Altered States of Consciousness: There’s Nothing Supernatural About It | Jamie Wheal | Big Think

[@Kianquenseda]

in 1978 I had an extraordinary experience that at first I thought it was the Holy Spirit. Later I found out about Abraham Maslow and Peak experience, and the Yogic term Samadhi. Now I know that what I experienced was my self in my purest state. It was beyond joy, bliss, high or any term I know of. To discover yourself is the most wonderful thing.

[@Saffron-sugar]

How do you know that it was yourself? I am not being sarcastic, What was it that made you stop on Abraham Maslow? Throughout human time, people have come to different conclusions, but I'm not sure if the conclusion is based on the individuals personality or reality. If, after something so profound, we just circle back to the ego, have we experienced anything, or just tripped out on ourselves? Is it just the classic "logical explanation" of the frightened? What I experience can be explained by any and every belief. Is a 20th century atheists psychologists view truer than any other? Can you be experiencing selflessness if you are simply experiencing yourself? If it is, then the experience is surely a waste of time. Isn't it?

[@Kianquenseda]

@@Saffron-sugar I wouldn't trade the experience for Bitcoin. I have to add I didn't just look at Maslow's work. I searched Buddhism, Hinduism, and a Christian Monk Thomas Merton. You are welcome to contact me anytime :)You are more than a self. A brick is a brick but also a Cathedral.

[@amanvijayjindal5742]

Indian mystics and sanatan dharma is greatest way of experiencing human life and all pleasures of world in a ultimate balanced way, wherein, everything is super scientifically structured, placed and paced... Over last 300-400 years, it has been polluted brutally, but, those Homo sapiens,on the globe, who have discovered that truth, are transformed, and thus enjoy life to fullest..

[@particleconfig.8935]

@@Saffron-sugar When you are in it... you'll know a 100% sure. And in true reality, there's no ''waste of time'', all those meanings are founded upon what?

[@anistissaoui]

Had a similar experience on LSD, a moderate dose not too much. I was staring at the sea horizon and listening to the water washing the shore, suddenly I was completely taken away by the horizon. I can't hear anything except the sound of the waves and it felt like it is washing inside my head resonating my sinus. Then the voice inside my head stopped and felt like the sea was telling me stories and showing me places. In computer terms, it felt like the sea downloaded giant files of information inside my head. This continued for an hour or so, this was my peak. The rest of the trip I felt like I embodied a big ball of energy and light, I was guiding my friends to places and telling them stories about life and spirituality and, themselves. I felt like a natural Shaman of some sort. The day after, friends were like WTF did you just pull off yesterday, it was different. PS: this was not my first trip ever, I tripped like 30 times with various before this happened. Which's why now I advise people who want psychedelics to try low-moderate doses but go see natural places and meditate which gives you a more full experience of the substance.

[@thenatureofmind2672]

Zen already expressed this. A Zen master said we may attain something wonderful but it's nothing special. It's just our true nature.

[@Saffron-sugar]

It's not new information. I don't believe it's being pitched as new. Timothy Leary has been on about this for a long time too. Altered consciousness has always been there

[@andrejansen3281]

STER. Selflessness, timelessness, effortlessness and richness. Yes, I have felt this during meditation a couple of times. It's profound. Would recommend.

[@Viscid]

The flow state is not the psychedelic state, and explaining the flow state does not provide a sufficient enough explanation about the psychedelic state. The flow state does not feel remotely as profound as the psychedelic state, nor do we experience visions in the flow state. Jamie Wheal is unfairly conflating the two.

[@Koivisto147]

the flow state and psychedelic states are very alike in the ways he said; timeless-ness, non-effort, loss of self-consciousness. I would argue that the flow state doesn't feel spectacular (to most people) because we experience it to varying degrees quite often in our daily lives, and we also have a lot of cultural knowledge of it (in the groove, with it, flow, etc . . .). But I think the main reason why psychedelic states and flow states seem so different is the way they come on. Flow states are usually reached by having very clear subconscious goals to achieve and you "lose yourself" by focusing all attention on the task at hand. The psychedelic state - if we're talking about the state induced by LSD, psilocin, DMT, etc . . ., at least from my experience, comes on from a feeling of oneness with the universe, and a loss of ego, just as an effect of the drug. Psychedelic states also seem to be much more spiritual and religious I think, because, generally on psychedelics, I'm not focused on any task and focusing on a task is difficult, therefore the mind wanders towards thinking about my own existence and purpose. In a flow state, I'm still losing ego and "becoming one" but there isn't anything very religious or spiritual about doing everyday, normal activities.

