Tag: ESE
Body September 2023
The Body as Transport Device
Speaking of Bodies It is incredibly difficult to speak abstractly, clearly, and objectively about the thing that defines, translates, and enables our existence in the world. Instead, we often speak ‘analogically’ about the body. Analogical thinking is, for all practical purposes, metaphorical in its approach. We make best case assumptions about what the body is up to by saying, “My experience is like…”, or “The movement of blood in our veins is similar to…”. This…
May 2023 Set and Setting Structure
Places and Spaces: Where Are We, Exactly?
A deeper exploration of the aspect of Setting and how places and spaces contribute to Extraordinary Spiritual Experiences (ESEs)
April Explanation Structure
Scaffolds of the Strange: The Structure of ESEs
The four aspects of an Extraordinary Spiritual Experience help us understand and integrate the event. Set and Setting, Appearance, Revelation, and Disclosure all create a scaffolding for the way we interpret what has happened.
Explanation March
Changed by the Unexplained: What Is An Extraordinary Spiritual Experience (ESE)?
Last week, I talked about the value of structure when we consider what is happening in an Extraordinary Spiritual Experience (ESE). The goal in understanding that structure is to create scaffolds that allow for meaning-making of the experience. More often than not, the process of making meaning of an ESE is a long-term project, commonly called integration in the world of psychedelic therapy. There is the immediate event of the ESE, and then there is…