October 26th, 2025
John C. Lilly on Insanity and Internal Sanity: The Power of the Metabelief Operator
For years, I misunderstood what the scientist and consciousness explorer John C. Lilly meant by insanity and internal sanity in his groundbreaking book The Deep Self.
At first glance, it’s easy to assume that Lilly saw insanity and internal sanity as two sides of the same coin — that his “madness” was just another word for mystical expansion. After all, he often described wild, visionary experiences in isolation tanks that resembled what psychiatry might call psychosis.
But that interpretation misses the central point of Lilly’s philosophy. The difference between insanity and internal sanity, in his eyes, wasn’t about how extreme an experience was — it was about who was steering the mind while it happened.
🌌 The Deep Self and the Search for Inner Reality
In The Deep Self, Lilly documents his decades of work with sensory isolation tanks, exploring the far reaches of consciousness beyond external stimulation. Inside the tank, the mind begins to run its own “programs,” generating visions, emotions, and inner worlds independent of sensory input.
Some of these inner experiences resemble madness: losing the sense of self, hearing voices, or drifting beyond time and body. But Lilly learned that these states can either shatter a person — or transform them — depending on the presence of one crucial faculty: the metabelief operator.
🔁 What Is the Metabelief Operator?
Lilly defined the metabelief operator as the part of the mind that can observe, question, and modify its own beliefs.
“The term ‘metabelief’ is defined as a belief about beliefs themselves. Thus a metabelief operator is a concept, function, or agent that operates on, transforms, introduces changes into belief systems.”
— The Deep Self, Chapter 6
In other words, it’s the self-aware function that allows you to realize, “I’m not my thoughts. I’m not my beliefs. I can rewrite the program.”
When this function is strong, you can navigate even the most intense internal experiences without losing your center. When it’s weak or absent, the mind becomes trapped inside its own simulations — mistaking inner constructs for external truth.
⚖️ Insanity vs. Internal Sanity
| State | Description | Metabelief Operator | Inner Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Insanity | Losing the boundary between internal and external reality; identifying with one’s mental programs as absolute truth. | Weak or absent — beliefs run automatically. | Disoriented, trapped, reactive. |
| Internal Sanity | Awareness of one’s inner constructs and the ability to reshape them intentionally. | Active and responsive — beliefs examined and revised consciously. | Flexible, creative, self-aware. |
For Lilly, insanity wasn’t defined by hallucinations or unusual experiences — those were neutral phenomena. Insanity meant losing the observer, the inner pilot who can navigate and interpret such experiences.
Internal sanity, on the other hand, was the state of awake authorship — the ability to explore one’s inner worlds while keeping the awareness that “this too is a creation of mind.”
🌀 Why Society Mislabels Transformation as “Madness”
Lilly also observed that rapid belief changes — the very sign of a healthy metabelief operator — are often treated by society as signs of instability.
“In the consensus reality, fast belief changes in a given person are suspect; that person is considered abnormal, far out, diseased, mentally ill, fanatic, unstable.”
— The Deep Self, Ch. 6
In other words, the ability to reprogram beliefs — to evolve, to change rapidly — threatens social consensus. Yet for Lilly, this flexibility was the essence of inner sanity. A person capable of rewriting their own beliefs was free from “paper realities,” the prepackaged belief systems handed down by culture, media, and authority.
What led me to question my belief that insanity and internal sanity were the same?
Because I just evicted a woman who was holding onto certain delusions and starting to destroy and steal property of myself and neighbors…. I began to wonder how I could accomodate and tolerate and embrace her internal model of reality when it was leading to damage to myself and my neighbors. I called the police on her and requested they do a wellness check. After talking with her, they forcefully took her away without her belongings of any sort. She was to go for a mental evaluation and could be back the same night. But I have not seen her in 2-3 weeks. The sad part is she was in school to be a psychiatrist who treated mental illness without drugs… but she could not function long enough to graduate.
Imagination is truly the stuff reality is made of: there is no objective reality beyond what we collectively agree to, moment by moment. And collective agreement can be as small as 2 people or as large a 1 million. And certainly all 7 billion homo sapiens do not hold unanimous collective agreement on any thing.
