Thom Krystofiak holds a B.A. from Harvard (magna cum laude) and an M.A. from Cambridge University, where he was a Knox Fellow. A trained teacher of Transcendental Meditation, he joined an intentional community in Fairfield, Iowa in 1983, where he and his wife continue to live. There he encountered a cornucopia of spiritual seekers. A rigorous and thoroughgoing skeptic surrounded by ready believers, he has developed unique perspectives on the eternal yet ever-new contest of doubt versus belief.

Website: krystofiak.com

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.

Summary and Transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded October 2, 2021.

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 - Introducing Buddha at the Gas Pump

00:04:49 - Extraordinary Beliefs and Skepticism

00:09:04 - Nurturing Skepticism and Exploring Extraordinary Beliefs

00:13:31 - Dangerous Beliefs and their Implications

00:17:42 - Strange Beliefs and the Link to Spirituality

00:21:57 - The Spectrum of Belief

00:26:25 - Perceiving the Unseen

00:30:36 - The Complementarity of Science and Spirituality

00:35:00 - Spiritual Experiences and Remarkable Coincidences

00:38:57 - Exploring Extraordinary Beliefs

00:43:39 - Encouragement of the Irrational

00:47:56 - The Allure of Hidden Knowledge

00:51:58 - The Manipulation of Beliefs by Powerful Industries

00:56:20 - Bucking science and climate denial

01:00:02 - Einstein's View on God

01:03:53 - The Nature of Consciousness and Embodied State

01:08:30 - Recognizing the Essential Nature

01:13:13 - The Profoundness of Self-Realization

01:17:14 - The Nature of Consciousness

01:21:16 - The Value of Skepticism and Certainty

01:25:32 - Anecdotes of Out-of-Body Experiences during Surgery

01:29:26 - Unexplained Phenomena at Dinner

01:33:12 - The Connection between Fascination with the Paranormal and Social Issues

01:37:26 - The Seductive Power of Claims About Truth

01:41:22 - Peer-Reviewed Science vs. Scientist Claims

01:45:16 - The Importance of Scientific Consensus

01:49:42 - The Consensus of Spiritual Experiences

01:54:04 - The Motivation and Benefits of Spiritual Practices

01:58:03 - The Cognition of Deeper Mechanics of Nature

02:01:48 - Yogic Flying and Levitation

02:05:53 - The Positive Reception of the Book