Suggestions for Future Psychonautica Podcasts

[Xochipilli2012]

While the philosophical stuff has been great fun, and remains rich territory for further exploration and debate, I recommend we not get "bogged down" with assailing or defending one "theory" for another, and include some practical, hands on, "Do try this at home, folks!" kinds of information.

For example, shows that help Psychonauts acquire or manifest their sacred sacraments:

Home Mushroom Cultivation. I know we've already discussed this, but it's so important that it bears repeating and refining. Psilocybin mushrooms are one of the safest, easy-to-produce, yet extremely powerful entheogens. Every psychonaut who enjoys these beautiful plant allies should know how to be self-sufficient with their production. Plus, we could get into growing more exotic, non cubensis species, such as Copelandia.
Salvia Divinorum cultivation and use. We clearly have a large salvia community here, but how many people are growing their own plants? I'm not...yet. But I think a lot of people would if they knew that it wasn't that difficult. Plus, having fresh leaves available allows more opportunity to experiment with non-smoking methods of consumption.
Smokeable DMT Extracts from Plants. This is something that Max is experienced at already--and it would be cool to get more people wearing their Alchemists hats, sharing ideas and experiences.
Ayahuasca Borealis. With all due respect to those in our community who feel the best way (or only way) to properly experience Ayahuasca is with South American plant mixtures, administered by native-trained curanderos, and preferably in the Amazon itself, this is something different. I think Jonathan Ott may have coined the term for an orally-active DMT brew utilizing plant materials that can grow in the Northern Hemisphere.
Ronin Ayahuasca. Description of people consuming traditional (or non-traditional) ayahuasca plant admixtures, possibly obtained through online sources, within a non-traditional setting, i.e., without a classically-trained ayahuasquero/curandero/shaman.
Datura Family. Is there a "safe" way to experiment with the various species of datura plants? I suspect there are people who are finding ways to explore these plants without killing themselves. There may be some species or preparations that are "safer" than others, etc.
Hawaiian Baby Woodrose/Morning Glory seeds. Llamabox posted some really interesting instructions about how to prepare and consume HBW seeds elsewhere in these forums. HBW can be really interesting and effective if one can reduce the negative physical effects some people experience, and I think a discussion of this might inspire more people to try out the LSA class of plants.
Trichocereus Cacti. I've never done peyote or mescaline--but given the opportunity, I would love to try. Given that San Pedro and Peruvian Torch Cacti (Trichocereus pachanoi and Trichocereus peruvianus) are available for purchase and can be cultivated at home by a lot of people--it would be cool to hear more info about these fascinating hallucinogenic cacti.
And other plants I don't know so much about...


In addition to the obvious sacrament-specific topics listed above, here are some related topics that Psychonauts might enjoy learning more about, and are highly relevant to living a more engaged, entheogenically-informed, human lifestyle:


Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuro-linguistic_programming)
Auto-Hypnosis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autosuggestion)
Creative and Lucid Dreaming (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucid_dreaming)
Astral Projection (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astral_projection)
The I Ching (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Ching)
Astrology
Tarot
Divination (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divination)--Ouija, crystal gazing, automatic writing, pendulum swinging, geomancy, etc.
Yoga (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga)
Massage
Brain Machines (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Devices_to_alter_consciousness)
Isolation/Floatation tanks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isolation_tank)
Meditation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation)
Tantra (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tantra)
Magick (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magick) (Crowley (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleister_Crowley), Bonewits (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonewits) et al.)
Ritual (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritual)
Orgiastic Sexuality (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_sex)
Trance Dancing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trance)
Drumming
Channeling (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channelling_%28mediumistic%29)
Pyramid Energy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_power)
Orgone Energy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orgone)/Wilhelm Reich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_Reich)
Martial Arts
Hemi-sync (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemi-Sync), binaural beat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_beats) technology
Orthodox/Traditional Religion in Harmony with entheogen usage
"Urban Primitive" culture. (Body piercing, tattooing, Burning Man, Rainbow Tribe, etc.)
Online Security. (PGP, Hushmail, proxy servers, anonymizing software, temporary email, etc.)
And lots of other stuff...


