About this episode
Thomas Legrand is a wisdom’s seeker, a social scientist and sustainability practitioner. He is the author of the internationally acclaimed book “Politics of Being. Wisdom and Science for a New Development Paradigm” (2022), an invitation to radically rethink our model of development, which received the Grand Prize of the Nautilus Book Award in 2024. His spiritual journey began at the age of 23 with an encounter with native spirituality in Mexico, before embracing the wisdom of a wide range of traditions and practices, including meditation, energetic healing and Tai-chi-chuan. He lives with his wife and their two young daughters near Plum Village, the monastery of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in the South West of France, his country. He is currently the Lead Technical Advisor for the UNDP-convened Conscious Food Systems Alliance. Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group Summary and transcript of this interview. Interview recorded November 9, 2024 YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 Introduction to Thomas Legrand and His Work 00:03:27 Integrating Politics and Spirituality 00:07:32 Radical Restructuring for Humanity’s Survival 00:10:43 Prophecies of Transformation and Enlightenment 00:15:14 Exploring Spiritual Solutions for Society 00:19:22 The Necessity of Consciously Attending to Ethics in Spiritual Practice 00:23:51 Spirituality and Science Collaboration 00:27:12 The Influence of Sri Aurobindo’s Spiritual Work on Global Events 00:31:11 Spiritual Practices and Deep Forces 00:34:53 The Need for Spiritual Transformation 00:39:07 Theory X and Theory Y: Workplace Dynamics 00:43:34 Prisons as Factories of Stress and Recidivism 00:48:32 The Importance of Relationships in Happiness 00:52:40 The Impact of Collective Consciousness 00:56:18 Emerging Sciences for Happiness and Peace 01:00:30 Integrating Wisdom and Science for Unity 01:04:21 Healing Patterns on a Societal Level 01:09:00 Transformation Through Breakdown and Regrowth 01:12:06 Introducing the Concept of a Politics of Being 01:15:30 The Shift Back to Human Dimensions 01:20:37 Implementing Spiritual Solutions in Everyday Life 01:25:51 Economic Inequality as the Root of Social Issues 01:30:39 The Necessity of Change in Society 01:36:22 The Baha’i Vision and Progressive Revelation 01:39:03 Understanding the Soul of a Nation in a Globalized World 01:43:25 The Destiny of Unity and Diversity 01:48:08 Conversations on Conflict and Harmony in Israel 01:50:45 Healing Trauma as a Gateway 01:53:37 Presidential Apology and Indigenous Healing 01:56:00 Navigating Economic Growth and Conscious Transformation 02:00:23 Exploring Our Website Offerings