Psychedelics and the Future of Religion

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Unlocking Transformation: The Crucial Role of Psychedelic Integration

March 26, 2024

In a thought-provoking online panel titled "Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: The Curious Case of Integration," hosted by the Center for the Study of World Religions (CSWR) on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, from 5:30 to 7 pm via Zoom, experts delved into the complex intersection of psychedelics, spirituality, and therapeutic integration. The event, part of the "Psychedelics and the Future of Religion, Transcendence, and Transformation" programming series, drew attention to the evolving landscape of psychedelic research and its potential impact on religious and spiritual practices....

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Towards Intersectionality in Critical Psychedelic Studies: The Psychedelic Intersections Conference

March 5, 2024

The "Psychedelic Intersections: Cross-cultural Manifestations of the Sacred" conference, held at Harvard Divinity School on February 17, 2024, provided an unprecedented forum for the exploration of psychedelic spirituality across diverse cultural and disciplinary landscapes, and welcomed more than 230 in-person and 800 remote attendees. Hosted by the Center for the Study of World Religions, the conference sought to deepen the understanding of how psychedelics intersect with religion, spirituality, and medicine across traditions, modern and ancient, as well as across social stratifications, such as race, class, gender and culture. This year's programming built upon the foundational work of the previous year's conference, expanding the conversation beyond Harvard and investigating the capacity for psychedelic spirituality encounters at the intersections of diverse belief systems, disciplines, and communities.... Read more about Towards Intersectionality in Critical Psychedelic Studies: The Psychedelic Intersections Conference

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Reflections on the Reimagining Psychedelic Integration Workshop

March 4, 2024

Since participating in Tristan Angieri’s “Reimagining Psychedelic Integration” workshop at the Center for the Study of World Religion (CSWR) Psychedelic Intersections Conference, I’ve been thinking and moving differently. The workshop was about psychedelic integration, but the questions that arose apply to other areas of my life, too. What’s the point of “integrating” or “processing” something? What does that mean—and do we always necessarily need to do it? When might an experience stand on its own or even be the very integration we’re seeking?  

Tristan started the...

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The Science and Philosophy of Plant Intelligence: A Reflective Encounter with Dr. Luis Eduardo Luna

February 27, 2024
On February 16th, the Center for the Study of World Religions (CSWR) at Harvard Divinity School became the meeting ground for an exploration into the realms of plant intelligence, consciousness, and the symbiosis between science and spirituality. The event offered attendees the opportunity to delve into the intricacies of human and non-human interaction, guided by the insights of Dr. Luis Eduardo Luna.... Read more about The Science and Philosophy of Plant Intelligence: A Reflective Encounter with Dr. Luis Eduardo Luna

Psychedelic Intersections: Cross-cultural Manifestations of the Sacred Conference 2024, February 17, 2024

January 4, 2024

This event is free and open to the public.  Registration is required.  
In-person registration is closed, as we have reached max capacity. Please register at the livestream link below to join virtually.
Register to attend via livestream.

The second annual “Psychedelic Intersections: Cross-cultural Manifestations of the Sacred” conference explores how psychedelics and spirituality intersect differently across cultures, contexts, and traditions. The conference asks...

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Video: Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: Mescaline and Psychonauts with Mike Jay

January 2, 2024

As part of the Psychedelics and the Future of Religion series, the Center for the Study of World Religions presented an interview with author Mike Jay about his two most recent books, Psychonauts: Drugs and the Making of the Modern Mind, and Mescaline: A Global History of the First Pychedelic.... Read more about Video: Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: Mescaline and Psychonauts with Mike Jay

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Video: Psychedelics and Philosophy: Metaphysics and Meaning-Making in Psychedelia

December 14, 2023

As part of the Psychedelics and the Future of Religion series, the Center for the Study of World Religions hosted scholars Drs. Christine Hauskeller and Peter Sjostedt-Hughes. Philosophers Prof. Hauskeller and Dr. Sjöstedt-Hughes present a multi-perspectival hermeneutics of psychedelic-occasioned experiences. They discuss the question: How do we make sense of the myriad of experiences and extraordinary states of being that psychedelics can evoke through lenses ground from the discipline of Philosophy?... Read more about Video: Psychedelics and Philosophy: Metaphysics and Meaning-Making in Psychedelia

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Video: Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: Race and Exoticism in Global Psychedelic Spirituality

November 7, 2023

As part of the Psychedelics and the Future of Religion series, the Center for the Study of World Religions hosted scholars Dr. Amanda Lucia, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California-Riverside and Dr. Arun Saldanha, Professor in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Society at the University of Minnesota for a discussion on "Race and Exoticism in Global Psychedelic Spirituality".... Read more about Video: Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: Race and Exoticism in Global Psychedelic Spirituality

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Save the Date & Call for Papers: Psychedelic Intersections: Cross-cultural Manifestations of the Sacred Conference, Feb.17, 2024

October 24, 2023

Harvard Divinity School’s (HDS) Center for the Study of World Religions and the Harvard Psychedelics Project at HDS are excited to announce the upcoming Psychedelic Intersections: Cross-cultural Manifestations of the Sacred Conference. This one-day academic conference will be held on February 17, 2024, at Harvard University (exact location forthcoming). 

This event builds on Explorations in Interdisciplinary Psychedelic Research held at HDS last April, which was the first interdisciplinary psychedelics conference at...

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Video: Liquid Light Book Discussion with Bill Barnard (Psychedelics & the Future of Religion Series)

March 27, 2023

On March 27, 2023 The Center for the Study of World Religions hosted an author discussion (Psychedelics & the Future of Religion Series) with Professor Bill Barnard. Charles Stang, Director of the CSWR, and Barnard discussed his recent book, Liquid Light: Ayahuasca Spirituality and the Santo Daime Tradition. Liquid Light offers an in-depth immersion into the complex and fascinating world of the Santo Daime – a relatively new religion that emerged out of the Amazon rainforest region of Brazil in the middle of the twentieth century, and which now has churches throughout the world.... Read more about Video: Liquid Light Book Discussion with Bill Barnard (Psychedelics & the Future of Religion Series)

Archaeology

Video: The Archaeology of Ecstasy: Psychedelics in the Ancient Mediterranean World

November 30, 2021

Can archaeology help us recover the ecstatic experiences of ancient peoples from the Aegean or Near East? And, if so, what evidence is there that such ecstatic experiences were induced by what we now call “psychedelics”? To what degree was the ancient pursuit of ecstasy understood as an individual or a collective imperative, or both? And in pursuing such questions, what do we learn not only about the ancient Mediterranean world, but about our own modern world, and the contemporary psychedelic renaissance and its priorities? CSWR Director Charles M. Stang will host archaeologists Karen Polinger Foster (Yale) and Andrew Koh (Harvard) to present their research and to discuss these and other questions about “the archaeology of ecstasy.”... Read more about Video: The Archaeology of Ecstasy: Psychedelics in the Ancient Mediterranean World

Native American Church

Video: The Native American Church and the Sacrament of Peyote

October 14, 2021

A conversation with Native American Church leaders Steven Benally and Sandor Iron Rope, who discussed the centuries-old sacramental use of plant medicines such as peyote. They explored the history of the persecution of this plant medicine and the Indigenous peoples and cultures for whom it is sacred, and how Indigenous perspectives might complicate or challenge the contemporary “psychedelic renaissance.”
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