New Age

For the literary magazine, see The New Age.

The term New Age describes a broad movement of late 20th century and contemporary Western culture, characterised by an individual eclectic approach to spiritual exploration. Collectively, New Age has some attributes of an emergent religion, but it is too diverse and diffuse to qualify. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006 Many of the ideas of the New Age movement are elements of older spiritual and religious traditions, from both east and west, melded with modern ideas from science especially psychology and ecology. Out of the movement have come a wide-ranging literature on spirituality, new musical styles and even crafts - most visible in specialty shops and New Age fairs. The name "New Age" also refers to part of the LOHAS market segment in which its goods and services are sold to people in the movement. Who Buys New Age Materials? Exploring Sociodemographic, Religious, Network, and Contextual Correlates Of New Age Consumption Daniel P. Mears, Christopher G. Ellison - Accessed June 2006

Definitions

Though there are no formal or definitive boundaries for membership; those who are likely to sample many diverse teachings and practices (from both 'mainstream' and 'fringe' traditions) and to formulate their own beliefs and practices based on their experiences can be considered as New Age. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 Rather than follow the lead of an organised religion, "New Agers" typically construct their own spiritual journey based on material taken as needed from the mystical traditions of the worlds religions, also including shamanism, neopaganism and occultism. What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006

Most New Age practices and beliefs may be characterized as a form of alternative spirituality or alternative religion. Even apparent exceptions, such as alternative medicine or traditional medicine practices, often have some spiritual dimension —such as a conceptual integration of mind, body, and spirit.

The term New Age is generally limited to a Western or modern context where the Judeo-Christian tradition and/or Positivism are dominant, so the use of "alternative" in New Age thought generally implies a contrast with these dominant religious and or scientific beliefs. Hence, many New Age ideas and practices contain either explicit or implied critiques of organised mainstream Christianity —emphasis on meditation suggests that simple prayer and faith is insufficient. Belief in reincarnation (which not all New Age followers accept) challenges familiar Christian doctrines of the afterlife.

History

The name New Age was popularized by the American mass media during the late 1980s, to describe the alternative spiritual subculture interested in such things as meditation, channelling, reincarnation, crystals, psychic experience, holistic health, environmentalism, other fields associated with pseudoscience and anomalous phenomena, and various “unsolved mysteries” such as UFOs, Earth mysteries and Crop circles. Typical activities of this subculture include participation in study or meditation groups, attendance at lectures and fairs; the purchase of books, music, and other products such as crystals or incense; patronage of fortune-tellers, healers and spiritual counselors. Roots of New Age Movement, a history Accessed June 2006

The New Age subculture already existed in the 1970s, and arguably continued themes from the 1960s counterculture. New Age Files includes a comprehensive timeline, and information from 1800 to the present day. Accessed July 2006 Earlier generations would have recognized some, but not all, of the New Age's constituent elements under the practices of Spiritualism, Theosophy, or some forms of New Thought / the Metaphysical movement, all of which date back to the nineteenth century, as does alternative health. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006 These movements in turn have roots in Transcendentalism, Mesmerism, Swedenborgianism, and various earlier Western esoteric or occult traditions, such as the Hermetic arts of astrology, magic, alchemy, and cabbala.

In the English-speaking world, we should make special mention of study groups devoted to American trance-diagnostician Edgar Cayce, who inspired many of today's channelers. The British neo-Theosophist Alice Bailey's writings may have supplied the term New Age (or New Era) in reference to the transition from the astrological age of Pisces to that of Aquarius. The Findhorn Foundation, an early New Age intentional community in northern Scotland founded in 1962 played a significant role. The movement in Russia has been heavily influenced by the legacy of Nicholas Roerich and Helena Roerich, who taught in the Theosophical tradition. Another former Theosophist, Rudolf Steiner and his anthroposophical movement, is a major influence, especially upon German-speaking New Agers. In Brazil, followers of Spiritist writer Allan Kardec Alan Kardec - Spirit Writings Accessed July 2006. blend with the Africanized folk traditions of Candomblé and Umbanda.