[@epictetus9221]

Yep, you weren't paying attention.

[@martingoldfire]

You're an android, your positronic brain can't comprehend this :-P

[@archonsouthpaw8690]

Is it really that hard to extrapolate this definition and apply it to other "states" that result from abusing feeble human senses? The faster we drop this "spirit and the universe" bullshit the faster we can get to actually exploring the universe itself. Keep up, people.

[@elaxel1469]

are astral travels higher or lower states than flow or psychedelics?

[@humanity3.090]

This fits right in line with my personal flavor of spirituality. Whether you are being chased by a bear, or you just think that you are, your mind and body will still respond the same. With this insight, we can use visualization and a conscious suspension of disbelieve to imagine narratives that are helpful to our mind and body. Just be sure to remember what is imagination and what is not. ;)

[@UsedToBeConsumer]

great explanation, it explains why when i get stuck in something complex i take a little nap and between waking and sleeping i keep dreaming about a solution that seems to me later to be so obvious.

[@TyDyck]

I really love Big Think. It is quickly becoming one of my favorite channels. Very digestible and succint, while wonderfully explaining subjects traditionally considered very difficult or complicated. The charisma of their relaxed confidence is a type of gentle genius devoid of ego that I endeavor to embody one day. There is a beautiful elegance to simplicity.

[@Mariomario-gt4oy]

this is great science. is one of the reasons why im so interested in neuroscience/psychology. interesting to see the reasons why people believe these things and transcending cultural boundaries

[@angelic8632002]

Mario Pendic Really is. I think one reason why our culture colors the perception of these kinds of experiences is that we try to grapple with them, not quite being able to grasp what is going on, and then our minds fill in the gaps so to speak. And of course it will try to interpret it to fit something familiar.

[@extraterrestrial16]

Yes it is a fascinating area, but he's putting it into such a basic basic model that he's missing out on so much of the content of these modes..

[@helion6884]

extraterrestrial16 I think that part of his position is that the experiences are simple and basic and that the additional content isn't actually there in the experience itself. That it's something we add through the lens of our culture and the stories we tell ourselves to understand and make sense of the experiences. That doesn't mean (this is purely my opinion here, not an interpretation of the speaker's intentions) the extra content has to be invalid or meaningless. It can still be powerful and important to an individual. But it still comes from the individual.

[@charlieevergreen3514]

+extraterrestrial16 I don't think he's missing out on that content, it's just not the aspect he's discussing in this 5 min clip. I feel certain he has plenty to discuss regarding the experience and content. He's not saying it's MERELY a brain thing, he's just explaining the mechanism that brings these amazing experiences.

[@epictetus9221]

+Charlie Evergreen Indeed. You can only condense so much stuff to five minutes. Tom Bilyeu of Impact Theory did a really interesting interview with James Wheal, it's on his youtube channel.

[@georgomuller]

Regardless of the means to reach it or the narratives many groups have been giving it for millennia, such a experience should come into the lives of EVERY HUMAN BEING IN THIS PLANET. It's totally life transformative. I'm a completely different person since I started practicing meditation. Everything becomes clearer, more joyful and you can accomplish so much more with so much less effort when your ego is not in the way.

[@Hombolicious]

I would like to hear more from this man. He takes a very reasonable approach to the explanation of the subject which he is talking about.

[@quantz.r]

Agreed

[@KareSeriouslyKaren]

And that is exactly how I explain it to people. It can't be "supernatural", if we can do it consistently. And across time and across cultures, we do. Shamanic practice or events are noted in written and oral histories just, as Mr. Wheal said, wrapped in different papers.

[@Slarti]

Describes very well the Dhyana states I experienced when I practised Buddhist meditation as well as when I used to swim lengths, practise classical guitar and coding(I am a software developer). All of these experiences were similar and they all felt deeply happy and satisfying.

[@jacemachine]

The last time I was this early I was a zygote.

