{"product_id":"the-essential-nostradamus-9781585424603","title":"The Essential Nostradamus","description":"From his predictions about life and death in the Middle French court of Catherine de' Medici to his uncannily suggestive preconceptions of World War II, Michel de Nostradamus has aroused continual fascination-and commercialization-in the West. Today, many search his elliptical \"centuries\"-or collected verses-for new truths about 9\/11 and End Times, while supermarket tabloids routinely falsify and exploit his pronouncements. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhat is the difference between prophecy and prediction, and how has it led to a misuse of the ideas of Nostradamus, as well as those of other post-biblical prognosticators? What is the nature of the oracular tradition in the West-stretching back to the oracle at Delphi-and how can Nostradamus be understood from this perspective? In The Essential Nostradamus, the highly regarded spiritual thinker and writer Richard Smoley provides a true sourcebook in the life and messages of one of history's most peculiar figures. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis volume offers a host of advantages beyond other collections of Nostradamus's work. Many commentators on Nostradamus take liberties in their translations, further confusing the matter of what the prophetic quatrains actually said. In \u003cb\u003eThe Essential Nostradamus\u003c\/b\u003e, Smoley presents a fresh, scholarly, and literal translation of Nostradamus's Middle French, allowing readers to make their own determination as to the passages' historical references and accuracy. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSmoley also supplies detailed commentary on Nostradamus's key quatrains, with a sharp eye toward the political and social events of the writer's era-elements that many commentators overlook or fail to grasp. An authoritative biographical essay-highlighting Nostradamus's separate roles as physician, astrologer, and prognosticator-rounds out the volume to create a truly essential exposition of the work of one of Western culture's most mysterious men.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Penguin Publishing Group\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/19\/2006\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781585424603\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.85lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.22h x 6.16w x 0.85d","brand":"Richard Smoley","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45276345991349,"sku":"9781585424603","price":20.4,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_7a1894c3-28ed-4134-b27f-51bf826248cf.jpg?v=1744122899","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-essential-nostradamus-9781585424603","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}