The Integral Stage

Rufus Pollock, founder of Open Knowledge, and Sylvie Barbier, a French-Taiwanese performance artist, dive into the concept of a 'Second Renaissance.' They discuss how art can transform communities and the necessity of cultural activism during a meta-crisis. The duo envisions a new artistic manifesto that intertwines art with spirituality for emotional and societal healing. They also explore the evolution of storytelling, emphasizing modern narratives' relevance to contemporary issues like care and environmental consciousness, advocating for collective action and community building.

Marc Gafni, a Rabbi and intellectual exploring the nuances of metacrisis responses, takes listeners on an enlightening journey through the complexities of cosmo-erotic humanism. He delves into the concept of the 'God voice' in biblical stories, especially the Abraham/Isaac tale, offering a fresh perspective on faith and morality. Laughter as a divine connector in spiritual experiences is also explored, alongside the impact of personal trauma on societal interactions. Gafni intertwines these themes with discussions on eros, consent, and the transformative power of cultural traditions.

Chapter #4. The Sulking Werewolf.

Alyssa Allegretti, a writer known for her unique serialized substack series, dives into themes of disenchantment and intimacy in this lively discussion. She reflects on the complexities of adult social interactions compared to the carefree joy of childhood Christmas parties. The conversation navigates the nuances of vulnerability and communication in relationships, while also exploring the balance between enjoyment and excess. Alyssa shares insights on cultivating moments of magic amidst the challenges of reality, making for an engaging and thought-provoking dialogue.

For the 50th (?) episode of the Integral Stage's Author Series, Layman meets with novelist and linguistic philosopher, Lisa Maroski, to explore her ideas around the enactive power of language and speech, and her experiments in finding new forms of language to more deeply embody liminal and nondual sensibilities.From the book's description:In Embracing Paradox, Evolving Language: Expressing the Unity and Complexity of Integral Consciousness, L.E. Maroski proposes that humanity is poised on the cusp of a transformation of consciousness that requires not only a shift in values and perspectives, but also a shift in a basic technology we take for granted-language. Because we use language to create social structures and institutions, including education, governance, and our most intimate relationships, the structure of our language contributes to the way we structure those creations. Maroski questions the cultural assumptions that are built into the structure of language-primarily English-and invites the reader to imagine and ultimately to help develop novel structures of language that arise from different assumptions. To do so, she shows how we can draw inspiration from paradoxical topological forms, such as the Möbius strip and Klein bottle, as they embody both unity and duality/multiplicity. By seeing our reality not simply in terms of either/or but also in terms of both (many)/and, perhaps our feelings of fragmentation and the stultifying oppositions that have polarized society can transform into appreciation for the wholeness of all existence.L.E. Maroski blends philosophy, psychology, and science with the spiritual to describe her vision for a new type of language and to provide stepping stones for possible ways to express the paradoxical wholeness of Life. In Embracing Paradox, Evolving Language, her words ring out as a clarion call to visionaries who seek to bring into existence a world of many worlds that works for everybody.Embracing Paradox, Evolving Languagehttps://www.amazon.com/Embracing-Paradox-Evolving-Language-Consciousness/dp/1961334100

A MONK, A SHAMAN, AND A SCIENTIST WALK INTO A BAR AT THE EDGE OF THE APOCALYPSE...Layman sits down with meditation and planetary dharma teacher, John Churchill, to enjoy a Double Venti Alchemist's Elixir and a rich, wide-ranging conversation exploring the shape of emergent integrative spiritualities at the edge of the Apocalypse.Born in London, Dr. Churchill's interest in psycho-spiritual development, Integral theory, Contemplative studies, Western Esotericism, and Mahayana Buddhism began in his adolescence, eventually leading him to spend several years as a Buddhist monk at Samye Ling Monastery in Scotland. During this time, John received the esoteric Planetary Dharma transmissions that would in time unfold as his contribution to a planetary fourth turning teaching. Dr. Churchill spent 15 years training and teaching “Great Seal” meditation in an Indo-Tibetan Mahayana lineage under the mentorship of the late senior Western teacher, translator, respected author, and clinical psychologist Dr. Daniel P. Brown. He is also a founding member of the Integral Institute led by esteemed Transpersonal/Integral philosopher, Ken Wilber.Planetary Dharma websitehttps://www.planetarydharma.com/

This is a special series of mini-episodes only on the Integral Stage audiopodcast. Each discussion -- with "metamodern housewife" and avant-garde anthropologist Alyssa Allegretti --will reflect on the installments, themes and context of her recent (and explicit) Substack series entitled Wallflower at a Sex Party. Alyssa's⁠⁠ second installment⁠⁠ is from her substack ⁠⁠Adaptive Daydream⁠⁠. And the philosophical questions raised in these conversations with then inform the next upcoming article on ⁠my own Substack⁠.

My upcoming Parallax course Integral Theory for Idiots starts July 6th. I thought it would be intriguing to compare the audio of a course description that I wrote and the alternative descriptions put together by three different free online AIs -- Claude, Deepseek & Perplexity. The tone they favor and the particular elements they "chose" to emphasize are very interesting...

This is a special series of mini-episodes only on the Integral Stage audiopodcast. Each discussion -- with "metamodern housewife" and avant-garde anthropologist Alyssa Allegretti --will reflect on the installments, themes and context of her recent (and explicit) Substack series entitled Wallflower at a Sex Party. Alyssa's⁠ first installment⁠ is from her substack ⁠Adaptive Daydream⁠. And the philosophical questions raised in these conversations with then inform the next upcoming article on my own Substack.

The Liminal Café is where the locals of the liminal web gather for coffee and conversation. In this new series, Layman chats with the people and patrons who, for some curious reason, find themselves drawn to this sketchy corner of the internet...NAGARJUNA, DELEUZE, AND WHITEHEAD ADVANCED RHIZOMATICALLY INTO A BARFor episode 11, Layman joins Kazi Adi Shakti in the Amaravathi branch of the Liminal Café for a wide-ranging, paradigm- and continent-crossing exploration of the development of a Process Buddhism.Kazi is an artist and theorist whose theoretical work primarily consists in the study and creative synthesis of process thought, Madhyamaka Buddhism, Western Marxism and Eco-feminist ethics. She graduated with a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, where she majored in Interdisciplinary Sculpture with a focus on computer modeling, 3D scanning and digital fabrication and currently works as a scanning specialist and digital artist in the 3D digitization industry.Kazi's blog, Holo-Poiesishttps://holo-poiesis.com/