In this discussion, attention is focused on the neurophysiological changes recorded in the laboratory during experiences termed religious, since they facilitate contact with the alternate, the sacred reality. The experiences examined are "ritual body posture and ecstatic trance" and "channeling," that is possession. Contrary to previously held opinion based solely on observation, laboratory tests reveal certain differences, indicating that we are dealing with two distinct, albeit closely related, ASC's. Keywords: trance, altered states, channeling, consciousness.

The Sacred Self:. Cultural Phenomenology of Charismatic Healing. Thomas J. Csordas. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994. 327 pp. $35.00 (cloth).