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An altered state of consciousness, (ASC), also named altered state of mind is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking beta wave
Beta wave

Beta wave, or beta rhythm, is the term used to designate the frequency range of brain activity above 12 Hertz . Beta states are the states associated with normal waking consciousness....
 state. The expression was used as early as 1969 by Charles Tart
Charles Tart

Dr. Charles T. Tart is a United States psychologist and parapsychologist known for his psychological work on the nature of consciousness , as one of the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology, and for his research in scientific parapsychology....
 and describes induced changes in one's mental state, almost always temporary. A synonymous phrase is "altered states of awareness".

It can be associated with artistic creativity.

ltered state of consciousness
Consciousness

Consciousness is a difficult term to define, because the word is used and understood in a wide variety of ways, so that it frequently happens that what one person sees as a definition of consciousness is seen by others as about something else altogether....
 can come about accidentally through, for example, fever
Fever

Fever is a frequent medical sign that describes an increase in internal body temperature to levels above normal. Fever is most accurately characterized as a temporary elevation in the body's thermoregulatory set-point, usually by about 1?2 ?C ....
, infections such as meningitis
Meningitis

Meningitis is a medical condition caused by inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges....
, sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of sleep. This may occur as a result of sleep disorders, active choice or deliberate inducement such as in interrogation or for torture....
, fasting
Fasting

Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. A fast may be total or partial concerning that from which one fasts, and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the period of fasting....
, oxygen
Oxygen

Oxygen no O2 produced; 2) O2 produced, but absorbed in oceans & seabed rock; 3) O2 starts to gas out of the oceans, but is absorbed by land surfaces and formation of ozone layer; 4-5) O2 sinks filled and the gas accumulates]]...
 deprivation, nitrogen narcosis
Nitrogen narcosis

Narcosis while diving, commonly called nitrogen narcosis, inert gas narcosis or rapture of the deep, is a reversible alteration in consciousness in Scuba diving at depth....
 (deep diving), or a traumatic
Psychological trauma

Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event. When that trauma leads to posttraumatic stress disorder, damage may involve physical changes inside the brain and to brain chemistry, which affect the person's ability to cope with Stress ....
 accident.

an sometimes be reached intentionally by the use of sensory deprivation
Sensory deprivation

Sensory deprivation is the deliberate reduction or removal of stimulus from one or more of the senses. Simple devices such as blindfolds or Hood and earmuffs can cut off sight and hearing respectively, while more complex devices can also cut off the sense of smell, touch, taste, thermoception , and 'gravity'....
, an isolation tank
Isolation tank

An isolation tank is a lightless, soundproof tank in which subjects float in salty water at skin temperature. They were first used by John C. Lilly in 1954 in order to test the effects of sensory deprivation....
, sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of sleep. This may occur as a result of sleep disorders, active choice or deliberate inducement such as in interrogation or for torture....
, lucid dreaming
Lucid dreaming

A lucid dream is a dream in which the person is aware that they are dreaming while the dream is in progress, also known as a conscious dream....
, or mind-control techniques, hypnosis
Hypnosis

Hypnosis is a mental state or set of attitudes usually induced by a procedure known as a hypnotic induction, which is commonly composed of a series of preliminary instructions and suggestions....
, meditation
Meditation

Meditation is a mental discipline by which one attempts to get beyond the reflexive, "thinking" mind into a deeper state of relaxation or awareness....
, prayer
Prayer

Prayer is the act of communicating with a deity or spirit in worship. Specific forms of this may include praise, requesting divine providence, confessing sins, as an act of reparation or an expression of one's emotional expression....
, or disciplines (e.g.






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An altered state of consciousness, (ASC), also named altered state of mind is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking beta wave
Beta wave

Beta wave, or beta rhythm, is the term used to designate the frequency range of brain activity above 12 Hertz . Beta states are the states associated with normal waking consciousness....
 state. The expression was used as early as 1969 by Charles Tart
Charles Tart

Dr. Charles T. Tart is a United States psychologist and parapsychologist known for his psychological work on the nature of consciousness , as one of the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology, and for his research in scientific parapsychology....
 and describes induced changes in one's mental state, almost always temporary. A synonymous phrase is "altered states of awareness".

