Free will is one of the most enduring problems in philosophy and cognitive science, yet what, exactly, requires explanation remains unclear. The most tractable target is the experience of free will – the vivid sense of self-authorship, control, and a felt capacity to have done otherwise. As with the scientific study of mystical experiences, this phenomenology can be investigated without...
ABSTRACT Background Healthcare workers experienced amplified depression and burnout during COVID-19. Both Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and psilocybin have been shown to reduce depressive symptoms in this population, however the psychological mechanisms by which adding psilocybin to mindfulness training improves depression and trait mindfulness remain incompletely characterized....
The rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into everyday life has created new intersections among digital technology, spirituality, mystical experience, and psychopathology. This scoping review aimed to map evidence on how AI mediates, reinforces, detects, predicts, or interprets religious and spiritual experiences at the boundary with psychosis and dissociation. PubMed, Web of...
(1) Background: This article situates Edith Stein within the 20th-century debate on the nature of mystical experience, framing it as a philosophical problem concerning the relationship between divine initiative and human freedom, and aims to reassess dominant developmental interpretations of mysticism. It argues that, alongside theological models such as that of Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange,...
Mystical experiences or peak spiritual experiences have been shown to be of potential benefit in facilitating personal growth and ameliorating anxiety and depression. A pilot study demonstrated the feasibility of hypnotically induced mystical experiences. Althrough participants' qualitative experiences were recorded and analyzed, they have yet to be reported. Although participants' qualitative...
INTRODUCTION: Interest in therapeutic applications of psychedelics has recently resurged. Mystical-type and challenging experiences that are elicited by psychedelics are commonly assessed using the 30-item Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ-30) and the 26-item Challenging Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), respectively. The brief 4-item MEQ (MEQ-4) and 7-item CEQ (CEQ-7) may reduce respondent...
Background: The potential safety and efficacy of the psychedelic 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been researched in phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials. We examined the occurrence and role of mystical experiences in MDMA-AT. Methods: Data were sourced from two phase 2 randomized trials of MDMA-AT for chronic PTSD, in...
This study examines Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and the concept of peak experience from the perspective of Christian counseling, focusing on his explanation of human motivation through a hierarchy of needs and its later expansion to include cognitive, aesthetic, and self-transcendence needs. Maslow’s theory provides valuable insights into understanding human beings as holistic persons...
Any person aspiring to become a mystic cannot cut oneself off from the banalities of life and pretend to be travelling in a world toto caelo different from this experiential world. Such mysticism cannot be effective nor can it invite others because it will appear to be too ethereal. Hence the challenge for any mystic is to make the real life come into the purview of the mystical dimension and...
This work represents the production-proof version of the article entitled "The Inner Sanctuary: A Clinical-Psychological Framework for Mystical Experience, Symbolic Healing, and Spiritual Integration" by Isabella Asel. The manuscript has completed editorial assessment and publication preparation for Current Science Georgia (ISSN 2667-9515). The publisher DOI has not yet been assigned because...
Preliminary evidence suggests that the combination of magnesium and ibogaine, an atypical psychedelic, may be a promising treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), opioid use disorder, and traumatic brain injury (TBI). The "mystical" experience elicited by ibogaine, which is characterized by feelings of awe, selflessness, and transcendence, is correlated with improvements in PTSD...
This is the a priori protocol for a scoping review (JBI methodology; PRISMA-ScR reporting) mapping evidence on (1) the measurement of psychedelic-occasioned mystical/spiritual experience and its association with clinical outcomes, and (2) classic serotonergic psychedelics for body dysmorphic disorder and obsessive-compulsive-spectrum conditions, interpreted through the osteopathic...
Journal of Psychoactive DrugsJuly 3, 2026Miguel Joaquim Soares Teles Couceiro, Victor José da Conceição Teixeira Amorim Rodrigues, Nuno Manuel Correia Torres
This case study explores the potential role of mystical-type experiences in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP). A patient with generalized anxiety disorder and migraines underwent four intramuscular KAP sessions (0.5-0.9 mg/kg). Outcomes were assessed using the Outcome Questionnaire-45 (OQ-45), the Hood Mysticism Scale (HMS), and interviews. Greater therapeutic gains followed sessions with...
Mystical experience in Rumi is compared to the directness of sight. It is not just about words. It is about knowing the Beloved. It is also compared to smelling a delightful aroma, and its interior or ‘heart’ aspect is emphasised. The Sufi’s pilgrimage is not merely an external destination but a journey inwards. It is there that God is found. In the Mathnawi , at least, he does not completely...
This study investigates how mystical experiences are articulated in digital environments, especially in religion-focused communities (“subreddits”) on Reddit, a popular social media platform. Classical theorists like William James argued that mystical experiences resist linguistic expression; in other words, according to the traditional scholarly view, these phenomena are inherently...
This project investigates how the context of a live concert — including prior expectations, personality, and acute psychoactive substance use — shapes intense emotional and altered-state responses to music, specifically feelings of awe and wonder, mystical-type experiences, and aesthetic chills. The study is part of an ongoing programme of research at the Leiden University PRSM Lab into peak...
The idea of a psychology of mysticism is thought provoking, but it is often carried out by reducing spiritual realities to the level of the psyche and the psychological order, which radically compromises the scope of this endeavor. It needs to be clearly stated that the bringing together of mysticism with psychology is not a novel initiative; this integration is, in fact, embodied in the...
Abstract This chapter examines the relationship between delusions and conspiracy theories through the lens of hinge epistemology. While delusions may be understood as irrational acceptances that conflict with de facto or de jure hinges, conspiracy beliefs—such as flat-earth or COVID-19 anti-vaccination theories—share certain features with delusions, including steadfastness in the face of...
This study aims to describe the experiences of a Polish mystic who lived in the 19th and late 20th centuries, based on her writings. Through research involving comparisons, analyses, and a synthesis of her revelations, it has been possible to identify and highlight the diversity of Blessed Marcelina Darowska’s (1827–1911) inner life and achievements, which place her among contemplative and...
Mystical language, unlike scientific language, which is based on logical reasoning and conceptual clarity, is rich in metaphors whose primary function is to express ineffable spiritual experiences. The central concern of this study is how classical metaphors operate as cognitive tools in Iranian–Islamic mystical texts, rendering transcendent experiences intelligible to the reader. The aim of...