It's the End of the World As We Know It, and I Feel Fine (with Charles Eisenstein)

Mark speaks with Charles Eisenstein, writer, speaker, and author of The Coronation, his new book that searches for ??meaning as we emerge from the troubled time of Covid. Charles’ work covers a wide range of topics, including human civilization, economics, spirituality, and ecology. Charles frequently explores anti-consumerism, interdependence, and how myth and narrative influence culture on his Substack and in his 6 published books.

Today, Commander Divine speaks with Charles Eisenstein, writer, speaker, and author of The Coronation, his new book that searches for ??meaning as we emerge from the troubled time of Covid. In this episode, Charles talks about why reality isn’t working anymore for most people, his philosophy about the emerging economy, how to take back our sovereignty, and more.

Key Takeaways:

Reality isn’t working anymore for most people. The implicit promise is that if you do certain things (like climbing the corporate ladder, buying a house, following the latest diet trend, etc.) then you'll be healthy and happy. But nowadays, people who obey the formula are running headlong into a sandstorm of confusion – whether it's chronic health problems, or dead end careers, depression, or divorce. Something has to change.
Considering sovereignty. Lately, the capacity to experience life has become increasingly dependent on technology. For example, most parts of the US are addicted to air conditioning, and to comfort in general. The more comfortable we become, the less tolerant we are to any conditions outside of that small range. This extends to our addiction to the intense stimuli of the virtual world. This trend has accelerated in the last few years, but it's nothing new. It’s time for us to think about what the alternative is…. and to consider this: What is the vision of humanity that underlies this movement toward more and more dependency on things outside of ourselves?
The Emperor has no clothes. The elites govern not so much through everybody's agreement with them, but through the perception that everybody agrees with them. It's like the Emperor's new clothes – the Emperor is naked, but everybody else is acting as if he's not. But everybody's thinking it. Charles argues this is why it's so important now to come out about things that go against the status quo, whether it's psychedelics or paranormal experiences, or health.
On building a parallel society. You don't change things by fighting existing reality – you build a new model that makes the old one obsolete. We’re currently doing this in many areas of society, from Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies (a parallel financial system), to holistic health modalities (a parallel healthcare system). We're recreating all of these institutions, but also the consciousness around them. It’s happening slowly, but it’s happening.
Despite it all… the future is bright. Charles is very positive about the way the world is heading, despite things looking bad on the surface. Underneath, there's a huge seismic shift happening in consciousness. More people are aware of and healing their trauma than ever. And despite the vitriol on the Internet, people are nicer to each other in person. We’re becoming less identified with our roles, and are therefore more able to be in humanity with each other.