But I began to wonder just where the line was on internal models of reality. Below I show the footage of the police questioning my former guest and arresting her. The issues that I have with her model of reality are shown in the videos.
- 0:42–1:13 She explains that her neighbors have been connecting to her Wi‑Fi and interfering with her ability to make phone calls. Heather claims to have repeatedly tried to disconnect them…. in other words, she wants to call her boyfriend so he can pick her up so she can leave before I evict her. But she cannot call because neighbors have been connecting to her Wi‑Fi and interfering with her ability to make phone call
- 3:20–3:40 The police warn that she is putting herself in danger by walking onto other people’s property. Heather calmly replies that she is not worried about danger at all. 3:40–3:43 Heather asserts: “Father God, the whole place is watching.” This marks the moment she claims divine protection and shows her conviction that she is acting rationally and watched over.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tN2fwA__M5M&list=PL3XbhV5b3Os3bUECP2ImPIU4Z_Oh-sn-9 notice that when she is asked where he lives, she engages in avoidance behavior – she cant provide hard facts about this phantom fiance and starts avoiding questions and attempting to tell the officers to leave.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SepdEiowWt0&list=PL3XbhV5b3Os3bUECP2ImPIU4Z_Oh-sn-9&index=3 – it’s really painful to hear someone protesting in pain and agony. She does not share reality with me, the landlord, or the neighbor whose property she vandalized, or the police who interrogated her. But to her mind, she had every right to do everything she did. But all of us did not and we won the battle of opinions. It’s sort of like seeing a cow in a slaughterhouse. It’s doing it’s best to get out of the situation. But the butcher and the consumers want steak, so the hooks go around the cows ankle (against his will), he gets his throat slit (against his will) and he gets hung upside down (against his will).
The entire set of recordings is here:
August 5th, 2024
Human Design Systems manifested when Ra Uhu Ru was living in madness, isolation and insanity in Ibiza – by his own admission.
(2) Ra Uru Hu’s Encounter with the Voice – The Origins of the Human Design System – YouTube
May 3rd, 2024
Introduction to Isolation Tank (Gnosis) at Broward Spiritist Society
Ever since my ousting from the Palm Beach Quaker meeting, I had been looking for a new spiritual family to be around. During my sojourn, I found the Broward Spiritist Society and had been attending their practices for a few months.
One day I walked up to the founder of the society and asked to do a presentation on floatation tanks. I am pleased that he let me do so.
The talk was mainly about Isolation Tanks, but we also got into Gnosis a little bit as well:
December 31st, 2023
No churches or groups will be formed under name of Isolation Tank Gnosis
As a practice Isolation Tank Gnosis has been codified in the following simple steps:
- The only way to know something is to try it yourself.
- Try getting in the isolation tank and floating continuously. Only leave the tank for kitchen and bathroom breaks. Even sleep in the tank.
- Let us know what happened and how long you floated continuously.
To be sure, the results of such a practice are profound. But the word “gnosis” in Isolation Tank Gnosis means:
finding transcendence via the self as opposed to a church or group
John C. Lilly, in his interview with Jefferey Mishlove on Thinking Allowed.
To be sure, great power exists in groups and connection and networking. But:
- if all you need is a tank and isolation and if this is guided by GNOSIS (as defined above), then it is hypocritical to form a group. A group is defined as 2 or more people acting with common intent.
- there are many dangers of systems which become governed by groups
I therefore, do hereby declare:
- the sole member and practitioner of Isolation Tank Gnosis is me
- The practice may be freely copied and practiced and all literature distributed freely.
- You are free to do what you want with the theory and practice as long as you do not form groups for common intent. ABSOLUTE AUTONOMY in the practice and promulgation of this practice is absolutely important because of (1) what Gnosis is (2) to avoid the dangers in groups.
Kind regards in the name of the greatest good,
Terrence Calvinsson de Sherleys-Womb
December 31st, 2023
My experience with the power of 21 days of continuous floating
In February 2015 in Yonkers, NY I floated continously for 21 days.
Here is a live interview that Christopher Wardlaw did with me about the experience.
For some odd reason, it seemed that the world of software engineering was finding every reason for me not to be hired in New York.
