American Book of the Dead

Portrait

E.J. Gold has been called a teacher's teacher. His ability to modernize ancient wisdom and his pervasive sense of humor has remained unique in the spiritual landscape for over 30 years. Andrew Rawlinson, in his recent reference work, The Book of Enlightened Masters, says that E.J. Gold can perhaps claim to be Gurdjieff's true heir. He defies categorization. His contemporaries and colleagues include Dr. Claudio Naranjo, Lee Lozowick, Timothy Leary, Robert Anton Wilson, Reshad Feild, Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, Murat Yagan, John Lilly, MD, Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche, Swami Vishnu Devananda, Guru Raj Singh, Joan Halifax, Samuel Avital, Heather Valencia, Robert de Ropp, Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Dru Kristel, and many more. In spite of all these associations and his remarkable list of accomplishments, Gold has cherished a high level of privacy from the media. He has never been highly marketed and will never be 'just another stop' on the guru superhighway. Thus far he has written over four dozen books, among them "The American Book of the Dead," a modern American adaptation of Books of the Dead which are common to many cultures throughout history, and which has entered its tenth reprint. The subjects he covers in his many books range from the use and invocation of attention and presence; the waking state; death and dying; practical work on self; shamanism; higher bodies; artifact reading, imprinting and use; cosmic laws; and the suffering of the Absolute. Central to his work is preparation for the Bardo - the Tibetan word for the state following death of the body, as the consciousness unravels and one chooses one's next rebirth. Mr. Gold affirms that through knowledge and experience one can navigate this state and successfully maintain a thread of consciousness between lifetimes, and in this way can become an individual evolving Soul with a greater purpose than ordinary man. To aid others in achieving this end, Gold has entered cyberspace, building an elaborate gaming engine with which he can simulate spaces common to the Bardo, inventing labyrinthine games to be played individually or in multi-user groups. In this way, he hopes to convey the atmospheres and sights of many bardo spaces, to familiarize the player with what they are likely to encounter on the other side.