Stealing Fire

Stealing Fire Plot Summary

Introduction

The Navy SEAL team moved silently through the darkness, their minds synchronized in perfect harmony. As they approached the target building, time seemed to slow down. Each member instinctively knew what the others would do next—no words needed. This wasn't luck or supernatural ability; it was a carefully cultivated state of consciousness that elite operators call "the switch." When flipped, it transforms individual soldiers into a single, seamlessly coordinated organism. What if you could access this same state of heightened awareness and performance? What if the extraordinary mental capabilities demonstrated by elite warriors, world-class athletes, and visionary innovators weren't exceptional gifts but dormant potential within all of us? For centuries, these altered states of consciousness were the closely guarded secrets of mystics, shamans, and elite performers. Today, a revolution is underway as scientists, entrepreneurs, and explorers are systematically mapping these states and developing reliable methods to access them. By understanding the neurological, psychological, and physiological mechanisms behind these experiences, we can now harness them to solve problems, enhance creativity, and transform our lives in ways previously thought impossible.

Chapter 1: The Navy SEALs' Secret: Group Flow in High-Stakes Operations

Commander Rich Davis led his team through the narrow streets of an Afghan village, hunting for Al-Wazu, a high-value Al-Qaeda operative who had escaped from an American detention center. Intelligence revealed the target was hiding less than a mile from their position. As the SEALs prepared for the nighttime raid, something remarkable happened—the team experienced what Davis calls "the switch," a moment when they stopped being separate individuals and began operating as a single entity. "More than any other skill," explains Davis, "SEALs rely on this merger of consciousness. Being able to flip that switch—that's the real secret to being a SEAL." This collective awareness proved crucial during the mission. When the team entered a room and found Al-Wazu asleep with an AK-47 slung over his shoulder, they captured him without firing a shot—a perfect mission outcome that required split-second collective judgment. This phenomenon, which psychologists call "group flow," represents a peak state where a team performs at its highest level of ability. It's characterized by what researchers identify as STER: Selflessness (the quieting of the inner critic), Timelessness (altered perception of time), Effortlessness (actions feel automatic), and Richness (heightened information processing). For the SEALs, this state isn't just beneficial—it's essential for survival and mission success. The military's interest in these states extends beyond special operations. When researchers at DARPA used neurofeedback to induce flow states in soldiers, they found they could solve complex problems and master new skills up to 490% faster than normal. This dramatic improvement explains why military organizations worldwide are investing heavily in understanding and training these states of consciousness. What makes this particularly fascinating is that these same states are accessible to all of us. While the stakes may differ dramatically between battlefield operations and everyday life, the underlying neurological mechanisms are identical. The SEALs have simply developed systematic methods to access states that most of us experience only by accident or rare circumstance. Their techniques for triggering group flow—from synchronized breathing to shared risk-taking—offer valuable lessons for anyone seeking to enhance team performance in any domain.

Chapter 2: Silicon Valley's Altered States: How Tech Leaders Access Ecstasis

When Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin needed to hire a CEO in 2001, they faced a critical decision. After alienating fifty top executives during their search, they discovered that Eric Schmidt was the only finalist who had attended Burning Man—the desert festival known for its community-building and consciousness-altering experiences. This seemingly odd criterion proved decisive. Schmidt understood the culture Page and Brin were building, one where "communal vocational ecstasy" could flourish. This connection between altered states and innovation runs deep in Silicon Valley. Tim Ferriss, angel investor and author, observed that "the billionaires I know, almost without exception, use hallucinogens on a regular basis. These are people who are trying to be very disruptive. They look at problems in the world and they try to ask entirely new questions." Steve Jobs famously called his LSD experiences "one of the most important things in my life," while Elon Musk has stated, "If you haven't been to Burning Man, you just don't get Silicon Valley." Jason Silva, a philosopher and filmmaker, exemplifies this approach to consciousness as a creative tool. After losing his job at Al Gore's Current TV, Silva began creating short films exploring consciousness and human potential. His breakthrough came when he recorded himself during what he calls "philosophical raves"—spontaneous monologues delivered in a state of complete absorption. These videos went viral, with The Atlantic dubbing him "a Timothy Leary for the viral video age." "What I found in altered states was freedom," Silva explains. "First they gave me freedom from myself; then they gave me freedom to express myself, then they showed me what was actually possible." His experience illustrates how altered states can unlock creative potential by silencing the inner critic and allowing novel connections to form in the mind. This pattern extends beyond individual creators to entire companies. Organizations like Summit Series have built business models around facilitating transformative experiences. Their approach—bringing together diverse innovators in environments designed to trigger flow states—has helped launch ventures worth billions. As Summit co-founder Jeff Rosenthal explains, "When you take a bunch of really bright, diverse people and let them share a dynamic immersive experience, you get powerful results. It removes the tedious, transactional nature of networking." What these tech leaders understand is that consciousness itself can be a technology—a tool that, when properly utilized, can dramatically enhance innovation, problem-solving, and collaboration. By deliberately designing experiences that trigger specific states of awareness, they're gaining a competitive edge in an industry where breakthrough thinking is the ultimate currency.

