Jeffrey John Kripal is the J. Newton Rayzor Professor of Philosophy and Religious Thought and former chair of the Department of Religious Studies at Rice University in Houston, Texas. His books include Kali’s Child, Esalen, Authors of the Impossible, The Serpent’s Gift, Mutants and Mystics, The Supernatural (with Whitley Strieber), and Secret Body.

Here he describes his intellectual journey starting with the study of eroticism in religion and leading him into the study and appreciation of the esoteric or paranormal. His early research focused on homoeroticism in the life of the nineteenth century Hindu saint, Ramakrishna. In India, he experienced a profound state of consciousness associated with the goddess Kali. Later he worked with Whitley Strieber, a UFO contactee, and describes a striking correspondence between Strieber’s experience of the Visitors — and his understanding of Hindu goddesses.

(Recorded on November 17, 2018)

Published on November 18, 2018