It’s a lot easier to be nice to others when we disabuse ourselves of the mistaken notion others are separate entities. The dissolution of ego and the recognition that we may all be one is a core part of many religious and psychedelic epiphanies.
This was beautiful, Mia. You put into words something I’ve felt at raves during my younger years but never quite had the language for—that soft dissolution of self into something bigger. Reminds me of that awesome scene in one of the Matrix movies when the underground breaks out into a collective dance.
On that note, love the idea of “collective embodiment”—that perhaps these brief moments of unity aren't illusions, but glimpses of a deeper truth. If that is the real nature of things, it explains a lot about the kindness & openness we see in rave culture.
One of my goals is to put into words what people have been thinking but don't have the words to say or are afraid to do so. So that means so much to me that you recognized something of your younger, raver self here 🫶🏼
I'm curious if in your psychedelic journeys (or in others that you've heard about), you've encountered the unity / oneness concept. Anecdotally, I've heard descriptions of feeling like you're part of something bigger or feeling incredibly connected to love.
For sure. I started yoga in the late 90s, after a period immersed in the UK rave scene. Having come from that I could not figure out why the heck everyone in the yoga world seemed to covet peak communal experiences - like just go to a rave? I’m over here wanting to explore questions like: what is the nature of experience? Who or what is the ‘me’ that has those experiences? What is consciousness? and the focus on having experience was so fricking disappointing to me.
Also, the party scene was NOT about empty hedonism but community, exploration and growth. My little corner of it was highly and explicitly ethical - I distinctly remember someone explaining to me that everything was shared, we treat each other well and that’s literally the point, that’s what it’s in service of. I had to approach it as a massive unlearning.
Also though - I did not do this every time I went to a rave and it is perfectly possible to replicate the experience without the substance…. but I don’t think we can discount the impacts of ecstasy here.
Thanks for this and for sharing your thoughts. Agreed re E/Molly (I forget it’s called that in N America - and I LOVE that you call it “her” and a friend. How refreshingly respectful.)
My issue with the experience side of modern yoga is not about experience itself - obviously we’re all having expeiences all the time, and wanting that is fine imo. That’s a healthy human being. It’s more that that was not what yoga has been about historically, and yoga has to fill so many holes in our weird society that it’s been warped out of all recognition. It’s obviously marvellous to move as a group of people; to feel part of something larger than ourselves and to be freed from the tight little bundle of “I” that we all belive ourselves to be. And it’s not that that’s not what yoga is for - it absolutely is for understanding the nature of selfhood. It’s just that experience is really alluring, and the focus on that has shifted the emphasis within yoga to the point where if you’re looking for the deeper stuff, you have to search really hard.
Totally understandable! It seems like it’s the case that you have to search hard to find the deep stuff in a variety of fields… maybe bc they are commodified under capitalism? Hard to say for sure
It's interesting that you bring up yoga, because I have had similar experiences of "being present" through both meditation and the rave scene. It seems like maybe communal experiences are possible through both as well. But I understand your frustration with the focus on experience rather than understanding what the entity is that experiences.
I also agree that we can't discount the impact of our friend Molly here. I'm not sure I would be where I am today without her, as I went to my second rave not because I loved the music from the first one, but because I wanted to try the substance again. Happily, I fell in love with the music at that second rave, and the rest is history. But when I bring new people into the scene, I do recommend trying out ecstasy to help ease the social jitters and to calm down the judgmental part of the mind.
It’s a lot easier to be nice to others when we disabuse ourselves of the mistaken notion others are separate entities. The dissolution of ego and the recognition that we may all be one is a core part of many religious and psychedelic epiphanies.
This was beautiful, Mia. You put into words something I’ve felt at raves during my younger years but never quite had the language for—that soft dissolution of self into something bigger. Reminds me of that awesome scene in one of the Matrix movies when the underground breaks out into a collective dance.
On that note, love the idea of “collective embodiment”—that perhaps these brief moments of unity aren't illusions, but glimpses of a deeper truth. If that is the real nature of things, it explains a lot about the kindness & openness we see in rave culture.
Subscribed. Looking forward to reading more.
One of my goals is to put into words what people have been thinking but don't have the words to say or are afraid to do so. So that means so much to me that you recognized something of your younger, raver self here 🫶🏼
I'm curious if in your psychedelic journeys (or in others that you've heard about), you've encountered the unity / oneness concept. Anecdotally, I've heard descriptions of feeling like you're part of something bigger or feeling incredibly connected to love.
Great read👏
Thank you 💛
For sure. I started yoga in the late 90s, after a period immersed in the UK rave scene. Having come from that I could not figure out why the heck everyone in the yoga world seemed to covet peak communal experiences - like just go to a rave? I’m over here wanting to explore questions like: what is the nature of experience? Who or what is the ‘me’ that has those experiences? What is consciousness? and the focus on having experience was so fricking disappointing to me.
Also, the party scene was NOT about empty hedonism but community, exploration and growth. My little corner of it was highly and explicitly ethical - I distinctly remember someone explaining to me that everything was shared, we treat each other well and that’s literally the point, that’s what it’s in service of. I had to approach it as a massive unlearning.
Also though - I did not do this every time I went to a rave and it is perfectly possible to replicate the experience without the substance…. but I don’t think we can discount the impacts of ecstasy here.
Thanks for this and for sharing your thoughts. Agreed re E/Molly (I forget it’s called that in N America - and I LOVE that you call it “her” and a friend. How refreshingly respectful.)
My issue with the experience side of modern yoga is not about experience itself - obviously we’re all having expeiences all the time, and wanting that is fine imo. That’s a healthy human being. It’s more that that was not what yoga has been about historically, and yoga has to fill so many holes in our weird society that it’s been warped out of all recognition. It’s obviously marvellous to move as a group of people; to feel part of something larger than ourselves and to be freed from the tight little bundle of “I” that we all belive ourselves to be. And it’s not that that’s not what yoga is for - it absolutely is for understanding the nature of selfhood. It’s just that experience is really alluring, and the focus on that has shifted the emphasis within yoga to the point where if you’re looking for the deeper stuff, you have to search really hard.
Totally understandable! It seems like it’s the case that you have to search hard to find the deep stuff in a variety of fields… maybe bc they are commodified under capitalism? Hard to say for sure
I research this stuff at Master’s level and yep, capitalism is a big part of it for sure.
It's interesting that you bring up yoga, because I have had similar experiences of "being present" through both meditation and the rave scene. It seems like maybe communal experiences are possible through both as well. But I understand your frustration with the focus on experience rather than understanding what the entity is that experiences.
I also agree that we can't discount the impact of our friend Molly here. I'm not sure I would be where I am today without her, as I went to my second rave not because I loved the music from the first one, but because I wanted to try the substance again. Happily, I fell in love with the music at that second rave, and the rest is history. But when I bring new people into the scene, I do recommend trying out ecstasy to help ease the social jitters and to calm down the judgmental part of the mind.