Category: Psychology
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The Trip Report: Dreams, Drugs, and the Problem of Interpretation
There is a moment, somewhere between sleep and waking, between the pharmacological threshold and its peak, between an ordinary evening and a vision that will not leave a person alone for the rest of their life, when the mind produces something it cannot fully explain to itself. Call it a trip report — the raw,…
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THE HAPPINESS PRESCRIPTION — 2nd GEAR: AWARENESS
Living in the Moment, According to the Brain Salience network meditation is really just a more precise name for what this whole gear is training, and it’s worth saying plainly before going further. 🔬 The science Many contemplative traditions have taught, for millennia, that living in the moment increases happiness. In 2011, Judson Brewer and…
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The Recipe You’d Die For: Dioscorides, Dionysus, and the Wine That Touched God
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The kykeon was a sacred drink in ancient Greece, linked to profound religious experiences yet shrouded in secrecy, as its recipe was never documented due to severe penalties for disclosure. Dioscorides recorded various medicated wines, but the kykeon remained unmentioned, suggesting its potentially dangerous significance. This mystery connects to broader themes of altered consciousness, spirituality,…
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You Have Never Seen Reality As It Is, Episode 14 Part 1
The reducing valve has been filtering your reality since the moment you were born. Henri Bergson proposed it in 1896 — not as metaphor, but as mechanism. The brain’s function is not to produce consciousness. It is to reduce it. To compress the full spectrum of what is real into a narrow band of what…
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What Quantum Physics and Buddhism Agree On: The Strange Case of Orch-OR
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Stuart Hameroff and Roger Penrose’s Orch-OR theory suggests consciousness arises from quantum processes in microtubules. Hameroff posits that plants may have a form of consciousness, supporting Pantheism. The integration of Orch-OR and Buddhist theories offers a dialogue between science and spirituality, reflecting interdependence and impermanence. Both perspectives see consciousness as dynamic and interconnected, paralleling mindfulness…
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How Tummo Breathing Affects Your Brain’s Functionality
Deep breathing can substantially influence brain function and mental well-being, as recent MRI studies reveal its effects on brain areas like the thalamus, hypothalamus, pineal gland, and cerebellum. Techniques such as Tummo and Hatha Yoga’s pranayama enhance oxygen levels, reduce stress, and stimulate energy centers, improving coordination and emotional regulation. These practices link breathwork to…
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Cauchy Surfaces: What Physics Tells Us About the Power of Now
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Boundaries in physics, mathematics, and philosophy signify the interface for new discoveries. Concepts like Cauchy surfaces, wavefronts, and consciousness illustrate how information transitions through spacetime, mediums, and our minds. Integrating Buddhist perspectives reveals that boundaries enable transformation and growth. Emphasizing interconnectedness, these ideas underscore the interplay of determinism and creativity, unfolding a deeper understanding of…
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Hermetic Philosophy and the Great Seal Mahamudra, is there a Universal Wisdom?
Hermetic philosophy and Mahamudra converge on universal truths regarding reality and self-realization. Both advocate for transcending illusions, emphasizing interconnectedness and direct experience. While Hermeticism provides structured principles, Mahamudra highlights non-dual awareness, ultimately guiding practitioners to recognize the infinite truth within themselves, present in the simplicity of the moment.
