“Bright Abyss”: Christian Mysticism, Jungian Psychology, and Psychedelic-assisted Therapy for End-of-Life Patients

Abstract

Generally speaking, Americans don’t die well. The end of life is often characterized by aggressive medical interventions that result in profound psychological and existential distress for patients and their loved ones. This situation is even worse for religious patients; research shows that they are more likely than non-religious patients to seek aggressive, life-prolonging care at the end-of-life. A recent resurgence in psychedelic research that began in the 1960s has demonstrated rapid and sustained reductions in anxiety and depression for patients with life-threatening illnesses who undergo psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT). While these clinical outcomes are promising, relatively few interpretive frameworks for PAT in clinical settings adequately account for the spiritual, symbolic, and archetypal dimensions of these experiences. To address this gap, this study explores how the Christian apophatic mysticism of Meister Eckhart and the analytical psychology of C. G. Jung can be used as hermeneutic lenses to interpret the experiences of patients with life-threatening illness who undergo PAT. Using a qualitative hermeneutic methodology, narrative accounts from PAT studies with cancer patients were interpreted through the dual hermeneutic lenses. Findings indicate that participants’ experiences consistently followed archetypal patterns of ego dissolution, surrender, death, and rebirth. These processes parallel the mystical transformation described by Eckhart and the individuation process articulated by Jung. The study concludes that PAT can serve as a contemporary context for psychospiritual renewal, facilitating reconciliation with mortality and a sense of belonging within a larger ground of being.