Started back in 1975 in a small office in New York City, Inner Traditions • Bear & Company now has 11 imprints and, as of January 2009, more than 1,200 titles in print across a wide and eclectic range of subjects. The company is considered one of the largest and oldest publishing houses in the world devoted exclusively to the subjects of spirituality, esotericism, and alternative health and healing. Its founder and publisher, Ehud C. Sperling, has often been asked, “What is your role as a book publisher?” He replies, “To seed the dream of humanity. We must determine the worthiness of the author’s ideas, publish them, and then watch. Every book has its own life, its own destiny. Our work is to put the finest ideas into the hands of our readers and let destiny unfold.”