Issue 15: Focus On Prophecy

“Prophecy is not about the future. Prophets don't talk about the future. What they do is: they talk about the past -- which has been hidden" - Peter Kingsley

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Mar 20, 2024

Welcome to Issue 15. The focus this month is on prophecy, due mostly to the recent cinema release of Dune 2, a film which is deeply concerned with prophecy, and also the latest podcast from The Emerald, For The Intuitives, which makes a case for the seers and prophets marginalized by modern society.

It may be useful to draw out the distinction between prophecy, and precognition or premonition. Prophecy is a prediction, usually divinely inspired, of the future. Precognition is the ability to actually see the future in the mind’s eye in much the same way as one remembers the past. Evidently the terms overlap, yet a prophet is a messenger of the divine, rather than someone who necessarily can see into the future themselves (although they may also be able to), and the person with precognitive abilities is not necessarily a theist (although they may be).

This might seem like a tangent, but please bear with us: much of the debate around possible solutions to the ecological crisis on our planet circles around the viability (or otherwise) of ‘degrowth’; the voluntary reduction, on an individual and/or collective level, of our consumption of the Earth’s resources. Yet there appears to be a fear, particularly among politicians, that the absence of a consumer culture will lead to a restlessness in the general population, and potentially, violent revolution. Essentially, the belief that consumerism is all that stands in the way of total anarchy (and not the good kind).

However, let’s imagine a world where AI has taken all our jobs (considerably easier to visualize now than it was a year ago), and governments have introduced a Universal Basic Income scheme or something similar, so we don’t all necessarily need to work. The age of leisure we were promised in the ‘50s and ‘60s has accidentally dawned. What do we do with our day instead of going to work? Go around throwing shopping carts in the river? Drink ourselves senseless? Stay in bed?

Or maybe we keep growing, but not in the sense of economic growth. We can happily accept a steady-state, or even degrowth economy, if we focus on growing quality and connection rather than quantity.

Part of this might be the recovery, via what Tom Roberts calls ‘mind-body’ states - induced through shamanic techniques and/or medicines - of our powers of prophecy. Connecting to the personal and collective unconscious - what indigenous people call the dreamtime - and receiving guidance and wisdom from Source, God, Oneness, Higher Powers, the Self, whatever one wishes to call it.

The great majority of cultures in history have had some connection to prophecy, which might also be considered a guiding light or ‘north star’ for their culture. The oracles at Delphi were of vital importance in the foundation of early Western culture, as Peter Kingsley has pointed out in his works. As the aforementioned Emerald episode points out, prophecy is a deeply ‘normal’ facet of human culture. We are the odd ones out in not finding a place for it. Maybe a rebalancing of the psychic field is now necessary and we should once again allow prophets their voice.

Events

Tickets – The Festival of Consciousness

July 12th-14th 2024, Barcelona, Spain

Large volunteer-organized in-person conference featuring more than 100 talks and experiences over three days.

Humanity Rising

Ongoing online conference, hosting transformative conversations over Zoom every day.

(Please feel free to send us events if you feel they might be relevant, while we don’t guarantee to publish them we will certainly consider it)

Links

A Dialogue with Josh Schrei of 'The Emerald'

Alexander Beiner and Josh Schrei talk about various topics, including AI, the meaning crisis, the resurgence of ritual, and the importance of adopting an animate worldview to navigate the current meta-crisis.

Frank Herbert’s magic mushrooms and the psychedelic science behind Dune

Fascinating article exploring Dune author Frank Herbert’s long-standing interest in fungi (‘spice’ was apparently inspired by magic mushrooms and Herbert’s conversations with well-known mycologist Paul Stamets).

Unlocking Creative Flow: How the Brain Enters the Zone - Neuroscience News

This article discusses a study that explores how the brain enters the creative flow state, known as being "in the zone," by analyzing jazz improvisations through EEGs. The research reveals that achieving deep creative flow combines extensive experience with a conscious release of control, suggesting that expertise and the ability to let go are crucial for automatic idea generation. This "expertise-plus-release" model challenges previous theories on flow, emphasizing the importance of practice and relinquishing control to enhance creativity effectively.

