Explanatory paradigms couched in terms of receptor selectivities, structure/activity relationships, agonist/antagonist interactions, activation of limbic substructures, etc., all somehow fail to do justice to the transcendent, transformative reality that becomes manifest when one actually consumes a psychedelic. – Dennis McKenna
Practically blasphemy to mainstream religions, world governments, and the mainstream population is the idea that psychedelics could have the undeniably and scientifically-measurable effect of inducing religious experiences.
One look at the leading causes of death in America should alert any thinking being to the idea that something truly is amiss with drug laws worldwide. These statistics show us what the real health dangers in our society are and bring in to question the government’s policies on drugs, alcohol and tobacco.
With the rising resurgence of shamanism, often as a curiosity or a way to make money, there seem to be an equally growing number of books flooding the market, making it more and more difficult to find reliable scholarly studies of the topic.
Based on significant amounts of archaeological and artistic evidence, it seems very likely that early civilizations in the area of the Fertile Crescent employed Datura, Cannabis, Claviceps, Mandragora, Nymphaea, Vitis, and possibly Papaver as medicaments and ritual entheogens.
Explanatory paradigms couched in terms of receptor selectivities, structure/activity relationships, agonist/antagonist interactions, activation of limbic substructures, etc., all somehow fail to do justice to the transcendent, transformative reality that becomes manifest when one actually consumes a psychedelic. – Dennis McKenna
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According to traditional Bon histories, in 16,017 BCE the Buddha Tonpa Shenrab Miwo, was born in the central city of this region, Olmo Lungring. There he founded the tradition known as Yungdrung Bon. If you are at all curious about the ancient tradition of Yungdrung Bon, its practices, and its connection to the concept of non-duality through the practice of Dzogchen, we hope you find this article informative.
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Numerous acacia species have been used for medicine and as entheogens, as well as for incense. Many species of acacia, particularly Australian ones, contain DMT and other tryptamines, and are therefore suitable as part of ayahuasca analogues. However, not all acacia contains DMT.
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The destruction of the world’s rainforests is driven by a complex web of social and economic forces, many of these a logical result of modern society’s worldview — a view that, although rich in technological insight, is often ignorant of the value of nature’s apparently free and limitless services.
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Ilex cassine was sacred to the peoples of Florida and the East Coast of North America, and was used similarly to Ilex vomitoria to produce ‘the black drink’, a beverage that is high in caffeine and that often causes vomiting, an effect which was thought to prepare one for contact with the spirit world.
Hops were once taken by Christian monks to suppress the sex drive. They drank large quantities of beer in order to resist the temptation of the devil – that is, their own natural sexual desires. Around the end of the middle ages, these monks began to brew hops in to their beer in order to keep themselves chaste. Nowadays, hops are the most common additive to beer.
F. imbricata is a sacred incense which is burned at all traditional ceremonies in Chile and many other South American countries. The Aymara of northern Chile keep bundles of the herbage to light as incense when needed. Burning the plant creates great amount of smoke, which is used in every sort of traditional ceremony, from festivals to sacred offerings to Pachamama, the earth goddess. When someone is ill, the room is fumigated with the smoke of F. imbricata to treat illness, banish spirits, and scare away demons. In the Atacama Desert, the incense is burned as ‘payment’ for the dead, and for purification, and the smoke is said to calm and set free the spirits of dead people.
The coca bush originated in the rain forests of the Andes, and has been cultivated in South American for many purposes for thousands of years. The earliest evidence of coca leaf chewing comes from about 3000 B.C.E. In the Peruvian lowlands, many pre-Colombian graves have been found to contain the remains of coca leaves, lime, and artifacts used for coca consumption. However, such remnants are rarely found in the Andean highlands, mostly due to clumsy excavation methods.
According to traditional Bon histories, in 16,017 BCE the Buddha Tonpa Shenrab Miwo, was born in the central city of this region, Olmo Lungring. There he founded the tradition known as Yungdrung Bon. If you are at all curious about the ancient tradition of Yungdrung Bon, its practices, and its connection to the concept of non-duality through the practice of Dzogchen, we hope you find this article informative.
Chances are, you are already familiar with the concept of Essential Oils. These are concentrated liquids containing the volatile aroma compounds extracted from plants which are usually created through steam distillation or extraction. Essential oils can be very valuable for herbalists or those seeking to experience the essence of a plant medicine. They allow you to feel the powerful healing properties of a plant in a concentrated form.
Please enjoy and contribute to this ever-evolving timeline of the development of the spirituality and religions of earth through time and space.
Please enjoy and contribute to this constantly evolving timeline of entheogen and plant medicine use through time and space.
Entoptic images are visual effects which originate within the visual processing system of the observer. The term ‘entoptic’ comes from the Greek for ‘within vision’, indicating that the images come from anywhere within the optic system, between the eye itself and the neural cortex where signals from the optic nerve are interpreted. Since it originates within the visual system, entoptic imagery can only be seen by the observer.
Explanatory paradigms couched in terms of receptor selectivities, structure/activity relationships, agonist/antagonist interactions, activation of limbic substructures, etc., all somehow fail to do justice to the transcendent, transformative reality that becomes manifest when one actually consumes a psychedelic. – Dennis McKenna
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