It can be associated with artistic creativity.

Causes


Accidental/pathological

An altered state of consciousness
Consciousness

Consciousness is a difficult term to define, because the word is used and understood in a wide variety of ways, so that it frequently happens that what one person sees as a definition of consciousness is seen by others as about something else altogether....
 can come about accidentally through, for example, fever
Fever

Fever is a frequent medical sign that describes an increase in internal body temperature to levels above normal. Fever is most accurately characterized as a temporary elevation in the body's thermoregulatory set-point, usually by about 1?2 ?C ....
, infections such as meningitis
Meningitis

Meningitis is a medical condition caused by inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges....
, sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of sleep. This may occur as a result of sleep disorders, active choice or deliberate inducement such as in interrogation or for torture....
, fasting
Fasting

Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. A fast may be total or partial concerning that from which one fasts, and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the period of fasting....
, oxygen
Oxygen

Oxygen no O2 produced; 2) O2 produced, but absorbed in oceans & seabed rock; 3) O2 starts to gas out of the oceans, but is absorbed by land surfaces and formation of ozone layer; 4-5) O2 sinks filled and the gas accumulates]]...
 deprivation, nitrogen narcosis
Nitrogen narcosis

Narcosis while diving, commonly called nitrogen narcosis, inert gas narcosis or rapture of the deep, is a reversible alteration in consciousness in Scuba diving at depth....
 (deep diving), or a traumatic
Psychological trauma

Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event. When that trauma leads to posttraumatic stress disorder, damage may involve physical changes inside the brain and to brain chemistry, which affect the person's ability to cope with Stress ....
 accident.

Intentional/recreational

It can sometimes be reached intentionally by the use of sensory deprivation
Sensory deprivation

Sensory deprivation is the deliberate reduction or removal of stimulus from one or more of the senses. Simple devices such as blindfolds or Hood and earmuffs can cut off sight and hearing respectively, while more complex devices can also cut off the sense of smell, touch, taste, thermoception , and 'gravity'....
, an isolation tank
Isolation tank

An isolation tank is a lightless, soundproof tank in which subjects float in salty water at skin temperature. They were first used by John C. Lilly in 1954 in order to test the effects of sensory deprivation....
, sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of sleep. This may occur as a result of sleep disorders, active choice or deliberate inducement such as in interrogation or for torture....
, lucid dreaming
Lucid dreaming

A lucid dream is a dream in which the person is aware that they are dreaming while the dream is in progress, also known as a conscious dream....
, or mind-control techniques, hypnosis
Hypnosis

Hypnosis is a mental state or set of attitudes usually induced by a procedure known as a hypnotic induction, which is commonly composed of a series of preliminary instructions and suggestions....
, meditation
Meditation

Meditation is a mental discipline by which one attempts to get beyond the reflexive, "thinking" mind into a deeper state of relaxation or awareness....
, prayer
Prayer

Prayer is the act of communicating with a deity or spirit in worship. Specific forms of this may include praise, requesting divine providence, confessing sins, as an act of reparation or an expression of one's emotional expression....
, or disciplines (e.g. Mantra
Mantra

A mantra can be defined as a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that are considered capable of creating transformation. Their use and type varies according to the school and philosophy associated with the mantra....
 Meditation, Yoga
Yoga

Yoga refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines originating in India. The word is associated with meditative practices in both Buddhism and Hinduism....
, Sufism
Sufism

Sufi is generally understood to be the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a ufi , though some adherents of the tradition reserve this term only for those practitioners who have attained the goals of the Sufi tradition....
 or Surat Shabda Yoga
Surat Shabd Yoga

Surat Shabd Yoga or Surat Shabda Yoga is a form of Spirituality that is followed in the Sant Mat and many other related spiritual traditions....
).