Tech Bros, Ayn Rand and Adderall - by Jamie Wheal

Wheal paints a vivid portrayal of tunnel-visioned tech entrepreneurs influenced by Ayn Rand's philosophy and the use of Adderall, featuring a brutal takedown of Marc Andreeson’s lunatic book ‘The Techno-Optimist Manifesto’.

Psychedelics and Mental Health: Rose Cartwright meets Ashleigh Murphy-Beiner - BBC Sounds

A conversation between Rose Cartwright, an author and screenwriter, and Ashleigh Murphy-Beiner, an NHS psychotherapist and clinical researcher at the Imperial College Centre for Psychedelic Research. They discuss the concept of complex trauma, the potential of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy in treating mental health issues stemming from trauma, the importance of a relational approach in therapy, and the need for systemic changes to address health inequalities and provide comprehensive care beyond traditional psychiatric treatments.

The big idea: should we all be putting chips in our brains? | Neuroscience | The Guardian

Neuroscientist Anil Seth explores the idea of implanting chips in our brains, contemplating the potential benefits and ethical dilemmas associated with technologies like Neuralink (one of the many companies Elon Musk is taking credit/blame for). Seth looks at the possibility of a future where brain disorders could be eradicated, and humans could seamlessly merge with artificial intelligence, spurred by recent advancements in biotech. This obviously raises many questions, including about the convergence of human minds with technology and the profound implications it may have on society and individual identity.

Refresh Rate of Perception & Entity Encounter Hallucinations - Andrés Emilsson, QRI, DS Pod #225

An interview with Andrés Gomes Emilsson of the Qualia Research Institute. He talks about the neuroscience of psychedelic experiences and the effects they have on the body. Exploring human consciousness through DMT reveals a shared phenomenon of encountering entities, with 90% experiencing this. Vibrational effects on blood vessels are key to hallucinatory experiences, while the thalamus likely centralizes consciousness. Coherent vibrations differentiate 5-MeO-DMT from regular DMT encounters, highlighting the overlap of body and brain in psychedelics. These experiences offer insights into various reality levels, bridging the physical and metaphysical realms.

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Focus On Prophecy

The destiny of Western culture: An open letter to Peter Kingsley

Bernardo Kastrup's essay inquires into the possible destiny of Western culture, via his consideration of Kingsley’s prophetic books Reality (2003) and Catafalque (2018). Kastrup suggests that our destiny may involve exploring enticing yet erroneous paths before correcting course, a journey marked by profound sacrifices and enduring suffering. “The seed of every culture, including our own, is planted not through mere chance, habit or deliberate planning, but instead through visionary experience in altered states of consciousness. It is prophets who learn, and then inform us of, what our purpose is: "western civilization, just like any other, came into being out of prophecy; from revelation"”

DMT and Prophecy: The Biology of Spiritual Experience

Rick Strassman, author of ‘DMT, The Spirit Molecule’ explores the spiritual dimensions of psychedelic experiences in this video, highlighting how these substances unveil hidden facets of reality and evoke common spiritual encounters like unity, love, and connections with spiritual entities. He goes into his study of Hebrew biblical prophecy and how it led to the development of what he calls ‘theoneurology’, in which the brain is configured to be able to provide a channel of communication between humans and God.

The discernment of psychedelic prophecies

Jules Evans examines psychedelic prophecies, exploring how some predictions and commands from ecstatic experiences can have varying outcomes, ranging from surprisingly accurate to catastrophic, leading to what is termed 'epistemic harm.' He looks at the impact of these prophecies on our way of knowing, and how they can affect lives negatively, urging a reflection on the need for discernment when considering future predictions arising from psychedelic experiences, and not to simply accept any prophecy arising from apparent higher states of consciousness.

Psychedelics' Role in the Prophecy of Redemption of the Tribes of Yisrael

Matthew Weintrub discusses the transformative impact of psychedelics on individuals, leading to personal growth, activism, and a deeper connection to indigenous healing practices. He highlights how psychedelics have inspired advocacy for natural medicine, shamanism, and the author's exploration of the psychedelic origin of religion. The narrative emphasizes the healing power of psychedelics and their potential role in redemption through a return to sacred natural medicines used traditionally by Indigenous Nations.

