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Lyall Watson

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Gifts of Unknown Things: A True Story of Nature, Healing, and Initiation from Indonesia's Dancing Island Paperback – December 1, 1991

by Lyall Watson (Author)

4.7 70 ratings

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Discover the extraordinary island of Nus Tarian, in Indonesia, where everyday reality contains terrifying, inexplicable, and miraculous phenomena. Magical feats, extrasensory perception, and psychic healing are commonplace in this land where the natural and the supernatural coexist and challenge our beliefs about reality.

At once a scientific exploration and an imaginative adventure, Dr. Watson's astonishing and life-transforming journey becomes our own, challenging many of our fixed beliefs about the "real world."

About the Author

Watson is a naturalist and author. He is based in a cottage on the west coast of Ireland.

Print length

256 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Destiny Books
Publication date

December 1, 1991
Dimensions

5.38 x 0.6 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

0892813539
ISBN-13

978-0892813537
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Destiny Books; Original ed. edition (December 1, 1991)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0892813539
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0892813537
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.38 x 0.6 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #790,369 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #291 in Gaia-based Religions
- #1,572 in Ecology (Books)
- #4,266 in Mental & Spiritual Healing

Customer Reviews:
4.7 70 ratings

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4.7 out of 5

70 global ratings

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R Abad Santonja

When Magic Dies

Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2019

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Someday, I will write a real review. For now, Watson's "Gifts" is no ordinary ethnography. It speaks deeply of metaphysical paradigms and the clash of Islam (or any other established "My way or the highway" religion, for that matter) with autochthonous spirituality. We are talking about the extinction of true indigenous magic by mass-market religious mundanity, backed by authoritarian brutality. This is a glimpse into the waning moments of a lost universe.

8 people found this helpful

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Ballet Fan

VERY DEEP WATERS

Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2020

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I have enjoyed all Lyall Watson's books, but this one is special. It conveys very poignantly what "modernity" has lost in the extinction of indigenous cultures, namely direct, personal spiritual contact with the Universe. Truly an invitation to the "dance of life."

5 people found this helpful

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AZ

LOVED IT!

Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2018

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This is one of the most interesting books I have ever read. Tia is an unforgettable character. Watson is a brilliant and talented writer. This book is the kind of blending of science and mysticism that I LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! I especially loved it because it took place in Indonesia.

5 people found this helpful

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Ms. E

Gifts of Unknown Things

Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2012

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This is an incredible and somewhat disturbing book! It is easy to read and the story is very easy to follow, but it contains many, many ideas that may take some time to accept. I read the book, and then reread several of the passages just to be sure I had read them correctly. I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in seeing life in a new way.

3 people found this helpful

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Brizdaz

Watson's Gift

Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2013

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One of the best of Lyall Watson's books that I have read so far, but the main focus of this story is a young Indonesian dancer and the way her life transforms a man of science through a mystical adventure over many months.
This story would easily make a fascinating movie experience, or stage play in my opinion.
Many things to ponder here.

12 people found this helpful

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kaiotay girl

when the lights come up from below

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2015

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Lyall Watson waited more than a few years to write this book not wanting to damage his scientific reputation I assume. It is one of the most amazing true stories I've ever read and one of the very few books I've read more than once (and I read a lot). Exquisite in every way.

18 people found this helpful

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Yukio

Complex in a Quirky Way

Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2015

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This has long been a minor masterpiece, a secret favorite, a little known treasure among lots of different kinds of book and story lovers. I gave away my last copy and needed another.

9 people found this helpful

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I. C. Onur

I enjoyed it a lot

Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2016

Verified Purchase

I think Mr. Watson did an interesting twist by candy wrapping many ideas and philosophies under the guise of a memoir. I enjoyed it a lot. At times I felt like certain aspects did not fit as tight as others with the narrative but it didn't deter me from enjoying his work. A very good read.

6 people found this helpful

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purpledragon

5 stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 25, 2019

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Bought as a Christmas present for my dad (on the understanding we share it lol) but he's very pleased.

