Episodes
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Fortean Archetypes And The Battle Of Memetic Viruses With Anthony Tyler
Anthony Tyler, author of Dive Manual and the recently released Hunt Manual, which I had the pleasure of editing, joins me on a special episode to discuss Fortean archetypes, the importance of myth in our daily lives, tulpamancy, chaos magic, true crime and morality, shadow work and alchemy as…
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To Know The Mind Is Empty Is To See The Buddha
"The wild geese do not intend to cast their reflection. The water has no mind to retain their image." -Zen poem Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show, consider joining our Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/thealchemicalmind If you haven't subscribed yet, be sure to do so: Apple...
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Thomas Aquinas And The Argument From Possibility and Necessity
In part three of our six part series on Thomas Aquinas' proofs for the existence of God, I'll take a look at the third way and discuss what a contingent being is, and how the leap in logic from the first two ways leads us to ask one of the most important questions we have ever asked - why is…
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Thomas Aquinas And The Argument For Efficient Causes
In part two of this six part discussion on Thomas Aquinas' five proofs for the existence of God, I dive into the argument for efficient causes, and how it relates to creation, philosophy, belief, free will, and the study of knowledge. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show,...
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Thomas Aquinas And The Argument From Motion
Let's begin our deep dive into Christian mysticism with a multi-part series on Thomas Aquinas' proofs for the existence of God. For this part in the series, I'll look at the argument from motion, and why it's important in our understanding of logical thought, and using some sort of scientific...
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Belief Is Wish Fulfillment, Gnosis Is Unprovable
Before I start my deep dive into Thomas Aquinas' five proofs for the existence of god, I wanted to take a few minutes to react to a recent blog post by Mike from the Mind Escape podcast with regards to understanding belief and gnosis. You can read his blog post here. I found the idea…
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If you meet God in the woods...
As I gear up to dive deep into Christian theology, let's talk about the nature of God, asking the right question, spirituality through the scientific method, and why the only thing holding you back from finding what you seek is you. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show…
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Dissolving Awareness
On this episode, I discuss how my own spiritual practices have evolved and changed and why I no longer schedule time for meditation, but rather dissolve myself into awareness every moment, of every day. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show, consider joining our Patreon -...
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Free Will Isn't Free, Nor Is It Willing
Let's talk about free will and determinism, and why both ideas are simply illusions...manifestations of the interactions of perspective. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show, consider joining our Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/thealchemicalmind If you haven't subscribed yet,...
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100 Days Of Silence
After 104 days of silence, I'm back with a discussion of silence, regaining meaning, and separating concepts and reality. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show, consider joining our Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/thealchemicalmind If you haven't subscribed yet, be sure to do...
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Beyond The World And Man: Discussing Evolutionary Potential Through A Mystical Lens
For this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I look at the evolutionary potential of humanity through a mystical lens in response to some questions posed by a listener through a recent e-mail discussion. Bailey asked: 1. What are your thoughts on humanity being a stepping stone for the evolution of...
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To Hell And Back
2021 has already been an interesting year for me, and on this episode, I discuss my month long hiatus, what lead to me taking time off, and how I learned to surrender and reconnect with the divine. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to support the show, consider joining our Patreon -...
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The Rise Of Messianic Ideology In Modern Culture With John Brooks
For our first episode of 2021, I bring you a discussion with John Brooks, religion educator and host of Hard To Believe, to discuss the history of messianic cults in Western society, and particularly its resurgence in the 21st century. We discuss the societal shifts that lead to such ideology…
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The Secret To Keeping Your New Year Resolutions
As 2020 draws to a close, I felt like it was apropos to discuss the secret to keeping your new year resolutions. We often get bogged down by setting goals for ourselves, following some plan or program, and forget the answer to accomplishing our goals is simple - close your eyes, and listen. On…
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The Nature Of Good And Evil With Anthony Tyler
For this episode, I am joined by returning guest, Anthony Tyler, author of Dive Manual: Empirical Investigations of Mysticism, to discuss the nature of good and evil, particularly as to how we view these concepts in a Western context. Stemming from this discussion, we dive into archetypes,...
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The Life And Purpose Of The Shaman (Commentary On Terence McKenna And Alan Watts)
Today, we are diving deep into the life and purpose of the shaman and how it relates to modern culture and how the path of the shaman can lead to finding awakening and true gnosis through direct personal experience. To do this, I'll be doing some commentary on two lectures, one from from Terence...
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The Not Quite Pagan Origins Of Christmas
At this time of year, there is always a lot of discussion about the origins of Christmas and how the early church co-opted many pagan traditions to create what we now consider Christmas, but is this actually true? While there are certainly many cultures and traditions that inspired Christmas, you...
