More than one hundred years ago, the American philosopher William James wrote that the knowledge that we must die is "the worm at the core" of the human condition-a universally shared fear that informs all our thoughts and actions, from the great art we create to the devastating wars we wage. Using data collected from human subjects, Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenberg, and Tom Pyszczynski show conclusively that the fear of death and the desire to transcend it inspire us to buy expensive cars, crave fame, put our health at risk, and disguise our animal nature. The fear of death can also prompt judges to dole out harsher punishments, make children react negatively to people different from themselves, and inflame intolerance and violence. But the worm at the core need not consume us. This book also reveals how human beings have come to terms with death and learned to lead lives of courage, creativity, and compassion. It infuses our lives with order, stability, significance, and purpose, and these anchors enable us to function moment to moment without becoming overwhelmed by the knowledge of our ultimate fate.

Product Description: Although many books are written about bereavement, very few are written about the fear of one's own death and most of these focus chiefly on terminal illness. In contrast, this book looks at the ways in which the fear of death operates on a back burner throughout our lives and how it influences the choices we make and the paths that we follow in life...read more

Product Description: Contemporary culture includes a high awareness of personal and global health hazards. Many people may feel some anxiety in this regard, but some develop an unbearable sense of dread that prevents them from functioning. Treating Health Anxiety gives prescribing and non-prescribing clinicians, as well as the counselors and social workers who encounter the problem, the tools to reduce both the fears and the medical costs that so often accompany them...read more

Addressing a human fear of nothingness after death, the author of Living Buddha, Living Christ explains how to conquer fears and live happier lives through a close of examination of who we are and how we live. Reprint. (view table of contents)

Product Description: Death, violent or otherwise, is a matter of widespread concern with ongoing debates about such matters as euthanasia and the nature of brain death. Philosophers have often argued about the rationality of fear of death. This book argues that that dispute has been misconceived: fear of death is not something that follows or fails to follow from reason, but rather, it forms the basis of reasoning and helps to show why people must be cooperating beings who accept certain sorts of facts as reasons for acting...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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Product Description: Argues that death anxiety is neglected - in part, because of treatment failures due to countertransference interferences during treatment. Langs then discusses the technical issues connected with this, whilst introducing the controversial concept that mental activities are derived from immune system activities...read more

A molecular biologist examines death and the human fear of it, drawing on theories of relativity and quantum mechanics to challenge accepted concepts of time and the afterlife. Reprint.

A molecular biologist examines the science of immortality, concludes that the greatest flaw in human consciousness is the perception of time, and urges humans to contemplate a higher cosmic consciousness. 15,000 first printing.

A companion volume to a PBS series examines how death and the afterlife is observed throughout the world, and includes information about vampires, near-death experiences, suicide, burial methods, and conceptions about heaven and hell. Reprint.

Product Description: This absorbing collection of essays written over the past twenty years traces the history of Israel at war and provides analysis of the effects of war on that young nation. The authors discuss the implications of a non-violent defense against aggression and draw on their experience as distinguished sociologists in examining Israeli reaction to bereavement, the dynamics of heroization, and the struggle to overcome fear of death...read more