Brain & belief

Aegis Press

2004

404 p.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 379-397) and index.

9780974764504

Part I: A History of the Soul 11 Chapter 1 Where We Are-The Cartesian Split 15 Chapter 2 The Prehistoric Beginnings of the Soul 19 Animism 21 I Think/I Believe 24 A Reasonable God 25 Chapter 3 Shamanism 29 Ecstasy 30 The Shaman's Call 31 Shadow of the Shaman 35 Chapter 4 The ancient Egyptians37 Re and The Osiris Cycle 38 Taking Care of the Dead Egyptian Souls 40 Zoroastrianism 43 Dualism 44 Chapter 6 The Soul of Plato 49 Orphism and Pythagoreanism 54 Socrates, Seal of the Shamans 62 Phaedo 69 The Doctrine of Recollection and the Theory of Forms 71 The Platonic Attem pt 75 Chapter 7 Judaism 79 The Breath of God 79 Jewish Apocalypticism 80 Chapter 8 The Body of Christ 85 The Christian Mind 85 The Dual Substance of Christ 88 Paul 94 The Gnostics 100 Later Christianity 109 Chapter 9 Recapitulation of the Soul 113 Part II: The Soul Matter 117 A Conflict of Soul 119 Chapter 10 The Basics 125 Emergence 126 Chapter 11 Of Neurons and Neurotransmitters 131 Neurotransmitters 135 Receptors 137 Chapter 12 How We Know Our Brains 141 Chapter 13 Anatomy of the Brain 145 The Triune Model 145 The Hindbrain 146 The Midbrain 147 The Forebrain 148 Chapter 14 The Binding Problem What is Consciousness? 157 Chapter 15 Psychoactivity 161 Depressants 162 Alcohol 163 Barbiturates 174 Benzodiazephines 175 Stimulants 177 Caffene 178 Nicotine 183 Cocaine 187 Amphetamine 191 Opiates 193 Opium 193 Morphine 195 Heroin 196 Hallucinogens/Entheogens 204 Shamanism and Ecstasy Revisited 212 Soma and the Origins of Hinduism 214 The Mysteries of Eleusis 217 Marijuana 222 LSD 230 Psilocybin Mushrooms 241 Peyote 246 MDMA/Ecstasy 249 Chapter 16 The Broken Brain 253 Depression 253 Hippocrates's Humors 255 The Chemistry of Despair 258 Seasons of Discontent 259 Alzheimer's Disease 260 Brain Damage 262 The Strange Case of Mr. Gage 265 Lobotomy 265 Anosognosia 269 ADHD 270 Part III: Giving Up the Ghost 273 The Beautiful Lie 275 Chapter 17 Contingency: The Sting of Death 277 Chapter 18 Prolonged Immaturity 285 Absolute Dependence 289 Chapter 19 Narcissism and the Reality Principle 297 Stages Along Life's Way 301 The End of Narcissism? 307 Chapter 20 The Epic of Gilgamesh 311 Looking at Medusa 311 Gilgam esh 312 Chapter 21 The Cult of Immortality 321 After Life? 324Unamuno 332 Chapter 22 The Mechanics of Belief and Disbelief 337 Self-Deception 338 Cognitive Dissonance 340 Chapter 23 Mourning One's Own Death 345 Religion and Ethics 350 Death and Time 353 The Good Life 356 Chapter 24 Philosophies of Redemption 359 Buddhism 363 The Wisdom of Epicurus 367 Stoicism 371 The Sage 373 Chapter 25 Conclusion 375 Acknowledgements 377 Notes 379 Index 398

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