Mormonism, Psychedelics, Quantum Physics, and the Eleusinian Mysteries - Refining the Origin Story
Using consciousness, quantum physics, and esoteric traditions to understand Mormonism's origins
Introduction
Most adherents and detractors of Mormonism present a false dichotomy, that the church is either true or false. It is an enticing claim, clean and simple. Our minds crave binary classification. Right or wrong, true or false, we need to know. Gordon B Hinckley said, "Each of us has to face the matter — either the Church is true, or it is a fraud. There is no middle ground. It is the church and kingdom of God, or it is nothing.” Similarly, Bruce R. McConkie claimed:
Either the Book of Mormon is true, or it is false; either it came from God, or it was spawned in the infernal realms. It declares plainly that all men must accept it as pure scripture or they will lose their souls. It is not and cannot be simply another treatise on religion; it either came from heaven or from hell. And it is time for all those who seek salvation to find out for themselves whether it is of the Lord or of Lucifer.
This black and white thinking persists for a couple reasons. It absolves those in the church from the need to reconcile loose ends, and those who leave from the need to reconcile previous spiritual experiences. After all, at the end of the day, they tell themselves, the church is true or false. It also persists due to the difficulty in creating a coherent but nuanced alternative narrative. This false dichotomy is convenient, but doesn't result in compelling narratives on either side. It's like being handed a purple crayon by two preschoolers who just learned primary colors and being forced to pick whether it is blue or red. Despite your protests and explanations, they insist it is one or the other.
The following is an alternate narrative regarding the origins of Mormonism, calling on a variety of concepts that aren't widely understood, including quantum physics, the study of consciousness, esoteric traditions, and psychedelics. There is even a cameo by a declassified CIA document. Not only are some of these topics difficult to understand, but most have had little to no exposure to them. When understood, however, they result in a fundamental reevaluation of how we understand and experience reality. This narrative has a higher barrier to entry than the CES Letter, due to the foundation required. However, instead of focusing on the holes in Mormonism's origin story, it presents a much more plausible explanation. As you'll see, this isn't just about Mormonism. Not only do these topics result in a paradigm conducive to a more compelling narrative regarding the origins of Mormonism, but it's also more conducive to understanding science, spirituality, and reality. But first, it may require you to question the most fundamental truths you thought you knew.
Updating Frameworks
It will take some time as I take you down paths you may never have tread, so I'll give you a high level overview. First we have to update some frameworks. This may require questioning some presumptions traditionally held, and being open to some new possibilities. Here are the presumptions I'll be asking you to reevaluate:
God exists as a separate entity from us, opposed by another separate entity known as Satan, or some variation thereof
Physical matter is the fundamental substance of the universe, and from matter all phenomena arise, also known as materialism
These concepts make up the spiritual and scientific backbone of Western society. Many incorporate both, relying on the first when seeking for meaning in life, and on the second when seeking to understand and manipulate non-spiritual matters. The first belief has instilled morals into society and meaning into personal lives, explaining phenomena that science has not addressed. It has also resulted in numerous wars and persistent discrimination. The second belief has brought staggering scientific advances which were previously not found through blind acceptance of religious dogma. Yet, our swing towards skepticism hinders the investigation and acceptance of phenomena that don't fit into existing models, such as the benefits of Eastern medicine, and also invalidates spiritual or metaphysical experiences. As useful as both views have been, they have failed to reconcile scientific and spiritual phenomena. Science is in crisis, investigating phenomena increasingly impossible to fit into materialism. Simultaneously, society is turning away from the parochial views of religion at record levels. It's time to consider whether there is a unifying framework which integrates science and spirituality.
The key here is integration, holding the most useful and verified concepts of both frameworks and reconciling them into one comprehensive framework. This involves more than a professor at BYU saying that religion doesn't contradict science, showing some quotes of scientific church leaders, performing some hand waving, and moving on. This is also markedly different than what many do, trading one worldview for another. Often one shelf is swapped for another. If we go back to our analogy, you'd just be switching from siding with the preschooler on team red, to the one on team blue. Many do this in medical treatment, recognizing the limitations of Western medicine and then abandoning it entirely for another limited perspective, rather than integrating both. Since the spiritual and scientific frameworks are at odds in their current form, integration requires a reexamination of the assumptions upon which the frameworks have been made. In other words, questioning that the only colors to choose from are blue and red. Here are the concepts I'll ask you to consider:
"God" is the universe, the cosmos, or all of existence, indicating that there is an inherent oneness and unity shared by all people and things, a concept known as pantheism
"Satan" is the inherent pull towards separateness, a forgetting of the love and unity inherent in the recognition that all is one, or the unintegrated and repressed aspects of ourselves
Mind or consciousness is the fundamental substance of the universe, from which all phenomena arise, a concept known as idealism
The inherent oneness of such a philosophy means there is a realm of universal consciousness which can be accessed through creativity, intuition, revelation, or altered states of consciousness (both endogenously produced through fasting, prayer, meditation, or breathwork, or exogenously through substances like psychedelics)
The idea of an all-encompassing higher power and oneness inherent in the universe is not only consistent with many other spiritual traditions, but aligns with Christ's admonition to the disciples on being one with the Father, as well as Paul's teachings on us all being the body of Christ. Extending that analogy, what if we are cells in the cosmic body? As cells in this cosmic body, we are individualized, but each of us contain a connection to each other and the cosmic body. Each cell contains the entire genetic instructions to create the entire body and all other cells. Though cells often only access a subset of the entire DNA, they are connected to the entire body by containing the full genetic code as well as through complex signaling mechanisms. We are both cells, and the whole body. This fundamental oneness allows access to a universal consciousness, making concepts like revelation, intuition, and psychic or spiritual phenomena possible.
I've presented these in largely spiritual terms, but there are scientific corollaries to these concepts within quantum physics, be it quantum entanglement, in which two particles which can be separated by infinite distance are connected instantaneously, or quantum field theory, in which all energy or particles are part of the same quantum fields. Later, we'll touch on some of the scientific evidence for a universal consciousness or connection and cover how altered states of consciousness are one of the ways to experience this phenomenon.
Overview
We'll dive into those concepts more scientifically later, but that's hopefully enough of a framework to follow a summary of what I feel is the most rational explanation of the origins of Mormonism. To start, Joseph Smith and his family were very influenced by esoteric traditions (religious or spiritual groups and teachings which focus on experiencing hidden or mystical knowledge, including Gnosticism, Freemasonry, Hermeticism, Kaballah, and folk magic). These traditions used altered states of consciousness, known in research as mystical states, as a core part of their learning, often from exogenous substances, though this is not widely known due to the hidden nature of these traditions, suppression from orthodox churches, and the current cultural view towards psychedelics. These states can reveal fundamental principles of the universe by removing the filters present between our consciousness and a cosmic consciousness. These experiences are classified by psychology research as often having the characteristic of ineffability, meaning they are difficult or impossible to express within the limits of language, and similarly difficult to understand. However, there is a high correlation between these mystical experiences throughout history and across modalities. As such, these traditions contain fundamental truths about the nature of the universe, albeit expressed in slightly different ways and with some cultural or dogmatic baggage.
Mormonism is Joseph Smith's amalgamation of esoteric beliefs, expanded and adapted to American culture through his own exploration of altered states and mystical practices. Its teachings and history represent his interpretations of these sources, colored by his own shortcomings as a three-dimensional person. Aside from spiritual pursuits, he was influenced by his own history, including struggles to make a living from his mystical practices, a financially difficult upbringing, multiple instances of fraud, and many self-inflicted difficulties resulting from impulsive and offensive actions such as practicing polygamy, forming a fraudulent bank, suppressing the freedom of press, and taking militant actions. Joseph Smith appears to have engaged in pious fraud, the act of deceiving for what one feels is an honorable or justifiable purpose. The Book of Mormon was the creative product of altered states of consciousness, containing spiritual principles capable of inspiring adherents, wrapped in a fictitious story. It appears to have been supported by both props and spiritual experiences induced in the witnesses, actions Joseph Smith likely justified as acceptable means to facilitate transmission of what he felt were profound spiritual truths. Pentecostal outpourings, such as the Kirtland Temple dedication, were mediated by altered states induced by fasting, alcohol, and likely additional substances in the sacramental wine. Many concepts that appear unique to Mormonism, including discovered records written in Egyptian, baptism for the dead, restoration of the priesthood, eternal progression, celestial marriage, different degrees of heaven, patriarchal blessings, the plan of salvation, temple rites, and more, have striking parallels both to esoteric traditions and what many loosely refer to as New Age Spirituality.
It is entirely feasible for Mormonism to contain inspiring practices and doctrines that can induce profound insights and spiritual experiences and lead one to a greater understanding of the universe, without it being from heaven or hell and without Joseph Smith needing to be a divine prophet or an evil fraud. In fact, with such similarities to esoteric traditions and New Age Spirituality, traditions based on experiences that reveal fundamental truths about the universe, it makes sense for Mormonism to resonate as more coherent and truthful than other mainstream religions without such roots. In many ways, Mormonism was a restoration of gnostic principles that had been suppressed since Christ, as evidenced by the Dead Sea Scrolls, which, for example, contain a record of Christ teaching passwords to give to the guardians after death in order to enter the highest level of heaven. However, much of the credit for the meaningful theology and spirituality contained in Mormonism should go to esoteric traditions, rather than Joseph Smith. A thorough exploration of Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Freemasonry, Kaballah, New Age Spirituality, Eastern religions, Jungian psychology, and modern science allows one to continue Mormonism's stalled "Restoration" into a much more coherent framework integrating science and spirituality and allowing a greater understanding of the universe. Unfortunately, the truths and spirituality that Mormonism offers, combined with the false dichotomy offered by those in and out of the church and a lack of a plausible alternative narrative, results in many members struggling to accept certain difficult doctrines or historical events enacting a situation ironically reminiscent of the Mormon Ad which featured a cockroach on an ice cream sundae with the caption "It's GREAT except for..."