Key moments in raising public awareness of this subculture include the publication of Linda Goodman's best selling astrology books Sun Signs (1968) and Love Signs (1978), the Harmonic Convergence organized by Jose Arguelles in Sedona, Arizona in 1987; and the wave of interest in the broadcast of Shirley MacLaine's television mini-series Out on a Limb (also 1987). This was an autobiographical account of her mid-life spiritual exploration. Also influential are the claims of channelers such as Jane Roberts (Seth) and J.Z. Knight (Ramtha), as well as revealed writings such as A Course In Miracles (Helen Schucman) , A Course in Miracles Claims to be a complete self-study spiritual thought system. - Accessed July 2006 , The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield) The Celestine Prophect webpage Believes is that there is a growing worldwide interest in spirituality that is creating a new spiritual awareness and culture that will flourish in the new millennium. Accessed July 2006, Mutant Message Down Under (Marlo Morgan), and Conversations with God (Neale Donald Walsch).

The question of which contemporary cultural elements ought to be included under the name of "New Age" is quite vexing. New Age channelers have many points of similarity with Spiritualist mediums. Many spiritual movements, such as neo-paganism and transpersonal psychology partially overlap with it. Many groups prefer to distance themselves from the possible negative connotations of the "New Age" name such as the media hoopla, commercialism, and perhaps hucksterism. For example, key individuals in the New Thought Movement, such as Ernest Holmes, have focused on a more scientific approach and do not share New Age beliefs in reincarnation, magic, or channeling. Major attempts to present the New Age as a values-based sociopolitical movement included Mark Satin's New Age Politics (orig. 1976) Radical Middle Newsletter New World Alliance New Age political movement - Accessed July 2006 , Theodore Roszak's Person/Planet (1978), Marilyn Ferguson's Aquarian Conspiracy (1980), and Gordon Davidson and Corinne McLaughlin's Spiritual Politics (1994). The New Age is a wide menu of ideas and activities, from which participants in the subculture select their own preferred streams to patronise or identify with.

Beliefs

Those categorizing themselves following as New Agers have multifarious beliefs, never the less certain themes emerge. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006

All humanity—indeed all life, everything in the universe—is spiritually interconnected, participating in the same energy. “God” is one name for this energy. Only God Exists website - "The source or cause of the universe has never been, and nor can it ever be, separate from the universe; Nor can it be that this same source or cause be separate from you." Accessed July 2006 . Spiritual beings (e.g. angels, ascended masters, elementals, ghosts, and/or space aliens) exist, and will guide us, if we open ourselves to their guidance. Ascended Masters Research Center Ascended Masters Research Center does not guarantee the accuracy of any content on this site or on any external sites linked to us. The Word of the Ascended Masters is the ultimate Authority in any question relating to Truth. - Accessed July 2006

The human mind has deep levels and vast powers, which are capable even of overriding physical reality. “You create your own reality.” Reality Shifters news We create our own reality -strange-but-true articles and stories from around the world about mysterious appearances, disappearances, transformations, and transportations.

Nevertheless, this is subject to certain spiritual laws, such as the principle of cause and effect (karma). The individual has a purpose here on earth, in the present surroundings, because there is a lesson to learn. The most important lesson is love. Death is not the end. There is only life in different forms. What some refer to as an afterlife does not punish us but teaches us, perhaps through the mechanisms of reincarnation or near-death experiences.

Other New Age writers influenced by Kabbala are moving away from the association of life and afterlife with karma and instead emphasizing our collective creative work and responsibility. The Book of Light: The Nature of God, The Structure of Consciousness, and The Universe Within You e-book accessed July 2006

Science and spirituality are ultimately harmonious. New discoveries in science, e.g. evolution and quantum mechanics, when rightly understood, point to spiritual principles. Quantum Interconnectedness Physics and Consciousness web sitestarstuffs.com sees science as supporting the view that the universe is interconnected in much subtler ways than had once been thought. Accessed July 2006

It shares with many major world religions the idea that intuition or "divine guidance" is a more appropriate guide than rationalism, skepticism, or the scientific method. Western science wrongly neglects such things as parapsychology, meditation, and holistic health. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006

There exists a mystical core within all religions, Eastern and Western. Dogma and religious identity are not so important. The Bible is considered by some, but not all, to be a wise and holy book. Many important truths are found in the Bible, or are referred to only very obliquely. Some say that Jesus was an Essene, or that he traveled to India in his youth to study Eastern religions. Others say that Jesus was a later avatar of Buddha. Feminine forms of spirituality, including feminine images of the divine, such as the female Aeon Sophia in Gnosticism, are viewed as having been subordinated, masked, or obliterated by patriarchal movements that were widely practiced when sacred teachings were first committed to writing. A renaissance of the feminine is particularly appropriate at this time. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006 What Is “New Age? Michael D. Langone, Ph.D. Cult Observer, 1993, Volume 10, No. 1- Accessed July 2006