Max could probably get decent guests for most, if not all these categories. If anyone thinks that any of these are not "relevant" for the average psychonaut, please let me know and I'll elaborate on why I put it on the list.

Also--dear follow Psychonautica Fans, please add suggestions of your own.

The EDC EgoDeath discussion is pretty interesting, for some...but it may be time to give other relevant topics more exposure. The EgoDeath Theory has a lot of momentum for its discussion here already--so maybe the podcast itself can direct some attention towards other things that are of equal or greater interest for the listeners?

Blessings....

[cereus]

I would like to learn more about Soma, kykeon, and the other fabled entheogens that made us what we are today. And I have a question about ergot, is it possible to use safely. It may be one of the best hallucinogens in northern Europe. :eek:

[Ostritt]

I like your list Xochipilli and agree with your choices, though I would add MDMA to the list. I feel it's often neglected as an entheogen. Specifically, I am interested in combining MDMA and meditation (at the same time). I have had very good experiences with this combination but have not heard or read about many people exploring the substance in this way. Like marijuana, it facilitates meditation in a big way. Any thoughts?

[BlackBeauty]

Great thread Xochipilli :)

I'd like to say an extra 'yay' for:

Salvia Divinorum cultivation and use
Hawaiian Baby Woodrose seeds
NLP
Auto-Hypnosis
Binaural beats
Martial Arts

[queerninja]

I like your list Xochipilli and agree with your choices, though I would add MDMA to the list. I feel it's often neglected as an entheogen. Specifically, I am interested in combining MDMA and meditation (at the same time). I have had very good experiences with this combination but have not heard or read about many people exploring the substance in this way. Like marijuana, it facilitates meditation in a big way. Any thoughts?

Totally Ostritt. Some my the deepest and most fulfilling journeys have been with MDMA. Very healing.

[teapothead]

Hi Xochipilli,

Greetings from Portland, city of bridges.

Thank you for that post. I often find myself reading and agreeing with your articulate and insightful comments in this forum; you are a valuable and caring member of this community. I wonder if you could be persuaded to start your own podcast? You seem to have years of experience with entheogens and spiritual practice; these experiences, coupled with your desire to educate and benefit the community could be put to good use, and would be a nice addition to the dopefiend/grow report family.

I would also like to suggest the following topic for future podcasts: defining one's goals for psychedelic/entheogen use, how to assimilate the insights gained from them, how to put these insights into practice so as to benefit one's spiritual/emotional/psychological health, and how to carry these forth into one's community, for the benefit of all.

Peace.

mr. teapothead

[Ostritt]

Yea Teapothead I agree. I was thinking of this just today as I was walking Dublin's streets, with Christianity's numbing sacrament being sold every five paces, that every psychonaut, everyone with a good education and a safe existence has a responsibility to use their experiences to create a paradigm shift so that we can one day live in a world where everyone has equal opportunity and the freedom to walk their paths in peace. That brings me to a problem that I had reading this in "The Entheogen Theory of Religion and Ego Death"

"Hallucinogenic drug-plants will be revived as the authentic vehicle for the mystic state in communal religion, because they are immediately available to all people..."

I see entheogens as teachers that lead us to a new level of awareness, but not the only tools available to achieve this. Indeed, what about Terence McKenna's theory of the scarcity of the mushroom as a result of climate change leading to the slow domination of mead culture that has left us where we are today? We don't need reliance, we need spiritual evolution. Quite simply, I think it is absurd to assume that an individual sitting by themselves completely sober cannot, eventually, reach the same levels as those we reach using entheogens. What if they all disappeared, would that make us any less able to evolve spiritually? How can there be an "authentic vehicle"? Authentic according to whose standards? Hoffman's? I would suggest that one of the strongest messages to be found within the psychedelic experience is the transient, relative nature of all moral systems and fixed ways of thinking. It is this that I think the world needs to remember and I think that we sometimes lose sight of the sheer emotional WUUERRRR!! of explosive love that characterises the experience. My plan is to bring this acceptance, love, patience and excitement to those who are trapped in barriers not of their own making.