That's the high level overview. I'll go more into the science supporting those frameworks as well as the specific correlations between Mormonism and esoteric and spiritual traditions below.
Disclaimer
I am not an expert on any of the topics discussed in this piece. However, I know enough about them to piece together an alternative narrative which leaves fewer unanswered questions than any I've encountered. The topics covered are somewhat obscure, and I have found few familiar enough with them to integrate them together in relation to the origins of Mormonism. Understanding what really went on with Joseph Smith is like putting a car together. If you are missing a key part, it just won't drive. There are many works that contain valid perspectives that I've drawn from, such as The Psychedelic History of Mormonism, Magic, and Drugs by Cody Noconi, Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D Michael Quinn, and The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name by Brian Muraresku. However, a comprehensive picture of what happened requires more than just an exposé of the inconsistencies, or a connection with psychedelics or folk magic, despite those all being key elements. So, while you won't get an in-depth understanding of any of the concepts just from reading this piece, you will get an overview from which you can do further research.
This piece is not intended to convince anyone to change their beliefs. Beliefs are often governed more by what one wants to believe than logic. Instead, my purpose is to present an alternative framework for understanding the origins of Mormonism that is more in line with scientific reasoning. It just happens to not only be compatible with, but point toward, spirituality. Many active members have significant reservations about teachings and practices of the church, but are still deeply spiritual. It seems increasingly often that true spirituality is held captive by church doctrines and practices. The only alternative to these mental gymnastics often seems to be an abandonment of spirituality with a renunciation of spiritual experiences, a higher power, and a deeper meaning in life. That's a bridge too far for many, so shelves often get heavier, Sundays become burdensome and less fulfilling, marriages are strained, and mental gymnastics get more taxing. On the other side, those who have chosen to leave are often left with loose ends and an existential crisis. There can be self-judgment for staying so long, bitterness for being deceived by what they now often believe was a complete fraud, strained relations with friends and family with whom they no longer share common beliefs, and disillusionment with spirituality or any idea of a deeper meaning to life. I hope to present an alternative contextualization of the Restoration, consistent with well-known scientific and philosophical frameworks, while also compatible with the spirituality and purpose many find in Mormonism. Paradoxically far from describing the current church, Joseph Smith's sentiment in 1843 describes a healthy approach to belief:
I stated that the most prominent difference in sentiment between the Latter-day Saints and sectarians was, that the latter were all circumscribed by some peculiar creed, which deprived its members the privilege of believing anything not contained therein, whereas the Latter-day Saints … are ready to believe all true principles that exist, as they are made manifest from time to time.
Now, we'll take a deeper dive into the concepts supporting this narrative.
Consciousness
First we'll start with the idea of consciousness. These concepts can initially feel very counterintuitive, so don't worry if at first they don't seem to make sense. Deeper understanding will likely take more than this introduction. If nothing else, know that there are many philosophers, scientists, and physicians that espouse a view similar to what I'll share, and the topic can be explored further for greater understanding. Though it can be teased out intellectually, these concepts are more fully understood through experience, be that through meditation, breathwork, or psychedelics. These concepts may not seem relevant to the origins of Mormonism, but they are crucial to establishing the philosophical framework of idealism, where consciousness rather than matter is the fundamental substance of the universe, as well as the concept of a universal consciousness, which accounts for the concepts of revelation and spiritual or psychic phenomena.
Exploring what it means to be conscious is not something that often occurs without significant intention. One can go through a lifetime without stopping to consider consciousness. It's under-the-hood, out of the way, and is often only explored when one has no alternative but to reevaluate what they are experiencing in reality. Consciousness is like the laptop that runs the code of reality. We are often so busy running programs, writing emails, browsing the internet, and playing games, that we fail to stop and consider that the things we are seeing and interacting with are not actually windows, programs, or objects, but rather information processed, interpreted, and displayed by the laptop. To highlight the subjectivity of our own conscious experience, consider putting the same information in another computer. If you are lucky it will merely be displayed differently, but often it won’t even process due to incompatible software and hardware. It's typically only when the laptop gets sluggish, runs out of space, or the display starts flickering that we are awakened to the realization that there is a console which is rendering or filtering the information with which we are interacting.
So it is with reality. We often assume we are experiencing the same objective reality as everyone else until we take a step back and explore how we experience reality. When we look at a tree in a field, we are accustomed to thinking that we are experiencing that tree where it stands, out there in the world. In reality, photons are striking our retinas, stimulating electrical signals that propagate along the optic nerve in a complex process involving the depolarization and repolarization of cell membranes producing signals that then reach our brain, which itself uses a complex network of neurons to interpret what we are seeing according to our life experiences up to that point. What you are experiencing is not in the field, but inside your head. As objective as we'd like to believe reality is, we actually have no way of knowing that my red looks like your red.
Even that interpretation of the experience of seeing a tree, though closer to the truth than how we typically view reality, presents consciousness as arising from a brain that objectively exists in a physical plane. In actuality, all we can really be sure of is that consciousness exists, ie. "I think, therefore I am." Everything we experience arises through consciousness. Therefore it is from consciousness that the physical brain arises, not the other way around. Sam Harris, a neuroscientist well-versed in meditation, explores these concepts in the meditations in his app Waking Up. Through meditation you focus on how thoughts, sounds, and feelings all arise in our consciousness, and start to realize that everything we experience arises in this way, through the filter of consciousness. We have a canvas upon which everything we have ever experienced has arisen. Every thought, feeling, sight, sound, tactile sensation, smell, has all been mediated by consciousness. That means every other person, and thing, the entire universe to the extent you have experienced it, has been experienced only on this canvas of consciousness.
Expanding our awareness through meditation consists of exploring the canvas of consciousness, recognizing how our attention is like a spotlight that illuminates a small area of that canvas, and deepening our understanding of how expansive that canvas is while broadening the area that our spotlight of attention can illuminate. Realizing that everything we experience, from thoughts to physical matter, is only done so through the filter of consciousness, leads into the concept of non-duality. There is no duality, or subject-object relationship, to reality. We aren't subjects in a physical body, with our identity magically stopping at the edges of that body, interacting with a separate world that starts from the point our body ends. We aren’t consciousnesses that exist separate from, but somehow linked to, a physical world. Instead, everything is consciousness.
As fundamental of a truth as it seems to be that you exist, separate from the world, it gets quite difficult when you try to explore this concept of an identity. Who is this you that exists? Are you the one that beats your heart, or is that your body? Are they the same? If they are the same, would you be the one that creates cancer should that unfortunate event happen, and yet also the one that fights it? Babies are born into the world without a sense of self. They don't recognize themselves as separate from their mothers, or from the universe around them. They have no concept that there is a point at which their body stops and the world begins. They are simply a locus of awareness on a vast canvas of consciousness. Yet as babies develop, their thoughts become more and more complex and eventually a framework is constructed in which they view themselves as a separate identity or ego from the outside world. This identity is itself a complex set of thoughts that has developed in each of us, yet it is not us. We are not the thoughts or concepts that arise in our consciousness, we are the awareness behind those thoughts. We did not spring into existence when we finally developed an ego or sense of self, yet we've become quite attached to identifying ourselves with that ego.
Exploring the idea that everything one has experienced has been on the canvas of consciousness leads to the discovery that everything else exists also on that same canvas of consciousness. There is only one canvas, and since our entire experience of another person has been on this canvas, they also exist on and experience this same canvas, albeit from a different perspective or locus of awareness than we do. Yet, as our (and their) awareness expands, those loci of awareness can overlap. Just as through meditation one can expand their awareness and control over more and more aspects of their body, expanded awareness can also give rise to more access to this universal consciousness.
This is a rough introduction to the concept of consciousness, the fundamental nature of consciousness as the substance of the universe through which physical matter is a secondary experience, and the idea of a universal consciousness experiencing itself through different loci of awareness with the potential to overlap and connect. As bizarre or unscientific as this may sound, this is a concept that many great philosophers and scientists have believed. Max Planck, the Nobel Prize-winning physicist regarded as the father of quantum physics stated:
I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. We cannot get behind consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness.
One way of understanding this concept of consciousness and individual experiences of reality, is to view one's brain as a reducing valve which filters individual aspects of a universal consciousness, leading us to experience a portion of the universal consciousness as an individual human experiencing an individual life. This perspective is helpful in illustrating how psychedelics work. They are seen by many as a way of bypassing that reducing valve and allowing more of the universal consciousness to be experienced. Such a perspective is also helpful in explaining reports of past life memories which, although not accepted by those determined to retain a materialist perspective, are considered by many as an actual phenomenon that can occur spontaneously in young children and through altered states. The Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia School of Medicine employs scientific methods to verify claims of past life memories in young children. These children remember verifiable information of individuals who lived prior, information which they would have no other access to. Having a concept that mind or consciousness is the fundamental substance of the universe, that there is a universal consciousness filtered into individual consciousnesses, and that consciousness is conserved throughout time, helps contextualize these seemingly bizarre phenomena in a rational way.
