section_path: Personal life/Spirituality
section_name: Spirituality
paragraph_text: Spirituality
  
  Wilson was raised in a Presbyterian family. In many interviews, he emphasized the spiritual essence of his music, particularly with Pet Sounds. He was also intrigued by astrology, numerology, and the occult, as reflected in his original concepts for Smile. In 1966, Wilson expressed his belief that all music "starts with religion", and while he recognized a "higher being who is better than we are", he was not traditionally religious.
  
  In the late 1960s, Wilson and his bandmates promoted Transcendental Meditation (TM). By 1968, he had equated religion and meditation, though he ultimately abandoned TM. He described himself in 1976 as having over-diversified his readings, maintaining then that he still believed that the coming of "the great Messiah came in the form of drugs" while acknowledging that his own drug experiences "really didn't work out so well".
  
  In 2011, he said that while he had spiritual beliefs, he did not follow any particular religion. Asked in 2004 for his favorite book, Wilson answered " the Bible ", and questioned if he believed in life after death, Wilson replied "I don't".
  
  Wilson was raised in a Presbyterian family. In many interviews, he emphasized the spiritual essence of his music, particularly with Pet Sounds. He was also intrigued by astrology, numerology, and the occult, as reflected in his original concepts for Smile. In 1966, Wilson expressed his belief that all music "starts with religion", and while he recognized a "higher being who is better than we are", he was not traditionally religious.
  
  In the late 1960s, Wilson and his bandmates promoted Transcendental Meditation (TM). By 1968, he had equated religion and meditation, though he ultimately abandoned TM. He described himself in 1976 as having over-diversified his readings, maintaining then that he still believed that the coming of "the great Messiah came in the form of drugs" while acknowledging that his own drug experiences "really didn't work out so well".
  
  In 2011, he said that while he had spiritual beliefs, he did not follow any particular religion. Asked in 2004 for his favorite book, Wilson answered " the Bible ", and questioned if he believed in life after death, Wilson replied "I don't".