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Could Descartes speak his mind or did the Church threaten his existence? The Cartesian Conundrum
Descartes, a key figure in Western philosophy, challenged the Catholic Church with his ideas about the mind and consciousness. His “Cogito, ergo sum” encapsulates his philosophy of radical doubt and the importance of consciousness. His dualistic theory of mind and body conflicted with the Catholic view of their unity, leading to scrutiny and censorship. Similarly,…
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Carl Jung and Mahamudra
In depth psychology, Carl Jung introduced *Unus Mundus*, emphasizing the unity of existence. Similarly, Vajrayana Buddhism’s *mahamudra* practice aims to realize the ultimate nature of mind, challenging dualistic perceptions. Jung’s concept suggests interconnectedness of psyche and material world, resonating with *mahamudra’s* view of all phenomena as expressions of the same fundamental reality. Both offer profound…
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You Don’t Need LSD to See This — But It Might Show You Why
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This content explores the concept of expanding consciousness to include the Earth and all living beings, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all life. It discusses the potential for psychedelics like LSD to facilitate experiences of unity and spiritual awakening, as well as the benefits of meditation in cultivating lasting inner transformation. The text also highlights the…
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Descartes Fourth Meditation Embracing the Path of Enlightenment: A Buddhist Perspective on Certainty and Truth
Descartes truth — the question of what grounds our knowledge of reality — is the central concern of the Fourth Meditation. Having established his own existence and proven God’s existence through the causal adequacy argument in the Third Meditation, Descartes now asks: given that God exists and is perfectly good, what does that tell us…
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Carl Jung and the Buddha Dharma: Exploring Inner Wisdom
In the realm of psychological and spiritual thought, Carl Jung and the Buddha offer profound insights into the human condition. Both emphasize the importance of inner exploration and self-awareness. Jung urges introspection for clarity and understanding, while the Buddha teaches that peace comes from within, not from external sources. Their teachings converge on the truth…
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Quantum Woo or Enlightenment? Where Physics Ends and Consciousness Begins
Quantum Woo, a concept that challenges traditional physics, raises questions about the simplicity of scientific equations. While not everyone can grasp quantum physics, its impact on our lives is undeniable. Erwin Schrödinger’s belief in quantum mechanics’ potential for understanding biological phenomena suggests a connection to consciousness. This prompts contemplation on the nature of reality and…
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Meditating with Descartes, Cogito and the Inseparable Thinker. His Second Meditation.
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Are we really who we think we are? What is the sum of all our thoughts? What is god? These are all wonderful questions that mankind has been asking since beginingless time. Both western and eastern philosophers have wrestled with them but in slightly different ways. I want to explore how close western philosophers like…
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Meditating with Descartes — Doubt, Nihilism, and the Buddhist Void
Descartes is undoubtedly one of the most influential philosophers of our time. He formed our concepts in the west about mind and our existence, although heavily influenced by the catholic church his ideas and theories are here to stay in one form or another. This discussion I intend to start is to discover what similarities…
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The Neuroscience of Kindness — What Happens in Your Brain When You Are Kind
“What studies have shown is that when we are either thinking about kind acts or witnessing kind acts or engaging in acts of kindness to other people, there are several biochemical changes that happen in our brain,”
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You decide if it’s good or bad!
Just like Hamlet, I was a prisoner of my own mind as he was contemplating the murder of his father and his killer King Claudius.
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Coemergence: How Subject, Object, and Action Arise Together
Co emergence or co arising are two terms that are often used when comparing our very dualistic experience to a non dual reality. A general understanding of the would be that both good and bad, light and dark, and up and down only exist dependent on each other. We are pointing at the unity of…
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Monkey Mind? Tame your inner Monkey with Medi Bits.
Extreme Ideation or Monkey Mind can be a very challenging obstacle on the meditation cushion. QP can help with a quick Medi Bits Tune Up. Please don’t forget to like subscribe and share both here and on YouTube!
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Ego = 0
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Nagarjuna is famous for his groundbreaking treatises on sunyata Sanskrit for emptiness. What could be more empty than zero? Even in the cardinal script, the shape of the zero says “hey man there is nothing here look into the circle it’s empty.”
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Flowing in the Stream of Consciousness
The stream of consciousness in Buddhism is not a metaphor — it is a precise description of how mind actually works. Every moment of perception flows into the next, shaped by what came before and seeding what comes after. This page traces that river from the banks of ancient Greece, through the dharma of dependent…
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Buddhism and Mental Health — What a Psychologist Told Me About Meditation
In the modern wellness era, the line between spiritual practice and clinical treatment has become increasingly blurred. Many seekers wonder: Can Buddhism and mental health practices like meditation actually replace traditional psychotherapy? While the benefits of meditation for anxiety and depression are backed by science, there is a hidden side to the practice that few discuss. From Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) to…
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Panpsychism: The Idea That Changes Everything About Consciousness
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What is Panpsychism? Panpsychism is the philosophical idea that consciousness is a fundamental feature of the universe, present in some form throughout all physical reality. In other words, panpsychism proposes that mind is not something that emerges late in evolution, but something that exists in even the simplest structures of nature. Have you ever wondered…
