One of the characteristics of the psychedelic mystical experience is the noetic quality: the feeling of profound insight (this is the focus of Chapter 2 in my book Altered Perspectives). This type of insight is felt to be authoritative, that is, an incontrovertible revelation. However, insights that carry an authoritative truth can occur in non-mystical…
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The simulation hypothesis – the proposal that we live in a computer-generated reality – is a philosophical idea that many psychonauts embrace. While tripping, or post-trip, this hypothesis can seem a lot more likely to be true; in fact, it can appear undeniably true. On the subreddit r/SimulationTheory, psychedelic experiences are often discussed and viewed…
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I recently came across the term hagioptasia, coined by musician Daniel Laidler. It refers to a fleeting sense of significance and specialness, which eludes explanation. Laidler describes this experience, and how it’s a core part of nostalgia, in a blog post published last December. He challenges the commonplace notion that nostalgia is merely a sentimental…
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The ebb and flow of ocean waves has a naturally soothing quality to it. We all experience it; we all appreciate it. But why do ocean sounds relax us and calm the mind? One speculative hypothesis is that these sounds remind us of life in the womb. According to this hypothesis, the sound of waves,…
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Psychedelics are known to make everyday objects and experiences more intense and noticeable – everyday things become something worth commenting on. Part of this is related to the general meaning-enhancing effect of psychedelics. One of these intensifying effects of psychedelics, which I think has been underdiscussed, is the experience of moving from one room (or…
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