#  Om-gnosis: The Occult South Asia Podcast 

 



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   ![OMGnosis logo](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/2024-08/Logo%20photoshop%20full%20transparent.png?itok=LpzrKppQ) 

 

Om-gnosis is the first podcast dedicated to the study of Occult South Asia. Occult literally means “hidden,” but the word has come to mean many things. Today what we call occult often has deep ties to South Asian teachings and practices, including modern yoga, Hindu and Buddhist tantra, and Islamic esotericism. Occult South Asia is full of intercultural transfers, and many authors and practitioners from around the world have played a role in shaping this milieu at local and “translocal” or global levels.

These transfers are hinted at in the name Om-gnosis itself: the Sanskrit syllable “Om” is derived from the Vedas, Upanishads, and Tantras, and represents the Hindu idea of creation, preservation, and dissolution; and “gnosis,” etymologically cognate with *jñāna* in Sanskrit, meaning “knowledge,” but also standing for regeneration and cyclical return.

Instead of promoting a single religious perspective, author, or path, Om-gnosis welcomes viewers and listeners of all backgrounds and identities as we critically explore Occult South Asia, through a variety of beliefs, rituals, and practices, both ancient and modern.

Hosted by Keith Cantú.

Music by Keith Cantú, including personal field recordings from South Asia.

Special thanks to Ashley Borders Zigman for video intro design, Gosia Sklodowska for administrative support, and Chris Lisée for video and technical support.



 

Episode 1

### Introduction 

 

Today, what we call occult often has deep ties to South Asian teachings and practices, including, but not limited to modern yoga, Hindu and Buddhist tantra, and even Islamic esotericism. Occult South Asia is full of intercultural transfers, and many authors and practitioners from around the world played a role in formulating this category.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/YZr6eL9Bd-s) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 1: Introducing Om-gnosis](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%201.png?itok=AKjTzBdG) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 2

### Interview with Dr. Muhammad Faruque (part 1) 

 

Dr. Muhammad Faruque sits down with Dr. Keith Edward Cantú for an interview on how Sufi discourses can inform our understanding of self and the body. Dr. Faruque provides an introductory overview of the spread of Sufism in South Asia, including many of the more important names and sites. This leads to a wide-ranging conversation that includes discussion of the idea of gnosis in Sufism, the experiential importance of the Arabic word *dhawq* or "tasting" as similar to *rasa* in Sanskrit, the notion of selfhood and the pronoun “I” in Sufism, Sufi interactions with practitioners of yoga, and the yogic connection between the subtle centers called *laṭā'if* and the vital breath (Sanskrit *prāṇa*).



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/42IYyojl-S0) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 2](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%202.png?itok=5daErcX2) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 3

### Interview with Dr. Muhammad Faruque (part 2) 

 

Dr. Muhammad Faruque continues his interview with Dr. Keith Edward Cantú on how Sufi discourses can inform our understanding of self and the body. Dr. Faruque answers questions about diagrams in Sufi texts and resemblance with diagrams in Kabbalah, the interplay of fanā' or “annihilation” and baqā' or “subsistence” in Sufism, the connection between Sufism and occultism and unseen phenomena more generally, Sufi conceptions of selfhood as compared to that of philosophical theorists, and a song by Lalon Sai that references Mansur al-Hallaj in connection with the pronoun “I.”



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/3l2ZEkH3AWg) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 3](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%203.png?itok=lt9sr-HE) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 4

### Interview with Professor Manon Hedenborg White 

 

Professor Manon Hedenborg White of Malmö University joins host Keith Edward Cantú for a wide-ranging discussion on how her personal and academic interest in esotericism developed and, more specifically, how her research into Aleister Crowley and Thelema from a gender studies point of view intersects with the study of South Asia.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/uhnrhrJeVi0) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 4](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%204.png?itok=IjzhyXox) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 5

### "Om" History and Practice from Vedic Period to Present Day 

 

In this special in-person fifth episode of Om-gnosis, we sit down with Finnian M. Moore Gerety, PhD (Oxford University), for an in-depth conversation about the syllable “Om,” including its history and associated ritual practices from the Vedic period to the present day.



