Metaphysics of The MindMetaphysics of the Mind: The Roots of Jungian Psychoanalysis & Spiritual Perception in Cognitive Neuroscience
Global Journal of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences January 1, 2026 Alan Peter Garfoot
Mystical experiences and enlightened spiritual consciousness across major world religions may have a neurological basis involving the conversion of serotonin into the psychoactive compound DMT within the pineal gland. The DMT release hyperstimulates frontal lobe areas, expanding the bottleneck filter of perception, and combined with the gland's photoreceptive properties, facilitates individual mystical experiences when prior serotonin saturation from religious experience is present. This proposes that heightened spiritual consciousness and awareness of a divine presence have psychopharmaceutical underpinnings aligning with Carl Jung's conceptualization of spiritual and psychic experiences. The paper integrates neuroscience, psychopharmacology, cognitive psychology, and religious studies to define the psychophysiological mechanisms behind mystical psychic states.