It can also be attained through the ingestion of psychoactive drugs such as alcohol
Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is any organic compound in which a hydroxyl Functional group is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group....
 and opiate
Opiate

In medicine, the term opiate describes any of the narcotic alkaloids found in opium, as well as any derivatives of such alkaloids....
s, or more commonly with entheogenic
Psychedelics, dissociatives and deliriants

The general group of pharmacology agents commonly known as hallucinogens can be divided into three broad categories: Psychedelic drugs, dissociatives, and deliriants....
 plants and their derivative chemicals such as LSD
LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, LSD-25, or acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family. Its unusual psychological effects, which include visuals of colored patterns behind the eyes in the mind, a sense of time distorting, and crawling geometric patterns, have made it one of the most widely known psyched...
, DXM
Non-medical use of dextromethorphan

Dextromethorphan or DXM, an active ingredient found in most cough suppressant cold medicines, is commonly used as a recreational drug. While having almost no psychoactive effects at medically-recommended doses, dextromethorphan has euphoric, hallucinogenic, and dissociative properties when administered in doses well above those which ar...
, 2C-I
2C-I

2C-I is a Psychedelics, Dissociatives and Deliriants and phenethylamine of the 2C . It was developed and popularized by Alexander Shulgin. It was described in Shulgin?s book PiHKAL....
, peyote
Peyote

Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote, , is a small, spineless cactus. It is native to southwestern Texas and through central Mexico....
, marijuana
Cannabis (drug)

Cannabis, also known as Marijuana or marihuana, or ganja , is a psychoactive drug extracted from the plant Cannabis sativa, or more often, Cannabis sativa subsp....
, mescaline
Mescaline

Mescaline or 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenethylamine is a naturally-occurring psychedelic alkaloid of the phenethylamine class. It is mainly used as a recreational drug, an entheogen, and a tool to supplement various practices for transcendence , including in meditation, psychonautics, art projects, and psychedelic psychotherapy....
, Salvia divinorum
Salvia divinorum

Salvia divinorum, also known as Diviner?s Sage, ska Mar?a Pastora, or simply by the genus name Salvia, is a Psychoactive drug herb which can induce strong dissociative drug effects....
, MDMA, psychedelic mushrooms, ayahuasca
Ayahuasca

Ayahuasca is any of various psychoactive infusions or decoctions prepared from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, usually mixed with the leaves of the Psychotria bush....
, or datura
Datura

Datura is a genus of nine species of Vespertine flowering plants belonging to the family Solanaceae. Their exact natural distribution is uncertain, due to extensive cultivation and naturalisation throughout the temperate and tropical regions of the globe, but is most likely restricted to the Americas, from the United States south throug...
 (Jimson weed).

Another effective way to induce an altered state of consciousness is using a variety of Neurotechnology
Neurotechnology

Neurotechnology is a field of science that edits the body and mind through the nervous system by electronics and mechanisms....
 such as psychoacoustics
Psychoacoustics

Psychoacoustics is the study of subjective human perception of sounds. Alternatively it can be described as the study of the psychological correlates of the physical parameters of acoustics....
, light and sound stimulation
Mind machine

A mind machine uses pulsing rhythmic sound and/or flashing light to alter the Electroencephalography frequency of the user. Mind machines are said to induce deep states of relaxation, concentration and in some cases altered states of consciousness, that have been compared to those obtained from meditation and shamanic exploration....
, cranial electrotherapy stimulation
Cranial electrotherapy stimulation

Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation is used in the treatment of anxiety, clinical depression, insomnia, and drug addiction; via a low intensity electricity microcurrent....
, and such; these methods attempt to induce specific brainwave patterns, and a particular altered state of consciousness.

See also

Topics
  • Ego death
    Ego Death

    Ego death is an experience that reveals the illusory aspect of the ego, sometimes undergone by psychonauts, mystics, shamans, monks, psychologists, and others interested in exploring the depths of the mind....
  • Flow (psychology)
    Flow (psychology)

    Flow is the mental state of operation in which the person is fully immersed in what he or she is doing by a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity....
  • Mysticism
    Mysticism

    Mysticism is the pursuit of communion with, Unio Mystica with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, Spirituality, or God through direct experience, intuition, or insight....
  • Neurotheology
    Neurotheology

    Neurotheology, also known as biotheology or spiritual neuroscience, is the study of correlations of neural phenomena with subjective experiences of spirituality and hypotheses to explain these phenomena....
  • Parapsychology
    Parapsychology