I think I basically just gave up on getting another job, other than popping out of the tank for a quick check of email about job opportunities… so my exits from the tank included emailing job recruiters back and forth and maybe taking a call or two in addition to kitchen and bathroom breaks. and since I didnt have a bed in my apartment at 66 Main St, Yonkers, NY, I just started sleeping in the tank instead of on the floor.
Above you see the ideal food supply for Isolation Tank Gnosis – something you can dump in a shaker bottle and scarf down quickly. No need for heavy meals IMHO.
So what happened while floating?
I cant really say that much happened while floating… but once I left being completely isolated, it was then that I noticed the camera-like awareness that was floating outside of my body.
I landed an interview in Brooklyn. As I left Yonkers for Brooklyn, the camera-like awareness was outside the body as I ran around trying to get on trains, etc. And even as I gave money to a beggar: he said “thank you” in a very warm way and I ignored him and marched off to my job interview.
Eventually I did land a job… in California
So after all sorts of weird reasons that no one would hire me in New York, I broke down the Zen Float Tent, packed it up and headed for Northern California
One final weird thing
I wrote The Holy Book for Isolation Tank Gnosis in 2008 or so… 7 years BEFORE I actually did the practice… I guess i was leaning on Harry Palmer’s experience as the guide for forming the Isolation Tank Gnosis holy book. But I did eventually adhere to the “Come and See for Yourself” doctrine of ITG even though it took me 7 years to do so.
November 19th, 2023
Most marriages end in divorce…
A group is 2 or more people. Now, if 2 people came together “til death do you part” and they came apart before death, then that says something about the danger of groups.
Over 50% of first marriages end in divorce. And as I understand it, the numbers are even higher for 2nd and 3rd marriages. My personal belief is that man was supposed to live in tribes and did live in tribes and that Shiva Lila was a modern attempt to revive tribes.
But the closeness and passion that two married people have… to see that rip apart in a way that harms them and any offspring as well?
And religion is intimate and passionate as well. And I’ve been banned from many a religious order for being passionate and vulnerable with my inner feelings.
The main thing in Isolation Tank Gnosis is preservation of this effective approach to high spiritual states for very little cost and with a near-perfect certainty of no problems with any other carbon-based lifeforms of any sort, during your experience or after. As long as you lock your doors to your place, you should be good to ride this road to Infinity.
Just imagine you are a modern-day Druid, who practices in isolation even though they may have relations with other druids.
November 18th, 2023
Floating continuously in isolation from other carbon-based lifeforms.
Quick shout-out to one of my favorite bands 🙂
Floating continously means:
- float for 24 hours per day – you sleep in the tank, awake in the tank, dream in the tank, etc.
- Only leave for kitchen and bathroom breaks. Because you are not involved in physical exertion, I recommend only meal shakes or breakfast snack bars which are quick and easy and won’t lead to extended bathroom breaks. As far as bathroom breaks, I’m a strong believer in Urine Therapy if you get my drift.
- That’s it. Nothing more was done by Harry Palmer or myself. No particular mental focusing, etc.
You can read about the power of 8 weeks of continuous floating in Harry Palmer’s book.
I can speak for the power of 21 days of continuous floating – it produced the same results.
Now, what will be your testimony of seeing for yourself if you can find THE SELF by putting yourself in an isolation tank for an extended amount of time? Heck, just try a long weekend. Clock out at 5pm on Friday and close down at 5pm on Sunday and let us know how it went… making sure to maintain separation in space-time to avoid the dangers associated with being in a group.
Isolation, by itself is quite powerful
John Lilly wrote at length about the power of isolation in his book “The Deep Self”:
- you can read about Christianne Ritter “A woman alone in the polar night”
- Joshua Slocum and his time out at sea by himself and The Captain that would take over during rough times and take the trip several hundred miles with him completely out of consciousness
- and much more
Now imagine getting the power of isolation without being in the adverse conditions those people exposed themselves
November 18th, 2023
Lucy Duncan fired for disagreeing with the direction of American Friends Service Committee
This notice about the firing of Lucy Duncan shows the danger of groups and churches. And is further motivation for THE GNOSTIC VIEWPOINT – liberation via the self instead of via churches or groups. She wrote a letter expressing her concern for a radical change in how the AFSC does business and they axed her.
