Huston Cummings Smith PhD (1919–2016) was an American scholar of religious studies. He authored at least thirteen books on world’s religions and philosophy. He was the author of The Religions of Man which sold over three million copies as of 2017.
In this video he recounts how India transformed his understanding of spiritual life—from early Advaita/Jñāna practice in the U.S. to immersive encounters with India’s sacred culture. He reflects on reports of siddhis (yogic powers) while affirming the “greater miracle” of moral transformation, visits Gandhi’s ashram and Vinoba Bhave’s village movement, observes laboratory studies of yogis’ psychophysiological control, and traces a Buddhist detour into Vipassana that leads to a discussion of Southern and Northern traditions. In conversation with Jeffrey Mishlove, Smith explores symbolism, pluralism, and the living presence of the divine in everyday life.
[00:00:00] Opening: Siddhis vs the “greater miracle” of goodness
[00:02:03] From U.S. Advaita/Jñāna practice to “3-D” India
[00:04:49] Arrival in Delhi: sensory shock, poverty, and buoyant spirit
[00:07:08] India’s religiosity and a critique of Western materialism
[00:10:02] Seeking gurus and siddhis: disciple accounts and Nityananda stories
[00:18:02] Lonavla lab: yogi biocontrol (pulse, temperature, perspiration) with scientists
[00:22:03] Gandhi’s ashram: truth, simplicity—and Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan cooperatives
[00:27:27] Many gods as visual poetry: symbolism, pluralism, and “33 million deities”
[00:43:10] Burma detour: Vipassana intensive, “divine eye,” Goenka lineage, IMS & Rains Retreat
[00:52:30] Southern vs Northern Buddhism: Bodhisattva ideal, civilization vs religion, society tripod
New Thinking Allowed host, Jeffrey Mishlove, PhD, is author of The Roots of Consciousness, Psi Development Systems, and The PK Man. Between 1986 and 2002 he hosted and co-produced the original Thinking Allowed public television series. He is the recipient of the only doctoral diploma in “parapsychology” ever awarded by an accredited university (University of California, Berkeley, 1980). He is also the Grand Prize winner of the 2021 Bigelow Institute essay competition regarding the best evidence for survival of human consciousness after permanent bodily death. He currently serves as Co-Director of Parapsychology Education at the California Institute for Human Science.
(Recorded/Created on XXXX 00, 20XX)
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