In today's wide-ranging conversation, Dr. Danielle Alexander and I circle around the question, "Do you need God to have a spiritual life?" We also discuss atheism's aim, its various facets, and its role in modern life. 

To learn more about Dr. Danielle Alexander, visit https://www.drdaniellealexander.com/

For more from Rick Alexander, visit www.rickalexander.com

Today's intro and outro music can be found here: https://youtu.be/lk7M4ialPUg

In the quest for spiritual growth, the quest for truth does not seek conclusions but rather opens the path to deeper questions. In today’s episode, I explore the vertical imagination of the French philosopher Henry Corbin. Using his book The Man of Light in Iranian Sufism, I explore his understanding of what it means to be human and to walk the spiritual path.  

For more information on Rick Alexander, check out wwww.rickalexander.com

You can find today's intro and outro music here: https://open.spotify.com/track/1b5jf2kJ73trBAbME4eSSq?si=b6283c50a12f47a7

In today’s episode, I am joined by Tom Cheetham, an author, teacher, biologist, and poet whose work delves into the role of creative imagination in human life and culture. During our conversation, we explore Henry Corbin’s concept of the Imaginal realm, discussing its profound implications for how we perceive and engage with reality. We also examine the necessity of moving beyond consensus reality in spiritual life, as well as the limitations of both religious and scientific fundamentalism.

The best way to stay in touch with Tom's work is by subscribing to his Substack @ https://www.tomcheetham.com/blog, or you can check out his books by clicking here

To engage with Rick Alexander's work, check out www.rickalexander.com

The intro and outro music for today's show is the song Divide by Odesza featuring Kelsey Bulkin

Today's episode is a talk given by Rick Alexander for the Myth Salon on September 30th 2023.

See the full description here:

In 1932, C.G. Jung first put analytical psychology in dialogue with Tantra through his lectures on Kundalini Yoga. Tantra and the Path of Individuation is an attempt to dream that conversation forward, asking essential questions about how the Tantric worldview might inform our models of psychic development and the unfolding of our personal myth. In this lecture, we will look at and contemplate the psychological and spiritual path in light of these two philosophies. As Tantra and Jungian Psychology come together, the seeker is given new images to see by and imagine their individuation. This new way of seeing includes a reorientation of one’s relationship to the body, to one’s own desire—which can be seen here as the fuel for individuation—as well as a reorientation of the ego’s relationship to the Soul. 

Use this link to watch the original video version: https://youtu.be/Uth-_u4PTjo?si=Ti6t7Pxjlj6FRS8Q

Intro and Outro music is Royals by The Vitamin String Quartet

In this episode, I have the pleasure of speaking with Simon Yugler, author of "Psychedelics and the Soul." As a seasoned psychedelic facilitator and therapist, Simon brings a wealth of expertise to the discussion. Together, we delve into the transformative potential of psychedelics, examining their capacity to facilitate encounters with mythic realms. We also explore how an understanding of mythology can provide valuable frameworks for navigating these experiences and fostering meaningful integration. Join us for an enlightening conversation that bridges the realms of psychedelics and myth.

For more from Simon Yugler, visit www.simonyugler.com

To work with or explore the work of Rick Alexander, check out www.rickalexander.com

In today's episode, I use the spiritual teachings of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite to make a case for the fact that you, everyone you've ever met, and everything you've ever known, is in fact, an outpouring of God's Erotic Ecstasy. As Paul D’Arcy asserts, “God comes to you disguised as your life." Today's show, which falls somewhere between an academic lecture and a sermon, attempts to explain how this might be possible. 

Sources:

For more information on Rick Alexander's work, check out Rickalexander.com

Today's show draws heavily from Pseudo-Dionysius: The Complete Works, which can be found anywhere books are sold.

The outro music is a song called Higher than the Mountains by Sam Garrett

In today's episode, I talk with Rachael Spyker about psychedelic psychotherapy. Toward the end of the show we specifically focus on cannabis and MDMA. We also explore religious trauma and the search to find an authentic sense of self.

Rachael is a therapist in British Columbia, Canada. Learn more about her client work at Alchemy Psychotherapy by visiting alchemycounselling.ca. She is also the host of the Deconstruction Podcast where she explores the intersection of psychology, spirituality, and society. 

For more information about my work, check out rickalexander.com.

Today's intro and outro music is a song called Falling by ZenAware.

In today's episode, I speak with Danielle Alexander about the stories we live and the stories that unconsciously live through us. 

To learn more about Danielle's upcoming Wild Retreat, click here

In today's episode, I am releasing a recording of my talk at the 2024 South by Southwest Conference and Festival called Psychedelics and the Soul. Drawing on Jungian psychology I explore the need for a psychology that accounts for the soul as a reality when working with the psychedelic experience. 

Click here for information on my upcoming workshop Jungian Psychology and the Psychedelic Experience

In today's episode, Rick shares a paper he wrote called The Soul in Conflict, which uses archetypal psychology to look at the pagan / Christian divide that tends to unconsciously exist in the Western psyche.

For more from Rick Alexander, visit www.rickalexander.com

To register for the upcoming psychology of Cannabis workshop, click here

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Intro Music: Royals, by Vitamin String Quartet

Outro Music: I am, by Satsang

Sources used in today's show:

Eknath, Easwaran. The Bhagavad Gita. Nilgiri Press, 2019.

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, and Stanley Appelbaum. Self-Reliance, and Other Essays. DoverPublications, 2016. 

Frantz, Alison. From Paganism to Christianity in the Temples of Athens. 

Hillman, James. Re-Visioning Psychology. HarperCollins, 1975. 

Hillman, James. Mythic Figures. Spring Publications, 2021. 

History Today. “The Dream of Constantine.” History Today, Volume 69 Issue 3 March 2019

www.historytoday.com/archive/foundations/dream-constantine.  

López-Pedraza, Rafael. Cultural Anxiety. Daimon Verlag, 1994. 

Paris, Ginette, and Gwendolyn Moore. Pagan Meditations: The Worlds of Aphrodite, Artemis, and Hestia. Spring Publications, 1991.