    Parapsychology is a discipline that seeks to investigate the existence and causes of psychic abilities and Survivalism using the scientific method....
  • Places of power
  • Psychedelic drug
    Psychedelic drug

    A psychedelic substance is any psychoactive drugs whose primary action is to alter the thought processes of the brain and perception of the mind....
  • Psychedelic experience
    Psychedelic experience

    A 'psychedelic experience' is characterized by the perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ordinary restraints....
  • Psychology of religion
    Psychology of religion

    Psychology of religion is the psychology Research of religious experiences, beliefs, and activities....
  • Psychonaut
    Psychonaut

    A psychonaut is a person who experiences intentionally induced altered states of consciousness in an attempt to investigate his or her mind, and possibly address spiritual questions, through direct experience....
People
  • Castaneda, Carlos
    Carlos Castaneda

    Carlos Castaneda was a Peruvian-born United States author. Starting with The Teachings of Don Juan in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that describe his purported training in traditional Mesoamerican shamanism....
  • Eisner, Bruce
    Bruce Eisner

    Bruce Jay Ehrlich is an American writer, psychologist, and counterculture spokesman best known for his book Ecstasy: The MDMA Story.At age 2, Eisner moved with his family to the San Fernando Valley near Los Angeles, California where he lived for the next 25 years....
  • Gowan, John Curtis
    John Curtis Gowan

    John Curtis Gowan was a psychologist who studied, along with Ellis Paul Torrance, the development of creative capabilities in children and gifted populations....
  • Golas, Thaddeus
    Thaddeus Golas

    Thaddeus Golas is known for having written The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment, which has become known as a classic book on human consciousness and spirituality....
  • Grof, Stanislav
    Stanislav Grof

    Stanislav Grof is one of the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology and a pioneering researcher into the use of altered states of consciousness for purposes of analysing, healing, growth, and insight of the humanly psyche....
  • Huxley, Aldous
    Aldous Huxley

    Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. He spent the later part of his life in the United States, living in Los Angeles from 1937 until his death in 1963....
  • Leary, Timothy
    Timothy Leary

    Timothy Francis Leary was an American writer, psychologist, futurist, and advocate of psychedelic drug research and one of the first people whose remains have been sent into space....
  • Lilly, John C.
    John C. Lilly

    John Cunningham Lilly was an American physician, psychoanalyst, philosopher and writer.He was a pioneer researcher into the nature of consciousness using as his principal tools the isolation tank, Cetacean intelligence, and psychedelic drugs, sometimes in combination....
  • McKenna, Terrence
  • Naranjo, Claudio
    Claudio Naranjo

    Claudio Naranjo is a Chilean anthropology and psychiatrist who is noted for his inter-disciplinary work with mind-altering substances as well as the Enneagram of Personality and Gestalt therapy....


Further reading

  • Hoffman, Kay (1998). The Trance Workbook: understanding & using the power of altered states. Translated by Elfie Homann, Clive Williams, and Dr Christliebe El Mogharbel. Translation edited by Laurel Ornitz. ISBN 0-8069-1765-2
  • James, William
    William James

    William James was a pioneering American psychology and philosophy trained as a medical doctor. He wrote influential books on the young science of psychology, educational psychology, psychology of religion experience and mysticism, and the philosophy of pragmatism....
     The varieties of religious experience (1902) ISBN 0-14-039034-0
  • Roberts, T. B. (editor) (2001). Psychoactive Sacramentals: Essays on Entheogens and Religion. San Francosco: Council on Spiritual Practices.
  • Roberts, T. B., and Hruby, P. J. (1995-2002). Religion and Psychoactive Sacraments An Entheogen Chrestomathy. Online archive.
  • Roberts, T. B. "Chemical Input—Religious Output: Entheogens." Chapter 10 in Where God and Science Meet: Vol. 3: The Psychology of Religious Experience Robert McNamara (editor)(2006). Westport, CT: Praeger/Greenwood.
  • Wier, Dennis R. Trance: from magic to technology (1995) ISBN 1-888428-38-4


External links