Nate Hagens

Otherwise they can greet each other.

And if you are successful in doing that, when there are demagogues or whoever or YouTube algorithms that are pitching fear because of presumably your experience with self-observation in darkness or whatever other method, you will be less susceptible to fear.

I see it.

Let me extend that to another major theme for me currently right now is exploring how we might heal some of our social fracturing through the shedding of our social identities and a refocus on connecting in real life with fellow community members.

on a more fundamental human level.

So how do you think a dark practice or a dark retreat might aid in that shedding and re-humanization process?

Thomas Edison might be rolling in his grave.

So this has been both enjoyable and it's got me thinking.

And you know in the next two days I'm going to take those goggles on and give it a spin.

Dose it.

Yeah.

But let me just ask you this before I ask my closing questions that I ask all my guests.

What if someone who is a longtime watcher of this podcast and has learned a lot about climate change and energy depletion and geopolitics and biodiversity and evolutionary biology, they hear this conversation and they're like,

That's just woo.

Why is that relevant?

I don't think that.

I actually see the interconnectors between your story and mine.

But what would you say to someone that had that reaction?

Can you speculate for me, fast forward five or ten years, and there is this ego transcendence in a meaningful percentage of the population, whether through darkness practice or meditation or psychedelics or whatever?

LSD in the water system.