 [ Watch the videocast. arrow\_circle\_right ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnSvdg1lSmE&list=PLX_9feVneSp11FMdYzlGaduruxGnNXTJI&index=5) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 5](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%205.png?itok=LUFlA-AZ) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 6

### Religious and folk worlds of Bangladesh 

 

In the sixth episode of *Om-gnosis*, Saymon Zakaria, PhD of Bangla Academy, Dhaka explores the religious and folk traditions of Bangladesh and their ties to Occult South Asia. He shares insights into his upbringing in a village rich in Nāth traditions and folk theater, the cultural significance of Kushtia's Fakiri, Baul, and Vaishnava practices, and the enduring role of body-centered rituals in rural communities. The discussion expands to his academic work on traditional theater and inter-religious performances, the formation of the Bangla Academy, and efforts to revive the Charyapada songs through the Bhabnagar Foundation. The episode also delves into the esoteric meanings of "Baul" and "Fakir," the interplay of Buddhist, Vaishnava, and Sufi traditions, and the mystical dimensions of figures like Lalon Sai. Other topics include the role of jinn, fairy-like beings, cremation ground rituals, and the goddess Nairamani’s presence in Bengali spiritual traditions.



 [ Watch the videocast. arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/WOffGxZhheA?si=QfW15BqZo4zFDqLo) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 6](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%206.png?itok=aLdBd74-) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 7

###  Social Histories and Doctrines of Global Tantra and Occultism with Julian Strube 

 

In this seventh episode of Om-gnosis, we sit down with Prof. Julian Strube to discuss global esotericism, South Asia, the concept of occultism, and its intersections with political movements.



 [ Watch the videocast. arrow\_circle\_right ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sY6I9CHb88&list=PLX_9feVneSp11FMdYzlGaduruxGnNXTJI&index=8) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 7](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%207.png?itok=xOjxqiK_) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 8

### Interview with Vinayagam Swamigal 

 

In this eighth episode of Om-gnosis, we interview Vinayagam Swamigal, Managing Trustee of the Sri Sabapathy Lingeshwar Jiva Samadhi Temple in Tamil Nadu, about the legacy of Sabhapati Swami—his ties to Theosophy, Siddhar yoga traditions, and the temple’s living practices in art, music, and women's roles—culminating in a tour of the meditation hall and the tumulus (*jīva samādhi*) where Sabhapati is believed to be buried under a Shivalinga.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/IHvbR7fnkMA?si=alk70jlQF7ekTQA6) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 8](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%208.png?itok=V65Vr7-F) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 9

### Interview with Parvathy Baul 

 

In this ninth episode of Om-gnosis, we interview Parvathy Baul, practitioner, performer, and teacher of the Baul tradition from Bengal, India. We discuss the importance of preserving intercultural and international exchange among spiritual seekers, the meaning of Baul (bāul) and its place in Bengali Indian, Bangladeshi, and global culture, how she met her guru Sanatan Das Baul, role of hidden or occult teachings in Baul songs, religious pluralism, the role of women in Baul practice, and the importance of sound and vibration in Baul music. The interview opens and closes with two songs offered by Parvathy Baul and her instruments specifically for this Om-gnosis interview.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEWN-Mkj3Fk&list=PLX_9feVneSp11FMdYzlGaduruxGnNXTJI&index=9) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 9](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%209.png?itok=0Ilc8hRa) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 10

### Bengali Fakiri Perspectives on the Yoga, Music, and Devotion of Lalon 

 

This tenth episode of Om-gnosis presents two previously unpublished interviews with Ferdosi Fokirani, an artist from the environs of Kushtia, Bangladesh, who has practiced the Bengali Fakiri human religion (mānab-dharma) of Fakir Lalon Sai for over four decades. Ferdosi Fokirani, together with her late husband Shilpi Azim Fakir, reveals much about what birth-religion yoga, tantra, practice (sādhana), and music offer for scholars and practitioners alike. This episode also includes two contextual examples of Bengali Baul (bāul) and Fakiri songs.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/Ka9AIPdcXzA) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 10](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2010.png?itok=DBgaqSCl) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 11

### Inside the Adyar Library & Research Centre: Treasures of Indian Philosophy with Radha Raghunathan, PhD 

 

