Is reality incomplete? John Vervaeke and William Desmond confront meaning, being, and the limits of science. What if the modern scientific worldview captures only a fragment of reality? In this Lectern dialogue, John Vervaeke joins William Desmond and Guy Sengstock to examine whether meaning itself has been systematically excluded from how we understand the world. Desmond’s philosophy of the “between” converges with Vervaeke’s account of relevance realization to reveal a deeper structure of knowing that is participatory, relational, and irreducible to computation or mechanism. Together, they challenge the dominance of purely scientific orientation and open a path toward metaphysical depth without abandoning rigor. The conversation moves through cognitive science, phenomenology, and ontology while confronting the meaning crisis and the rise of nihilism. Rather than treating nihilism as a dead end, they explore it as a threshold that may open into renewed contact with the sacred, the real, and the transformative dimensions of existence. William Desmond is a philosopher and public intellectual known for his “between” metaphysics, exploring the nature of being, meaning, and the sacred. Author of the Between trilogy and Wayward and Homebound, his work bridges Greek philosophy, Christian thought, and Eastern traditions. Guy Sengstock is the co founder of Circling and founder of The Circling Institute. His work explores relational presence and the transformative space between people, grounded in phenomenology and dialogical practice. Guest Links William Desmond: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Desmond_(philosopher) Guy Sengstock: https://x.com/guystocks/status/1936455794452774946 Support this work and join a community dedicated to wisdom and transformation Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke Explore practices and programs through Awaken to Meaning https://awakentomeaning.com/ Follow John Vervaeke https://johnvervaeke.com/ https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john https://www.youtube.com/@johnvervaeke https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke Thank you for watching