Dreams are one of a few concepts that can provide a template for understanding this concept of universal versus individual consciousness. While dreaming, your whole consciousness subdivides. Some of your consciousness is present as a mini ego, the main character in the dream, separate from the other characters and environment which you experience in your dream. In a dream, our brain is largely unable to differentiate this experience from waking reality, as the visual, auditory, and other sensory areas of the brain are active in the same way as they are in waking reality. In this experience, you can be frightened, surprised, and amused by other characters, which are actually part of the "universal consciousness" or your waking self. Despite feeling very separate from others and the world in the dream, you are it all. This shows how one consciousness (your consciousness) is experienced in a way in which a fraction of that consciousness (your dream self) experiences other fractions of that same consciousness (the other characters and environment of the dream) as separate, despite the fact that they are all arising from one consciousness.
Dissociative Identity Disorder provides another helpful template to explore this concept. This is a condition in which, due to trauma, a person's consciousness subdivides into separate alter-egos. These are like different brains inside of one brain. These alter-egos have different personalities and ages, and are often walled off from each other. This means one alter-ego will not have access to the memories of the other alter-egos, nor will be consciously aware when another alter-ego is in the "driver's seat." This condition is the result of the protective mechanism of our brains to wall off trauma, resulting in many egos inside of one "universal consciousness." It is possible, though rare, for such an individual to heal through therapy and integrate all of the alter-egos into one integrated consciousness. This is not a suppression or death of the alter-egos, but rather an integration together. This is just another model of how consciousness can be subdivided into seemingly separate parts, and how individual consciousnesses can interact or overlap.
Other support for these views on consciousness include Carl Jung's work. While a contemporary of Freud, he viewed psychology differently and rooted his view of the universe on a collective unconscious which gives rise to archetypes and symbolism that recurs over history. He also believed in psychic phenomena through this idea of a collective unconscious, and sought to integrate Western psychology with Eastern philosophy. Additionally, the CIA has researched many phenomena related to these ideas, including remote viewing, astral projection, and mind control. One fascinating and incredibly well-written investigation is found on the CIA website as a document declassified in 2003. It is a rather comprehensive explanation of the universe from an energetic, non-dual perspective, motivated by the CIA's interest in the Gateway Project, a group using brainwave entrainment through audio recordings to astral project, remote view, and alter the world around them via altered states. The document gives an elegant scientific explanation of these paranormal phenomena, as well as recommendations on how the government can both utilize and defend against these methods for national security. Note that a crucial page was missing from the declassified document and was finally located in 2021 at this link by a journalist from Vice.
Before we wrap up exploring consciousness, I’ll attempt a brief summary of psychedelics based on this framework. However, I strongly believe everyone should read How To Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan, or watch the Netflix docuseries adaptation, given the psychedelic renaissance we are experiencing. He interviews prominent figures in this space, explores the mental health research taking place that is yielding incredible results, reviews psychedelics’ interesting history, and reports on his own psychedelic experiences undertaken for the purpose of the book.
Basically, psychedelics are seen by many as a lifting of the filtering mechanism of the brain, allowing one to experience reality or the universal consciousness without the constructs that we’ve developed since birth. I’m presenting this in the context of idealism, because I think it explains psychedelics much more completely. Instead of psychedelics “doing things” to your brain, or making you “see things” in your head, they’ve actually been shown to quiet brain activity, in line with the concept that they are lifting the filters of your brain and exposing you more fully to the raw data of reality without the post-processing our brains and past experiences usually provide. It’s also important to understand that instead of psychedelics taking you to some state that is in a category on its own, they are taking you to the same states accessed through many other modalities. The destination is largely the same, but the mode of transportation is different. We can produce these states endogenously (from within the body) without any substances through breathwork, meditation, yoga, or what are generally seen as religious activities, like fasting and contemplative prayer. This has been supported by MRI studies showing a similar state in the brains of subjects meditating and in subjects who have taken psilocybin, as well as the strong correlations between the descriptions of psychedelic experiences and those of religious mystics throughout history.
Still, part of the difficulty with altered states is the wide variety of experiences people have, as they often present in the “mental language” we have and are influenced by factors such as one’s setting and intention. So, while the brain is relieved of some of its filtering and meaning-making, it isn’t entirely gone. The experiences can still present and be interpreted afterwards through the religious or spiritual frameworks that a person is accustomed to, particularly if they were occasioned through religious practices. It can be difficult to interpret and process, something called integration, and many can come away with unhealthy conclusions, “knowing” that they are God, or very literally interpreting things that they experienced. This is likely why many traditions have kept information about these altered states hidden, regardless of whether accessed through meditation or psychedelics.
Despite the variety in experiences, there is a very consistent signal amidst the noise, consistent enough for researchers to develop a robust framework for identifying mystical experiences in research. The experiences generally consist of wonder, bliss, love, and a feeling of oneness with the universe or God. The profundity of these experiences was illustrated in the 25 year follow up of a seminal experiment called the Good Friday Experiment, where 10 theology students were administered psilocybin. When contacted 25 years later, 9 of the 10 participants regarded the experience as one of the most significant and meaningful spiritual experiences of their life. Understanding psychedelics requires an openness to reframe them away from something that produces artifacts in the brain, but rather as something that opens us up to recognize and experience deeper meaning and fundamental truths about reality, just as is done through other pathways to altered states. In essence, it allows one to peek behind the veil spoken of in Mormonism and New Age beliefs.
We've now laid a rudimentary foundation for idealism, or the idea that the universe is fundamentally consciousness, a philosophical foundation needed to understand what comes next, quantum physics. Again, as this is likely a radical departure from how you may have viewed reality, you may want to do a deeper dive on your own. However, as bizarre as those concepts might seem, you may find solace in the fact that they help us understand the seemingly bizarre findings of quantum physics.
Quantum Physics
"Quantum" is a term that gets thrown around somewhat recklessly in many spiritual explanations. Often what is being discussed is not true quantum physics. This works fine when talking to like-minded individuals, as the speaker is evoking the principles of the multiverse, superposition, and the observer effect, only applied on a spiritual level to real life scenarios. However, this alienates rational skeptics who can't make the logical leap from true quantum physics to quantum weirdness as a principle applied at large. With that in mind, I'm going to try to focus on actual quantum physics first, albeit from a rudimentary birds-eye view.
Quantum physics is mind-bending. John Wheeler, a theoretical physicist, is quoted as saying "If you are not completely confused by quantum mechanics, you do not understand it." Luckily, you don't need to deeply understand it to be able to walk away with some paradigm-shattering implications. Even if you won't fully understand the many experiments and theories of quantum physics, there are a few benefits from a brief exploration into some of the most well-known topics. First, it is hard science with validated results that are widely accepted, even being the topic of the 2022 Nobel Prize in physics. Second, these validated results contradict the materialistic determinism through which much of society views reality, or the idea that everything is cause and effect of physical matter, and that by knowing the positions of all the atoms in the universe you can predict how everything will play out. Third, this is where science starts to sound very woo woo, and you can start to see an integration of science and spirituality. Ironically, the arguments many skeptics use against all things woo rely on a materialistic and deterministic world inconsistent with quantum physics. The problem is, quantum physics is so weird and obscure that most skeptics don't understand it, and even when they do, they relegate it to theoretical implications only applicable on a small scale, which is not true.
By way of a brief history, the scientific revolution represented a drastic shift away from blind faith in religious dogma, with society moving towards skepticism and materialism. Newton's laws of motion formed the basis of classical physics. The advances from the scientific revolution were immense, and classical physics seemed to answer almost all of our questions for centuries. Then we entered the 20th century, which brought Albert Einstein's theory of relativity and quantum physics. Newton's laws broke down when you zoomed in to the atomic level. Quantum physics describes the properties and behavior of particles at the atomic and subatomic level.
Quantum physics is weird. Einstein refused to accept aspects of it because it got too weird. But before we jump into that, now is a good time to point out some interesting differences in how we treat science versus spirituality. Generally, we view science as a field which develops progressively more accurate and comprehensive models or frameworks for understanding the universe. Because of its more objective nature, we allow science a grace to evolve which is not given to spirituality. When complex concepts are simplified to make them more accessible (describing the lungs as balloons or calculating the movement of objects without accounting for aerodynamics), it is understood that these are approximations that serve a purpose. When Newton's laws of motion fail on the atomic size, they are rightfully understood as approximations that can now be updated by more accurate models rather than being labeled as "false." Yet with spirituality, and particularly religion, there is an all-or-nothing approach followed. This is largely the fault of religion itself, which often claims exclusive truth and authority. But even when presented with spiritual models that don’t come with those claims, skeptics often hold those models to a standard to which even science is not held. They are often held to a literal interpretation, with a focus on whether they can be proven, without consideration of the utility they bring. When considering that spirituality is attempting to describe the ineffable, using the constructs of a man-made language with our limited understanding, it is reasonable to measure both science and spirituality with the same yardstick, ie. how accurately they explain and predict what we experience as reality.
So, let's cover a few concepts in quantum physics, starting with the double slit experiment and the observer effect. This is a classic experiment showing the weirdness of quantum physics. In this experiment, you shoot light or particles at a detector screen (a wall that detects light or particles) blocked by a wall with two vertical slits.