MMWM 2017 - Daniel Greig - The Neurobiology of Prophetic Visions

Daniel Greig, a cognitive science researcher at the University of Toronto, talks about the neurobiology of prophetic visions and psychedelic experiences, focusing on predictive processing in the brain and its impact on visionary phenomena. He emphasizes how phenomenal consciousness orchestrates neural activity, influencing altered states of consciousness. Greig's discussion highlights the interplay between incoming sensory data and top-down expectations, shedding light on perception as an active, predictive process shaped by internal generative models and extending beyond the brain into the environment according to embodied cognition and extended mind theory.

InPresence 0162: Prophecy Versus Precognition -- Final Reflections on Peter Kingsley's Catafalque

Jeffrey Mishlove talks about the difference between prophecy and precognition, and Jung’s prophetic visions of the end of humanity, described by Peter Kingsley in his book Catafalque.

Salvator Rosa, Death of Empedocles,1665-70 (mentioned in the video)

When prophecy fails: How religious groups cope - The Journalist's Resource

If you want to go down the ‘failed prophecy’ rabbit hole, the main resource is the book When Prophecy Fails, from 1956, by Leon Festinger et al. This article provides links to four further scientific studies that have been done since then.

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Nuggets From The Archive

Dune, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and ‘occult eugenics’ — Philosophy for Life

Jules Evans, continuing his series on 'occult eugenics', considers the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a prominent occult society of the late 19th century. Members such as Jack Parsons and L. Ron Hubbard believed in using sex magick to breed highly-evolved beings, a notion later reflected in Frank Herbert's Dune. Evans talks about the cross-fertilization of radical ideas like socialism, fascism, and eugenics during that era, shedding light on how spiritual and intellectual movements intertwined to shape beliefs about human evolution and consciousness.

Opinion | An Ancient Cure for Alzheimer’s? - The New York Times

Pagan Kennedy discusses the challenges in finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease, highlighting the limited success despite extensive research efforts and funding. She talks to Dr. Ben Trumble, an anthropologist specializing in evolutionary medicine who has studied indigenous tribes. Dr. Trumble questions the focus of medical research on urban populations and suggests a need to consider the historical context of human evolution in understanding diseases like dementia. This underscores the importance of broadening research perspectives beyond settings which might be considered ‘normal’, in order to gain insights into conditions like Alzheimer's that have complex and multifaceted origins.

How a neuroscientist came to embrace the reality of acausal synchronicities | Essentia Foundation

UC San Diego neuroscientist Dr. Laleh Quinn shares her personal journey as she transitions from materialism to considering acausal synchronicities and mind-like organizing principles in nature. Dr. Quinn's narrative reflects a shift towards embracing the concept of synchronicity, as proposed by Jung, as a fourth organizing principle beyond space, time, and causality. This transformation is triggered by profound personal experiences that challenge her scientific background and lead her to recognize the significance and legitimacy of synchronicities in providing profound levels of meaning.

Bigelow Essays

What Would Have To Be True About the World? On Evidence for the Possibility of Consciousness Surviving Death by David Rousseau, Ph.D., Julie Billingham, BSc.

Rousseau and Billingham discuss the survival of consciousness and personhood after the permanent death of the body, focusing on Near-Death Experiences (NDEs). They explore how evidence for the survival phenomenon relates to the survival hypothesis, drawing parallels with Wegener's theory of continental drift: Both cases involve a shift in scientific understanding triggered by accumulating evidence challenging established beliefs. Just as Wegener faced resistance to his theory initially, NDE research encounters skepticism due to conflicting traditional views. The comparison emphasizes the importance of considering new data that may challenge prevailing theories, leading to potential paradigm shifts.

They also consider NDE accounts where individuals report out-of-body experiences, loss of pain, and enhanced perception during NDEs. These phenomena highlight the complexity of interpreting NDEs, suggesting that souls may have spatial properties and that experiences are influenced by expectations. Expectations impact how people interpret and recall their NDEs, potentially influencing the content and nature of their experiences. By acknowledging the influence of expectations, the authors raise a critical point about the subjective nature of NDEs and the need to carefully consider how personal beliefs and preconceptions may shape individuals' accounts of these extraordinary phenomena.