"on the slopes of a vast ziggurat"

Ancient cosmologies

Politics & Social Sciences

Michael Loewe

Carmen Blacker

Philosophy

Allen& Unwin

First published in 1981, Divination and Oracles analyses the religious practices of the ancient world as they have been witnessed from Scandinavia to Tibet and Japan, from the third millennium BC until the present day. Divination and the consultation of oracles formed part of the religious practice of the ancient world and are part of the living folklore of the contemporary societies. They are subjects that are of immediate concern to anthropologists and not infrequently to the historians of early science. Written by the specialists in the early history of European and Asian Civilisations, the chapters call on the evidence of the written word of history and the surviving artefacts and inscriptions of archaeology. They describe the different methods that have been adopted and examine the types of question that feature in man’s attempt to seek guidance from other powers. The contributions show how an appeal to the irrational can affect the decision of prophet or statesman, or the way of life of farmer or sailor; and how such an appeal can also stimulate scientific enquiry into the cycles of nature. This book is a must read for scholars and researchers of religion, comparative religion, and ancient history.

Divination and oracles

Religion & Spirituality

The Pride That Was China (Great Civilization Series)

History

Americas

PALGRAVE~MACMILLAN

What does the future hold in store? What were the unexplained causes behind past disasters? What is the right conduct in a critical or precarious situation? All these are relevant questions in contemporary society and all have been the subject of divinatory enquiry from ancient times the world over. In nearly all cultures, specially gifted people are recognized as providing the necessary link with the world beyond ordinary human perception. Such people may transmit the utterances of the oracle, as with the Greek Pythia, or may "see" in clear images the answer to the question, as with a Tibetan possessing the faculty of tra. By understanding the way other cultures have dealt with these questions we can unlock the same potential within our own culture. In nine chapters, each on a different civilization, leading specialists in the early history of European and Asian civilizations describe divination practices from Iceland and Europe to Tibet and Japan, from the third millenium BC until the present day. Overlapping the fields of comparative religion, psychic research, and history, these studies show how an appeal to the so-called irrational can affect the decision of a prophet or statesman, and how such appeals stimulate scientific enquiry into the cycles of nature.

Oracles and Divination

Shambhala

Everyday Life in Early Imperial China During the Han Period, 202 BC-AD 220

Eva Wilson

Anne Wood

Children's Books

Carousel

In his classic study of the cultural history of Han China, Michael Loewe uses both archaeological discoveries and written records to sketch the conceptual background of various artefacts of the Han period, and shows how ancient Chinese thought is as much informed by mythology as it is dependent on reason. Originally published as Chinese Ideas of Life and Death: Faith, Myth and Reason in the Han Period (202BC-AD220), this edition includes a new Preface that discusses relevant discoveries made since the first publication and an updated list of other works on relevant topics.

Chinese Ideas of Life and Death

Ancient Civilizations

Smc Publishing Inc.

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Books by Michael Loewe