"Nothing gets one's attention like one's imminent demise," writes Gene O'Neil in An Upraised Chalice, a book that chronicles the remarkable travels, adventures and near-death experiences that have marked his quest to discover the meaning of life. O'Neil's practical insights, born of experience, cut across religious boundaries to convey a vibrant spirituality in plain, accessible language."

A riveting adventure travel story that filled a lifetime, an epic journey of self-discovery, with spiritual realizations and intense physical challenges along the way, including multiple near-death experiences.,

Many have turned away from traditional organized religions to explore their own relationship with the Divine. The author is one of these seekers and this book chronicles his coming to terms with an inner understanding of reincarnation that he could faintly remember as a boy and sought to understand more fully as he grew older.

It follows him to many of the world’s sacred places—across Europe to the Middle East, from Jerusalem to Istanbul, then overland across Asia to Himalayan monasteries, from Darjeeling to Saranath where the Buddha taught his first sermon, from the cremation vats of Benares on the banks of the Ganges to the mystical plains of South India.

It is the inspiring story of a lifetime’s quest for the sacred, ancient wisdom, alluded to by the mystical traditions of the world’s cultures. All of this while experiencing the teachings and miraculous intercessions of the Great Ones—the great masters, sages and saints of East and West who comprise the Brotherhood of Light.,

This story details the lifelong chain of events that brought about these intercessions and the prior and subsequent interactions with the Great Ones that so shaped Gene’s life. And there is a much deeper story here. A story that is vast in its implications and that contains a challenge to all who seek to know the truth – a story that helps to answer our greatest questions: Who are we? Why are we here?