The book is a remarkable part of a trilogy. I look forward to reading the other two parts of the story. The book presents a magical vision of possibilities. It does leave the rational mind reeling at times, but that may well be the intention. It is said that a shaman's role is to present a vision to others to inspire and teach. With a vision we not so lost. At the same time the information can provided the mind with some subtle adjustments, affecting how it thinks. Because we accept the proposition that Master Ou's experience encountering Pan Gu is real and continual, then the implications are very deep. The book weaves Taoist, Buddhist, Moist, Confucian, and even Christian motifs and thought. But beyond all that analysis is the transformative and healing experience of reading. The story, being a true mystical vision, is charged with spirit. I think that the spiritual Qi heals by speaking directly to the soul.