Memory suppression: Difference between revisions

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===Ego death===

At level 4, the most profound aspect of all-encompassing long-term memory suppression is the way in which it obliterates one's ability to recall or even feel a general sense of their own name, identity, me-ness or selfhood. The experience of this is colloquially known as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_death ego death]. ~~Rhetoric around "ego death" suggests~~ that ~~people are capable of "~~experiencing~~" ego death, as though it were possible to experience raw~~ sensory input ~~without any concept of self or reference point. Since experiences must be experienced by a subject,~~ it is ~~not possible to experience anything without subjectivity (i~~.~~e. without a concept of one's self).~~

At level 4, the most profound aspect of all-encompassing long-term memory suppression is the way in which it obliterates one's ability to recall or even feel a general sense of their own name, identity, me-ness or selfhood. The experience of this is colloquially known as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_death ego death] and is well documented throughout the modern [[psychonaut]]ic subculture. It results in the profound experience that although one is not unconscious, there is no longer an “I” experiencing current sensory input; there is just the input as it is and by itself. This allows one to experience concepts from a perspective which is completely untainted by prior experience and memories due to the accompanying presence of simultaneous [[personal bias suppression]].</onlyinclude>

~~"Ego death" often refers to such a radical change in~~ one's concept of self that their old self has "died" in a metaphorical sense. For example, on high doses of dissociative drugs, users have described losing all familiar subjective reference points, such as forgetting their name, when they were born or even their species.

~~It is not possible~~ to experience ~~complete ego loss because the ego is~~ a ~~functional necessity of experience (experiences have to happen to something - experiences don't float around waiting to be collected as though they are things in an of themselves). It~~ is ~~possible to have experiences through a radically altered, minimal concept of self but the idea of being able to~~ experience ~~without subjectivity is a contradiction~~ and ~~thus impossible.~~

~~On p.225 Merkur (2014) clarifies:~~

~~"Accurately described, the mystical state involves a disappearance not of the ego, but rather of the self-representation, the idea of oneself. The ego, defined as the capacity~~ to sense, perceive and to think, continues to function as the seat of experience, even when what is experienced is cosmic."<ref>Merkur, D (2014). The Formation of Hippie Spirituality: 1. Union with God. in Ellens, JH (ed). Seeking The Sacred With Psychoactive Substances (Volume I). Praeger, Santa Barbara: 2014.</ref> In other words, the ~~representation~~ of ~~one's self is destroyed, but the ego must continue to function in order for experience to be possible~~.</onlyinclude>

===Psychoactive substances===

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*[[Dissociatives#Subjective_effects|Dissociatives - Subjective effects]]

*[[Deliriants#Subjective_effects|Deliriants - Subjective effects]]

~~===References===~~

~~<references/>~~

[[Category:Cognitive]] [[Category:Suppression]] [[Category:Effect]]

{{#set:Featured=true

|Belongs to=Cognitive effects

}}

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 ===Ego death===
-At level 4, the most profound aspect of all-encompassing long-term memory suppression is the way in which it obliterates one's ability to recall or even feel a general sense of their own name, identity, me-ness or selfhood. The experience of this is colloquially known as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_death ego death]. Rhetoric around "ego death" suggests that people are capable of "experiencing" ego death, as though it were possible to experience raw sensory input without any concept of self or reference point.  Since experiences must be experienced by a subject, it is not possible to experience anything without subjectivity (i.e. without a concept of one's self).
+At level 4, the most profound aspect of all-encompassing long-term memory suppression is the way in which it obliterates one's ability to recall or even feel a general sense of their own name, identity, me-ness or selfhood. The experience of this is colloquially known as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ego_death ego death] and is well documented throughout the modern [[psychonaut]]ic subculture. It results in the profound experience that although one is not unconscious, there is no longer an “I” experiencing current sensory input; there is just the input as it is and by itself. This allows one to experience concepts from a perspective which is completely untainted by prior experience and memories due to the accompanying presence of simultaneous [[personal bias suppression]].</onlyinclude>
-"Ego death" often refers to such a radical change in one's concept of self that their old self has "died" in a metaphorical sense.  For example, on high doses of dissociative drugs, users have described losing all familiar subjective reference points, such as forgetting their name, when they were born or even their species.
-It is not possible to experience complete ego loss because the ego is a functional necessity of experience (experiences have to happen <i>to</i> something - experiences don't float around waiting to be collected as though they are things in an of themselves).  It is possible to have experiences through a radically altered, minimal concept of self but the idea of being able to experience without subjectivity is a contradiction and thus impossible.
-On p.225 Merkur (2014) clarifies:
-"Accurately described, the mystical state involves a disappearance not of the <i>ego</i>, but rather of the <i>self-representation</i>, the idea of oneself.  The <i>ego</i>, defined as the capacity to sense, perceive and to think, continues to function as the seat of experience, even when what is experienced is cosmic."<ref>Merkur, D (2014). <u>The Formation of Hippie Spirituality: 1. Union with God</u>. in Ellens, JH (ed). <u>Seeking The Sacred With Psychoactive Substances</u> (Volume I).  Praeger, Santa Barbara: 2014.</ref> In other words, the representation of one's self is destroyed, but the ego must continue to function in order for experience to be possible.</onlyinclude>
 ===Psychoactive substances===
@@ Line 34: / Line 27: @@
 *[[Dissociatives#Subjective_effects|Dissociatives - Subjective effects]]
 *[[Deliriants#Subjective_effects|Deliriants - Subjective effects]]
-===References===
-<references/>
 [[Category:Cognitive]] [[Category:Suppression]] [[Category:Effect]]
 {{#set:Featured=true
 |Belongs to=Cognitive effects
 }}