Mystical experience in the Bayesian brain
Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences December 10, 2025 DOI: 10.1007/s11097-025-10107-1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Mysticism Philosophy of mind Mystical experience |
| Keywords | Neurocognitive Perception Bayesian probability Cognition Epistemology Cognitive psychology Cognitive science |
| Key points | Proposes that mystical experiences can be explained by the REBUS hypothesis, where the brain's prediction error minimization shows decreased influence of high-level predictions and increased influence of sensory input. |
Abstract
Abstract Mystical experiences are among the most extraordinary and meaningful experiences one can have. While such experiences have been studied for more than a century, it is still an open question how the brain can produce them. The present paper provides a possible answer by examining mystical experience from the lens of the REBUS hypothesis—a theory that explains the neurocognitive mechanisms of psychedelics in the Bayesian brain. Since psychedelics have consistently been shown to induce mystical experiences, the REBUS hypothesis implicitly suggests that it can also shed light on the underlying mechanisms of mystical experiences. The resulting account holds that during a mystical experience, the brain’s constant process of prediction error minimization is characterized by a decreased influence of high-level predictions and, simultaneously, an increased influence of sensory input. The latter can be related to the noetic quality of mystical experiences; the former to the experience of oneness, altered perception of time and space, ineffability, and deeply felt positive mood during/after a mystical experience. While the paper’s account is developed on a conceptual basis and thus remains speculative, it is compatible with other models of mystical experience, such as that mystical experience involves maximal uncertainty or a breaking down of attention.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on mystical experience, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Religious and Mystical Experiences as Artifacts of Temporal Lobe Function: A General Hypothesis | 1983 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Psychedelic Mystical Experience in the Human Encounter with Death | 1969 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Vectorial Cerebral Hemisphericity as Differential Sources for the Sensed Presence, Mystical Experiences and Religious Conversions | 1993 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The epistemic innocence of psychedelic states. | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mystical Experience and Religious Doctrine | 1982 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cites 27
- Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences having substantial and sustained personal meaning and spiritual significance Psychopharmacology July 7, 2006
- The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2014
- REBUS and the Anarchic Brain: Toward a Unified Model of the Brain Action of Psychedelics Pharmacological Reviews June 20, 2019
- Psilocybin occasioned mystical-type experiences: immediate and persisting dose-related effects. Psychopharmacology December 1, 2011
- Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later Journal of Psychopharmacology May 30, 2008
and 22 more in the library