Transcendental Meditation claims that the essence of reality is pure consciousness. This essay contrasts TM doctrine, scientific physicalism, and the author's own meditative experience. Pure consciousness events—wakeful contentless consciousness—do occur, but their ontological basis is uncertain. The author's introspection does not neatly align with TM dogma. Exploring mystical notions of divine darkness and evidence regimes, the piece proposes mystic doubt or ontological skepticism as an alternative to ontological relativism.
A new theory of shamanism combines four existing ideas: that mystical experiences are shaped by culture, that shamans take on roles in their communities, that mental imagery is a learned cultural practice, and that the universe is fundamentally mental (panpsychism). This framework allows for recognizing genuine experiences in shamanic altered states while respecting cultural differences. The author argues that spirit is another word for mind, and shamanism is an exploration of consciousness by means of consciousness.