Picture the way you think about reality—who you are, how you exist, the ground beneath your feet, and the sky overhead. Then, forget all that and listen to Dr. Eric Weiss, philosopher and cosmologist, in this captivating conversation about the evolution of the soul and the nature of astral realms. Speaking with EnlightenNext's Carter Phipps, Weiss effortlessly blends Western science, esoteric occultism, and modern psychology with the philosophy and religious beliefs of the East, focusing particularly on the brilliant work of Indian philosopher and mystic Sri Aurobindo.
Weiss describes a system of vast multidimensional planes of existence, fluidly shifting between ethereal realms, where the spirit and the soul move unfettered by the “normal” laws of physics, and our more familiar milieu in which physical bodies are bound by space and time. According to Weiss, what happens to us after we die may not be all that final—or unfamiliar—especially if you consider that we may actually exist simultaneously in at least three distinct (but not always clearly differentiated) domains. In this way, once the body can no longer contain the essential spirit—at the moment of death, for example—it seamlessly continues evolving in an entirely real, if not quite solid, form of existence. Heady, intriguing, and quite literally expansive stuff from a serious student of both Eastern and Western science, psychology, and mysticism.
Eric Weiss, Ph.D., MFT, is a professor of philosophy and cosmology at the Sophia Center of Holy Names College, and also at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), where he earned his Ph.D. under the personal direction of Brian Swimme. Weiss explores the evolutionary story with a perspective informed by Western philosophy, psychology, and science. His perspective is also informed by a deep knowledge of Eastern philosophy and yogic psychology grounded in the teachings of Buddhism and in the works of the twentieth-century mystic and philosopher Sri Aurobindo.
Dr. Weiss can be contacted at e.weiss@comcast.net
