As part of my journey of exploring mystical spiritual practices and
esoteric knowledge ("Gnosis"), my mind "has been blown" - to quote a
phrase! - by this superb book:

"Jesus and the Lost Goddess: The Secret Teachings of the Original
Christians"
see:
UK and Europe:
http://www.Amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400045940/sunflowerheal-21
Canada:
http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400045940/pathofhealing-20
USA and other Countries:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400045940/pigdiseaseinform

It begins with a very convincing account of how the "Jesus story"
(virgin birth, death and resurrection, holy communion) evolved out of
earlier pagan mysticism myths originating in:

* Ancient Egypt (Isis and Osiris)
* Greece (Persephone and Dionysus)
* Syria (Aphrodite and Adonis)
* Persia (Magna Mater and Mithras)
* Asia Minor (Cybele and Attis)
* Mesopotamia (Ishtar and Marduk)
* Judea (Asherah and Baal)

(these mystical traditions all suffered repression by later
patriarchal religious authorities as societies became larger and more
complex in structure and internecine warfare became rife).

The early, holistic (God/Goddess), "Gnostic" (= "knowing")
Christianity - as opposed to the empire-serving patriarchal version
of Christianity devised a few centuries later by the Roman Empire -
used mythical stories to teach a barely educated populace how to
develop a sense of "one-ness" with all creation (the consciousness of
which = God) and how to act in harmony with our divine origin and
purpose so that we might experience heaven on earth and evolve
towards eternal existence in the "next" (metaphysical) world.

What fascinated me particularly in this book is the common ground of:

* personal spiritual development path
* understanding of the nature of cosmic consciousness (one-ness)

in Gnostic Christianity which I have also encountered in Buddhism,
Taoism, Shamanism and the Krishna Consciousness of the Hinduism
derived Hare Krishna sect.

"Jesus and the Lost Goddess" goes on to elaborate the secret
teachings of the Gnostic (mystical) Christians which apparently pre-date the
alleged birthdate of Jesus.

It explains that the story of Jesus was not meant to be a factual historical
account, but an allegorical encoding of esoteric teachings that cannot be
conveyed by words alone but which can be intuited via the stories once you let
go of the superficial story line and look for
the real (and PERSONAL!) meaning encapsulated in the story.

I conclude that a whole bunch of spiritual traditions (if you strip
off the superficial dogma and authoritarianism where it exists) seem
to be pointing to the same eternal TRUTHS of personal spiritual
origin, nature, evolution and destiny...

TRUTHS WHICH ARE ESSENTIALLY "EXPERIENTIAL" RATHER THAN INTELLECTUAL

and which have the aim of .

TRANSPORTING US OUT OF EXPERIENCES THAT ARE "HELL" INTO EXPERIENCES
THAT ARE "HEAVEN"

-----
"Much that is written in public (pagan) books is found also in the
books of
God's church. What they share in common are the words which spring
from the
heart, the law that is inscribed on the heart" .
(quote from "On Friends" by Valentinus - Gnostic Christian teacher of
the
second century A.D.)
-----

With Best Wishes for your speedy conveyance (if needed) from hell to heaven just
now, and again whenever you and I next slip down into that fiery furnace!
Namaste!
Mike
http://www.lovehealth.co.uk