From the imagination and experience of one of the world's most provocative entheogenic researchers comes a psychedelic tale of self-discovery, universal love, and personal awakening. For Beyond Azara, Martin W. Ball brings all the wonder of mystical experience together with deep insights, sensuality, and gripping storytelling. The world has been wracked by an apocalyptic war. In the aftermath, a dedicated religious group known as the Azarans has left the mainland behind to seek a place from which to rebuild humanity. Across the Loa Neshi Sea, they find the paradise they've been looking for on the island continent of Lur. Esoteric doctrine and radical awakening clash in this dynamic tale of how two people, Jendru Amdin and Jor Alesh Melva, discover their true nature and each other amidst events that will shatter everything they thought they knew. Jendru is soon to take his vows and become a monk in the psychedelic religion of Azara. Jor Alesh is the ascended Alcian of Jurnda, a secular metropolis. She's come to the sacred pyramid temple city of Azar to observe the unexpected return of the heretical Darsulans. Two hundred years previously, the upstart group challenged the sacred doctrine of Azara and left the religious refuge, disappearing across the island. Now they're coming back and no one knows why. It's Seyloq Surya, a reclusive apostate, who brings Jendru and Jor Alesh together. With this unusual man, who claims to be God, they experience a powerful new medicine, inviting them to challenge everything they've ever thought or believed. In the process, they begin to discover themselves, what it means to follow their hearts, and trust in the infinite. Beyond Azara is an exciting mix of nondual philosophy, entheogenic experience, sensual awakening, and universal romance that pierces the veil of illusion and reveals the nature of being like nothing else you've read. "A combination of Brave New World, 1984, and The Teachings of Don Juan. A recommended read for those interested in 'after Armageddon' and the survival of the human spirit in spite of war, despots, and religious philosophies out of touch with human needs." -John A. Rush, Ph.D., author of The Mushroom in Christian Art, and Failed God "With his latest work of fiction, Martin Ball continues to astound us with his prolific output and his on-going conversation about all things entheogenic" -James Oroc, author of Tryptamine Palace: 5-MeO-DMT and the Sonoran Desert Toad "If you thought the sex, drugs and rock and roll of the '60s was something, wait until the seductive sexual and entheogenic juices role right off of the pages of this post-apocalyptic magnum opus, right into your nether region, sending you into a world where you'll cum to understand yourself. And the best part is, this book's details of experience and methods are the real deal." -Jan Irvin, author of The Holy Mushroom
About the Author: Martin W. Ball, Ph.D., is an independent entheogenic researcher, writer, novelist, and musician. His fiction includes the Tales of Aurduin fantasy series and his latest novel, Beyond Azara: A Universal Love Story. His most recent books on entheogens include Being Human: An Entheological Guide to God, Evolution, and the Fractal, Energetic Nature of Reality, and The Entheological Paradigm. Martin earned his Ph.D. in Religious Studies in 2000 with an emphasis on Native American traditions, shamanism, comparative mysticism, entheogens and religion, Buddhism, and the philosophy of science and religion. He began his independent writing career with Tales of Aurduin in 2003, applying much of what he had learned as a student of religion and culture in shaping a vast fantasy epic. It took several years to complete the four-book project, complete with invented languages and glossaries. From there, Martin branched into writing non-fiction works on entheogens and spiritual/mystical experiences where he has documented his own explorations and insights. Recently he has focused primarily on a nondual interpretation of entheogenic experiences and their use as tools to reach unitary states of awakening and personal transformation. Martin's books are challenging, entertaining, insightful, and often radical. He's not afraid to be himself and call it as he sees it, always pressing for deeper clarity into truth and personal awareness of the unitary nature of being. His fiction works on multiple levels simultaneously, melding philosophy, spirituality, and dynamic storytelling, all told through the lives of engaging characters that defy conventional categories. With the release of Beyond Azara, Martin is excited to be returning to the fictional worlds and ideas he first explored with Tales of Aurduin.