What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the words “religion and politics”? An image of right-wing evangelicals cozying up to the Bush administration? Pat Robertson ushering in the apocalypse? Well, a few organizations on the more progressive side of the fence are looking to change that. Alarmed by what they see as the White House's disastrous policies toward all kinds of progressive causes, spiritual folks who have long been politically apathetic are starting to dust off their activist shoes and join the fray. From author Robert Rabbin's Truth for President organization to the Unquiet Revolutionary Press, from Marianne Williamson, Ram Dass, and Matthew Fox's endorsement of Dennis Kucinich to the new salons that are popping up around the country as forums for philosophy and politics, postmodern spirituality is getting politically savvy. And they're planning to get out the vote this November. “Sometimes we look down on politics, criticizing it as dirty,” said the Dalai Lama recently. “However, if you look at it properly, politics in itself is not wrong. It is an instrument to serve human society.” Right-wing evangelicals may see Armageddon in our future, but these newly inspired progressive activists are looking to prevent that very same thing . . .

Want to know just how far the word guru has fallen into disrepute in the spiritual world? The organization of one the most renowned, controversial, and successful Indian gurus of the last century has decided that their late founder is . . . not a guru. Osho, once known as Bhagwan Sri Rajneesh, was the popular seventies spiritual teacher most Americans know for his notorious commune in Oregon, his predilection for Rolls Royces, and his many Western students who wore the traditional Indian red or ocher “sannyasin” robes.

“Not only is Osho not a guru, his whole approach is to demolish the 'guru game,'” reads the official ashram website. That may sound somewhat bizarre considering that Osho attracted hundreds of thousands of devotees from around the world—many of whom wore a picture of him on a mala around their neck—and that surrender to his spiritual authority was wholeheartedly encouraged. Indeed, Osho was a force of personality unlike anything the spiritual world had seen in some time, and love him or hate him he was a guru—fully, completely, resolutely, unabashedly. But the word on the street is that even at his home ashram in Pune, India, they've taken all of his pictures down from the walls and have completely de-guruized the entire place. Not surprisingly, some old-time loyalists in the community are upset at these developments. “We can't walk around the ashram and speak about devotion and surrender anymore,” one student recently complained. Pulse has been told that that kind of subversive talk—guru talk—is off-limits . . .

How would you like to live in an enlightened city? Okay, how would you like to live in Providence, Rhode Island? Providence, which has long been known as the “Renaissance City,” is apparently considering changing its name to the “Enlightened City.” No, the mayor has not converted to Buddhism, and bodhi trees will not line the downtown river walk, but there are serious discussions under way about giving the city's image an enlightened makeover—in business, culture, education, and government. Enlightenment, we are told, could become the next publicity theme for the marketing of Providence. The idea is the brainchild of Gregory DiStefano, a WIE reader (a recent issue was the source of his inspiration), who has close ties to local government. He envisions all sorts of new city programs built around both the noble principles of the European Enlightenment and the mystical enlightenment of the East. So do you like to read Voltaire at the library? Practice Buddhist meditation in a downtown park? Do tai chi on your lunch break? Come to Rhode Island, because Providence, once notorious for having a government run by organized crime, may be on its way to nirvana . . .

What do Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Carlos Santana, Danny Glover, and Gillian Anderson have in common? They're all trying to save Africa. As AIDS in Africa skyrockets and as hopes for the successful resuscitation of so many struggling societies seem fainter by the day, a few prominent Westerners are taking notice. “Join us in spreading a spiritual virus” of compassion, Santana said at a press conference addressing the issue, announcing his intention to help eradicate the scourge of AIDS. Artists for a New South Africa, an organization originally founded to help free South African society from the yoke of apartheid, is now refocused on helping the entire continent deal with the disease. “We overcame apartheid; we are going to overcome AIDS,” declared Archbishop Tutu, who has also lent his support to the cause. The organization is planning a massive concert and gala event this October in LA. The star-studded evening will be held at the Greek Theater and will seek to raise awareness of, and money for, the plight of the African continent. No doubt the invite list will include a who's who of Hollywood activists, but don't be surprised to see well-known spiritual personalities like Deepak Chopra attending as well . . .

Wake up, Neo. Pulse has learned that Ken Wilber was recently out in LA recording six hours of commentary for the new DVD boxed-set of the Matrix trilogy—along with African-American studies icon Cornel West—at the request of Matrix co-creator Larry Wachowski. In a bold show of support for the philosopher of everything, Wachowski reportedly declared to the press that “Ken Wilber is our Neo.” No word yet on the release date, but it's purported to contain some interesting discussions on the nature of consciousness, with philosophers like David Chalmers, director of the Center for Consciousness Studies at the University of Arizona. So if you are among those who were disappointed with the sequels to what was one of the most original movies of the last decade, at least you can count on hours and hours of DVD bonus materials to make it all worthwhile . . .

Now you can take your education to the next tier with Ken Wilber as your guide. After almost half a decade of anticipation, Integral University, or IU as the cool kids call it, is finally set to open its cyberspatial doors. Having secured a deal to offer an accredited degree program through the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, IU's first online course, an introduction to integral theory, begins on August 30. Open to twenty-five lucky students, the course will be taught by Integral Institute's Randy Martin and by Wilber himself, and will be the first to pave the neural pathways of the Integral Commons—a network linking together twenty websites that will form the hub of the world's first integral learning community. So if you haven't yet mastered AQAL metatheory or the integral calculus, throw away that MIT application, forget about Harvard, and log on to www.integraluniversity.org to see what could become the educational model of the integral age—that is, unless WIE beats them to it. This fall, the magazine is teaming up with The Graduate Institute in Connecticut, which offers an accredited Master's degree program in Conscious Evolution. The goal is to create a group of evolutionary activists who are committed to pushing the leading edge of consciousness further, deeper, and higher. This two-year program will allow you to participate in the process that you are studying—the emergence of the next stage in human evolution. Visit www.learn.edu/wie to find out more . . .

Integral University isn't the only place you can go this fall to spend quality time on the internet. Behold, The Powers of the Universe! Beginning in September, cosmologists Brian Swimme and Eric Weiss will host a 24-week online course based on Swimme's new DVD series. Exploring ten of the most powerful forces in the cosmos—homeostasis, synergy, gravitation, etc.—the series centers around a single question: How do these powers express themselves through human beings? Pulse spoke with Swimme recently to get the stellar scoop from the man himself. “The universe came into existence 13.7 billion years ago,” he said. “All these powers were at work from the very beginning, and they just continued to weave new forms into existence. The universe tried to become Galaxy; it tried to become Hummingbird. Now the universe is trying to become Human; these powers are trying to fashion this amazing new being. You know, the average mammalian species lasts around a million years, and we've been around a little over a hundred thousand. We're so young. We just got here.”