A few months past I wrote a review around the Shiva and Shakti devices. Weeks of use have past and I appreciate more than ever before the potential of these neural stimulation devices, that I’ve grown to know quiet closely – or should I say, I’ve grown to know intimately my own psyche’s reactions to the different signals and sessions.

Todd Murphy is the person behind these two valuable pieces of software and has recently published is own introduction to Neurotheology, under the form of a book – “Sacred Pathways“. The book covers a high level overview of mystical experiences, the work of Dr. Michael Persinger, and how the brain is potentially wired to support (or create, depending on which side of the fence you are in) these experiences. A particular theory of reincarnation (to which I personally not adhere, but this does not take any credit to the work here reviewed nor does it mean there are not very interesting remarks and points made in that same theory) is proposed, and only once, if my memory serves me well, are the Shakti and Shiva neural stimulation devices mentioned, and without any link facilitating their purchase.

Through the many chapters of the book, many concepts are repeated over and over again, which can feel a bit repetitive to the more technical reader, and at some stages it seems clear that there was not enough editing and proof reading work done and some paragraphs may be meaningless (2015 update: this has been addressed with the second edition) . This, in the opinion of he whom he writes this review, fades away given the content exposed and its value: near death experiences are forensically analysed in order to expose their pattern, and each step of this process is linked to a particular altered state of consciousness, each supporting one or more of our spiritual practices or experiences, ranging from out of body experiences to interaction with other beings and up to enlightenment.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is one among others religious figures praising the work of author Todd Murphy in the foreword of his book.

Sacred pathways is available from Amazon both in paperback and kindle formats – I thoroughly enjoyed the reading and it is one I recommend to anyone with an interest on Spirituality and altered states of consciousness.