It seems they belong on a pedestal. We're talking about the experience of transcending time "as though time were irrelevant" -- all of the suffering irrelevant (or relevant depending how you look at it). Don't you think it possible to cultivate these flow states (less default lack) and make them a regularity in our lives? — matt

By pedestal I mean that it is a justification for all else. It too suffers from all experiences hoped for. Often times experiences that aren't novel end with disappointment (too many of the same thing) and often times experiences are hard to achieve (the right circumstances have to be in play). If it was easy, and well-established, it would be had by all at a much higher rate. This is not the case. Therefore, it is suspect as something that can be achieved more than a fraction of the time. Much of life is stubbornly grinding, mundane, and fraught with anxieties, worries, and "stuff that just needs to be done". Much of the time is spent keeping oneself comfortable, falling into patterns that promote economic welfare (doing stuff at the job and paying bills and such), and keeping others at bay from disrupting one's own comfort.

By pedestal I mean that it is a justification for all else. It too suffers from all experiences hoped for. Often times experiences that aren't novel end with disappointment (too many of the same thing) and often times experiences are hard to achieve (the right circumstances have to be in play). If it was easy, and well-established, it would be had by all at a much higher rate. This is not the case. Therefore, it is suspect as something that can be achieved more than a fraction of the time. Much of life is stubbornly grinding, mundane, and fraught with anxieties, worries, and "stuff that just needs to be done". Much of the time is spent keeping oneself comfortable, falling into patterns that promote economic welfare (doing stuff at the job and paying bills and such), and keeping others at bay from disrupting one's own comfort. — schopenhauer1

I agree with all of this except for but a few points. But by placing these achievable flow states (which are in my opinion always novel) on a pedestal we balance out the purported asymmetric-structural suffering of existence. Transcendence is one of the answers to the questions of both meaning and justification.