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Psychedelics And Shamanic Traditions With The Natural Born Alchemist
Alex from The Natural Born Alchemist joins me for an episode a long time in the making as we discuss the role of psychedelics in shamanic traditions, the impact of the commercialization of ayahuasca ceremonies on indigenous cultures, the trickster archetype, acquiring wisdom from an amalgamation…
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Terence McKenna On Shamanism And Boundary Dissolution
It feels like the deeper I dive into philosophy and spirituality and the more I learn about various traditions through time and space, the more I want to simplify my own practice. On today's episode, I bring you a lecture from Terence McKenna on the core of shamanism and what makes it different...
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Symbology 101: The Sky Deer And The Path To Enlightenment
As we continue to explore the origins of myth and culture, let's take a look at the symbolism behind the deer and the stag. Sometimes referred to as the Sky Deer or Sun Deer, this animal is an integral part of shamanic traditions all across the world with close ties to both sun and moon worship,...
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Gratitude And Mindfulness (Guided Meditation)
There's a lot of focus on various different kinds of meditation practices, but have you ever considered one of the simplest and often most rewarding for your every day happiness? On this episode, I bring you a guided gratitude meditation which I just made available on the Patreon exclusive…
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Symbology 101: The Sacred Cow As The Mother Of Mythology
Welcome to the first installment of Symbology 101, a series into which I dive deep into the symbols that create cultures and expand ideas. For this first installment, I dive deep into the sacred cow (and bull) and its importance within Indo-European civilization and how it has shaped our…
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Terence McKenna On Surrendering And Finding Your Path
For this episode, I bring you a short speech from Terence McKenna on the importance of surrendering and finding your own path, as an addendum to the discussion from the previous two episodes on learning to be honest with yourself and others. Stick around to the end of the speech for some…
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The Shadow Outside Your Window And How To Be Honest With Others
As a follow up to the previous episode, I discuss how to use the techniques of shadow work to learn to be honest with others in order to achieve wholeness and further your own personal development. If you really want to learn that you are it, your really need to expand your own practice beyond…
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How To Drop Your Opinions And Learn To Be Honest With Yourself
In this episode, I discuss how to discover gnosis by dropping your opinions and learning to be honest with yourself. As part of this episode, I'll be guiding you through a quick exercise that better details the "neti neti" method and what it truly entails. Be sure to subscribe. If you'd like to...
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Understanding Belief, Faith, and Gnosis
For the first episode back from my short break, I want to discuss the difference between belief, faith, and gnosis and find a way to understand how these ideas interact with how we choose to interact with personal philosophical and spiritual work. The website is now live -...
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In Silence, You'll Hear
Let's talk about silence. Real silence.
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Understanding The Absoluteness Of Love
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, we dive into understanding why you do not understanding true love, and how to break out of that. The website is now live - https://thealchemicalmind.com. There you can also find links to our Discord channel as well as the Patreon. If you'd like to check in...
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Fear Is The Mind Killer
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, we dive into the non-dual nature of fear. The website is now live - https://thealchemicalmind.com. There you can also find links to our Discord channel as well as the Patreon. If you'd like to check in touch, follow the podcast on Twitter, @MindAlchemical…
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Cult Psychology And The Trap Of Self-Dissolution
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I dive into an introduction of cult psychology and why self-dissolution can become a trap when you forget how to dance and start taking your survival instincts too seriously. This will lead us into next episode as we go in-depth into fear. The website is…
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Carl Jung's The Seven Sermons To The Dead
For this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I will be diving into Carl Jung's Seven Sermons To The Dead and discuss how this deeply Gnostic modern work helped lead Jung to his important revelations on the theory of mind and how psychology has been deeply influenced by the ideas of archetypes…
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Eastern Influence On The Christian Mystical Tradition And Knowing Through Unknowing
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I take a look at the Eastern influence on early Christian thought, and the similarities between mystical experience and the recognition of the divine and the self. We will take a look at the Kena Upanishad along with some of the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius...
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Reality Isn't A Mystery
For this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I depart a bit from our recent discussion of Gnostic Christianity to dive into one of my favorite quotes, and one I use all the time, from Sufi mystic Ibn Ata Allah al-Iskandari - "the real is not veiled from you, rather it is you who are veiled from…
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Gnostic Epistemology In The Book Of Thomas The Contender
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I dive back into Gnostic literature to discuss The Book Of Thomas The Contender To The Perfect and the Gnostic idea of epistemology at least among the Thomasine tradition. We're going to continue going deeper and deeper into epistemology, so if you'd like…
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Tat Tvam Asi: Listener Stories
This episode was originally supposed to be the first in the Symbology 101 series, but after a recent discussion, I decided to push it back until next week. Why that is, you'll just have to listen to the episode, but it does lead nicely into what we are discussing and that is listener stories! On...