Meditation, yoga, t'ai chi ch'üan, and other Eastern practices are valuable and worthwhile. A certain critical mass of people with a highly spiritual consciousness will bring about a sudden change in the whole population. See Hundredth Monkey. The Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon Robert Todd Carroll (2005) Skeptic's Dictionary -accessed July 2006.

An appeal to the language of nature and mathematics, as evidenced by numerology in Kabbala, gnosticism etc., to discern the nature of god. Kabbalah - Judiasm's Way Into The New Age - The Light for the Last Days - Accessed July 2006

The food you eat has an effect on your mind as well as your body. It is generally preferable to eat fresh organic vegetarian food. Why people have to be vegetarian ? Quanyin Meditation - Accessed July 2006

There are no coincidences (see Synchronicity). Everything around you has spiritual meaning, and spiritual lessons to teach you. You are meant to be here, and are always exactly where you need to be to learn from what confronts you. The mind has hidden powers and abilities, which have a spiritual significance. Dreams and psychic experiences are ways in which our souls express themselves. A positive attitude supported by affirmations will achieve success in anything. Attracting Unlimited Abundance and Happiness Through Belief

Ultimately every interpersonal relationship has the potential to be a helpful experience in terms of our own growth. We learn about ourselves through our relationships with other people by getting to see what we need to work on ourselves and what strengths we bring to the other party in order to help them in their life. All our relationships are destined to be repeated until they are healed, if necessary over many lifetimes. As Souls seeking wholeness, our goal is eventually to learn to love everyone we come in contact with. New Age Transformed J Gordon Melton, Director Institute for the Study of American Religion - Accessed June 2006

Ancient civilizations such as Atlantis may truly have existed, leaving behind certain relics and monuments (the Great Pyramid, Stonehenge) whose true nature has not been discovered by mainstream historians. Atlantis Myth or Reality Andreea Haktanir Accessed July 2006

Certain geographic locations are believed to eminate special energy, which may be male or female in character. Many such places may have been considered sacred in the worlds religions or as healing places by indigenous native populations. Sacred Places by Christopher L. C. E. Witcombe, Professor, Department of Art History, Sweet Briar College, Virginia Accessed July 2006 Sacred places Rocks and crystals have special psychic energies and can be an aid to meditation and healing. Ellie Crystal's Metaphysical and Science Website

There is a Cosmic goal. There is typically a belief that all entities are (willingly or unwillingly) cooperating in some cosmic goal of achieving a "higher" or more complete coherence with a cosmic "consciousness" (or some other goal state of "goodness"), often described as an evolutionary process or simply to learn. This underlying cosmic goal gives direction to all events, reducing the concept of coincidence to one of ignorance of hidden meaning.

Criticism

Major criticisms of the New Age have emerged from rational philosophical and scientific views that seek to understand the nature of New Age notions. These often highlight the discrepancies between New Age's seemingly irreconcilable mix of occultism and acceptance of the laws of physics. More extreme criticisms have emerged from evangelical Christians who reject all forms of occultism.

Religious and Spiritual Criticism

Some, including neo-pagans and particularly reconstructionist groups, who are frequently labeled as New Age, often find the term inappropriate since it appears to link them with beliefs and practices they do not espouse. Others think that the classification of beliefs and movements under New Age has little added value due to the vagueness of the term. Instead, they prefer to refer directly to the individual beliefs and movements. Indeed, use by religious conservatives, scientists and others has caused the term "New Age" to sometimes have a derogatory connotation. Watchman Fellowship, a ministry of Christian Discernment. Accessed July 2006 New Age: False Religion - Islamic criticism Accessed July 2006 *A Catholic Christian Reflection on the New Age Accessed July 2006

Many adherents of traditional disciplines from cultures such as India, China, and elsewhere; a number of orthodox schools of Yoga, Tantra, Qigong, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, and martial arts (the traditional Taijiquan families, for example), groups with histories reaching back many centuries in some cases, eschew the Western label New Age, seeing the movement it represents as either not fully understanding or deliberately trivializing their disciplines or out right distortions. New Age vs. Vedic tradition Accessed July 2006

