What can we do to engineer this state? I go more into those in details below. Happiness == Annealing activities (Symmetrifications)<ref>[[Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Qualia Research Institute](https://qri.org/)blog/neural-annealing))) Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing, Andrés Gómez-Emilsson, 2021]</ref> + Resolving basic needs + Psychotherapies<ref>[[Acceptance and commitment therapy - Wikipedia]([Acceptance and commitment therapy - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acceptance_and_commitment_therapy)) Acceptance and commitment therapy]</ref> + Meditation<ref>[[Dharma Seed - Dharma Talks from Retreats]([Dharma Seed - Dharma Talks from Retreats]([Dharma Seed - Dharma Talks from Retreats]([Dharma Seed - Dharma Talks from Retreats]([Dharma Seed - Dharma Talks from Retreats](https://dharmaseed.org/retreats/4496/))))) Practising the Jhānas by Rob Burbea]</ref><ref>[[Home - Hermes Amāra Foundation]([Home - Hermes Amāra Foundation]([Home - Hermes Amāra Foundation]([Home - Hermes Amāra Foundation](https://hermesamara.org/)))) Rob Burbea]</ref><ref>[[Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself](https://deconstructingyourself.com/do-nothing-meditation.html)))))))))))) Do nothing meditation, Michael Taft, 2017]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==TKqJL3AroLc))) Day-Long Retreat at the Monastic Academy, Shinzen Young, 2017]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==p4_wLkD6_x4)) Chart of human happiness, Shinzen Young, 2011]</ref> + Substances (psychedelics, dissociatives, antidepressants,...)<ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==AaTjty1unn8) Psychedelics: brain mechanisms, Robin Carhart-Harris, 2022]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==eIxVfln02Ss) How Psilocybin Can Rewire Our Brain, Its Therapeutic Benefits & Its Risks, Andrew Huberman, 2023]</ref><ref>[[Increased global integration in the brain after psilocybin therapy for depression | Nature Medicine]([Increased global integration in the brain after psilocybin therapy for depression | Nature Medicine]([Increased global integration in the brain after psilocybin therapy for depression | Nature Medicine]([Increased global integration in the brain after psilocybin therapy for depression | Nature Medicine](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-01744-z)))) Increased global integration in the brain after psilocybin therapy for depression, Richard E. Daws et al., 2022]</ref><ref>[[5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety - PubMed]([5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30822141/)) 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety, Alan K Davis et al., 2019]</ref><ref>[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9053551/ The Therapeutic Effects of Ketamine in Mental Health Disorders: A Narrative Review, Carolina Sepulveda Ramos et al., 2022]</ref><ref>[[Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 21 antidepressant drugs for the acute treatment of adults with major depressive disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis - PubMed]([Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 21 antidepressant drugs for the acute treatment of adults with major depressive disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29477251/)) Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 21 antidepressant drugs for the acute treatment of adults with major depressive disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis, Andrea Cipriani et al., 2018]</ref> + Bioneurotechnology (gene theraphy, deep stimulation<ref>[[Frontiers | Deep Brain Stimulation in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on Efficacy and Safety]([Frontiers | Deep Brain Stimulation in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on Efficacy and Safety](https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2021.655412/full)) Deep Brain Stimulation in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on Efficacy and Safety, Youliang Wu et al., 2019]</ref><ref>[[Neuroscientists have created a mood decoder that can measure depression | MIT Technology Review]([Neuroscientists have created a mood decoder that can measure depression | MIT Technology Review]([Neuroscientists have created a mood decoder that can measure depression | MIT Technology Review]([Neuroscientists have created a mood decoder that can measure depression | MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/12/14/1064906/mood-decoder-measure-depression/)))) Neuroscientists have created a mood decoder that can measure depression, Jessica Hamzelouarchive page, 2022]</ref>, neurosurgery) + Philosophy + Spirituality + Being kind<ref>[https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1150952 Spending Money on Others Promotes Happiness, Elizabeth Dunn, 2008]</ref> + Physical activity<ref>[[Physical activity and subjective well-being in healthy individuals: a meta-analytic review - PubMed]([Physical activity and subjective well-being in healthy individuals: a