What Lies Beyond Podcast

Show Notes‘Season 2 Episode 6 Near Death Experiences: Indigenous Approaches’Associate Professor Natasha Tassell-Matamua is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head of the School of Psychology at Massey University in Aotearoa New Zealand. She is also co-Director of the recently established Centre for Indigenous Psychologies. Her research and teaching is in the area of indigenous psychologies, indigenous knowledges and Exceptional Human Experience. This research focusses on the interplay between spirituality, well-being and the wider ecosystem. She has spent the last decade researching the phenomenology, after-effects and cultural specificity of Near Death Experiences, and has published extensively in the area as well as providing numerous presentations both nationally and internationally.In today’s talk, we discuss Natasha’s work in Near Death Experiences and the importance of indigenous psychologies and indigenous knowledges. We talk about the problem of power and privilege in Near Death studies, which often leads to the domination of materialist-reductionist approaches. And we talk about how Māori conceptions of spirituality might contribute to better mental health and wellbeing.ResourcesNatasha’s page at Massey University, Aotearoa New Zealand:https://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/expertise/profile.cfm?stref=830930And at the Centre for Indigenous Psychologies, with her writing and some media appearances:https://www.doorofthenight.co.nz/natashaHer page on Google Scholar:https://scholar.google.co.nz/citations?user=aKsLIN0AAAAJ&hl=enThe Centre for Indigenous Psychologies:https://www.indigenouspsychologies.nzNatasha’s talk at the Alef Trust can be viewed here.Terminal Lucidity project:https://www.indigenouspsychologies.nz/terminal-lucidity-in-childrenThe Door of the Night project:https://www.doorofthenight.co.nzReference for the NDE paper we discuss:Tassell-Matamua, N. (2024). Power and privilege in the study of near-death experiences. In The Routledge Handbook of Research Methods in Spirituality and Contemplative Studies. (pp. 271 - 281).Thanks for reading WHAT LIES BEYOND! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Other Resources“Near-death experiences are ‘electrical surge in dying brain’” — Borjigen lab’s framing of NDEs.Vandana Shiva’s chapter on Monocultures of the Mind and the exclusion of indigenous knowledges:https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0019556119930304Title Music: ‘Stranger things’ by Music Unlimited on Pixabey. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Show NotesSeason 2 Episode 4 ‘Being, Time and Altered States’Today’s podcast is the last of a trilogy on consciousness and time. My guest is Marc Wittmann, Ph.D. Marc is a research fellow at the Institute for Frontier Areas in Psychology and Mental Health in Freiburg, Germany. He studied psychology and philosophy at the Universities of Fribourg, Switzerland, and Munich, Germany. He received his Ph.D. at the Institute of Medical Psychology, University of Munich. From 2000 to 2004 he was head of the Generation Research Program, Bad Tölz, University of Munich. Between 2004 to 2009 he was a research fellow in the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego.In today’s interview, we discuss Marc’s book Altered States of Consciousness, from MIT press. We begin with a discussion of the history of psychedelic research. Then we move onto the central issue: the intimate relationship between time, consciousness and the self. We look at the phenomenon of time expansion experiences in meditation. We touch upon a famous controversy on the nature of time between Albert Einstein and the philosopher, Henri Bergson. We discuss the disturbing disintegration of the present moment in conditions like schizophrenia. And we finish by considering the implications of mystical states, which commonly feature a profound sense of unity with the cosmos.ResourcesMarc’s book:Wittmann, M. (2018). Altered States of Consciousness: Experiences Out of Time and Self. MIT Press.First flotation tank study:Hruby, H., Schmidt, S., Feinstein, J.S. et al. Induction of altered states of consciousness during Floatation-REST is associated with the dissolution of body boundaries and the distortion of subjective time. Sci Rep 14, 9316 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-59642-yMarc’s website:https://sites.google.com/site/webmarcwittmann/Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health (IGPP):https://www.igpp.de/allg/welcome_EN.htmMarc on the Psi EncyclopaediaThanks for reading WHAT LIES BEYOND! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Topics discussedEssential Foundation’s Time and Mind conference( first talks)Hans Bender’s entry on the Psi encyclopaedia.The life and work of John Lilly, who invented floatation tanks.Roland GriffithsSteve Taylor on time expansionPhysicist Carlo Rovelli on time (YouTube)Bergson versus Einstein:Cancales, J. (2015). The Physicist and the Philosopher: Einstein, Bergson, and the Debate That Changed Our Understanding of Time. Princeton University Press.Wittmann, M. & Montemayer, C. (2022). Reinterpreting the Einstein-Bergson Debate through Contemporary Neuroscience, De Gruyter, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110753707-019Philip K. Dick’s novel involving schizophrenia and time: Dick,P.K. (1964). Martian Time Slip. Ballantine.Iain McGilchrist’s websiteWilliam James’ Varieties of Religious Experience (discusses mystical experiences):https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/621Title Music: ‘Stranger things’ by Music Unlimited on Pixabey. