Entheogenesis: Toward an Expanded Worldview for Our Time
Journal of Humanistic Psychology August 9, 2017 DOI: 10.1177/0022167817723405 (opens in new tab) via Semantic Scholar
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Psychology Philosophy |
| Citations | 4 |
| Key points | Proposes that 'consciousness expansion' is a more useful term than 'psychedelic' for describing altered states and that contemporary culture is shifting toward an expanded worldview embracing both material and spiritual dimensions. |
Abstract
Whereas the terminology of psychedelics has acquired spurious cultural associations of “tripping,” the historically primal concept of consciousness expansion has two advantages. One, it connects psychedelic drugs with other modes of consciousness expansion, such as meditation and creative visioning; and two, it suggests contrasting comparison with the consciousness contraction involved in concentration and focus. Both expansions and contractions can be observed at the level of an individual’s states of consciousness and also at the level of the shared worldview of society. Contemporary world culture is moving toward an expanded worldview that recognizes both the material and the spiritual dimensions of our existence.