From myth to politics to daily life, the human condition appears as a conflict between the good, the beautiful and the seemingly overwhelming other. Ultimately we must face the final flaw - death. Is it possible to go beyond the conflict and unite with the good - glimpsed so tantalisingly behind it all in the beauty of the earth and in the pristine wonder of creation?

Using potent symbols of ancient gnostic myth and current social comment, Barry Long looks behind the apparent to reveal the first cause, the first error, and the way back.