Spirits and Psychics

The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castenada is considered a classic from the 1960s. Figures covered in Season 1 almost certainly read it. Norm has some bones to pick to pick with this granddaddy of New Age literature while Morgan lays out how this book cemented in the public imagination what spiritual knowledge and transformation was supposed to look like... If you ever felt disappointed that you couldn't disappear with a strange...

No ghost is the same and not all hauntings are created equal. Morgan takes Norm back to the 1930s to discuss historical ghost hunter Harry Price and a spooky mongoose whose existence he tried to prove scientifically. But the paranormal is personal and the family that experienced Gef prove to be just as curious as the men trying to scientifically verify the family's ghostly experiences. Was Gef a ghost? Could he have been a tulpa? A...

You may have heard of the Salem Witch Trials but have you heard of the man who published tomes debunking witches, a full hundred years before Salem? Reginald Scot was an aristocrat in Elizabethan England who published academic style tomes pointing out all the flaws in medieval witchhunter logic. Today Morgan takes Norm into an interesting look of how a social belief in witchcraft can wreak havoc on people's inner and outer worlds. ...

This week, Morgan takes Norm to answer the question: Why Thelema? What does this system of ritual and belief have to offer? Aleister Crowley's life has certainly left an impression. Looking at Thelema and ritual magic as a whole, gives Morgan + Norm a greater understanding of how western ritual magic continued into the present day and how, if you are so inclined, it can be a legitimate method to finding your peace and power. Were y...

Morgan + Norm are back with the second half of Aleister Crowley's arch and let's just say things take a turn after World War I. There is more magic but also a lot of real world consequences around Crowley because of it. It gets darker in this episode but a worthy analysis of how even leaders in this space can get very lost.

Trigger warning for brief mentions of animal abuse and child death, both due to adults making bad choices...

Morgan + Norm are back from summer break and diving in to the biggest occult baddie your parents probably know them name of—> Aleister Crowley. Sure, he brought ritual magic into public consciousness and famous known in the press as the Wickedest Man in the World but he was also a theater kid at heart who most struggled with the human experience. Like other occult greats covered last season, Crowley also clocks a lot of miles ar...

Our interview with Debbie Griggs offers a different take on connection to the spiritual realm. A self-described photo psychic who gets huge impressions and information from just a picture of someone. She also has rather accurate world predictions that has grown her following over the last ten years. A thought-provoking exploration of how things can make sense on the other side.

For more Debbie, check out her vibrant Youtube chan...

Morgan takes Norm into the second part of Edgar Cayce's story. This included the groundwork for what would become his legacy, his continued failures at capitalism and his mainstream recognition.

Sources & Further Reading:

• Kirkpatrick, Sidney D. Edgar Cayce: An American Prophet. Riverhead Books, 2001. 
• Sugrue, Thomas, and Mitch Horowitz. There Is a River: The Story of Edgar Cayce. A.R.E. Press, 2018. 

Edgar Cayce is one of the most famous of the historical psychics due to the legacy his work left behind. Writings published after his death, informed New Age thought in the 20th Century. But that doesn't that he was shockingly uncurious about his abilities or the world. He illustrates that the course of true psychism never did run smooth. This episode, Morgan takes Norm into the first half of Cayce's life where he among many other ...

Morgan and Norm sit down with well-known psychic Michael Bodine to talk about the realities of living with psychic abilities as well as the ups and downs of being a practicing psychic. Michael shares an intimate portrait of his growing up in a family taken over by psychic interest and his own reluctant embracing of his abilities. He shares his hot take that not everyone needs a psychic reading! What's the role of intention, intuiti...

What does seeing a psychic have to do with guys talking to angels in the 1500s? More than you'd think! Morgan takes Norm into psychism as a phenomenon, including best practices for engaging with psychics as well as a walk into the history of how we got here. From the Oracle at Delphi to Elizabethan Europe to daytime television in the '90s, Morgan and Norm get deeper into their namesake.

Sources & Further Reading:

• Ashe, G...

When our body hurts we see a doctor, but what do we do when our souls hurt? Morgan and Norm sit down with a Brazilian shamanic practitioner, Augusto Monteiro to discuss his work in the unseen world. From the cosmology of Jurema to the new magical frameworks of Archangelismo, they discuss what tools Augusto uses to provide real help to his clients as well as just what sorts of problems a shamanic practitioner can solve.

For more...

A book that is meaningful to one person can be... deeply annoying to another. Morgan and Norm discuss the book The Surrender Experiment! They break down the most useful take aways, Norm's gripes with the author's writing style and examine just what it means to walk the spiritual path.

No reading of the book is necessary! But if you're interested in learning more about the author, Michael Singer and his work, visit the Temple of...

What is a guru anyway? Are they enlightened teachers we search the world for or are they just what we would call a cult leader? Morgan and Norm discuss the useful aspects of the guru path as well as what makes surrendering to a teacher so difficult. They explore the idea of the crazy-wise guru Tim Leary dreamed of being and contrast it to the guru encounters of Ram Dass. Whether you have a guru, want one, or thing the entire set up...

While Ram Dass is finding his guru in India, Timothy Leary is a counter culture celebrity. Morgan takes Norm into Leary's prison escapes, misadventures in exile and losing all his credibility. They evaluate Leary as an archtype of a crazy-wise guru but not before dipping into the unexpected revolutionary environment of 1970s Algeria, Leary's similarities with Aleister Crowley and all the women who helped get him out of prison.

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