meta-analytic review - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32452716/)) Physical activity and subjective well-being in healthy individuals: a meta-analytic review, Susanne Buecker et al., 2021]</ref> + Sleep<ref>[[Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials - PubMed]([Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34607184/)) Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials, Alexander J Scott et al., 2021]</ref> + Time in nature<ref>[[Prescribed time in nature linked to improvements in anxiety, depression and blood pressure | Access to green space | The Guardian]([Prescribed time in nature linked to improvements in anxiety, depression and blood pressure | Access to green space | The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/04/prescribed-time-in-nature-linked-to-improvements-in-anxiety-depression-and-blood-pressure)) Prescribed time in nature linked to improvements in anxiety, depression and blood pressure, Lancet Planetary Health, 2023]</ref> + Human connection<ref>[[Key to happiness is in human connection | Ascent Publication]([Key to happiness is in human connection | Ascent Publication]([Key to happiness is in human connection | Ascent Publication]([Key to happiness is in human connection | Ascent Publication](https://medium.com/the-ascent/the-key-to-happiness-lies-in-human-connection-27a676a1a7f4)))) The Key to Happiness Lies in Human Connection, Jessica Lucia, 2021]</ref> Addiction == Progressive narrowing of the things that bring you pleasure (positive valence), Happiness == Progressive expansion of the things that bring you pleasure<ref>[https://twitter.com/hubermanlab/status/1584250484293980162 Definition of happiness, Andrew D. Huberman, 2022]</ref> Suffering == Pain times Resistance, Purification == Pain times Equaminity, Frustration == Pleasure times Resistance, Fulfilment == Pleasure times Equanimity.<ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==9u9nuSf9g1g))) Purification and Fulfilment: Four Formulas, Shinzen Young, 2011]</ref> What resists persists.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list==PLO6hhaAzLmiqUzBYuLLJQ8FexOTRxz8xF Practising the Jhanas, Rob Burbea, 2020]</ref> Take care of happiness and meaning will take care of itself. Annealing.<ref>[[Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing]([Qualia Research Institute](https://qri.org/)blog/neural-annealing))) Healing Trauma With Neural Annealing, Andrés Gómez-Emilsson, 2021]</ref> Time to shake things up and see where they settle. Brain is like a metal. When it gets used in activities that take effort, you start to feel tearing and inconsistencies in your experience, less symmetries in the metal's (brain's) structure (tissue and activity). The smoother the metal is, the more pleasant it feels. Activities that energize you, that I list below (in the sense that they make you less tired, increase energy parameter of then nervous system), heat up this metal, that starts to melt and fill up the tears and reconfigure the metal into a more symmetrical shape, which then cools down (integration) and you feel more peaceful, calm, relaxed, energized, smooth, happy, in flow, effortless, blissful, joyous, loving, connected, holistic, complete, fullfilled, in the moment,...<ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==tqRA2m9zlns) Thinking Like a Musical Instrument or Psychoactive Substances Give Access to the Nature of Brains, Qualia Productions, 2022]</ref> Symmetrifications are done mostly through the process of annealing. (for example meditation) Some symmetrifications might be symmetrifying in the short term but asymmetrifying in the long term through oscillatory dynamics such as the hedonic treadmill. (too frequent dopaminogenic activities) Hedonic treadmill isn't an universal rule, many activities such as meditation can permanently shift the baseline hedonic state. Some global dissonant asymmetries can be kept alive by local consonant symmetrifications that feel good temporarily. (for example substances like heroin that mute the mind's pain (because of trauma or high energy depression for example) on the surface without dealing with the cause) List all symmetrifications: Individual scale: My most efficient annealing techniques that I combine with eachother. Each of them raise the energy parameter of experience and tend to dissolve local dualistic structures in favor of more global interconnected structure that manifest as high level connections insights and overall sense of less blocked experience, and also satisfies other kinds of basic needs: Loving do nothing deconstructive meditation Walking and running in nature Reading/Listening to big picture thinking Hot shower/bath Talking about the depths of my mind with myself or with others or by writing Deep slow meditative mindful tantric interaction with other people Psychedelics, shrooms, LSD or 5-MeO-DMT - Shrooms is more dissolving but still full of interesting loving complexity, LSD focuses on concrete task more such as learning, 5-MeO-DMT just dissolves everything beyond