About this episode
Jeffrey J. Kripal holds the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University, where he chaired the Department of Religious Studies for nine years and helped create the GEM Program, a doctoral concentration in the study of Gnosticism, Esotericism, and Mysticism that is the largest program of its kind in the world. Jeff is the author of seven books, including Comparing Religions: Coming to Terms, Mutants and Mystics: Science Fiction, Superhero Comics, and the Paranormal, and Authors of the Impossible: The Paranormal and the Sacred. He specializes in the comparative study and analysis of extreme religious states from the ancient world to today. His full body of work can be seen at http://kripal.rice.edu/. Dana Sawyer is a professor of religion and philosophy at the Maine College of Art and a lecturer on world religions for the Chaplaincy Institute of Maine. His expertise is in Hindu and Buddhist systems of philosophy, and he has a professional interest in exploring the appeal of Asian religions on the Western mind. In that regard, he has written a critically acclaimed biography of Aldous Huxley and has just finished writing the authorized biography of Huston Smith, the renowned scholar of world religions. Books: The Perennial Philosophy Reloaded: A Guide for the Mystically Inclined Aldous Huxley: A Biography Huston Smith: Wisdomkeeper: Living The World’s Religions: The Authorized Biography of a 21st Century Spiritual Giant Website Transcript of this interview Other BatGap interviews with Dana: Individual interview With Khen Rinpoche Tsetan Dana Sawyer in Panel at Sofia U. Part 1 | Part 2 Dana Sawyer on Huston Smith Interview recorded 2/9/2014 YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Jeffrey J. Kripal and his work 00:03:14 - Background and Interest in Religious Belief and Behavior 00:06:17 - Jeffrey's Openness to Metaphysical Ideas in Academia 00:09:39 - Revisiting the Paranormal and Psychic Abilities 00:12:52 - The Dominance of Materialism in Western Science 00:16:23 - The Incompleteness of the Materialistic Worldview 00:19:32 - Psychic Experiences and Spiritual Practice 00:23:04 - The Noetic Potential and Deep Philosophical Implications of Psychic Functioning 00:26:04 - The Power of Fiction and Imagination in Paranormal Experiences 00:29:20 - Living in a Sliver of Reality 00:31:50 - Authorization as a Paranormal Ability 00:35:04 - The Importance of Personal Experience in Religious Understandings 00:37:39 - Coming to Terms with Religious Pluralism 00:40:46 - Mystics and cultural influence 00:44:31 - The Controversy of Near-Death Experiences 00:47:41 - The Unmappability of Our Gnostic Potential 00:51:06 - The Celebration of the Physical and Metaphysical 00:54:26 - Double Messages in Religious Symbolism 00:57:56 - The Power of the Imagination 01:01:16 - The Power of the Imagination 01:04:03 - The Power of Imagery and Archetypes 01:06:57 - Art as a Channel for Deeper Intelligence 01:09:52 - Whitley Strieber's Perspective on Abduction Events 01:13:13 - Science fiction as a machine version of spirituality 01:16:16 - Prophetic Synchronicities and Divine Play 01:19:15 - The Intelligence of Machines and Consciousness 01:21:51 - Heresy and Mysticism 01:24:33 - Finding Meaning in Our Work 01:27:31 - The Importance of Diverse Perspectives and Making Up Your Own Mind 01:30:42 - Envisioning the Future and Societal Phase Transitions 01:32:53 - Music