Revitalizing the Fleshly Bond to the Web of Life with Auto-Induced Cognitive Trance

This article explores the loss of direct experience of nature, which has a negative impact on people’s physical and psychological well-being. It focuses on the growing disconnection from the more-than-human world and examines how the practice of auto-induced cognitive trance (AICT), a technique for expanding awareness and connecting to a wider reality, might address this issue. The study examines how AICT participants experience and interpret their interactions with nature, as well as the meanings they derive from these experiences. Using a micro-phenomenological approach, the article discusses the La Bouche d’Ombre project, which investigates these human - more-than-human interactions in AICT. The findings suggest that AICT could foster a more responsive and meaningful relationship with the natural world, potentially promoting a first-person ecology in which people engage with nature in deeper and transformative ways.