I was invited to a shamanic breathing circle by a friend that facilitates these types of practices. I have done similar type breathing ceremonies before a few times but it was years ago and pre-dmt. Knowing full well that dmt blew me they fuck apart(thx Uncle Knucles)and re assembled my mind I was intrigued to participate to see how i now perceived non psychedelic altered states and their travels.
A quick background on me, I was a lot more new-age'y at one time. since my work with dmt and after some natural evolution as a self aware being my views on most matters are vastly different. Personally I believe I have seen the true nature of all things with tryptamines. I know I can never fully understand everything I have experienced but there are residual impressions left that stay with me. So that being said I dont feel I know it all but I do feel ive seen enough to say that my previous beliefs and ideas were inaccurate and inadequate regarding the big picture.
The workshop was nice. The people seemed like your usual suspects for these types of events. ya gotta love the kooks, (I say that in a loving way and feel I am equally as kooky). Anyways, we were were given great instructions as well as explanation and tips and got right into it. I paired up with a sitter and went first as I didn't want to have to watch a group go and then have pre-conceived expectations about the matter.
It went well, I feel a deeper level of understanding in regards to self and altered states so much more now that it wasn't hard for me to find my way into a fairly altered state. I tend to gag and purge out negative crap from my body when i do breath work. This I like, I don't throw up its just gagging and coughing ext. I did some more of that this time as well and would say in the 90 min there were 2 other moments of what you would call seeing.
After a good run of breathing I could see in my minds eye my arms which were outstretched in front of me. Overlayed on my arms were transparent jaguar arms and paws in whitish blue light. it was very cool. I get a very animalistic feeling when i do this stuff. I like that part a lot.:d
When it was all over we sat around and everyone talked about there experiences. I listened closely to the groups vivid descriptions and accounts that rival our trip reports here. There was a huge part of me that just cant accept this. I can never know what anyone else feels and see's. All we can go by is descriptions But how you imagine my described experience may be very different from how i experienced it. in other words people can talk about their skulls jumping out of their heads and into their hands made of crystal but it seems to me like its completely a minds eye type of experience.
That coupled with being in a trance like state from breathing it can be quite moving. It seems like its apples and oranges to psychedelic journeys but since its described in the same way i feel it becomes misleading to participants as to what to even look for. When it was my turn to be a sitter i watched this poor guy trying so desperately hard to launch to the point of tears from frustration at his "failure". I could just tell he was really expecting or wanting a dmt breakthrough type experience and hoped he could hyperventilate into one.
I left there wondering if im an altered states snob now:lol: or have i just not "traveled". part of me wanted to run home grab my vaporizer/spice and say "ok folks....if you really want out of body step right up"
Considering my specific art background of indigenous cultures and future long term travel to South America this year i would have predicted that these shamanic studies would really resonate with me but they don't seem to. Thats kind of sad in a way. I really feel like once you walk through that door of hyperspace there's no way to predict how you will see the world upon returning. Mine wasn't an over night paradigm shift, it is the culmination of years of dmt use, learning and growing but its main influence has been tryptamines hands down.
I do see that there is most certainly a place for this type of shamanic work, I just dont see any significant advantages but do however see disadvantages from only doing this type of work. its fully limited to your cognitive imagination it seems. ive never heard anyone come back from a breath workshop saying" wow, that was so strange and peculiar i cant even comprehend what i just saw". to me this shows that it is truly limited to what your cognitive brain already knows or has seen. no?
A quick background on me, I was a lot more new-age'y at one time. since my work with dmt and after some natural evolution as a self aware being my views on most matters are vastly different. Personally I believe I have seen the true nature of all things with tryptamines. I know I can never fully understand everything I have experienced but there are residual impressions left that stay with me. So that being said I dont feel I know it all but I do feel ive seen enough to say that my previous beliefs and ideas were inaccurate and inadequate regarding the big picture.
The workshop was nice. The people seemed like your usual suspects for these types of events. ya gotta love the kooks, (I say that in a loving way and feel I am equally as kooky). Anyways, we were were given great instructions as well as explanation and tips and got right into it. I paired up with a sitter and went first as I didn't want to have to watch a group go and then have pre-conceived expectations about the matter.
It went well, I feel a deeper level of understanding in regards to self and altered states so much more now that it wasn't hard for me to find my way into a fairly altered state. I tend to gag and purge out negative crap from my body when i do breath work. This I like, I don't throw up its just gagging and coughing ext. I did some more of that this time as well and would say in the 90 min there were 2 other moments of what you would call seeing.
After a good run of breathing I could see in my minds eye my arms which were outstretched in front of me. Overlayed on my arms were transparent jaguar arms and paws in whitish blue light. it was very cool. I get a very animalistic feeling when i do this stuff. I like that part a lot.:d
When it was all over we sat around and everyone talked about there experiences. I listened closely to the groups vivid descriptions and accounts that rival our trip reports here. There was a huge part of me that just cant accept this. I can never know what anyone else feels and see's. All we can go by is descriptions But how you imagine my described experience may be very different from how i experienced it. in other words people can talk about their skulls jumping out of their heads and into their hands made of crystal but it seems to me like its completely a minds eye type of experience.
That coupled with being in a trance like state from breathing it can be quite moving. It seems like its apples and oranges to psychedelic journeys but since its described in the same way i feel it becomes misleading to participants as to what to even look for. When it was my turn to be a sitter i watched this poor guy trying so desperately hard to launch to the point of tears from frustration at his "failure". I could just tell he was really expecting or wanting a dmt breakthrough type experience and hoped he could hyperventilate into one.
I left there wondering if im an altered states snob now:lol: or have i just not "traveled". part of me wanted to run home grab my vaporizer/spice and say "ok folks....if you really want out of body step right up"
Considering my specific art background of indigenous cultures and future long term travel to South America this year i would have predicted that these shamanic studies would really resonate with me but they don't seem to. Thats kind of sad in a way. I really feel like once you walk through that door of hyperspace there's no way to predict how you will see the world upon returning. Mine wasn't an over night paradigm shift, it is the culmination of years of dmt use, learning and growing but its main influence has been tryptamines hands down.
I do see that there is most certainly a place for this type of shamanic work, I just dont see any significant advantages but do however see disadvantages from only doing this type of work. its fully limited to your cognitive imagination it seems. ive never heard anyone come back from a breath workshop saying" wow, that was so strange and peculiar i cant even comprehend what i just saw". to me this shows that it is truly limited to what your cognitive brain already knows or has seen. no?