Much of the strongest criticism of New Age eclecticism has come from American Indian writers and communities. The Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality Declaration of of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality - Accessed July 2006 is one of the strongest statements of disapprobrium from traditional tribal religious leaders. Other Natives who have issued statements against "white shamanism" include Wendy Rose, Leslie Marmon Silko and Geary Hobson. The Native American argument is that New Age shamans profit from tribal beliefs in a way that is fundamentally inconsistent with those beliefs, while ignoring the communal aspects of tribal religious belief and practise. Part of the criticism has also been the perpetuation of Native racial sterotyping ("The Hollywood Indian"), cultural fetishism and the distortions of historic & anthropological facts about Natives.

(see also Noble savage)

Rationalist and Academic criticism

New Age detractors also say that a true understanding of reason and empiricism produces just as rich an experience as the New Agers claim for themselves, but with emotions and feelings based on thinking and logic instead of the other way around. They also point out that the definition of empiricism is: "the view that experience, especially of the senses, is the only source of knowledge."

Strong criticism of new age beliefs comes from adherents of scientific skepticism. Adherents of scientific skepticism hold that one should question the veracity of claims, especially paranormal or extraordinary claims, unless such claims can be empirically tested. As scientists say science has been unable to find proof of any paranormal activity, or to find ground for new-age beliefs, they sometimes take offense at the use of science to promote what essentially are unprovable religious beliefs. A New Ager's path to becoming a skeptic Accessed July 2006 Dutch skeptic website with articles and links to criticism of a range of New Age topics Accessed July 2006

Response to Criticism

New Age proponents defend their beliefs by claiming that New Age philosophy and religions are not special and unique in having their beliefs overrule logic and reasoning. They point out that Christianity and all other major religions demand no less. For example many continue to believe in things such as biblical inerrancy, creationism, intelligent design, and a young earth despite all the evidence for evolution and the enormous age of the earth. New Age philosophy, however, does not come so much into conflict with science, as the major religions do. The New Age might not be scientific, but it actively tries to embrace adapt and incorporate modern scientifc theory into its beliefs.

