There is No Deeper Truth Than the Psychedelic Experience – Terence McKenna

There is No Deeper Truth Than the Psychedelic Experience - Terence McKenna | Third Monk image 1

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Terence McKenna served as the most visible expert on psychedelic culture during his time. He wrote five books – two with his brother Dennis – on his way to develop a worldwide following. Brainy, eloquent, and hilarious, McKenna applies his Irish gift of gab to making a simple case:

Going through life without trying psychedelics is like going through life without having sex. For McKenna, mushrooms and DMT do more than force up the remains of last night’s dream; they uncover the programming language of mind and cosmos.

Psychedelics are still controversial but McKenna’s lectures helped them emerge from the underground and into normal lives.

Today’s users are surgeons, bankers, physicists, computer programmers. They are productive members of society. You can’t point your finger at them and say they’ve dropped out.

– Scott O. Moore, editor of the psychedelic journal The Resonance Project

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In 1971, McKenna and his brother went to the Amazon to hunt for ayahuasca, a legendary shamanic brew. But when they arrived at the Colombian village of La Chorera that spring, what they found were fields blanketed with Stropharia cubensis, aka shrooms. Serious psychonauts knew all about the psilocybin mushroom from scholarly books on shamanism, but no one in the US was eating S. cubensis in the early ’70s because no one had figured out how to cultivate them. After returning from South America, the McKennas discovered the secret, which they promptly published. Shrooms were on the menu.

McKenna got his 15 minutes of fame when his books came out in rapid succession. Food of the Gods, published in 1992, aims directly at thinkers. In it, McKenna lays out a solid if unorthodox case that psychedelics helped kick-start human consciousness and culture, giving our mushroom-munching ancestors a leg up on rivals by enhancing their visual and linguistic capacities.

The psychedelic experience is not the equivalent of a dust bunny under your psychic bed.

It’s a product of the fractal laws that govern the world at an informational level. There is no deeper truth.

– Terence McKenna

Terence McKenna’s Last Trip | WIRED

Ayahuasca Visions: Shamanic Psychedelic Visionary Art, Nisvan Gallery

Ayahuasca Visions: Shamanic Psychedelic Visionary Art, Nisvan Gallery | Third Monk image 8

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It can be tough to take the psychedelic plunge and still remember to bring a bit of that often indescribable essence back with you, to the real world. Fortunately, Nisvan’s ability to recall his Ayahuasca visions is in full display.

Enjoy Nisvan’s incredible visionary art inspired by his psychedelic shamanic ayahuasca ceremonies.

Nisvan’s Ayahuasca Visions

Inner vision

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Letting go of physical restrictions, shifting into a multi-layered consciousness of sound/light vibrations.

El Rey Leon

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Power animal, giving strength and protection on the inner levels.

Flight of the Eagle

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Travelling with lightspeed to the outer realms.

We are star-princes

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Two elders appear, offering healing to the soul.

Spectral bat-insect

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Trying to hide in the folds of my memory.

Galactic knights assembling

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Entering the inner-space dome

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Palace of light

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Dark Chrissalis bird of habit disintegrated at the treshold of the palace of light.

Healing Buddhas

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Appearing in caleidoscopic mandala vision, beaming their love directly from the source

Harmony

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Sky Prince

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Having awareness of heavenly constellations.

Ancestors: the Chief

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Cosmic man

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 Beyond the body, resonating with the stars.

Golden Birdman

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Not of this world

23_Nisvan_not_of_this_world > Shamanic Psychedelic Art | Ultra Feel

Psychedelic Geometric GIFs by David Whyte

Psychedelic Geometric GIFs by David Whyte | Third Monk image 1

David Whyte’s minimalistic use of geometric shapes and psychedelic color places an increased emphasis on motion, and leaves one dumbstruck at how he conceives of each Geometric GIF.

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David Whyte’s background in mathematics and physics greatly enhanced his understanding of motion and geometry and it wasn’t long before he was churning out some of the most popular geometric GIF animations shared on his Tumblr, Bees & Bombs.

