A diverse group of authors journey into the fringes of human consciousness, tackling psychic and paranormal phenomena, lucid dreaming, synchronistic encounters, and more. Collected from the online magazine Reality Sandwich, these essays explore regions of the mind often traversed by shamans, mystics, and visionary artists; adjacent and contiguous to our normal waking state, these realms may be encountered in dreams or out-of-body experiences, accessed through meditation or plant medicines, and marked by psychic phenomena and uncanny synchronicities. From demons encountered in sleep paralysis visions to psychic research conducted by the CIA, the seemingly disparate topics covered here congeal to form a larger picture of what these extraordinary states of consciousness might have to tell us about the nature of reality itself.

100+ writers, artists, philosophers and scientists explore the nature of consciousness.

A consciousness and dream hacker explains how to use liminal dreaming—the dreams that come between sleep and waking—for self-actualization and consciousness expansion. At the edges of consciousness, between waking and sleeping, there’s a swirling, free associative state of mind that is the domain of liminal dreams. Working with liminal dreams can improve sleep, mitigate anxiety and depression, help to heal trauma, and aid creativity and problem-solving. As we sink into slumber, we pass through hypnagogia, the first of the two liminal dream states. In this transitional zone, memories, perceptions, and imaginings arise in a fast moving, hallucinatory, semi-conscious remix. On the other end of the night, as we wake, we experience hypnopompia—the hazy, pleasant, drift that is the other liminal dream state. Readers of Liminal Dreaming will learn step-by-step how to create a dream practice outside of REM-sleep states that they can incorporate into their lives in personally meaningful ways. Liminal dreaming practice is also far easier to learn than lucid dreaming practice, making it possible for the reader to begin working with these dreams this very night.

An introduction to the psychology, philosophy, and neuroscience of consciousness, including sleep, dreaming, meditative, and altered states.

Current thinking and research on consciousness and the brain.

How does the brain go about the business of being conscious? Though we cannot yet provide a complete answer, this book explains what is now known about the neural basis of human consciousness.The last decade has witnessed the dawn of an exciting new era of cognitive neuroscience. For example, combination of new imaging technologies and experimental study of attention has linked brain activity to specific psychological functions. The authors are leaders in psychology and neuroscience who have conducted original research on consciousness. They wish to communicate the highlights of this research to both specialists and interested others, and hope that this volume will be read by students concerned with the neuroscientific underpinnings of subjective experience. As a whole, the book progresses from an overview of conscious awareness, through careful explanation of identified neurocognitive systems, and extends to theories which tackle global aspects of consciousness. (Series B)

Drawing on modern research in psychology and psychiatry, as well as the world's great contemplative traditions, this classic presents a model of individual development that embraces both the conventional stages of psychological growth and the higher levels of spiritual development. In nine seminal essays, the authors and three contributors present discussions on the following topics: A full-spectrum model of consciousness, focusing on the self and its journey through the basic structures of matter, body, mind, soul, and spirit Types of psychopathology that emerge at the various levels of spiritual development Misuses and psychiatric complications of meditation practice Pioneering research into the cross-cultural stages of the meditative path A new preface by Ken Wilber, placing this work within his current integral model of consciousness Contributors include the psychiatrist Mark Epstein (author ofThoughts without a Thinkerand several other books on Buddhism and psychology), and the Christian theologian John Chirban.