--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Modern humans became fixated on a…" description: "\"Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of the surrounding universe.\" — Daniel Pinchbeck" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg" --- # Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination… ![“Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of the surrounding universe.” quote by Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg) > “Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of the surrounding universe.” [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critiques linear time perception, urging awareness of complex, fractal reality. **In simple terms:** Linear time limits understanding; consider fractal patterns. Key Takeaway Expand perception beyond simple timelines. Themes philosophy science spirituality Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical introspective When to use this quote - meditation - creative problem solving - scientific research Key Concepts non‑linear time fractal universe Questions to Reflect On - How does time perception affect decisions? - Can you see patterns beyond linearity? A Different Perspective Concept may be abstract for everyday use. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Collective Hallucination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collective-hallucination-823325/) [Collectives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collectives/) [Fractals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fractals/) [Hallucination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hallucination/) [Hallucination Linear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hallucination-linear-4546677/) [Hallucinations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hallucinations/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Humans Fixated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans-fixated-4546678/) [Linear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/linear/) [Linear time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/linear-time/) [Modern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern/) [Modern Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-humans-2111796/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Spirals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirals/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) ## Related quotes > [The Internet is a collective hallucination: one of the best humanity has ever generated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-zittrain/the-internet-is-a-collective-hallucination-one-of-the-best-humanity/) [Jonathan Zittrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-zittrain/) > [“Music on the radio is a shared fever dream, a collective hallucination, a secret amongst millions and a whisper in the whole country’s ear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/music-on-the-radio-is-a-shared-fever-dream-a-collective-hallucination/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [“the average Neanderthal cranial capacity was greater than that of modern humans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-luis-arsuaga/the-average-neanderthal-cranial-capacity-was-greater-than-that-of/) [Juan Luis Arsuaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-luis-arsuaga/) > [“It’s important to keep in mind that when viewed against the full scale of our species’ existence, ten thousand years is but a brief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-ryan/it-s-important-to-keep-in-mind-that-when-viewed-against-the-full/) [Christopher Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-ryan/) > [“Others consider us superior because of our cultured ways and intellectual tendencies; our technology lets us drive cars, use word processors and travel great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lovelock/others-consider-us-superior-because-of-our-cultured-ways-and/) [James Lovelock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lovelock/) > [If exposure of body is modernism, then animals are more modern than humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zakir-naik/if-exposure-of-body-is-modernism-then-animals-are-more-modern-than/) [Zakir Naik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zakir-naik/) > [I want to know what changed in fully modern humans, compared with Neanderthals, that made a difference. What made it possible for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svante-p-bo/i-want-to-know-what-changed-in-fully-modern-humans-compared-with/) [Svante Paabo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svante-p-bo/) > [We have grown from primitive man into modern ways and are now looking for modern humans from merely primitive choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-fennis/we-have-grown-from-primitive-man-into-modern-ways-and-are-now-looking/) [Alexander Fennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-fennis/) > [What modern humans need help with is escaping from the despair of politics, commerce and media, escaping from the drabness and oppressiveness of worldly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-leunig/what-modern-humans-need-help-with-is-escaping-from-the-despair-of/) [Michael Leunig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-leunig/) > [“An upright hominid could see better, but could also be seen better. Even now as a species, we are almost preposterously vulnerable in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/an-upright-hominid-could-see-better-but-could-also-be-seen-better/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“Why do modern humans love sweets so much? Not because in the early twenty-first century we must gorge on ice cream and chocolate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/why-do-modern-humans-love-sweets-so-much-not-because-in-the-early/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [There are enough fossils showing distinctive features to rule out the possibility these are unusual or aberrant modern humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-enough-fossils-showing-distinctive-features-to-rule-out-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Modern humans first emerged about 100,000 years ago. For the next 99,800 years or so, nothing happened. Well, not quite nothing. There were wars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-j-gordon/modern-humans-first-emerged-about-100-000-years-ago-for-the-next-99/) [Robert J. Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-j-gordon/) > [Anatomically modern humans are found up to 200,000 years ago; behaviourally modern humans appear very recently in evolutionary time, as far as evidence now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/anatomically-modern-humans-are-found-up-to-200-000-years-ago/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Wait a minute! Wait a minute! I figured this out. I know what's wrong with what we've done in Iraq. We've been following time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/wait-a-minute-wait-a-minute-i-figured-this-out-i-know-what-s-wrong/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) ## More by Daniel Pinchbeck > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [“I realized that most thoughts are impersonal happenings, like self-assembling machines. Unless we train ourselves, the thoughts passing through our mind have little involvement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-realized-that-most-thoughts-are-impersonal-happenings-like-self/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [People used to make their own clothes, now they buy clothes. People used to take care of their own kids, now they pay other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/people-used-to-make-their-own-clothes-now-they-buy-clothes-people/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Shamanism is a kind of universal spiritual practice with indigenous cultures around the world, and one important element of it is taking care of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/shamanism-is-a-kind-of-universal-spiritual-practice-with-indigenous/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [I'm starting to reread a bunch of Gandhi and it was kind of traumatic, because he was so clearly, unbelievably amazing. And the stuff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-m-starting-to-reread-a-bunch-of-gandhi-and-it-was-kind-of-traumatic/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Electronic culture created soulless replacements for connective rituals- television supplanted tribal legends told by the fire; 