If you were shining a light toward these two slits, the light would travel as a wave, and each slit would allow through a pattern of waves which would then interfere with the waves from the other slit, resulting in a pattern of bands on the detector screen. In other words, the peaks and valleys of the waves from the two different slits would combine at some points, and cancel each other at other points, creating an interrupted pattern. If you covered up one slit and instead shot atoms at the wall, you would see a single vertical band showing that the atoms passed through as you would expect a particle to do. However, if you uncovered both slits and shot the atoms, you'd end up with a pattern of vertical bands on the screen, showing that the particles somehow behaved as a wave, interacting with each other in an interference pattern. Even odder, if you shoot the atoms one at a time, you get this same pattern of bands. It's as though the atom is interacting with itself, somehow going through both slits simultaneously, interfering with the version of itself going through the other slit, yet later being detected in only one spot on the screen influenced by that interference. One by one the atoms strike the screen and result in the same pattern of bands indicating wavelike behavior. It gets even stranger. If you set up an instrument to monitor which slit the atom goes through and then rerun the experiment, you no longer get wavelike behavior, and instead see just two bands, showing that there was no interference, and only particle behavior is observed. The atom is no longer going through both slits and interfering with itself, but instead is going through one slit only. Yet, as soon as you turn the detector off, the wavelike behavior resumes. If you're lost, take a moment and watch this excellent video, as it is much easier to visualize this than read about it.
In quantum physics, small particles don’t exist in an exact location, but instead their position is represented by a wave function, or a cloud of probable locations. In essence, the particle exists in all of those locations at the same time, but more so in certain areas which have a higher probability. The concept of a particle existing in all of those locations at the same time is called a superposition of states. This means that instead of that atom existing in a definitive location on its path towards the screen, it exists in a cloud of probability. There is a certain percent chance of it going through the left slit and a certain percent chance of it going through the right slit. Until we observe the atom and pin it down to a definite location, it exists probabilistically in all of its possible locations at the same time. Once observed, those many different possibilities collapse into just one reality according to some physicists who choose to throw out all of the other possible states which were all affecting the experiment until the moment of observation. Other physicists adopt a view that I feel more cohesively integrates with the study of consciousness and idealism, which is that instead of the waveform collapsing, the act of observation merely anchors your perspective to only one of those parallel timelines from that point forward. Integrated with idealism, this means the other timelines still exist in some other aspect of the infinite universal consciousness. This is where the idea of many worlds or the multiverse comes in, a weird idea, but one that many physicists are adamant is the only reasonable explanation for the results seen. In summary, multiple realities exist at the same time, each correlating to a possible path of the atom, stacked on top of each other, and interacting with each other in a superposition of states. It's essential that these different timelines are stacked on top of each other and interacting, because it is only through interference from the superposition of all timelines that you would get the interference patterns. If these alternate realities only existed hypothetically, there would be no interaction, and no interference pattern on the detector screen. Then, the moment the atom is measured or observed and pinned down to a location, the superposition of timelines ends, and you only observe that one reality from that point forward.
Before the detector is aimed at a slit, this moment of measurement doesn't occur until the very end when the screen detects one atom strike, allowing the interference to happen all the way until that point, which over time results in a pattern of interrupted bands. However, when there is a detector aimed at the slits, no wave-like behavior is seen. This is because the multiple timelines are in a superposition only until the moment of observation, which now occurs at the slit. From this point, only one timeline is observed, thus eliminating interference from the superposition of timelines in which the atom passed through the other slit. Therefore, without the interference, you only observe two bands on the detector screen. This phenomena, that observing changes the result of an experiment, and therefore the reality you experience, is called the observer effect.
The concept of a multiverse where timelines are in superposition until a point in which only one timeline is experienced is bizarre. But, much of this bizarreness comes from trying to understand this experiment from the perspective of materialism, which is why we explored consciousness and idealism first. In materialism the concept of a multiverse sounds absurd. Some physicists reject the idea of a multiverse, in favor of more convoluted explanations, because they don't want to account for how a physical world splits, and where these infinitely branching other universes exist. It's messy from a materialistic perspective, where you identify your perspective as an observer as being separate from the world you observe. But when you try understanding from idealism and the perspective that what we are experiencing is infinite consciousness, of which we are a part, rather than an objective physical world, the idea of our experience winding its way through a cosmic choose-your-own-adventure book is a little easier. Overall, I'd suggest the takeaway from the double slit experiment is that there is a relatively simple, undisputed experiment which defies conventional wisdom, and to which a seemingly bizarre explanation involving a superposition of timelines appears to be the simplest and most elegant explanation. Reality does not follow the rules you thought it did. Additionally, there is some aspect of reality that is pregnant with different possibilities, and our act of inspecting reality draws us into one of those possibilities. The degree to which you can impact this phenomenon, and how to do so, is a philosophical discussion for another day.
Next let's discuss the concept of entanglement. Entanglement has been observed in many different scenarios, but fundamentally it is the phenomenon that two particles (or objects now that it has been observed on slightly larger scales) can become correlated such that the state of one particle is dependent on the state of the other, even when separated by large distances. Particles become entangled by some close association, like splitting a particle into two components, or smashing two particles together. The simplest example of this is that of entangled electrons. Electrons have a property called spin, which is either up or down, but exists in a superposition of both up and down until measured. When two electrons are entangled, the moment you measure one and “collapse” the superposition of states into spin up or spin down, you know the other electron will measure with opposite spin. Sometimes this is incorrectly explained as though you had a pair of gloves and mailed one to Friend A and another to Friend B. As soon as Friend A opens and sees a left-handed glove, he knows Friend B has the right-handed glove. However, these gloves are not in a superposition of states. Instead, this is more like mailing two quarters to those friends. Once Friend A takes their quarter out, flips it, and gets heads, you then know that when Friend B flips his quarter, it will be tails.
Einstein was uncomfortable with this, as it seemed to indicate that one particle was sending information to the other at speeds faster than light, and thought that the states of the particles were determined at the moment of entanglement rather than measurement. He has since been proven wrong, with the 2022 Nobel Prize in physics going to scientists who worked to do so. Rather than viewing entanglement as evidence of information being transmitted faster than the speed of light, physicists actually view these particles as not being separate, but rather as having some aspect of oneness.
When you apply the concept of the multiverse and view superposition as a summation of all possible timelines, entanglement represents a sort of conservation or balancing force. The superposition of all possible outcomes or timelines with regards to two entangled electrons only includes scenarios in which they balance each other out with opposite spins. So, the takeaways from quantum entanglement are that physical particles can share an instantaneous connection regardless of distance, entanglement happens from collision, splitting, or close association of particles, and entanglement has a balancing characteristic. Considering these points along with the scientific model of a universe that started from a single point in the Big Bang makes the idea of inherent oneness and interconnectedness in the universe much less bizarre.
The last topic we'll touch on in this brief introduction to quantum physics is that of quantum field theory. At a very high level, it is a theoretical framework that describes particles not as tiny points of matter but rather as excitations in quantum fields which permeate the whole universe. So, despite us seeing ourselves as separate from the world around us, this model has us existing in the same field of energy as the rest of the cosmos. That may now sound like we’re talking about woo woo spirituality, but that’s kind of the point. Quantum physics is where science starts to look woo woo.
While much of quantum physics is difficult to grasp, it is hopefully easy enough to see the implications it has regarding our perception of reality. It should also give us pause in dismissing phenomena or concepts merely on the basis of them seeming irrational, because the very building blocks of reality are themselves irrational when measured against what we've grown up believing. Instead, concepts should be judged based on the merits of scientific support as well as their validity in building an internally consistent framework by which to understand the universe. Although quantum physics has its roots focusing on particles on a small scale, it is describing the universe we live in and affects us on a macro level. The phenomena observed in quantum physics have great philosophical relevance as we seek to create a comprehensive framework for understanding the universe.
New Age Spirituality
Now that we've got the heady science out of the way, we'll make our way towards Mormonism by way of New Age Spirituality. While New Age is a loose label given to an assortment of beliefs, there is a significant amount of consensus. Even though “New Age” is not commonly used by those that adopt these beliefs, with the term “spirituality” more often used, I’ll use “New Age” out of convenience.
New Age refers not to the chronological origins of a set of beliefs, but rather to the Age of Aquarius, viewed as a societal shift towards harmony, freedom, humanitarianism, technology, innovation, and spirituality. Beliefs center around the interconnectedness of all things and the innate divinity of the self. It often blends Eastern religions, mystical or esoteric traditions like Hermeticism and Gnosticism, and indigenous spirituality. Common threads among these traditions include the concept of a direct experience of the divine through mystical experiences, often mediated by psychedelics or other pathways to altered states of consciousness. It's no coincidence that New Age Spirituality is associated with the surge in psychedelics in the 1970's.
There is a tendency today for quantum physics to be referenced in the explanations of New Age beliefs. However, these references often draw the criticism of skeptics as they are often appeals to the philosophical principles of quantum physics applied to a spiritual worldview, rather than references to actual quantum physics. This is likely because the intended audience is generally already aligned and not seeking proof, as well as due to limits in understanding of quantum physics by the speakers due to its inherent complexity. However, I believe integrating the findings from ancient and modern experts on consciousness with actual principles of quantum physics justify these philisophical interpretations.
Instead of getting into specific New Age beliefs here, let's finally explore the origins of Mormonism, during which I'll highlight many correlations between the two.
Mormonism
As mentioned in the beginning, the presence of mysticism with Mormon origins was not well known (again) until the latter half of the 21st century. The scrutiny brought about by The Salamander Letter, a forgery by Mark Hoffman, as well as works written by D. Michael Quinn, a historian excommunicated as part of the September Six, and the internet have brought this forgotten history to light. Apologists for the church have minimized mystical pursuits by the Smith family as irrelevant cultural baggage that generally preceded the Restoration.
