The book of highs 255 ways to alter your consciousness without drugs

Edward Rosenfeld

Book - 2018

"Call it altering consciousness, call it getting high, or call it mindfulness. Humans are hardwired to seek ways to transcend the limits of everyday awareness, whether it's the little kid spinning in circles to get dizzy or a runner experiencing the day's first rush of dopamine. And you don't need drugs--as Edward Rosenfeld shows, the "high" is inside, and there are literally hundreds of perfectly natural ways that we can use to find it. An encyclopedic survey of all the ways humans try to achieve altered states of consciousness, The Book of Highs is a complete update of a book published in 1973, after the government outlawed psychedelics. Here are recent developments--Virtual Reality and Brainwave Machines--an...d positive techniques such as Self-Hypnosis, Alterations of Breathing, Fervent Prayer. And "negative" techniques--Self-Flagellation, Sleep Deprivation. Methods derived from religious and mystic traditions--Transcendental Meditation, Tantric Sex. Techniques that involve devices, whether nonelectric like Mandalas, Metronome Watching, Body Confinement--or electric and electronic--Bio-Feedback, Stroboscopes, the Psychedelic Bathtub, Moire Patterns, Brain Music. Whether you're out for a life-changing adventure--Skydiving, Fire-Walking, or Kayak Disease (which occurs when you spend three days in a kayak off the shore of Greenland)--or just want to have a break in your everyday routine with a Zen Morning Laugh or by Jumping Up and Down, this book is guaranteed to blow your mindfulness"--

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Subjects
Published
New York, NY : Workman Publishing Company, Inc 2018.
Language
English
Main Author
Edward Rosenfeld (author)
Other Authors
Andrew Weil (writer of foreword), Nate Duval (illustrator)
Item Description
Includes index.
Physical Description
xvii, 302 pages : color illustrations ; 25 cm
ISBN
9780761193876
  • Part one: just your self. Awareness
  • Positive techniques
  • Negative techniques
  • Fantasy, sleep, dreaming, and sex
  • Everyday life
  • Part two: help from others. Therapies and miscellaneous
  • Religions, mysticism, and movements
  • Part three: devices and machines. Nonelectric
  • Electric
  • Biofeedback.
Review by Booklist Review

*Starred Review* In the foreword, Andrew Weil (Mind over Meds, 2017) theorizes that the human desire for transcendent experiences may be hard-wired, a point Rosenfeld develops throughout this extensive and greatly expanded update of the original 1973 edition of a book designed to ensure that these extraordinary states of being would be available to all without using illegal psychedelics. Rosenfeld presents a comprehensive, even dizzying number of drug-free methods for altering consciousness; each is accorded a detailed description and thoughtful commentary. Personal motivation is key, whether altered states of consciousness (ASCs) are used for medical treatments, palliative care, DIY-training in sensory awareness, or other personal goals. Aware of the internet's overwhelming jumble of infinite resources touting ASCs, Rosenfeld brings order to the subject in a well-designed, captivating, encyclopedic volume with three main sections Self, Help from Others, Devices and Machines that are meticulously divided into categories with dozens of subsets. Religions, Mysticism and Movement, for example, includes transcendental meditation, martial arts, flower arrangements, tantric sex, faith healing, revival meetings, haiku, and flash mobs. Rosenfeld also covers ways to increase concentration, biofeedback, skydiving, kayaking, music, and much more and lists further resources to enrich the understanding this lively, widely appealing, and extraordinary compendium affords. Reading Rosenfeld's guide is itself a high.--Scott, Whitney Copyright 2018 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.