Source – nexusnewsfeed.com
- “…Since time immemorial, psychedelic mind-altering experiences have been common among humankind’s shamanic journeys. All is one. That is one of the feelings contemporary users of mind-altering plants describe….Spiritual leaders have expounded upon these connected truths for centuries. All is one… Spiritual guru Deepak Choprah, psychologist Timothy Leary, author Mike Pollan, chef Anthony Bourdain, and countless others have related that they had a profound sense of the existence of the soul after experimenting with mind-altering plants. These truths are spiritual. The use of such substances to attain such spiritual or religious insight is ancient”
Psychedelic-Induced Mystical Experiences Throughout History
Since time immemorial, psychedelic mind-altering experiences have been common among humankind’s shamanic journeys. All is one. That is one of the feelings contemporary users of mind-altering plants describe. Actor Nick Kroll reported that it was “ good to be one with the eart h,” and Carrie Fisher, best known for her role as Princess Leia in Star Wars, explained that she could see the “web” that connects all things; there was no doubt that everything is one. Anthropologist David Watts explained, “ The universal core of the mystical experience is the vision of unity. The vision of unity may be unification with nature or the universal self. The central characteristic of unity is the lack of conceptual or perceptual differentiation of objects .” All users report such a sensation. Musician Sting related that in his experience with psychedelics, he not only had a profound sense of connection with everything around him, but it also left him egoless. Others have reported the same thing: the sensation that the body is nothing more than a shell.
Spiritual leaders have expounded upon these connected truths for centuries. All is one. The body is nothing more than a shell. To explain the latter, some use the cicada as a metaphor, and a famous Japanese author wrote a 17th-century piece entitled “ The Greatest Joys of the Cicada and its Cast-Off Shell ,” in which a cicada has a conversation with its shell. Obviously, the shell is a metaphor for the body, and the cicada is the real creature: perhaps the real “soul.” Spiritual guru Deepak Choprah, psychologist Timothy Leary, author Mike Pollan, chef Anthony Bourdain, and countless others have related that they had a profound sense of the existence of the soul after experimenting with mind-altering plants. These truths are spiritual. The use of such substances to attain such spiritual or religious insight is ancient.
Shamanic inner world ( Pamela Ranya /Adobe Stock )
Evidence of Pre-Historic Psychedelic Plant Users
The earliest known evidence of medicinal plants used to affect the consciousness is in the Tassili-n-Ajjer area of the Sahara desert, where a 7,000 to 9,000 year-old mural is found in a cave depicting a man, someone who would now likely be recognized as a shaman, with an unusual mask over his face and numerous mushrooms adorning his body. These fungi have been identified as psilocybe mairei . More ancient evidence is found in a Spanish cave near Villar de Humo where a 6,000-year-old mural depicts what has been positively identified as the psychedelic mushroom psilocybe hispanica .
DR. KEN JEREMIAH has written several books about religions, mummification, and spirituality, including Living Buddhas, Christian Mummification, Eternal Remains. Making Millions: A 500-Year-Old Kabbalist’s Guide to Conquering Chance, and Zen Art, Zen Writing Daily Meditations for Improving your Craft and Finding Joy in Life and Creatures Real and Imaginary in Chinese and Japanese Art: An Identification Guide and Remnants from a Distant Past
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PSYCHEDELIA: THE HISTORY AND SCIENCE OF MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE
Co-sponsored by Chacruna Institute, Fluence, World Psychedelics Day, and MAPS
Pacifica Graduate Institute is proud to present a two-day virtual symposium centered around the screening of two films – PSYCHEDELIA: The History and Science of Mystical Experience and The Way of the Psychonaut: Stanislav Grof’s Journey of Consciousness. This unique event features a variety of panel discussions and presentations from leading figures in the field, focused on cutting-edge topics in areas of psychedelic research, including: therapeutic application and integration; issues of diversity, equity, and access; women in psychedelic and healing spaces; and psychedelics, spirituality, and the future of religion. A number of panels and discussions additionally serve as a reunion of many of the key subjects from the films as well as a diverse gathering of luminaries and practitioners from a variety of backgrounds.