Chapter 3: The Four Forces: Psychology, Neurobiology, Pharmacology, and Technology

In the late 1950s, America's concept of self was constricted almost to the point of caricature—Organization Man on one side, Betty Homemaker on the other. But this began to change as the Beat Generation's passionate rebellion found its voice. At Esalen, the California institute that the New York Times called the "Harvard of the Human Potential movement," co-founder Dick Price developed a revolutionary perspective on consciousness transformation. After suffering a manic episode and spending time in a psychiatric ward, Price came to see his breakdown not as mental illness but as a "transitional psychosis"—an attempt toward spontaneous healing. This idea—that we sometimes have to "break down to breakthrough"—became a mainstay of the human potential movement. Over the next two decades, Price and co-founder Michael Murphy evolved this insight into a pragmatic philosophy that stripped organized religion of doctrine and emphasized ecstatic experimentation. While Esalen's impact was initially limited to well-educated freethinkers, car salesman Werner Erhard brought these ideas to the mainstream by creating EST (Erhard Seminars Training). Erhard repackaged Esalen-inspired practices into a business-friendly format that deliberately engineered breakdown-to-breakthrough experiences. By hitching the human potential movement to material success, Erhard created a spiritual marketplace that continues to thrive today. This psychological revolution represents just one of four powerful forces converging to transform our understanding of consciousness. The second force, neurobiology, reveals how our bodies shape our minds. When actress Nicole Kidman received Botox injections that prevented her from frowning, she discovered she actually felt less sad—demonstrating how facial expressions don't just express emotions but help create them. This embodied cognition research shows that consciousness isn't just in our heads; it's distributed throughout our bodies. The third force, pharmacology, explores how chemicals alter consciousness. From dolphins deliberately seeking out pufferfish toxins to get high, to humans using substances ranging from coffee to psychedelics, the drive to alter consciousness appears to be a fundamental biological impulse. Researchers like James Fadiman have documented how even microdoses of psychedelics can enhance problem-solving abilities, leading to practical innovations in fields from architecture to mathematics. Technology, the fourth force, is democratizing access to altered states. From virtual reality to neurofeedback devices, tools that once required years of disciplined practice are becoming available to anyone. As Tony Andrews, a pioneer in immersive sound systems, puts it: "Big sound can facilitate our communal mind moving to a place of unity." Together, these four forces—psychology, neurobiology, pharmacology, and technology—are creating unprecedented opportunities to understand and harness altered states for practical purposes. What was once the domain of mystics and shamans is now being systematically mapped and made accessible to anyone seeking enhanced performance, creativity, and wellbeing.

