The Passing Through Podcast

Danny
  • 4.9 (7)
  • Society & Culture

I currently live in a German-made van named Wilma with my partner. We’ve given up our old way of life and are touring Europe – passing through farms and eco-villages while I record a rambling, ranting podcast examining the in-betweens of consciousness, ecology, animacy, and the human condition. Fasten your seatbelt and come along for the ride!

  1. 3d ago

    E134 | Halloween Special | A Century of Cinematic Monsters: The Zombie, Vampire & Frankenstein

    Is a zombie just a mindless reanimated corpse cursed with an insatiable hunger for warm brains? Or are their pained groans an attempt to tell us something real about consumption, imperial extraction, plantation capitalism and the loss of bodily autonomy under oppressive settler-colonial regimes? Modern audiences may have forgotten this, but zombies, in their proper cultural context, didn’t eat flesh. In the original Haitian folklore from which the zombie arises, the monster is metaphor for the horrors of transatlantic chattel slavery. Signaling the ultimate, tragic horror of resurrecting a body—removing it from its final resting place—and condemning it to a frightful fate of forced labor for all eternity. Enslaved not just in life but also in death; a total denial of freedom. Everything that has come to be understood as monstrous to the modern mind arose alongside—and in relationship to—Western colonial expansion and Enlightenment thought. Today, much of what’s perceived of as frightening isn’t merely biological, but rather culturally constructed. These constructs haunt us. They lurk and linger in the shadowy recesses of our synapses; whispering words from the dark alleys we’d rather not walk down. They invite us to sit with deep discomfort, existential dread, grief, numbness, hopelessness and despair, the terror of unmitigated malice. The monstrous is unboundaried, unpredictable, illogical, illegible, incorrigible, inexorable. French Philosopher and author Michele Foucault had this to say about monsters: “The monster is the fundamental figure around which bodies of power and domains of knowledge are disturbed and reorganized.” We do not invent monsters out of thin air; we construct them out of what our culture refuses to face. Let’s take a good look at some monsters.

    E134 | Halloween Special | A Century of Cinematic Monsters: The Zombie, Vampire & Frankenstein

  2. Oct 21

    E133 | Mary-Jane Rubenstein | Pantheologies: Gods, Worlds, Monsters

    Mary-Jane Rubenstein is a philosopher of religion and science, and the author of numerous books, including Pantheologies: Gods, Worlds, Monsters. In this episode, we discuss her work on pantheology, the idea that the world itself is divine. We talk about how certain ideas and bodies become monstrous. Not only is the title of this book absolutely wicked, it’s one of those books I couldn’t put down and couldn’t stop thinking about once I did. It weaves together medieval heresies, Ancient Greek Gods and philosophies, general relativity, quantum mechanics, nonlinear biologies like Gaia Theory, multiverse and indigenous cosmologies, ecofeminism, animal and vegetal studies, and more. You can find Mary-Jane and learn more about this book and her work at https://www.maryjanerubenstein.com.

    E133 | Mary-Jane Rubenstein | Pantheologies: Gods, Worlds, Monsters

  3. Oct 7

    E132 | Cornell 7 | Masculinity, Harm and Monsters

    Listen to this episode with caution. The themes are more explicit than usual; they concern the Cornell 7 rape allegations and the larger societal forces which enable sexual violence and harm. There are two corrections I wanted to make since recording the audio. First, that not every one of the students had to write an essay as punishment. It appears only some students did. Additionally, I mentioned that women are were responsible for most of the labor in the world, and I want to clarify that my point was about UNPAID labor. This episode digs into how we talk about women under modernity, and how we think of men and masculinity. I explore how our thoughts and perceptions contribute to forces that literally govern bodies. These are racial forces, gendered forces, political forces, cultural forces that run so deep they pierce the marrow of our bones. Swell and pulse in the throbbing reproductive organs of men. I also ask what's happening when we describe other people as monsters. Does this language and framing reproduce the very systems they seek to dismantle? Perhaps it's a learned tactic of the oppressor; a linguistic tool purposed to dehumanize and explain problems away in isolated, reductionist terms which lend themselves to carceral systems and punitive thinking. What does accountability look like when we have to sit with the monster instead of locking it in a room with other monsters?