Underlying assumptions

Judging by its name, the New Age movement ought to involve millenarian claims, perhaps of a glorious future age which is about to begin The Sleeper Awakens onlygodexists.org 2006 Accessed June 2006 [http://www.rosicrucian.com/zineen/magen119.htm The Aquarian Age - Rosicrucian Fellowship Accessed July 2006. As such it could theoretically be traced back to the time of Zoroaster, or to biblical apocalypticism. While such expectations are encountered often enough—e.g., the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, pole shifts and paradigm shifts, the imminent end of the Mayan calendar—the predominant themes of the New Age are mystical rather than apocalyptic. Hence the widespread interest within this subculture in the mystical traditions within the world’s various religions, especially Vedanta, Tibetan Buddhism, Zen, Sufism, Taoism, Shamanism, Kabbalah, Gnosticism, and Esoteric Christianity of Christianity. Globalization was and still is an important social phenomenon of the 20th and early 21st centuries, with religious syncretism inevitably being one consequence. New Age religious developments are eclectic, hence multifarious. Some synthesize Christian ideas with beliefs involving many gods or goddesses, pantheism, include aliens, reincarnation, or the use of drugs, together with other spiritual beliefs from different parts of the world. Likewise, the movement may incorporate differing beliefs about, or attempts to practice, magic. Though many New Age terms are associated with Eastern religions, they should not be considered as being identical with the concepts and practices of those religions. Ancient traditions such as Hinduism, Taoism, and Buddhism can hardly be referred to as New Age religions. It just so happens that the New Age movement has 'adopted' many of the ideas of eastern religions, incorporated them into their own beliefs and practices. The gnostic approach of experiential insight and revelation of truth may be closest to the New Age methodology of prayers and spirituality. Roots of New Age Movement, a history Accessed June 2006 In keeping with a relativist stance, New Agers believe they do not contradict traditional belief systems, but rather some of them say that they are concerned with the ultimate truths contained within those systems, separating these truths from false tradition and dogma. On the other hand, adherents of other religions often claim that the New Age movement has a vague or superficial understanding of these religious concepts, leaving out that which may seem "negative" or contradict contemporary Western values and that New Age attempts at religious syncretism are vague and self-contradictory. Some people within the New Age movement claim a particular interest in Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism, and Taoism — however eclectic or in-depth such an interest may be depends arbitrarily upon each individual's pursuit and focus. New Age is syncretic in nature and has roots as a counter-cultural phenomenon. Thus New Age adherents tend to emphasize a relativist approach to truth, often referring to the Vedic statement of "one truth, but many paths," the mainstay of Hinduism, which idea is also found in the later Zen Buddhist spiritual dictum of "many paths, one mountain". This belief is not only an assertion of personal choice in spiritual matters, but also an assertion that truth itself is defined by the individual and his or her experience of it. This relativism is not merely a spiritual relativism, but also extends to physical theories. Reality is considered largely from an experiential and subjective mode. Many New Age phenomena are not expected to be repeatable in the scientific sense, since they are presumed to be apparent only to the receptive mind; for example, telepathy may not be achievable by a skeptical mind, since a skeptical mind is not pre-conditioned to expect the phenomenon to exist. The New Age worldview typically involves a mysticism-based (rather than experiment-and-theory-based) view of describing and controlling the external world; for example, one might believe that tarot card reading works because of the "interconnectedness principle", rather than regarding the success (or failure) of tarot card reading as evidence of the interconnectedness principle. The various New Age vitalist theories of health and disease provide further examples. Some New Age practices and beliefs could make use of what British anthropologist Sir James George Frazer termed magical thinking, in The Golden Bough (1890). Common examples are the principle that objects once in contact maintain a practical link, or that objects that have similar properties exert an effect on each other. In contrast to the scientific method, the failure of some practice to achieve expected results is not considered as a failure of the underlying theory, but as a lack of knowledge about (hidden) extenuating circumstances. This stance has led some skeptics to pronounce the New Age movement to be primarily anti-intellectual in nature. The emphasis on subjective knowledge and experience is a connection between New Age beliefs and postmodernism. The shift to a feeling of control over one's expression of spirituality reflects a trend towards personal responsibility, as well as personal empowerment. Its populist origins help characterize the New Age approach. This emphasizes an individual's choice in spiritual matters; the role of personal intuition and experience over societally sanctioned expert opinion and an experiential definition of reality.

Language

Many adherents of belief systems characterised as New Age rely heavily on the use of metaphors to describe experiences deemed to be beyond the empirical. Consciously or unconsciously, New Agers tend to redefine vocabulary borrowed from various belief systems, which can cause some confusion as well as increase opposition from skeptics and the traditional religions. In particular, the adoption of terms from the language of science such as "energy", "energy fields", and various terms borrowed from quantum physics and psychology but not then applied to any of their subject matter, have served to confuse the dialog between science and spirituality, leading to derisive labels such as pseudoscience and psychobabble. A New Age Glossary (pdf) Michael A. Cox North American Mission Board & the Southern Baptist Convention. Accessed June 2006 Glossary for the new Millennium and Aquarian Age Dr Joshua David Stone "I AM University" 2004 - Accessed June 2006

This phenomenon is additionally compounded by the propensity of some New Agers to pretend to esoteric meanings for familiar terms; the New Age meaning of the esoteric term is typically quite different from the common use, and is often described as intentionally inaccessible to those not sufficiently trained in the area of their use. See the following list:-

Forces. It is commonly held that there exist certain forces, independent of spiritual beings or agencies, and also distinct from forces as defined by science (e.g., gravitation, electro-magnetism, etc.). These forces are elemental in nature; and are held to operate in an automatic fashion as part of the natural order (for example, the force which causes seeds to sprout, grow, and bloom).

Power. The "forces", and everything else, are energized by a mystical power that exists in varying degrees in all things. Power is transferable, through physical contact, sensory perception, or mere proximity. Power may be accumulated or depleted in a person or object through a variety of mechanisms, including fate and esoteric practices. This power is held to be physically observable as "auras" and "psi energy"; and when encountered in great concentration, may even be dangerous.

