About this episode
Philip Goldberg has been studying India’s spiritual traditions for more than forty years, as both a practitioner and an author. After teaching Transcendental Meditation in early 1970s, he became a professional writer and has written or co-written 19 books, including The Intuitive Edge, Making Peace With God, Roadsigns on the Spiritual Path, American Veda: From Emerson and the Beatles to Yoga and Meditation, How Indian Spirituality Changed the West, and his most recent work, The Life of Yogananda: The Story of the Yogi Who Became the First Modern Guru; The book was greeted by enthusiastic reviews from journalists and experts in the field. He is also published novelist and a member of both the Writers Guild of America and the Authors Guild. His blogs appear regularly on the Huffington Post, Elephant Journal and other sites. An ordained interfaith minister and spiritual counselor as well, Phil was the founding director of the Forge Guild of Spiritual Leaders and recently created Spiritual Wellness and Healing Associates (SWAHA) in Los Angeles, with his wife, acupuncturist Lori Deutsch. His website is PhilipGoldberg.com. This page within that site is dedicated to American Veda. Interview recorded 1/29/2011. Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Second BatGap interview with Phil. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction and Background 00:03:00 - The Vedic Civilization and Global Contact 00:06:35 - The Impact of Vedic Teachings in American Culture 00:09:45 - East and West Synthesis 00:12:42 - The Impact and Distinction of Different Lineages 00:15:27 - All-inclusive Worship and Devotional Astronomy 00:18:18 - The Receptive Audience in America 00:21:05 - The Emergence of Spiritual but Not Religious 00:23:48 - Mystical Revival in Western Religions 00:27:06 - The Emergence of Genuine Non-Dualism 00:29:59 - The Influence of Eastern Teachings on Psychology and Neuroscience 00:33:16 - Different Strokes for Different Folks: The Diversity of Meditation Practices 00:36:09 - Transmission of Vedantic Teachings across Generations 00:39:21 - The Influence of Eastern Mysticism on Literature 00:42:08 - The Evolution of Spiritual Seekers and Consciousness Expanders 00:44:49 - The Influences of Vivekananda, Yogananda, and Maharishi 00:48:11 - The Impact of Transcendental Meditation 00:50:20 - The Mainstreaming of Meditation 00:53:26 - Scandals and Controversies involving Eastern Teachers 00:57:01 - The Fallibility of Gurus 01:00:28 - Mistakes and Fallibility of Gurus 01:02:56 - Changing Dynamics in Teacher-Student Relationships 01:05:34 - It's about the Teachings, Not the Teacher 01:08:27 - The Impact of India on Music and the Arts 01:11:28 - The Connection between Eastern Cosmology and Western Science 01:14:56 - The Trend Towards Vedantic/Yogic Spirituality 01:18:23 - Trends in the Vedic Tradition 01:21:48 - The Evolution of Enlightenment Teachings 01:24:36 - The Synergy of Absolute and Relative 01:27:46 - The State of Consciousness and Enlightenment 01:30:40 - Support and Upgrades