SOME REFLECTIONS ON MY — The End of Materialism: How Evidence of the Paranormal is Bringing Science and Spirit Together. New Harbinger Publications, 2009.
The End of Materialism is my review of a century of my and others’ research on parapsychological phenomena, and my current synthesis of what things like telepathy, clairvoyance, remote viewing, precognition, psychokinesis, out-of-the-body experiences (OBEs), near-death experiences (NDEs) and indications that the mind might survive death in some form means for our view of who we really are. Particularly our “spiritual” nature. Just a fantasy, as dedicated materialists insist is a scientific truth? (Only if you ignore an enormous amount of evidence). Or some sort of reality, a reality that can have vital implications for living our lives.
The Publishers Weekly description is quite good, so I’ll quote that here:
A faculty member at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, scientist Tart (Altered States of Consciousness, On Being Stoned) spent more than 50 years studying the paranormal. In this challenge to traditional science and spirituality, Tart employs scientific skepticism and an open mind (both essential to interpreting results “as objectively as possible”) to question the seeming contradiction between “the formal, rational rules of science, which have worked so well in understanding the physical world” and “behaviors that cannot be reduced to materialistic explanations.” To substantiate his thesis, Tart analyzes a number of scientific paranormal experiments: distinguishing the color of face-down cards, testing the hypothesis that feedback training improves telepathic ability, attempts to show a relationship between electromagnetism and clairvoyance, etc. Elsewhere, Tart makes intriguing comparisons between out-of-the-body experiences and near-death experiences, both of which support (but don’t prove) the phenomenon of “postmortem survival” (children who “remember” past lives are also examined). While admitting that he has no “final, absolutely certain, and wonderful answers,” Tart covers a wide range of phenomena (remote viewing, psychic healing, mediumship) and leaves readers much to ponder.
Paperback edition: Same book, different title, in paperback to make it available. The Secret Science of the Soul: How Evidence of the Paranormal is Bringing Science and Spirit Together. Napa, California: Fearless Books, 2017.
– CTT
Note: I have included links, usually to Amazon for convenience, as it leads to more formal information and reviews by readers. Most of my books are in print in some form, some may have to be found used.