Chapter 4: Burning Man to Boardrooms: Ecstatic Communities Driving Innovation

Every year, some 70,000 people journey to Nevada's Black Rock Desert for Burning Man, creating a temporary city dedicated to radical self-expression, communal effort, and transformative experience. While often dismissed as merely a hedonistic festival, Burning Man represents something far more significant: a laboratory for collective consciousness transformation. Michael Michaels, one of Burning Man's founders (known as "Danger Ranger" at the event), explains: "At Burning Man, we've found a way to break out of the box that confines us. What we do, literally, is take people's reality and break it apart. Burning Man is a transformation engine—it has hardware and it has software, you can adjust it and tweak it." By removing participants from their normal environments and social roles, then immersing them in art, music, and community, the event creates perfect conditions for accessing ecstatic states. What's particularly noteworthy is who attends. While the early years attracted primarily counterculture types, today's "Burners" include some of the most influential people in technology, finance, and the arts. Elon Musk credits Burning Man with inspiring both his renewable energy company SolarCity and his Hyperloop transit system concept. Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh was so influenced by the experience that he restructured his company around Burning Man principles and invested $350 million in revitalizing downtown Las Vegas using similar community-building approaches. This influence extends far beyond the festival itself. In the mountains of Utah, Summit Series has created a permanent community based on similar principles. Founded by Jeff Rosenthal and four other entrepreneurs in their twenties, Summit began as a simple ski trip where nineteen business leaders could share ideas. It quickly evolved into what's been called "TED crossed with Burning Man" or "the hipper Davos," attracting everyone from Richard Branson and Kobe Bryant to corporate leaders from GE, Nike, and beyond. With $40 million crowdsourced from their community, they purchased Powder Mountain, a ski area the size of Manhattan, to build a town dedicated to creativity, collaboration, and innovation. Already, there are more than five hundred home sites, with influential leaders committed to the project. Instead of typical resort development, they're fostering community with clustered neighborhoods and platinum-level environmental standards. Perhaps most remarkably, the skills developed in these ecstatic communities have proven valuable in crisis situations. After Hurricane Katrina, a group of Burners formed "Burners Without Borders," which provided crucial aid to devastated communities in Mississippi. Their experience creating infrastructure in harsh desert conditions proved invaluable in disaster zones. Similarly, data visualization expert Dave Warner applied Burning Man principles in Afghanistan, creating an open-source intelligence gathering system that outperformed traditional military approaches. These examples reveal something profound: the states of consciousness cultivated in these communities—characterized by heightened creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving—can address complex challenges that resist conventional approaches. What begins as seemingly recreational exploration of consciousness often translates into practical innovations that transform our world.

Chapter 5: The Dark Side: When Consciousness Hacking Goes Wrong

In 1953, the Pentagon faced a public relations nightmare. Colonel Frank Schwable, a captured Marine Corps pilot, had appeared on Chinese radio confessing that America was deploying biological weapons in Korea. To discredit this confession without undermining Schwable himself, the Secretary of Defense claimed the colonel had been subjected to "mind murder" or "menticide"—a term that would soon be popularized as "brainwashing." This incident launched one of the Cold War's most notorious research programs: MK-ULTRA, in which the CIA investigated mind-control techniques using everything from sensory deprivation to psychedelic drugs. When neuroscientist John Lilly developed a method to stimulate pleasure centers in the brain using electrodes, government agencies swarmed his lab. Though Lilly insisted his research remain unclassified, elements were secretly adapted for military purposes. One defense contractor used his techniques to create a "super mule" that could carry nuclear weapons along precise paths, controlled by pleasure and pain stimuli. This pattern—the militarization of consciousness research—has continued for decades. In the 1970s, Army Lieutenant Colonel Jim Channon embedded himself in California's human potential movement, studying meditation and other consciousness-expanding practices at places like Esalen. His resulting "First Earth Battalion Operations Manual" proposed using these techniques to create super-soldiers capable of "encountering the enemy with sparkly eyes." While some of his ideas were dismissed as fringe, others were adapted into psychological warfare techniques, including the disorienting sound tactics used on Iraqi prisoners. The commercialization of altered states poses equally concerning risks. In 2007, major brands including Apple, Coca-Cola, and Nike funded a $7 million neuromarketing study to understand how brain activity correlates with purchasing decisions. Researchers discovered that strong brands activate the same brain regions as religious symbols, suggesting that marketing can tap into the same neural pathways as spiritual experience. As marketing evolves from selling products to selling experiences to selling "transformations," companies are becoming increasingly sophisticated at manipulating our neurochemistry. Perhaps most concerning is the emerging field of virtual reality. As VR pioneer Kevin Kelly warns: "If a smartphone is a surveillance device we voluntarily carry in our pocket, then VR will be a total surveillance state we voluntarily enter." These systems will soon track everything from eye movements to neurochemistry, creating unprecedented opportunities to influence behavior subconsciously. These examples highlight the ethical challenges inherent in consciousness hacking. The same techniques that can heal trauma or spark creativity can also be weaponized or commercialized in ways that undermine human autonomy. As technologies for altering consciousness become more powerful and pervasive, we face crucial questions about who controls these tools and for what purposes. The dark side of consciousness hacking isn't just about individual harm—it's about the potential for systematic manipulation of human experience at unprecedented scale.

