This chapter explores the hidden but universal societal enigmas that have existed since the beginning of civilization and are in fact wired into our very biology, and that have a huge impact on our physical, mental and spiritual health. Healers, or shamans, have existed since the Paleolithic and Upper Paleolithic era, and they played a pivotal role in cognitive and social evolution through...
Our chapter traces the origins of the psychoanalytic method back to experiences of non-ordinary states of consciousness achieved through the practice of hypnosis. Psychedelic medicines have the capacity to reveal hidden aspects of the unconscious mind that include symbolic elements and early organizational structures that correspond to Freud’s primary process thinking and which underpin...
The Altered States Database (ASDB) is an open science project, containing psychometric questionnaire data on altered states of consciousness experiences induced by diverse means. The database was first described in: Schmidt, T. T., & Berkemeyer, H. (2018). The Altered States Database: Psychometric Data of Altered States of Consciousness. In Front. Psychol. and an upgrade to cohere to the...
Introduction: The efficacy of interventions based on mindfulness and compassion has been demonstrated in both clinical and general population, and in different social contexts. These interventions include so-called attentional and constructive meditation practices, respectively. However, there is a third group, known as deconstructive meditation practices, which has not been scientifically...
Dreams are still an enigma of human cognition, studied extensively in psychoanalysis and neuroscience. According to the Freudian dream theory and Solms' modifications of the unconscious derived from it, the fundamental task of meeting our emotional needs is guided by the principle of homeostasis. Our innate value system generates conscious feelings of pleasure and unpleasure, resulting in the...
Psychedelics alter consciousness and may have potential for drug development. As psychedelics are likely therapeutically active, it is important to study their effects and mechanisms using preclinical models. Here, we examined the effects of phenylalkylamine and indoleamine psychedelics on locomotor activity and exploratory behaviour using the mouse Behavioural Pattern Monitor (BPM). DOM,...
The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of meditation on reaction ability. Meditation is a practice in which an individual trains the mind or induces a mode of consciousness, either to realize some benefit or as an end in itself. Psychomotor abilities were always considered to be the foundation for technical skill and tactical ability in any given sports. Despite its popularity,...
Consciousness is experienced as embodied in the human experience. The chapter disabuses the notions that consciousness in Indian psychology is otherworldly and, therefore, disembodied. Indeed, IKS presents a nuanced conceptualization of three bodies. These three bodies are also seen in Buddhist texts. One of the three bodies is the physical body; the rest are the bodies in consciousness. The...
arXiv Preprint ArchiveFebruary 2, 2023Serge Kernbach, Olga Kernbach, Andreas Kernbach
preprint
Long-term focused attention with visualization and breathing exercises is at the core of various Eastern traditions. Neurocognitive and psychosomatic phenomena demonstrated during such exercises were instrumentally explored with EEG and other sensors. Neurocognitive modeling in the form of meditative visualization produced persistent temperature effects in the body long after the exercise...
Ratings of perceptual experience on a trial-by-trial basis are increasingly used in masked priming studies to assess prime awareness. It is argued that such subjective ratings more adequately capture the content of phenomenal consciousness compared to the standard objective psychophysical measures obtained in a session after the priming experiment. However, the concurrent implementation of the...