November 18th, 2023
Code of Conduct
The first rule of Isolation Tank Gnosis is that because it involves using the self for transcendence as opposed to a church or a group, no group should be formed in the name of this practice. To be sure, togetherness and joining in cameradery is one of the great things about being an apparently separate human. But to be sure, no 2 humans agree on all matters and though there are means for conflict resolution and mediation, it is safest to humbly yet firmly request that no groups be formed.
Groups can be powerful and synergistic but the casualties and fallout when a group fails are devestating and I would never want any such fallouts to tarnish this simple perfect effective practice.
November 18th, 2023
The historical origins of Isolation Tank Gnosis
Chapter 14 in the official holy book of Isolation Tank Gnosis lays this out in great detail. But let’s summarize here:
So, in 2007, I was living in Columbus, OH and watching an interview between Jefferey Mishlove and John C. Lilly on a show called thinking allowed.
At 25:23 in the interview, the follow dialogue takes place:
Jefferey – you seem to be saying that it’s up to each person to in effect make the same bridge that you have, and to create their own belief system, so that in creating that belief, they can move into the state that belief system leads them to, so that they can discard it again
JCL – that’s the gnostic point of view – self transcendence, not transcendence through a church or group
And that single sentence from Lilly set me on fire. It made sense of so many other things I had written. And it explained why so many religious groups would ban me quickly with fury and without due process when I began to ask questions. And of course it led to me writing a holy book which is wholly false.
But the funny thing is:
- I saw the interview and wrote the book in 2007
- I didnt do the 3-week continuous float until 2015
Over and out.
November 18th, 2023
FAQ
How long do I have to float to get enlightenment?
The shortest amount of time is not known. Terrence did it for 3 weeks in 2015. Harry did it for 8 weeks in the 70s. Those are the 2 data points we have.
How can I afford to float continuously for weeks?
I would suggest buying a tank and installing it in your place. Either that or building one.
November 17th, 2023
“Living Deliberately” by Harry Palmer
In the 1970s, Harry Palmer floated continously in an isolation tank for 8 weeks. He developed a perfect awareness in the tank. After that, he drained the tank and never bothered with floating again. He went on to create the nationally recognized and quite potent Avatar spiritual system based on his floatation experiences. He wrote about his experiences in a highly entertaining fashion. You can get his book in PDF form for free or grab it from Amazon. Or heck, you can download it from this site too.
November 12th, 2022
THEE HOLY BOOK
The single comprehensive reference for Isolation Tank Gnosis is available at:
- Archive.org – what a great website
- Pressbooks was used to write the book and it is hosted there as well. Another awesome website.
September 3rd, 2019
What comes and goes cant be real – Robert Adams
And the official home of Isolation-Tank-Gnosis has now moved here.
December 25th, 2014
Illusions rock
“Don’t part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased
to live.” Mark Twain (1830-1903)
December 24th, 2014
8 weeks to self-realization
For the next eight weeks, I spent most of my time in
the tank. The only evidence of my existence was the
dried Epsom salt trails leading to the refrigerator
and the bathroom.
— Harry Palmer, Living Deliberately
December 24th, 2014
All the ideas we have of ourselves are ULTIMATELY false.
All the ideas we have of ourselves
are ULTIMATELY false.
Any asserted or resisted definition–
call it I, identity, self–it is
not who we are! It’s a product
of who we are! It’s the bubble
we created to operate from
within. It is the definition that
we wear, and it determines our
experience of other bubbles.
Ego is the effort to protect the
bubble.
— Harry Palmer, Living Deliberately
December 24th, 2014
Discreation Unlimited!
It is possible to return to the
timeless, nondimensional source
of a creation. Once there, it is
possible to stop creating a creation
by relaxing into an effortless
state (discreate).
— Harry Palmer “Living Deliberately”
December 24th, 2014
The Cycle of Genesis
The cycle of genesis is imagination,
intention, creation, perception,
experience…over and over.
All of which is occurring against
an aware, compassionate nospace
background–the detached
higher self, pure awareness!