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The Gospel Of Mary And The Union Of The Left And Right Hand Paths
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, we return to our deep dive of Gnosticism with a look at The Gospel of Mary, a beautiful and deeply esoteric text which dives into the Platonic influence on the early Christians, how the soul can return to the Pleroma by overcoming the Archons, and most...
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Tribalism And Critical Thinking
On today's episode of The Alchemical Mind, I take a look at tribalism. Why do we create tribes, what are their purpose, and how can we be members of a tribe while maintaining critical thinking skills and not relegating our authority to them. While not necessary, it may be worthwhile listening to...
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Understanding Open-Mindedness And The Quest For Truth
For this episode of The Alchemical mind, we dive into some practical theory with a look at open-mindedness. What is open-mindedness and why is it a prerequisite in order to properly analyze evidence and understand truth? This is a key episode in our understanding of some upcoming topics including...
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The Divine Feminine, Mystery Traditions, And The Exegesis Of The Soul
It's time to go deep down the rabbit hole on this episode of The Alchemical Mind as we look at the importance of the divine feminine within mystery traditions as we continue our exploration of Gnosticism with a look at The Exegesis Of The Soul. Through this text, and accompanying readings from...
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The Valentinians And The Gospel Of Philip
For this episode of The Alchemical Mind, we switch gears from the dark cosmology of the Sethians to the Gospel of Phillip and the Valentinians. Valentinus was educated in Alexandria and set up his school in Rome and was largely influential in early Christianity by introducing the original concept...
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The Secret Book Of John, Part 2
As we continue our deep dive into Gnosticism, I take a look at The Secret Book Of John. This is part two of a multipart series on this important Sethian text, as we look at the intricate Gnostic cosmology. On this episode, we'll go into how the universe was created according to the Sethians, what...
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Terrence McKenna On The Gnostics and Early Christianity
Before we dive into part 2 of The Secret Book of John and dive deep into Gnostic cosmology, I wanted to bring you a bit of commentary on Gnosticism and the early Christians from none other than audience favorite, Terrence McKenna. In the first part of this episode, McKenna talks about the…
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How To Find Out What Is True, Part 2
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, it's time to look at some of the practical applications of finding gnosis as I take a look at how we can determine what is and isn't true. This is not some esoteric view of finding some sort of "ultimate Truth," but rather some simple things we can do to...
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Life On Venus? Some Thoughts...
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I go a bit off-topic to talk about the news today that life may have been discovered on Venus. What does this mean in relation to topics I usually discuss on the podcast? Is this huge news or a sign of things to come? As always, do your own research on the...
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The Secret Book Of John, Part 1
As we continue our deep dive into Gnosticism, I take a look at The Secret Book Of John. This is part one of a multipart series on this important Sethian text, as we look at the intricate Gnostic cosmology. The Secret Book Of John is key to understanding how the Gnostics view the idea of god…
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Alan Watts On Gnosis And Dogma
I took the day off from recording, but that doesn't mean you won't be getting a new episode of The Alchemical Mind! For this special episode, I bring you a great speech by Alan Watts on the early Christian thought, the importance of gnosis in the early church, and its similarities to similar…
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How To Find Out What Is True, Part 1
On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, it's time to look at some of the practical applications of finding gnosis as I take a look at how we can determine what is and isn't true. This is not some esoteric view of finding some sort of "ultimate Truth," but rather some simple things we can do to...
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The Gospel Of Thomas
The Gospel of Thomas is a fascinating text from early in Christian history and one of the most accessible texts from the group that is generally dubbed as the Gnostics. On this episode of The Alchemical Mind, I begin an exploration of Christian Gnostic thought with a book that has fascinated me…
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The Hermetica and Mystery Traditions
Welcome back to another episode of The Alchemical Mind. This episode is part four of my deep dive into The Hermetica and since this text has inspired so much of Western esoteric thought, what better way to wrap this discussion up than by talking about mystery schools. What are mystery schools?…
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Terrence McKenna On Magic and The Hermetic Tradition
This episode of The Alchemical Mind serves partially as a departure from our discussion on The Hermetica, but also as an added bonus with additional information on the influence of this work and the traditions it is based on on Western theology and philosophy. I'm sure many of you know Terrence...
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Connecting philosophy and spirituality with the modern human experience. You are it.
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