'fast food' consumed in distraction took the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/electronic-culture-created-soulless-replacements-for-connective/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [If consciousness is the ground of being rather than an epiphenomenon of physical processes, we may find that a basic question asked by modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/if-consciousness-is-the-ground-of-being-rather-than-an-epiphenomenon/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Through the last centuries, the effort of capitalism has been to take all the things that were human relations and turn them into monetary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/through-the-last-centuries-the-effort-of-capitalism-has-been-to-take/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [I do think that if you were to be scrupulous and research into it you would find that certain types of natural psychedelics have,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-do-think-that-if-you-were-to-be-scrupulous-and-research-into-it-you/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [It is the difficult, but unavoidable, task of the modern individual to assimilate consciously all of the contents - from darkest degradation to profoundest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/it-is-the-difficult-but-unavoidable-task-of-the-modern-individual-to/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Maybe the same instruments and tools that have been used to keep people in slavery and ignorance could potentially be used to liberate and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/maybe-the-same-instruments-and-tools-that-have-been-used-to-keep/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [I think a lot of people who were addicts are actually people who had that strong innate need to experience non-ordinary states of consciousness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-think-a-lot-of-people-who-were-addicts-are-actually-people-who-had/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [I totally think we have a future on the planet. I just think that we have to get away from Western thinking, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-totally-think-we-have-a-future-on-the-planet-i-just-think-that-we/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [I think what we're going to ultimately recognize is that capitalism was a transitional and immature system. It got the planet to be globalized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/i-think-what-we-re-going-to-ultimately-recognize-is-that-capitalism/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [Marcuse wrote: "Perhaps an accident may alter the situation, but unless the recognition of what is being done and what is being prevented subverts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/marcuse-wrote-perhaps-an-accident-may-alter-the-situation-but-unless/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) [Explore all 43 Daniel Pinchbeck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) ## More Collectives quotes > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [As in any machine, all the wires must be connected to the mains through one main wire. In the same way, you all must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/as-in-any-machine-all-the-wires-must-be-connected-to-the-mains/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [What is accurately portrayed is the rich humanity not just of Martin Luther King but of the movement, which was a multiracial movement. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/what-is-accurately-portrayed-is-the-rich-humanity-not-just-of-martin/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [It clearly follows that to make men moral it is necessary to make their social environment moral. And that can be done in only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/it-clearly-follows-that-to-make-men-moral-it-is-necessary-to-make/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) > [There is a way in which the collective knowledge of mankind expresses itself, for the finite individual, through mere daily living . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurens-van-der-post/there-is-a-way-in-which-the-collective-knowledge-of-mankind-expresses/) [Laurens van der Post](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurens-van-der-post/) > [The law is the collective organization of the individual's right to lawful defense of his life, liberty and property. When it is used for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-law-is-the-collective-organization-of-the-individual-s-right-to/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [But we need to be very clear: because of our decades of collective denial, no gradual, incremental options are now available to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/but-we-need-to-be-very-clear-because-of-our-decades-of-collective/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [A “collective” mind does not exist. It is merely the sum of endless numbers of individual minds. If we have an endless number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/a-collective-mind-does-not-exist-it-is-merely-the-sum-of-endless/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Through Sahaja Yoga what happens to you, that you become a collective personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/through-sahaja-yoga-what-happens-to-you-that-you-become-a-collective/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [If you don't allow people to contribute, to offer their point of view, or to criticize what has been put before them, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/if-you-don-t-allow-people-to-contribute-to-offer-their-point-of-view/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“The whole organization seemed to be in free fall, indulging in a collective fantasy in which experienced colleagues refused to admit that their every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-whole-organization-seemed-to-be-in-free-fall-indulging-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We seem to have lost contact with the earlier, more profound functions of art, which have always had to do with personal and collective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-london/we-seem-to-have-lost-contact-with-the-earlier-more-profound-functions/) [Peter London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-london/) > [If you need someone to come out of the sewer with a wire you don't hire someone who needs laborious collective instruction. You let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/if-you-need-someone-to-come-out-of-the-sewer-with-a-wire-you-don-t/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [For all the civilians saved thanks to the presence of peacekeepers, there have been those who were lost - the United Nations personnel who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-eliasson/for-all-the-civilians-saved-thanks-to-the-presence-of-peacekeepers/) [Jan Eliasson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-eliasson/) > [Man, in the collective sense, is the hero of science. Man, in the collective sense, is the hero of Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/man-in-the-collective-sense-is-the-hero-of-science-man-in-the/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) [Browse all 1,039 Collectives quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collectives/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of the surrounding universe.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Pinchbeck" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collective-hallucination-of-linear/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Collectives" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collective-hallucination-of-linear/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52e/daniel-pinchbeck-15244_collectives_modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collec_544786.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Modern humans became fixated on a collective hallucination of linear time, ignoring the fractal spirals of…” — Daniel Pinchbeck", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Daniel Pinchbeck", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Modern humans became fixated on a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collective-hallucination-of-linear/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/modern-humans-became-fixated-on-a-collective-hallucination-of-linear/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```