Sasha Sagan: Cosmic Rituals (#046)

Sasha Sagan’s stirring debut book, “For Small Creatures Such As We: Rituals for Finding Meaning in Our Unlikely World,” is the topic of this week’s episode of INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE. Sagan is the daughter of late astronomer/author Carl Sagan and writer/producer Ann Druyan.

Show notes and resources are available here: https://briankeating.com/blog.php

Highlights:

• 00:10:02 The power of secular rituals versus relying on habits and willpower.
• 00:23:48 Rituals span the distinction between belief through evidence, faith, and philosophy.
• 00:27:01 Poetry for Physicists: Brian Keating reads poems by Walt Whitman and Richard Feynman
• 00:34:42 Academic rituals and how to share wonder through education.
• 00:44:34 Generational learning and how we’re influenced by family.
• 00:56:45 Would Carl Sagan have given up the search for extraterrestrial life by now?
• 01:01:46 Questions INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE asks of all authors.

On this Mother’s Day episode, Sagan discusses her own upbringing and how becoming a mother inspired her to research rituals from around the world and throughout history. Her interview with Dr. Brian Keating also touches on her secular upbringing and the intersection of science and religion. Sasha Sagan studied literature at NYU and has worked as a producer, filmmaker, and editor. Her essays, many about the lessons she learned from her parents, have been published in literary magazines.

• Buy Sasha Sagan’s book here
• Read Sagan’s essays, including one that inspired her book here
• Listen to Sagan’s interview on The Powerful Ladies podcast here
• Learn more about Moxie the robot here

Find Sasha Sagan on the web: https://www.sashasagan.com and Twitter: https://twitter.com/SashaSagan

Please subscribe, rate, and review the INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast on iTunes for a chance to win a copy of Sagan’s book.

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