Western science has operated for centuries on the assumption that we can understand the universe without understanding ourselves. We are just now seeking to make the necessary connection between the general laws of nature and those of our own (inner) nature. But the job won't be done with "massive injections of the new consciousness"; we cannot democratize the sacred by cheapening its demands.

"My aim in this book, therefore", says Needleman, "has not been to speak of the convergence of science and spirituality but of their separation. As in nature itself, organic unity is a reciprocal relationship between separate but interdependent entities. In human life as well, there can be no real unity except through the awareness of real divisions. One may then hope to experience the magic power of sustained awareness by itself to bring the harmony that we have until now fruitlessly attempted to impose on ourselves and on our endangered civilization."

Jacob Needleman is a professor of philosophy at San Francisco State University and the author of many books, including Money and the Meaning of Life and The American Soul. In addition to his teaching and writing, he serves as a consultant in the fields of psychology, education, medical ethics, philanthropy, and business and has been featured on Bill Moyers' acclaimed PBS series A World of Ideas.