Ep288: Apocalypse Now? - Naomi Levine
Naomi Levine is an author, under her birth name Norma Levine, of multiple books including ‘The Miraculous 16th Karmapa’ and ‘Blessing Power of the Buddhas’.
Available on Youtube, iTunes, SoundCloud & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
In this interview, Naomi discusses her latest writing about the apocalyptic prophecies of the Kālacakra tantra, a Tibetan Buddhist scripture promoted by the Dalai Lama.
Naomi discusses the doctrine of the dark age known as the “Kali Yuga” including its origins, its signs and symptoms, and Buddhist ideas about its unfolding.
Naomi tells the story of Shambala, a mystical kingdom ruled by enlightened, bodhisattva kings, and reveals the prophesied holy war which the Kālacakra tantra claims will see the Shambala army face off against barbarian hordes.
Naomi also discusses the surprising implications of the Dalai Lama’s mass Kālacakra initiation rituals, the role of stūpas and other religious monuments in geomantic magick, and how she personally deals with a sense of impending apocalypse.
00:00 - Intro
01:18 - What is the Kali Yuga?
06:38 - Moral and environmental degeneration
10:14 - When did the Kali Yuga begin?
12:39 - Signs of the Kali Yuga and climate change
15:55 - Multi-dimensional reality and hidden lands
17:44 - Naomi’s pilgrimage to the hidden land of Pemako
20:42 - The Pure Lands in Buddhist cosmology
21:57 - The kingdom of Shambala
26:25 - Seeking Shambala
27:28 - The Kālacakra Tantra
30:28 - Prophecy of the battle of Shambala
33:42 - Good vs evil
35:26 - Does the Kālacakra refer to Islam?
37:42 - Why does the 14th Dalai Lama give Kālacakra initiations?
39:33 - Inner or outer battle?
43:01 - Tai Situ’s interest in the timespan between Buddhas
44:55 - Is Shambala just a myth?
46:09 - What is Shambala?
47:35 - Shangri-La and Hilton’s “Lost Horizons”
48:28 - Chogyam Trungpa’s version of Shambala
51:50 - How geomancy and building stupas affect world events
52:48 - Stupas as geomantic magic
56:56 - Cancelling Jane Austen
57:52 - Dissolution of the elements
59:45 - Tukdam
01:01:47 - How Naomi responds to the end times
01:05:33 - The constantly shifting drama of world events
01:06:43 - Suggestion for non-Buddhists
01:07:48 - Naomi asks Steve’s opinion
01:09:14 - Prophecies of lamas and other mystics
01:10:09 - Apocalyptic thinking and displaced death anxiety
01:10:31 - Naomi’s attitude towards death
Previous episodes with Naomi Levine:
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Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James