Episode 11 of *Om-gnosis* features Radha Raghunathan, PhD—author, editor, and Honorable Director of the Adyar Library & Research Centre (ALRC) in Chennai. Recorded in the library’s reading room, the conversation explores her editorial work on foundational Vedānta texts, including *Vedānta Muktāvalī*, *Jñānāṅkuśam*, and an ongoing edition of Śrī Vedānta Deśika’s *Paramata Bhaṅga*. She also reflects on Maṇipravāla literature and the poet Subramaniya Bharathiyar. Dr. Raghunathan then traces the ALRC’s history from Henry Steel Olcott’s founding vision to its present focus on digitization, preservation, and training in Indic scripts. The interview closes with her insights on Bharathiyar’s use of the word “occult” for Tamil, the meaning of Advaita and Viśiṣṭādvaita, and the teacher’s role in spiritual study.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/Fl65NQvwST8) 

 



      ![Title card: Episode 11](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2011.png?itok=aMj25KqB) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 12

### Searching for Sabhapati Swami and Siddha Songs in South Asia 

 

In this episode of *Om-gnosis: The Occult South Asia Podcast*, host Keith Edward Cantú summarizes his summer research trip through India and Bangladesh, exploring spiritual traditions, rare books on Sri Sabhapati Swami, and major cultural landmarks, including the National Museum of India and the Qutub Minar.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/WkuSvQ25O9c) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 12: Searching for Sabhapati Swami and Siddha Songs in South Asia ](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2012%20%281%29.png?itok=zuq5Ghn_) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 13

### Fakir Bidhan Shah and Bangla Songs from Heart-to-Heart 

 

In Episode 13 of Om-gnosis: The Occult South Asia Podcast, host Keith Edward Cantú, PhD, Center for the Study of World Religions, interviews Fakir Bidhan Shah of Kumarkhali, Kushtia District, Bangladesh.

Fakir Bidhan Shah, joined by fellow sadhu-musicians and artists Fakir Nazrul Shah and Gautam Dada, discusses the importance of the Human Guru (mānuṣ guru) in the songs of Fakir Lalon Sai (d. 1890, often called Sai ji by devotees), one of the most famous folk poets of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. The conversation highlights the significance of musical instruments such as ektara, duggi, dotara, and juri, which are often associated with Baul songs.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/a0OB8QSJUgQ) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 13: Bangla Songs from Heart-to-Heart](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2013.png?itok=GLUazxYe) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 14

### Parsi Communities and Zoroastrian Esotericism in South Asia 

 

In Episode 14 of *Om-gnosis*, host Keith Edward Cantú speaks with Mariano Errichiello, PhD, Shapoorji Pallonji Lecturer in Zoroastrianism at SOAS University of London. Their conversation explores the social and esoteric dimensions of Zoroastrianism in South Asia, including the challenges of non-Zoroastrian fieldwork, Zoroastrian esotericism and *Ilm-e-Khshnoom*, the complexities of the term “occult” in South Asian studies, and how the Shapoorji Pallonji Institute is connecting scholarship with the public through artist-in-residence programs.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/l4QxSWC-gGg) 

 



    ![Image of Episode 14: Parsi Communities and Zoroastrian Esotericism in South Asia](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__720x720_scale/public/2025-12/omgnosis%20Youtube%20thumbnail-5.png?itok=r12ublG5) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 15

### Indian Alchemy and Ayurveda with Dagmar Wujastyk 

 

In Episode 15, Om-gnosis host Keith E. Cantú speaks with Dagmar Wujastyk, Associate Professor at the University of Alberta and a leading scholar of Sanskrit philology, Indian medicine, and alchemy (Rasa Śāstra). Wujastyk traces her path from philology to the study of classical Ayurveda, including fieldwork with Ashtavaidyans in Kerala who continue to draw on millennia-old texts. She reflects on Ayurvedic doctor–patient relationships, clarifies distinctions between rejuvenation therapies and alchemical pursuits of immortality, and offers insight into historical alchemical practice. The conversation also highlights her recent book, *Indian Alchemy: Sources and Contexts*, and her current research on iatrochemistry, pigments, and the science of cooking.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/Z6D5I7BuKNc) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 15: Indian Alchemy and Ayurveda](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2025-12/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2015.png?itok=_ICjIzwj) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 16

### Kundalini, Subtle Energies, and Divine Machines with Marleen Thaler 

 

