Memory, Mentats & Mental Mastery with John Michael Greer
If you’re looking to unlock the ancient memory techniques used by philosophers, mystics, and mental elites throughout history, this is the conversation for you.
In this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, John Michael Greer returns to reveal how memory systems from thinkers like Giordano Bruno and Ramon Llull can help us reclaim our cognitive power in the AI age.
Why do these long-dead figures matter more than ever in today’s world?
For one thing, a lot of people are scrambling to work out how to survive in a world in which remembering how to think is quickly becoming as scarce as human memory.
But Greer offers hope.
As a renowned author, translator of Giordano Bruno’s On the Shadows of the Ideas, and long-time student of multiple esoteric traditions, Greer joined me again to discuss the growing importance of memory training.
But what makes this episode special is that we’re not talking about just any old kind of training.
And we’re definitely not talking about your everday, average memory tricks.
You’re about to hear about real mental training, the kind that once produced polymaths, philosophers and masters of the mind who inspired the Mentat you’ve read about in Dune.
But don’t let the fictional reference distract from the value at hand. Everything we discuss accords perfectly with memory science, particularly the science of mental imagery.
As part of this discussion, Greer and I also explore his upcoming book project on medieval and Renaissance mental disciplines, a work I’m looking forward to reading very much.
We also cover the overlap between historical mnemonic systems and why reviving these ancient practices is absolutely essential in an age increasingly dominated by machine thinking.
From the combinatorial wheels of Llull and Giordano Bruno to the forgotten discipline of syllogistic logic, we discuss:
How memory palaces can function as practical tools and metaphysical metaphors
Bruno’s integration of memory with logic and ontologyWhy the “art of combination” might be the ultimate question-asking systemThe lost connection between Freemasonry and mnemonic trainingWhat a modern Mentat curriculum might look like (and why we need it sooner than later)Practical tips from historical and contemporary memory mastersThe real philosophical difference between tools we use and tools that use usReasons for reading older memory improvement books like Rhetorica ad HerenniumWhy you should explore the Trivium and Quadrivium as tools for modern mental clarityGreer also shares insights into his current Latin translation work, John Dee research, and what the Twilight of Pluto means for our cultural moment.
No matter what happens, Greer believes memory techniques can thrive again.
But likely not in Silicon Valley.
They will rise again in the ruins of the cultures that resist.
Why not start resisting now?
Whether you’re a memory athlete, aspiring Mentat, or simply tired of outsourcing your intelligence to devices, this episode will give you both intellectual fuel and practical direction.
Bonus: John Michael Greer on Bruno’sOn The Shadows of the Ideas
During my first discussion with Greer, we focus on Bruno’s memory systems and the nature of knowledge from what Greer calls “the rubbish heap of history.”
We also dig into Greer’s translation of On the Shadows of the Ideas by Giordano Bruno.
Finally, we discuss an old and mysterious book called The Picatrix. Like the Ars Notoria, it kind of freaks me out a bit, but Greer puts my mind at ease.
Press play and listen in as we discuss:
The value of “intellectual dumpster diving” to preserve ancient ideasWhy adding more to a text than a literal translation allows can be self-serving, yet somehow can’t be avoidedThe limits of historical clarity in the age of photocopies (which are often of other photocopies)Why Bruno’s memory theory remains of great importance to the art of memoryThe reason subject/abject memorization is the most sophisticated method to memorize textThe deep mystery behind why alphabet-based mnemonics fell out of favor in modern timesAnd why overwhelm can occur, even when using a sequence as simple as the alphabetWhy memory, secrecy and initiation were inseparable in Bruno’s worldThe reason Frances Yates’ ideas about Bruno should be viewed with discernmentThe delusion of treating history as a straight line, and why this idea is wildly inaccurate, given the way the universe operates
Giordano Bruno
Further Resources on the web, the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast and blog:
John Michael Greer’s Ecosophia Blog (Toward an Ecological Spirituality)
John Michael Greer’s Amazon author page
John Michael Greer Presents: Masonry and the Secret Societies
Frances Yates’s Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition
The Illustrated Picatrix: The Complete Occult Classic of Astrological Magic
My How to Think and Remember Like the Mentat video on YouTube:
