Technological psychedelia

Have you ever been in a situation so extreme, you have fundamentally changed the way you view the world or your opinion about something? Have you ever thought about how this happens?

The way experience the environment is never as reality even though it feels like it to us. We always see it through a pair of colored glasses, which means, a collection of stories that help us make sense of what we view. This sense is not necessarily accurate but to us it feels like a decent representation. Based on this, we act upon these stories and move through life.

But sometimes, an event can cause what we know, the structure and framework we have built, to buckle under the pressure and shift into a new form. In some extreme cases, this can happen instantly and can forever reorganize the mind from that point on.

Drowned and awake

One such story was when a client of mine was on holiday in Spain and while at the beach, two men, brothers drowned. Before the lifeguards got there, she had tried to resuscitate one of the men but was unable and she held him as his unconscious body gave way to death. She said to me that in that moment, her mind was calm and clear and a depth of understanding in life she had never known was painfully clear. As if she was awake for the first time.

After the adrenaline of the moment had passed, after days, weeks and months it was still there, clear. She had thought more about it, reviewed her previous positions and wondered at just how she hadn't seen the simplicity of life when it was there, obvious to all to see.

She is a very well articulated person, however, when she explained it to her friends and tried to show them this deeper truth, they could not see it, even when they tried to understand, they couldn't make the leap. When understanding is reached however, what was known before that point seems immature.

An internal revolution

My question is whether one has to go through a life altering experience to alter life or of it is possible to simulate? I am not talking about faking these types of events but rather if one can mentally simulate events that explore the structure of the mind and alter the mind from within and cause a personal revolution.

I would presume that it is quite possible if one can understand themselves well enough to create a narrative that will replace that which is currently held. It is likely what those who meditate deeply upon something are attempting to do, explore an idea to its core and when the truth is discovered within, implant the new story into the framework.

Augmented and real

I then wonder how virtual and augmented reality could assist us in exploring who we are in these life altering circumstances while still being safe. Essentially, at some point in the not too distant future we will be able to be fully immersed in the most wild, horrible, scary, beautiful, wonderful experiences whilst being safe and sound.

It is possible that even though the body is safe, the mind is not and can be fooled into thinking it is actually experiencing something it is not. A technological psychedelic trip. I have spoken before how the human brain's major advantage is its ability to simulate what is not there, what is not real, what may never come about and this is how we drive our own evolution.

I wonder what would happen if we could simulate what it really feels like to be in another's shoes. I don't mean thinking we are in another's shoes but actually experiencing and believing what they truly feel. Would it change our behaviors in the walking world? Most likely.

What would it feel like to be starving to death in a famine, be black in a room full of white racists, go though childbirth or like my student, watch someone's life ebb away after trying frantically to save them?

A willingness to change

The technology is likely not too far away and we will be able to experience being someone else across the entire spectrum of experience. I would assume that if one can 'truly' live in a simulated adversity for some time, opinions and understanding will fundamentally shift. I would posit that those who have found what some may call enlightenment have been able to know their mind so well, they can break away the scaffolds and see clearly.

Could enlightenment be reached en masse via a technological solution? It is very likely but most probably, it would be used for entertainment and marketing purposes instead. While a technological solution is unavailable though, we can still use the simulation capabilities we possess to remove the scaffolding and increase our understanding of the world if we choose.

Will we choose to though?

Taraz
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