Although he did not recognize it as such at the time, I believe that the German chemist, August Kekule, had a mini-P.E. when he had an intuitive flash while in a dream-like state that led to his realization that the benzene molecule has a ring-like structure. This was a real conceptual breakthrough within the field of chemistry. According to Kekule, this realization occurred during a "Halbschlaf" state, which translates as "half-sleep" or "reverie.".⁸

I believe that the Book of Genesis originated from a peak experience. It represents an extraordinary effort at explaining the origin of the universe, which although not completely accurate by today's level of comprehension, is nevertheless roughly correct in describing the sequence of events as we now understand them. There can be no doubt that even today's most sophisticated description of our origin and evolution is only approximately correct and will be continuously modified and updated as our understanding of reality improves.

There are many reports of creative acts that have apparently occurred during altered states of consciousness, thus supporting the commonly held notion that altered states allow the unconscious process to operate more freely. Harman and Rheingold, after researching case histories of scientists, "found that not only many specific scientific discoveries but the very foundations of science itself were built on breakthrough experiences, later backed up by empirical investigation.".⁹...They give many examples throughout their book Higher Creativity. One example makes reference to three dreams that Rene Descartes described in detail, which occurred on November 10, 1619. These dreams literally changed his life, as well as all of history, by giving a clear method to science. In his dreams he saw himself as a person destined to reform knowledge, unify the sciences, and search for truth as his career. He gained the insight that "all the sciences are interconnected as by a chain; no one of them can be completely grasped without taking in the whole encyclopedia at once." A major part of our present world-orientation stems from that moment. Descartes' revelation was gained during an altered state of consciousness, and it is ironic that it came through the hidden or ignored route of nonrational supraconsciousness or inner knowing, since it resulted in our present scientific method which is built upon an empirical, reductionist, positivistic viewpoint.¹⁰

Astronaut Edgar Mitchell, while returning to Earth from his Apollo 14 moonwalk, stated, "In a peak experience, the presence of divinity became almost palpable and I knew that life in the universe was not just an accident based on random processes. The knowledge came to me directly-noetically. It was not a matter of discursive reasoning or logical abstraction. It was an experiential cognition. It was knowledge gained through private subjective awareness, but it was--and still is--every bit as real as the objective data upon which, say the navigational program or the communications systems were based.".¹¹

I will describe my own perception of peak experience as accurately as language will permit, since I believe that over time it needs to be, and can be, verified as a way to achieve higher-order understanding of reality. Concepts derived and proven by science certainly further define reality. The source of new concepts, which constantly feed science, requires much further exploration, since by better understanding the source we can hopefully better tap its potential.

To verbally describe P.E. is actually next to impossible except to another individual who has already had one; nevertheless, an ambitious attempt will be made. Anyone who has experienced one will readily say that it is indescribable in much the same way that a near-death experience cannot be verbally expressed.

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