PH2T3R The Journal of Solar Culture

In the absence of meaning, we must create it. In our last live broadcast, we discussed "The Meaning Crisis" -- what is perceived by many as an absence or loss of meaning. People say they want to "find meaning," but rarely seem to consider the possibility that they are capable of creating it. In this show, we'll discuss strategies for creating meaning and designing a more meaningful world. Specifically, we discuss four kinds of meaningful objects:Aesthetically Meaningful ObjectsSymbolically or Representationally Meaningful ObjectsObjects with Inherited NarrativeObjects with Loaded Narrative---C. B. Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei, and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/Instagram:   / caffeineandphilosophy  Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. He is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram:   / starttheworld  Twitter:   / ph2t3r  To find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram: / theorderoffire   / ph2t3r  

This year PH2T3R will produce a LIVE show on Thursday evenings at 7:00 PM PST. In our first episode, Jack Donovan and C.B. Robertson will discuss the first few episodes (1-3) of John Vervaeke's series "Awakening from the Meaning Crisis" from a Solar Idealist perspective. You can find the full playlist here: • Awakening from the Meaning Crisis ---C. B. Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei, and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/Instagram:   / caffeineandphilosophy  Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. He is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram:   / starttheworld  Twitter:   / ph2t3r  To find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram: / theorderoffire  

It's not that what they've told you is wrong, it's that they haven't told you the WHOLE story...That was C.B. Robertson's summary of the gnostic sales pitch during our recent PH2T3R podcast, and it's becoming an inside joke in our circle. One of our best podcasts yet, we discuss Gnosticism and the "occult" as they relate to Solar Idealism. A note from CB Robertson: Gnosticism is not something to dwell on. But to avoid being led astray, it's probably wise to be aware of what Gnosticism actually is, and what it looks like when the gnostic impulse expresses itself in worldviews that go by other names.For more resources on the topic, James Lindsay has two short(ish) videos and one very long video going deeper into the ideas here (and it is worth saying, Lindsay is mostly borrowing from the work of Eric Voegelin):1. Gnosticism, Modern and Postmodern (20 min)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-vJ_qPPljc2. The Gnostic Temptation (23 min)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svFxRVW0IfU3. Gnosticism in the Modern West (2 hr 23 min)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spetALxmcScThere are also decent Christian sources on the early Christian gnostics. We're not terribly concerned with Christianity, but one can glean a lot about gnostics in general from the early Christian gnostics specifically (for the real deep-dive nerds):4. Gnosticism and the Early Church (25 min - Ryan Reeves) **[[best historical video]]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXc-vvCivp45. Gnosticism, The Enduring Heresy (28 min - Robert Barron)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOvVgqBpeTYC. B. Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineand...Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan discusses Beowulf with Paul Begadon, Order of Fire member and author of The Layman's Havamal, who has spent the last year narrating and using AI to illustrate this classic heroic tale. Paul provides a thorough and engaging summary of the story of Beowulf and explains why he believes it is relevant today and how we can engage with it in such a way that it enriches and informs our own lives. For a more, read his essay, "Beowulf : An Ancient Model for Modern Heroism" on his web site https://woodkern.net .https://woodkern.net/beowulf1/Paul's Beowulf Illustrated project is available through Amazon in Audiobook, paperback, and e-book formats.https://amzn.to/3GdBdmsPaul's thoughtful exploration of The Havamal -- The Layman's Havamal -- is also available through Amazon. https://a.co/d/fsvMAgjMentioned:Heraclitus, FragmentsHesiod, Works and DaysJack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan and C.B. Robertson discuss Plato's dialogs concerning the Trial of Socrates and parallels to current events. We also attempt to place Socrates and some of the issues within the context of Solar Idealism. Mentioned: Plato's Dialogs - Euthyphro, Apology, and CritoC. B. Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineandphilosophyJack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

​What is goodness? Is a universal definition of good even possible? If not, what of badness and evil? What would good and evil mean to Solar Idealists?@JackDonovan and @ChristopherRobertson sat down with fellow Order of Fire member Dustin to talk about the nature of goodness (and perhaps the nature of badness or evil) in this special face-to-face podcast at the Order of Fire's 2023 Autumn Equinox event -- somewhere in a Nevada desert. C. B. Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineand...Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoff...https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan is joined by Order of Fire members Coach Josh Wood (Tasmania) and Kyle Brickell (British Columbia) to discuss hiking and mountain climbing. Josh and Kyle met in Canada years ago and later planned a trip to Nepal where they spent 16 days hiking above 5000m on the Three Passes Trek and over to Everest Base Camp. You can find a video of some of their journey on Coach Josh Wood's YouTube Channel: • Hike Nepal: Everest Base Camp and Thr...  To learn more about Coach Josh Wood and his coaching expertise, visit https://www.coachjoshwood.com/Or check out his Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/coachjoshwood/Like Josh, Kyle Brickell is one of the OG members of the Order of Fire, and Donovan interviewed him for PH2T3R about his music project, Anahata, here:https://ph2t3r.com/2021/05/14/anahata...You can find him on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/solarus_cas...Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoff...https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan and C.B. Robertson discuss Donovan's latest project, a powerful 5-minute speech set to original music titled "Invocation of the Storm." Invocation of the Storm has been released on X and YouTube, as well as Spotify, iMusic and various sound-streaming platforms. You can watch the full video here:https://youtu.be/CD3btj2nyUw?si=MAzzdwgC1vv2Mv_YOr listen to it on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/track/7G2wulq9kj0VDOaQ99Urln?si=f10744024ef744d9Christopher Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineand...Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan and Christopher Robertson continue a discussion about the pros and cons of anthropomorphizing or personifying gods, and they are joined by Order of Fire member Ed Hamann -- who studied Vedic and Hindu material for many years in India -- to add some eastern perspectives to the discussion. Christopher Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineand...Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/

Jack Donovan and Christopher Robertson begin a discussion about the pros and cons of anthropomorphizing or personifying gods. Some of the most beautiful figurative art in the word depicts gods or religious themes. Other religions forbid the depiction of gods.Is it better to imagine a humanoid figure or to speak of gods and ideals in terms of broad concepts and natural phenomena? Topics, books, and links discussed include:On Heroes, Hero-Worship and the Heroic in History by Thomas Carlylehttps://www.amazon.com/Heroes-Hero-Worship-Heroic-History/dp/B09NCCQVZL/Thus Spake Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzschehttps://a.co/d/9R4URmVFire in the Dark by Jack Donovanhttps://amzn.to/3nOUvVwPlato's Republichttps://a.co/d/c7ke4jfChristopher Robertson is the author of The Hero and the Man, Holy Nihilism, Letter to Anwei and more. He writes for PH2T3R and his own blog, Caffeine and Philosophy. https://caffeineandphilosophy.com/https://www.instagram.com/caffeineand...Jack Donovan is the author of The Way of Men, Becoming a Barbarian, A More Complete Beast, and Fire in the Dark. His is the founder of The Order of Fire and the PH2T3R project. https://www.jack-donovan.com/sowilo/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starttheworld/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ph2t3rTo find out more about the PH2T3R project, visit PH2T3R.comhttps://ph2t3r.com/To learn more about joining The Order of Fire:https://ph2t3r.com/theorderoffire/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/theorderoffire/https://www.instagram.com/ph2t3r/