In a somewhat rare move he happens to be quite open about his methods and often posts source code and tips to help other artists.  – Colossal

Mr. Olympia Comes Out of the Psychedelic Closet, Talks DMT, Ayahuasca & Unity Consciousness(Video)

Mr. Olympia Comes Out of the Psychedelic Closet, Talks DMT, Ayahuasca & Unity Consciousness(Video) | Third Monk image 3

Psychedelic Closet - Dorian Yates

Dorian Yates, a six time Mr. Olympia just came out of the psychedelic closet and what he has to say about his psychedelic experiences is worth sharing.

What we need is a massive coming out of people who have done psychedelics and accomplished a lot. – Rick Doblin, Founder of MAPS

Dorian Yates Comes Out of the Psychedelic Closet, Talks Ayahuasca and Smoking DMT

One of the most important issues we strive for is our collective freedom of consciousness, we dearly need a psychedelic renaissance. 

This is only to come about if we reach a level of social acceptance where reason thwarts taboo. Therefore, it is imperative that more and more people like Dorian step up — we may find our consciousness revolution materialize faster than expected.

The educational value of entheogens and psychedelics may be their capacity to reliably evoke experiences of wonder and awe, to stimulate transcendental or mystical experiences, and to catalyze a sense of life meaning or purpose. – Kenneth W. Tupper, Ph.D.

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Alice in Wonderland Painted by Salvador Dalí, Art Gallery

Alice in Wonderland Painted by Salvador Dalí, Art Gallery | Third Monk image 13

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In 1969, a collaboration of epic proportion took place as Alice in Wonderland was illustrated by Salvador Dalí.

The art book went on to become one of the most sought-after Dalí suites of all time. It contains 12 heliogravures, one for each chapter of the book, and one original signed etching in 4 colors as the frontpiece, all of which have been kindly digitized by the William Bennett Gallery

Alice’s Evidence

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The Lobster’s Quadrille

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The Mock Turtle’s Story

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The Queen’s Croquet Ground

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Mad Tea Party

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Pig and Pepper

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Advice From a Caterpillar

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The Rabbit Sends in a Little Bill

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A Caucus Race and a Long Tale

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The Pool of Tears

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Down the Rabbit Hole

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Frontpiece

alicedali1Salvador Dalí Illustrates Alice in Wonderland, 1969 | Brain Pickings

Redban’s Heroic Dose of Psilocybin Shrooms – The Joe Rogan Experience (Video)

Redban's Heroic Dose of Psilocybin Shrooms - The Joe Rogan Experience (Video) | Third Monk image 1

Heroic Dose - Redban

Redban’s Heroic Dose – JRE Podcast

Redban delves deep into the aether in search of knowledge and adventure.

He recounts his experience on the JRE podcast, with comedian Joey Diaz and host Joe Rogan providing color commentary.

Heroic Doses have fascinated me since I first heard Terrence McKenna mention it in his lectures. I don’t have extensive experience with it myself, however a friend of mine swears he was in the presence of the Original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers during his Heroic Dose.

What about you? 

Share your stories in the comments below.

Heroic Dose - Redban

Evidence of Ancient Psychedelic Use in Prehistoric Eurasia (Study)

Evidence of Ancient Psychedelic Use in Prehistoric Eurasia (Study) | Third Monk image 2

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A study published in the Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory (March 2014) suggests that ancient humans did not use mind-altering substances for hedonistic pleasure, as we often do in the modern day.

Elisa Guerra-Doce of the Universidad de Valladolid in Spain contends that the use of these substances was integral to the beliefs of prehistoric peoples, and that their use was believed to aid in communication with the spirit world. Her research adds to the growing body of cutting-edge literature about the cultural and historical context of mind-altering substances in prehistoric Europe.

