In this interview, I am once again joined by Professor Arthur Versluis, a professor and Department Chair of Religious Studies in the College of Arts & Letters at Michigan State University, author of over 25 books on subjects ranging from Western esotericism, magic, Christian Theosophy, ancient mystery schools, and more.

In this episode we discuss Arthur’s 2015 book, ‘American Gurus’ and trace the uniquely American cultural and philosophical factors that lead to the prevalence of independent spiritual teachers such as Adi Da, Andrew Cohen, and Ken Wilber.

Arthur argues that a philosophy he calls immediatism is the key cultural force and traces its origins from Plato to Emerson to the 60s counter-culture and beyond. Arthur recounts personal meetings with figures such as Stephen Gaskins, Bill Ayers, and Bernadette Roberts as well as reflecting on his own affiliation with Tibetan Buddhism as both a practitioner and teacher.

Arthur also shares his take on the psychedelic movement, the revolutionary politics of the counter-culture figures, and the essential ingredients of the modern American Guru.

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Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/ep113-arthur-versluis-phd-2-american-gurus/

Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.

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Topics include:

00:00 - Intro

01:12 - Current writing projects

02:42 - Immediatism and the transcendentalists

08:26 - American individualism and the emphasis n personal mystical experiences

12:14 - Meister Eckart to Bernadette Roberts

14:56 - Adi Da as the avatar of immediatism

19:24 - The psychedelic movement

21:57 - Stephen Gaskin and the counter-culture of the 60s

28:29 - Mysticism and revolutionary politics

40:02 - The confidence of the American gurus

46:53 - Social dynamics and the role of the devotee

58:54 - The charismatic powers of the guru

57:36 - Arthur as a Tibetan Buddhist practitioner and teacher

01:03:01 - American Gnosis and writing about heresy

01:04:54 - American influence on Zen and Tibetan Buddhism

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Previous episode with Dr Arthur Versluis:

- https://www.guruviking.com/ep106-arthur-versluis-phd-conversations-in-apocalyptic-times/

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To find out more about Dr Arthur Versluis, visit:

- https://arthurversluis.com/

For more interviews, videos, and more visit:

- www.guruviking.com

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Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James