The Metagame

The tendency to hedge is a modern disease. This rich discussion re-inspired me to go all-in with my life.

Daniel Thorson is dedicated to monastic practices and lives at The Monastic Academy in Vermont — a wisdom institution that trains trustworthy people. At the start of the 2020 pandemic, he became an overnight focus of media attention after he emerged from a silent retreat and tweeted, “I’m back from 75 days in silence. Did I miss anything?” His unique experience was featured by The New York Times. He’s also the host of The Emerge Podcast.

This is a conversation about sacrifice, wisdom, dedication, and practice.

Topics include:

* Why the most important thing everyone can do right now is come to terms with death.

* What it takes to create a trustworthy person.

* The MAPLE practice model of Wisdom, Love and Power.

* Why pure mindfulness practice might lead to “equanimity induced apathy.”

* How to change your friendships for life in 30 seconds (a practical exercise).

* The critical need for a vibrant network of wisdom institutions.

* Why you should be getting emotionally triggered regularly (and what to when it happens).

* Where “masculinity” might fit in with wisdom institutions.

* The uncomfortable importance of Hierarchy.

* Why we need new archetypes to inspire transformation. Philosopher kings and warriors instead of quiet monks.

* The significance of going all-in. Stop hedging. Fuck optionality.

Resources:

* Daniel Thorson’s Twitter. Reach out to him if you’re interested in The Monastic Academy.

* The Monastic Academy (aka MAPLE) in Vermont.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

Layman Pascal used to be a meditation and yoga teacher — but he’s feeling better now.

He’s a post-metaphysical spiritual philosopher. That means he has the ability to re-enchant your experience of the world without triggering your inner skeptic. He also philosophizes about metamodernism, Integral Theory, nonduality, theology, shamanism, existential risk and politics.

Topics include:

* Layman’s extended peak experience that began at a bus stop

* How to train your will with dreams, art and synchronicities

* Shamanism and the harnessing of subconscious intelligence

* The 3 proto-skills needed for an effective life of practice

* How to generate a wisdom tradition (hint: you need art)

* Why “self-discipline” is a misleading idea and what to do instead

* How serving others is the best strategy for building self-esteem

* How Andrew Huberman is inadvertently promoting a wisdom tradition

* Adi Da’s “motivational hack”

* Why so many experienced meditators seem soulless, un-vital and passive

* Lucid dreaming

* Layman’s daily practices

* How to get started on this stuff even though it’s overwhelming

Resources:

* Layman Pascal’s Substack

* The Practice Problem

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

Alex Ebert is a Golden Globe-winning singer-songwriter and composer. He is best known for being the lead singer and songwriter for the bands Ima Robot and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. He is also a philosopher, exploring ideas around death, self-hood, creativity, media, status anxiety and coolness.

Topics include:

* Alex’s creative process (i.e. meeting the daemon)

* Why memes have made everyone into philosophers

* That time when Alex got too meta for Bono and Robert Redford

* The perils of success and how it tempts you to be formulaic

* Status anxiety and the philosophy of cool

* Why “selling out” stopped being a thing around the year 2000

* Death initiations and managing death anxiety

* Why you need a gang with a shared mission

* Why society is perfectly primed for virtue to become cool

* How wokeness acts as a shield for capitalism

* The benefits of having a stoic conversation partner

* Alex’s anxiety-inducing ritual before going on stage

Resources:

* The dancing man at Sasquatch Festival

* Alex Ebert’s Substack

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

Guy Sengstock is the founder and creator of the Circling™ Method. He has been facilitating transformation for individuals, groups and corporations internationally for more than 20 years. You can learn more about him at the Circling Institute and on his YouTube channel.

Topics include:

* What Circling is and how it came to be

* How psychedelics down-regulate culture

* How Circling engenders psychedelic states while sober

* What it means to be “seen”

* Why “intimacy is a function of your ability to tolerate anxiety”

* A mini Circling practice to try yourself

* Guy’s response to Curtis Yarvin spicy critique of circling

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

This conversation broke me open.

Andrew is a Practical Philosopher and Zen Buddhist who teaches people how to inquire into the things that matter most. This is a luminous, heartfelt journey about the deepest questions.

Topics include:

* why Andrew meditates for 6-10hrs a day

* the hard limits of philosophy

* what even is The Tao

* Andrew’s taxonomy for the different flavours of meditation

* misconceptions about the self and freewill

* why tantra isn’t about sexual gymnastics

* the fundamental reason why we all suffer (and what to do about it)

* why enlightened gurus still do bad things

* what it means to "open your heart"

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

John Vervaeke is an award-winning lecturer at the University of Toronto in Psychology, Cognitive Science and Buddhist Psychology. His academic interests include wisdom, mindfulness, the meaning crisis, relevance realization, general intelligence and rationality.

Topics include:

* why going meta can be bad for intimacy

* why Love is more important than Reason

* what even is Wisdom?

* the 4 types of knowing

* how to get Gen Zs less addicted to Instagram (and more interested in becoming wise)

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com

Bard is a philosopher-rockstar. Truly one of the most original thinkers I've ever met. He's also a musician, artist, songwriter, music producer, famous TV personality, religious and political activist, and one of the founders of the Syntheist religious movement.

Topics include:

* fuck you money

* the importance of pursuing 2 careers

* discovering your primary and secondary archetypes

* the similarities between porn and ISIS beheading videos

* how to become the new elite

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themetagame.substack.com