of Wolf's wit, wisdom, and gestalt to make it worth reading. However, I will issue the cautionary note that this book is more for the aficionado than the dabbler. I have been reading many books by physicists and cosmologists over the last couple of years. For the most part, despite my lack of scientific or mathematical background, I was able to follow and understand most of these books. However, I found some of the concepts, ideas, and examples in this book to be impossible to understand and follow. Yet, there were enough insights and conclusions that made sense to me to make me feel like it was worth reading. I would suggest that before reading this book you start with other books in this subject area that we have reviewed on this website. Wolf has written a number of other books, and these earlier books may be easier to understand. Review by Len Oppenheim 
$19.95HardcoverFrom Science to God: A Physicists' Journey into the Mystery of ConsciousnessPeter RussellPeter Russell is a marvelous human being and an excellent writer. Russell has degrees in physics and experimental psychology. He also learned to practice TM and attended a teacher-training course with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, in Rishikesh, India. In this book he recounts experiences from both his formal education and his personal explorations of consciousness. The book is short but very sweet. It seems to come at least as much from the heart as from the intellect. Peter Russell has taken some very complex subjects and brought them to a level where everyone can understand them. The essence of this book is that the Western paradigm, that matter created consciousness, is backwards. In fact, the objective evidence from physics and the subjective evidence from explorations into consciousness make it quite clear that matter was created by Consciousness. The book is very simple and elegant. I would think just about anyone would enjoy reading it. It will certainly give the reader food for thought about who he or she is, and what "reality" on the outside may or may not be. If you want to gain insights into consciousness, the mystical experience, cosmology, and how they can be integrated from both an objective and subjective point of view, this is a book for you. Review by Len Oppenheim 
$11.95PaperbackThe "God" Part of the Brain: A Scientific Interpretation of Human Spirituality and GodMatthew AlperThe "God" Part of the Brain: A Scientific Interpretation of Human Spirituality and God, by Matthew Alper, is a book which is faithful to its title. Alper makes the case that "our species is unique… humans possess what we could call 'spiritual' needs. No less than our bodies crave food, we long to understand our purpose in the universe, our reason for being." He also points out that "every human culture has perceived reality as consisting of two distinct substances or realms: the physical and the spiritual." Taking the above two premises as his starting point, and then examining both cultural and individual spirituality from the point of view of materialistic science (starting with the assumption that matter produces consciousness and the human brain is a product of Darwinian evolution) Alper does a great job of marshalling his evidence that man's concepts and experiences of "God" come very specific areas of and the neurophysiology of the brain. His basic point is: "all that we perceive as "real" is nothing more than electrical signals as they interpreted by our brain." His somewhat controversial conclusion is that the human being is "hard-wired" to believe in a spirit world and God. Alper is brilliant. The book is very well written, easy to follow, and very easy to understand. I highly recommend it to anyone who thinks this is a topic of interest. Personally I fault the book because Alper dismisses offhandedly all evidence of matter being a function of consciousness. Clearly I think anyone who reads this book ought to get a balanced opinion by reading one of my all-time favorite books, The Holographic Universe, by Michael Talbot. I really enjoyed the book and got a lot out of it. Some of the data about mystic experiences and drug-induced states is really fascinating. This book really can stimulate the intellect and it provides ample food for thought. I would really urge anyone with an interest in spirituality and biology or neurophysiology to read this book. 
$24.95HardcoverThe GOD Gene: How Faith Is Hardwired into Our GenesDean HamerThe GOD Gene: How Faith Is Hardwired into Our Genes, by Dean Hamer, argues that "spirituality is one of our basic human inheritances. It is, in fact, an instinct." The author is a leading geneticist. He uses the scientific method to first define or set up criteria for "spirituality" which is quite different from religion. He comes up with a term "self-transcendence" which he defines and then develops criteria to measure. In many ways it is similar to what Abraham Maslow called "self-actualization." The author is a dedicated scientist and his methodology is not only very rigorous but also painstakingly explained. His mission is to discover: "why humans believe, not whether those beliefs are true." He uses numerous studies, including very persuasive evidence from studies of twins separated at birth, to marshal evidence to buttress his ultimate conclusion that spirituality, self-transcendence, and even mysticism are at least predominately an inherited proposition, and thus hard-wired into the genes. I found the story of "The Good Friday Experiment," conducted in 1962, fascinating and quite instructive. It was a carefully randomized double-blind placebo experiment using Psilocybin and quantifying its effect on mystical experiences, with a follow up done 25 years later. Hamer addresses some very interesting topics, such as: "Can consciousness be explained scientifically?" He is very careful to be fair in his treatment of this subject and correctly points out that many who argue that consciousness is solely produced by the brain start out with a mechanistic model of the universe, which is postulated rather than proved. His lengthy discussion of the Y chromosome and its relevance to the Jewish people is very fascinating. All in all, I really liked this book and respect the author's conclusions, which are: "that there is nothing intrinsically theistic or atheistic about postulating a specific genetic and biochemical mechanism for spirituality" and "that spirituality is genetic, while religion is based on culture, traditions, beliefs, and ideas." 
$14.95PaperbackWhy God Won't Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of BeliefAndrew Newburg, M.D., Eugene D'Aquili, M.D., Ph.D., and Vince RauseWhy God Won't Go Away: Brain Science & The Biology of Belief, by Andrew Newberg, M.D., Eugene D'Aquili, M.D., Ph.D., and Vince Rause is an exceptional book which I very highly recommend. This is very fascinating exposition of the relationship between religious experience and brain functioning. Topics like "The Science of Perception," "How the Brain Makes the Mind," and "The Biology of Transcendence" are among the fascinating topics explored and explained in a manner that is very comprehensible by the layperson. You don't need to be a doctor, scientist, or a yogi to understand this book. The authors get into some very profound issues. These guys are scientists who buy the whole "materialistic science" viewpoint, which encompasses a strict belief in evolution and that consciousness comes from matter; the brain. However, they are open enough to include data and thoughts that maybe there are other possible explanations. Ultimately, the book is straightforward, honest, and I found it to be a "must read". They conclude that science and religion do not have to be incompatible. They conclude that our brain is structured to include "mystical experiences" which, from the point of view of a neurophysiologist, are just as "real" as non-mystical experiences. What I liked about the book was that the authors were very clear about laying out the limitations of science and the scientific method. 
$16.95PaperbackThe New Quotable EinsteinAlbert Einstein
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