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Show NotesSeason 2 Episode 2 ‘Dreaming Ahead of Time’Today’s podcast is the first of a loose trilogy on consciousness and time. My guest is the writer and musician Gary Lachman. Gary is the author of many books on topics ranging from the evolution of consciousness to literary suicides, popular culture and the history of the occult. He has written a rock and roll memoir of the 1970s, biographies of Aleister Crowley, Rudolf Steiner, C. G. Jung, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Emanuel Swedenborg, P. D. Ouspensky, and Colin Wilson. He also written histories of Hermeticism and the Western Inner Tradition, studies in existentialism and the philosophy of consciousness, and about the influence of esotericism on politics and society. As Gary Valentine he was a founding member of the pop group Blondie and in 2006 was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Gary was born in New Jersey, but since 1996 has lived in London, UK.We begin our talk discussing the persistent and remarkable phenomenon of dreaming the future. This leads to a discussion of the writer and existential philosopher Colin Wilson, who associated future dreaming with something he called Faculty X. We discuss the phenomenon of ‘peak experiences’, times when life seems replete with meaning. And we talk about how general lack of meaning might have contributed to the rise of extreme politics in the US and elsewhere.Thanks for reading WHAT LIES BEYOND! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.ResourcesGary Lachman’s website:https://www.gary-lachman.comSome of his books:Lachman, G. (2022). Dreaming Ahead of Time: Experiences with Precognitive Dreams, Synchronicity and Coincidence. Floris Books.Lachman, G. (2016). Beyond the Robot: The Life and Work of Colin Wilson. Tarcherperigee. (Out of Print).Lachman, G. (2016). The Caretakers of the Cosmos: Living Responsibly in an Unfinished World. Floris Books. (Contains a critique of philosopher John Gray and ‘everything is pointless’ philosophies).Lachman, G. (2018). Dark Star Rising: Magick and Power in the Age of Trump. TarcherPerigee.J.W. Dunne’s book on precognitive dreaming:Dunne, J.W. (1927). An Experiment with time. A. & C. BlackColin Wilson Books mentioned:Wilson, C. (1956). The Outsider. Gollancz.Wilson, C. (1959). The Age of Defeat. Gollancz.Wilson, C. (1971). The Occult: A history. Random houseWilson, C. (2009). Super Consciousness. Watkins books.The Essential Colin Wilson LP (YouTube) (Discusses psychologist Abraham Maslow).Title Music: ‘Stranger things’ by Music Unlimited on Pixabey.Aldous Huxley’s essay “Beliefs” is in the HarperPerrenial edition of The Perennial Philosophy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Welcome to 2025! Here’s a short video on my book What Lies Beyond, which is out in May and now available to preorder on Amazon. In the video, I talk a little about my motivation for writing What Lies Beyond: consciousness science, the paranormal and the post-materialist future. I say a little about my intended readership, which is basically anyone who feels the need to re-think basic assumptions about consciousness, mind and the world. It’s for anyone who’s concerned about our dysfunctional responses to things like climate breakdown. Anyone who’s curious about controversies over psi phenomena and mystical or transpersonal experience. Anyone who is tired of dehumanising and disempowering visions of the future. And it’s for people who are experiencing a crisis of meaning and purpose in their lives. What Lies Beyond is an invitation to explore, re-discover and re-think, for a more humane future.Season 2 of the What Lies Beyond Podcast is coming in February 2025.WHAT LIES BEYOND is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Show notesThis is the final episode of season one. Today’s guest is Dr Jennifer Gidley. Jennifer is an Author, Climate Educator, Psychologist, and International Futurist. She’s a global thought leader and advocate for human-centred futures in an era of hi-tech hype. Jennifer is an Adjunct Professor, Institute for Sustainable Futures (UTS) Sydney, and has held academic posts in four Australian universities. She is a Fellow at the Botin Centre, Santander, Spain, and a non-Resident Fellow of TRENDS Research & Advisory in Abu Dhabi. She’s held a Visiting Professorship at Olomouc University, Czech Republic and a Visiting Research Fellowship at SciencesPo, Paris, France. She was also the longest serving elected President of the World Futures Studies Federation from 2009 to 2017.Jennifer's most recent project is the founding of Global Futures Education, as a platform to provide high-level online education for professionals and executives. Over several years she has created a series of executive-level online courses on 'Grand Global Futures Challenges and Solutions'. She’s also the author of 2016’s The Future: A very short introduction from Oxford University Press.In this interview, recorded September 2024, we discuss the difference between what Jennifer calls a technocentric future and a human-centred one. Advocates of technocentric futures tend to assume that technology can solve everything. These sorts of futures are also based in a strongly materialist worldview. By contrast, Jennifer advocates human-centred futures, which see human beings as kind, fair, consciously evolving agents with a responsibility to maintain ecological balance between humans, world and cosmos.If you’re feeling disempowered about the future, then I hope you’ll find our dialogue as inspiring as I did. And I’d like to thank all my audience for listening this season. What Lies Beyond will be back in February 2025 for season 2!Thanks for reading What Lies Beyond! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Jennifer’s official site:https://www.jennifergidley.comHer book:Gidley, J. (2016). The Future: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press.Site for Grand Global Challenges:https://www.globalfutureseducation.comResourcesSome of the books discussed: Erlich, P.H. & Erlich, A.H. (1968). The population bomb. Sierra Club.Herbert, F. (2018). The Great Dune Trilogy (Dune, Dune Messiah and Children of Dune). Gollancz. (Denis Villeneuve’s movie series is pretty excellent too!)Jungk, Robert & Johan Galtung, eds, (1969) Mankind 2000. Oslo & London: Norwegian University Press & Allen & Unwin. Future Research Monographs (1).Meadows, D.H., Meadows,D.L., Randers, J., Behrens, W. (1972). The Limits to Growth. https://www.clubofrome.org/publication/the-limits-to-growth/MacAskill, W. (2022). What we owe the future. Oneworld. (Longtermism).Murphy, M. (1992). The Future of the Body. Tarcher Putnam.Reubenstein, M. (2022). Astrotopia: The Dangerous Religion of the Corporate Space Race. University of Chicago Press.Rushkoff, D. (2022). Survival of the Richest: escape fantasies of the tech billionaires. Scribe.Zuboff,S. (2019). The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power. Profile Books.Some of the people mentioned:Henri BergsonTeilhard De ChardinJean GebserTristan Harris and Humane technology movementThomas MalthusMarshall McLuhan. “Any invention or technology is an extension or self-amputation of our physical bodies.”Thanks for reading What Lies Beyond! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Show NotesToday my guest is Professor Ed Kelly. Ed has a BA in psychology from Yale and a Phd in psycholinguistics and cognitive science from Harvard. From 2002 to the present he has been a research professor in the Division of Perceptual Studies, which is part of the department of psychiatry and neurobiological sciences at the University of Virginia. His research interests are psychical research and functional neuroimaging.Ed is also a member of the survival seminar or ‘Sursem’ group at Esalen. The Sursem group was formed in 1998 to examine and collate evidence suggestive of the survival of human personality beyond bodily death. The group ended up producing three large volumes exploring post-materialist theories of consciousness. These were Irreducible Mind in 2007, Beyond Physicalism in 2015 and Consciousness Unbound in 2021. Each of these volumes is co-edited by Ed.In today’s talk we discussed Ed’s early disillusion with the theory of computer-as-mind, and his lab work with a psychic ‘star’ that convinced him of the reality of psi phenomena. We go on to discuss his work with the Sursem group, developing an alternative to mainstream, materialist theories of mind and consciousness. We finish looking at signs that a major revolution might be underway in terms of our understanding of life and consciousness. Thanks for reading What Lies Beyond! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.The Division of Perceptual Studieshttps://med.virginia.edu/perceptual-studies/Sursem groupKelly, E.F. (2015b). ‘Toward reconciliation of science and spirituality: A brief history of the “Sursem” project’, Edgescience No. 22, pp. 3— 7. Available here.Esalen’s website:https://www.esalen.orgThe Sursem Group books:Kelly, E.F., Kelly, E.W., Crabtree, A., Gauld, A., Grosso, M., Greyson, B. (2007). Irreducible mind: toward a psychology for the 21st century. Rowman & Littlefield.Kelly, E.F., Crabtree, A. & Marshall, P. (eds) Beyond Physicalism: Toward Reconciliation of Science and Spirituality. Rowman & Littlefield.Kelly, E.F. & Marshall, P. (2021). Consciousness unbound: Liberating mind from the tyranny of materialism. Rowman & Littlefield.My essay review of Irreducible Mind can be downloaded here.ParapsychologyCardeña, E. (2018) ‘The experimental evidence for parapsychological phenomena: A review, American Psychologist Vol. 73 No. 5, 663–677. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000236Skeptical response:Reber, A. S., & Alcock, J. E. (2020) ‘Searching for the impossible: Parapsychology’s elusive quest,’ American Psychologist 75(3), 391–399. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31192620/Stigmata:Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers - Ep. 4 - Stigmata: The Wounds of Christ‘Voodoo death’:Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers - Ep. 11 - The Roots of EvilConsciousness and LifeEastman, T. (2021). Untying the Gordian Knot: Process, Reality, and Context (Contemporary Whitehead Studies). Lexington Books.Faggin, F. (2024). Irreducible: Consciousness, Life, Computers, and Human Nature. Essential Books.Nagel, T. (2012). Mind and Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature Is Almost Certainly False. Oxford University Press.A video of the biologist Dennis Noble discussing the current revolution in biology is available here. The great biologist Lynn Margulis’ last interview can be heard here. Includes an introduction to her work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Show NotesToday’s guest is Dr. Serena Roney-Dougal. Serena is one of the few people in Britain to have obtained a PhD for parapsychology, exploring the relationship between subliminal perception and psychic awareness. She has had over 40 years of study and experience in scientific, magical and spiritual explorations of the psyche, has lectured and taught courses, seminars and workshops in America, Britain, Europe, Japan and India; has written numerous articles both technical and popular, and two books; Where Science and Magic Meet and The Faery Faith. She is currently a green councillor in Glastonbury, England.In today’s conversation, we discussed Serena’s early work comparing psi to subliminal perception and also her work linking the pineal gland in the brain to psychic experience. We spoke about her experiments with meditation and psi, which were conducted in India and included a life-changing visit to Ladakh, or ‘Little Tibet’. We discussed the Tibetan view of consciousness and rebirth, and the experiences of some the Tibetans with whom she worked. We also briefly spoke about an experiment at Samye Ling Monastery in Scotland, linking psi performance with geomagnetic cycles. We finished off with some discussion of the links between environmental awareness and consciousness.Serena’s website and Bookshttps://www.psi-researchcentre.co.ukRoney-Dougal, S. (2010). Where Science and Magic Meet. Green Magic.Roney-Dougal, S. (2003). The Faery Faith: An Integration of Science with Spirit. Green Magic.Referenced booksDavid-Neel, A. (2007). Magic and Mystery in Tibet. Souvenir Press.Meadows, D.H, Meadows,D.L., Randers,J, Behrens III, W. (1972). The Limits to Growth. Universe Books. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

Welcome to What Lies Beyond with your host Matt Colborn. Conversations on consciousness science, the paranormal and the post-material future. Visit us and subscribe on whatliesbeyond.substack.comToday my guest is Dr. Jack Hunter. Jack is an anthropologist exploring the borderlands of consciousness, religion, ecology and the paranormal. He lives in the hills of Mid-Wales with his family. He is a tutor with the Sophia Centre for the Study of Cosmology in Culture, University of Wales Trinity Saint David. He is also a tutor with the Alef Trust on their MSc in Consciousness, Spirituality and Transpersonal Psychology. His PhD at the University of Bristol took the form of an ethnographic study of contemporary trance and physical mediumship. He is also a musician and an ordained Dudeist Priest.In today’s conversation, we discussed the anthropology of high strangeness experiences and why we need to take them seriously. Jack has himself experienced a number of strange things, including a vision in Bristol Spirit lodge while he was researching his doctorate. We discussed how strange experiences might feed into and enrich consciousness studies, and how a rejection of animistic worldviews is connected to the exploitation of the Earth.WARNING: This episode contains some discussion of illicit drug use.Thanks for reading What Lies Beyond! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Websitehttps://jack-hunter.yourwebsitespace.comJack’s article on anthropology and psi research:https://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/anthropology-and-psi-researchRecent books by JackHunter, J. (ed). (2023). Deep Weird: The Varieties of High Strangeness Experience. August Night Press.Hunter, J. (2023). Ecology and Spirituality: A Brief Introduction. Sophia Centre Press.Hunter, J. (ed). (2019). Greening the Paranormal: Exploring the Ecology of Extraordinary Experience. August Night Press.Hunter, J. & Ironside, R. (eds). (2023).Folklore, People, and Places: International Perspectives on Tourism and Tradition in Storied Places. Routledge.ResourcesThe Oz Factor was first described in the following book: Randles, J. (1983). UFO Reality: A critical look at the physical evidence. Hale.Numinosity:Otto, R. (1917). The Idea of the Holy: An Inquiry into the Non-Rational Factor in the Idea of the Divine and its Relation to the Rational. https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.22259Edith Turner’s webpage:https://anthropology.as.virginia.edu/people/edith-turnerThe Bristol Spirit Lodge:http://the-bristol-spirit-lodge.blogspot.comAndrew Lang:https://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/andrew-langDeclarations on Animal and Insect consciousness:2012 Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness2024 New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness.The ecological perspective:White, L. (1967). The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis. Science 155(3767), pp. 1203-1207. https://www.kuleuven.be/thomas/uploads/file/hoger_onderwijs/modules/Lynn%20White%20Historical%20Roots(1).pdfRoszak, T. (1992). The voice of the Earth. Phanes Press.Transformative effect of paranormal experience:Kripal,J. (2020). The Flip: Who You Really Are and Why It Matters. Penguin. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com