[Xochipilli2012]

I like your list Xochipilli and agree with your choices, though I would add MDMA to the list. I feel it's often neglected as an entheogen. Specifically, I am interested in combining MDMA and meditation (at the same time). I have had very good experiences with this combination but have not heard or read about many people exploring the substance in this way. Like marijuana, it facilitates meditation in a big way. Any thoughts?

Hey Ali! Thanks for the comments, man. MDMA (the real deal) is one of my all time favorite things, and I guess I left it off the list because I was aiming for things more accessible (to me). Now--if I become some sort of local psychedelic luminary (he wishes) maybe I'll run into the exotic stuff more often. :D

Good catch! Now...if we could have a podcast that told how to make MDMA at home, without poisoning the environment, blowing up a building, or getting nabbed for purchasing chemicals on a "watch list," that would be extra-super-cool! :eek:

(And I appreciate your post on the other thread, Ali...I just need the time to properly respond to it. Thanks again, mate!)

[Xochipilli2012]

Great thread Xochipilli :)

I'd like to say an extra 'yay' for:

Salvia Divinorum cultivation and use
Hawaiian Baby Woodrose seeds
NLP
Auto-Hypnosis
Binaural beats
Martial Arts




Heya BB,

You wouldn't be shocked if I told you that you inspired my Martial Arts inclusion, would you? I don't have much training in actual fighting techniques, but I did get into Tai Chi for awhile and found it rather psychedelic in its own right. I think the contemplative traditions that are closely associated with most of the Eastern martial arts makes them particularly well-suited and well-integrated into a thoughtful, harmonious, psychedelic experience-informed lifestyle.

And on the Salvia front--I'm expecting my first live plants in the next couple of weeks. If I can keep them healthy and thriving, lots of interesting things will follow as I get to know them.

Thanks for chiming in, Lovely One! :cool:

[Xochipilli2012]

Totally Ostritt. Some my the deepest and most fulfilling journeys have been with MDMA. Very healing.

Hi QN, Beautiful Laughing Blissed-Out Man! :D

I forgot to mention to Ostritt that I had some experiences early on with MDMA which were very much oriented towards being in a meditative space, although I only deliberately used it in anticipation of doing a specific meditation on one particular occasion.

I first experienced MDMA in 1986 within the context of my own spiritual community (Disciples of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh/Osho (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osho)). We were already doing "groups" together, and meditations, etc. And we were always a "touchy-feely" bunch--lots of hugging, melting hugs, for minutes at a time. And then there was the liberal attitude towards exploring sexuality. Put all of this together with MDMA in a nice setting and you couldn't find a more beautiful group of people to journey with.

We cleared space in our living and dining rooms and brought down mattresses and lots of pillows. We prepared all kinds of fresh fruit, juices, and water ahead of the time so people could take care of themselves during the experience. And the main guy putting it all together, a German cat named "Marpa" who had just come from Goa, brought a bunch of music--which sounded like Brazilian lounge or chill stuff--not the high energy dance music from more recent years. Anyhoooo....it was a beautiful scene. Lots and lots of melting, hug piles, and occasionally serious/sincere conversations in some of the bedrooms between people who had things "to work out."

This was like 10 years before I ever did MDMA at a dance club and learned what that was all about. When I told some of my friends about my first experiences (all the lying around and melting heart space stuff) they didn't get it at first--it never occurred to them to do it in that way.

Oh yeah--I got a contact high before one of the parties we had that summer when I called my house mate to see if people were showing up yet, and she was already tripping. She did this "I.....LOVE......YOU....!" thing on the phone, and BOOM! Straight to my heart--I was on MDMA too in that moment!

Beautiful.

[Xochipilli2012]

I would also like to suggest the following topic for future podcasts: defining one's goals for psychedelic/entheogen use, how to assimilate the insights gained from them, how to put these insights into practice so as to benefit one's spiritual/emotional/psychological health, and how to carry these forth into one's community, for the benefit of all.

Peace.

mr. teapothead

Greetings mr. teapothead!

Nice to know you are close by--I don't get to your beautiful city often enough.

