Behind The Crystal Ball Anthony Aveni

Behind the Crystal Ball: Magic, Science, and the Occult from Antiquity Through the New Age explores the changing relationship between magical thinking and the search for knowledge. Anthony Aveni follows occult practices across periods and cultures, asking what people have hoped to understand or influence through them.

Rather than offering a manual of spells or crystal healing, the book examines magic in its social and historical settings and considers its connections with science and religion. It will interest readers looking for a cultural history of humanity’s attempts to locate itself within the cosmos.