Gateway to the Liminal Void
The Next Lost Civilization
In a recent post [here], I proposed a 34-day period between the astronomical events on Jan. 25 and February 28, 2025 as a time of extraordinary access to the “Liminal Void.”
The concept of a liminal void is frequently called the Imaginal Realm (IR), a boundary between the visible and invisible worlds, and is a place of exchange between different categories of reality. It often implicates Altered States of Consciousness (ASC). These states refer to shamanic mystical experiences principally achieved using mind-altering drugs or by practicing an extreme form of asceticism or deep meditation.
The Imaginal Realm is liminal in that it delineates the threshold between temporal and timeless realities. It's a void because it presents as a blank canvas, with someone’s individual consciousness acting as the brush and the transcendent realm providing the watercolors.
Peruvian shaman Pablo Amaringo’s painting (above) depicts a ‘liminal void’ vision educed by ayahuasca, an unpleasant tasting brew that contains dimethyltryptamine (DMT) that’s also found in LSD. DMT is known as the “spirit molecule” and is produced naturally in the human body by the pineal gland.
Examples of extreme asceticism, the doctrine that a person can attain a high spiritual and moral state by practicing rigorous self-denial, extreme abstinence, or austerity, recalls to mind the ‘Dark Night of the Soul,” characterized by Christian mystic St. John of the Cross.
Another familiar example of rigorous asceticism involved St. Paul. After being “knocked off his horse” when he encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, most assume that Paul dusted himself off and immediately began his divinely sanctioned ministry to the Gentiles.
The truth is somewhat different. Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus and his initial preaching there almost got him killed; he faced deadly opposition from local Jews who guarded the city gates and sought to eliminate him. Paul’s followers helped him escape by lowering him in a basket through an opening in the city wall (Acts 9:23-25).
Paul then faced an existential crisis and went into a self-imposed exile in Arabia (likely the Nabataean kingdom) for approximately three years (Galatians 1:17-18). This period of ‘soul sickness’ prepared Paul for his official ministry. He eventually made his way to Jerusalem to meet with Peter, staying there for fifteen days.
We propose that during this 3-year ‘desert experience,’ Paul went through an intense spiritual transformation. The "false start" in Damascus had demoralized Paul, besetting feelings of incompetence and helplessness. The desert initiated a Dark Night of the Soul where Paul was forced to confront his (Jewish) Shadow Self. Recall that Paul was a high-ranking Pharisee, an intolerant Jewish sect known for their pride, hypocrisy, and self-righteousness.
His time in Arabia served as a period of maturation and divine preparation. However, only after returning to Jerusalem, receiving sanctioned recognition from Peter and James the Just, and then being formally ‘sent’ by the Antioch church (Acts 13:2-3), did his ministry achieve its full impact.
My reasons for describing Paul’s ordeal were first to emphasize the importance of ‘being sent’ by an institution, person, or persons authorized to do so. In Paul’s case, the early church. Paul's time in the desert can be seen as a time of preparation where he received direct revelation from Jesus, which equipped him for his mission.
I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
Galatians 1:12
Paul’s transformation and instructions from Jesus involved the Imaginal Realm, the liminal threshold between two realities — our world and the Other World. We all have access to this ‘liminal void.’
The Pilgrims of Medjugorje
In 2015, the National Geographic printed a story about Medjugorje calling Mary “The Most Powerful Woman in the World.” The term powerful should be understood in the context of her ability to move hearts, inspire faith, and unite people across different cultures and religions. The term reflects her status as an icon of peace, intercession, and maternal (Divine Feminine) care, which carries profound implications for individuals and communities worldwide.
I described Mary as the “Quintessence of the Divine Feminine” archetype in a piece I wrote titled, “Marian Apparitions and the Medjugorje Secrets.” It’s estimated that since the Medjugorje apparitions began in 1981, 40 million pilgrims have visited the tiny Bosnia-Herzegovina hamlet located near the Adriatic coast.
