Identity alteration: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Artistic_depiction_of_unity.png|thumb|right|upright|200px| This symbol depicts the universe as a "self-excited circuit". It was originally created by the late theoretical physicist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Archibald_Wheeler John Archibald Wheeler] in his 1983 paper [http://psychonautwiki.org/w/images/3/30/Wheeler_law_without_law.pdf Law Without Law].]]

The ~~fourth~~ level of identity alteration can be defined as feeling as if one's identity is simultaneously attributed to the entirety of ~~their~~ immediately perceivable external environment and all known concepts that exist outside of it. These known concepts typically include all of humanity, nature, and the universe as it presently stands in its complete entirety. This feeling is commonly interpreted by people as “''becoming one with the universe''.”

The fifth level of identity alteration can be defined as feeling as if one's identity is simultaneously attributed to the entirety of the immediately perceivable external environment and all known concepts that exist outside of it. These known concepts typically include all of humanity, nature, and the universe as it presently stands in its complete entirety. This feeling is commonly interpreted by people as ''becoming one with the universe''.

When experienced, the effect creates the sudden perspective that one is not a separate agent approaching an external reality, but is instead the entire universe as a whole experiencing itself, exploring itself, and performing actions upon itself through the specific point in space and time which this particular body and conscious perception happens to currently reside within. ~~Many people~~ who undergo this experience consistently interpret it as the removal of a deeply embedded illusion with ~~its destruction~~ often described as some sort of profound “awakening” or “enlightenment.”

When experienced, the effect creates the sudden perspective that one is not a separate agent approaching an external reality, but is instead the entire universe as a whole experiencing itself, exploring itself, and performing actions upon itself through the specific point in space and time which this particular body and conscious perception happens to currently reside within. People who undergo this experience consistently interpret it as the removal of a deeply embedded illusion, with the revelation often described as some sort of profound “awakening” or “enlightenment.”

Although they are not necessarily ~~correct in any way~~, ~~it's worth noting that~~ at this point, ~~a number of~~ commonly reported conclusions of a religious and metaphysical nature often begin to manifest themselves as profound realizations. These are described and listed below:

Although they are not necessarily literal truths about reality, at this point, many commonly reported conclusions of a religious and metaphysical nature often begin to manifest themselves as profound realizations. These are described and listed below:

* The sudden and total acceptance of death as a fundamental ~~component~~ of life. ~~This is because death~~ is no longer felt to be the destruction of oneself but simply the end of this specific point of a greater whole, ~~the vast majority of~~ which has always existed and will continue to exist and live on through everything else in which it resides.

* The sudden and total acceptance of death as a fundamental complement of life. Death is no longer felt to be the destruction of oneself, but simply the end of this specific point of a greater whole, which has always existed and will continue to exist and live on through everything else in which it resides. Therefore, the death of a small part of the whole is seen as an inevitable, and not worthy of grief or any emotional attachment, but simply a fact of reality.

* The subjective perspective that one's preconceived notions of "god" or deities can be felt as identical to the nature of existence and its contents, including oneself. This typically entails ~~feelings~~ that if the universe ~~is the~~ all ~~powerful~~, all ~~knowing sustainer~~ and ~~creator of existence~~ then on either a semantic or literal level the universe and its contents could be viewed as god

* The subjective perspective that one's preconceived notions of "god" or deities can be felt as identical to the nature of existence and the totality of its contents, including oneself. This typically entails the intuition that if the universe contains all possible power (omnipotence), all possible knowledge (omniscience), is self-creating, and self-sustaining then on either a semantic or literal level the universe and its contents could also be viewed as god.

* The subjective perspective that one is personally responsible for the [[feelings of self-design|~~self-designing~~]], planning, and implementation of every single specific detail and plot element of one's personal life, the history of humanity, and the universe ~~as a whole~~. This naturally includes personal responsibility for humanity's sufferings and ~~its~~ flaws but also includes its acts of love and achievements.

* The subjective perspective that one, by nature of being the universe, is personally responsible for the [[feelings of self-design|design]], planning, and implementation of every single specific detail and plot element of one's personal life, the history of humanity, and the entirety of the universe. This naturally includes personal responsibility for all humanity's sufferings and flaws, but also includes its acts of love and achievements.

This state most commonly occurs during intense states of well-practiced [[meditation]] or under the influence of [[hallucinogen]]s such as [[psychedelic]]s.

