#317 – John Vervaeke: Meaning Crisis, Atheism, Religion & the Search for Wisdom

About this episode

<p>John Vervaeke is a psychologist and cognitive scientist at University of Toronto. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:<br /> &#8211; <b>Mizzen+Main</b>: <a href="https://mizzenandmain.com">https://mizzenandmain.com</a> and use code LEX to get $35 off<br /> &#8211; <b>InsideTracker</b>: <a href="https://insidetracker.com/lex">https://insidetracker.com/lex</a> to get 20% off<br /> &#8211; <b>Eight Sleep</b>: <a href="https://www.eightsleep.com/lex">https://www.eightsleep.com/lex</a> to get special savings<br /> &#8211; <b>Athletic Greens</b>: <a href="https://athleticgreens.com/lex">https://athleticgreens.com/lex</a> to get 1 month of fish oil<br /> &#8211; <b>Onnit</b>: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/onnit">https://lexfridman.com/onnit</a> to get up to 10% off</p> <p><b>EPISODE LINKS:</b><br /> John&#8217;s YouTube: <a href="https://youtube.com/johnvervaeke">https://youtube.com/johnvervaeke</a><br /> John&#8217;s Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john">https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john</a><br /> John&#8217;s Facebook: <a href="https://facebook.com/VervaekeJohn">https://facebook.com/VervaekeJohn</a><br /> John&#8217;s Website: <a href="https://johnvervaeke.com">https://johnvervaeke.com</a><br /> Books mentioned:<br /> Flow: <a href="https://amzn.to/3cQDby9">https://amzn.to/3cQDby9</a><br /> On Bullshit: <a href="https://amzn.to/3PZDvYW">https://amzn.to/3PZDvYW</a><br /> The Denial of Death: <a href="https://amzn.to/3KsIctp">https://amzn.to/3KsIctp</a></p> <p><b>PODCAST INFO:</b><br /> Podcast website: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/podcast">https://lexfridman.com/podcast</a><br /> Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://apple.co/2lwqZIr">https://apple.co/2lwqZIr</a><br /> Spotify: <a href="https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8">https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8</a><br /> RSS: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/">https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/</a><br /> YouTube Full Episodes: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexfridman">https://youtube.com/lexfridman</a><br /> YouTube Clips: <a href="https://youtube.com/lexclips">https://youtube.com/lexclips</a></p> <p><b>SUPPORT &#38; CONNECT:</b><br /> &#8211; Check out the sponsors above, it&#8217;s the best way to support this podcast<br /> &#8211; Support on Patreon: <a href="https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman">https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/lexfridman">https://twitter.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman">https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman">https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman">https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman</a><br /> &#8211; Medium: <a href="https://medium.com/@lexfridman">https://medium.com/@lexfridman</a></p> <p><b>OUTLINE:</b><br /> Here&#8217;s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.<br /> (00:00) &#8211; Introduction<br /> (07:03) &#8211; Meaning<br /> (27:17) &#8211; Consciousness<br /> (36:17) &#8211; Relevance realization<br /> (47:40) &#8211; Wisdom<br /> (54:54) &#8211; Truth<br /> (59:38) &#8211; Reality<br /> (1:11:59) &#8211; Meaning crisis<br /> (1:35:27) &#8211; Religion<br /> (1:43:17) &#8211; Nontheism<br /> (1:58:26) &#8211; Distributed cognition<br /> (2:16:37) &#8211; Flow<br /> (2:36:35) &#8211; Psychedelics<br /> (2:45:03) &#8211; Marxism and Nazism<br /> (2:57:08) &#8211; Evil<br /> (3:01:19) &#8211; Powerful ideas<br /> (3:08:10) &#8211; Advice for young people</p>