Minds and sociocultures Book

The lengthy introduction, which has been described as a book in itself, includes a vigorous critique of the new age counterculture. A confrontation occurs with Eliade, Jung, Leary, Grof, Aldous Huxley, Ken Wilber, Colin Wilson and others. The author objects to popular theories of the "perennial philosophy" and provides an alternative set of references from specialist scholarship. Part two tackles the difficult subject of Zoroastrianism, reviewing basic scholarly theories. The legendary prophet Zarathushtra gains life in this overview. The focus moves to the Sassanian era of Gnostic associations, encompassing not only Manichaeism, but also the more obscure Mazdakism. Part three is devoted to Indological research, extending from the Indus civilization to the Upanishadic era. Part four covers the six classical systems of Hindu philosophy, and includes the medieval Vedantic exponents Shankara and Ramanuja. Part five investigates the Shramana philosophers who included Gautama Buddha, and an attempt is made to chart occurrences in Jainism, a subject more rarely dealt with.