--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The popular prophets have underestimated…" description: "\"The popular prophets have underestimated how strange the truth can be. The human brain, that 'perfect instrument,' that 'fabulous electronic dance,' ca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/marilyn-ferguson-4496_altered_the-popular-prophets-have-underestimated_1926802.jpg" --- # The popular prophets have underestimated how strange the… ![“The popular prophets have underestimated how strange the truth can be. The human brain, that 'perfect instrument,' that 'fabulous electronic dance,' can be our open sesame to an infinitely richer life than we have believed possible. The fluent, liberating, creative, healing attributes of the…” quote by Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/marilyn-ferguson-4496_altered_the-popular-prophets-have-underestimated_1926802.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/marilyn-ferguson-4496_altered_the-popular-prophets-have-underestimated_1926802.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2f/marilyn-ferguson-4496_altered_the-popular-prophets-have-underestimated_1926802.jpg) > “The popular prophets have underestimated how strange the truth can be. The human brain, that 'perfect instrument,' that 'fabulous electronic dance,' can be our open sesame to an infinitely richer life than we have believed possible. The fluent, liberating, creative, healing attributes of the altered states can be incorporated into consciousness. We are just beginning to realize that we can truly open the doors of perception and creep out of the cavern.” [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human consciousness can unlock extraordinary possibilities through altered states, expanding perception beyond ordinary limits. **In simple terms:** Altered states broaden perception. Key Takeaway Explore consciousness for richer experience. Themes consciousness perception growth Mood inquisitive hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - meditation - creative work - therapy - learning new skills Key Concepts psychology neuroscience spirituality Questions to Reflect On - How can you safely explore altered states? - What daily practices enhance perception? A Different Perspective Such states may be misused or misunderstood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Altered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/altered/) [Altered states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/altered-states/) [Attributes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attributes/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Caverns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caverns/) [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Consciousness Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness-just-324420/) [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Creeps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creeps/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Doors of perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors-of-perception/) [Fabulous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fabulous/) [Fluent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fluent/) [Healing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healing/) [Human brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-brain/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Incorporated Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incorporated-consciousness-2991413/) [Instruments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instruments/) [Liberating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberating/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Perception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perception/) [Perfect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Prophet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prophet/) [Realizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing/) [States](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/states/) [Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange/) [Strange Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange-truth-1321360/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Underestimated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/underestimated/) ## Related quotes > [Man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/man-has-closed-himself-up-till-he-sees-all-things-thro-narrow-chinks/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite. For man has closed himself up, till he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/if-the-doors-of-perception-were-cleansed-everything-would-appear-to-3/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite. For man has closed himself up, till he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/if-the-doors-of-perception-were-cleansed-everything-would-appear-to/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [“It's a strange truth that no matter how persuaded we might be of our own correctness, the discomfiting realization that others disagree with us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittney-ryan/it-s-a-strange-truth-that-no-matter-how-persuaded-we-might-be-of-our/) [Brittney Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittney-ryan/) > [It is as certain as it is strange that truth and error come from one and the same source. Thus it is that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-as-certain-as-it-is-strange-that-truth-and-error-come-from-one/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I get my best ideas in that state of suspended consciousness just before sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bastian/i-get-my-best-ideas-in-that-state-of-suspended-consciousness-just/) [Michael Bastian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bastian/) > [I think civilization is going to get to a point where we suddenly become responsible, stewards of the whole evolutionary process. This requires domains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-houston/i-think-civilization-is-going-to-get-to-a-point-where-we-suddenly/) [Jean Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-houston/) > [Consciousness is not personal. Human consciousness is just an expression of universal consciousness, which pervades the entire universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/consciousness-is-not-personal-human-consciousness-is-just-an/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Human consciousness is just about the last surviving mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/human-consciousness-is-just-about-the-last-surviving-mystery/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) > [Tools and techniques ought to be an extension of consciousness, but they can just as easily be a protection from consciousness. Then the tools…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rollo-may/tools-and-techniques-ought-to-be-an-extension-of-consciousness-but/) [Rollo May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rollo-may/) > [Human consciousness is just about the last surviving mystery... a topic that often leaves even the most sophisticated thinkers tongue-tied and confused. And, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/human-consciousness-is-just-about-the-last-surviving-mystery-a-topic/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) > [Ultimately, there is no such thing as "my consciousness," but just the one consciousness and to sense your connectedness with the one (I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/ultimately-there-is-no-such-thing-as-my-consciousness-but-just-the/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [(On sleep) Is it just the interval of life rudely interrupted by the static of having to please the boss at home or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-dansky/on-sleep-is-it-just-the-interval-of-life-rudely-interrupted-by-the/) [Martin Dansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-dansky/) > [If you want to know the state of your personal consciousness, just look around and see what is happening to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-you-want-to-know-the-state-of-your-personal-consciousness-just/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [A computational device is incapable of developing a mind. We got consciousness not just by being clever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-penrose/a-computational-device-is-incapable-of-developing-a-mind-we-got/) [Roger Penrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-penrose/) ## More by Marilyn Ferguson > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/ultimately-we-know-deeply-that-the-other-side-of-every-fear-is-freedom/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [People are seeking more power in the individual and less in government and institutions; they want more cooperation and less