— Harry Palmer “Living Deliberately”
December 24th, 2014
Everything is true
I had a realization: Truth is relative to the point of view from which it is perceived. What I look as and where I look from determine my perception of truth. I experienced deep compassion as I understood that everyone, from their viewpoint, is seeing truth. I think this is a key understanding for creating a harmonious civilization.
July 7th, 2013
dumping grounds
* Course Outline
** Welcome
*** History
** Truth
** Reality
*** p.163 – sane and pragmatic vs psychic, insane, nonsane
** From Reality to Truth
*** via logical proof
*** via Creation Myths
** From Reality to Truth over Time
*** Dreamspell calendar – 13 moons + 1 day out of time
** Isolation
*** Isolation and God
*** Isolation Tank, Described
**** e.r. interlocks are minimized to zero
**** p.91 – inner realities to be penetrated
**** p.129 “when given freedom from external…”
*** Social Isolation
**** Social isolation welcome
** Temple, Ceremony and Ritual
*** definition of terms
*** Temple is designed to encourage social isolation
**** p.126 TDS
*** The ceremony is done with a mind to reduce communication, control and coercion
**** p.210 – “Once you can get into the tank with no preprogramming…”
**** Ceremony outline
**** Big communication no-nos
***** no suggestions on what can or will be experienced
***** p.136 judgement of performance/accuracy
*** Truth Ritual
*** Greeting Ritual
*** The ritual takes place
*** Post-ritual should nurture social isolation
**** p. 129 “range of phenomena great than society will accept”
**** any post-communication is initiated by the
*** Night time is an allright time
*** Time limits
June 24th, 2013
Declaration of Faith
- We believe that TRUTH exists for you alone. It is entirely personal, subjective and free to change: IT NEEDS NO VALIDATION BY ANYONE OTHER THAN THE INITIAL CREATOR/OBSERVER.(ref: “Spiritologie” by Andreas Buttler)
- We believe that REALITY is the degree of agreement existing between two or more persons or beings. REALITY is not TRUTH or something that ‘actually and really is so’. It is a “contract” or “agreement” which remains in place subtly or overtly via freewill or coercion.
- We believe that the search for TRUTH can be initiated, developed and completed in isolation and in fact do equate isolation and TRUTH.
- We believe the isolation tank is an ideal temple to reveal TRUTH.
June 24th, 2013
Opening Resolutions
$DATE
- On the above-referenced date, the Gnostic Isolation Temple formed its board of directors.
- The board resolved that the board members will be as follows:
- President: Rev. Terrence Monroe Brannon
- Vice President: Rev. Josh Copeland
- Second Vice President:
- Secretary: Rev. S. Smith, Attorney at Law
- Treasurer: Rev. J. Smith, Retired Security Consultant
- Director of Spiritual Innovation: Rev.Ronald Nakamoto, technical adviser.
- Director of Spiritual Outreach: Rev. ________.
- The board resolved that it would receive an EIN number, which it did on this date, August 25th, 2004. The number is XXXXXXX.
3. The board resolved that the Amy Long would serve as pastor of the church and would be authorized to act on its behalf.
4. The board resolved that it would incorporate in the near future and would further apply for the religious exemption from the State of California so we can grant degrees to our members.
5. The board resolved that the church would perform the majority of its ministerial tasks through its presence on the world wide web.
6. The board resolved to use the main domain name of www.ulcseminary.org, but would also purchase related domain names for the use of the church.
7. The board authorized the creation of the church website which will include guest sermons from the congregation, teaching discourses on a variety of subjects, frequently asked questions about our church and about as many other religions as we can determine, a church-related store, a forum for our ministers to enjoy fellowship, a seminary for the instruction of our congregation and current ministers and other instructional material as seems appropriate.
8. The board resolves not to have any on-site Sunday school for the instruction of the young, as we feel it is the job of the parents and guardians to instruct their young in a manner most appropriate to their personal beliefs. We have resolved, however, that a wide-range Sunday school curriculum be made available to our congregation as soon as possible.
9. The board resolves to do a monthly newsletter to keep our congregation informed and involved and further resolves to send out special announcements as appropriate and necessary.
February 1st, 2011
GIT – let me count the ways
- God in Thee
- Go Inside To Find
- Get Instant Totality
- (self) Guided Intensive Training
- (the) Goal is Transcendence