Thanks for the kind words. Sometimes I wonder if I'm not annoying people, particularly Max, with my low-pain threshold for all things M. Hoffman. (I suspect Michael is a very nice man in real life.) But to Max's credit, he's been very kind to me throughout. I have thought about doing a podcast, but my first idea was to do something like Psychonautica, but in Spanish. No. I don't really speak Spanish, but I can fake it well enough to get things started. But it's a good thought, mr. teapothead, and I will let it simmer a bit and see where it leads.

Your suggestion:

defining one's goals for psychedelic/entheogen use, how to assimilate the insights gained from them, how to put these insights into practice so as to benefit one's spiritual/emotional/psychological health, and how to carry these forth into one's community, for the benefit of all.

This is brilliant, and I suspect Max will have some positive resonance with it as well, given the aims of EDC EgoDeath (as best as I can currently understand them).

I'm trying to get Martin W. Ball (http://www.martinball.net/) (Mushroom Wisdom (http://www.amazon.com/dp/1579510361?tag=crealm&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=1579510361&adid=045FZN3WGBB0C767BAYJ&) and Sage Spirit (http://www.amazon.com/Sage-Spirit-Divinorum-Entheogenic-Experience/dp/0615157084/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b/002-5431628-3374457)) to get in touch with Max and hopefully get on the show sometime. Martin's up for it--but Max might have a lot of stuff scheduled before that will happen. Mushroom Wisdom allies closely with what you are suggesting, mr. teapothead. I highly recommend it to my fellow shroomers and will dedicate a thread specifically to it once I make time to do so.

When I first started exploring HBW, and then LSD afterwards...I used Leary, Metzner, and Alpert's The Psychedelic Experience (http://www.erowid.org/library/books_online/psychedelic_experience/psychedelic_experience.shtml) (online copy courtesy of Erowid) which pulls much from the Tibetan Book of the Dead. In fact, I had my first exposure to the concept of "Ego Death" in connection with psychedelics with that book. I probably did 5 or 6 trips explicitly "programmed" in that manner. But for the sake of full disclosure, the vast majority of my psychedelic experiences usually started out with a "recreational" intention. I'm a fucking hedonist, after all!

Nice one, mr. teapothead! Thanks!!

[braha_kahn]

Herbal Afrodisiacs? :D
Sex & Entheogens? :D
More interviews with researchers?

a Site of the week section or something?

I dunno

[Ostritt]

Hmm entheogens and sex. Taking MDMA and having a wank gets you as frustrated as a blind lesbian trying to program a clock radio at a fish market. Sex is very enjoyable as well but I find it impossible to orgasm (not always, just on pills). However, I have heard that this is possible for those with a steely determination and a steelier penis. Weed is definitely a fantastic addition, though I think there has been a lot said about the entheogenic origins of tantric sex (maybe there hasn't, though I seem to remember reading something about it and a 17c CE picture of an Indian couple smoking while having sex springs to mind)

[Xochipilli2012]

In my wilder days...and we hope they're not over just yet...I would get nasty with myself with ample application of cannabis, cubensis (3-4 grams), some really evil porn (TS/Shemale stuff or super-nasty anal-oriented...A2M, A2OGM, DP, gapes, creampies, cumfarts...TMI??? Sorry :o !!!) ...and plenty of scented olive oil.

Sometimes these "recreational ventures" would edge over into heroic territory, at which point sex was the last thing I was interested in.

Oh...and in terms of actually making love with someone, mushrooms and herb are also quite amazing and lovely--but with great potential to "go wrong." (I have had two past girlfriends who were convinced I was the Devil during the height of a mushroom trip together. I had a lot of fun playing "hard to get" when they came down enough to figure out that I wasn't, or I was irresistibly sexy enough that they didn't care. :rolleyes: )

For me, psilocybin has never created "erectile dysfunction" problems. On the contrary--sometimes it seems impossible to climax. (Fungal auto-eros sessions have lasted more than two hours....uh huh.) Would probably make it really nice for extended, tantric love-making, but I've never had a lover adventurous or focused enough to want to check that out. (I may also have poor social skills.)

