What we know

And what we do not.

What light can do

Gentle light over closed eyes can bring colour and shifting geometric patterns, and for some people a deep, quiet state.[1][2]

Painting: a great lotus of pearl and rose light fully open, as colour and geometry can appear behind closed eyes
What some people describe, painted for the journeys. Not a promise.

What it cannot do

Light is good at colour and geometry. It does not give meaning, and it does not mend anything on its own. Whatever an experience comes to mean is made by the practice around it, and by you.

How people respond

Many people respond little, and some not at all. That is normal, and we do not promise any experience.

We do not say that light is stronger than other contemplative practices, such as breath, sound or silence. The research does not show that it is.

The risks we take seriously

For people with photosensitivity, flickering light can provoke seizures.[3] Closed eyes can make a reaction more likely: in clinical testing, some people react only when their eyes are closed.[4]

Difficult experiences can arise in contemplative practice, and for some people they continue after the practice ends.[5]

That is why we screen privately, why a guide is with you throughout, and why the exclusion list is long.

What we are studying

Whether a light that listens and steps back helps people go deeper than a light that does not. We will compare the two, and we will share what we find, including if it shows no difference.

What we will test before release

The Instrument will be independently tested for optical safety before it is released.

What we do not know yet

How a light that listens compares with one that does not. How the experience carries into daily life. Who responds, and who does not. We will say so as we learn it.

Sources

  1. [1]Bartossek et al. Altered states phenomena induced by visual flicker light stimulation. PLoS ONE, 2021. doaj.org/article/a259f5e8dc23408bb7257ea4cbfac0b3
  2. [2]Schwartzman et al. Increased spontaneous EEG signal diversity during stroboscopically-induced altered states of consciousness. bioRxiv preprint, 2019, not peer reviewed. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/511766
  3. [3]Fisher RS, Wilkins A, Takahashi Y, et al. Visually-provoked seizures: Consensus of the Epilepsy Foundation Working Group. Epilepsia 2026;67(2):565–581. doi.org/10.1111/epi.18702
  4. [4]Kasteleijn-Nolst Trenité D, Rubboli G, Hirsch E, et al. Methodology of photic stimulation revisited: updated European algorithm for visual stimulation in the EEG laboratory. Epilepsia 2012;53(1):16–24. doi.org/10.1111/j.1528-1167.2011.03319.x
  5. [5]Lindahl JR, Fisher NE, Cooper DJ, Rosen RK, Britton WB. The varieties of contemplative experience: a mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists. PLoS ONE, 2017. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5443484