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In the paper entitled The Origins of Inebriation: Archaeological Evidence of the Consumption of Fermented Beverages and Drugs in Prehistoric Eurasia, the argument is based on evidence found in archaeological sites covering a wide geographic and cultural range in Europe: opium poppies in the teeth of an adult male of Neolithic Spain, traces of barley beer on ceramic vessels recovered on the Iberian Peninsula, artistic depictions of hallucinogenic mushroom use in the Italian Alps, and charred Cannabis seeds in bowls found in Romania.

It’s proposed that the use of these ancient psychedelic substances was intended to alter ordinary consciousness or achieve an advanced trance state. Since the majority of these finds were in tombs and ceremonial spaces, Guerra-Doce came to the conclusion that these substances were strongly linked to ritual use. While details of the rituals remain unclear, her hypothesis is that the substances played a significant role in mortuary rites, as a means of providing sustenance for the departed in their afterlife journey, or as an offering for deities of the underworld.

Far from being consumed for hedonistic purposes, drug plants and alcoholic drinks had a sacred role among prehistoric societies.

It is not surprising that most of the evidence derives from both elite burials and restricted ceremonial sites, suggesting the possibility that the consumption of mind-altering products was socially controlled in prehistoric Europe.

– Elisa Guerra-Doce, Universidad de Valladolid in Spain

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Our Ancestors Were High as Fuck | Ultra Culture

Snap Shots of The Psychedelic Realm and Ego Death – Alex Grey

Snap Shots of The Psychedelic Realm and Ego Death - Alex Grey | Third Monk image 2

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With the publication of Sacred Mirrors: The Visionary Art of Alex Grey in 1990, the psychedelic community soon discovered that the art contained within its pages resonated to many like miraculous snap shots of the psychedelic realm, faithfully rendered vistas brought back with great skill from the far shores of the visionary experience.

My art has always been in response to visions. Rather than confine myself to representations of the outer worlds, I include portrayals of multi-dimensional imaginal realms that pull us towards consciousness evolution.

– Alex Grey

The use of Alex Grey’s artwork on the album covers and stage shows of bands like Tool and The Beastie Boys greatly increased his general popularity with youth culture, while the inclusion of his artwork in the actual Burning Man structure in 2006 essentially anointed his chosen status as this generation’s most important psychedelic artist.

In the earliest body of work that has established Alex Grey’s special place in psychedelic history, his art manages to blend the physical realms of the human body—a feat in itself only achieved by many years of training in medical drawings—with the psychic energy fields and auras of the mystics and quantum physicists, the knowledge of which has come to the artist from years of meditation, study, and contemplation.Alex_Grey-Praying

Human figures are stripped of their covering (“the skin encapsulated Ego”) to reveal a complex multi-colored system of organs, bones, veins, and arteries that can be seen to be generating rainbow fields and crackles of pure white energy that penetrate the vacuum in every direction, an effect that could seem ghoulish were it not for the presence of the subjects eyes, which gaze out at the viewer with an often astonishing humanity and are revealed as the true ‘windows of the soul’.

Alex Grey has said that after the unexpected death of Terence McKenna, he felt that he (and others) had felt the call to ‘step up and speak out about psychedelics’ to try and occupy the void in psychedelic culture that Terence’s early departure created. And one of the reasons that Alex Grey has become the most popular speaker on psychedelics since Terence McKenna—and perhaps the thing that separates him from other visionary artists—is the fact that there is a serious philosophy behind Alex’s work, and that he himself has been (and continues to be) one of the great students of psychedelic history.

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The Second Psychedelic Revolution: Alex Grey, The Mystic-Artist | Reality Sandwich

Humanity Has Gone Mad, Psychedelic Healing is the Solution – Amber Lyon

Humanity Has Gone Mad, Psychedelic Healing is the Solution - Amber Lyon | Third Monk image 3

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More public figures like award winning journalist Amber Lyon are needed to explain the positive benefits of psychedelic medicines. The masses will listen to a voice that shared their same doubts.

