Some psycho-physiological aspects of ecstasy in recent research
Scripta Instituti Donneriani Aboensis January 16, 2019 Nora Ahlberg
Recent psycho-physiological research on ecstasy has not yet been absorbed by comparative religion. Traditional Western science distinguishes external from internal processes, leading to dismissal of reports from other cultures about holy men's extraordinary feats and of religious ecstatic states by psychiatrists. Renewed interest in consciousness within general psychology, marginal psychology, and the drug revolt of youth culture have provoked new speculation about human potential that may benefit comparative religion. Biofeedback research has been the most sensational experimental method, forcing many scientists to reconsider the view that the autonomic nervous system is completely independent of human will and control.