[@lifesabuzzwhoopwhoop]

Love theories that are spoken as statements as if they're facts.

[@stewartquark1661]

Still dont understand why people who have no real experience in such matters insist on researching or examining them. I love Beethoven but doubt very much I can compose a tune as did he merely because I favor him

[@StephJ0seph]

I've been wondering about this lately Thanks for posting!

[@georgebenichou9727]

j 'ai vécu dans un état de superconscience pendant 30 ans .je vois que personne ne sait expliquer cet état de conscience ils n 'ont aucune idee ou il l 'ont vécu pendant quelques minutes seulement et ils en ont été marqué !!! si vous saviez vous laisserez tout tomber pour retrouver cet état. car comparé à cela rien au monde ne tient la comparaison !!! je pourrais écrire un livre .cela restera secret.! c 'est trop facile de savoir cela .cela ne vous donnera pas la capacité d 'être cela et puis c 'est inimaginable ni imitable !!!! c 'est le travail de plusieurs vies d'efforts et de sacrifices .il n 'y a pas de cadeaux dans la nature tout est mérité !!!

[@rodraymond1029]

It is not the brain that causes the oneness, it is you and the brain will just follow. If you don't sit and be still then the brain will just in a normal state.

[@kevphillips02]

Trying to use intellect to describe spirituality just don't do it for me , it is like taking a dump on all of it ..let go, let go and keep letting go .

[@Jarbacca]

Is someone walking around in the background with metal? You guys hear that among his speaking?

[@MMare-kb6ig]

SWIM asked me this: But the real question I would like an answer to is how to come back from that state of mind (after some hardcore deep meditation for example) with something usable in long term? How to come back in this world with an "artifact" from that unconcious world as T. McKenna defined it? And no, I do not aim for short term 'I am enlightened feeling' which dissapears in two days, I aim for permanent change... SWIM also said: I have never used DMT and I do not promote illegal activities, never, just to be clear publicly. ;) Can someone discuss this with SWIM here, please?

[@TheSwamper]

I wonder if the rich state is similar to when a musician is in the zone.

[@quantz.r]

Yup, I believe so

[@MrNicofrog]

most musicians I know are broke,so I would disagree!

[@carbon1479]

I wish this guy and his research team the best of luck because if he can find ways to bring this down to the public level for daily practice and psychological hygiene it would do a lot of good for our culture's sanity. At the same time I doubt this will be the whole solution of the issue. While I've had plenty of experiences that fall within the scope he describes I've had some that really can't, and a lot of people have had similar experiences that don't reduce well to a physicalist interpretation. That doesn't say anything bad about science necessarily, just that I think we still have a lot to learn about the universe and we may be surprised at just what kind of emergent complexity we're dealing with.

[@teyanuputorti7927]

very eye opening video thank you

[@victorwizard7547]

.....i have been taught not to touch fire coz it burns ,that was in my consciounesss but pratically when it really happened when i touch it ,my consciousness about burning changed. So should i wait for further derivations of being in the conscious or living the reality of things? If you know the answer ,please dont state it, as it will further complicate my being in conscious !

[@highvibee]

Do someone know if there are some brain scientist actually investigated if the brain also have a receiver, like having a Wi-Fi? Of course we have a "speaker, microphone and camera" but do we receive thoughts from other sources that the brain processes? I suspect neuroscience only look at symptoms like chemistry.

[@fuffy2010]

Stephan Söderberg social cognitive neuroscience does. Check for the mirror neurons researches on this. But, there is also a phenomenon called "mirroring oneself on another" which means you see some of your feelings and/or thoughts about yourself as if it was the other person's without acknowledging it. Psychoanalysts has been working on this for decades to help people be aware of this mirroring thing.

[@NiteSeek]

The unconscious processing is absolutely amazing but i get problems with the memory side of things. Shifting the data perceived in that state and committing it to memory is difficult, while i can remember the experience, the specifics of the information is hard to recollect in a useful manner. due to the fact that if you try to act on the experience it becomes a conscious experience :-(

[@patrickcummins79]

Ur video prompted an experience of the "white light void" for a fraction of a second. Thank you!

[@WestSideSkoo]

3 vs 9?

