Digital Shamanism

In many mystical traditions, a deep interaction developed between humans and space, which is based on experience more than on conscious thinking. This type of interaction is embodied in strengthening the connection between the human being and space. The development of scientific thinking followed by the digital revolution minimized the presence of mystical traditions in our modern world. In this lecture, I will reduce the gap between spiritual and shamanistic perceptions and conscious, educated thinking. I will do so by building a bridge between traditions, to render accessible a worldview that served most of humanity for most of its existence, and by presenting the content of spiritual interactions with computers and technology. In particular, we will examine relationships in ecological systems based on oak trees. We will learn how traditional shamanism relies on hidden relationships between natural entities. Further, we will examine the feasibility of embedding similar interactions in computerized spaces.