hexagonomicon
Rising Star
I’m coming more and more to the conclusion that DMT (and possibly psychedelics in general) are simply not for everyone. Let me explain what I mean by this. I don’t think that anybody should be denied the psychedelic experience if they seek it, in fact I do believe that everybody should have a psychedelic experience at least once in their lives. But we need to take a realistic look at the current socio-political framework that this psychedelic revival is taking place under, and we need to take steps to ensure the sanctity and survival of a psychedelic tradition based on experience and wisdom.
Right now you can buy DMT containing botanicals as easy as anything else legal online. The internet has allowed the massive dissemination of extremely simple and effective extraction teks, and now anybody who wants to can have access to what many call the Spirit Molecule. I’m convinced this won’t last much longer. Soon enough we will see MHRB, viridis, and ayahuasca imports made illegal, along with massive internet censorship. The information and plants are out there, nobody can stop them, but we who have the knowledge and experience need to ensure that it is passed on to worthy individuals.
A part of my proposal, also, is a shift in the way that we introduce psychedelics, and DMT specifically, to other people. The west has no shamanic tradition, and because of that the psychedelic community has been stumbling around senseless until very recently as it has begun to mature, and as the old generation of Elders (Hoffman, McKenna, Shulgin, Leary, etc) passes on. Psychedelics were initially explored under a psychoanalytical model, which I personally think doesn’t work. Now we are moving into a mode of exploration based on a model of “urban shamanism” which has a greater emphasis on mythology, magick, and inter/trans-personal experience.
This emerging psychedelic paradigm, borne out of the internet, can finally come to terms with the ideas of people like McCluhan and McKenna. There is an awareness of language, and a reclamation of mythology and symbolism. And what is the modern mythology that comes along with psychedelics? Hyperspace, entities, “vibes”, the pineal gland, and cosmic consciousness are the pillars of modern psychedelic mythology. We’ve created symbols like the mantis, the mandala of eyes, and geometric patterns immediately identifiable by anybody “in the know”. The psychedelic community has never hesitated to define its own culture, and I think this is a wonderful thing.
What is often missing, though, is a context for use in which ritual and proper guidance can be incorporated into the experience of the novice tripper. Summer festivals can serve this function to a degree, but unfortunately those events are often contaminated with a reckless party atmosphere. Burning Man seems to be one of the few high profile festivals which explicitly embraces ritual and deliberate shaping of the environment through media in order to alter consciousness. Other festivals may use occult symbolism in their logos (Bonnaroo anyone?) but any notion of ritual seems to be absent, especially from the people who attend.
Now I’d like to synthesize all these ideas I’ve talked about into what I’ve been calling The Culture. The Culture consists of cultivators/extractors, people who have extensive experience with psychedelics, who possess fact based knowledge about the chemistry and physiology, and, most importantly, who make deliberate efforts to reclaim mythology in order to redefine their worldview/identity by using the power of symbols/language to shape their environment, their own mind, and the minds of others. These people are modern day alchemists, transmuting horse manure and raw plant materials into substances capable of transforming the individual. Cultivation and extraction are alchemical processes, and in my opinion these processes should be performed as being reflective of the inner transformation which we seek.
Because most of these people are self-taught via the internet and books, there hasn’t been a need, or even a desire for the experienced to pass their knowledge directly to others in person. Adopting an “apprentice” would only open up most people to liabilities. But someday this will change. I was fortunate enough to have a friend teach me how to cultivate, but I have had trouble finding a worthy student to pass my knowledge on to. Most people aren’t really interested in taking a serious spiritual approach to psychedelics and the profit motive seriously mucks up peoples’ intentions.
I look forward to the day when I will be able to meet up with like minded people and engage in psychedelic exploration in a seriously ritualized context rather than a casual party atmosphere. I imagine a place where people can gather and be properly initiated into a purposeful group of extractors and cultivators. There can be a library, and a small solar monument built to track the passing of time and to mark the solstices. I dream lofty dreams, but my intent is to redirect an often reckless and purposeless psychedelic culture, or at least allow the pure fraction of tomorrows shamans to precipitate out of solution and crystallize into something beautiful.
What can we do to crystallize The Culture? First I would recommend creating one’s own rituals. Creating a small alter with symbolic objects is a good place to start. It doesn’t really matter what they are, as long as they have significance for you and your worldview. Becoming symbol literate, adopting existing symbols, or creating new ones will be very important for this. Secondly, I’d recommend being very mindful of who you share your spice or fungi with. You should ask yourself, “what are the intentions of this person? Do they respect the substance? How much do they know about psychedelics, and what are their expectations? Are they willing to participate in a ritualized context like myself?” etc. Thirdly, we must find a way to connect. Things like the Synchronized Hyperspace Event, are a good place to start. The DMT-Nexus seems to attract a different breed of psychonaut and this is good. But eventually these connections will have to move offline, and this must be done in a way that is safe and discreet.
