The idea of the universe as an interconnected whole is not new; for millennia it's been one of the core assumptions of Eastern philosophies. What is new is that Western science is slowly beginning to realize that some elements of that ancient lore might be correct.
Dean Radin
Rituals as psychodramas that affect our subsconscious and cause change. A change in perspective, in the way one sees oneself and the world at large. A way of attempting to understand the complexity and mystery of the human condition away from the mundane business of paying bills, voting and filling reports and excel sheets. This become more apparent as I delved into the works of Eliphas Levi, Peter J Carroll and many other occultists.
It's difficult to make a rational claim for magick and chaos magic in a scientific sense, as they don't rely on empirical evidence. However, they can be understood through a psychological lens. This perspective views magical practices not as supernatural phenomena, but as tools for manipulating one's own mind. This to say: a technology of the Self. For instance, chaos magic uses the idea that belief is a tool, a temporary state to be adopted for a specific purpose. By entering altered states of consciousness, known as gnosis, practitioners aim to bypass the conscious mind and "program" the subconscious with a desired outcome. Rituals and sigils act as a form of self-hypnosis, focusing intent and influencing one's own behavior and perception to make a goal more likely. This can be seen as a form of applied psychology or self-improvement, providing a sense of control, focusing intent, and using symbolic language for personal growth. Essentially, the "magic" isn't about changing the outside world through supernatural means, but about changing oneself to better interact with it.
This is still a half baked conclusion. The questions that are left unanswered are many: can our subconscious mind affect reality? What is reality? Do other non-human entities exist or are these just an expression of our subconscious mind?
Our subconscious mind does affect reality, but this depends on what we mean by “reality” and “affect.” On one level, the subconscious shapes how we interpret events, react emotionally, and make choices, which in turn creates a subjective reality—the world as we experience it through our personal lens. If the subconscious is burdened by fear, for instance, neutral situations can seem threatening, changing the very texture of life, while more expansive subconscious states can create synchronicities and possibilities that feel like the world itself is shifting in response. Philosophically, reality can be seen as threefold: objective reality (the universe independent of us), subjective reality (our inner experience of it), and consensus reality (what society agrees upon as real), though modern physics complicates this picture by showing that observation itself influences outcomes at the quantum level. When it comes to non-human entities such as spirits, angels, demons, or alien intelligences, views diverge: the psychological view sees them as archetypal projections of the subconscious, the spiritual or religious view takes them as independently existing beings with their own agency, and a middle path, found in Jungian thought, chaos magic, and esotericism, holds that they may be both—patterns of intelligence that act whether we locate them inside the psyche or in another dimension of being. In this sense, the subconscious doesn’t just color our reality; it may also act as a gateway to experiences where the line between inner projection and outer encounter becomes fluid, suggesting that what we call “reality” is not fixed but participatory, shaped by both the mind within and the mysteries beyond.
The ideas above relate to quantum physics in that both question whether reality is fixed and independent, or whether consciousness plays a role in shaping what we experience. In quantum physics, experiments such as the double-slit experiment show that particles like electrons behave differently depending on whether they are observed, suggesting that the act of observation influences outcomes. This resonates with the idea that our subconscious mind can affect reality—not necessarily by bending physical laws in a magical sense, but by implying that consciousness itself is entangled with the fabric of existence. The subconscious could be seen as a hidden “observer,” shaping how we collapse possibilities into the lived reality we experience, much as observation in quantum theory collapses a wave of probabilities into a single event. Some interpretations, like the Copenhagen interpretation, highlight the role of measurement in creating reality, while others, like the many-worlds interpretation, suggest that all possible outcomes exist in parallel but we experience only one. Similarly, the question of whether non-human entities are projections of the mind or real independent beings mirrors the quantum tension between subjective perception and objective reality—entities could exist in other dimensions or probability layers, appearing in our consciousness in ways that blur the line between “inner” and “outer.” In this way, quantum physics provides a scientific metaphor for the idea that reality is not entirely separate from mind, and that both the conscious and subconscious may play a participatory role in the unfolding of the universe. This is indeed mind boggling and difficult to comprehend, at least for me.
