In this episode, we dive deep into the forgotten intersections between socialism, the occult, and the mystical counter-traditions that shaped radical politics. Featuring a critical examination of Meagan Day’s The Forgotten History of Socialism and the Occult and a rich discussion inspired by “Socialism, Spirituality, and the Forgotten Occult Roots of the Left” with Graham Jones (Nov 28, 2025), the program challenges the assumption that socialist history is purely secular and rational.
We explore the warm stream of revolutionary imagination—where Marxism meets mysticism, utopian movements embrace esoteric ideas, and political subjectivity is shaped by spiritual experience. Topics include materialist spirituality, enchanted materialism, and how re-sacralizing our relationship with nature and matter can inform a more humane and liberatory politics.
The episode also draws from
• Orestes Brownson on Saint-Simon and proto-socialist mysticism
• Saint-Simonianism’s influence on Eliphas Levi and the French occult revival
• The key distinctions between occult, esoteric, hidden, secret—and how American metaphysical religions applied a “spiritual sunshine law”
• A New Thought perspective on the occult, including archival audio from Eric Butterworth
• A BBC documentary on Annie Besant, tracing her path from socialist organizer to Theosophist
• Dr. Stephan A. Hoeller’s Esoteric Gnosis lectures on Eliphas Levi, the Enlightenment, and the non-dual relationship between science and religion, matter and spirit
• The tension between rationalism and mysticism in modern political culture
The episode includes a Good News segment and closes with a past-life guided meditation sourced from the 1990 Edgar Cayce A.R.E. VHS program Remembering Egypt.
If you’re interested in the spiritual countercurrents of the Left, the history of esoteric socialism, enchanted materialism, or the deeper metaphysical forces shaping political imagination, this is a wide-ranging, insight-rich deep dive.
#Socialism #OccultHistory #EsotericSocialism #Mysticism #Metaphysics #NewThought #AnnieBesant #EliphasLevi #Gnosis #EnchantedMaterialism #SpiritualPolitics #LeftHistory #Marxism #Occult #Esotericism #EdgarCayce #EricButterworth #Theosophy #UtopianSocialism #HistoryPodcast #PoliticalSpirituality
