Charles T. Tart - The end of materialism: how evidence of the paranormal is bringing science and spirit together

THE END OFMATERIALISM

by Charles T. Tart, Ph.D.

Published by Fearless Books at Smashwords

2012 by Charles T. Tart,PhD.

SmashwordsEdition

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This book was first published in hardcover in 2009, ISBN 978-1572246454 , a joint publication of New Harbinger publishers, inOakland, California, and the Institute of Noetic Sciences inPetaluma, California.

"Amid the flurry in science about genes,neurons, and neurotransmitters, another quiet revolution has beenbuilding for several decades. It involves a view of consciousnessin which the mind is not confined to specific points in space ortime, such as the brain, body, and the present. In The End ofMaterialism, legendary psychologist and psi researcher CharlesTart assembles the pieces of this new picture. He is eminentlyqualified to do so, as he helped invent the new image ofconsciousness through five decades of meticulous research. Tart'sinspiring, majestic image of consciousness will prevail because oftwo compelling reasons: it is built on good science and it morefully accounts for who we humans are and how we behave." LarryDossey MD, author of The Power of Premonitions andHealing Words

"Prescient! This book represents the nextstep in the geotransformational processes that are altering modernconcepts of borders, social structures, wealth, and governance. Theprecepts are at once omnipresent and historical, yet often elusiveor rejected. Buoyed by a confluence of cataclysmic socioeconomicupheaval, a growing awareness of paradoxes not explained bytraditional science, and an innate human longing for understanding,Charles Tart succinctly provides a blueprint for metamorphosis toan evidence-based spiritual awakening for Western cultures." JohnB. Alexander, Ph.D., counselor at the Society for ScientificExploration

"If you would like a clear, readable, andeminently fair-minded introduction to some of today's mostcontentious scientific topics, here is a book for you." RogerWalsh, MD, Ph.D., professor at the University of California,Irvine, and author of Essential Spirituality

"A remarkable tour de force that willhopefully end forever the argument that science and the spiritualare opposed to one another. This wonderful collection of facts andarguments, written in a good-natured, almost conversational style,makes it easy to loosen yourself from your preconceptions and enjoyseeing reality more clearly and completely. We have needed such abook for a long time." James Fadiman, Ph.D., author of The Psychedelic Explorer'sGuide: Safe, Therapeutic and Sacred Journeys

"A truly seminal work based on lifetime ofresearch and careful thought that not only challenges, butoverturns the dominant scientific paradigm. Tart patientlyexplains the reasons for scientific resistance to parapsychologyand spirituality, providing a comprehensive overview of the fieldand its implications for the nature of human existence. Compulsoryreading for scientists and spiritual seekers alike." DavidLorimer, program director of The Scientific and Medical Network

"In The End of Materialism, CharlesTart has distilled a wealth of knowledge derived from hisempirical study of human experiences that points to the presence ofthe spiritual in the world. Tart's characteristic humor and senseof fun shine through the text again and again, but always againstthe background of his wisdom, acquired over a lifetime ofpondering the mystery of what it means to be human. This is thebook for those who value an approach to the spiritual that is bothscientific and richly personal in tone." Adam Crabtree, author ofMultiple Man and Trance Zero

"This beautifully written book is not only amasterful survey of parapsychology and psychical research, butalso a thoughtful analysis of scientific inquiry and how it can beused to explore and explain the spiritual aspects of human nature.Combining laboratory evidence, case studies, and his own extensiveexperience as a scientist and spiritual seeker, Charles Tartskewers the postulates of a materialistic worldview that for toolong has ignored vast areas of the human potential." StanleyKrippner, Ph.D., coeditor, Varieties of AnomalousExperience

"This book is an outstanding contribution tothe emerging dialogue between science and spirituality. Tart makesa persuasive argument for questioning common assumptions about thenature of reality, thoroughly grounded in solid research. This isessential reading for anyone interested in the farther reaches ofhuman awareness. Frances Vaughan, Ph.D., psychologist and authorof Shadows of the Sacred

"The End of Materialism is brilliant.This is the book Tart has obviously been working up to all hislife." Colin Wilson

"An extraordinary accomplishment in"parapsychology by an enlightened experimental psychologist in thetradition of William James." Eugene Taylor, Ph.D., executivefaculty at Saybrook Graduate School, lecturer on psychiatry atHarvard Medical School

Altered States ofConsciousness (editor and contributor)

On Being Stoned. A Psychological Study ofMarijuana Intoxication

Transpersonal Psychologies

States of Consciousness

Symposium on Consciousness(with P. Lee, R. Ornstein, D. Galin, and

A. Deikman)

Learning to Use Extrasensory Perception

Psi: Scientific Studies of the PsychicRealm

Mind at Large: Institute ofElectrical and Electronic Engineers Symposia on the Nature ofExtrasensory Perception(with C.Tart, H. Puthoff, and R. Targ, editors and contributors)

Waking Up:Overcoming the Obstacles to Human Potential

Open Mind, Discriminating Mind.- Reflectionson Human Possibilities

Living the Mindful Life

Body Mind Spirit: Exploring theParapsychology of Spirituality

Mind Science: Meditation Training forPractical People

Table of Contents

by Huston Smith and KendraSmith

Spiritual Seeking in a World ThatThinks It's All Nonsense

How Do We Know the Spiritual IsReal?

Ways of Not Knowing: Distortionsof Science and Intelligence

Starting from the Natural World: APsychic Coup d'Etat?

Extended Aspects of Mind: The BigFive

Telepathy

Clairvoyance, or RemoteViewing

Precognition

Psychokinesis

Psychic Healing: PK onBiological Systems

Postcognition and ExtendedAspects of Mind: The Many Maybes

Out-of-Body Experiences

Near-Death Experiences

Postmortem Survival: After-DeathCommunications

Mediumship: ExperimentalApproach to Postmortem Survival

Reincarnation

So What Have We Learned?

If I Believed the WesternCreed

Bringing It All Back Home:Personal Reflections

Returning to MysticalExperience

Recommended Reading inParapsychology

Online Sources of ScientificInformation About Parapsychology

The Archives of Scientists'Transcendent Experiences (TASTE

Transpersonal Psychology

Acknowledgments

This book is the culmination of a careerspanning more than fifty years of work on the nature ofconsciousness, particularly altered states of consciousness,parapsychology, and transpersonal psychology, so there are manypeople I'm grateful to for support and guidance! I'll mention onlythe more obvious ones: my wife, Judy, who has given me such lovingsupport and stimulation for so many years; Palyne Gaenir, mywebmaster and computer guru; the late Irene Segrest, my devotedassistant for a decade; and the students in my Introduction toParapsychology course at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychologyin winter 2007, Jamal Granick, Maureen Harrahy, Josh Maddox,Daniela Mafia, Laurel McCormick, Matthew Metzger, Sean Saiter,Heather Schwenn, Goolrukh Vakil, Alison Wattles, and David Wilson,who gave me detailed feedback on an early draft of thisbook.