Chaliel

Gifts of Unknown Things

Reviewed in France on January 5, 2014

Verified Purchase

One of his best books. Lyall Watson has written a lot of books, but this one is about his own experience on an isle east of Bali, where he experiences a lot of strange things to think about, and thats what he does.

Juanita R. Violini

Science Meets Magic Meets Science

Reviewed in Canada on February 4, 2011

Verified Purchase

Watson has written a compelling narrative that is both down to earth and magically uplifting. The book alternates between Watson's scientific musings on the supernatural phenomena taking place around him on the "Dancing Island"; and the true story of an eleven-year-old girl, whose ability to connect with the rhythms of the earth and other invisible energies, results in her healing and poltergeist type powers.

I love Watson's view of the extraordinary phenomena he experiences. When speaking of the powerful influences occurring at places such as Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid at Giza he writes:
"I am satisfied that all these structures were created by people who possessed an astronomical awareness and a mathematical expertise that we have only recently rediscovered. But I am unhappy with the manic attempts now being made to deify these builders as masters of an arcane and intergalactic order to whom all the secrets of the universe were known. They were people. Born of this earth and, like all things living here, imbued with a natural sensitivity to its cycles and rhythms."

Highly recommended for those seeking to learn more about what it means to be human.

ボヘミャー

意外と淡泊な原文と、魅惑的日本語訳。

Reviewed in Japan on November 20, 2008

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『未知の贈り物』（ちくま文庫/村田恵子訳）が、素晴らしい読書経験をさせてくれたので
その原文を味わってみようと買った。手に取ってみると、日本語版と、かなり趣がちがう。

第１段階から第７段階まで、魅力的な名称がつけられているが、
原著では、もっとあっさりとした記述になっている。

「第１段階　地球と精神の共振」→「The Spirit Moves」
「第３段階　霊の果実が実る樹」→「Trees Bearing Fruit」
「第５段階　流体知性の落とし子たち」→「Water Bringing Forth」
「第６段階　コズミック・ダンス」→「Man and His Image」
「第７段階　園の門の彼方に」→「The Garden Gate」

これだけでも明らかにわかるのは、日本語版『未知の贈り物』の訳者は、かなり踏みこんだ、
いい意味で自由な翻訳をしていて、それがあの独特な詩情を生み出していたこと。

邦訳版にあって、原著にないものは、巻頭の「地球的慈悲に向かって」という文。
それから、本文が始まるまでの、丁寧緻密な文章レイアウト。

ライアル・ワトソンの科学者的態度の端的な文の雰囲気を、そのままに訳出しているのは
（いいか、わるいかではなく）『ネオフィリア』などの方（ちくま文庫/内田美恵訳）なのだろう。

3 people found this helpful

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Amazon Kunde

Too much philosophy, too little of the story

Reviewed in Germany on March 3, 2014

Verified Purchase

I have to say that I was dissapointed by this book: I expected a recounting of the author's experiences on the dancing island; what I found was a lot of theory and philosophical ramblings interpersed with snippets of the tale.

Now don't get me wrong: I like to read about the theory of paranormal things, but this book gives no forewarning that theory is it's main aim, nor does it go into sufficient depth and give good enough examples to substantiate said theory. What annoyed me most was that many claims were presented as facts, sometimes even without explanation how the author arrived at that conclusion.
A related problem arose with some aspects of the tale as well, in particular with his repeated assertions, stated in a somewhat poetic manner, that everyone understood exactly what someone was attempting to communicate with a particular dance. I found it rather unlikely that this was meant literally, especially after its first mention following the first rather poetic section of the book, but since descriptions of later experiences seemed to be literal, this left me confused. I would have appreciated more clarity on this point, and more detail here and elsewhere in the tale.

Why three stars after all that criticism?
First, the tale was itself was inspiring - if the book had consisted of nothing else, I would have given it five stars. (As it was, I kept paging ahead in desparation to see how many more pages of theory I had to endure before the next interesting tidbit.)
Second, some ideas mentioned in the theory parts were also interesting, and could be valuable for some people.

All in all, recommendable, but be forewarned if you don't want to read theory.

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