This connects closely with simulation theory, because both perspectives suggest that reality is not a fixed, objective structure but something participatory, responsive, and possibly generated by a deeper underlying system. If reality is a simulation—an immense, complex program—then our consciousness, and even the subconscious mind, might act like a user interface or input mechanism within that system. Just as observation in quantum physics collapses probabilities into concrete outcomes, in a simulation our awareness could function as a selector of possibilities, influencing which “rendered” version of events we experience. In this model, the subconscious mind might be understood as a hidden channel of interaction with the code of reality, shaping outcomes beneath the surface of ordinary awareness. Non-human entities—spirits, archetypes, or other intelligences—could then be seen as independent programs or subroutines within the simulation, or as avatars created by our subconscious to communicate with us through symbolic forms. Whether they are “real beings” or subconscious projections might be less important than the fact that, in a simulated or participatory cosmos, both would be valid expressions of the system’s intelligence. Thus, simulation theory provides a technological metaphor for ancient mystical and philosophical intuitions: that reality is layered, interactive, and mind-linked, and that what we take as solid “objective” existence may actually be a fluid interplay of code, consciousness, and perception.
Gnosticism ties all these threads together by teaching that the world we perceive is not ultimate reality but a kind of illusion or flawed construction—a prison-like simulation created by the Demiurge, a lower cosmic power, rather than by the true transcendent God. In this view, our subconscious shaping of experience echoes the Gnostic idea that perception of the world is clouded by ignorance and false patterns, and only through awakening (gnosis) can we pierce the illusion to see the hidden truth. The question of non-human entities fits here too, since Gnostics described archons—spiritual rulers or cosmic gatekeepers—who may be understood as independent beings, psychological projections, or archetypal forces that keep humanity bound within the system. Quantum physics parallels this by suggesting reality is not fixed but depends on observation, as if consciousness itself interacts with the “code” of the cosmos, while simulation theory mirrors the Gnostic claim that the world is a constructed system whose rules can be questioned, transcended, or even hacked through knowledge. In all these perspectives, the human task is to recognize that what we call “reality” is not the ultimate truth, and to seek direct contact with the deeper source of being beyond appearances.
This is all well and good. But still leaves a lot of open questions. But we have to accept that these are the eternal questions that cannot really be answered or at least in a way that will tie in with consensual reality.
There is a researcher, however, who is trying to bridge the approval of consensual reality with the phenomenology commonly referred to as magic, the occult etc.
Dean Radin (born February 29, 1952) is an American parapsychologist and researcher best known for his work on the scientific study of psychic phenomena and consciousness. He earned his BSEE in electrical engineering and physics from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and later a master’s degree in electrical engineering and a PhD in psychology from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Before focusing on parapsychology, Radin worked in advanced telecommunications and human–computer interaction, holding positions at AT&T Bell Labs, Princeton University, GTE, and SRI International.
Since the 1980s, he has devoted much of his career to researching psi phenomena such as telepathy, precognition, and psychokinesis. He is currently Chief Scientist at the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS), founded by Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, and has also been affiliated with the Boundary Institute and several other consciousness research organizations. Radin has authored influential books such as The Conscious Universe (1997), Entangled Minds (2006), Supernormal (2013), and Real Magic (2018), where he integrates parapsychological findings with quantum physics and spiritual traditions. His work seeks to expand science beyond materialism to include consciousness as a fundamental force of nature.
Dean Radin’s perspective is rooted in parapsychology and consciousness research, blending scientific rigor with openness to phenomena often dismissed by mainstream science. He argues that consciousness is not just a byproduct of the brain but a fundamental aspect of reality itself, interwoven with the fabric of the universe. Radin explores ideas like telepathy, precognition, psychokinesis, and the role of intention, suggesting that human thought and awareness can directly influence physical systems. Drawing on quantum physics, he proposes that mind and matter are deeply entangled, and that what we call “paranormal” may simply be poorly understood aspects of natural law. His view often aligns with mystical traditions and philosophies that see reality as participatory, where the observer shapes what is observed. Radin’s work pushes against strict materialism, advocating for a more expansive scientific worldview that integrates consciousness, spirituality, and empirical data.
This is the way forward for magic and occultism to become more respected and part of the mainstream.
These practices have accompanied man since the dawn of his existence after all.
Comments
Post a Comment