[@civilsavant6072]

Jamie, it sounds like you are describing sense of heightened consciousness the exact way one may describe inspiration. Inspiration causes an individual to feel timeless, limitless, inexplicably driven, and sometimes even body-less. Are the those two things different? If not, what does that mean to you? If so, how?

[@theworldsmineoyster]

Still sounds pretty supernatural to me ❤ great video. The force is strong in this one 😊

[@yankoaleksandrov]

It's big data, but sometimes is mania and bipolar disorder. They are special moments that can generate the idea but you must not experience them too often. After you have the goal set better use you willpower and work step by step.

[@omegasrevenge]

Please keep up the good work! I wish to see a time when society can finally free itself from its primate origins and leave superstition behind in the history books, where it belongs.

[@bobgrainier]

i envy those future generations that will finally be free of all that superstitious nonsense

[@heidiooohs]

Remember: apples to apples? That was his point. Obviously the different states have specifics but they also share a broad description that relates them all together.

[@MrNicofrog]

so is the Bible superstitious non sense? or is it Your guys thing there for acceptable?

[@yoavtamir7707]

This was very very interesting! Thank you very much

[@javiceres]

“Faster & Vaster” 👌🏼😎

[@FPKMASSACRE]

As someone who isn't familiar with any psychedelics, which drugs was he talking about that induce the described symptoms?

[@h7opolo]

Psychedelics cause the described "symptoms," as opposed to stimulants, SSRI's, or depressants. Psychedelics are the class of drugs that have this most profound effect on the very experience and understanding of fundamental aspects of reality, e.g. time, self, and space. Each type of psychedelic changes perspective in different ways. Visit erowid.org for all your psychoactive research needs.

What if you are an agnostic in America? I will go with Terence Mckenna and my own when it comes to "Altered States of Consciousness".

[@JAYDUBYAH29]

I have been saying this for close to 20 years! Very validating.

[@jodawgsup]

Julian Walker then you are dumb for believing something unfounded and based on not a shred of evidence for 20 years.

[@omegasrevenge]

You are talking about scientists; of course they have evidence. Otherwise they wouldn't be talking about the conclusions they are coming to.

[@JAYDUBYAH29]

actually let me be more clear. more close to 20 years as a dedicated meditation and yoga practitioner, i have been saying that the altered states that spiritual practices create have their basis in the brain -and that some of the differences in description and even content are culturally conditioned. also that religious myths and supernatural beliefs are the product of altered brain states via either psychedelic plants, contemplative practices or various brain conditions like temporal lobe epilepsy, and forms of bipolar disorder, schizotypal disorder, or OCD.

[@jodawgsup]

"have their basis in the brain" Yes..? As everyone knew..? "temporal lobe epilepsy, and forms of bipolar disorder, schizotypal disorder, or OCD" Yes..? As everyone knew..? (a very famous case even being Dostoevsky himself) It has little to do with your meditation or yoga experience.

[@JAYDUBYAH29]

as everyone knew!? try telling that to the vast majority of people on the planet who believe in the supernatural, religion, psychic powers etc.. and i wasn't implying i knew these things because of my experience with yoga and meditation -more that this made me really curious about finding a naturalistic explanation for the types of powerful altered states i have experienced. in any event i am excited by this video and you are basically just being a bit of prick.

[@ShawnRavenfire]

What was that clanking in the background?

[@jackieboi321]

I thought it was WoW because I had it tabbed haha

[@pathtoknowledge6847]

Great video !

[@russelltalker]

So my sense of identity is due to a brain region? I guess that means I'm just an hallucination. Oh damn... I'm not real 😖

[@divyhardenia8611]

Ofcourse

[@divyhardenia8611]

Listen Sam Harris on the illusion of self

[@javiercruz1425]

keep your eyes open and question authority of any kind including from the self. welcome to universal consciousness 46&2. see you on the other side or not!

[@68plus1.]

can you pleeeeeaase explain it a little more?

[@flaaressence]

and what is the big data? different dimensions? Its great we can understand how it works but what are we finding out when we get to these states..

[@epictetus9221]

you have to go there to find out what it means for you. there is no universal answer.