However, The Psychedelic History of Mormonism, Magic, and Drugs by Cody Noconi makes a well-researched case for psychedelics and altered states of conscious playing a major role in the founding of Mormonism, particularly as related to group mystical experiences like the Kirtland Temple dedication. Additionally, along with Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn, it documents the extensive connections the Smith Family had with esoteric traditions, like Freemasonry and Kaballah, and shows that many concepts and themes that seem unique to Mormonism have been associated with these traditions throughout history. These include records written in Egyptian, connections between native Americans and Israel, revelatory-scribe relationships that end in a request of wife swapping allegedly from angelic direction, baptism for the dead, Elohim and a council of the gods, and different degrees of heaven among others. Finally, The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name by Brian Muraresku presents evidence of the role that psychedelics had throughout thousands of years as a societal sacrament, showing up for 2,000 years in the Eleusinian Mysteries, being integral to the Dionysian rites, morphing into the eucharist, and then being supressed by the Catholic Church and replaced with a placebo during their purge of the women who safeguarded these herbal sacraments, by using the label of witchcraft and attributing the experiences to the devil. This was the religion that Joseph Smith was attempting to restore.
The greatest evidence of this lies in the similarities between the Eleusinian Mysteries and the temple endowment that Joseph Smith created in Nauvoo, as well as his teachings on attaining godhood. The Eleusinian Mysteries were a ceremony that involved oathes of secrecy on penalty of death, the viewing of play, a psychedelic drink called the Kykeon, and an experience that was said to confer immortality like a god. It was attended by the great philosophers like Plato, Aristotle, and Marcus Aurelius, and was mentioned in an LDS periodical. The 1798 U.S. Encyclopedia of Brittanica noted that these mysteries were presented as a drama, with “one principal actor in this solemn exhibition… recit[ing] every thing that, according to the ritual, was to be communicated to the novices… concerning the origin of the universe.” In 1816. another publication observed that they:
displayed the lapse of the soul from original purity into a state of darkness, confusion, and ignorance. They effected to teach the initiated how they might emerge from this state, how they might recover what had been lost … how they might pass from the gloom of error into the splendid brightness of regained Paradise.
The “Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs,” which was reprinted in Ohio in 1827 and referred to in the Encyclopedia Brittanica as the initiatory ceremonies of the Eleusinian mysteries, stated:
The first of them anointed me with holy Oyl and gave me the Scepter of Judgment, the second washed me with clean Water, and fed me with Bread and Wine and clothed me with a glorious Robe down to the ground. The third put on me a Silken Garment … The fourth girded me with a girdle like to Purple … and the third shall have a new name.
D. Michael Quinn summarized the connections in the following by explaining that in 1837, the Eleusinian Mysteries were commented on in a publication from church headquarters:
The Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate comments about the Eleusinian mysteries, which the American edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica and other sources in 1837 describe as being revealed by God from the beginning of the world and passed on to worthy initiates through washings and anointings, a new name and garment, vows of non-disclosure, lesser and greater rituals, presentation through drama, an oath of chastity, designation as prophets, priests, and kings, emphasis on attaining godhood, and a heavenly ascent past various guards to whom departed spirits must give magical passwords.
It’s also crucial to note that the history of magic or mysticism is inextricably tied together with altered states of consciousness, whether from objects of intense meditation or focus like a seer stone or crystal ball, or from exogenous substances like potions that contained mind-altering ingredients. In fact, Vatican documents on the Inquisition even contain recipes from witches for these potions, including ingredients such as lizards, which contain psychedelic properties. Keep this in mind as you consider Joseph Smith’s family and their connection with magic. Magic is more than a superstitious worldview of people that didn’t know any better. Also consider the concept that altered states remove some of the filters that our brain normally applies to the universal consciousness.
There's evidence not only that Joseph Smith and his family never stopped being mystically-minded, but that this mysticism served as the foundation of Mormonism. First, some circumstantial evidence. Moroni's reported visit on September 21, 1823 is both a full moon and autumnal equinox. Subsequent meetings with Moroni to retrieve the plates also coincided with the autumnal equinox. The Hyrum Smith family had ceremonial parchments inscribed with astrological symbols, as well as a dagger inscribed with the signs of Mars, Scorpio, and the Hebrew word for God. There is an account of Joseph Smith having a Jupiter talisman in his pocket at his death. Joseph Smith had several seer stones (one of which is carved similar to the peyote cactus, a psychedelic sacrament of Native Americans). It's now common knowledge that the Book of Mormon, the foundational text of Mormonism, was dictated by placing a seer stone in a hat and putting his face into the hat to block out light. Seeking mystical guidance through stones was a mystical practice called scrying. Using the hat to block out light also parallels visual sensory deprivation sometimes used to induce altered states, or to enhance the effects of psychedelics. Joseph Smith, his father, and Oliver Cowdery used dowsing rods. In fact, Lucy Mack Smith wrote:
I shall change my theme for the present, but let not my reader suppose that because I shall pursue another topic for a season that we stopt our labor and went at trying to win the faculty of Abrac, drawing magic circles or soothsaying, to the neglect of all kinds of business. We never during our lives suffered one important interest to swallow up every other obligation. But whilst we worked with our hands, we endeavored to remember the service of and the welfare of our souls.
However, the best evidence for Mormonism as a sort of white-label New Age Spirituality lies in the parallels with some of the more unique Mormon doctrines. I'll outline the correlations to New Age as well as esoteric traditions from which New Age has evolved, in no order below. I am presenting these to contextualize Mormonism's theology, rather than to validate it, as I believe in most cases the esoteric or New Age versions of these beliefs form a more coherent perspective on the universe than the Mormon adaptations. That said, I think it is apparent that Mormon theology is much closer to an esoteric perspective than mainstream christianity, explaining why it resonates with so many members.
While initially dismissing the idea of reincarnation, multiple probations, or “transmigration of souls,” Joseph Smith appears to have accepted this doctrine in Nauvoo when he studied with Jewish convert Alexander Neibaur. Neibaur was familiar with Kaballah, the esoteric form of Judaism that includes this doctrine, though it is present in other esoteric traditions, Eastern philosophy, and New Age Spirituality. It was reported that Apostle Lorenzo Snow said “his sister, the late Eliza R. Snow Smith, was a firm believer in the principle of reincarnation and claimed to have received it from Joseph the Prophet, her husband.” Presecendia Huntington Buell, another plural wife of Joseph Smith, affirmed her belief in “plural probations.” Heber C. Kimball and Brigham Young would go on in Nauvoo to ordain each other to become saviors of future worlds, also requiring a concept of multiple probations. Heber C. Kimball and Orson Pratt would continue to teach of this principle in the decades to come, with Kimball comparing the doctrine to a potter forming vessels, and then throwing the clay back on the wheel to try again.
The Dead Sea scrolls discovered in the 1940's contain a gnostic gospel from the second century called the Apocalypse of James. In this, Christ discusses with James that physical existence is a sort of Matrix, and that when James dies, he will need to give certain passwords to the Archons, or guardians, in order to escape and enter into the highest degree of heaven. The parallels to the temple endowment should be clear. Gnosticism, as an esoteric tradition, also incorporated psychedelics and contained a lot of overlap with the Eleusinian Mysteries discussed above.
The Book of Mormon was produced through Joseph Smith looking at his seer stone, with his face obscured from the light by a hat. It proceeded at a rapid pace, with Joseph able to stop and resume at a later time without any notes. It reportedly contains information that he was not aware of, like Jerusalem being surrounded by a wall. Textual analysis claims the language to be from different authors. While all of these are cited as support for the truth claims of the The Book of Mormon, there are numerous written works produced in a similar manner that meet or exceed every one of these claims. The concept of channeling or automatic writing involves an individual receiving information through concentrating on an object like a stone or Ouija board, or by entering a flow or trance-like state. From a materialistic perspective, the information comes from the individual’s subconscious, while through a Jungian perspective, the information is received from the collective unconscious. Radio Free Mormon does an excellent podcast exploring this phenomenon and the implications for The Book of Mormon. Essentially, the book fits within a large category of channeled works that inspire many, defy traditional explanations, yet have conflicting truth claims. Interestingly enough, when automatic writing is used in therapy, the produced work is viewed as a reflection of the writer’s psyche. Themes like the Nephite and Lamanite rivalry, prohibition against polygamy, secret combinations, and justification of breaking a commandment (murdering Laban) because a book of scripture was crucial to preventing a nation dwindling in unbelief, may respectively reflect themes in Joseph Smith’s psyche that show up during his life such as an inner duality, his sexual desires for polygamy, the secret works of the Danites, and his justification of pious fraud in the production of the Book of Mormon.
Mormonism is thought to have a unique perspective on the Fall of Adam, namely that it was God's plan and crucial for progression. Gnosticism teaches a similar perspective, that partaking of the forbidden fruit helped instill in mankind a spark of knowledge that would help them progress back into the presence of the divine. On a related note, the serpent is a symbol of Kundalini energy, awareness, or consciousness in Hindu tradition, and supports the allegorical nature of the story of the fall, which can be seen both as a story of individuation, or psychedelics. This may also be the best time to mention Satan's odd comment in the temple endowment when questioned by God about what he's doing there. He replies he's doing "that which has been done in other worlds." This sounds like New Age beliefs which can include the idea of a universe replete with populated planets, each at different stages of spiritual progression. The Catholic church also killed the mystic Giordano Bruno who taught of infinite worlds that were also populated.
