Richard Tarnas is a professor of psychology and cultural history at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, where he founded the graduate program in Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness. He teaches courses in the history of ideas, archetypal studies, depth psychology, and religious evolution. He frequently lectures on archetypal studies and depth psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara and was formerly the director of programs and education at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. He is the author of The Passion of the Western Mind, a history of the Western world view from the ancient Greek to the postmodern widely used in universities. His second book, Cosmos and Psyche: Intimations of a New World View, received the Book of the Year Prize from the Scientific and Medical Network and is the basis for the upcoming documentary series The Changing of the Gods. He is a past president of the International Transpersonal Association and served on the Board of Governors for the C. G. Jung Institute of San Francisco.

Website: cosmosandpsyche.com

Summary and transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded April 25, 2021.

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 - Introduction and Welcome to Buddha at the Gas Pump

00:03:51 - Distribution of Film and Book Corrections

00:07:28 - The Playful Dimension of Consciousness

00:11:25 - The Tension Between Creativity and Order

00:15:07 - Resistance to new ideas and materialism in science

00:19:26 - The Liberation of Humankind and the Disenchantment of the Cosmos

00:24:00 - The Transformation of the Renaissance

00:29:01 - The Power of Initiatory Rites and Transformation

00:33:10 - The Acceleration of History

00:37:40 - The Unfolding Process and the Initiation Ritual

00:41:48 - The Perinatal Dimension of Psychological Transformation

00:45:43 - Everything Breathes Together

00:50:09 - The symbolic meaning of the planets in astrology

00:54:13 - The Mysterious Unitive Connection between Humans and the Cosmos

00:58:52 - The Cosmic Intelligence of the Universe

01:03:09 - Kinship with All Beings

01:07:22 - Transformation through Meditation

01:10:40 - Connecting with the Whole

01:14:18 - Immersion in the World of Each Interviewee

01:17:35 - The Transformative Power of Immersion in Deep Ideas

01:21:01 - Cultivating Similar Capacities in Oneself

01:24:35 - Questions about Astrology from a Sceptic

01:28:16 - The Numinous Universe

01:32:57 - Astrology and the Intelligent Cosmos

01:37:11 - The Existence of Subtle Bodies and Intelligent Entities

01:40:57 - Astrology and Psychedelic Therapy

01:44:59 - Archetypal astrology and the human psyche

01:49:14 - Living on Different Planets

01:53:11 - Planetary Alignments and Evolutionary Pressures

01:58:01 - Cultivating Hope for the Future.

02:01:44 - Guest Announcement for Next Week