And yeah--MDMA on it's own may be a delicious heart-space drug, but it doesn't always work as an aphrodisiac. The only time a past lover did me with a strap-on was on MDMA. That was a bit of a challenge, but it was also something. :eek:

HBW - not so great for sex, at least not for me. It made me feel a bit numb in the tactile sense, even though the emotional space is great.

And LSD? YIKES!!! Making love on acid can be nice--but for me it has mostly been a bit too overwhelming. But when you're on the downside of the trip, and Mother Ganja starts taking hold, sex can be quite awesome...

Yeah Max...let's make the next nine podcasts about sex on drugs!

[Ostritt]

For once I am at a loss for words.:p

[BlackBeauty]

*sigh* Xochipilli - oh to have a partner interested in exploring sex with psychedelics! *sigh*

[Xochipilli2012]

*sigh* Xochipilli - oh to have a partner interested in exploring sex with psychedelics! *sigh*

Hey BB,

Opposites attract, right? If I remember correctly, your boyfriend isn't even into the Green Goddess. And although you're an athletic stoner babe who can probably get the munchies like there's no tomorrow, I suspect you're not with your beau just because he's a gourmet chef.

Why we hook up with the people we do is often a complete mystery.

This reminds me of a "theme" for a future Dopecast, more than Psychonautica. I was going to call it "Unequally Yoked," a term bible-thumpers in my country use to refer to having an "unsaved" partner or spouse. Dopefiend was reading a letter from a guy who had to sneak around to get stoned, because his GF didn't like it--even though she too would do it on occasion. DF gave some really seasoned advice suggesting that a partner not being into substances shouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker for pursuing a meaningful relationship with them. His own lover is not a stoner, and yet they have created harmony around it. And there are other listeners who have similarly commented.

So there could be a show on either Psychonautica, the Dopecast, or even BB's Bungalow--discussing relationship dynamics in the face of substance enjoyment.

If I'm reading you correctly, BB. There are places you'd like to take your love life with your beloved that he's not too keen on. Is that right? I have a couple ideas for you.


My first idea focuses on the emotional qualities of your relationship. Start out with something "light" - like MDMA. It doesn't guarantee a sex-fest, but usually something even better happens through it. People feel they can tell the absolute truth, without anxiety. This is amazing in a relationship. And by the same token, one can receive feedback that might ordinarily be threatening or unnerving, and take it to heart in a really loving way. It's one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced, and it's really sad that it's been scheduled out of the reach of the therapeutic community. In the case of you and your boyfriend, it could deepen the bond you share, and increase trust--opening the door to other things. Plus, because it has psychedelic qualities of its own, it's a beautiful introduction to the psychedelic experience.

My second idea is also "light weight" but is more body-oriented and the "draw" is the offer of a heightened sensual experience. Some people are going to laugh, or groan (now that I'm half-way into the pun) - Nitrous! Nitrous Oxide can be down right psychedelic if you get a couple good hits in a row. And yet, it doesn't last very long, so people not comfortable with the idea of tripping on shrooms for 4+ hours, or acid for 8 find the idea of nitrous more accessible. And oddly enough, at the right moments...it can make sex pretty interesting. (Kind of weird giving your partner a balloon right as she starting to have an orgasm...but one can get used to that kind of weirdness.)


But...at the end of the day, he may be resolute. I mean...if you can't entice him to enjoy some weed (which is a super-great aphrodisiac in its own right) while he's enjoying you...he's probably a pretty tough customer when it comes to things that are even more exotic.

Ironically, most of my lovers have been conservative when it comes to enjoying the gifts of nature and science. Don't ask me why--it's a flipping mystery. I don't like tobacco either, not even the smell of it, and yet half my girlfriends have been cigarette smokers. Like a said: flippin' MYSTERY.

Nevertheless, a few have been willing to smoke herb and even do some shrooms because I suggested it would make our already great sex...even better. :o Sometimes this was true; at others, well...I was the Devil. What I do know is that I didn't make converts out of any of those conservative women--their drug experimentation started and ended with me.

So my dear, you might just be on your own when it comes to making love on psychedelics. (Although there's always the Lysistrata (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysistrata) approach...)

Good Luck!