The principle of the Priesthood, a power that allows one to heal through the laying on of hands, restored to the earth by a mystical experience with heavenly messengers, parallels the practice of Reiki, another method of healing through one's hands. This is especially true when you consider that it was acceptable for Mormon women to practice healing and blessings in the early church. Reiki involves using life force energy and was developed into a practice through Mikao Usui in 1922 when he had a mystical experience after 21 days of meditating and fasting. Reiki practitioners attune other practitioners, who are often given a lineage back to Usui, similar to lineages given with priesthood ordinations. Even the Mormon priesthood being named after Melchizedek invokes the esoteric and gnostic importance placed on Melchizedek, who appears in gnostic texts and is viewed as Hermes Trismegistus, Thoth, or even Christ depending on the tradition.
The concept of becoming as God, given in 1844 by Joseph Smith in the King Follett discourse, is similar to esoteric principles like "As above, so below" or any other variation that focuses on the fractal nature of reality. The idea that we are inherently divine and contain the universe within us, is the bedrock of New Age beliefs. As mentioned previously, a theme of the Eleusinian Mysteries was attaining godhood.
The concept of Kolob as the star closest to where God lives, as included in the Book of Abraham, parallels New Age emphasis on the star system Sirius. This book was allegedly a translation of a record of Abraham in Egypt, but when the manuscript was discovered to be a standard copy of the Book of the Dead, church apologists shifted (quite accurately) to a view that Joseph Smith essentially channeled the text, with the manuscript merely a vehicle. Interestingly enough, there are several apologists who have linked Kolob with the Sirius star system, as this was one of the most important stars to Egyptians, and KLB is the Hebrew word for dog (Sirius is known as the "Dog Star"). Here's a link to one example, even drawing connection with the fact that Sirius B, one of the two stars in this binary system which would have not been known to Joseph Smith, is a dwarf star that apparently matches D&C 130:6-7's description of angels dwelling on a "sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future." Sirius is viewed by many of New Age beliefs (somewhat symbolically, but even symbolism versus literalism is nuanced when you believe in reality as a consciousness) as a star system with more advanced beings, many of whom have chosen to incarnate here to help Earth go through this difficult period of transition before the dawning of a new age, all concepts that parallel Mormon theology and will be covered soon.
Mormon theology teaches that the Earth will be sanctified. D&C 130:8-9 states "This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ’s." New Age beliefs center around a very similar belief, that the earth, or Gaia, will rise from one level of consciousness to another, often referred to as transitioning from 3D to 5D.
Abraham 3 speaks of a council in heaven whereby valiant spirits, called "noble and great ones," are chosen to have important roles on Earth. It has been repeatedly told to members throughout the history of Mormonism that they were saved until these latter days to take part in important spiritual happenings before the second coming of Christ. Similarly, New Age beliefs talk about Starseeds, or consciousnesses that have volunteered to incarnate on Earth, to help lead Earth through this great period of separation until mankind realizes their inherent oneness. Here is a video giving an allegory about this from Charles Eisenstein. Or, just search for “Starseed” on Google or Facebook to find the prevalence of this belief.
Mormonism focuses heavily on the Plan of Salvation, a concept that souls existed in a pre-earth life, chose to come to earth to gain experience in order to become like God, but have a veil of forgetfulness placed so that they need to use their free will to make choices and grow from this existence. If you extend this concept to include some cultural beliefs of Mormonism (from talks by church leaders as well as Mormon media like Saturday's Warrior), spirits also sometimes choose, or are given, disabilities or trials for their progression, and may choose parents or soulmates. There is also the notion that faithfulness before being born affects one's life, righteousness in the pre-earth life being mentioned in many patriarchal blessings, and unrighteousness in the pre-earth life being cited by the church as reason for the priesthood ban for black members. New Age beliefs also speak of the Earth as an experiential testing ground for spirits, with a veil of forgetfulness preventing remembrance of pre-earth lives (reincarnation being a concept Joseph Smith was said to have taught secretly), and that spirits may choose trials, parents, and soulmates, even entering into soul contracts with other spirits in order to learn certain lessons. New Age beliefs include the concept of karma, or the idea that consequences of actions prior to this life affect this life.
While the church focuses on the uplifting day-of-Pentecost-like manifestations of God during the Kirtland era, there are many stories that aren't shared. Some of these make it quite apparent that these experiences involved altered states of consciousness, likely exogenously-induced, which also play a significant role in New Age culture. The Psychedelic History of Mormonism, Magic, and Drugs contains accounts of Samuel Smith incapacitated and vomiting behind the pulpit in the Kirtland temple, church leaders disturbed by odd behavior by some attending, members lying on the ground in a drunken stupor, and accounts of non-members who crashed meetings commenting on the strength of the sacramental wine, which the Doctrine and Covenants required to be of their own make. There is also the account of Sidney Rigdon being pale as a ghost after a vision with Joseph Smith, a condition that sounds like the side effect of an exogenously-induced altered state. Despite many accounts of his predilection toward drinking, Joseph Smith wrote "I spoke at great length on the use of liquors, and showed that it was unnecessary ... and that roots and herbs can be found to effect all necessary purposes." Giving support for these spiritual experiences to be experienced in altered states, Martin Harris would later describe his experience as one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon by saying, "while praying I passed into a state of entrancement, and in that state I saw the angel and the plates." John Whitmer, another of the Three Witnesses, described Kirtland experiences in a way that strongly sounds like exogenously-induced altered states by stating:
The disciples had increased in number about three hundred, but the enemy of all righteousness had got hold of some of those who professed to be his followers because they had not sufficient knowledge to detect him in all his devices. He took a notion to bind the minds of some of the weaker ones, and make them think that an angel of God appeared to them, and showed them writings on the outside cover of the Bible, and on parchment which flew through the air, and on the back of their hands, and many such foolish and vain things. Others lost their strength and slid on the floor, and such like maneuvers, which proved greatly to the injury of the cause.
As documented in The Psychedelic History of Mormonism, Magic, and Drugs, Joseph recorded several visionary experiences with the School of the Prophets. These were experiences where the participants each seemed to be having their own vision, often lasting over 10 hours, starting after being anointed with oil. Oils were often used throughout religious history as a carrier of substances that would induce altered states. The Old Testament is full of accounts of anointings with oil as well as the use of smoke (such as when the priest went into the Holy of Holies filled with smoke to commune with God), supporting this connection. However, due to the secret/sacred nature of these practices, evidence is limited, and the exact recipes are not known. Despite the somewhat circumstantial evidence, there is enough evidence for this to be strongly considered as a mediator for many of the visionary experiences in Nauvoo.
Mormonism's emphasis on sealing corresponds with the idea of oneness central to New Age spirituality. When the concept was first revealed in Nauvoo, individuals were being haphazardly sealed to one another, even outside of immediate family structures. This seems to emphasize the unified nature of mankind, at a level deeper than biological close family members. Even eternal marriage has parallels with some esoteric traditions emphasizing the divine sexual union of man and woman.
Joseph Smith’s emphasis on a pure or Adamic language parallels esoteric traditions in Islam, Judaism, and Christianity that taught it was a pure language with the power to create (similar to manifestation), which ceased after expulsion from the Garden. New Age Spirituality has a similar concept of light language, a channeled energetic or purer form of language that communicates at higher states of consciousness.
Joseph Smith’s “translation” of the first few books of Genesis into the book of Moses contain elements that were available to him at the time from esoteric sources. In a work called Magica Adamica from the 1600’s, Adam is claimed to have been taught about Christ and to sacrifice animals in similitude of his sacrifice. In 1821, a translation of a pseudepigraphic Book of Enoch recorded the patriarch seeing the stars in heaven, as well as weeping when seeing the flood and accompanying destruction. Similarly, in Joseph Smith’s translation, Enoch saw all things “not visible to the natural eye,” witnessed Noah’s ark with the accompanying flood, and “wept over his brethren, and said to the heavens: I refuse to be comforted.” The Book of Moses describes Cain’s pact with Satan, with Cain stating “I am Mahan, the master of this great secret.” The previously mentioned Book of Enoch, available to Joseph, states that Satan revealed his secret name and accompanying power to those who made an oath to him. “Mahan” may correlate with “Mahoun” being a name of Satan in Scottish lore, which appeared in a published work available in the area during Joseph Smith’s time.
Joseph Smith was reported as saying the lost ten tribes of Israel were “in the north pole in a concave just like the shape of that kettle. And John the Revelator is with them, preparing them for their return.” This is similar to some New Age teachings about a hollow earth, or planes of habitation below the surfaces which contain other beings.
Polygamy (technically polyandry as practiced in early Mormonism) is a form of polyamory, which is more openly accepted by some in the New Age community. This may stem from a romantic interpretation and expression of the philosophical ideas of universal love and oneness, as well as the intense feelings of bliss and love that often accompany altered states. However, Joseph Smith's practice of polygamy, which even involved him claiming to be threatened with destruction by an angel with a flaming sword if women would not comply, and repeated advances to married women, seems to be best viewed alongside that of popular gurus using their influence for sexual gain.
The New Age concept of oneness manifests in Mormon concepts such as the Law of Consecration and Zion, as in Moses 7:18, "And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind.”
The Word of Wisdom parallels the emphasis on wellness within New Age spirituality.
