In more recent times, magicians and mesmerists have wowed audiences by seeming to float by the powers of thought alone. And many ancient religions have age-old accounts of ascetic saints hovering in sublime ecstasy. Many traditional societies have deep-rooted shamanic traditions of spirit and dream flight. Early modern scientists believed in the force of levity as an opposite to that of gravity. As he shows, many people have been certain that it is absolutely possible to float unaided. Sure, anyone can fly these days so long as they have a credit card and government-issued ID, but what does it take to perform that more fundamental magic, to levitate? In this fascinating book, Peter Adey hovers over the peculiar stories of those who have dreamed of, believed in, or-can you believe your eyes-practiced levitation, offering a wide-ranging history of a unique phenomenon that can be found in countless cultures.Īs Adey argues, levitation is best thought of as a pre- or parallel pursuit to that of aviation-but one that doesn’t cheat by employing aeronautical machinery. Light as a feather, stiff as a board, light as a feather, stiff as board: anyone who has ever been to a slumber party can probably still conjure these words from deep within their psyche.
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