PSYCHEDELIA: The History and Science of Mystical Experience is an award-winning film that takes viewers on a journey through the origins and resurgence of psychedelic research. Featuring rare archival footage, interviews with leading experts, and first-hand accounts from a psilocybin study on end-of-life anxiety, the film explores the profound, life-altering effects of these compounds in both the therapeutic setting and the world at large. This one-of-a-kind documentary is in a sense a time capsule for the story of psychedelic research and lays the historical and contextual foundation for today’s “Psychedelic Renaissance.”
The Way of the Psychonaut explores the life and work of Dr. Stanislav Grof, Czech-born psychiatrist and psychedelic psychotherapy pioneer. Stan’s quest for knowledge and insights into the healing power of non-ordinary states of consciousness deeply influenced the emerging discipline of transpersonal psychology and profoundly changed many lives. The film screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring the filmmaker and notable figures from the film, including a special guest appearance by Stan Grof, as well as keynote address by Richard Tarnas.
The two-day conference will expand upon the themes and topics of both films, with further discussion and exploration into the complex and rapidly expanding field of psychedelic science, medicine, and mystical experience.
Conference Learning Objectives
- Describe various theoretical approaches to psychedelic medicines, including implications for diverse therapeutic outcomes.
- Differentiate multiple perspectives regarding psychedelic therapies, including medical, psychiatric, and psychotherapeutic perspectives.
- Assess implications for psychedelic integration as related to therapeutic practice.
DAY ONE: PSYCHEDELIA: THE HISTORY AND SCIENCE OF MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2021
Psychedelics and Mystical Experience Research: A New Paradigm for the Study of Meaning, Spirituality, and Therapeutics
Anthony P. Bossis, PhD
This presentation will review the history and scientific findings from psychedelic and mystical experience research highlighting the treatment of psychological, existential, and spiritual distress in palliative care and at the end of life. Implications for the future of palliative and hospice care will be addressed.
Anthony P. Bossis, PhD, is a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine conducting FDA-approved psychedelic clinical research with the compound psilocybin since 2009. Dr. Bossis is director of palliative care research and co-principal investigator on the clinical psilocybin trial demonstrating a rapid and sustained reduction in psychological distress and improvement in existential well-being in cancer patients. He is study director and lead session guide on a psilocybin trial with religious leaders. His psilocybin research interests include the treatment of end-of-life distress, myriad mental health disorders, and to advance our understanding of consciousness, meaning, and spirituality. He maintains a consulting and psychotherapy practice in NYC.
FILM SCREENING
PSYCHEDELIA: The History and Science of Mystical Experience – Trailer from Pat Murphy on Vimeo.
PSYCHEDELIA is an hour-long documentary film about psychedelic drugs and their ability to induce mystical and religious experiences. The film chronicles their use in controlled research studies prior to the cultural upheaval of the 1960s, when LSD was regarded as a promising medical breakthrough, as well as their recent re-emergence in psychiatry.
Featuring leading experts in the field of psychedelic research, the film tells the story of medical professionals who have re-introduced these compounds into a legal and growing field of study. First-person accounts from a study on end-of-life anxiety explore the profound, life-altering insights psychedelics induce in participants and what these insights might mean for society at large.
Charles S. Grob, MD, is Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the UCLA School of Medicine and the Director of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He has conducted approved clinical research with various psychedelics and has published numerous articles in the professional literature and several books on the topic, including his most recent book, Handbook of Medical Hallucinogens (Guilford Press, 2021).
Pat Murphy (moderator) is a documentary filmmaker and professional film editor. He has edited programs for major outlets like PBS, Showtime, and People magazine. As a producer, his films have been shown in museums, international film festivals, and in-studio on Channel 13 in New York City. www.psychedeliadoc.com
Stephen Ross, MD, is Research Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Dr. Ross is a founding member of the NYU Psychedelic Research Group and is currently associate director of the NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine and director of the NYU Psychedelic Medicine Research Training Program.
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