QAnon. The hidden dangers of 5G. The nefarious secret plans of Bill Gates. The global cabal of pedophiles. Massive election fraud. Jewish space lasers. Conspiracy theories have grown like weeds during the pandemic and everyone, it seems, is trying to understand why. And this is not just a phenomenon on the Right. We also see it spreading widely in the alternative health and wellness movements and progressive spirituality, which have tended to be more politically Left. In fact, a new term has been coined to describe this unholy alliance: “conspirituality.” However far-out they may seem, these beliefs are becoming surprisingly common in the networks I’m connected to. So what is going on? How concerned should we be? How do we draw the line between the questioning of authority that has always been a hallmark of the counterculture, and the descent into dangerous fantasy? In order to help me grapple with these questions, I reached out to a very close friend, Craig Hamilton. Today, Craig is a well-known and popular spiritual teacher whose online courses and programs have been enjoyed by many thousands. But I first met Craig almost three decades ago, when we were fellow spiritual seekers and later editors of the magazine What Is Enlightenment? Craig is still one of the first people I turn to when I have a conundrum or a question ricocheting around in my head, and I play the same role for him. We’ve been having deep dialogues about every issue under the sun for a long time, and I’m delighted that I can now invite Craig on my podcast and share these always-insightful conversations in a public forum.
More about Craig Hamilton
Craig Hamilton is a pioneer in the emerging field of evolutionary spirituality and a leading voice in the movement for conscious evolution. As the guiding force behind Integral Enlightenment, Craig offers spiritual guidance and teachings to a growing international community spanning 85 countries around the world. His life-changing online courses have more than 14,000 graduates to date, offering practical spiritual tools and training that are in step with our times and informed by an up-to-date understanding of the human condition. Craig’s programs integrate his decades of intensive spiritual practice with insights gleaned during his eight years as Senior Editor of the award winning What Is Enlightenment? magazine. He is a founding member of Ken Wilber’s Integral Institute, a member of Deepak Chopra’s Evolutionary Leaders Forum, and was a participant in the Synthesis Dialogues, a 35-person interdisciplinary think tank presided over by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Access Craig’s latest videos, audios and articles here.
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Thank you very much for taking this topic in a thoughtful and constructive way. Many of us are suffering over the traction that “righteous conspiracies” have gotten with many of our friends and relatives. It’s like some people died but there still here; we just can’t be around them because they speak nonstop crazy stuff trying indoctrinate us. Hopefully this, too, shall pass.
You are…. bland, uninteresting, self-serving, boring. You are contributing absolutely nothing to a constructive and, inevitably, dialectical, discourse on what matters to us at this very moment. I forced myself to listen to you, only to remember and be able to recognize this feeling of emptiness next time I encounter something similar. Who are you to lecture anyone? What do you know about science? Humanity? Humility? Or do no harm? The answer: nothing.
Maybe research United Nations Agenda 2030 gives many insights to what is going on in the world today.
With Palms Together
Deirdre 🙏🏽
A sense of humility is essential to participate in a dialogue in any subject matter. And this is true with spirituality as Craig mentioned about being open to listening to others even if you do not agree with their arguments.
Carter and Craig – Thanks so much for this discussion.What I wanted to add is that I feel these recent conspiracists are different from earlier conspiracy addicts I’ve known in their level of anger. They are SO ANGRY! They don’t really ‘discuss’ anything – that is, one can’t have a simple conversation – they just yell and accuse and dismiss.
I do need to deal with this topic in my own life if only because I’m having extreme anxiety these last months and my worst trigger is the Big Lie about the election and the QAnon and related conspiracies. I’m actually in a state of near constant fear of these people, so I obviously have to work on my own panic before engaging any friends who fell down that hellhole.
My biggest confusion is – do people actually WANT to believe in such a horrible dark worldview? It’s so ugly and it fills their world with unthinkably evil enemies. Do they really enjoy life more living like this? Aren’t their bodies drenched in adrenaline all the time? Why not choose a better reality since they do seem to be choosing their reality input.