Mormonism recognizes a Heavenly Mother, similar to New Age's emphasis on a divine masculine and divine feminine, or Shiva and Shakti.
Just as in New Age Spirituality, the earth, or Gaia, is personified as having a consciousness or soul in early Mormonism. Sometimes this attribution extends to all matter. In Moses 7:48, Enoch hears the earth say “Wo, wo is me, the mother of men; I am pained, I am weary, because of the wickedness of my children. When shall I rest, and be cleansed from the filthiness which is gone forth out of me? When will my Creator sanctify me, that I may rest, and righteousness for a season abide upon my face?” D&C 88:25-26 speaks of the earth dying and being quickened, leading Orson Pratt to say “What! Is the earth alive too? If it were not, how could the words of our text be fulfilled, where it speaks of the earth’s dying? How can that die that has no life?” Brigham Young taught, “The Earth is a living creature and breathes as much as you and I do.” Later he extends this to outright panpsychism by stating, “There is life in all matter, throughout the vast extent of all the eternities; it is in the rock, the sand, the dust, in water, air, the gases, and in short, in every description of matter, whether it be solid, liquid, or gaseous, particle operating with particle.”
The Mormon emphasis on family history, temple work, and the spirit of Elijah parallels New Age emphasis on ancestral healing, be it through meditation, therapy, stopping generational trauma, or more mystical rituals.
Joseph Smith quickly rose to the level of Master Mason in Freemasonry two years before his death, and adapted its rites into the temple endowment two months later. Some Mormon apologists claim that Freemasonry stems from the ancient rites practiced in King Solomon's temple. Freemasonry, as an esoteric tradition, is associated with metaphysical concepts, psychedelics, universal consciousness, and many more Hermetic principles as outlined in this link.
Mormonism's beliefs and scriptures about Melchizedek and Enoch correlate with the appearance of these two significant figures in esoteric and New Age beliefs and writings.
Different degrees of heaven was a common view in esoteric and occult traditions, almost exactly mirroring Joseph Smith’s 1832 revelation on the matter. There are references to degrees of glory in an encyclopedia and in bible commentaries during Joseph Smith’s time, as well as in Sibly’s A New and Complete Illustration of the Occult Sciences, which had its 13th edition published in 1824. Swedish mystic Emanuel Swedenborg, in publications in the US since 1812, stated “There are three heavens … intirely [sic] distinct from each other.” He called the highest heaven the celestial kingdom, and related the glories of these heavens to the sun, moon, and stars. Joseph Smith was aware of Swedenborg’s teachings, as evidenced in 1839 when he told a convert from Swedenborgianism, “Emanuel Swedenborg had a view of the world to come, but for daily food he perished.”
Whether Joseph Smith's accounts of the First Vision were based on a singular experience or not is debatable, but his account of a journey into the depth of darkness, and almost succumbing to it before breaking through to an experience that defies description and is accompanied by intense peace and joy is characteristic of mystical experiences occasioned by psychedelics. The ineffable nature of these experiences could account for the revisions of the experience as he recontextualized it with his evolving theology, or the revisions could fall more in line with pious fraud, and be attempts to coalesce a timeline, cosmology, and authority. Regardless, an evolution is clearly seen in his view of the Godhead and heaven, which transitioned from more traditional concepts in the Book of Mormon to more esoteric beliefs involving differing degrees of glory and eternal progression in the years to come. In many ways, Joseph Smith appears to be piecing things together on the fly. For example, he creates a theology requiring rites such as baptism, then has a mystical experience in which he sees Alvin in the celestial kingdom, so he eventually reconciles this through the introduction of baptisms for the dead.
Patriarchal blessings often speak of the characteristics of an individual's spirit, including faithfulness before birth, and include potential future blessings contingent upon faithfulness, as well as warnings and advice. This almost exactly mirrors the New Age concept of reading one's Akashic records. The Akashic records describe a spiritual realm, essentially the Book of Life, upon which the past and future are recorded. The similarities extend even to how strictly these blessings and readings can be interpreted, since the concept of free will is emphasized in Mormonism and New Age spiritual beliefs, as well as an understanding that the individual through which these blessings or readings come also plays a role. As such, both are held somewhat loosely as a potential timeline one is headed for assuming they continue on a certain course, and inconsistencies in them are often interpreted with a bit of hand waving when needed.
Priesthood blessings in general are also performed very similar to the principles of channeling. A priesthood holder prepares himself, sometimes through fasting or praying, and seeks to be a conduit through which God speaks. He attempts to speak as guided by the spirit rather than from his own intellect, to avoid promising things that are just from his own wishes. Similarly, channeling is when one prepares themself by entering a meditative, flow, or trance-like state, and then receives information through their intuition, rather than their logical brain. When there are errors, it is often attributed to the level to which the channel was able to transmit clearly, just like with priesthood blessings that don't come true. Interestingly enough, D&C 9, which is revelation reportedly from the Lord channeled by Joseph Smith, describes how Oliver Cowdery failed in his attempt to "translate" the Book of Mormon. In this section, it describes the process of "translation" very similar to channeling, involving staying in tune with one's inward state, and discussing a burning of the bosom or stupor of thought.
The concept of feeling a "burning in the bosom" as a spiritual confirmation is similar to the concept of feeling Kundalini energy, heart-brain coherence, levels of vibration, or any other way of describing the feeling of energy that you might find in New Age beliefs.
The Mormon concept of receiving the Second Comforter by receiving a personal appearance of Christ matches what could be experienced through a mystical experience occasioned by altered states induced by fasting, contemplative prayer, or psychedelics. Mormons having one's Calling and Election made sure, thus ensuring exaltation regardless of actions unless the individual denies the Holy Ghost, sounds similar to those within New Age spirituality who seek to justify all actions, claiming there is no right or wrong.
Mormonism emphasizes eternal laws by which God is bound, namely justice and mercy, and teaches that there is a conflict between the two which is reconciled through the Atonement. Similarly, New Age philosophy, more precisely Hermeticism, refers to laws of the universe. There are similar paradoxes that stem from these laws, namely that we have free will despite time being an illusion with the past, present, and future all existing in the great eternal Now, or that we experience the illusion of separateness, though we are all one.
The Book of Mormon was allegedly translated from reformed Egyptian. Esoteric traditions had profound interest in Egypt. Athanasius Kircher (1620 - 1680) wrote books tying Hermeticism back to Egypt, referencing psychoactive substances, and allegedly translating hieroglyphs, later debunked with the Rosetta Stone. Mormon interest in Egypt continued late into the 1800's, with Orson Pratt using his own method of correlating the Great Pyramid's height in inches to April 6th, 1830, when the church was organized, and predicting something of great importance then happening in 1891.
Mormonism involves ordinances for the dead performed in temples, a temple endowment, and claims authority through the Melchizedek priesthood. In the 1700's, Peter Whitmer, father of Book of Mormon witnesses David and John Whitmer, lived in Ephrata, Pennsylvania at the same time as the Zionitic Brethren. This was a group of men practicing Rosicrucianism, an esoteric form of christianity, who built a temple-like building they called Zion. In it, they participated in an initiatory rite lasting 40 days that involved fasting, ceremonies advancing through different floors of Zion, and partaking of what seems to be a psychedelic drink in order to achieve a spiritual transformation. They also practiced baptism for the dead. In 1740 the leader of the commune “solemnly consecrated Brothers … to the priesthood, by the laying on of hands; after which they were admitted to that ancient Order of Melchizedek.”
Joseph Smith started what is referred to as the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible. However, it was not actually a translation, but rather a spiritual editing of the Bible. This is similar to some works like The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus Christ, which the author reported as a product of transcribing from the Akashic records (i.e. channeling from a non-physical plane of existence containing all information).
D&C 93:29 & 36 states that "intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be" and that the "glory of God is intelligence." This is consistent with idealism and the primacy of consciousness, as well as the concept of reincarnation, that intelligence or consciousness is eternal.
Mormon theology teaches that in order to be in the presence of God, one's body needs to be transfigured. The church describes transfiguration as "the condition of persons who are temporarily changed in appearance and nature—that is, lifted to a higher spiritual level—so that they can endure the presence and glory of heavenly beings." This sounds like a description of an elevated state of consciousness.
Joseph Smith held a monist philosophy, that spirit is of the same substance as matter, just a more refined form. This is similar to the monist New Age belief that everything is energy.
Brigham Young taught that Adam and Eve's story in the Garden of Eden was an allegory, and that in actuality, "mankind are here because they are the offspring of parents who were brought here from another planet, and power was given to propagate their species." His teaching that Adam and Eve were transplanted from another planet is similar to beliefs within New Age that the Earth is a testing ground where consciousnesses from different planets were placed to continue spiritual progression. The concept of consciousnesses coming from different planets is a significant theme in a series of channeled works from the 1980’s called The Law of One, which involved an individual entering a trance-like state and channeling a collective consciousness that calls itself Ra.
Teachings in the Doctrine and Covenants speak in terms of increasing in brightness exactly as New Age terminology speaks of vibration (which can also be applicable to brightness in that light has a frequency). D&C 50:24 says, "That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day."
Other verses in the Doctrine and Covenants describe experiences that closely match mystical or psychedelic experiences. The qualities of these experiences are so consistent that researchers have developed a Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ) that is used in research on psychedelics and mystical experiences. The qualities measured are: "Internal and External Unity, Transcendence of Time and Space, Positive Mood, Sense of Sacredness, Noetic Quality, Paradoxicality, Alleged Ineffability, Transiency." Consider D&C 88:41, scripture channeled through Joseph Smith, where it describes one's state when he has increased in intelligence, light, and wisdom: "He comprehendeth all things, and all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, forever and ever."
