A provocative examination of ancient prophecies and how they seem to align with the latest research in quantum physics—and whether both fields hint at an impending new age of consciousness.
Wilcock, whose popular online documentary The 2012 Enigma was the genesis for this book, has spent 30 years investigating connections found in writings left behind by prehistoric civilizations and how they relate to the physical universe. His research led him to the conclusion that ancient Egyptians, Mayans, Hindus and others have left clues that may reveal the secret behind the year 2012, and that the date itself is not indicative of an apocalyptic event, but the start of an epoch that may usher in a higher state of consciousness. Wilcock argues that this transition will be guided by a living energy field—and that this energy field, which he dubs “the source field,” is the fundamental building block of all space, time, energy, matter and biological life, and may be a crystallization of a united, symbiotic consciousness that we all have the ability to tap into. The author provides wide-ranging evidence to support this claim, citing dozens of scientific studies and first-person testimonies, and delves into the mystical connections between DNA, energy and light. He argues that the makeup of the entire universe is geometric in arrangement and motion, and that the year 2012 coincides with many natural astrological changes that could affect human intuitive abilities (namely through the activation of the pineal gland, an idea that is referenced by many ancient cultures). Much of Wilcock's scientific data is cutting-edge: For example, an idea like the holographic principle fits perfectly with his notion that time may actually exist in three dimensions. However, readers should be prepared for some fantastical discussion of alien intelligence, crop circles and time portals. At its core, Wilcock's theories rest on the idea that mankind can usher in this transcended age by expressing love and kindness toward each other and the world—a worthwhile endeavor regardless of one’s beliefs about 2012. Debatable, sure, but the author writes a narrative as fast-paced and scintillating as a sci-fi novel.
Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-525-95204-6
Page Count: 560
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
A survey of honest-to-goodness human bloodsuckers that manages to buffer sensationalism with sympathy. Through historical research, anecdotes, and interviews, free- lance journalist Page (Cosmopolitan, Omni, etc.) celebrates ``the decade of the vampire'' and the impact of the vampire image on popular culture from cereal shapes, novels, movies, and fashions to rock music, pornography, and political cartoons. While admitting that the vampire mystique is ``about sex and power,'' she tries to debunk the myth by portraying her subjects as needy and lonely souls whose craving for blood or obsession with those who crave it are not much different from such other emotional maladies as manic- depression or eating disorders. Among her subjects: a gay vampire who ``drinks other people's blood to get to know and understand them better''; a vampire hunter who claims to be a distant grandson of Lord Byron; and a young man convicted of murdering a woman whom he perceived to be his blood-sucking grandmother. Without getting too mired in theories or details, Page also discusses African blood-drinking rituals, a London ``Dracula Society'' that stages a ``Hunt-A-Vampire Weekend,'' the influence of the 60's soap opera Dark Shadows, and a Fox-TV vampire special in which facts apparently were egregiously fudged. She also draws a hilarious comparison between Vlad Tepes—the infamous Romanian prince on whom Bram Stoker's Dracula is supposedly based—and Romania's toppled dictator Ceausescu. Avoiding the lurid gush of Norine Dresser's American Vampires (1989), Page entertains, informs, and even inspires the cause for ``Vampire's Rights'' without draining too much out of us.
Pub Date: Oct. 31, 1991
ISBN: 0-06-016329-1
Page Count: 208
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1991
A deceptively simple but consistently provocative appeal for perceptual (as opposed to structured) thinking from the author of Six Action Shoes (the trifle reviewed below), Tactics (1984), and several other works dealing with powers of the mind. As before, de Bono (an M.D. who no longer practices) challenges traditional Western thought processes on grounds that they are unequal to the task of solving the Global Village's many pressing problems. According to the author, orthodox methods of thinking are based on absolutes, a rigid insistence on facts, and other unproductive habits dating back to an ancient time when truth seekers like Aristotle relied on reason or its corollaries (analysis, logic, etc.) to free themselves from the bonds of dogma. While essentially adversarial methods are fine for achieving technological gains or winning arguments, de Bono says, such systems lack the originality and creativity required to deal with socioeconomic as well as political affairs. Describing the human brain as a self-organizing marvel, the author makes a strong case for what he calls ``water logic,'' a purportedly natural activity of the physical organ's neural network. By de Bono's account, water logic represents a fluid approach that provides the basis for new ideas, humor, insights, poetry, and other of civilization's more fruitful pleasures. On occasion, de Bono can be decidedly arbitrary in advancing his theories. Without much supporting evidence, for example, he dismisses language as a trap and characterizes humor as the intellect's most significant behavior (owning mainly to its asymmetry). In aid of breakthrough conjecture, however, the author is never less than thought-provoking, and his witty, allusive text is notable for its wealth of illuminating digressions. An offbeat treatise that charts a course out of the mainstream and along the varied routes that, perhaps, lead to unconventional wisdom.
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-670-84231-1
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1991
BOOK REVIEW
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