Exploring the influence of Walt Disney on the theme-park-like world of Psychonauts 2. This one begins with a throwaway line from Lili that casually reveals the design philosophy of Psychonauts as a whole. To truly get it, we need to go back to the days that Tim Schafer, the writer of Psychonauts, worked for Ron Gilbert on the Monkey Island games. W…

Exploring the strange and arcane lore of Lies of P, starting with the word ‘apple’. With alchemy at its heart, this video covers a multitude of topics, including the devil, Paracelsus, the wonderful world of Oz, Gnosticism, the Bible, Greek myths, greed, ancient meteorite worship, Blade Runner, and Pinocchio (of course). Beginning with the word ‘ap…

Liron Israely is the founding director of the Adama Haya Center, which offers training, inputs, and project management services in agriculture in the service of life, from biodynamics to agroecology. He is about to complete a Ph.D. in stream restoration, soil conservation, and agricultural training at Tel Aviv University. Liron actively engages in …

Matias Baker is founder and operator of Kepher Dynamics, a consultant-based service focused on the art and science of biodynamic agriculture and Holistic design. He has worked with a wide range of biodynamic projects and has helped establish new communities throughout North, Central and South America. Matias is currently building a Research Sanctua…

Tobias Bandel, Technology in Natural Capital Assessment. After studying agricultural sciences at the University of Hohenheim, Tobias spent several years as head of fruit and vegetable cultivation and sales at Sekem in Egypt, a well-known and respected Biodynamic Operation. In 2007 he co- founded and lead the sustainability consultancy Soil & More I…

Eric Cunningham is a professor of History at Gonzaga University specializing in Japanese Intellectual History. After earning a BA in History from the University of Colorado in 1984, Cunningham was commissioned as an officer in the US Navy, and served for six years as an engineering and deck officer aboard guided missile cruisers. After resigning hi…

Allan Savory, born in Zimbabwe and educated in South Africa (University of Natal, BS in Zoology and Botany) pursued an early career as a research biologist and game ranger in the British Colonial Service of what was then Northern Rhodesia (today Zambia) and later as a farmer and game rancher in Zimbabwe. In the 1960s he made a significant breakthro…

My honest thoughts on Lies of P, in relation to goats, mountains, and Italian aperitifs. After completing Lies of P, at long last, I started to question whether I actually enjoyed doing so. A complete novice to the Soulslike genre, I muddled through the boss fights, mostly with the help of explosive throwables and bait in the form of a battle Spect…

Exploring the world of immersive audio gaming with The Vale: Shadow of the Crown. The Vale places you in the shoes of blind princess Alex. Your father is dead. Your brother has been crowned the new king. Meanwhile, you are being whisked away to a small keep in the Borderlands, on the outskirts of the kingdom. That is until your caravan is attacked …

Exploring the links between Lies of P and The Adventures of Pinocchio, as well as that one forgotten film adaptation that currently sits at 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. When developing a new Soulslike game, South Korean developer Neowiz Games wanted to make sure it had widespread appeal. For the setting, the art team focused on the concept of “Gotham Par…

Exploring the Gothic (and Belle Époque) architecture of Lies of P, while ignoring the killer puppets. When designing the Paris-like city of Krat in Lies of P, the arts team were asked to focus on the concept of “Gotham Paris”. Whether “Gotham” is a mistranslation of “Gothic” is up to debate. But the point is the designers were asked to steep the ga…

Dr. Krishnamurti has his Doctorate in Sanskrit with a focus in Vrikshayurveda. His PhD Research focused on Medicinal Plant cultivation using Vrikshayurveda methods to protect medicinal efficacy, and good agricultural yield of AYUSH botanicals. He is also particularly knowledgeable on Ayurvedic Dravya-Guna Vijnana (Indian Traditional Pharmacology). …

This second part starts on the edge of a cliff. From there it takes a deep dive into the mid-life crisis, exploring topics as vast as Frankenstein, brain-machine technology, and wayward orphans.Long-lost fathers, cliff-edge tussles, and Holy Grails are common features of the hero’s journey. These can be found in much of Hollywood’s output, from The…

In the late forties Joseph Campbell laid out the mythic pattern that underlies every story ever told. George Lucas discovered it in the seventies while writing Star Wars. And Tim Schafer likely studied it while writing adventure games for LucasArts. This first part explores the Hero's Journey in Psychonauts, in connection to Star Wars, Indiana Jone…

Gary Lachman is the author of many books about consciousness, culture, and the Western esoteric tradition, including Dreaming Ahead of Time, The Return of Holy Russia, Dark Star Rising: Magick and Power in the Age of Trump, Lost Knowledge of the Imagination, and Beyond the Robot: The Life and Work of Colin Wilson. He has written biographies of Carl…

Kira is an Australian Naturopath, Nutritionist, Herbalist and Medical Astrologer. Known for her vibrant, straight forward teaching style, Kira has lectured in Medical Astrology within Australia, North America and Europe. In private practice for over 25 years, Kira combines her knowledge in Natural Medicine with her passion for Medical Astrology int…

Wendy Lilje has been working with biodynamic principles for approximately 40 years when she began producing Weleda and Wala remedies in Johannesburg. In 2000 she moved to Cape Town and shortly after purchased the Bloublommetjieskloof biodynamic farm in Wellington from Jeanne Malherbe, a single woman farmer, who started farming there in the 1960's, …