I just don’t get it. Their fierce blindness to facts terrifies me, like all mobs that support autocrats, wiping out reason and their own basic humanity to follow a leader. They terrify me like the Nazis did when I learned about them in school.
I’m amazed and grateful you can treat them so compassionately and individually. But they are part of one helluva scary mob, and I just can’t manage the spiritual work needed to engage them yet. But thank you for leading the way brave warriors of the spirit!
Regarding “a horrible dark worldview”, you do realize the purpose of darkness, right?
http://jungcurrents.com/jung-shadow-making-darkness-conscious
Agree that some of these worldviews are dark, and sometimes angry. Wishing you well as you find your way!
I am so glad you are bringing this issue out into the open. I have recently unsubscribed, in deep disappointment, from a magazine and group that has been getting more and more vociferous against “the narrative” (ie mainstream) and promoting some very weird conspiracy theories. There seems to be a cultural de-volution into victim consciousness.
Thx Iris! I think many people had had similar experiences.
I think you should have started with a few examples.
Counter Culture podcast
Hello thank you for your views Can I suggest if you haven’t researched it yet the U N Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development it explains why people are very concerned and worried about the future
Thanks for the suggestion Deirdre!
Upon reviewing https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda, could you elaborate on what the concerns and worries are?
Nature operates in a state of balance
Many humans are not in that balance even though they to are part of nature
Rather they are effecting the natural balance
Climate change the big one far more then viruses
Many are Disconnected from nature living in concrete cities
Spending much time in social media
I spend a lot of time in nature
The real thing which can teach one a lot about what really matters
One thing I noticed
It put on its usual great show in 2020 while most humans ran about like headless chickens
Stirred on by social media
Your talk about listening to the other side alludes to balance
Many people seem to live in a twilight zone between reality and social media
While it’s many years since I left the farm it never leaves you
A great way to learn about nature and reality
Your talk seems to point towards reality in a time where many are not that grounded and have become disconnected and thus subject to the winds of change
Change like science is always happening
A part of nature even though many are uncomfortable with it
And that is probably one reason why there is so much confusion in today’s society
I would like to submit a comment regarding the “conspiracy theories” podcast. I am Craig’s sdudent since 2018 and velue very much his teaching. I have found this podcast to be appaling. I am not sure how much do I want to write, but when I was a student of history faculty some 20 years ago we were told that we could say or write anything but we needed to be able to argument it and provide the sources. Critical thinking was encouraged. For me if I ask what is the content of a vaccine or why was it develop over a very short period of time, before it is being injected in me or my children, I will be called by some (like you two) an antivaxxer or so. Really? Is it so simple? Your podcast I have found not thought provoking at all, instead I have heard you repeating the mainstream media propaganda. If I am to meditate for 80 years just to repeat what cnn or bbc is saying in the news, than I will have to give up on meditation alltogether. I think listening to you two on this podcast was the least enlightening experience I have ever had in my life. I should have better drank a bottle of johny walker or so or even smoked a joint rather than listening to this. The message is this: Switch on the telly, president Biden is in charge, so all is good, vaccinate yourself and your familly, follow the rules and the rulers. And nearly forgot; Bill Gates can be trusted on advising and sponsoring WHO, because he is a prominent MD, he is a kind of nice guy, a philantroph 😉 and there are no other illnesses but covid…
I am a “conspiracy theorist”, and my theory is that wealthy and powerful people might get together with a plan to preserve and increase their wealth and power at the expense of everyone else, including you. What is your theory?
It’s fine to discuss and debate the validity of individual theories, but to complain about the fact that people form theories about possible conspiracies, when we know for a fact that powerful people conspire, is just infantile. You’d never know this from consuming the billionaire media, though.
I agree that there is no secret elitist conspiracy to conquer and enslave the world. They are actually pretty open about it. You’ll be able to see it for yourself if you start questioning the lies that govern your lives. I mean, how enlightened one needs to be in order not to see the obvious?
https://twitter.com/technoirlab/status/1189637015144239104
That awkward moment, when you realize that someone who teaches “awakening” is actually fast asleep, and is dragging you down with him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-kn2AAaqa4