Star Maker (1937) is a sci-fi novel written by British writer Olaf Stapledon. It describes the rich tapestry of cosmic evolution, surpassing in scale his previous novel First and Last Men (1930), which details the history of humanity from the present day back to two million years ago. Star Maker tells the story of a…
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The writer Frank White popularised the term ‘overview effect’ in his book The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution (1987). This effect is the cognitive shift in awareness that takes place when viewing the Earth from space. Based on the records of hundreds of astronauts, as well as interviews with dozens of space explorers…
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The ‘psychedelic ego’ refers to an ego that is based on – or inflated by – psychedelics. This may seem counterintuitive since psychedelics can lead to the diminishment or complete dissolution of the ego (known as ‘ego death’). However, the ego does not disappear forever as a result of a psychedelic experience. You can experience…
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Islamic art and architecture are often called psychedelic in nature – and rightly so. Both the art and architecture from the Islamic world feature vibrant colours and intricate, geometric patterns, much like the kaleidoscopic patterns one can see during a psychedelic experience, either with eyes opened or closed. During psychedelic experiences, people may report seeing…
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There are possibly many ways in which we can define a religious experience. We need to ask ourselves: What features should such an experience exemplify? There is also the issue of trying to ascertain whether a certain experience is pathological in nature. For reasons which will become clear, I will be using the term religious…
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