This is the extraordinary story of the discovery of the ultimate secrets of some of the world's most enigmatic mysteries - including the Holy Grail, the Elixir of Life and the Philosopher's Stone.

THE STORY: The Boston Herald Traveler comments: While most of the work is choreographed movement, pantomime, human sounds and music made by bells, horns, whistles, tambourines and other hand-held instruments, there is an accompanying text from the

The Serpent by M. S. Schuler [--------------------------------------------]

Paul Stephenson twists together multiple strands to relate the cultural biography of a unique monument, the Serpent Column, which stands today in Istanbul 2,500 years after it was raised at Delphi.

How we perceive our enemy will largely determine how we fight against him. Unless we grasp how the devil fits into God's scheme of things, we will find it difficult to stand against his conspiracy against us personally and his influence within our culture. We can have a proper theology of the devil only if we have a proper theology of God. Only when we stand in awe of God will we find it unnecessary to be in awe of Satan. As Martin Luther once said, 'The devil is God's devil.' God is still in control. The Serpent of Paradise gives an overview of the career of Satan and his interaction with the Almighty. It traces his fall from an exalted position to his demise in everlasting shame and contempt. It shows us that Satan always loses even when 'he wins.' Best of all, it confirms that we who have been translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light are able to stand against him. Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. ~ Ephesians 6:10-11 NIV. The Serpent of Paradise is a book about Satan, but it is also a book about God's power, God's program, and God's purposes in this world.

Serpent and dragon symbolism is ubiquitous in the art and mythology of premodern cultures around the world. Over the centuries, conflicting hypotheses have been proposed to interpret this symbolism which, while illuminating, have proved insufficient to the task of revealing a singular meaning for the vast majority of examples. In The Serpent Symbol in Tradition, Dr. Dailey argues that, in what the symbolist Rene Guenon and the historian of religions Mircea Eliade have called 'traditional' or 'archaic' societies, the serpent/dragon transculturally symbolizes matter, a state of being that is constituted by the perception of the physical world as chaotic in comparison to what traditional peoples believed to be the 'higher' meta-physical source of the physical world or 'nature.' In the course of Dr. Dailey's investigations into the meaning of traditional serpent/dragon symbolism, the following contributions have proved invaluable: 1) Guénon's interpretation of the language of traditional symbolism and the metaphysics that underlies it, as well as his interpretation of the terminology of the 'Hindu Doctrines,' 2) Eliade's interpretation of traditional/archaic societies by means of his concepts of chaos, creation, Axis Mundi (World Axis), and 'Sacred and Profane,' and 3) the insights of various other researchers of serpent/dragon symbolism. Beyond purporting to resolve some of the mystery of the ancient and varied symbolism of the serpent/dragon, The Serpent Symbol in Tradition strives to serve the related functions of interpreting the symbolic meanings of a wide variety of premodern artifacts and narratives as well as providing a study of the origination, and ancient human awareness, of the mentioned state of matter.

Boy versus wizard... Let the battle commence! Attacked by an assassin, and positive that the next attempt will be fatal, 14-year-old Alex Weston seizes the slim chance of survival, choosing to abandon ship in a tropical typhoon. Subsequently shipwrecked onto the island of Eridor with his hamster Skoodle, Alex unwittingly crosses the barrier into a world of enchantment. He soon discovers that his beloved pet is not just a hamster, but rather a funny, opinionated, reluctant hero who regularly takes advice from his dead uncle. While on the island, they befriend a brilliant, ebullient monkey, a warrior bear and a sarcastic snake. Possessing no magic abilities himself, Alex is armed only with bravery, loyalty, sheer cussedness and wit as he fights to save his life and his friends. He must also wrestle with the suspicion that a few ounces of added rodent doesn't make him the strongest fighting unit on the island. On his journey, Alex is pursued by murderous crocodiles, engulfed by a man-eating mud swamp and attacked by vengeful wizards. But all that feels like a warm-up in comparison to his final challenge... The Serpent of Eridor is an adventure thriller threaded with humour that will appeal to children aged eight-twelve. Vivid, graphic and containing both the wonderful and the weird, it is a fast-paced story full of twists and turns. Inspired by authors such as C. S. Lewis and Anthony Horowitz, author Alison is fascinated by the genre of fantasy and enjoys weaving wild and bizarre aspects into her adventure series, including the sequelAlchemy.

A Contribution To The History Of Srepent Worship.