Jabberwocky
Frumious Bandersnatch
- Joined
- Nov 3, 1999
- Messages
- 84,998
The technical term for this kind of experience is “conversion experience,” and they can be super powerful.
They can even result in zealotry, leading to an entirely new form of harm/addiction. But when balanced by more pro-social qualities and values they can be very useful experiences.
They also don’t have to include organized religion. My most profound conversion experiences have mostly involved entheogens and non-religious forms of meditation.
The Globalization of Addiction: A Study in the Poverty of the Spirit has some great sections on this topic. The history of addiction with this stuff in mind is fascinating, especially as it used to be a compliment to say someone was addicted to God (the word addiction used to have totally different connotations than it began to in the 19th/20th centuries).
They can even result in zealotry, leading to an entirely new form of harm/addiction. But when balanced by more pro-social qualities and values they can be very useful experiences.
They also don’t have to include organized religion. My most profound conversion experiences have mostly involved entheogens and non-religious forms of meditation.
The Globalization of Addiction: A Study in the Poverty of the Spirit has some great sections on this topic. The history of addiction with this stuff in mind is fascinating, especially as it used to be a compliment to say someone was addicted to God (the word addiction used to have totally different connotations than it began to in the 19th/20th centuries).