This foundational episode marks the beginning of a new journey. It is the threshold between a world of given answers and the path of unknowing. Host Daniel Curtis outlines the mission and practice for the path ahead: a commitment to sharing one short, potent story each week—a "mirror"—designed to catalyze the profound work of self-reflection and the rediscovery of inner authority.
To establish the stakes, Daniel shares the personal, numinous experiences that initiated this entire project. Beginning with a disquieting vision of a luxury hotel surrounded by shanties, he recounts the burning question that shattered his worldview. This journey inward led to a powerful, alchemical initiation and the realization of the divine spark within all living things.
From this new understanding, he introduces the framework for the podcast: a diagnosis of the Two Great Illusions that cause our collective suffering, and the mission to dissolve them not with doctrine, but with the quiet, transformative power of mirrors.
Key Concepts & Themes
- The Two Great Illusions: The central diagnosis of the spiritual sickness of our age.
- The Hollow Senex: The great external illusion; the belief in the legitimacy of performative, soulless authority and control systems.
- The Cancer of Eros: The great internal illusion; the belief in our fundamental separation from our own soul and the soul of the world.
- Mirrors, Not Answers: The core methodology of the project. Using parables and stories not as dogma, but as reflective surfaces for individuals to see their own patterns and truths.
- Inner Authority & Self-Governance (Korm): The ultimate goal of the work. The process of moving from reliance on external systems to governance by an integrated, internal center.
- The Numinous as Catalyst: The understanding that true, paradigm-shifting change is often initiated by direct, personal, and transformative spiritual experience.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Cardiac Cowboys
The heart was always off-limits to surgeons. Cutting into it spelled instant death for the patient. That is, until a ragtag group of doctors scattered across the Midwest and Texas decided to throw out the rule book. Working in makeshift laboratories and home garages, using medical devices made from scavenged machine parts and beer tubes, these men and women invented the field of open heart surgery. Odds are, someone you know is alive because of them. So why has history left them behind? Presented by Chris Pine, CARDIAC COWBOYS tells the gripping true story behind the birth of heart surgery, and the young, Greatest Generation doctors who made it happen. For years, they competed and feuded, racing to be the first, the best, and the most prolific. Some appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, operated on kings and advised presidents. Others ended up disgraced, penniless, and convicted of felonies. Together, they ignited a revolution in medicine, and changed the world.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.