Energy. In some belief systems, "forces" and "power" may seem to merge; e.g., in the concept of "vital force" that exists in so many traditional belief systems, and finds its expression in New Age concepts such as the alleged "energies" in Therapeutic Touch, Reiki or IRECA method and ideas of flowing streams of power in Earth, like "leylines" in Britain and Europe and earth energies addressed in the Chinese geomantic system of feng shui. The New Age use of the word "energy" should obviously not be confused with the scientific one.

Spirit. All beings (particularly sentient beings) are accompanied by a specific, intentional "energy" which corresponds to their consciousness, but is in some way independent of their corporeal existence. This energy typically is more primary than the physical entity, in the sense that it remains in some form after the physical death of that being.

Holism. A coherent, interconnected cosmos. Everything in the cosmos is actually or potentially interconnected, as if by invisible threads, not only in space but also across time. Further, it is held that every thing and every event that has happened, is happening, or will happen leaves a detectable record of itself in the cosmic "medium" such as the Akashic Records or the morphogenic field.

Medicine

Many people with a New Age perspective also adopt complementary and alternative medicine. National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine National Institutes of Health - Accessed June 2006 Some rely on New Age treatments exclusively, while others use them in combination with conventional medicine. This approach is regarded as completely compatible with New age belief in the unity of mind, body, spirit, and the emphasis on things of a natural origin. Some noteworthy New Age techniques are herbal medicine, Ayurveda, acupuncture, homeopathy, iridology, auras, and the use of crystals in healing therapy.

Some New Age writers have taken the belief that You create your own reality and applied it to disease with the conclusion that illnesses have a metaphysical origin and can be treated by a deep evaluation of long held negative emotional and spiritual attitudes. This has a parallel in the Christian notion that "it is done unto you as you believe." Notably, Louise Hay has published books containing lists of diseases and the associated negative belief, accompanied by the correcting positive belief. A cure may be sought by repeating the correcting positive affirmation. This approach has its origins in Christian Science. It has been criticised as seeming to blame the sufferer for causing the condition. Its supporters claim the intent is to enlighten the individual so that he or she can change the thinking that exacerbates the condition.

Some followers of New Age thought may also believe certain individuals have the ability to heal, in a similar way to the healing practices reported to have been used by Jesus of Nazareth in the New Testament.

It should be noted that, when considered purely as medical techniques, most of these systems of treatment are viewed with extreme skepticism and even as quackery by most scientific professionals. When tested using the same types of regimens as those applied to pharmaceutical drugs and surgical techniques (for example, double blind clinical studies), these systems rarely yield demonstrable improvements over standard techniques. Direct harm can result from a treatment such as acupuncture (bruising, dizziness, infection), from poorly prescribed herbal medicine or from an untrained person self-administering herbal medicines. Indirect harm can result when a person seeks new age treatment as a replacement for a proven scientific treatment, and in some cases this has resulted in death.

However, one benefit of New Age medicine's popularity, and its criticism of conventional medicine, has been to encourage many medical practitioners to pay closer attention to the entire patient's needs rather than just her or his specific disease San Francisco Medical Library. Such approaches, termed "holistic medicine", are now becoming more popular. Conventional medicine has recognised that a patient's state of mind can be crucial in determining the outcome of many diseases, and this perception has helped recast the roles of doctor and patient as more egalitarian.

Critics of New Age medicine continue to point out that without some kind of testing procedure, there is no way of separating those techniques, medicinal herbs, and lifestyle changes which actually contribute to increased health from those which have no effect, or which are actually deleterious to one's health. The National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, are at 2005 carrying out research on determining which of these practices may be useful in support of conventional medical practice.

Music

See a longer description at the New Age music article

Although more rock than new age in genre, the 1967 successful musical Hair with its opening song "Aquarius" and the memorable line "This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius" brought the New Age concept to the attention of a huge worldwide audience. The first actual use of the term in pop music was by American rock and roll band The Velvet Underground in their pessimistic 1969 song "New Age".

A large percentage of music described as of New Age genre is instrumental, and electronic. Arguably, this music has its roots in the 1970s with the works of such free-form jazz groups recording on the ECM label such as Oregon, the Paul Winter Group, and other pre-ambient bands; as well as ambient performers such as Brian Eno. The Greek artist Yanni, one of the "superstars" of the New Age genre, relies heavily on synthesizers and instrumental "world music" sounds.

