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Spirituality and religion

Close-up photo of a person with closed eyes and hands pressed together in front of their face against a blurred background.

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Spirituality is a brain state we can all reach, religious or not

Neuroscience shows that spiritual experiences are correlated with brain states that we can all aim for, religious or not

by Tal Dotan Ben-Soussan

A man walking by a girl in Amish clothing on a hoverboard near a pink house with a “Dead End” sign in front.

Technology and media

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To be more tech-savvy, borrow these strategies from the Amish

With their focus on values and intentionality, the Amish offer a lesson in thinking critically about digital technology

by Alex Mayyasi

Person kneeling on barren land under a cloudy sky, facing away with arms crossed. Sparse vegetation visible in the background.

Spirituality and religion

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Religion gives life meaning. Can anything else take its place?

Religious faith promotes a sense of meaning in life – and it might take more than ‘social glue’ to duplicate the effect

by Michael M Prinzing

A dramatic seascape painting depicts a violent storm with waves crashing against the coast, a wrecked ship submerged, and dark clouds overhead.

Transcendent experience

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Your consciousness has been completely transformed. Now what?

Awakening experiences are spiritual states often believed to unlock life’s mysteries – but sacred knowledge comes at a cost

by Kevin Berryman

Traditional Chinese painting of two figures crossing a bridge in a serene landscape with trees and mountains, signed with two red seals.

Transcendent experience

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To experience Zen-like awakening, try going the headless way

Try to point to your true self as you’d point to a brick wall, and other experiments in Zen-like awakening

by Brentyn J Ramm

Silhouette of a person riding a horse up a rocky hill during sunset, with rolling hills in the distance.

Spirituality and religion

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Why religion without belief can still make perfect sense

Meet the practising agnostic and the religious fictionalist: people for whom religion can work well without sure belief

by Philip Goff

Photo of ancient ruins on a rocky hill with a cloudy sky and distant mountains in the background.

Spirituality and religion

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This is not the end. Apocalyptic comfort from ancient Iran

Faced with the collapse of their empire, Zoroastrians sought comfort in the apocalyptic – and their literature flourished

by Domenico Agostini & Samuel Thrope

A painting of an angel guiding a soul through a tunnel of light towards a bright circular opening.

Spirituality and religion

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Near-death experiences have long inspired afterlife beliefs

Through time and across cultures, near-death experiences share common themes and have inspired beliefs about the afterlife

by Gregory Shushan

An angelic figure with wings and a sceptre, surrounded by a dramatic dark sky and people near an arched structure with smoke in the background.

Spirituality and religion

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The Devil you don’t know: the Satan of the 19th century

Satan wasn’t always a wicked, horned figure. The Romantics imagined the Devil as a resourceful and well-spoken gentleman

by Erik Butler

Spirituality and religion

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How an intense spiritual retreat might change your brain

Whether through daily meditation or on a week-long retreat, the experience of spiritual enlightenment transforms the brain

by Andrew Newberg

Ink painting of misty mountains with trees and a red sun, accented with gold flecks on a parchment-like canvas.

Spirituality and religion

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There has never been a time when this article didn’t exist

The root of time itself is in fertile nothingness: how ancient Chinese Daoism shatters our illusions about time and being

by David Chai

Spirituality and religion

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From sexual union to the divine – the teachings of Ibn al-‘Arabi

The Sufi scholar Ibn al-‘Arabi was a divine lover who saw the initial act of creation mirrored in the male-female union

by Heba Yosry