Prometheus Rising

Book by Robert Anton Wilson.

Prometheus Rising is, in essence, a book about the human mind. It borrows a lot from the works of Timothy Leary, and is a very useful study for one involved in Chaos magic, even though it never uses the term. It also borrows from the works of many others, including George Ivanovich Gurdjieff, Aleister Crowley, Alfred Korzybski, Christian Science, quantum mechanics, general relativity, and Yoga. The book is divided into sections based on Timothy Leary's 8 Circuits of conciousness. These circuits, including a metaprogramming circuit, are not literal in any sense, but a convenient way to model the brain for use in self-improvement. One of the main points it makes (some would say BEATS ONE OVER THE HEAD with) is that humans are primates, and that much of their behavior (and societal problems) are due to normal mammilian behavior. It is rather illuminating reading on this subject, and realizing how the human pecking order works, from a humans-as-primates perspective, is rather helpful in everyday life. His discussions of Leary's higher circuits are wonderful fodder for Chaos magic, as the model can be a good base for self-improvement.