The Culture, already exists. We are part of it. The only question is, where do we want to take it?
Right now you can buy DMT containing botanicals as easy as anything else legal online. The internet has allowed the massive dissemination of extremely simple and effective extraction teks, and now anybody who wants to can have access to what many call the Spirit Molecule. I’m convinced this won’t last much longer. Soon enough we will see MHRB, viridis, and ayahuasca imports made illegal, along with massive internet censorship. The information and plants are out there, nobody can stop them, but we who have the knowledge and experience need to ensure that it is passed on to worthy individuals.
A part of my proposal, also, is a shift in the way that we introduce psychedelics, and DMT specifically, to other people. The west has no shamanic tradition, and because of that the psychedelic community has been stumbling around senseless until very recently as it has begun to mature, and as the old generation of Elders (Hoffman, McKenna, Shulgin, Leary, etc) passes on. Psychedelics were initially explored under a psychoanalytical model, which I personally think doesn’t work. Now we are moving into a mode of exploration based on a model of “urban shamanism” which has a greater emphasis on mythology, magick, and inter/trans-personal experience.
This emerging psychedelic paradigm, borne out of the internet, can finally come to terms with the ideas of people like McCluhan and McKenna. There is an awareness of language, and a reclamation of mythology and symbolism. And what is the modern mythology that comes along with psychedelics? Hyperspace, entities, “vibes”, the pineal gland, and cosmic consciousness are the pillars of modern psychedelic mythology. We’ve created symbols like the mantis, the mandala of eyes, and geometric patterns immediately identifiable by anybody “in the know”. The psychedelic community has never hesitated to define its own culture, and I think this is a wonderful thing.
What is often missing, though, is a context for use in which ritual and proper guidance can be incorporated into the experience of the novice tripper. Summer festivals can serve this function to a degree, but unfortunately those events are often contaminated with a reckless party atmosphere. Burning Man seems to be one of the few high profile festivals which explicitly embraces ritual and deliberate shaping of the environment through media in order to alter consciousness. Other festivals may use occult symbolism in their logos (Bonnaroo anyone?) but any notion of ritual seems to be absent, especially from the people who attend.
Now I’d like to synthesize all these ideas I’ve talked about into what I’ve been calling The Culture. The Culture consists of cultivators/extractors, people who have extensive experience with psychedelics, who possess fact based knowledge about the chemistry and physiology, and, most importantly, who make deliberate efforts to reclaim mythology in order to redefine their worldview/identity by using the power of symbols/language to shape their environment, their own mind, and the minds of others. These people are modern day alchemists, transmuting horse manure and raw plant materials into substances capable of transforming the individual. Cultivation and extraction are alchemical processes, and in my opinion these processes should be performed as being reflective of the inner transformation which we seek.
Because most of these people are self-taught via the internet and books, there hasn’t been a need, or even a desire for the experienced to pass their knowledge directly to others in person. Adopting an “apprentice” would only open up most people to liabilities. But someday this will change. I was fortunate enough to have a friend teach me how to cultivate, but I have had trouble finding a worthy student to pass my knowledge on to. Most people aren’t really interested in taking a serious spiritual approach to psychedelics and the profit motive seriously mucks up peoples’ intentions.
I look forward to the day when I will be able to meet up with like minded people and engage in psychedelic exploration in a seriously ritualized context rather than a casual party atmosphere. I imagine a place where people can gather and be properly initiated into a purposeful group of extractors and cultivators. There can be a library, and a small solar monument built to track the passing of time and to mark the solstices. I dream lofty dreams, but my intent is to redirect an often reckless and purposeless psychedelic culture, or at least allow the pure fraction of tomorrows shamans to precipitate out of solution and crystallize into something beautiful.
What can we do to crystallize The Culture? First I would recommend creating one’s own rituals. Creating a small alter with symbolic objects is a good place to start. It doesn’t really matter what they are, as long as they have significance for you and your worldview. Becoming symbol literate, adopting existing symbols, or creating new ones will be very important for this. Secondly, I’d recommend being very mindful of who you share your spice or fungi with. You should ask yourself, “what are the intentions of this person? Do they respect the substance? How much do they know about psychedelics, and what are their expectations? Are they willing to participate in a ritualized context like myself?” etc. Thirdly, we must find a way to connect. Things like the Synchronized Hyperspace Event, are a good place to start. The DMT-Nexus seems to attract a different breed of psychonaut and this is good. But eventually these connections will have to move offline, and this must be done in a way that is safe and discreet.
The Culture, already exists. We are part of it. The only question is, where do we want to take it?