Chapter 6: Hedonic Engineering: A Practical Framework for Peak States

Kristen Ulmer was one of the world's greatest extreme skiers, named "Best Female Extreme Skier in the World" for twelve consecutive years. In 2001, she attempted to ski the North Face of the Aiguille-du-Midi in Chamonix, France—one of skiing's ultimate challenges, featuring "thousands of feet of complex high-angle terrain with constant death exposure." The attempt nearly killed her. "We got pinned on a 70-degree face, standing on a one-inch band of ice, while seven-story avalanches poured over our backpacks—for three hours," she recalls. "When it was over, they sent a crew in by helicopter to retrieve our bodies. They were pretty shocked to find us alive." Most people would have quit after such an experience, but Ulmer couldn't. "Whenever I felt that level of fear, that's when I felt the most alive. I was totally in the zone. And I was addicted to that feeling." After five near-death experiences in five months, Ulmer finally found an alternative path to altered states at Burning Man. "I was blown away. I got the exact same feeling I got from sports. I got it from the interactive art. I got it from the group flow." This revelation allowed her to quit extreme skiing and find safer ways to access the states she craved. "I still measure the quality of my life by the number of times I get into the zone," she explains. "Now I know I have options." Ulmer's story highlights a crucial question: How can we access the benefits of altered states while minimizing their risks? The authors propose a practical framework they call "hedonic engineering"—the deliberate design of practices to access ecstatic states safely and sustainably. This approach begins with understanding the "Ecstasis Equation": Value = Time × Reward/Risk. This formula helps compare different approaches to altered states based on how long they take to master, what benefits they provide, and what dangers they pose. For instance, meditation takes longer to learn than psychedelics but carries fewer risks; extreme sports provide immediate access but at higher physical danger. By evaluating practices according to this equation, we can make informed choices about which approaches best suit our individual circumstances and goals. The authors also recommend "hedonic calendaring"—organizing practices into daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and annual experiences. This creates a sustainable rhythm that prevents both burnout and addiction. By linking practices to natural cycles and cultural milestones, we make them easier to maintain. For example, daily meditation might be complemented by weekly flow-inducing exercise, monthly immersive experiences in nature, seasonal retreats, and annual participation in transformative community events. Perhaps most importantly, this framework emphasizes integration—the process of incorporating insights from altered states into everyday life. Without integration, even the most profound experiences remain isolated episodes rather than catalysts for lasting change. Techniques like journaling, creative expression, and supportive community can help bridge the gap between extraordinary states and ordinary life, allowing the benefits to persist and compound over time. This practical approach to consciousness hacking represents a middle path between reckless experimentation and fearful avoidance. By applying the same thoughtful design principles to our inner experiences that we apply to other aspects of life, we can create a sustainable practice of consciousness exploration that enhances our wellbeing, creativity, and performance without unnecessary risk or diminishing returns.

