Carter Phipps is the author of Evolutionaries and coauthor of the Wall Street Journal Bestseller Conscious Leadership with John Mackey and Steve McIntosh. He is co-founder of the Institute for Cultural Evolution, which addresses political polarization though focusing on the cultural roots of America’s challenges. He hosts the Thinking Ahead podcast and is a former award-winning journalist and executive editor of What Is Enlightenment? Magazine. His website is http://www.carterphipps.com.
Essay we discussed in the interview: Mysticism and Its Discontents: Does Spiritual Illumination Create its own Intrinsic Blindness?
Summary and Transcript and of this interview
Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group
Interview recorded July 29, 2023
Video and audio below. Audio also available as a Podcast.
YouTube Video Chapters:
- 00:00:00 – Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump
- 00:03:50 – The Paradox of Spiritual Teachers’ Behavior
- 00:07:52 – The Subtleties of Enlightenment and the Dangers of Blind Spots
- 00:11:24 – The Complications of Spiritual Awakening
- 00:14:40 – Defining Enlightenment
- 00:18:42 – Strengths and Weaknesses in Areas of Genius
- 00:22:31 – The Transformative Power of Mystical Awakening
- 00:26:15 – The Tradeoffs of Enlightenment
- 00:29:31 – Levels of Reality and Integration
- 00:35:06 – The Goal of Our Own Practice
- 00:37:33 – Delusion in Deep Mystical Experience
- 00:41:43 – The Path of Renunciation and Self-Brainwashing
- 00:45:46 – The Complex Psychology of Seeking Enlightenment
- 00:50:24 – The Evolution of Culture and Consciousness
- 00:55:17 – The Dangers of Unhealthy Self-Doubt and Lack of Self-Criticism
- 00:59:32 – The Delusion of Pure Motive
- 01:03:22 – The Dangers of Spiritual Confidence
- 01:08:15 – Blurring the Line between the Spiritual and Manifest World
- 01:14:10 – The Interface between Science and Spirituality
- 01:17:50 – The Tradition of Debate and Mythical Stories
- 01:21:35 – The Power and Deception of Inner Intuition
- 01:25:41 – The Relationship Between Enlightenment and Psychological Instability
- 01:28:35 – Psychological Traces and Vulnerability to Mystical Experiences
- 01:31:49 – Spiritual Breakthroughs and Psychological Breakdowns
- 01:35:11 – The Role of Responsible Psychedelic Therapists
- 01:39:44 – The Importance of Understanding Cultural Evolution and the Adjacent Possible
- 01:45:18 – The Myth of the Perfect Enlightened Figure
- 01:50:09 – The Importance of Understanding the Self-Structure
- 01:55:00 – The Importance of Questioning Spiritual Myths and Beliefs
- 01:59:38 – Being Discerning and Questioning
- 02:07:06 – Future Teaching and Updates from Carter Phipps
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