Posts by Joel Pitney
The Fire of Freedom: A Brief History of Women’s Spiritual Uprisings
In celebration of International Women’s Day, the following article by Elizabeth Debold, originally published in EnlightenNext magazine, offers a “brief (and slightly speculative) three-thousand-year history of women’s spiritual uprisings and their impact on Western culture.” Enjoy! ________________________________ ‘The Fire of Freedom’ by Elizabeth Debold In the hurtle of history from the ancient past to the present,
Awakening to Your Highest Self: Roshi Bernie Glassman
In this interview, which was part of EnlightenNext’s ‘Awakening to Your Highest Self’ event, Andrew speaks with Roshi Bernie Glassman, world-renowned pioneer in the American Zen Movement and founder of Zen Peacemakers, about his relationship with his own teacher, Taizan Maezumi Roshi. Contrary to most traditional teacher/student relationships, rather than being taught to adhere to
AUDIO: Enlightenment Is Evolving
For thousands of years, human beings have discovered true freedom and liberation by awakening to timeless, formless Being or what the Buddha called the “unborn” or “uncreated.” Yet the world is evolving and so is our understanding of enlightenment. In the following audio clips—taken from last year’s Being & Becoming retreat in Tuscany— Andrew speaks
VIDEO: Awakening to A Cosmic Purpose
Last week, while Andrew was in London, he was interviewed by British filmmaker and events producer Adrian Silas. Here’s a clip where he speaks about awakening to a cosmic context for human life: “A Window On To Andrew Cohen”….The Adrian Silas Interview With Andrew Cohen 2013. from Adrian Silas on Vimeo.
AUDIO: ‘Divine Love’ – An Interview with Audrey Kitagawa
Audrey Kitagawa’s face shines with love and devotion when she speaks about her Japanese mentor and guru Flora Nomi, whom she refers to as Divine Mother. Audrey Kitagawa works as a full-time volunteer for the United Nations in the rescue and rehabilitation of child combatants forced to fight in civil wars and insurgencies throughout
VIDEO: ‘Spirits in a Material World’ – Andrew on BookCase TV
Andrew was recently interviewed about his book, Evolutionary Enlightenment, on the NYC Life channel’s BookCase TV, a unique and entertaining program all about books and the people who write them. Far more engaging than one might suspect from a show dedicated to books, the genuine interest and sincere curiosity of host Frederic Colier adds fuel
If You’re Conscious, How Can You Die?
In this classic interview from EnlightenNext magazine, Andrew interviews modern-day Taoist wizard, Peter Ragnar and the two discuss Ragnar’s hypothesis that the only thing fundamentally limiting human beings in any way—including our mortality—is the belief in limitation. Andrew once described Ragnar as a possible answer to the question of what someone like Anthony Robbins or
AUDIO: Interview on ‘My Spirit Radio’
Andrew was recently interviewed on the My Spirit Radio station in London and gave a beautiful and brief introduction to his teaching of Evolutionary Enlightenment, emphasizing the difference between the peace and stillness found in the traditional enlightenment and the overwhelming ecstatic urgency discovered in the new evolutionary enlightenment. As a precursor to his upcoming
Celebrating the Vision of MLK
In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Andrew published a couple of blog posts last year that are every bit as inspiring and relevant in 2013 as they were then. Below you’ll find the full article “I Have Seen The Mountaintop: A Vision Of The Possible.” Also, make sure to check out this
AUDIO: Letting Everything Go
The following audio clip is taken from the first day of Andrew’s recent Being and Becoming Retreat in Arizona. In reference to meditation, Andrew makes the profound point that if we want to experience the freedom of enlightened awareness, we have to be willing, at least temporarily, to let absolutely everything go. [Audio clip:
AUDIO: ‘Going Out of Your Mind’ with Ed and Deb Shapiro
Andrew recently spoke with irreverant spiritual teachers Ed and Deb Shapiro on their radio show ‘Going Out of Your Mind’ about a variety of interesting topics including: the evolution of the guru-disciple relationship within a postmodern context, Andrew’s recent trips to India, their own experiences with some of their respective past gurus, the significance of
AUDIO: Andrew Cohen’s New Year’s Day Broadcast
New Year’s Day is a time for us to reflect on the year gone by and to think about where we want to go in the year ahead. These contemplations apply to our personal goals and visions, and they also apply to the state of humanity as a whole. Where are we headed as a
Audio: Interview with Marilyn Hamilton of ‘Integral City’
During his recent trip to Vancouver, Andrew was interviewed by Dr. Marilyn Hamilton, founder of Integral City Meshworks Inc. and author of Integral City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive. Some of the questions answered by Andrew include: When did evolution start to inform your views of enlightenment? Why is the speed of change impacting
AUDIO: The Phenomenon of Apocalypse
Below is the audio from Andrew’s recent Guru & Pandit dialogue with Ken Wilber on the phenomenon of apocalypse. Drawing on the recent media and online buzz about the coming “end times” on December 21st, 2012, Cohen and Wilber explore everything from the Mayan prophecies about 2012 to the progress-oriented thinking of Stephen Pinker
The Return of Optimism
Since the world hasn’t ended yet, it seems like an appropriate time to talk about optimism. But given the many crises humanity is facing, is it actually reasonable or wise to promote an optimistic outlook for our collective future? In the following excerpt from his book Evolutionaries, former EnlightenNext Senior Editor Carter Phipps introduces what
The Dangerous Allure of Apocalypse
Are we secretly longing for the end of civilization? In this EnlightenNext magazine article, an environmentalist finds himself in a dramatic confrontation with the dangerous allure of apocalypse. Alex Steffen, who coined the term “bright green,” is the founder and executive editor of worldchanging.com, an international weblog and clearinghouse for cutting-edge environmental thought. Night,
Apocalypse Now, Progressive Style
Our society is very familiar with apocalyptic thinking—especially when it comes clothed in religious garb. Indeed, it seems that every few years another date for the rapture or end of the world or the return of Christ is set, anticipation reaches a fever pitch, and then the day goes by with no noticeable change in
Road to the Apocalypse: “Freedom in the Face of Fear”
The final ‘Guru and Pandit’ dialogue of 2012, between Andrew and integral philosopher Ken Wilber, is happening LIVE, this Friday, December 21st at 7pm ET (USA). Register here. In order to give you a taste of what’s in store, as well as to help set a larger context, you can read one of their previous
The Meaning of Your Life
The Huffington Post has recently launched a new platform called ‘TED Weekends’, to which Andrew recently contributed an article. For those of you unfamiliar with ‘TED Talks’—”riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world”—be sure to check out their website here. The ‘TED Weekends’ platform consists of a variety of contributors responding to
Andrew Cohen is a spiritual teacher, cultural visionary, founder of EnlightenNext, and the author of 