    E132 | Cornell 7 | Masculinity, Harm and Monsters

  4. Sep 25

    E131 | Goodbye Spotify & Where to Find This Podcast

    I'm leaving Spotify, and I've setup a Patreon. This is the last and only episode of this show you should see listed here. If you want to find this podcast, search for it wherever you listen to podcasts, or check it out at www.thepassingthroughpodcast.com. You can find it on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Castbox, Pocket Casts, Podcast Addict, iHeartRadio, and most other places you listen to podcasts. This episode is sponsored by SWILK. It's what bones crave!

    E131 | Goodbye Spotify & Where to Find This Podcast

  5. Sep 16

    E130 | Getting Back in the Saddle

    I'm back after a bit of time away. Join me for a chat about what I've been up to, where I was, and what's next for the podcast. I also talk about some of the things I've been reading, and share a few thoughts on the state of the world. This episode is brought to you by Defecation Desecration.

    E130 | Getting Back in the Saddle

  6. Aug 11

    E129 | Leaving On a Jet Plane

    I'm leaving for a little while for a brief adventure. I'll be back again in about a month. Enjoy the down time!

    E129 | Leaving On a Jet Plane

  7. Aug 5

    E128 | Skye Cielita Flor | Curanderismo, Ayahuasca & Animist Perception

    When you think of plant medicine, one of the first things you think of is probably ayahuasca. An Intensely psychedelic kaleidoscopic weekend of hallucination and vomiting hopefully accompanied by profound shifts in consciousness. You may know someone who’s attended an ayahuasca ceremony, you may have even attended one or more yourself, but you probably haven’t heard the stories of someone who’s studied with indigenous Shipibo people of the Peruvian Amazon. This week’s guest spent 5 years in the jungle, embedded in an animist culture, undergoing plant dietas while learning medicine songs called icaros as she deepened her understanding of both plant intelligences and the ancient practice of Amazonian Curanderismo. Skye has also spent three years apprenticing with Chinese medicine, she’s a Grief Ritualist, a facilitator in Experiential Deep Ecology. Skye currently co-facilitates Josh’s yearlong study group The Mythic Body, and leads her own events focused on reclaiming animist perception, developing mythic imagination and helping people reconnect to the living, breathing, more-than-human world all around us. She leads various study groups on Practical Animism and Grief work, as Nature Connection Mentor, Folk Herbalist, Plant Medicine Ritualist, Naturalist and as someone who spends a lot of time outdoors, in ritual or in focused practice on the land. Honestly, I can’t think of a more fitting guest than Skye. This is one of my favorite conversations on this show and I hope you enjoy it too. Skye’s Website Blogs Curanderismo Plant Dieta Icaros Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy Skye's Upcoming Events Skye’s Upcoming Workshop on Plant Intelligence References Robert Johnson’s Inner Work Stephen Harrod Buhner’s Plant Intelligence And The Imaginal Realm Josh Schrei’s The Emerald Podcast — Animism Is Normative Consciousness Previous Episodes John Seed Francis Weller Josh Schrei Bayo Akomolafe

    E128 | Skye Cielita Flor | Curanderismo, Ayahuasca & Animist Perception

  8. Jul 15

    E127 | Funkadelic | 55 Years of Maggot Brain

    On July 12, Funkadelic's Maggot Brain turned fifty-five. Mommy, what's a funkadelic? Join me for a very quick reflection on this enormously influential psychedelic funk rock album. Frontman George Clinton and guitarist Eddie Hazel are musical heroes, and to commemorate this special anniversary George Clinton landed the mothership in New Orleans at the Essence Festival. If you too share visions of one nation under a groove, then sit down, tune in, free your mind, and your ass will follow. Links https://funkadelic.bandcamp.com/album/maggot-brain https://funkadelic.bandcamp.com/album/funkadelic https://funkadelic.bandcamp.com/track/biological-speculation https://funkadelic.bandcamp.com/track/i-bet-you https://funkadelic.bandcamp.com/track/good-thoughts-bad-thoughts https://georgeclinton.com

    E127 | Funkadelic | 55 Years of Maggot Brain
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4.9
out of 5
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About

I currently live in a German-made van named Wilma with my partner. We’ve given up our old way of life and are touring Europe – passing through farms and eco-villages while I record a rambling, ranting podcast examining the in-betweens of consciousness, ecology, animacy, and the human condition. Fasten your seatbelt and come along for the ride!

Information

  • Creator
    Danny
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    114
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Danny | The Passing Through Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Passing Through Podcast

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