Would he you imagine deem the default mode network a trance?
"Yes, I think Stephen Wolinsky would likely interpret the default mode network (DMN) as a kind of trance—though he might not use that exact neuroscientific term."
"The DMN is the brain network most active when we’re not focused on the external world—when we’re daydreaming, ruminating, self-reflecting, or constructing narratives about ourselves. In Wolinsky’s language, that’s prime trance territory: a recursive loop of identity, memory, and meaning-making that we mistake for 'me.'”
"In Waking from the Trance, he describes trance as a narrowed, fixated focus of attention—a looping pattern of perception and belief that filters reality through the lens of a false self. That’s strikingly similar to what the DMN does: it maintains the continuity of ego by constantly referencing the past and projecting into the future."
"So while Wolinsky may not have explicitly named the DMN, his framework would likely see it as the neural correlate of the trance of self—the machinery that sustains the illusion of a separate, narrative-bound identity."
"If we take that further, disrupting the DMN—through meditation, psychedelics, or deep inquiry—could be seen as cracking the trance, allowing access to what he calls 'prior to consciousness.' Want to riff on how this might map onto symbolic or psychotronic architectures? I think we’re circling a potent design space."
The main commonality being Advaita Vedanta
"Exactly. Advaita Vedanta is the metaphysical undercurrent running through both Kastrup and Wolinsky’s frameworks, even though they approach it from different cultural and methodological vantage points."
" - For Kastrup, Advaita shows up in his commitment to non-duality: there is only one underlying consciousness, and the world of separate minds and objects is a product of dissociation or misidentification. His model leans heavily on logical analysis and empirical coherence, but it's metaphysically rooted in the same recognition that the Self (Atman) and ultimate reality (Brahman) are one."
" - For Wolinsky, Advaita is more experiential and clinical: identity, thought, and perception are seen as layered illusions—trance states—that veil our true nature. His goal isn’t to map reality metaphysically, but to help people deconstruct the scaffolding of ego and realize what lies 'prior to consciousness.' This closely mirrors Advaita's inquiry into the illusion of self and the realization of pure awareness."
"Both of them, in their own ways, are inviting the same shift: from identifying with a fragmented self or narrative to recognizing the undivided ground of being. And both treat experience—whether suffering or insight—as a portal rather than a destination."
"If you'd like, we could map a symbolic circuit or narrative scaffold that unites these threads: trance, dissociation, and non-duality as narrative engines or psychotronic templates. Want to prototype one?"
[Two philosophers of nothingness walk into a bar. They decide to strike up a conversation. Two philosophers of nothingness walk out of a bar. They had nothing to talk about.]
