Richard Maurice Bucke

Cosmic Consciousness Richard Maurice Bucke

Richard M. Burke's astonishing treatise on the human mind discusses and attempts to explain mystical experiences in the context of evolutionary change in the brain. During his mid-thirties, Burke underwent a feeling of revelation and felt distinctly enlightened for a short time. Although the period of enlightenment passed, it had an immense impact upon Burke's outlook, steering his personal and professional life in a directions he had never before envisioned. He found the experience a permanent boon to his well-being, and was able to work and enjoy life more than he formerly had. This book attempts to explain the various mystical feelings of enlightenment which humans have experienced over the millennia of recorded history. Burke's opinion is that these phenomena are becoming commoner over time, and represent an evolution of the human mind. He postulates that these experiences will become commoner as centuries go by, and become accepted as an ordinary, then eventually as a necessary part of human life.