In her January 25th message to the world, Mary declared that 2025 will be a “Year of Grace.” This possibly intimates that humanity has one more and final year to reconnect with spirit and avoid becoming the next ‘Lost Civilization.’ This is my personal interpretation, but it is a well informed one.
I myself made numerous trips to Medjugorje and even lived there for a time during the Bosnian War in the mid-1990s. During my frequent visits, I stayed with the family of Marija Pavlovic-Lunetti, one of the six Medjugorje visionaries and a personal friend.
Plato tells us that Atlantis had advanced architecture, advanced agriculture, advanced navigational ship building and seagoing skills, advanced social and political organization.
We learned from him that it was formerly a beautiful, generous culture dedicated to the nature of spirit. But he reports that Atlantis became arrogant, it became cruel and conceited, it ceased to carry its prosperity with moderation, it began to impose its will and its power on other less technically able cultures around the world.
It developed a bad case of what the Greeks call hubris and the universe punished it with Nemesis, the Greek goddess of revenge and retribution. The universe slapped Atlantis down and this happened in a single dreadful day and night.
What the Timaeus and Critias dialogues of Plato tell us is that those who survived it were the meek of the Earth, the herdsmen, the shepherds, the hunter gatherers. They were the ones who survived, not primarily the citizens of Atlantis but the people who they had been imposing their will upon.
At the heart of Medjugorje are stories of personal transformation, where the mandate to convert the world isn't about changing others' beliefs but about embodying and spreading a message of peace, love, and spiritual renewal in whatever way one feels called and prepared to do so. Each “sent” pilgrim, in their own unique way, contributes to a collective mission as individual as the journey to Medjugorje itself.
The word “convert” in this context implies what the Ancient Greeks called “metanoia.” According to the Greek Orthodox Church, metanoia means to change one’s mind; to expand it in such a way as to have a completely new perspective on the world or one’s self.
Since we are all interconnected and share one “collective consciousness,” the conversion of just one soul ripples across time and space and positively impacts many others. This idea aligns with the phenomenon of emotional contagion, where moods and emotions can spread among people in a group.
The “ripple effect” refers to the fact that each individual creates concentric circles of influence that may affect others for years or even generations, often without conscious intent or knowledge. This indeed suggests that even small changes in an individual's consciousness or behavior can have a cumulative effect on the collective.1
Just as personal changes can influence the broader society, awareness of potential future events or consequences can also shape collective behavior. This association between individual awareness and collective outcomes is exemplified in various spiritual teachings and prophecies. One such example can be found in the context of the 'Ten Secrets of Medjugorje.'
The Medjugorje secrets, which have not yet been fully revealed, point to consequences that humanity will bring upon itself, as was the case with the lost civilization of Atlantis. As awareness of these prophecies of warning increase, so too does the likelihood that we can avoid them. The biblical correlate of such an outcome is the story of Nineveh and the prophet Jonah.2
Edgar Cayce and the Wisdom of Solon
Edgar Cayce, known as the "Sleeping Prophet," made several prophecies about Atlantis:
Location and Size: Cayce claimed that Atlantis was a vast continent, equal in size to Europe including Asia, located between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mediterranean.
Advanced Civilization: He described Atlantis as a highly advanced society with superior technology, including the use of crystals for energy, levitation, and matter transmutation.
Destruction: Cayce prophesied that Atlantis was destroyed in stages due to misuse of technology, moral decay, and natural disasters.
Survivors: He stated that Atlanteans fled to various regions, including Egypt, Morocco, the Pyrenees, Honduras, Yucatan, and parts of America.
Rediscovery: Cayce predicted that evidence of Atlantis would be found in 1968 or 1969 off the east coast of North America. This coincided with the discovery of the "Bimini Road" in the Atlantic Ocean.
Reincarnation: He believed that many Atlanteans were reincarnating in the present time, particularly in the United States.
Hall of Records: Cayce claimed that Atlanteans hid records of their civilization in three locations: Bimini, Egypt, and the Yucatan.
Atlantis
There’s a history of clairvoyance in my family, consequently I grew up learning about Edgar Cayce (1877-1945) from my mother.
