Thanks Tony6Strings! Tatt shared as well several posts down too. Have 2 copies of the actual paperback from Benny Shanon (1st was worn out it was read & travelled so much, bought decade ago when it 1st came out)...it is that good. Expensive, but well worth it. Classic that will live on forever.
Here are some great free articles from Julian Palmer. His book "Articulations: On The Utilisation and Meanings of Psychedelics" is very good.
http://julianpalmerism.com/articles/> 13 Mistakes That Psychoactive Plant Medicine Facilitators Commonly Make
> A Primer on Malefic Entities
> Reflections on Ayahuasca Drinkers
> Modus Operandus
> Why You Should Drink Ayahuasca Alone
James Oroc's book "Tryptamine Palace" and his latest "The new Psychedelic Revolution" are just super. His site is full of free articles too.
Julian Palmer from "Reflections on Ayahuasca Drinkers" above:
Quote:And this is the thing, like a real red pill experience, ayhauasca can totally change your life and there is normally no way of going back to the old illusory world. A lot of people simply do not realise what they are getting themselves in for, and may find themselves processing the experience for months afterwards and having to make many very profound changes in their lives.
A lot of people are simply on the wrong track in their lives. They are doing work they hate, they are unhappy and harbor all sorts of stuff about how they are being and their past. Ayahuasca brings everything to a head and compels you to change your life to be in alignment with your spirit.
It can show you many uncomfortable hard truths about yourself, others and the world. Ayahuasca is earthy, it is grimy, it is shitty, it is getting real – hopefully with yourself. I don’t see what it is got to do with wearing white and being “spiritual”, probably wearing black would be a more suitable color.
Believe it or not a lot of people do not come to ayahuasca prepared to face the psychedelic aspect. I’ve had people say, “this is trippy” or “too trippy” or weird. Yes, it is IS trippy! It is strange and highly unusual!
A lot of people when they drink ayahuasca think they are dying, but this is only their brain telling them they are dying. Normally it is just the ego losing its grip, and the automatic warning systems go off, telling people they are dying. I’ve never directly known anyone to die or even come to serious harm drinking ayahuasca. It appears very safe to me if you have respect for it.
Letting Go
Perhaps the main issue that people have is that they are control freaks. They cannot let go. Mainly, this means letting go of the mind/and or ego, which wants to believe it has control, which is in fact a lie. But letting go has many facets, some people may have been in a state of losing control in the past, in which something bad happened to them, or others, meaning that they have been holding on tight ever since.
It is the mind that wants to hold on, maintaining the problem solving state, but never turning it off, spinning around and round in circles. People are so wound up, worked up in this petty, problem solving state which our society encourages. They fear letting go of this state, and then being too pre-occupied to deal with the world and that’s a valid fear. There can often be a feeling of “spaciness” after taking psychedelics.
It can be tricky to deal with the problem solving mind at all times, when you have other areas and arenas of focus pressing upon you, which are often more immediately felt. This obsession with the problem solving state of consciousness is simply distracting people away from their soul and many people know that, yet find it hard to let go into the profoundity of the unknown where they are no longer assuming their mind is in control.
This last sentence above "letting go of the mind control, or thinking consciousness" is crucial to achieving a higher state of consciousness. James Oroc spends many of his chapters talking of this, as do all of the books from spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle, "The Power of Now", "A New Earth", etc.
Thinking consiousness is just one small aspect of who we are, there is a vast ocean of consciousness beyond the thinking mind that we are a part of, like a drop of water that returns to the ocean. Entheogens promote mindfullness, or being present in the moment. Notice the flowers around you, the petals on the flower, the wind blowing ripples over the lake, quiet the thinking mind, and just be present. Plants have a presence for example, a perception of beauty itself, which is their expressed value. Divine transpersonal realms are revaled with the entheogens. As Tolle saids "the thinking voice in your head is separate from awareness."
You may remember me as 69Ron. I was suspended years ago for selling bunk products under false pretenses. I try to sneak back from time to time under different names, but unfortunately, the moderators of the DMT-Nexus are infinitely smarter than I am.
If you see me at the waterpark, please say hello. I'll be the delusional 50 something in the American flag Speedo, oiling up his monster guns while responding to imaginary requests for selfies from invisible teenage girls.