Episode 300 - The Concept of Heaven in Human Consciousness and History w/ Tobias Churton

In this episode, I welcome back prolific author, scholar, and returning guest Tobias Churton to discuss his latest book, Celestial Realms: A History of Heaven since before the Dawn of Time. Together, we explore one of the oldest and most universal questions humanity has ever asked: what is Heaven? Is it a place we go after death, a reward for spiritual virtue, the realm of the gods, a dimension of consciousness, or something already present within us? Drawing from Tobias’s vast historical and esoteric research, we travel through the heavenly visions of ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, the Abrahamic traditions, Eastern mysticism, Indigenous cultures, Polynesian and Aboriginal cosmologies, Renaissance alchemy, spiritualism, psychedelics, art, music, and modern philosophy.This conversation moves far beyond the simple idea of Heaven as a distant paradise. We look at Heaven as a living symbol, a spiritual need, a map of the soul, and perhaps even a state of being that humanity has been trying to remember since the beginning of time. Tobias brings his signature depth, humor, and poetic scholarship to a subject that touches every culture, every religion, and every person who has ever wondered what lies beyond this life; or what might be waiting within it. Drop in!www.tobiaschurton.comTobias Churton Bio:Tobias Churton is Britain’s leading scholar of Western Esotericism and a world authority on Gnosticism, Hermeticism, and Rosicrucianism. Holding a master’s degree in theology from Brasenose College, Oxford, he was appointed honorary fellow of Exeter University in 2005. Author of many books, including Gnostic Philosophy, TheInvisible History of the Rosicrucians, The Books of Enoch Revealed, and Aleister Crowley in America, he lives in England.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.