Chapter 7: Beyond the Pale: Breaking Through Cultural Boundaries

In 1172, the English invaded Ireland, planted their flag, and built a great big fence. That barrier, known as the English Pale, defined the world for those invaders. Within their pale, all was safe and good—a civilized land ruled by English law. Beyond the pale lay danger and madness. This concept helps explain why the revolutionary potential of altered states has remained hidden for so long—these experiences stand outside society's perimeter fence. James Valentine, lead guitarist for Maroon 5, encountered this boundary when he experienced the "Holy Ghost" while playing baseball and later while playing guitar. These experiences, identical to what his Mormon faith reserved for religious contexts, led him to question his dependence on organized religion. "I realized I didn't need the church to access those states," Valentine explains. "Music gave me direct access to the same experience they were selling." Throughout history, spiritual subcultures that find direct paths to transcendence have faced persecution from religious gatekeepers. This pattern extends beyond religion to other cultural domains. We consider meditation earned and authentic because it comes from within, while psychedelics or smart drugs feel like cheating. Yet research consistently shows that these external catalysts can produce genuine mystical experiences and lasting benefits. University of Edinburgh philosopher Andy Clark calls this "the prejudice that whatever matters about my mind depends solely on what goes on inside my biological skin-bag." Similarly, societies sanction certain states of consciousness while persecuting others. When psychopharmacologist David Nutt published research showing that alcohol is more harmful than many illegal substances, he was fired from his government position. The states we prefer are those that reinforce established cultural values, while those that subvert these values are marginalized. That's why stimulants like caffeine and nicotine, which help us work harder, are socially accepted, while substances that prompt questioning of social norms are strictly controlled. These boundaries exist for good reason. History is littered with tales of ecstatic explorations gone wrong. The Pied Piper of Hamelin, who lured children away with his magical flute, represents the danger of being seduced by transformative experiences. When we lose ourselves and merge with the group, we risk losing too much of ourselves. This is how the ideals of the French Revolution veered into the bloody mob rule of the Reign of Terror. Yet despite these risks, the boundaries are shifting. Eighteen million Americans now practice meditation, and 44% of U.S. companies offer mindfulness training to employees. Yoga has become more popular than football in terms of participation, with 36 million regular practitioners. Marijuana has become the fastest-growing industry in America, worth billions and projected to grow exponentially. Technology companies are developing sensors that can measure our physiological states and help us train what once took yogis decades to master. These developments represent the mainstreaming of what was once considered fringe. As we develop more sophisticated understanding of consciousness and more refined tools for exploring it, the pale is expanding to include experiences previously considered beyond the boundaries of acceptable society. This expansion isn't just about personal freedom—it's about accessing valuable states of awareness that can help us solve our most pressing problems and live more fulfilling lives.

Summary

Throughout human history, from the Eleusinian Mysteries of ancient Greece to the innovation labs of Silicon Valley, people have sought ways to transcend ordinary consciousness and tap into greater potential. What we're witnessing today is a revolution in how we understand and access these extraordinary states. Advances in psychology, neurobiology, pharmacology, and technology are converging to give us unprecedented insight into the mechanics of consciousness transformation. These states—characterized by selflessness, timelessness, effortlessness, and richness—aren't just pleasant diversions; they're powerful tools for solving our most complex problems. When Navy SEALs enter "the switch" during high-stakes missions, when innovators at Summit Series forge breakthrough collaborations, when researchers at DARPA accelerate learning by 490%, they're all tapping into the same fundamental human capacity for altered awareness. The revolution isn't in the states themselves, which have been available throughout human history, but in our ability to access them deliberately, understand them scientifically, and apply them practically to enhance performance, creativity, and wellbeing. As we develop more sophisticated frameworks for navigating these states—from hedonic engineering to ecstatic communities—we're learning that there's more capacity, resilience, and creativity in all of us collectively than in any of us alone. That's a fire worth stealing.

About Author

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Steven Kotler

Steven Kotler is a New York Times bestselling author, award-winning journalist, and co-founder and director of research for the Flow Genome Project. His books include the non-fiction works "The Rise of Superman," "Abundance," "A Small Furry Prayer" "West of Jesus," and the novel "The Angle Quickest for Flight." His work has been translated into more than 30 languages. His articles have appeared in over 60 publications, including The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, Wired, GQ, Outside, Popular Science, Men's Journal and Discover. He also writes "Far Frontiers," a blog about technology and innovation for Forbes.com and "The Playing Field," a blog about the science of sport and culture for PsychologyToday.com. He lives in New Mexico with his wife, the author Joy Nicholson.

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