Ecstasy, Trance, Rapture: What is often present in everyday life as small escapes is persistently honored in artistic creation and promises transcendent boundary crossings. At the same time, the intoxication of the senses and other extraordinary states of consciousness repeatedly emerge as disruptions of cultural order, linked to social issues such as drug addiction, religious sectarianism, and sexual excesses. These contradictions form the starting point of the volume and culminate in the question of whether extraordinary states of consciousness are generally incompatible with the rational image of humanity and the economic organizational principles of modernity. This not only affects our everyday life but also touches the world of art and religious life.