Showing results by author "David Christopher Lane" in All Categories

One of the first critical studies ever done on the hidden history of Paul Twitchell and Eckankar. It was first completed as a term paper when David Lane was only 20 years old as an undergraduate student at CSUN. Later, it evolved into a very controversial book which caused a worldwide stir in the Eckankar organization. Contains extensive documentation on how Paul Twitchell created a fictional mythology about himself while denying his association with certain spiritual teachers.

I am fortunate to be able to publish Baba Faqir Chand's satsangs as presented to Harjit Singh Sandhu and skillfully translated by Pulkit Bose. First as a series in Sach Khand: The Journal of Radhasoami Studies and now in book form. These talks that were given in London, England, in 1980 are genuinely remarkable for their utmost clarity and penetrating insights into the nature of spirituality. Baba Faqir Chand is unique amongst masters, since he was exceptionally honest about his experiences and what he learned from them over the course of his long life.

Lord Dunsany was Edward Plunkett's pen name, and he was a very successful author of numerous books, plays, and short stories. He possessed a remarkable imagination and created fantastical landscapes peopled with unique characters. To listen to his short stories is to be transported to another time and to another place and, in the midst of it all, to be enthralled by the marvel of it all.

I recently came upon an old book entitled Famous Men in Science by Sarah Knowles Bolton that was first published in 1889. In her enjoyable and easy to read text, Bolton provides a glimpse of 14 distinguished thinkers, ranging from such luminaries as Carl Linnaeus to Louis Agassiz. Since the book is not readily available, here at the MSAC Philosophy Group we thought it might be helpful to select four biographies from Famous Men in Science and republish them in a new and readable format.

This audiobook contains a series of essays that provide arguments for a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle. We have included several chapters from books published in the 19th century which shows that the idea of a non-meat diet is not new in America, even if it has never been widely adopted. Keep in mind that these earlier writings didn’t have the scientific knowledge at their disposal that we have today.

This collection contains short essays, each written by different authors, on the following agnostic thinkers: Charles Darwin, John Dewey, Lynn Margulis, Leo Szilard, Isaiah Berlin, Thomas Kuhn, Enrico Fermi, Herbert Spencer, David Hume, G.E. Moore, Karl R. Popper, Bertrand Russell, Michael Schmidt-Salomon, Thomas Henry Huxley. The long introduction is by David Christopher Lane, Professor of Philosophy at Mt. San Antonio College. The appendix is a famous essay on agnosticism by the famed trial lawyer, Clarence Darrow. The entire book has been edited by Roberto Allende.

This audiobook contains a series of essays on virtual reality and its future implications; how VR can usher in new tools for progressive meditational experiences; why science is a practical endeavor and should not be conflated with unnecessary metaphysics; why Darwinian evolution can best explain the Albert Camus dilemma; and finally, it touches upon the importance of Faqir Chand on understanding religious experiences.

Beginning with two autobiographical essays about Professor David Lane's book addiction and his 40-plus years of exposing cults, this volume includes critical essays on Andrew Cohen, a spiritual teacher who was forced to resign only to repackage himself several years later; the new age philosopher, Ken Wilber, and his "integral" theory; a skeptical analysis behind why Donald Trump was elected; the future of books in light of virtual reality headsets such as Oculus Rift; and insights on the religious visions of Sri Ramakrishna and the role of guru "transparency".

The Radhasoami tradition has almost since its formal inception in 1861 in Agra, India, attempted to explain its practices and teachings as a higher form of spiritual science. But in so doing, Radhasoami has developed its own unique understanding of how science operates which at times is at odds with more conventional definitions of how to systematically study nature.

This book explores the succession of Sawan Singh, the famous "Great Master" of Radhasoami Satsang Beas. Focuses on the controversy generated by Kirpal Singh who claimed that he was the rightful successor, even though Sawan Singh had named Jagat Singh in a notarized will. Presents a point by point critique of Kirpal Singh's claims.

This diary covers the period between 1999 and 2001 and discusses science, philosophy and religion via the lens of surfing. Penned by David Christopher Lane, a longtime professor known for his critical books on cults, this book takes a very personal look at the deep questions of human existence coupled with seasoned (and at times humorous) observations of day to day life. Lane uses surfing as the guiding metaphor throughout the text.

The first part of this work includes four original essays by Professor David Christopher Lane on the Darwin-Wallace debate, focusing on the contentious issue of whether or not natural selection can explain the human mind or soul. In part two we have included the two original essays by Darwin and Wallace in 1858 concerning their discovery of evolution by natural selection as presented to the Linnean Society in London, England.

This text contains a number of timeless essays from several classic (and mostly out of print) works focusing on the love of books, collecting books, organizing one's library, and how books become lost over time. It is a judicious selection on bibliomania from such distinguished authors as Eugene Field, Christopher Morley, and Issac Disraeli

Faqir Chand was a remarkable Indian sage who spent over 75 years practicing an ancient meditation technique, popularly known today as surat shabd yoga, which attempts to induce a consciously controlled near-death experience. This book contains Faqir Chand's unique autobiography which was dictated shortly before his death in Urdu and translated during his lifetime into English. It also includes a seasoned selection of Faqir Chand's radical teachings.

The idea that the world is an illusion that betrays its real origin has a long tradition and can be found in the writings of Hindu rishis, early Greek philosophers, and Christian Gnostics. What is perhaps surprising is to find such a rich literature on the subject in neuroscience and quantum physics. The latest, and perhaps most provocative, idea to gain some currency in varying scientific disciplines is the hypothesis that the universe is the result of a computational simulation....