Vocal arrangements are also common. Enya, although claiming her music is not of this genre, has won a New Age Grammy for her music which utilizes vocals in a variety of languages, including Latin. Less well known is Medwyn Goodall, who relies mainly on electronic keyboard effects, and includes acoustic guitar as well.

Music labeled New Age often has a vision of a better future, expresses an appreciation of goodness and beauty, even an anticipation, relevant to some event. Rarely does New Age music dwell on a problem with this world or its inhabitants; instead it offers a peaceful vision of a better world. Often the music is celestial, when the title names stars or deep space explorations. Ennio Morricone wrote the entire score for the movie Mission to Mars, and while the credits flash we hear All the Friends, New Age orchestral style. Additionally, instrumental albums often come with "liner notes" encouraging the music's use in meditation, and many albums have been recorded with specific design for this purpose.

While other genres like psy-trance/goa trance are not associated with New Age in their philosophies they can in some ways be likened to a New Age perspective. Psy-trance, especially, suggests a fusion of transcendental feeling and the individual's connectedness with the cosmos. This experience and the dance culture surrounding it may carry cultural memes about technology, parapsychology, artificial intelligence, as well as a view that thoughts may in fact determine reality.

References

Academic study of the New Age

Albanese, Catherine L. (1990) Nature Religion in America; From the Algonkian Indians to the New Age, University of Chicago Press, Chicago & London.
Barna, George , (1996) The Index of Leading Spiritual Indicators, Word Publishing, Dallas TX. ISBN 0849936039
Bloch, Jon P., (1998) New Spirituality, Self, and Belonging: How New Agers and Neo-Pagans Talk About Themselves, Praeger, Westport, Connceticut & London.
Drane, John, (1999) What is the New Age Still Saying to the Church? Marshall Pickering, London.
Ferguson, Marilyn (1982) The Aquarian Conspiracy, Paladin, London.
Godwin, Joscelyn, (1994) The Theosophical Enlightenment, State University of New York Press, New York.
Hanegraaff, Wouter J., (1998) New Age Religion and Western Culture: Esotericism in the Mirror of Secular Thought, State University of New York Press, Albany, New York.
Heelas, Paul, (1996) The New Age Movement, Blackwell, Oxford.
-- and Linda Woodhead (2004) The Spiritual Revolution: Why Religion is Giving Way to Spirituality, Blackwell, Oxford.
Kemp, Daren, (2004) New Age: A Guide. Alternative Spiritualities from Aquarian Conspiracy to Next Age, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.
Kohn, Rachael, (2003) The New Believers: Re-Imagining God, HarperCollins, Sydney.
Retrieved 26 August 2005
Lewis, James R. and J. Gordon Melton (eds). (1992) Perspectives on the New Age, State University of New York Press, Albany, New York.
Melton, J.Gordon, (1995) Whither the New Age? Chapter 35 of T. Miller's , America's Alternative Religions, SUNY Press, Albany, NY .
Michael, June, (2000) Path to Truth: A Spiritual Guide to Higher Conciousness, Writers Club Press, New York.
Naisbitt J. & Aburdene P., (1990) Megatrends 2000, William Morrow & Company, New York, NY.
Pike, Sarah M., (2004) New Age and Neopagan Religions in America, Columbia University Press, New York.
Roof, Wade Clark (1999) Spiritual Marketplace: Baby Boomers and the Remaking of American Religion, Princeton University Press, Princeton.
Rothstein, Mikael (ed). (2001) New Age Religion and Globalization, Aarhus University Press, Aarhus, Denmark.
Saliba, John A., (1999) Christian Responses to the New Age Movement: A Critical Assessment, Geoffrey Chapman, London. * Sutcliffe, Steven & Marion Bowman (eds). (2000) Beyond New Age: Exploring Alternative Spirituality, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.
Sutcliffe, Steven J., (2003) Children of the New Age: A History of Spiritual Practices, Routledge, London and New York.
York, Michael, (1995) The Emerging Network: A Sociology of the New Age and Neo-Pagan Movements, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, Maryland.
Carlos Seeker: Searching for answers (e-book format)

External links

Opendirectory New Age links Large collection of New Age links at the Open Directory

The New Age Files - A comprehensive timeline, biogs and information from 1800 to the present day and news stories
Religious Tolerance.org, has a list of academic references and survey sources
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine

New Age critics

New Age | Postmodernism | Pseudoscience

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