[BlackBeauty]

Thanks for the words of wisdom...but it looks like I'm on my own in this one. Obviously I love him very much for other reasons but he is also quite stubborn and has made his position quite clear (but never aggressively) about his stance to everything intoxicating apart from alcohol which he does indulge in from time to time :rolleyes:

Apart from that, he will not touch vapour, joints, spliffs or anything. I had to try very hard to get him to try some of my brownies last NYE's...and even then I don't think he's going to try it anytime soon however he did say he might try a space shake or cookie when we get to Dopestock next year.

As far as trying out Nitrous or MDMA out - he definately would not try it and in some aspects, I'm also hesitant of trying these out too (more to do with the setting and lack of tripping companions, rather than anything to do with these drugs)....as I am reminded every night, his drug of choice is TV... :(

I like the sound of the Lysistrata approach you cheeky sod :D but again no luck from here - my sex drive is WAY higher than his! hahaha!

[braha_kahn]

I find it impossible to orgasm (not always, just on pills).
Well if you may believe Tantrists thats a very good thing :D:D:D

[TirikiteToker]

Great thread, Xochipilli.

While the philosophical stuff has been great fun, and remains rich territory for further exploration and debate, I recommend we not get "bogged down" with assailing or defending one "theory" for another

I agree, but after KMO's latest podcast I don't think it's over yet. I'm pretty keen to hear Max's response, but then like you say it would be good to get back to some nuts and bolts stuff on Psychonautica.

Especially keen to hear about plant cultivation - salvia, ayahuasca, chacrona (ayahuasca admixture), mushrooms, cacti. I remember after "coming back" from my first visit to salvia-space thinking, "I want to try this in every possible method and dosage!" and having a plant would certainly help with that (eventually).

I think that while the other topics are very interesting they're probably secondary to your first list on Psychonautica. Certainly worthwhile topics on C-Realm, and I reckon Teapothead is onto something when he suggests that Xochipilli2012 start his own podcast. C-Realm meets Psychonautica meets Osho! What's all this talk about meditation vs psychedelics!? Best of all worlds, please! :D

[max_freakout]

There are some awesome suggestions here, at the moment im having a problem hooking up am interview so it has to be solo for now but im working on it

[mike ra]

personally, would like to hear more on research chemicals..

[Xochipilli2012]

Great thread, Xochipilli.

I agree, but after KMO's latest podcast I don't think it's over yet. I'm pretty keen to hear Max's response, but then like you say it would be good to get back to some nuts and bolts stuff on Psychonautica.

Many thanks, TirikiteToker. It seems the Universe may be conspiring to bring all of this discussion to a delightful little climax. :D I enjoyed the latest C-Realm very much--not only Heidi Smith, but all of it. I'm really looking forward to the second half of that interview, though.

Especially keen to hear about plant cultivation - salvia, ayahuasca, chacrona (ayahuasca admixture), mushrooms, cacti. I remember after "coming back" from my first visit to salvia-space thinking, "I want to try this in every possible method and dosage!" and having a plant would certainly help with that (eventually).

I'm totally there with you, mate! Given the fact that most of our governments are not about to lighten up on these things any time soon, greater self-sufficiency is key. I'm trying my hand at salvia for the first time, for the very reasons you listed. And I also enjoy being generous with others when it comes to the sacred medicines--when I grew shrooms I was able to turn a lot of friends on. I delighted in being able to spread the love like that!

What's all this talk about meditation vs psychedelics!? Best of all worlds, please! :D

Amen Brother! That's what I've been championing all along!! :)

Finally TirikiteToker, I'd like to take this opportunity to tell you how much I've enjoyed your letters to the show(s) and your contributions here on the forums. Plus, I've done a little snooping around on your LiveJournal (?) pages...enjoying your descriptions of Thailand, etc...feeling rather envious by the end, really. :o I think it's so cool that you're a musician and play tablas...I did some "small timbre" drumming a few years back, and got to drum with someone playing tablas with classical training in a decidedly non-classical setting. Marvelous!