[@k92ubabethefirst]

You can make a person believe they are being physically touched by stimulating certain regions in their brain. That doesn't mean that touch doesn't exist. I'm sure by isolating regions that light up when they are stimulated and then activating them can make a person believe they are eating, sleeping, hallucinating or seeing God. However, that doesn't prove that eating, sleeping, or hallucinating doesn't occur in real life. Nor does that, in the same line of logic, prove that there are no genuine experiences of seeing god.

[@k92ubabethefirst]

I believe you can come to your own conclusions about what these results signify.

[@unicyclist97]

Angel Blake If you're going to include hallucinations as evidence, you have to include *all* hallucinations, which takes you back in a full circle to nothing. No evidence of magic, all the evidence of brains being influenced by natural events.

[@jessehuckabee4551]

Angel Blake But we have evidence of touch, sleep, and food. No evidence of any gods.

[@npage.]

Virtuoso Joel the saying goes, any suffeciently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. what's the most complex computing device in the universe? point being, if this video, apparently magical abilities may exist, but it's not aliens or Jesus, etc.

[@archonsouthpaw8690]

No, but it does give something that is ludicrously unlikely a far more grounded, reasonable, and probable explanation. "You COULD be wrong" is kind of a given (hence, "just a theory" - not a unique argument), but it tells us nothing of the practical world. Probability does.

[@alexn0s]

This is when you activate “ultra instinct”

[@ex-x8164]

Idk if your joking but this is actually so true that i'm not even kidding. I remember when I was kid and I was sleeping in the morning over sleeping didn't get ready for school, my mom woke me up once before but I fell asleep again. And then she was pissed, she went crazy and legit wanted to slam her hand right into my back to wake me up.(she had to go to work in the morning so she needed to drop me off now.) But some how, my body or brain just realized she was coming and I quickly sat up on my knees and looked at her gazed. while she was on her little rampant outburst and then left the room saying get up, get up. I remember it so well. It's like my sense were heightened. Then there was another thing when I was dreaming I fell off a cliff then I woke up instantly realizing I almost fell off the bed, but that one wasn't that thrilling. The human mind is amazing man.

[@lboy1193]

Nice. Not sure if I totally agree on the apples to apples comparison though. There may be some similarities uniting them, but there sure is a lot of differences in the experiences aswell.

[@lboy1193]

I see how he tries to get us to see past the labels though. Maybe "fruit to fruit" comparison instead. Lol

[@juanpennisi1202]

Awesome, and awesomely explained.

[@allebg]

Sometimes I wonder if it's better to reach those mental states, consciousness expansion through religion or mindfulness, for example, maybe it's easier for the mind to believe in such things under a religious perspective...

[@theflaggeddragon9472]

you sound American/British/Australian about 1/3 of the time for each and it's tripping me out.

[@dmitryalexandersamoilov]

The Flagged Dragon I wonder if he's doing it on purpose

[@alexnunez474]

It feels amazing 💞

[@TheKola28]

Who is doing plumbing in the background? OR was that an altered state I where in?

[@Cowboybiglift]

How do I achieve unconscious processing?

[@brandontea3815]

How very interesting that this have already been mentioned in the teachings of Tao...

[@georgomuller]

And many more millennial schools of thought.

[@quantz.r]

Awesome video, makes a lot of sense.

[@anon123214]

Interesting, so what happened when I meditated for 30 minutes or so and suddenly saw a never-ending hole at the end before I stopped the vision? It was a straight hole until it began doing a spiral motion.

[@GraemeMarkNI]

Evil King thats what happened

[@antoniosianez2970]

Evil King follow it next time. spiral out my friend.

[@tubaszuba]

Isn't it also possible that these states, this increased "richness," is what allows humans to connect with that deeper, "other" aspect of our reality, if it exists? I loved this presentation; I think it just goes a bit too far in the conclusion. 🙂

[@MrNicofrog]

the CLANKING in the background was the truth trying to get back in through the" Clever" filter

[@mwm48]

What is all that clanking in the background?

[@ladibyrd]

This is really cool. It doesn't explain some of my out there experiences though.

[@divyhardenia8611]

An eye opener video

[@nousvideobusiness]

Love this

[@HMaxQc]

Wow thank you! i must admit this is the best video ive seen in a long time!

