Brother Roger of Taizé, born in Switzerland, founded the Taizé community in France during World War II. He established a haven for refugees and later created a monastic community focused on prayer, simplicity, and reconciliation. His vision of Christian unity drew thousands of young people to Taizé, fostering a global movement of spiritual renewal.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠⁠⁠⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

🎙️ Debate Topic: The Potential and Pitfalls of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)
🕊️ Moderator: Lydia Carmichael
🎭 Participants: Diogenes the Cynic, Aldous Huxley, Friedrich Nietzsche

Good evening, esteemed guests, thinkers, and truth-seekers. I am Lydia Carmichael, your moderator for tonight’s dialogue, where we examine one of the most pressing—and divisive—developments of our age: Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI. Unlike narrow AI, which performs specific tasks, AGI aspires to emulate or even surpass the full range of human cognitive abilities—learning, reasoning, perception, and even emotion.

The promise of AGI tantalizes: a future of boundless productivity, erasure of ignorance, and perhaps even the end of suffering. Yet the specter it casts is equally formidable: loss of human agency, ethical opacity, and the possibility of intelligence divorced from empathy or conscience. Will AGI awaken human potential, or render it obsolete? Can a machine be wise—or only efficient? And what, if anything, anchors our dignity in a post-human world?

To help us grapple with these questions, I welcome three radically divergent minds:

* Diogenes of Sinope: Cynic philosopher and destroyer of pretense, who lived in a barrel and sneered at convention.

* Aldous Huxley: Visionary author of “Brave New World”, prophet of mass sedation and spiritual sterility in technological societies.

* Friedrich Nietzsche: Iconoclastic German philosopher, herald of the Übermensch and unsparing critic of herd morality.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Soundscape by ⁠⁠⁠⁠FunWithSound on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound⁠⁠⁠

Applause 1 by ⁠⁠⁠⁠theplax on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound

⁠⁠⁠Applause 2 by ⁠⁠⁠⁠uair01 on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound⁠⁠⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Thomas Merton was a celebrated Trappist monk whose contemplative writings continue to inspire seekers of all faiths. Join us as we explore Merton's journey from worldly intellectual to spiritual guide, and discover how his teachings on solitude, compassion, and social justice remain powerfully relevant in our chaotic modern world.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Jack Kerouac was a pioneering American novelist and poet central to the Beat Generation. Known for his spontaneous prose style, Kerouac’s seminal work, On the Road captured the restless spirit of post-war America. His writing explored themes of travel, spirituality, and rebellion, influencing counterculture movements of the 1960s. A French-Canadian from Lowell, Massachusetts, Kerouac’s legacy endures as a symbol of artistic freedom and nonconformity. Join us as we delve into his life, work, and enduring impact on literature and culture.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Soundscape by ⁠⁠⁠⁠kerouacsamerica on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound⁠⁠⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Born in 1894, Aldous Huxley was a renowned English novelist and philosopher. Best known for his dystopian novel Brave New World, Huxley's works span satire, philosophy, and non-fiction. His life was marked by intellectual pursuits and a fascination with mysticism, leaving a lasting impact on 20th-century literature.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Sri Ramakrishna, born in 1836 in Bengal, was a revered Hindu mystic. He emphasized the unity of all religions and the divinity within every being. His teachings, marked by simplicity and spiritual depth, inspired countless followers, including Swami Vivekananda, and continue to influence spirituality globally.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Soundscapes by ⁠⁠⁠⁠George Thengummoottil and yalel on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Soundcloud

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Friedrich Nietzsche was renowned for his radical ideas on morality, religion, and individualism. He famously declared "God is dead," critiquing traditional values and advocating for the creation of personal meaning. His influential works include Thus Spoke Zarathustra and Beyond Good and Evil. Despite struggling with health issues, Nietzsche's thoughts on the "will to power" and the Übermensch continue to shape modern philosophy.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2024 Undead Sages Podcast

Lofty ideals… can fall into profound states of disrepair.

Especially when confronted with the dynamics of power, lofty ideals can begin to shift and shimmy until little of their original substance remains. Over its 2500 year history, Buddhism has not been immune to this phenomenon. While Buddhism strives to eradicate human suffering, at times it has contributed to the exact opposite. In this episode, we’ll take a look at the dynamics that contributed to Zen Buddhism’s support of Japanese aggression during World War 2.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Soundscape by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠rcrath⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast

Live Philosopher Friend Arne Willee again joins podcast host Merijn de Haen in an actual graveyard for a free-ranging discussion.

Revisiting the last philosophers to have graced our show with their presence, we focus on how their philosophy can be of use to sensitive people in our modern lives, but we also have a nice flow going and just see where the discussion takes us.

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2024 Undead Sages Podcast

We first encountered Siddhartha Gautama some six weeks ago, and we’ve been quizzing him about the development of his practical philosophy to end suffering. Today, we’ve finally arrived in the present day, and will discuss the reception of Buddhist ideas and practices in the West. Next week, we’ll have one final episode with the Buddha, where the emphasis will lie on several historical examples of Buddhism going horribly wrong in practice.

Interview facilitated by ChatGPT

Voicing constructed with ⁠Elevenlabs⁠

Soundscape by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠rcrath⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Freesound⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Concept, editing and production by Merijn de Haen

@ 2025 Undead Sages Podcast