Tuesday, August 25, 2020

A Series of Lessons in Raja Yoga: Now Available!



This fine work on Raja (or royal) yoga was created by Yogi Ramacharaka- a pseudonym (it is generally held) for William Atkinson. it's quite good, and much more hands-on and instructional than many works, which tend towards mere philosophy. The ultimate goal is increased awareness, especially of the self but also in general, and exercises in mental focus and attention. Atkinson wrote two other full length works on Yoga; specifically Gnani (or Jnani) and Hatha yoga. I am editing them as well.

209 pages.

Thursday, August 20, 2020

Birds in Legend and Folklore: Now Available!



This is a full length work dedicated to a fairly exhaustive treatment of hundreds of cultures spanning thousands of years in their use of birds in a folkloric capacity. The density of the book is high, owing to its academic, rigorous nature, and those intrigued by ornithology will probably enjoy this work as well as cryptid lovers and folklore buffs.

It is very much worth noting the symbolic significance of some birds over others; the crow, eagle, peacock, and dove stand out as the true "A-listers" of the avian world. It is not often that I am engrossed in the same work I am editing but this was definitely one of those happy times- the differential treatment of the Phoenix by a half dozen nations in the olden days is fascinating.

256 pages.

Friday, August 14, 2020

Exposition of the Doctrine of Karma: Now Available!



This book is a nice analysis of the idea of karma, from a specifically Theosophical perspective. The authors' name is a pseudonym so it isn't entirely clear which theosophist actually compiled the materials here. It's a more legitimate take on the subject than much literature about karma- often it is boiled down to a simplified, singular idea and ideas like national or group karma are deliberately overlooked because they (in truth) don't make sense under the concepts of Western thought.

It manages to avoid the overtly new-age style of some then contemporary manuscripts which devolve into talking about psychic forces and other things which were in vogue at the time, and contains a good bit of religious history, to boot.

63 pages.

Friday, August 7, 2020

The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali: Now Available!



This little work is comprised of a series of short statements on the Yogic system by the enigmatic figure of Patanjali, as analyzed and interpreted (using a prior translation) by Theosophist William Q. Judge. The actual subtopics are numerous; mystic powers, reincarnation, meditation, and so forth. It should be noted that Judges' surmising in the preface with regards to Patanjali is still debatable; it is not certain whether the author of the aphorisms listed here was involved with non-mystic materials, although Judges' opinion is that the latter involves a different individual.

58 pages.