cover image The Seat of the Soul

The Seat of the Soul

Gary Zukav. Simon & Schuster, $17.45 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-671-25383-7

``A laser is like a whole personality,'' writes Zukav. In a sequel to The Dancing Wu Li Masters , this exponent of the spiritual side of the ``new physics'' goes beyond intriguing parallels. In gracefully written sermonettes with titles like ``Evolution,'' ``Light,'' ``Power'' and ``Addiction,'' he makes a bold attempt to fuse so-called New Age wisdom with modern psychology, science and sociopolitical reality. Zukav posits two types of people: the ``five-sensory human'' who puts mind over heart, lacks trust, plays power games and can't tap intuition is contrasted with the ``multisensory'' individual who seeks alignment of the soul with the personality. One section relates personal and national karma to the theory of Gaia, which holds that Earth is a single living entity with a soul. Though Zukav explores themes long familiar to astrologers and occultists, his high-minded synthesis is something more than old wine in a new bottle. (Mar.)