competition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/people-are-seeking-more-power-in-the-individual-and-less-in/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [You can be more productive, confident, comfortable with insecurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/you-can-be-more-productive-confident-comfortable-with-insecurity/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Whatever the rationale, the suppression of unorthodox cancer therapies and the sustained persecution of their proponents by government and colleagues runs counter to freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/whatever-the-rationale-the-suppression-of-unorthodox-cancer-therapies/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Making mental connections is our most crucial learning tool, the essence of human intelligence; to forge links; to go beyond the given; to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/making-mental-connections-is-our-most-crucial-learning-tool-the/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [ General Systems Theory, a related modern concept \[to holism\], says that each variable in any system interacts with the other variables so thoroughly that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/general-systems-theory-a-related-modern-concept-to-holism-says-that/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The East contemplated the forest the West counted the trees...the mind that knows that trees and the forest is a new mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/the-east-contemplated-the-forest-the-west-counted-the-trees-the-mind/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The difference between transformation by accident and transformation by a system is like the difference between lightning and a lamp. Both give illumination, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/the-difference-between-transformation-by-accident-and-transformation/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Most of us are having to invent, discover, and create the next steps of our lives without a light, a map, or a relevant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/most-of-us-are-having-to-invent-discover-and-create-the-next-steps-of/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Cynics know the answers without having penetrated deeply enough to know the questions. When challenged by mysterious truths, they marshall 'facts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/cynics-know-the-answers-without-having-penetrated-deeply-enough-to/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Many artists have said that when life itself becomes fully conscious, art as we know it will vanish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/many-artists-have-said-that-when-life-itself-becomes-fully-conscious/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Spirituality is a kind of virgin wisdom, a knowing that comes prior to experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/spirituality-is-a-kind-of-virgin-wisdom-a-knowing-that-comes-prior-to/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [Fear is a question: What are you afraid of and why? Just as the seed of health is in illness, because illness contains information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/fear-is-a-question-what-are-you-afraid-of-and-why-just-as-the-seed-of/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The struggle to make people understand the need for change is over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/the-struggle-to-make-people-understand-the-need-for-change-is-over/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) [Explore all 110 Marilyn Ferguson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) ## More Altered quotes > [Geometry, which should only obey Physics, when united with it sometimes commands it. If it happens that the question which we wish to examine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/geometry-which-should-only-obey-physics-when-united-with-it-sometimes/) [Jean le Rond d'Alembert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/) > [Men are fair, and they have learned not to personalize anger - they can disagree with you and argue to the bone, but afterward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/men-are-fair-and-they-have-learned-not-to-personalize-anger-they-can/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [A new constitution should be more amendable. A needlessly confusing system of courts should be altered to produce an arrangement that would be simple,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-edison/a-new-constitution-should-be-more-amendable-a-needlessly-confusing/) [Charles Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-edison/) > [“I want to know how it feels to be altered by life”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/i-want-to-know-how-it-feels-to-be-altered-by-life/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [Thus all things altered. Nothing dies. And here and there the unbodied spirit flies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/thus-all-things-altered-nothing-dies-and-here-and-there-the-unbodied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [The patterns of activity of neurons in sensory areas can be altered by patterns of attention. Experience coupled with attention leads to physical changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-merzenich/the-patterns-of-activity-of-neurons-in-sensory-areas-can-be-altered/) [Michael Merzenich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-merzenich/) > [ \[New York\] is a city largely based on great skyscrapers, and they will always be the essence of New York. That won't change, just… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/new-york-is-a-city-largely-based-on-great-skyscrapers-and-they-will/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Cumulatively, American society is sliding toward a new form of 'authoritarian democracy'. Elections continue, free speech is generally protected, institutions operate in accordance with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-a-falk/cumulatively-american-society-is-sliding-toward-a-new-form-of/) [Richard A. Falk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-a-falk/) > [Thousands of years of ideological, philosophical and practical decisions were made. They altered the surface of the earth, the coordinates of our souls. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/thousands-of-years-of-ideological-philosophical-and-practical/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [The ethic behind songs of conscience doesn't change, even though the issues are altered from generation to generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-yarrow/the-ethic-behind-songs-of-conscience-doesn-t-change-even-though-the/) [Peter Yarrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-yarrow/) > [Historic changes and challenges. Breakthroughs in human knowledge and opportunity. And yet, for vast numbers across the globe, the daily realities have not altered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/historic-changes-and-challenges-breakthroughs-in-human-knowledge-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Neither situations nor people can be altered by the interference of an outsider. If they are to be altered, that alteration must come from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-bottome/neither-situations-nor-people-can-be-altered-by-the-interference-of/) [Phyllis Bottome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-bottome/) > [Pain nourishes courage. You can't be brave if you've only had wonderful things happen to you. Pain is inevitable. Misery is optional. Physical pain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara/pain-nourishes-courage-you-can-t-be-brave-if-you-ve-only-had/) [Barbara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara/) > [Selectively pick a teacher, one that you respect, not just someone who can talk with wonderful poetic figures about enlightenment, but someone who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/selectively-pick-a-teacher-one-that-you-respect-not-just-someone-who/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Technology has altered the way music sounds, how it’s composed and how we experience it. It has also flooded the world with music. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/technology-has-altered-the-way-music-sounds-how-it-s-composed-and-how/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) [Browse all 328 Altered quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/altered/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The popular prophets have underestimated how strange the truth can be. The human brain, that 'perfect instrument,' that 'fabulous electronic dance,' can be our open sesame to an infinitely richer life than we have believed possible. The fluent, liberating, creative, healing attributes of the altered states can be incorporated into consciousness. 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