New Thinking Allowed with Jeffrey Mishlove Oct 23, 2025 Gary Lachman is the author of The Return of Holy Russia: Apocalyptic History, Mystical Awakening, and the Struggle for the Soul of the World as well as over twenty other books about the influence of esotericism on politics and society. He has written biographies of Carl Jung, Aleister Crowley, Rudolf Steiner, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Emanuel Swedenborg, P. D. Ouspensky, and Colin Wilson. Gary Lachman speaks about his extraordinary journey from the rock stages of Blondie to becoming one of the leading cultural historians of Western esotericism. Gary discusses the formative influences that shaped his inner life—from comic books and counterculture to his encounters with Rudolf Steiner, Colin Wilson, and the transformative power of consciousness. Lachman explores how creative evolution and spiritual seeking converge in a lifetime devoted to understanding the deeper dimensions of mind and meaning. 00:00 Introduction 01:43 Early life and love of reading 08:01 Comics and awakening to the esoteric 11:30 Entering the new york music scene 18:01 Forming blondie and early punk energy 22:04 Leaving the band and seeking meaning 27:21 Discovering the occult and philosophy 35:12 From rock to metaphysics 45:43 Crisis transformation and new direction 53:19 Life in london and becoming an author 58:01 Conclusion 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 is Co-Director of Parapsychology Education at the California Institute for Human Science. (Recorded on **** 00, 20**)
