Awards

• Winner of Outstanding Books in Theology and the Natural Sciences 2000

Overview

How does the mind experience the sacred? What biological mechanisms are involved in mystical states and trances? Is there a neurological basis for patterns in comparative religions? Does religion have an evolutionary function? This pathbreaking work by two leading medical researchers explores the neurophysiology of religious experience. Building on an explanation of the basic structure of the brain, the authors focus on parts most relevant to human experience, emotion, and cognition. On this basis, they plot how the brain is involved in mystical experiences. Successive chapters apply this scheme to mythmaking, ritual and liturgy, meditation, near-death experiences, and theology itself. Anchored in such research, the authors also sketch the implications of their work for philosophy, science, theology, and the future of religion.

Full Product Details

9780800631635

Table of Contents

Reviews

Author Information

The late Eugene d'Aquili, M.D., Ph.D., was, until his recent death, Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. A pioneer in neurological research of religion, he published in the area for twenty-five years. Andrew B. Newberg, M.D., is a Researcher in Nuclear Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available