I’ve notice a tendency to downplay the divine element in accounts of William Blake, and to reduce his understanding of the imagination to a human artefact, from its true status as a supernatural capacity that he knew. In this talk I consider 5 ways in which this can be resisted: – Blake’s insistence that “there… Continue reading “I give you the end of a golden string” – Blake, the Gita and God
Author: Mark Vernon
Matters of Life and Death – conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
Covid has brought the reality of death into the centre of our lives, but what can we learn about death in response? This episode of the Sheldrake-Vernon Dialogues, with Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon, is prompted by a sense that part of the anxiety arising from the pandemic is living in a culture that has… Continue reading Matters of Life and Death – conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
On Physics, Evolution, Mind at Large & Projections – Bernardo Kastrup & Mark Vernon
An extended conversation that begins with thoughts on Owen Barfield, participation and the meaning crisis, Schopenhauer and Jung, moving through the state of modern physics, to the nature of evolution, the nature of mind at large, the role of dissociation and projections, and freedom. For more on Bernardo’s work see – https://www.bernardokastrup.com For more on… Continue reading On Physics, Evolution, Mind at Large & Projections – Bernardo Kastrup & Mark Vernon
Beauty’s Philosopher – Anthony Ashley Cooper
Anthony Ashley Cooper (1671-1713) may be the greatest English philosopher you have never heard of. In the 18th century, he was said to be the most famous philosopher in Europe. His ideas suffered in England, as those of his empiricist tutor, John Locke, took hold. But they inspired figures from William Blake to Adam Smith,… Continue reading Beauty’s Philosopher – Anthony Ashley Cooper
Dante on the Trinity
The Divine Comedy aims to deepen and broaden our perception of reality, often by exploding preconceptions. Nowhere is this more true than in Dante’s take on the Christian perception of the Trinity. For Dante, it is way more than a doctrine. It is a mode of seeing that reveals reality as dynamic and dancing to… Continue reading Dante on the Trinity
What is psychotherapy?
A short discussion of psychodynamic psychotherapy, talking about the experience of suffering, the ego, the past and present, and the future change as people move through three zones – which might be described as hell, purgatory and paradise.
Animals That Talk – a conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
Why do matters as seemingly unconnected as children’s stories and shamanic encounters feature talking animals? This episode of the Sheldrake-Vernon Dialogues, with Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon, is prompted the book, Roland In Moonlight by David Bentley Hart. It relates long conversations between the Eastern Orthodox philosopher and his pet dog, generating fascinating thoughts on… Continue reading Animals That Talk – a conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
The Experience of Life and the Nature of the Afterlife
Modern Christianity, at least as expressed by the church, has become very confused about the afterlife. So can our experience of life now, illuminated by wisdom traditions and modern science, offer a way into this perennial question? I’ve written more fully about these things in my book, A Secret History of Christianity. See here –… Continue reading The Experience of Life and the Nature of the Afterlife
The Death of Princes and the Evolution of Consciousness
Death always brings subterranean assumptions and stresses to the surface, and the pass of Prince Philip is no exception. The moment carries the weight of millennia, which is why it’s hard to navigate, though it can be better understood as part of the evolution of human consciousness, as Owen Barfield and others understood it. The… Continue reading The Death of Princes and the Evolution of Consciousness
Billionaires, Brains and Beliefs – A conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
Could bliss be transmitted by a Happy Helmet? Are the fantasies of the super-wealthy secretly shaping our lives? In this episode of the Sheldrake-Vernon Dialogues, Rupert Sheldrake and Mark Vernon discuss a new novel, Double Blind, by Edward St Aubyn. It is a story of ideas, including issues previously explored in these dialogues, from the… Continue reading Billionaires, Brains and Beliefs – A conversation with Rupert Sheldrake