Cayce, the ‘Sleeping Prophet,’ claimed in his visions that the survivors of Atlantis fled to Egypt and established the foundation for what would become one of the most advanced civilizations of the ancient world. He described how the Atlanteans brought with them knowledge of energy crystals, advanced healing techniques, and even the secrets of the Great Pyramid. (source)
Graham Hancock and Randall Carlson attribute the demise of Atlantis to a series of impacts and air-bursts of fragments from the comet Encke that occurred around 12,900 years ago, coinciding with the onset of the Younger Dryas geological period. Encke is the parent comet of the Taurid meteor shower that occurs annually. According to the impact hypothesis:
A massive comet or fragments of a comet struck the Earth, causing widespread destruction.
This cosmic event triggered extensive biomass burning and a brief impact winter.
The impact destabilized the Atlantic Conveyor, leading to abrupt climate change.
The catastrophe resulted in a global flood that submerged vast areas of low-lying land, including what Hancock believes to be Atlantis.
This cataclysmic event nearly erased all evidence of the advanced civilization Hancock and Carlson propose existed during the last ice age.
Hancock goes on to suggest that this event is preserved in various myths, including Plato's story of Atlantis, and that the survivors of this catastrophe spread their knowledge to other parts of the world, giving rise to later civilizations.
Altered States of Consciousness and Anomalous Psychology
Altered states of consciousness often involve liminal experiences, as there is a significant overlap between these two concepts. Altered states of consciousness are non-ordinary mental states that differ from our usual waking consciousness. These states can involve changes in perception, cognition, and self-awareness.
Liminal experiences, on the other hand, are transitional or threshold states, often associated with ambiguity, disorientation, or somehow existing "between" different states of being. The connection between ASC and liminal experiences can be observed in several ways:
Transitional nature — Both ASC and liminal experiences involve a shift from one state of consciousness to another, creating a sense of being ‘betwixt and between.’
Time distortion — Both phenomena can involve alterations in the perception of time, a key characteristic of liminal experiences and ASC.
Altered sense of self— Liminal experiences and ASC often involve changes in one's sense of identity or connection to the body.
Transformative potential — Both lead to personal growth, insights, and transformative experiences.
Neurological basis — Research suggests that both ASC and liminal experiences may involve changes in brain activity.
While many altered states of consciousness involve liminal experiences, not all liminal experiences necessarily constitute altered states of consciousness. Some liminal experiences may occur within ordinary waking consciousness, particularly those related to social or cultural transitions.
In the context of practices like meditation or psychedelic experiences, the overlap between ASC and liminal experiences becomes more pronounced. These practices can induce states of consciousness that are distinctly ‘betwixt and between,’ embodying the characteristics of both altered states and liminality.
Conclusion
The convergence of ancient wisdom, modern prophecies, and contemporary scientific understanding points to a fascinating juncture in human consciousness. The period between January and February 2025, described as a time of extraordinary access to the liminal void — to transcendence.
It offers humanity a unique opportunity for collective transformation. Like the survivors of Atlantis who carried their knowledge to new shores, or Paul who emerged from his desert experience with renewed purpose, we ourselves stand at a threshold of paradigmatic change.
In this "Year of Grace," the lessons from Medjugorje, the warnings about Atlantis's hubris, and our growing understanding of consciousness suggest that individual spiritual awakening can indeed ripple outward to affect collective destiny on a planetary scale.
Whether through altered states of consciousness, religious experience, or personal metanoia, the threshold into the liminal void remains accessible to all who seek it, offering a chance for both personal and collective transformation before we potentially follow the path of previous lost civilizations.
There are a number of Graham Hancock and Randall Carlson guest appearances on Joe Rogan’s podcast. This is the most recent and one of my favorites:
The Rippling Effect (article)
The story of Nineveh and the prophet Jonah, found in the Book of Jonah in the Bible, tells of a prophet named Jonah who was commanded by God to go to the wicked city of Nineveh and preach repentance. Initially Jonah tried to flee, only to be swallowed by a whale. Three days later he was forced to deliver the message, which resulted in the entire city of Nineveh repenting and being spared from destruction.