In today's episode, I speak with Edwin Bernbaum about his book, Sacred Mountains of the World. As its name suggests, the book covers a large number of sacred mountains across the globe, organized into regional chapters. It examines the spiritual and cultural importance of these peaks, showing how they inspire awe and meaning in people’s lives while also addressing contemporary concerns like climate change and conservation.

Our conversation touches on topics like Ed’s early work in Asia preserving Tibetan manuscripts, how the idea of writing the book came to him, Mircea Eliade’s idea of Axis Mundi, climate change and tourism’s impact on mountains, the loss of connection to the sacred in modern culture, Ed’s conservation work, re-thinking our understanding of the “sacred” beyond religious contexts, how everyone can benefit by thinking about sacred mountains, and other topics.

Read the ⁠⁠show notes⁠⁠ for more information about this episode, or visit the ⁠⁠On Mountains⁠⁠ website for more material related to mountains.