Can you live as a brain in a jar?
Doug Wilson, author of “Kundalini Running“, joins me on the podcast to celebrate the final upload of his audiobook and to talk about the physical mechanisms of consciousness and whether or not one can exist without the other.
Like all my conversations with Doug, it’s a bit of a mind-bending discussion where no idea is off the table.
Enjoy!
Episode Links:
Making Sense #168 “Mind Space and Motion”:
https://samharris.org/podcasts/168-mind-space-motion/
What hallucination reveals about our minds | Oliver Sacks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgOTaXhbqPQ
Elon Musk’s Neralink Presentation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lA77zsJ31nA
“The Man With Two Brains” Clip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT0CScFzp1o
Get Doug’s awesome book Kundalini Running:
https://kundalinirunning.com/
On previous episodes we’ve talked about narrative therapy and telling stories through character.
This episode we investigate the intersection of these two ideas. Can identifying personas as characters improve mental health? Rod Evans, turntablist, music producer and the other half of Angus McAlpine’s rap duo “Broken Aesthetiks”, joins us to share his story.
Because, apparently character-based therapy is already a thing!
We’ve all heard of the New Age religion. But what does it mean and what, exactly are we signing up for when we throw our hat in that ring?
The answers might surprise you.
Episode Links
What is the New Age movement?
https://www.gotquestions.org/new-age-movement.html
Theosophy:
https://youtu.be/zlqH_VVsWqs
Perennial philosophy:
https://youtu.be/P_CNg4dpU54
Helena Blavatski’s Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helena_Blavatsky
New Age Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Age
How Deceived I Was In New Age Beliefs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5oYgok_p7g
Yoga is (probably) not Satanic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDY53a0Hhak
“Proof” The New Age Movement Is Satanic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtkGgtExLcY
Facebook group member Anja Bache-Wiig Solberg asks: What about “fairness”? It’s a great question, and one Harv addresses with keen interest in this week’s episode.
Indeed, with the Jeffrey Epstein suicide (or was he #suicided), the question of “fairness” and “justice” have been on everybody’s mind.
Will this turn of events silence the alternative media, or unite their voices in revolution? It appears to be a dangerous gamble for the powerful.
Let’s discuss…
Episode Links
It’s Cooperation, Stupid: https://www.ippr.org/files/images/media/files/publication/2012/03/cooperation_leadbeater_Mar2012_8769.pdf
The Ultimatum Game Explained:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTg9qyMTIUQ
Monkey Inequality:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meiU6TxysCg
Richard Dawkins explains The Selfish Gene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9p2F2oa0_k
How can there be meaning in life if there’s no free will?
In this 30th episode of Narratively Speaking, we travel from the cramped interior of an office elevator to the infinite expanse of the entire universe as we revise some of the through-lines we’ve followed since the podcast began. We cover free will & determinism, the scale of human perspective, and discuss the possibility that our consciousness is a filter for the stuff of the universe.
Big ideas only in this episode! Will you join?
Episode Links
Intro clip (Lucy):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nELxnSK1SHk
Sam Harris – Taking the Redpill on Free Will:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFazP2nBIqQ
Sam Harris on the Illusion of Free Will:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t_Uyi9bNS4
Arthur C. Clarke (quote):
https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/arthur_c_clarke_101182
NSP collaborators
Adem Koci: @podcastanon
Doug Wilson: @kundalinirunning
Angus Younga: @angusyoungaofficial
Joel Pearse: @campfirebreath
Rod Evans: @djelevate
Jessica: @jezebelisgone
Starting out as a stand-up comedian and Hollywood actor, Russel Brand has become a divisive public figure for the past 15 years.
Not particularly notable as a Hollywood superstar, Brand burst into the mainstream media pushing political a message of revolution and political non-compliance. The establishment weren’t quite sure what to make of him.
Whether you’re a fan or hater, the one thing Russel Brand is not is boring. Let’s have a look at his career and the story he tells.