concepts and tasks All individual symmetrifications: big picture thinking<ref>[[Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal - YouTube]([Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@TheoriesofEverything)) Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal]</ref>, psychedelics, ketamine, deconstructive (do nothing<ref>[[Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself]([Do Nothing Meditation - Deconstructing Yourself](https://deconstructingyourself.com/do-nothing-meditation.html)))))))))))) Do Nothing Meditationn, Michael Taft, 2017]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==dqE39Q4kBiY)))) Looking into Groundlessness guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2023]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==kl7KHID6iag) Ocean and Ripples guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2022]</ref>, trancendence<ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==aZK80rg_ONo)) Like Wind in a Vast, Empty Sky guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2022]</ref><ref>[[Jailbreak! Escape the Cage of Your Mind - Deconstructing Yourself]([Jailbreak! Escape the Cage of Your Mind - Deconstructing Yourself](https://deconstructingyourself.com/jailbreak-escape-the-cage-of-your-mind.html)) Jailbreak! Escape the Cage of Your Mind guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2022]</ref>) loving (love and kindness)<ref>[[Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube](https://youtu.be/dBPPX_qr1rM)))))))) Love and Emptiness (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening), Rob Burbea, 2007]</ref> imaginating (compassion deity<ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==rvVdq-Dmoi0)) The Wisdom and Compassion of Avalokiteshvara guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2021]</ref>, love for everything<ref>[[Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself]([Mother Buddha Love - Deconstructing Yourself](https://deconstructingyourself.com/mother-buddha-love.html))))))))))))) Mother Buddha Love guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2022]</ref>, mandalas<ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==ZWC6dK0_O2g) Everything in it's Right Place guided meditation, Michael Taft, 2022]</ref>) meditation<ref>[[Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube]([Love and Emptiness - (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening) - YouTube](https://youtu.be/dBPPX_qr1rM)))))))) Love and Emptiness (Lovingkindness and Compassion as a Path to Awakening), Rob Burbea, 2007]</ref><ref>[[- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==K6kfcYBrKMc) Awakening, Daniel M. Ingram, Michael Taft, Frank Yang, and Evan McMullen, 2007]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list==PLO6hhaAzLmiqUzBYuLLJQ8FexOTRxz8xF Practising the Jhanas, Rob Burbea, 2020]</ref>, sport, excercise, running, strength training, being in nature, socializing, sauna, cold/hot showers/bath, nondual philosophy, sex, praying, breath work, fast energy foods (sugar might come at the cost of desymmetrification in the long term or issues with reward processing and so on though), staring in the mirror, dancing, singing, masssage, music, playing an instrument (or surfing any pleasant error reduction gradient slope), satisfying values (or in general any default processes that our nervous system is adapted to flourish the most in with symmetrical consonant activity), thinking about values, living from fundamental values or priors in general, high energy training at the edge of chaos, novel experiences, anything surprising, shocking, electrical shocks, ECT, TMS, experiential therapy or other theraphies, reflecting, journalling, writing your mind out, stressors, sleep deprivation, learning, manual asphyxiation briefly administered, strong emotions, laughing, crying, anything high energy, extremely high-definition audio experiences: combination of the correct hardware/software + setting + mental state and alignment of material, digital fasting and reward circuitry tolerance breaks, rituals, dreaming, deep conversation with someone you trust, yoga, equaminity, love (for everything including oneself!) When it comes to maximizing happiness of the whole societal system, it would be great to steer towards a third attractor that isnt 1984 or anarchocapitalism dystopia but a third attractor that maximizes the advantages and minimizes the disadvantages of any idealist political system in practice by maximizing overall wellbeing of population leading to more internal cooperation, adaptibility to existencial risks<ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==g7WtcTATa2U))))) Ai Wars & The Metacrisis, Daniel Schmachtenberger, 2023]</ref>, greater life satisfaction and sense of meaning and higher chances of consciousness utopia full of sense of freedom! <ref>[[- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube]([- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v==SeTE8vtJufA))))))) The Future of Consciousness, Andrés Gómez Emilsson, 2022]</ref>