[@OceanicMemory]

The problem isn't that these are not supernatural! Actually they are, but in order for mind to understand and translate them to our reality it has to convert them to our already available experience! like for example you can't talk with a language you don't know! that is exactly what happens when someone in India sees what his culture or teachings says! it's because it's the language that he could understand! If you look at all these, the physical universe we are in works the same! it's a template so we find a way to interact to reality! exactly like our desktop on computer! we need an interface to work with reality! otherwise we have to talk to computer directly by typing zero and ones! that is not very efficient! so universe found a optimized way for us so we could work with underlying reality with human body in the physical world, space and time! So the altered state of consciousness is that base reality we couln't translate! it's real but we can't understand it without converting and comparing it to our physical experiences!

[@JM-rs7io]

🤔This guy is trying to explain the transcendence/ Altered State of Con...from a University Clinical point of view, and like good sheep people are buying it like a Fire Sale at Walmart. I don't think I heard him say the KEY word in all of this....SPIRITUAL. He needs to someday get out if his office in England and visit with some Amazon Shaman. 😂🤣😅😆😁

[@ladibyrd]

Whats that banging noise though

[@cybersekkin]

Betty Edwards wrote about this 30 to 40 years ago IRT art.

[@endigosun]

🤔 Hmm... a scientific base for “Perennialism”, a focus on spirituality that is of pertinence to all people everywhere, with an emphasis on common principles or patterns, not specific circumstances or personalities.

[@thelightone1467]

the one thing the all have in commen is they take focus to find and luck to be given

[@JM-rs7io]

🤔🤫🤭After listening to HIS OPINION ON "THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING MYSTICAL " I had to relate him to Alister Crowley and how after writing many books on God knows how many Creepy Mystical subjects he finally said something to the effect that these Spirits are just aspects of our own mind. How wrong both of these Brits are. They are JUST GIVING OPINIONS😱🥴😵‍💫

[@Linx10Life]

yes!!! we are inately born with super-natural abilities!!

[@patrickcummins79]

Lol.. Ive def had the "matrix code" like feeling of unity.. Everything looked and felt like it was comprised of a vibrating, beautiful, whitish, shimmering light, but it felt like I was experiencing the matrix code scene at the end of the first matrix(minus the agents, machines n dreary real world, lol).

[@patrickcummins79]

"Big data, for our minds" I like that, tho there is def some kinda vague consciousness that permeates that "otherness". I keep going back to this white void thing every so often for about the past 10 years, I'm 29 now.

[@dgodiex]

"Blah blah blah I'm another hypnotised-by-words reductionist. "

[@danny91pr]

The word "supernatural" is meaningless by definition. Because if something exists that means that it's in nature therefore, it's impossible for anything to be supernatural unless it's not real. In which case it's not called supernatural it's just false. Right? So considering that then he's right about saying that there's nothing supernatural about psychedelics or a "mystical" experience. Having said that..there's a lot about the psychedelic experience we don't yet understand. We understand the mechanism somewhat, yes...but just because you can look at brain activity objectively does not mean that you can downplay the subjective experience like it's nothing but connections in our brain. There's so fucking much about reality that we do not understand and probably even more that we don't even know that we don't understand (if that makes sense). I'm all about science and skepticism but after numerous psychedelic trips on several substances I find it hard to say that the 3d universe is all there is. Maybe I'm wrong. I don't know and neither does anyone.

[@keaganbushog]

very scientific, doesn't disprove spirit but this is still very well put together. love it👍🏼

[@vinigretzky97]

ego/personality/intelligence/thoughts is not the same as consciousness.

[@freddymeisner]

The title was misleadingly frustrating haha I agree with every way he made his points

[@abdelrahim5184]

Who else has noticed that angels are just humans with wings😁

[@1p6t1gms]

I would think if you were experiencing a vision like the one some have claimed throughout time, perhaps then this could be part of the conscious mind via the unconscious or another layer that uses a form of communication unlike the consciousness and only to be experienced in meditation. (I do not accept their visions) Otherwise, you probably never left the consciousness and you‘re just perpetuating a story of olden. Science meets the Superior-Natural.

[@willyjaybobindy3402]

Fyi, faith and religion and/or religious experiences are not one in the same.