Conclusion
This is not an exhaustive list of connections between Mormonism and esoteric or New Age beliefs, nor do I claim that all connections are valid. This is also not an attempt to claim that Mormonism merely copied esoteric traditions, as it seems clear that Joseph Smith and adherents were experiencing profoundly mystical experiences. My hope is to equip readers with a better understanding of the domains of consciousness, quantum physics, psychedelics, and esoteric traditions, as I feel familiarity with all of these is required to satisfactorily understand the origins of Mormonism.
In my opinion, no one is two-dimensional, and casting Joseph Smith as either a righteous prophet or an evil fraud is an oversimplification that relieves one from a deeper analysis. He had significant flaws, including self-victimization and a lack of sexual restraint, resulting in inexcusable actions. He also appeared to be a pious fraud, feeling the ends justified the means and excusing dishonesty and fraud. This is evidenced by his blatant denial of practicing polygamy, as well as his likely use of a prop for the golden plates, as supported by some accounts. However, it also seems that he sincerely believed aspects of Mormon theology. I find this extremely likely given the fact that psychedelic and mystical experiences have been shown by research to be profound and life-changing, as well as the fact that these experiences seemed to significantly shape Mormon theology and scriptures. Considering the ineffable nature of these experiences, I think it is also very likely that he struggled to understand and integrate these experiences, often improvising on the fly. His theology was clearly evolving through the years, with dramatic shifts at the end with the King Follet discourse and incorporation of Freemasonry. With the profound experiences he appears to have had, whether exogenously or endogenously-induced, it is well within reason to speculate that he either felt justified in fabricating the contents of The Book of Mormon as a means of imparting these types of spiritual truths to others, or actually believed he was channeling this book from God and justified utilizing a prop to bolster buy-in from others.
Unfortunately, Mormons are caught up in a perfect storm. With Mormonism's American origins, and with leadership still overwhelmingly western, most Mormons have grown up with a materialistic worldview, have little to no familiarity with altered states of consciousness through meditation or psychedelics, and have little exposure to any alternatives to the idea of an individual God. Psychedelics are still recovering from the War on Drugs. Quantum physics is viewed as a quirky, but hard to understand branch of science with little application to everyday life. There is still little known in mainstream culture about esoteric traditions. Yet, because of Joseph Smith's interest in and incorporation of esoteric beliefs along with his own experiences in altered states, Mormons subscribe to and even revere many beliefs that have strong correlation with esoteric traditions they're unaware of. Because these traditions have beliefs centered around experiential knowledge of the divine, of consciousness, and of the nature of reality, Mormonism is much closer to an integration of science and spirituality than mainstream christianity. However, despite belonging to a religion so fundamentally built upon altered states of consciousness, Mormons are some of the least aware of these phenomena given the prohibition against any substances that would induce such states, even alcohol.
A final stumbling block to properly contextualizing the origins of Mormonism is the fact that the church today is so far removed from the church Joseph Smith founded. Joseph Smith's Mormonism involved a constantly evolving theology, with some of the biggest changes happening in the year preceding his death. Some accounts also portray a church membership very in-tune with mysticism, with members planting crops based on astrology, or finding their own seer stones. In fact, the use of seer stones extended throughout the 19th century, with many women being sought after for their ability to locate missing livestock, people, and bodies through the means. Unsurprisingly, this was viewed this as outside of the bounds of priesthood and therefore curtailed. The Word of Wisdom was also not a commandment for much of the church’s history. Brigham Young continued on somewhat of the same path of an evolving theology, with his now-renounced ideas concerning race and the priesthood, blood atonement, Adam-God theory, and ideas about the sun being inhabited, but clearly did not have the same ability to integrate esoteric knowledge that Joseph did. In the early 1900's, the church started to become very corporate. Even in the last few decades, there has been a watering down of the peculiar nature of Mormonism. While the church still contains vestiges from Joseph Smith's Mormonism in some of its doctrines, it is operating in a radically different manner, one where the "many great and important things" he envisioned were yet to be revealed now consist of new church logos and changes on the appropriateness of the term "Mormon."
Yet, by adapting many principles from esoteric traditions, many of which contain truths and correlate with studies of consciousness, psychedelics, and quantum physics, Mormonism has ended up being "good enough" to resonate with adherents, despite increasingly uncomfortable truth claims and public stances. Most adherents are unaware of any other narrative than the false dichotomy they've always heard, let alone one that integrates both science and spirituality. Therefore, many resign themselves to "doubting their doubts," putting more and more items on the proverbial shelf rather than face the only other alternative they see, abandoning spirituality and all the truths they've found along the way. If that shelf does end up breaking, it often makes for a tumultuous free fall into agnosticism or atheism.
In summary, this narrative of the origins of Mormonism is as follows:
Joseph Smith, and his family, were heavily influenced by esoteric traditions, including what has been characterized as folk magic.
Esoteric traditions like Freemasonry, Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Kaballah, and what many today call New Age Spirituality, have a high degree of overlap, particularly as it pertains to truths that seek to explain the nature of reality.
These traditions are associated with altered states of consciousness from a variety of modalities, including exogenous substances like psychedelics, but also fasting, meditation, and prayer.
Exploration of the nature of consciousness, both scientifically and experientially, is consistent with a non-dual philosophy of idealism, where the substance of reality is consciousness, not physical matter.
In such a philosophy, reality can be viewed on the highest level as a universal consciousness from which everything arises, including fractalized subsets of this consciousnesses which we experience as our own realities.
Altered states of consciousness can produce ineffable mystical experiences in which one can access aspects of this universal consciousness, explaining the correlation between esoteric traditions and among mystical experiences.
Quantum physics seeks to explain phenomena that appear bizarre and contradict a materialistic, deterministic view of reality.
Much of quantum physics, including entanglement and the multiverse, is least-problematically interpreted from a philosophy of idealism, or a universe created out of consciousness.
Though quantum physics as a field of study largely refers to behavior of very small particles, it affects macroscopic objects.
Mormonism is an amalgamation of both principles borrowed from esoteric traditions and derived from Joseph Smith’s own personal mystical experiences in altered states of consciousness.
There is a high likelihood that some of Joseph Smith's altered states were induced through exogenous substances, and that many spiritual phenomena in the early church, particularly in a group setting, were also mediated in a similar fashion through the sacramental wine and oil anointings. However, Joseph Smith also seems to have been able to access states in which he could produce the Book of Mormon on demand through the use of the seer stone and sensory deprivation.
Joseph Smith's altered states as documented in the church history and modern scriptures have a strong correlation with historically documented mystical experiences as well as the characteristics of mystical experiences as defined in modern research.
Evidence of group altered states being mediated by exogenous substances comes from accounts from Mormons and non-Mormons.
Evidence of Mormon theology being derived from esoteric traditions and altered states, which involve interpretations of experiences accessing aspects of a universal consciousness, is found in its striking correlation with both historical esoteric beliefs that well preceded Joseph Smith, as well as New Age beliefs that would not coalesce until well after his death. While some might view the fact that some of his ideas later seem to pop up in New Age beliefs (such as the idea of Starseeds) as being prophetic, the fact that they are much more internally consistent and coherent in New Age Spirituality instead supports the idea that Joseph Smith's theology was more akin to a minimum viable product, or beta version.
While Mormonism, like esoteric traditions, has a foundation on gnosis, or spiritual experiences of the fundamental truths of reality, it also involves significant distortions of these truths due to the inherent difficulty in integration of these ineffable experiences, as well as Joseph Smith's significant shortcomings.
Joseph Smith was a three-dimensional character colored by a persecution complex, intemperance with substances, dishonesty, and sexual impropriety. However, because mystical experiences are so profound, he also likely believed in the principles he taught, and felt justified in many of his actions.
Because Mormon theology incorporates Joseph Smith’s interpretations of fundamental truths from esoteric traditions and mystical experiences, it can produce significant spirituality in adherents.
To date, popular narratives regarding Joseph Smith do not give the most plausible explanation for his ability to produce the Book of Mormon, to incorporate so much theology into Mormonism that resonates with individuals, and to induce such spiritual experiences in others.
While there are popular narratives that utilize esoteric traditions and psychedelics to explain Joseph Smith and Mormon theology, they don't openly acknowledge the truth inherent in those sources (whether from a scientific or spiritual perspective), and therefore fail to validate the spirituality many experience in Mormonism. This ends up being a barrier for many who have significant concerns with aspects of Mormonism, but view the only alternative as a renunciation of the spirituality they've felt through it.
Hopefully I've presented a narrative regarding the origins of Mormonism which leaves fewer loose ends, while also serving to integrate science and spirituality. I also hope to have drawn attention to the predicament faced by many Mormons who feel they are being asked to abandon the spiritual truths they've found in Mormonism, owing to the lack of a path that validates their spirituality and gives them a rational explanation for how it developed through Mormonism in the first place. Given the rich and extensive history of esoteric traditions which contain many truths, the founding of Mormonism can indeed be viewed as a restoration or integration of these truths into a mainstream religion. This restoration, however, is owned by no organized religion. It continues today in the developments in quantum physics, in research into consciousness and psychedelics, with the practices of meditation going mainstream, and with the ever increasing numbers of people identifying as spiritual while identification with organized religion declines. Whether you read from a position within the church or without, I hope this has given new perspectives that serve you in your own spiritual growth.