Episode Links
Intro Clip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD-DYjqW7HQ
Russel Brand:
https://www.russellbrand.com/podcasts/
Where Did Russell Brand Go?
https://www.kqed.org/pop/64857/where-did-russell-brand-go-the-answer-is-more-interesting-and-complex-than-youd-think
Russel Brand on Paxman:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YR4CseY9pk
23 minutes with Russel Brand:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Hz8DJWFEA
Russel Brand’s political revolution:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WATd8hqnjZE
Russel Brand on Fame:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jg4NQRn7Xos
Russell Brand interview with Mehdi Hasan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBaVG_Oiwtw
The Trews – Emergency: VOTE to Start Revolution:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwGBTcIHN0U
The Trews – Why I Backed Labour:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdQVDpqBgiE
The Trews – Final Episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvoqQT41wos
We never truly know how much the stories we tell influence those around us.
Today we talk to Joel Pearse; mental health support provider, rapper and aspiring comedian, who, unbeknownst to him, was actually a major catalyst for the creation of this podcast.
We discuss, among other things, his experiences working as a mental health support provider at a youth center, and how he applied the practice of Narrative Therapy to help troubled kids re-write the stories they told about themselves.
And you’ll never guess one of the influences that convinced him to explore this line of treatment…
Find JP’s work on the web:
Bandcamp:
https://campfirebreath.bandcamp.com/
Facebook:
facebook.com/campfirebreath
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/campfirebreath/
https://www.instagram.com/joel.pearse.comedy/
https://www.instagram.com/howsgetfuckedsound/
Intro Clip:
The Pursuit of Happyness: Basketball and Dreams:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZb2NOHPA2A
Do you believe in synchronicity?
Today I have a discussion with Alex Snarski, an old friend whom I hadn’t seen for 13 years but happened to bump into while shopping for audio cables at the HiFi store where he works.
We started talking and found we had both developed interests in consciousness, meditation and Ayahuasca over the 13 years we had been apart.
The rub? It was Alex’s last day at the store. If I had gone a day later, we would never have crossed paths.
Here’s Alex’s story of heartbreak, awakening and synchronicity.
Intro Clip:
Repo Man – Flying Saucers & Time Machines: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRJ5cCP0ZPE
Show notes and links:
Seven Types of Synchronicities: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-FhR7cGgYo
Joe Rogan talks Ayahuasca and DMT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_fuE9La6Xg
The real reason why DMT is banned – Graham Hancock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47ElVv3RG2M
Graham Hancock’s banned TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_hShqKn5cg
Rupert Sheldrake talks Morphic Resonance on Under The Skin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAS-QzWvj8g
It seems everyone I respect and listen to meditates. They say, Harvey, have you tried mindfulness and meditation? It changed my life, it’ll change yours too, just give it a try…
ALRIGHT! I feel like I’ve been just fine without it, but here’s your meditation episode you heathens!
Let see if there’s anything to this ancient practice…
Very calm, serene links:
Catharsis Myth, Metaphor or Reality: https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/evil-deeds/200909/anger-and-catharsis-myth-metaphor-or-reality
Catharsis Theory and Media Effects: https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/catharsis-theory-and-media-effects
Aggression & Catharsis Dr Brad Bushman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASKXG4kf4n4
What I’ve Learned – Change your Brain’s Default Mode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAVPDYhW_nw
Sam Harris – Mindfulness is Powerful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwac6Uk-zyk
Joe Rogan Experience – Dan Harris on Mediation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB3RGu8Go2s
This is your Brain on Meditation: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/use-your-mind-change-your-brain/201305/is-your-brain-meditation
The Neuroscience of Why Meditation Works: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-meditation-works_n_4702629
It’s often tempting to assume that the worst part of trauma is the tangible, physical experience.
But the core element of any trauma that stays with the victim throughout his or her lifetime is the memory of the event, more than the physical scars inflicted.
It’s the story of the trauma that continues to affect human consciousness, long after the physical wounds have healed. So, is it really fair to diminish the effects of purely emotional trauma, or are these the issues that we need the most help with?
Let’s discuss…
Episode Links:
Intro Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQVJBu3NEi0
Episode Links:
Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/
Traumatic stress: effects on the brain: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181836/
Psychology Today – How to Heal the Traumatized Brain: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/workings-well-being/201703/how-heal-the-traumatized-brain
Learning Brain vs Survival Brain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoqaUANGvpA
Dr. Vincent Felitti – How Childhood Trauma Can Make You A Sick Adult: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3cCAcGeG8E
Nadine Burke Harris – How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95ovIJ3dsNk
