Psychonautics (from the
Greek ["soul", "spirit" or "mind"] and ["sailor" or "navigator"] — "a sailor of the soul") refers both to a methodology for describing and explaining the subjective effects of
altered states of consciousness, including those induced by
meditation or
mind-altering substances, and to a research
paradigm in which the researcher voluntarily immerses himself or herself into an altered mental state in order to explore the accompanying experiences.