Ego Dissolution

Both meditation and deep sexual experience lead to the same ego-dissolved state of consciousness. The article presents the desire for transcendence as unavoidable. The need for transcendence is described as deeply embedded and likely to seek expression in some form. People seek transcendence because ordinary life is finite, banal, and shaped by aging and death. The desire for transcendence pushes humans beyond the ordinary self, personal circumstances, and an individual lifespan. Ego dissolution is the experience of consciousness expanding beyond individual identity into a unified, non-individual state. The phrase "le petit mort" captures the ego dissolution that can occur at the moment of climax. Transcendence is presented as a necessary part of human life rather than an optional abstraction.