Dark Cave, Bright Mind: Mapping Neural and Phenomenological Effects of Dark Retreat Practice
Study on whether extended dark retreat practice can disrupt habitual perception and function as a “sober psychedelic,” enabling profound self-reflection and transformative experiences without pharmacological psychedelics.
Endorsements support Institute for Advanced Consciousness Studies.
Study on whether extended dark retreat practice can disrupt habitual perception and function as a “sober psychedelic,” enabling profound self-reflection and transformative experiences without pharmacological psychedelics.
Endorsements support Institute for Advanced Consciousness Studies.
People– no linked people
Updated 05/18/26 · By grantmaking.aiProject Details
Updated 05/18/26 · By grantmaking.aiDark Cave, Bright Mind: Mapping Neural and Phenomenological Effects of Dark Retreat Practice is an actively recruiting study that examines whether multi-day dark retreat experiences can induce transformative states analogous to psychedelic or deep meditative experiences. The project combines detailed phenomenological reports with physiological and neuroimaging measures to assess how prolonged darkness alters perception, cognition, and mood, and whether it can provide a safe, accessible pathway to insight and self-transcendence.
Theory of Change
Updated 05/18/26 · By grantmaking.aiBy rigorously characterizing how extended darkness affects brain and subjective experience, the study aims to determine whether dark retreat practice can serve as a safe, scalable alternative or complement to psychedelic-assisted and intensive meditation-based interventions for facilitating insight and psychological transformation.
Grants Received– no grants recorded
Updated 05/18/26 · By grantmaking.aiDiscussion
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