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*'''[http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/04/13/474071268/how-lsd-makes-your-brain-one-with-the-universe How LSD Makes Your Brain One With The Universe (NPR.org)]'''

*'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fajfkO_X0l0 Sam Harris: The self is an illusion (YouTube)]'''

*'''[http://beingtheuniverse.tumblr.com/ Being The Universe (tumblr)]'''

===See also===

@@ Line 57: / Line 57: @@
 [[File:Artistic_depiction_of_unity.png|thumb|right|upright|200px| This symbol depicts the universe as a "self-excited circuit". It was originally created by the late theoretical physicist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Archibald_Wheeler John Archibald Wheeler] in his 1983 paper [http://psychonautwiki.org/w/images/3/30/Wheeler_law_without_law.pdf Law Without Law].]]
 {{Main|Unity and interconnectedness}}
-The fourth level of identity alteration can be defined as feeling as if one's identity is simultaneously attributed to the entirety of their immediately perceivable external environment and all known concepts that exist outside of it. These known concepts typically include all of humanity, nature, and the universe as it presently stands in its complete entirety. This feeling is commonly interpreted by people as “''becoming one with the universe''.”
+The fifth level of identity alteration can be defined as feeling as if one's identity is simultaneously attributed to the entirety of the immediately perceivable external environment and all known concepts that exist outside of it. These known concepts typically include all of humanity, nature, and the universe as it presently stands in its complete entirety. This feeling is commonly interpreted by people as ''becoming one with the universe''.
-When experienced, the effect creates the sudden perspective that one is not a separate agent approaching an external reality, but is instead the entire universe as a whole experiencing itself, exploring itself, and performing actions upon itself through the specific point in space and time which this particular body and conscious perception happens to currently reside within. Many people who undergo this experience consistently interpret it as the removal of a deeply embedded illusion with its destruction often described as some sort of profound “awakening” or “enlightenment.”
+When experienced, the effect creates the sudden perspective that one is not a separate agent approaching an external reality, but is instead the entire universe as a whole experiencing itself, exploring itself, and performing actions upon itself through the specific point in space and time which this particular body and conscious perception happens to currently reside within. People who undergo this experience consistently interpret it as the removal of a deeply embedded illusion, with the revelation often described as some sort of profound “awakening” or “enlightenment.”
-Although they are not necessarily correct in any way, it's worth noting that at this point, a number of commonly reported conclusions of a religious and metaphysical nature often begin to manifest themselves as profound realizations. These are described and listed below:
+Although they are not necessarily literal truths about reality, at this point, many commonly reported conclusions of a religious and metaphysical nature often begin to manifest themselves as profound realizations. These are described and listed below:
-* The sudden and total acceptance of death as a fundamental component of life. This is because death is no longer felt to be the destruction of oneself but simply the end of this specific point of a greater whole, the vast majority of which has always existed and will continue to exist and live on through everything else in which it resides.
+* The sudden and total acceptance of death as a fundamental complement of life. Death is no longer felt to be the destruction of oneself, but simply the end of this specific point of a greater whole, which has always existed and will continue to exist and live on through everything else in which it resides. Therefore, the death of a small part of the whole is seen as an inevitable, and not worthy of grief or any emotional attachment, but simply a fact of reality.
-* The subjective perspective that one's preconceived notions of "god" or deities can be felt as identical to the nature of existence and its contents, including oneself. This typically entails feelings that if the universe is the all powerful, all knowing sustainer and creator of existence then on either a semantic or literal level the universe and its contents could be viewed as god
+* The subjective perspective that one's preconceived notions of "god" or deities can be felt as identical to the nature of existence and the totality of its contents, including oneself. This typically entails the intuition that if the universe contains all possible power (omnipotence), all possible knowledge (omniscience), is self-creating, and self-sustaining then on either a semantic or literal level the universe and its contents could also be viewed as god.
-* The subjective perspective that one is personally responsible for the [[feelings of self-design|self-designing]], planning, and implementation of every single specific detail and plot element of one's personal life, the history of humanity, and the universe as a whole. This naturally includes personal responsibility for humanity's sufferings and its flaws but also includes its acts of love and achievements.
+* The subjective perspective that one, by nature of being the universe, is personally responsible for the [[feelings of self-design|design]], planning, and implementation of every single specific detail and plot element of one's personal life, the history of humanity, and the entirety of the universe. This naturally includes personal responsibility for all humanity's sufferings and flaws, but also includes its acts of love and achievements.
 This state most commonly occurs during intense states of well-practiced [[meditation]] or under the influence of [[hallucinogen]]s such as [[psychedelic]]s.
@@ Line 91: / Line 91: @@
 *'''[http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/04/13/474071268/how-lsd-makes-your-brain-one-with-the-universe How LSD Makes Your Brain One With The Universe (NPR.org)]'''
 *'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fajfkO_X0l0 Sam Harris: The self is an illusion (YouTube)]'''
 *'''[http://beingtheuniverse.tumblr.com/ Being The Universe (tumblr)]'''
 ===See also===