[scaredstraight]

In regard to 'Sex'- I believe I'd like to see a more in depth look into the origins of Tantric Sex, and its hallucinogenic beginnings. As well, as a focus into empathic and physical effects of various substances. I used to have a list of natural and chemically based substances that offered the body melding and heightened sensation. 'Sex and Hallucinogens' was actually a subject I suggested in the old forum. I may be able to scrounge up some sources for this.

'Martial Arts'- If this subject is not dear to my heart... I study traditional Tae Kwon Do and a specialized form of Tai Chi (developed by my instructor, and not yet accepted by the Kukkiwon) that specifically incorporates TKD techniques and forms into the Chi methodology. Though consuming herbals, the study and practice of philosophy and the deep discipline/meditation are hallmarks in most traditional (non-sport/exhibitionist) TKD and other martial arts; the use of sacraments, mind altering substances and entheogens is largely ignored. I find their use to be highly enlightening and enhancing. I have also found them to be frighteningly damaging to opponents when sparring (leading to unleashed power and speed that still scares me to think about.) But, this subject deserves large consideration!

[Xochipilli2012]

'Sex and Hallucinogens' was actually a subject I suggested in the old forum. I may be able to scrounge up some sources for this.

Hey Scared Straight,

This sounds very intriguing. Even if Max doesn't have the time or inclination to get into some of the things we're brain-storming here, I hope we can at least run with it here on the forum.

To that end it would be great if you could do some of that scrounging and post some of that goodness here. :o

I love the whole Martial Arts angle because I think there's a lot of as yet unexplored beauty there. You, BB, and a few others have some experience in this area and could probably inspire a few people who never thought to check out learning a martial art. That's part of the potential of this community! We can entice one another to open doors and step into the Magic Theater Steppenwolf style.

Also...

I have also found them to be frighteningly damaging to opponents when sparring (leading to unleashed power and speed that still scares me to think about.) But, this subject deserves large consideration!

Holy shit!

Agreed.

Thanks SS!

[scaredstraight]

I believe Max did have some interest in the 'Sex and Psychedelics' angle. He even came up with an article, pretty quick, on the subject. Time constraints and multiple ideas with limited resources can limit some things (I was a radio show host, researcher, producer, writer, engineer and everything else at a small AM/FM combo at one time...while being a regular dj, radio remote guy, part time sales, and part of a duo that did all of the local high school basketball home games...little station.) and I can say that you never get things done as fast or well as you'd like to. Let alone do everything you want to. So, putting out some good source material in the forums could be quite helpful for everyone and may lead to '...a very special episode' of Psychonautica.


Hey Scared Straight,

This sounds very intriguing. Even if Max doesn't have the time or inclination to get into some of the things we're brain-storming here, I hope we can at least run with it here on the forum.

To that end it would be great if you could do some of that scrounging and post some of that goodness here. :o

I love the whole Martial Arts angle because I think there's a lot of as yet unexplored beauty there. You, BB, and a few others have some experience in this area and could probably inspire a few people who never thought to check out learning a martial art. That's part of the potential of this community! We can entice one another to open doors and step into the [COLOR="DeepSkyBlue"]Magic Theater Steppenwolf style.

Also...



Holy shit!

Agreed.


Yeah. One hit of good blotter, one open tournament (head shots and sweeps allowed,) and an overly aggressive individual. Not until you've already gone too far do you back off. And, when you decide to back off...you back off too much. Then back to aggression, because your fellow school members are pushing from the sidelines. End result is that you win, the other guy is hurt, and your left with a heavy burden of regret (amplified by what you've taken.)

For practice, forms, workouts, control techniques, etc. pyschedelics are wonderful...but, they are too frightening when blended with any violent activity. It takes a long time to enjoy either martial arts or the sacraments afterward. All introspection breaks down into depression and being on the brink of 'ego-death' is the only place you can ever go. Totally depressing.

[Ostritt]

Sex and entheogen use seem to have been intimately linked for thousands of years. Has anyone read Graham Hancock's Supernatural? A huge amount of the shamanic cave drawings he looks at show therianthropic figures with massive erections...

[scaredstraight]

Sex and entheogen use seem to have been intimately linked for thousands of years. Has anyone read Graham Hancock's Supernatural? A huge amount of the shamanic cave drawings he looks at show therianthropic figures with massive erections...

