analects noun, pl

/ˈan.ə.lɛkts/

a collection of ideas, extracts, or teachings.

Spiritual Architecture

stuff On those things greater than ourselves

show:

analects under the categories btrmt. believes in, as set out in the manifesto

analects organised according to the fundamental questions of philosophy

sequences of articles gathered around a more focused idea

  • the value of ritual 25 Jul 2026 [audio + edited transcript] You don’t get a choice about whether you ritualise. Only about whether you chose the ritual.
  • successful prophets 27 Jun 2026 [audio + edited transcript] The most successful prophet isn’t a person. It’s a shared abstraction the group charges up and pins to a convenient emblem. Charisma is conf...
  • successful prophets 5 Jun 2026 [article] We think of cults as the product of dangerously charismatic leaders but on examination this narrative falls apart. Really, the most successf...
  • meditation isn't for everyone 30 May 2026 [audio + edited transcript] Meditation can harm you, and it isn’t for everyone. Strip the branding and it’s just trained attention—half of what you already do—so the on...
  • sages and wisdom 16 May 2026 [audio + edited transcript] The doctor and the guru run on the same authority structure. We just pick which one to trust by its costume. Choose by what sits under the c...
  • the scientific ritual 2 May 2026 [audio + edited transcript] Science isn’t the opposite of belief. It’s a ritual—and like any ritual it misfires, which is how a method built to find truth becomes a mac...
  • values don't matter 21 Feb 2026 [article] Values often function as virtue ethics—traits we’re expected to cultivate. But virtues are context-dependent: courage for a soldier isn’t co...
  • gesticism 26 Jan 2026 [article] Lots of things are happening, but anything can matter, and whatever gives meaning will eventually demand sacrifice. The agony of attention....
  • values don't matter 24 Jan 2026 [audio + edited transcript] Values don’t shape behaviour. The room does. They’re virtue ethics relabelled—and courage for a soldier isn’t courage for a teacher. Build t...
  • mundane cults 29 Nov 2025 [audio + edited transcript] Cults aren’t the fringe. They’re the architecture of ordinary community, and not being in one usually means something’s gone wrong. The ques...
  • beyond system 1 and system 2 13 Jun 2025 [article] System 1 vs System 2 is a useful shorthand, but our minds aren’t two-speed engines—they’re multi-process coalitions of specialised agents wo...
  • there is no authentic self 11 Apr 2025 [article] There’s no hidden version of you. If anything, we are a collection of bits and pieces that we weave together from the stories we learn from...
  • speaking in tongues 23 Aug 2024 [article] Glossolalia has a unique pattern of neural activity, distinct from psychopathologies and even other trance-like states. So, the feeling unde...
  • meditating for fun and for profit 5 Jul 2024 [article] Meditation generally involves either acknowledging or excluding thoughts, but can be problematic. Movement-based meditations (e.g. yoga, run...
  • eerie coincidences aren't that eerie 12 Nov 2023 [article] Your phone probably isn’t eavesdropping for ads. Your brain’s job is to highlight unexpected hits while ignoring the misses. Eerie coinciden...
  • on managing magic mushroom experiences 29 Jul 2023 [article] Mushrooms change the balance between inside-out forces (the all-consuming neural networks that support the ‘self’) and outside-in forces (th...
  • the value of ritual 17 Mar 2023 [article] Rituals are often dismissed, but they’re just procedures with a purpose. We all engage in ritualistic behavior—many habits and routines meet...
  • mundane cults 27 Feb 2023 [article] We’ve been taught that cults are dark and scary things. But we have been fooled. The cult is a prominent building block of modern community....
  • abstractions as gods 28 Dec 2022 [article] We can use abstractions to get a handle on complex features of the world. By personalising centres of purpose in the world, we can better co...
  • obscuring banalities 16 Dec 2022 [article] We often use complicated-sounding words to dress up simple ideas about the human experience. But this isn’t just self-indulgence. It’s also...
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