Join host Keith Edward Cantú for this episode of *Om-gnosis: The Occult South Asia Podcast*, featuring Marleen Thaler, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Graz and the University of Vienna’s Research Centre “Religion and Transformation in Contemporary Society.” With a diverse background in religious studies, social and cultural anthropology, and Oriental studies, Thaler has served as a scholar-in-residence at the Esalen Institute and held fellowships in Zurich and Santa Barbara. In this interview, Thaler discusses her extensive research into the modern history of *kuṇḍalinī*, describing how her work with mentor Prof. Karl Baier led her to investigate the “serpent power” through the lens of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/iSCSSfVKHTc) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 16: Kundalini, Subtle Energies, and Divine Machines](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-01/Om-gnosis%20Squaure%20Card%20Ep%2016.png?itok=ERWJjJZK) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 17

###  “Occult South Asia” as Esoteric Exchanges 

 

With Karl Baier and Mriganka Mukhopadhyay. In this episode of *Om-gnosis*, host Keith Edward Cantú is joined by two pioneering scholars behind the concept of “Occult South Asia” to explore how global esotericism and South Asian religious traditions—yoga, tantra, Theosophy, mesmerism, spiritualism, and more—intersected during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Rather than viewing East and West as binary spheres of influence, the two guests offer a perspective on Occult South Asia as a dynamic field of transcultural exchange that reshaped both European and South Asian religious identities.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/rWGgjWzzL58) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 17 details](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-02/omgnosis%20Youtube%20thumbnail-34.png?itok=vF5k-gKn) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 18

### AI, Digital Language Tools, and Occult South Asia 

 

In this episode of Om-gnosis, Keith Edward Cantú reflects on the evolving role of AI in the humanities, arguing that it cannot replace core scholarly practices like philology, translation, ethnography, or interpretive analysis. Instead, AI functions best as a collaborative system that relies on human expertise and reliable sources. Drawing on the niche field of Occult South Asia and tools like the LipiSource platform, Cantú demonstrates how AI can support transliteration, translation, manuscript processing, and paleographic analysis across multiple languages. He emphasizes that accuracy comes from human curation and iterative refinement, framing AI not as a threat but as a catalyst for new forms of engagement and deeper understanding of complex intellectual and religious exchanges.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/37tsqawN6dc) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 18 and image of Keith Cantu](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-03/omgnosis%20Youtube%20thumbnail-36.png?itok=BcUh7_IW) 

 

 

  

 



 

 

 

Episode 19

### Kuṇḍalinī, Yoga, and Esoteric Histories 

 

In this episode, host Keith Cantú welcomes Sravana Borkataky-Varma and Anya Foxen, who discuss their book *The Serpent’s Tale: Kuṇḍalinī, Yoga, and the History of an Experience* (2025). They explore *kuṇḍalinī* not as a single, fixed concept, but as a historically layered, culturally entangled, and experientially diverse phenomenon. The conversation follows *kuṇḍalinī* from premodern South Asian Tantric contexts into global yoga culture, showing how its meanings shift across traditions and eras. They challenge assumptions—such as the idea that *kuṇḍalinī* must always “rise” in a set way—and emphasize the variety of practitioners’ experiences. The episode also examines how terms like “occult” and “esoteric” shape, constrain, and even produce experiences, raising broader questions about how knowledge about altered states and embodiment is created and interpreted.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/gWX15jQN_rM) 

 



      ![Title card for Episode 19: Kundalini, Yoga, and Esoteric Histories](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-04/Om-gnosis%20Square%20Card%20Ep%2019.png?itok=8ZX4ZDUS) 

 

 

  

 



Episode 20

### Comparing Magic, Yoga, and Occultism 

 

In this episode of *Om-gnosis*, Keith Edward Cantú speaks with Gordan Djurdjevic, an independent scholar of global esotericism, yoga, tantra, and comparative religion. Djurdjevic reflects on his early encounters with yogic texts and traces their influence on his scholarly work.

They explore connections between South Asian traditions and Western esotericism, including themes of secrecy, initiation, subtle bodies, and spiritual transformation, as well as siddhis and the meaning of magic(k).

Djurdjevic is the author of *India and the Occult* (Palgrave, 2014), co-editor of *Occultism in a Global Perspective*, and co-translator of *Sayings of Gorakhnāth* (Oxford, 2019). His forthcoming book examines Aleister Crowley’s Thelema in relation to Asian thought.



 [ Watch the videocast arrow\_circle\_right ](https://youtu.be/JkF7snZNqqI) 

 



      ![Title card with Episode 20](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-04/omgnosis%20Youtube%20thumbnail-40.png?itok=zMrjjM14)