[@TheTarutau]

Marker 1 thank you

[@kaykovuskerteus90]

Is someone is walking in the background with a bunch of little basins on him?

[@aureliocoronado7867]

I’m Mexican and I want my “Guadalupe Hidalgo”

[@vjnt1star]

well explained and made a lot of sense. Another gap filled by science that religion cannot use anymore

[@mrcollector4311]

Even tho its religion that brought it the attention, even in hindu and buddhist definitions these are pitched as the natural pure state of conciousness

[@charleybogart2820]

Sick!!

[@manikshamik]

If one is seeing images and hearing sounds during "meditation" then the brain is just playing tricks with him.

[@mayritag4372]

No because the brain processes information differently on each person, some people process thoughts as images,some have more highlighted sensory processing, personaly I experienced thought as a self monolog. So it makes sense that in an alter state your brain will present the extra information to you in a way that is more approachable to you.

[@ModestConfidence]

...and if it manifests in reality? then what?

[@jodawgsup]

Access to more information when you're "not conscious"? What?

[@omegasrevenge]

The brain filters out most information in favor of the important parts which you then pay attention to. What he is talking about is a way of accessing that information.

[@cogoid]

The question is: What exactly constitutes _YOU_ in this context?

[@epictetus9221]

when you're not *self-conscious*.

[@jodawgsup]

Epictetus you're right, my bad. Either way it's of no surprise, neither is it something to want, you'll be a mere robot and nothing else.

[@Th3CoLoSSuS]

you are not conscious of your subconscious which makes most of the job

[@abhinavjalan]

Does not seem speaker has a good experience of different altered states. Seems to be a overgeneralization. Meditation states are very different from flow states. In flow state, one is absorbed into the task, is not self aware, and therefore loses a sense of time. In deep meditation states, one is in fully in present moment, fully aware of time, and full self aware, though the ego may be lost.

[@mirygalas6508]

Did he say The Virgin of Guadalupe Hidalgo????? That's like a historical miss match!!! Lol

[@CR-yo8je]

if i'll say the same thing people are gonna think i am naive

[@franciscozattoni]

That clanking in the background was distracting.

[@pwwka999]

Behold! Superstition is breathing its last breaths..

[@andrewpush4961]

No worries humans will figure out how to be stupid in other ways. I think politics is producing some wonderful levels of stupidity.

[@jeffcarmichael2312]

DMT will likely give superstition a set of runners lungs. I'm a Dawkins fan myself, but the content that is experienced in these states is extremely surprising. "It's just your imagination" is in no way satisfactory and you don't have to believe in the super natural to be impressed. If the DMT experience is "just our minds" there is still much to examine. Freud received applause for pointing to our dreams to try to uncover some of our inner workings. Now he also came up with a few other ideas but the collective has picked through them and this is how we move forward. Here too we have to pick through a lot of zany ideas and to complicate things more, there is a short term mania that tends to follow these experiences and the majority of explorers are not necessarily steeped in science and rationality. Still, I look forward to hearing more from some of our best/intuitive minds and salute people like James Kent and Bruce Rimmel for their efforts as well as those entertaining focus on the content of visions rather than the nature of them. The reports are consistent. Your what you see is what you get view of the world will be challenged.

[@Bhurk]

S.T.E.R... really!?! You missed the acronym R.E.S.T

[@unicyclist97]

44 North REST is taken by web APIs, though.

[@ModestConfidence]

what about DXM? ;^/

[@Keyon_Wilson]

Religion is nothing but a result of how complex the human brain can be.

[@pryan455]

to play devils advocate, or i guess i would be Gods advocate, these states seem to me like a "Miracle" of nature

[@lameiraangelo]

NOT TRUE: People in the US have seen Hindu Gods and Egyptian Gods under DMT...

[@snovid3306]

it literary didn't give relevant evidence to any of the GRIT experiences

[@Pink_Floyd-ll8lq]

Why do you keep changing your accent

[@WhomisThou]

"Getting high"

[@nimim.markomikkila1673]

"...that state happens because this-and-this happens in the brain..." OR you enter that state and this-and-this happens in your brain? "...you go into unconscious processing... BUT unconscious processing happens all the time! It´s kinda cute, that this is explored scientifically, but they are often a bit shallow. Just a bit. And biased. Just a bit.