Amber wrote a very personal detailed account of how a period of psychedelic experiences healed her anxiety and PTSD, here are our favorite excerpts:

Why I Chose Psychedelic Drugs Medicines

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I was made aware of the potential healing powers of psychedelics as a guest on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast in October 2012.   Joe told me psychedelic mushrooms transformed his life and had the potential to change the course of humanity for the better. My initial reaction was one of amusement and somewhat disbelief, but the seed was planted.

Psychedelics were an odd choice for someone like me.  I grew up in the Midwest and was fed 30 years of propaganda explaining how horrible these substances were for my health.   You can imagine my jaw-dropping surprise when, after the Rogan podcast, I found articles on the prodigious effects of these substances that behave more like medicines than drugs. 

Articles like this onethis this, and this.… all gut-wrenching examples of how we’ve been misled by authorities who classify psychedelics as schedule 1 narcotics that have ‘no medicinal value’ despite dozens of scientific studies proving otherwise.

Psychedelics are not the be-all and end-all.  For me, they were the key that opened the door to healing.  I still have to work to maintain the healing with the use of floatation tanks, meditation, and yoga.  For psychedelics to be effective, it’s essential they are taken with the right mindset in a quiet, relaxed setting conducive to healing, and that all potential prescription drug interactions are carefully researched. It can be fatal if Ayahuasca is mixed with prescription antidepressants.

The Creation of Reset.me

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This very world that glamorizes war, violence, commercialism, environmental destruction, and suffering has outlawed some of the most profound keys to inner peace. 

The War on Drugs is not based on science.  If it was, two of the most deadly drugs on earth-alcohol and tobacco- would be illegal.  Those suffering from trauma have become victims of this failed war and have lost one of the most effective ways to heal.

Humanity has gone mad as a result.

We live in a world full of wounds and when left untreated, they’re unceremoniously handed from one generation to the next, so the cycle of trauma continues in all its destructive brutality.

But there’s hope. We can transform the course of humanity by collectively purging our grief and healing at the individual level, with the help of psychedelic medicines.  Once we collectively heal at the individual level, we will see dramatic positive transformation in society as a whole.

I founded the website reset.me, to produce and aggregate journalism on consciousness, natural medicines, and therapies.  Psychedelic explorer Terrence McKenna compared taking psychedelics to hitting the ‘reset button’ on your internal hard drive, clearing out the junk, and starting over.  I created reset.me to help connect those who need to hit the ‘reset button’ in life with journalism covering the tools that enable us to heal.

It’s a human rights crisis psychedelics are not accessible to the general population It’s insane that governments worldwide have outlawed the very medicines that can emancipate our souls from suffering.

How Psychedelics Saved My Life | Reset.me

Psychedelic Dimensions of Consciousness, Larry Carlson Art Gallery

Psychedelic Dimensions of Consciousness, Larry Carlson Art Gallery | Third Monk image 5

rainbow eye Larry Carlson

This psychedelic art gallery showcases the surreal imagination of Larry Carlson.

Each image has an out of this world feeling. The colors and visuals all coalesce with the viewer’s imagination, it’s like looking into an optical illusion where there’s more behind each artistic piece.

Psychedelic Art Gallery – Larry Carlson

surreal art gallery universal tree Larry Carlson

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Surreal Video Art – Pyramid Power

The Wonderful World of Larry Carlson | Larry Carlson

Tidy Monster: An Animated Descent into Madness (Video)

Tidy Monster: An Animated Descent into Madness (Video) | Third Monk

Tidy Monster by Tim Marchant is an animated descent into the insane mind of an unseen character.

A symphony of sound, visual effects, and mood where a room is all there is in his world, and we watch as he struggles to keep it tidy.

From the comments I’ve read some people are claiming the video is awesome to watch while tripping; others instead assure such an experience only leads to a bad trip. 

I haven’t tried watching it on psychedelics, but if you do, be aware of the possibilities or consequences, depending on your perspective.

Remember, ultimately, what is happening to the room is up to you.

Tidy Monster - Tim Marchant