Written during the golden age of Chinese philosophy, andcomposed partly in prose and partly in verse, the Tao TeChing is surely the most terse and economical of the world’sgreat religious texts. In a series of short, profound chapters itelucidates the idea of the Tao, or the Way–an idea that in itsethical, practical, and spiritual dimensions has become essentialto the life of China’s enormously powerful civilization. In theprocess of this elucidation, Lao-tzu both clarifies and deepensthose central religious mysteries around which our life on earthrevolves.

Conceived originally as a serious presentation of thedevelopment of philosophy for Catholic seminary students,Frederick Copleston's nine-volume A History Of Philosophyhas journeyed far beyond the modest purpose of its authorto universal acclaim as the best history of philosophyin English. Copleston, an Oxford Jesuit of immense erudition who oncetangled with A. J. Ayer in a fabled debate about theexistence of God and the possibility of metaphysics, knewthat seminary students were fed a woefully inadequatediet of theses and proofs, and that their familiarity with most of history's great thinkers was reduced tosimplistic caricatures. Copleston set out to redress thewrong by writing a complete history of Western philosophy,one crackling with incident and intellectual excitement --and one that gives full place to each thinker, presenting histhought in a beautifully rounded manner and showing hislinks to those who went before and to those who came after him.

Conceived originally as a serious presentation of thedevelopment of philosophy for Catholic seminary students, FrederickCopleston's nine-volume A History Of Philosophy has journeyed farbeyond the modest purpose of its author to universal acclaim as thebest history of philosophy in English. Copleston, an Oxford Jesuit of immense erudition who once tangledwith A.J. Ayer in a fabled debate about the existence of God andthe possibility of metaphysics, knew that seminary students werefed a woefully inadequate diet of theses and proofs, and that theirfamiliarity with most of history's great thinkers was reduced tosimplistic caricatures. Copleston set out to redress thewrong by writing a complete history of Western Philosophy, onecrackling with incident and intellectual excitement - and one thatgives full place to each thinker, presenting his thought in abeautifully rounded manner and showing his links to those who wentbefore and to those who came after him.

Paul McAuley is one of the most exciting new talents to emerge in science fiction over the last several years, acclaimed for his richly imagined scientific concepts as well as for his clear and stylish storytelling. Now McAuley enters the twenty-first century with a vivid and prescient novel in which science, politics, greed, and terrorism compete for nothing less than THE SEC RET OF LIFE. 2026: Something is growing in the Pacific Ocean, a strange fungus-like organism that may ultimately threaten Earth's entire food chain. Christened "the slick," the bizarre phenomenon is soon the subject of intense, top-secret scientific analysis, which rapidly discovers that the slick contains unique DNA unlike any other lifeform on the planet. Where has the slick come from? A Chinese-manned mission to Mars is rumored to have discovered life deep beneath the Martian icecap, but the Chinese aren't talking. Could this mysterious discovery have something to do with the possibly extraterrestrial organism spreading throu

Use human means as though divine ones did not exist, and usedivine means as though there were no human ones. So wrote theJesuit scholar Baltazar Gracian some 300 years ago, in a book thatwill be compared to Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Machiavelli's ThePrince. A new translation of long lost wisdom on livingsuccessfully yet responsibly.

Did Newton "unweave the rainbow" by reducing it to itsprismatic colors, as Keats contended? Did he, in other words,diminish beauty? Far from it, says acclaimed scientist RichardDawkins; Newton's unweaving is the key to much of modern astronomyand to the breathtaking poetry of modern cosmology. Mysteries don'tlose their poetry because they are solved: the solution often ismore beautiful than the puzzle, uncovering deeper mysteries. Withthe wit, insight, and spellbinding prose that have made him abest-selling author, Dawkins takes up the most important andcompelling topics in modern science, from astronomy and genetics tolanguage and virtual reality, combining them in a landmarkstatement of the human appetite for wonder. This is the bookRichard Dawkins was meant to write: a brilliant assessment of whatscience is (and isn't), a tribute to science not because it isuseful but because it is uplifting.

Conceived originally as a serious presentatin of thedevelopment of philosophy for Catholic seminary students, FrederickCopleston's nine-volume A History Of Philosophy has journeyedfar beyond the modest purpose of its author to universal acclaim asthe best history of philosophy in English. Copleston, an Oxford Jesuit of immense erudition who once tangledwith A.J. Ayer in a fabled debate about the existence of God andthe possibility of metaphysics, knew that seminary students werefed a woefully inadequate diet of theses and proofs, and that theirfamiliarity with most of history's great thinkers was reducedto simplistic caricatures. Copleston set out to redress thewrong by writing a complete history of Western Philosophy, onecrackling with incident an intellectual excitement - and one thatgives full place to each thinker, presenting his thought in abeautifully rounded manner and showing his links to those who wentbefore and to those who came after him.

For the Earth to move to the next vibration, says RichardGrossinger, consciousness must change in profound ways, and theseinvolve core elements of humanity: evil, grief, bliss, andcompassion. 2013 locates these elements in often unlikely placesand seeks their nature and capacity for change. With playfulnessand precision, 2013 tackles the questions of creation and existencein their twenty-first-century incarnation. In these intellectualfield notes, the author’s absorbing style combines memoir withscientific deconstruction, metaphysical ontology, and experimentalprose that recalls the Black Mountain school to draw transcendentalinsight from the ephemeral space-time we call daily life. Movingwith equal ease between matters cosmic and earthly, Grossingerdetails existence as an exhilarating adventure always pushing ustoward a higher state in this wide-ranging, humorous, and heartfeltbook. Including an informal course in psychic development, 2013sheds light on the ephemera of planets and iPods, politics an

Conceived originally as a serious presentation of thedevelopment of philosophy for Catholic seminary students, FrederickCopleston's nine-volume A History Of Philosophy has journeyed farbeyond the modest purpose of its author to universal acclaim as thebest history of philosophy in English. Copleston, an Oxford Jesuit of immense erudition who once tangledwith A.J. Ayer in a fabled debate about the exiatenceof God and thepossibility of metaphysics, knew that seminary students were fed awoefully inadequate diet of theses and proofs, and that theirfamiliarity with most of history's great thinkers was reduced tosimplistic caricatures. Copelston sets out to redress the wrong bywriting a complete history of Western philosophy, one cracklingwith incident and intellectual excitement - and one that gives fullplace to each thinker, presenting his thought in a beautifullyrounded manner and showing his links to those who went before andto those who came after them.

In an era when the relationship between Islam and the Westseems mainly defined by mistrust and misunderstanding, it isimportant to remember that for centuries Muslim civilization wasthe envy of the world. Lost History fills a significant void and isessential reading for anyone seeking to understand the major theearly Muslims played in influencing modern society. Morgan reveals how early Muslim advancements in science andculture laid the cornerstones of the European Renaissance, theEnlightenment, and modern Western society. As he chronicles theGolden Ages of Islam, beginning in A.D. 570 with the birth ofMuhammad, and resonating today, he introduces scholars like IbnAl-Haytham, Ibn Sina, Al-Tusi, Al-Khwarizmi, and Omar Khayyam,towering figures who revolutionized the mathematics, astronomy, andmedicine of their time and paved the way for Newton, Copernicus,and many others. And he reminds us that inspired leaders fromMuhammad to Suleiman the Magnificent and beyond championedreligious tolerance, encou