The Presence of Other Worlds: The Psychological and Spiritual Findings of Emanuel Swedenborg

By Wilson Van Dusen

Book Overview

In 1974, Wilson Van Dusen published a groundbreaking study on the findings of Emanuel Swedenborg, a book that has inspired thousands to look more closely into Swedenborg's works and to consider the implications of living a useful and thoughtfully directed life. This updated second edition, published on the thirtieth anniversary of the book's original publication, includes a new introduction to this bestselling work. An account of the monumental journey of an eighteenth-century scientist and philosopher into the depths of his own mind and to spiritual worlds beyond, The Presence of Other Worlds shows how Swedenborg's personal experiences radiate with insights about psychological and spiritual develpments that are relevant to modern-day seekers. It has been hailed since its first publication as a passport for all spiritual voyagers into the human psyche and the innter sanctum of the afterlife. Dr. Raymond Moody, author of Life After Life, provides a foreword that explains the importance of Swedenborg's mystical experiences in connection with the near-death experience. Dr. James Lawrence presents a tribute to Wilson Van Dusen and his enduring legacy in an afterword.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0877853126
• ISBN13: 9780877853121
• Release Date: June 2004
• Publisher: Swedenborg Foundation
• Length: 267 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.6" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

A psychologist looks at Emanuel Swedenborg.

Several years ago, I was involved transiently with an English woman who's mother was schizophrenic. Odd as this woman was, or perhaps *because* she was so odd, I was intrigued by her view of the world, and of reality. We had many endless discussions, our views being divergent, yet somehow complimentary. One day, she came home with a book she'd taken from the university library. "Read this," she said, offering no further explanation. It was THE PRESENCE OF OTHER WORLDS by Wilson van Dusen. I, of course, read it. Is it too much to say things have never been the same since? I'd never before heard of Emanuel Swedenborg, and I found this psychological exploration of his findings more than intriguing. As a psychiatrist, I was particularly intrigued by Chapter 6, "The Presence of Spirits in Madness." Van Dusen here describes in own work as a clinical psychologist in a California State Hospital in the 1960's. I have to admit, the idea of interviewing *the voices* of my schizophrenic patients had never before occured to me. This is, by far, one of the most fascinating bits of writing I have ever come across. And, though hardly mentioned in this book, I then found my way to the works of Carl Jung (who was mysteriously omitted from my psychiatry residency training), another reader of Swedenborg. My encounters with psychiatric patients, and with my own inner world, were thus redirected permanently. I *highly* recommend this book to anyone with similar interests.Jon Jackson, M.D.