Have you ever wondered about the nature of mystical experiences? We often hear stories of blissful, heavenly visions, but what if a spiritual awakening was terrifying? Our guest this week is Dr. Michael Sosteric, a sociologist who underwent a profound transformation from a materialist academic to a “professional mystic.” Dr. Sosteric shares the raw details of his own mystical experience —a frightening confrontation with the God of his youth that was filled not with love, but with visceral fear and judgment. He explains how this terrifying event paradoxically acted as a “clearing,” removing deep-seated blockages and opening the floodgates to an incredible flow of insight that would define the next two decades of his life.

We go far beyond one man’s story, offering a groundbreaking framework for understanding these events. Dr. Sosteric introduces the neutral term “connection experience” to bridge the gap between scientific inquiry, spiritual traditions, and the intensely personal nature of mysticism. He argues that these experiences are a natural and common human capacity, often suppressed by the constant distractions of modern life and the fear of social stigma. Tune in to explore a new model of consciousness, learn to differentiate between a transformative crisis and genuine pathology, and discover it’s possible to map and make sense of these profound connections to something larger than ourselves.

Find out more about his work at:

https://lightningpath.org

https://spiritwiki.lightningpath.org/index.php/Main_Page

and read the papers discussed and more of his work at:

https://athabascau.academia.edu/DrS

[https://ia801204.us.archive.org/35/items/audio-final-so-esoteric/AUDIO%20Final%20So%20Esoteric.mp3]