Original versus Cultivated Enlightenment in Mystical Traditions

This is an exploration between Shinzen Young and Bernardo Kastrup on mysticism, science, and liberation. Shinzen Young is a mindfulness teacher, the author of the Science of Enlightenment, and is the co-director of the SEMA lab at the University of Arizona. Bernardo Kastrup is an analytic philosopher, computer engineer, metaphysical idealist, and executive director of the Essentia Foundation.

Essentia Foundation: https://www.essentiafoundation.org/

Shinzen Young: https://www.shinzen.org/

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Video episode: https://youtu.be/syb-oSaDZZE?si=ShNPJXXmuEBHGVDC

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Timestamps: 

0:00 Intro
2:46 Can philosophy, science, and mysticism align? 
7:39 What does liberation consist of? 
11:38 Bernardo’s path to insight 
17:43 The paradox of cultivated improvement vs. nothing to improve 
31:16 Blocking ourselves from life’s teaching 
36:01 Did Spinoza have mystical experience? 
48:58 The truth is not vulnerable 
51:29 Training people in the spirit of science 
1:06:59 Reflecting on Bernardo’s insight