Craig Hamilton: Countercultures, Conspiracy Theories, and Everything in Between

Thinking Ahead with Carter Phipps

QAnon. The hidden dangers of 5G. The nefarious secret plans of Bill Gates. The global cabal of pedophiles. Massive election fraud. Jewish space lasers. Conspiracy theories have grown like weeds during the pandemic and everyone, it seems, is trying to understand why. And this is not just a phenomenon on the Right. We also see it spreading widely in the alternative health and wellness movements and progressive spirituality, which have tended to be more politically Left. In fact, a new term has been coined to describe this unholy alliance: “conspirituality.” However far-out they may seem, these beliefs are becoming surprisingly common in the networks I’m connected to. So what is going on? How concerned should we be? How do we draw the line between the questioning of authority that has always been a hallmark of the counterculture, and the descent into dangerous fantasy? In order to help me grapple with these questions, I reached out to a very close friend, Craig Hamilton. Today, Craig is a well-known and popular spiritual teacher whose online courses and programs have been enjoyed by many thousands. But I first met Craig almost three decades ago, when we were fellow spiritual seekers and later editors of the magazine What Is Enlightenment? Craig is still one of the first people I turn to when I have a conundrum or a question ricocheting around in my head, and I play the same role for him. We’ve been having deep dialogues about every issue under the sun for a long time, and I’m delighted that I can now invite Craig on my podcast and share these always-insightful conversations in a public forum.