10 papers in the library · 19 citations · publishing 2023
October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon 16 citations
Abstract Psychedelic Experience presents a philosophical account of psychedelic experience. A central premise of the book is that such experiences are mind-revealing experiences and that they can be induced by means other than psychedelics. In particular, the book argues that psychedelic experiences can also be had as the result of meditation. The book then presents a unified conceptual...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon 2 citations
Abstract This chapter presents a unifying theory of the psychedelic experiences induced by psychedelics and meditation. Both psychedelics and meditation are widely reported to 'expand’ awareness, and, given the close relationship between awareness and attention, the chapter argues that a natural target of analysis is that of the attentional system. In the case of meditation, this is especially...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon 1 citation
Abstract This chapter explores the thesis that the empirically observed benefits of meditation and psychedelics on well-being can be accounted for in terms of their tendency to reveal the mind. The chapter proposes a more general explanation that goes beyond psychedelic experience by utilising the conceptual framework of psychedelic space (developed in chapter 3). Briefly stated, the...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter argues for a novel approach to philosophy, one that incorporates psychedelic experiences into philosophical methodology. Whereas the previous chapters used the tools of philosophy to understand psychedelic experiences, this chapter flips things around and argues that we can use psychedelic experiences to enhance our philosophising. The chapter explains how three particular...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter addresses the question of whether psychedelic-induced hallucinations are evidence against the hypothesis that psychedelics reveal the mind. While, at first glance, this may appear to be the case, the chapter argues that some (but perhaps not all) hallucinations induced by psychedelics do involve mind-revelation. In particular, by analysing mathematical models of how the...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter explores the idea that some memory recollections count as psychedelic experiences and that they can occur spontaneously, during and after meditation, and as a result of consuming psychedelic substances. The chapter also introduces the concept of mindfulness and unpacks the deep and important connection between mindfulness and memory. This analysis of mindfulness is then...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter addresses another potential objection to the hypothesis that psychedelics reveal the mind: if psychedelics induce creativity and the generation of novel ideas, then this suggests that they are mind-creating, rather than mind-revealing. The chapter argues that while some cases of psychedelic-induced creativity are instances of mind-creation, other cases are likely due to...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter uses the explication developed in the previous chapter to help delineate a logical space of hypotheses involving the concept of psychedelic experience. In particular, the chapter suggests that the practice of meditation and the consumption of psychedelics may tend to induce psychedelic experiences that reliably differ from each other with respect to the four dimensions of...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter provides a novel explication of the concept of psychedelic experience, understood as a mind-revealing experience. After reviewing the history of the concept of psychedelic experience, the chapter argues that experiences can be psychedelic in varying degrees and in different ways. In particular, the chapter argues that experiences can be more or less psychedelic by varying...
Psychedelic Experience October 26, 2023 Aidan Lyon
Abstract This chapter introduces the book's central question: what is a psychedelic experience? Upon reviewing the exchanges between Aldous Huxley and Humphry Osmond concerning their introduction of the term 'psychedelic', the chapter proposes that we should understand the notion along the lines they intended. Their idea was that substances such as psilocybin and LSD induce experiences that...