Why do we believe in the soul? Does it actually exist? If so, what is it? Does it differ from the self? Is it part of the material world? Does it survive the body after death?

In The Spiritual Universe, Fred Alan Wolf brings the most modern perspective of quantum physics to the most ancient questions of religion and philosophy. Taking the reader on a fascinating tour of both Western and Eastern thought, Wolf explains the differing view of the soul in the works of Plato, Aristotle, and St. Thomas; the ancient Egyptians’ belief in the nine forms of the soul; the Qabalistic idea of the soul acting in secret to bring spiritual order to a chaotic universe of matter and energy; and the Buddhist vision of a "nonsoul." And, Wolf mounts a defense of the soul against its modern critics who see it as nothing more than the physical body.

Originally published in hardcover as The Spiritual Universe: How Quantum Physics Proves the Existence of the Soul

"Fred Alan Wolf’s The Spiritual Universe is one of the most important books of the decade. It, along with Fred’s many other books ... is a necessary foundation to understanding the multidisciplinary approaches of science, religion, and psychology."

Noetic Sciences Review

"Entering Fred Alan Wolf’s 'spiritual universe' is like stepping into a laboratory in a spaceship careening through the universe and manned by a philosopher-scientist. The speed is awesome, the questions are exhilarating, and the conclusions are properly mysterious and profoundly inconclusive. If you have a head for scientific reasoning, you’ll enjoy the spirited journey. If you’re a softhead, romantic, earthbound poet-type like me, you’re in for some mind expansion."

Thomas Moore, Author of Care of the Soul
and The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life

"Fred Alan Wolf is one of the few pathfinders who have discovered the versatility and potency of the new quantum paradigm based on consciousness. Here he takes his ideas to an explo-ration of the soul and the question of survival after death. The Spiritual Universe is delightful and thought-provoking. I recommend it highly."

Amit Goswami, Professor of Physics,
Author of The Self-Aware Universe

"Fred Alan Wolf creates a brilliant New Physics of the Soul that updates the spiritual genius of all times and cultures to usher us into the third millenium with deepening faith, bold heart, and profound insight!"

Ernest Lawrence Rossi, Ph.D., Author of
The Symptom Path to Enlightenment
and Editor of Psychological Perspectives

"Public libraries would do well to add this to their collections since the discussion invites scientists, believers, and skeptics to a captivating exploration. Both the mainstream religious believer and the New Age participant will find something here to challenge them."

Library Journal

"Fred Alan Wolf describes himself as a consulting physicist, writer, and lecturer, but the author might also be called a kind of bridge builder."

San Francisco Chronicle

"Wolf is a new Thanes for a new physics of the soul; his book will blow your mind and quicken your spirit."

Michael Grosso, Ph.D., author of The Millennium Myth and Frontiers of the Soul

"As usual, Wolf is methodical and clear at explicating physics and thereby provides physics-phobics a wide bridge to understanding some often arcane material."

Booklist

"The Spiritual Universe is a comprehensive and provocative examination of the place where religion and philosophy, science and spirituality intersect. Physicist Fred Wolf clearly demonstrates how quantum physics proves the existence of the soul."

Angeles Arrien, Ph.D., cultural anthropologist and author of The Four-Fold Way and Signs of Life

"This magnificent exploration of the nature of the soul and its place in the universe leaps past conventions of religion and science to a new synthesis, and it is startling: the dichotomy between soul and body is false. . . . This is Fred Alan Wolf’s great work, a brilliant act of synthesis and insight, a triumph."

Whitley Strieber, author of Communion