Gary Lamb is the director of the Hawthorne Valley Center for Social Research and its Ethical Technology Initiative. His technical background includes a degree in civil technology and mathematics, and employment in the fields of building construction, medical technology, and manufacturing. Prior to working on A Road to Sacred Creation: Rudolf Steine…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speaker: Jahan Khamsehzadeh PROGRAM NOTES:Today's podcast features a conversation with author Jahan Khamsehzadeh, whose recent book, The Psilocybin Connection, is a significant addition to our understanding of how psychedelic substances have aided humans throughout history and how they continue to do so.The book'…

Babs Behan is a specialist in non-toxic natural dyeing, inks and printmaking, with a focus on bioregional regenerative textile systems. She is the author of “Botanical Inks”, as well as the Founder of the Botanical Inks natural dye studio and the Bristol Cloth project. She has been featured on BBC News, BBC Countryfile & Sky News. You can find Babs…

Johan Reyneke studied philosophy, and fell in love with environmental ethics. He got a student job working in vineyards, and converted a small vineyard to organic and biodynamic and things just grew from there. Today he has 120 hectares under certified Demeter status in Stellenbosch, South Africa, and a winery to go with it. Johan is happily marrie…

Sundeep Kamath is the General Secretary of the All India Organic Network Association (AIONA); He is the former Secretary of the Biodynamic Association of India; He’s been on the board of IFOAM Asia (the representative body of the Organic Movement in Asia); and was on the Organizing Committee of the Organic World Congress in 2017. He is also a found…

André Tranquilini is a biodynamic farmer, consultant and teacher. He has been the Estate manager at Waltham Place, a 220 acre biodynamic estate in Berkshire, since 2018. André has worked extensively as a market gardener, outdoor classroom teacher and was a founding member of the seed company, Living Seeds, in Portugal. Born in Brazil, André has had…

Robert is a practicing alchemist and author. In 1974, he left San Jose State University to pursue an intensive course of alchemical study at the Paracelsus Research Society (later Paracelsus College) under the guidance of Dr. Albert Reidel (aka Frater Albertus). By 1976, at the prompting of Frater Albertus, Robert returned to college at Boise State…

Stewart Lundy, along with his partner and wife, Natalie, farms 50 acres of land on a tiny peninsula in rural Virginia. For the past decade he has practiced biodynamics, and for the past eight years he has made and applied the biodynamic preparations. Stewart also works for The Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Bio-Dynamics. In his free time he…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speakers: Patreon Saloners PROGRAM NOTES:The painting, Saint Albert by Alex Grey, was completed as part of Dr. Albert Hofmann's 100th birthday celebration held in Basel, Switzerland on January 11th, 2006.Can you imagine knowing someone for over 20 years, even tripping with them from time-to-time, and not knowing …

1577 - 1640 Flanders (Belgium) Rubens brought together the best of Italian and Dutch renaissance painting into a lush style that has become known as Baroque. His ability to bring the human form and flesh alive continues to amaze. He was also, by the way, a skilled diplomat who quietly helped maintain peace between Holland’s independent north and hi…

Philippus Paracelsus 1493-1541 Switzerland “Alchemists” have unfortunately come to be trivialized as people on a Quixotic quest to make base metals into gold. Paracelsus was a true alchemist—a brilliant medieval physician and chemist who combined breakthrough scientific discoveries with careful observation and traditional folk wisdom to, literally,…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speakers: Patreon Saloners PROGRAM NOTES:Today's podcast features a recording of a live salon that began with us sharing trip stories and eventually led into a discussion of Vedic astrology as well as right speech, right action, and right thinking. Along the way, we heard a wonderful story about the unintended co…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speakers: Kat Lakey, Alexa Lakey, Leonard Pickard, Gaia Harvey Jackson, and Greg Sams PROGRAM NOTES:Today's program features the next installment of the reading of Leonard Pickard's book, The Rose of Paracelsus. This program was produced by Kat and Alexa Lakey and includes a personal message from Leonard. The rea…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speakers: Gary Smith, Sonia Martinez, Saumel Saks PROGRAM NOTES:Psychedelics are becoming more mainstream, but the law hasn't caught up with the culture when it comes to accepting psychedelic lifestyles. In this podcast, we discuss ways the law is changing around psychedelics and how this affects the community, w…

Support Lorenzo on Patreon.comGuest speaker: Robb Flannery PROGRAM NOTES:While going through cancer treatment, Dr. Flannery’s mom sought recommendations for safely medicating with Cannabis. Dr. Flannery’s unmatched expertise in the field and his absolute vigilance for his mom’s health created the most stringent standards – no applied chemicals, no …

In this episode, we talk with Jeremy Narby, PhD about his new book Plant Teachers, which compiles traditional indigenous and contemporary scientific knowledge about ayahuasca and tobacco. In this far-reaching conversation Narby talks about the different types and uses of Ayahuasca, creating partnership between scientific and indigenous knowledge, r…

Without Kyrell, Jack ventures on to learn what dark magic is, but she might get more than she bargained for

PROGRAM NOTES:Date this lecture was recorded: September 30, 2021Guest speakers:Clement Hil Goldberg and Charles Costas Today's podcast is a conversation from the live Psychedelic Salon featuring Clement Hil Goldberg, the writer, director and animator behind the upcoming sci-fi comedy Let Me Let You Go. We talked about how mushrooms can save the wor…