Supernatural

by Hancock, Graham

• ISBN13: 9781932857405
• ISBN10: 1932857400
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-09-01
• Publisher: Disinformation Co

Summary

Less than 50,000 years ago mankind had no art, no religion, no sophisticated symbolism, no innovative thinking. Then, in a dramatic and electrifying change, described by scientists as "the greatest riddle in human history," all the skills and qualities that we value most highly in ourselves appeared already fully formed, as though bestowed on us by hidden powers. In Supernatural Graham Hancock sets out to investigate this mysterious "before-and-after moment" and to discover the truth about the influences that gave birth to the modern human mind. Hancock's quest takes him on a detective journey from the stunningly beautiful painted caves of prehistoric France, Spain, and Italy to rock shelters in the mountains of South Africa, where he finds extraordinary Stone Age art. He uncovers clues that lead him to the depths of the Amazon rainforest to drink the powerful hallucinogen Ayahuasca with shamans, whose paintings contain images of "super-natural beings" identical to the animal-human hybrids depicted in prehistoric caves. Hallucinogens such as mescaline also produce visionary encounters with exactly the same beings. Scientists at the cutting edge of consciousness research have begun to consider the possibility that such hallucinations may be real perceptions of other "dimensions." Could the "supernaturals" first depicted in the painted caves be the ancient teachers of mankind? Could it be that human evolution is not just the "meaningless" process that Darwin identified, but something more purposive and intelligent that we have barely begun to understand?

Table of Contents

The visions
The plant that enables men to see the dead	p. 3
The greatest riddle of archaeology	p. 13
Vine of souls	p. 33
The caves
Therianthropy	p. 69
Riddles of the caves	p. 94
The shabby academy	p. 133
Searching for a Rosetta stone	p. 159
The code in the mind	p. 194
Serpents of the Drakensberg	p. 230
The wounded healer	p. 262
The beings
Voyage into the supernatural	p. 289
Shamans in the sky	p. 308
Spirit love	p. 338
The secret commonwealth	p. 357
Here is a thing that will carry me away	p. 370
Dancers between worlds	p. 392
The codes
Tuning in to channel DMT	p. 415
Amongst the machine elves	p. 428
Ancient teachers in our DNA?	p. 457
The hurricane in the junkyard	p. 474
The religions
The hidden shamans	p. 495
Flesh of the gods	p. 531
The mysteries
Doors leading to another world	p. 563
Critics and criticisms of David Lewis-Williams' "neuropsychological theory" of rock and cave art	p. 591
Psilocybe semilanceata - a hallucinogenic mushroom native to Europe	p. 614
Interview with Rick Strassman MD	p. 618
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.