I haven't read Graham's book yet (so I may be incorrect on this statement, or it may have been an outside observation by someone else that I've heard in the past,) but weren't those erections also in the shape of what appeared to be psilocybin mushrooms?

In addition, I've also seen primitive artwork (that showed the mushroom shaped erections, mushroom or phallic shaped phalanges, etc.) in connection with eroticism in ancient text. This has also been adopted in the artwork and stories of cyberpunk, anime and hentai world which does tend to embrace the concepts of biotechnology, Guyan/earth spirituality, drug/psychedelic culture, and a HUUUUUGE integration of sexuality!

Though cartoons having sex is not a big turn on for me, the content of anime/hentai and cyberpunk is intriguing. It's as if they have based their entire ideology and concepts of the future on the foundations of McKenna, the singulatarians, Wicka, Hindi, etc. It is a melding of the past and future for certain, with (though not entirely positive in its' outlook for the future) a very psychedelic mind state.

[Ostritt]

The ones I've seen are all kind of normal penis shapes, but then again the penis does look like a mushroom (and in my experience takes on very strange forms during mushroom trips). I have about 400 pages left to read so I'm sure it will be mentioned somewhere. There is the Tasilli shaman that has mushrooms growing out of its body and a bee face. I'm not sure if it's connected, but I read a Jonathan Ott article saying that hunter gatherers could have identified psychedelic plants by following the bees that made psychedelic honey. Maybe that's why he has a bee face, though I really have no idea and don't know what anthropologists give as a reason. Interesting thought though.

[scaredstraight]

There is the Tasilli shaman that has mushrooms growing out of its body and a bee face.

Is that the one that some anthropologists have argued to be a man with arrows protruding, instead of mushrooms? Which makes no sense at all, really.

It seems that there is such an extreme dichotomy within the anthropological world in regard to shamanism and entheogenic use. The arguments in opposition to the use of sacraments and their importance in early culture is so typically vague and loosely defined. The 'Pro' side of the argument brings so much research and evidence to the table that just makes sense (and makes the 'con' side appear very sophistic in their arguments.)

I always have to wonder what makes the anti-entheogenic anthropologists take such a fervent stance, when so much evidence points to the contrary?!
Possibly a bad experience, religious dogma, maybe their so filled with 'anti-drug' propaganda that they can't stand to have their research tainted by the demon Psychedelic!

Who knows...

Alright, I'm done rambling. :D I'm obviously too tired to be trying coherency and 'staying on topic' at the same time. :o

[scaredstraight]

I was wondering if anyone thought that the subject of martial arts and psychedelics/entheogens would be worth kicking out into its' own thread for more in depth discussion.

I already tried the 'Sex' subject, but with little interest. Surprising too; I thought people liked sex?!

[Ostritt]

scaredstraight
I always have to wonder what makes the anti-entheogenic anthropologists take such a fervent stance, when so much evidence points to the contrary?!
Possibly a bad experience, religious dogma, maybe their so filled with 'anti-drug' propaganda that they can't stand to have their research tainted by the demon Psychedelic!

Yea man I have wondered the same. The worst thing about it is the fact that only a fraction of these anthropologists seem to have any direct experience with entheogens! It's really absurd and automatically takes most of the validity out of their argument for me. Actually, it seems crazy that our ancestors wouldn't draw on caves or have a huge reaction to the introduction of entheogens into their diet. It's not exactly an experience that can be swept under the rug and forgotten about.

[scaredstraight]

Difficult to say why the researchers can't look at it for what it is. They innocently consumed these things with no government to make it 'evil.' They saw it as a religious, uplifting experience and not drunken revelry. So, why so condemning?

I just may have to begin asking that question directly when I encounter these people in my vicinity. But, if they don't believe it ever happened ...my question would simply be moot. Plenty of Native American runes round my area, so perhaps I'll find someone willing to discuss the subject.

[Scentless Apprentice]

philosopher's stone dude, is there any difference between cubies, Cyanescens, and the stones? They maybe too minor to notice, or, maybe not. I've tried for ten years to find good shrooms until I listened to podcast 5 and decided to take my future into my own hands.