In this interview for the Galileo Commission, our adviser Ruper Sheldrake shares his views on materialism and how to move beyond it. He discusses the limitations of a dominant materialistic worldview in light of what we know about consciousness, epigenetics, among other empirical observations. All of this is summarised in his book The Science Delusion (Science Set Free in the US). Sheldrake also lays out his view of how morphogenetic fields can help explain natural phenomena such as the sense of being stared at – and even expresses hope, humorously so, that one day we can all enjoy a telepathy Olympics. At the end of the interview, Sheldrake reminds us of the stifling nature of a materialistic worldview for students and spiritually-minded scientists alike. Finishing on an upbeat note, however, Sheldrake is optimistic that liberation and creativity are to be found in a post-materialistic worldview.
