Global Spirit opens its second season with this hour-long program on one of the most important movements of our time. Host Phil Cousineau talks with the prolific bestselling author and spiritual teacher Deepak Chopra and social scientist and author Riane Eisler, author of the bestselling book The Chalice and the Blade, about the complex and multidimensional subject of "oneness" as explored by scientists and spiritual people in all the world's religions.

Nonduality or oneness has become a key concept in contemporary writings and conversations as more and more people are discovering that duality — the view that reality consists of opposing elements, such as the good guys versus the bad guys, self versus other, observer versus participant, believers versus nonbelievers, men versus women, rich versus poor — is not viable for communities or the planet. The illusion of separation it promotes has brought incredible divisiveness, prejudice, hatred, violence, suffering, and death into the world. An alternative is unity consciousness which puts the accent on interconnectedness, caring, empathy, and compassion. This wisdom is spreading around the globe at this time in history.

The discussion between Cousineau, Chopra, and Eisler is propelled by four clips from One: The Movie directed by Ward Powers. It includes interviews with ordinary Americans and commentary by spiritual teachers and scholars including Dr. Robert Thurman, Thich Nhat Hanh, Thomas Keating, Richard Rohr, Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, and others. Among the subjects that are explored by Cousineau, Chopra, and Eisler are the fear afoot in our culture, the importance of living in the present moment rather than escaping to the past or the future, views of the afterlife, the difficult question of what is the meaning of life, the contemporary media as providing nothing more than bread and circuses to the public, the belief in a personal God, and the potential of cyberspace. Riane Eisler makes a good case for practicing love in action and partnership. Near the end of the program, Chopra gives a passionate and convincing defense of cyberspace as a neutral technological tool which has incredible potential for advancing the cause of oneness and for bringing people together around the world.

To Continue This Journey:

  • See our profile of Deepak Chopra that includes reviews of his books, quotations from his writings, listings of videos, interviews, and other resources at S&P's Living Spiritual Teachers Project.
  • See our Spiritual Practices pages on Unity with a collection of quotes from a wide variety of spiritual teachers from all traditions, links to books and audios about unity, lists of movies and DVDs that reflect unity, plus spiritual exercises, journal prompts, and much more.
  • Ponder the main events in your spiritual journey. Think about your understanding and experiences of unity consciousness. What spiritual practices have helped you overcome fears stemming from the separation you feel from others? How would you answer the thorny question: What is the meaning of life? Share you reaction to Deepak Chopra's explanation of his belief that "There is only God."
  • After hearing Deepak Chopra's positive assessments of the potential of cyberspace and social networks such as Twitter and Facebook, reflect on how you can use these tools to promote unity consciousness and compassion. Better yet, post your views on your Facebook page and tweet your favorite quote from this program about oneness.