Numinous Mirrors is a short book of poetry reflecting ideas that cross the boundaries between nature and science; between comprehensible evidence and incomprehensible magic. When the traditional religious impressions of my youth were gradually replaced by the distinctive facts provided by university studies of history and science, I discovered that spirituality still resides within the realms of curiosity and discovery. I live today in an almost constant state of awe, wonder, and amazement -- as I skeptically ask questions and claim answers that lead to more questions. To live in a state of awe is spirituality. Rhetoric is what emerges in squabbles with experts Poetry is what emerges in quarrels with ones self These poems are an attempt to offer to myself partial illumination, contentment and surprise to a few of my ever-surfacing questions. Then inevitably, curiosity arrives once again to announce additional provisional questions followed by empirical evidence leading to still more contemplative resolutions. Like inhaling and exhaling the cycle of science continues to provide new life.

Numinous Mirrors II continues the ongoing acknowledgment that science is natures poetic reflection. It is well-known, for example, that with the exception of pure mathematics, the paradigms physicists use in their attempt to elucidate their experimental scientific findings are primarily metaphors. However, whenever I hear someone quote some esoteric Quantum research as if they actually know the profound mathematics or physical science behind the statement, I am perplexed! Because until one has studied physics for at least ten years and then taken advanced degrees in math and algorithms, one should not try to impress others with nave expositions (see Schrdingers cat poem). Spirituality is what I define as curiosity. It appears that it is human nature to seek answers to our questionings. When we continue to be curious, we remain in awe and wonder. What could be a better state of spirituality than to be in a constant state awe and wonder? As one skeptically questions the fixed conclusions of mythology and magic, one will discover still more awe and amazing questions revealed by the objective encounter with repeatable empirical experimentation. Once again, the poems within are an attempt of offer to myself partial illumination and still more surprise. Inevitably, curiosity arrives once again to announce more provisional questioning. Like the cycle of life itselfinhale and exhalethe cycle of science, if allowed, will continue unabated to generate awe and wonder.

What is the sixth sense? Is it physical, mental or spiritual? Do we all possess it or is it unique to exceptional individuals? Might there be a seventh sense and an eighth sense as well? What role does culture play in determining the range of our perceptual abilities? The search for a supplementary sense has taken many directions and yielded numerous possibilities for an "additional faculty" of perception - from magnetism and movement to dreaming and clairvoyance. Stimulating reflection and debate, The Sixth Sense Reader explores the cultural contexts which give rise to such reports of "psychic" and other powers that exceed the ordinary bounds of sense. In this groundbreaking volume, leading scholars in history, anthropology and biology take the reader on a tour of the far borderlands of consciousness. From the world beneath to the world beyond the five senses, every potential avenue of sensation is opened up for investigation.

Mirror, Mirror by Gayle Bohlman, LCSW-C, offers an in-depth exploration of narcissism, looking at how it is constructed and a transformative path of healing narcissistic wounds. She posits that this is particularly relevant today as our collective consciousness grapples with the narcissism bombarding us daily in the news. The book utilizes the mirrors in the stories of Snow White, Narcissus, and Medusa to explicate a path from narcissism to self-realization. Mirror, Mirror is for all who seek a deeper understanding of narcissism, to clinicians, and to those interested in the work of C.G. Jung. Gayle Bohlman has been a therapist for 40 years using a holistic approach that incorporates physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects. She is also a yoga and meditation instructor.

The Lloyd Cotsen Study Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors is a 2009 co-publication of the Cotsen Occasional Press and the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press. Volume I, The Lloyd Cotsen Study Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors: Catalogue, includes an engaging foreword by Lloyd Cotsen, an overview of major Chinese dynasties and periods, and a brief history of Chinese bronze mirrors by Suzanne E. Cahill. This volume presents a detailed catalogue of the extensive Cotsen Collection through high-quality images and illustrations of the mirrors in their approximate chronological sequence. Volume II, a set of eleven scholarly essays, goes further to investigate these mirrors as a study collection. Guided by the conviction that this particular constellation of mirrors may lead to substantive insights that cannot easily be obtained otherwise, the leading scholars who contributed to this volume used the materials in Volume I as a point of departure for explorations of topics of their own choice. The publication of this two-volume set preceded an exhibition of the mirrors at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens and the return of the collection to China in recognition of that countrys rightful cultural patrimony.

Like its companion volume, "The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction", this massive reference of 4,000 entries covers all aspects of fantasy, from literature to art.

Mirror of Morality takes an interdisciplinary look at an important form of pictorial art produced during two millennia of Chinese imperial rule. Ideas about individual morality and state ideology were based on the ancient teachings of Confucius with modifications by later interpreters and government institutions. Throughout the imperial period, members of the elite made, sponsored, and inscribed or used illustrations of themes taken from history, literature, and recent events to promote desired conduct among various social groups. This dimension of Chinese art history has never before been broadly covered or investigated in historical context. The first half of the study examines the nature of narrative illustration in China and traces the evolution of its functions, conventions, and rhetorical strategies from the second century BCE through the eleventh century. Under the stimulus of Buddhism, sophisticated techniques developed for representing stories in visual form. While tracing changes in the social functions and cultural positions of narrative illustration, the second half of the book argues that narrative illustration continued to play a vital role in elite visual culture.