All have a special relevance to the subject of Science and Religion. Some had mystical experiences which came unexpectedly while they were absorbed in their particular creativity, which they accepted at face value and never tried to analyse or explain. Others dwelled at length on the subject; some even dedicated their lives to unravelling the mystery which they saw as central to their existence. Some were the product of a distorted genius: the human monsters who still plague the modern world. Science as yet has no answer to the mystery of why these individuals should rise to power with the appropriate mental equipment in certain circumstances. In an otherwise perfectly well-ordered universe, there must be consistent explanations for all these phenomena.
Given the limitations of space, no one individual or subject can be explored fully, but nonetheless, it is hoped that the threads of mysticism and atheism running through the many lives examined here will prove useful in understanding the relevance of mystical experience to people in all walks of life; not just in times gone by, but in the here and now.
