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Podcast #022 - Religious Evolution - An Interview with Prof. Michael Winkelman
March 15, 2009 09:57 PM PDT
Today’s guest is Prof. Michael Winkelman from Arizona State University. Are ritual and religion a part of human evolution? What are the benefits that religion and ritual provide humanity and society? Do other animals other than humans utilize ritualistic behavior? What part do psychedelic drugs play in human evolution? Has mankind outgrown any advantages in utilizing religion? today’s guest answers these questions, and many more. Michael Winkelman earned his Ph.D. from the University of California-Irvine, and his M.P.H. (Master of Public Health) from the University of Arizona. He is an Associate Professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. He served as President of the Anthropology of Consciousness section of the American Anthropological Association, and was the founding President of its Anthropology of Religion Section. Winkelman has engaged in cross-cultural and interdisciplinary research on shamanism and altered states of consciousness for the past 30 years, focusing principally on the cross-cultural patterns of shamanism and identifying the associated biological bases of shamanic universals and altered states of consciousness. His principal publications on shamanism include Shamans, Priests and Witches (1992) and Shamanism: The Neural Ecology of Consciousness and Healing (2000). He has also addressed the role of psychedelic medicines in shamanism, developing neurophenomenological perspectives that link the experiences to the underlying physiological processes in his co-edited books Sacred Plants, Consciousness and Healing and Psychedelic Medicine. He has also addressed the relationships of healing and religious practices in his edited books Divination and Healing and Pilgrimages and Healing. His recent book with John Baker-- Supernatural as Natural: A Biocultural Approach to Religion-- addresses the evolutionary origins and biological bases of religion.
Order Supernatural as Natural: http://astore.amazon.com/gnosmedi-20/detail/0131893033 |
Podcast SummaryGnostic Media Research & Publishing's podcast with host Jan Irvin.A show that takes you far beyond the commonly understood concepts of religious practice, history, philosophy, the ancient mysteries, and politics, into the heart of cognizance itself. My focus is to bring together the leading independent and academic scholars from their respective fields of study to discuss shamanism, entheogens / psychedelics, religion, fertility cults, archaeoastronomy, direct religious experience, politics, and much more. My hope is that by providing a forum where both academic and independent scholars can present their ideas and research in a complete format, I will help to facilitate further understanding in these related fields - not only for the listening audience, but also for the researchers and everyone involved. Here the word 'gnostic' pertains to knowledge, and not necessarily dogmatic "Gnostic" teachings. The word gnostic has it's origins in the word 'knowledge' or to know [Greek gnosis, knowledge, from gignoskein, to know]. This is a one of a kind show, so sit back and relax as I take you on journey through time to deepest recesses of your mind. Jan Irvin of GnosticMedia.com is an independent researcher, author and lecturer in ancient and modern religious practices. He's the author of The Holy Mushroom: Evidence of Mushrooms in Judeo-Christianity; A critical re-evaluation of the schism between John M. Allegro and R. Gordon Wasson over the theory on the entheogenic origins of Christianity presented in The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, © 2008. For more information, please see TheHolyMushroom.com  Jan is the co-author of Astrotheology & Shamanism: Christianity's Pagan Roots, © 2006/2009, and co-producer of The Pharmacratic Inquisition DVD, 2007, with Andrew Rutajit. See www.gnosticmedia.com and Pharmacratic-Inquisition.com   He is the publisher of the upcoming 40th anniversary edition of John Marco Allegro's The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross and is also the curator of the official John Allegro website and has contributed much to the re-examination of many of Allegro’s theories. See JohnAllegro.org   Stumble It!
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