Author: Mark Vernon

An audio version of this conversation is at my podcast, Inner Life, available via podcast feeds. James Harpur’s new book, “Dazzling Darkness: The Lives and Afterlives of the Christian Mystics”, begins with an account of a mystical experience that happened to him – “an implosion of light”, as he describes it. That led to his… Continue reading An implosion of light. Talking mystical experiences with James Harpur and Mark Vernon

Marks of the mystic’s way There’s a new essay at my Substack, A Golden String, looking at William Blake’s love of Teresa of Avila and Dante, as well as Thomas Merton’s love of William Blake.

  William Blake on tools for a time of turbulence. A new post at my Substack, A Golden String. It’s become a commonplace that liberals are struggling to understand contemporary politics. Individuals such as Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin escape rational analysis. These presidents don’t obey the rules when it comes to international relations or… Continue reading Real Worlds of Imagination, Collapse and Chaos

An audio version of this talk is at my podcast, Inner Life, available via podcast feeds. Iain McGilchrist calls William Blake “the least cosy of poets and one of the most insightful that ever lived.” Blake is cited more often than most figures in Iain’s great book, “The Matter With Things”. So what did Blake… Continue reading The most insightful poet that ever lived. Iain McGilchrist & Mark Vernon on William Blake

How can we understand Blake’s second sight? Why might it matter to us today? What is the philosophical background to the uncoupling that Blake so resisted? These questions and more considered in a new essay at my Substack, A Golden String.

An audio version of this conversation is at my podcast, Inner Life, available via podcast feeds. A conversation from History with Chris Harding. In Mark Vernon’s new book “Awake!”, he argues that we’re missing something from our view of the great visionary artist William Blake. It’s that word – ‘visionary.’ Mark argues that Blake’s extraordinary… Continue reading How to Live like William Blake!

An audio version is available at my podcast, Inner Life, available via podcast feeds. A taste of Blake’s genius and what he might mean for us. Celebrating the release of “Awake! William Blake and the Power of the Imagination” by Mark Vernon. The full countdown: 10. I’ll sing to you to this soft lute, and shew… Continue reading Top 10 William Blake quotes! The full countdown

Acknowledging that there are complementary modes of perception has become commonplace. But left-hemisphere analysis can diagnose the problem without offering much sense of how better to incorporate the right. Which is where William Blake comes in. New essay at my Substack, A Golden String.

An audio version of the conversation and music is at my podcast, Inner Life, available via podcast feeds. A live conversation with Mark Vernon, Katy Carr and Dexter Bentley from the Hello Goodbye Show. Who was William Blake? What might his music have sounded like? What did he say about the imagination? Why might he… Continue reading William Blake in words and songs

Of the many applications for Artificial Intelligence, one that is talked about is in relation to offering therapy. And developments have been in the offering for quite some time now. But what are the worries? To what extent can artificial relationships help real ones? And more subtly, how might ever-present, tireless AI therapists effect us?… Continue reading Ready to see you AI therapist? Just watch out for signs of regression