We are all quite certain that we have a self. When you say "I like chocolate" or "I vote progressive," no one asks what you mean by "I." That task was left for centuries to philosophers and theologians. "Know thyself" is an axiom worth heeding, but what is there to know? If one camp of modern science has its way, the answer is "nothing." The self, we are told, is an illusion created by the complexity of brain functions. As thousands of inputs bombard each other every second, forming an almost infinite tangle of neural messages, a ghost was created whose name is "I."
This interview was re-edited and reprinted with a special introduction for the 15th anniversary edition of Enliighten Next. 
Who were the all but forgotten Gnostics, how were they rediscovered, and why are they important?
I. THE GNOSTICS
Today we see celebrities fascinated with learning the Kabbalah, the wisdom of Jewish mystical tradition that has survived from ancient times. Far fewer people know that there was a related Christian mystical tradition called Gnosticism, a tradition once so powerful that a visionary Gnostic seer named Valentinus narrowly missed becoming the pope in the second century. In fact, Gnosticism was one of the two original major branches of the Christian religion from its founding until the third century AD. From that point on, the Gnostics fell into gradual decline to the point of near extinction. But who were these people whose visions presented a startling perspective on early Christianity, the nature of the Christ, the role of women in the creation, and the quest to realize the divine in our lives?
On how yesterday's religious mystics are today's creators of sci-fi and fantasy -- and why we should listen to what they have to say.
Sounds simple. It is simple - and it ain’t easy.
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