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Near-death experiences, hallucinogenic trips, meditation, you’ve probably read about (or felt firsthand) the odd nature of these “out of body” experiences. A philosophically interesting consequence is the sense of understanding and intangible comprehension that often follows. Authors attempting to document these experiences typically produce almost nonsensical statements sprinkled with capitalizations, you know, where “now” becomes “Now” and immediately triples in metaphysical weight.
Joking aside, there is something ineffable about fully grasping a concept (which is what appears to happen in these cases). For me, one uninduced experience involved the cogito. I’d first come across it in a class and had no difficulty comprehending its role in Descartes’ argument, its wide-reaching impact, and even a couple flaws in its presentation. But, it wasn’t until a few weeks later that I fully grasped the concept while thinking quietly in my room. I can’t easily describe the immensity (sorry, “Immensity”) that the concept grew to in my head, but in that moment, I felt as if I had the same experience that Descrates did sitting by his fireplace, that I had razed the foundations of my knowledge to the ground and begun anew with one solid brick.
In my case, I did not gain any new information nor would I say that my ability to apply or process the concept had improved. What had happened was far more subtle and personal, but denying that something had happened would be foolish. What that something is, I don’t know (although the phrase “consciousness-expanding” rings true).
So, my question is, do these special experiences (NDE’s, drug-induced hallucinations, or meditation) introduce any new information or provide access to real knowledge, or do they just flick the “grasped” switch on things we already know?
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