Ep. 12 - Awakening from the Meaning Crisis - Higher States of Consciousness, Part 2

In this episode of "Awakening from the Meaning Crisis," Dr. John Vervaeke discusses higher states of consciousness from a cognitive science perspective, exploring their potential for self-transformation and enhanced understanding of reality. He revisits properties of these states, such as a bright, intelligible world and a sense of oneness, and examines the continuity hypothesis, suggesting that these states are an extension of everyday experiences like reading fluency and insight. Vervaeke proposes that disruptive strategies and decentering, exemplified by the Solomon Effect, are central to achieving these states, allowing for the revelation of both positive and negative invariances and systematic errors. He also explores how decentering can lead to wisdom and a transformation of the self, cautioning against autodidactic pursuits without a supportive community. Furthermore, he delves into the cognitive science behind these transformations, suggesting that the machinery of the self can be exacted to integrate the world more deeply, and discusses the role of plausibility, trustworthiness, and fluency in evaluating these experiences.