Researchers giving psilocybin to religious leaders (2017)
qz.com
qz.com
"Prior to the Good Friday service, graduate degree divinity student volunteers from the Boston area were randomly divided into two groups. In a double-blind experiment, half of the students received psilocybin, while a control group received a large dose of niacin. Niacin produces clear physiological changes and thus was used as an active placebo... Almost all of the members of the experimental group reported experiencing profound religious experiences, providing empirical support for the notion that psychedelic drugs can facilitate religious experiences..."[1]
Much more detail here: [2]
[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh_Chapel_Experiment
[2] - https://www.erowid.org/plants/mushrooms/mushrooms_journal2.s...
I've been listening to a lot of Adyashanti's talks and interviews lately. He's not saying anything substantially different from any other non-dual teacher is saying, though I find that he is very clear when he does speak about this. One of the things that come up is that the experience of "no-self" is different from "unity consciousness" and "identification with witness" though those are each awakenings and realizations someone might go through.
I wanted to note that because "no-self" is often confused with "unity consciousness", but what's clear from Adyashanti and some of the others is that the experience of a unity consciousness will still have a very subtle landing space, whereas "no self" doesn't even have that subtle self-referencing either.
Also, these people are experiencing "no-self" and "unity consciousness" as an integral part of their daily, ordinary experience, usually while simultaneously experiencing an individuated and relative sense of self. These are not altered consciousness in the sense that many psychonauts might speak of, or a one-time mystical or peak experience, and the experience itself is a lot simpler, if impossible to put into words.
This is how the government does research.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MKUltra
Thanks, but no thanks. Keep the government out of it, please.
Anyway, I agree with his comment but for a different reason: government "research" isn't historically trustworthy. Any psychedelics research sponsored by the government, directly or indirectly, is going to end up like marijuana research[0] and like research into alternative therapies[1]. Of course, they will continue coming up with opposite findings for drugs that lobbyists can profit from, like SSRI's. The FDA is able to literally pick and choose studies that work for them[2].
[0]: http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170319/governments-marijuana-...
[1]: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/31190909/ns/health-alternative_med... (It took 2.5 billion dollars to find out that yoga and meditation "may" help with anxiety etc.)
[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_serotonin_reuptake_i...
I find it interesting that you are citing the study on homeopathy in such a gerrymandered way; first, it's not $2.5 billion just on yoga and meditation by any reasonable interpretation. Second, the major conclusion of the study is that virtually no holistic/homeopathic remedies have any health value above the placebo effect. Thirdly yoga and meditation haven't been found to be beneficial, they rather have not had conclusive results either way.
It's written Chögyam Trungpa. Trungpa was Vajrayana school Buddhist. "Tibetan Zen Buddhism" does not exist. I'm sure there are individual Tibetans who are Zen Buddhists, but there is no Zen tradition in Tibet. Trungpa was also alcoholic, womanizer, sexually abused his students, cocaine user, ... and was able to get away with it because it was all 'crazy wisdom'.
Zen and Buddhism in general is full of people like Alan Watts and Trungpa. Both were highly intelligent, inspiring writers, and alcoholics who presented themselves as masters.
Pretty sure you're wrong about Watts as I vividly remember reading in his book that he did not consider himself a guru. He also said something along the lines of there exists only one guru for you and that's you. Here's the first quote I could find, in its entirety:
> This is what gurus have used to trick you into seeing. All these trials they put you through are simply to convince you that you can’t do anything about it, but not “convince you” in a theoretical way. I’m not a guru—I don’t give individual spiritual direction to people—so maybe it’s not the best thing that I’m giving away the guru’s tricks, but I might as well. You can struggle and struggle and struggle, and you will do so for as long as you have the feeling inside you that you’re missing something. And everyone will encourage you to think this way, because they also feel they’re missing something, and they think they can get it by such and such a method, so they’re going to try to convince you that their method is the thing to do. - Out of Your Mind
Phew, that was a royal pain and a half to copy/paste from kindle cloud reader. Anyway, everyone knows about Watts's personal history by now, but no one could ever explain how it changed anything he wrote. He certainly didn't take himself very seriously at all, which is in line with his philosophy.
Another way to look at it is something I've heard Adyashanti (another teacher) spoke about in an interview on batgap.com -- someone's relationship with their teacher is often a reflection of of their relationship with the whole of the spiritual search, whether that be idealization or cynicism, both responses to that searching for perfection.
If you have religion and status, you can always find ways to rationalize fucking around as spiritual development.
I have respect for Buddhism in general and I have practiced meditation with a teacher 20 years. I understand the need to have a teacher and the need for guidance, but it's human nature for people to abuse others when given too much authority.
I don't think people outside realize just how dark of a place the Tibetan people came from before the Buddhist Vajrayana practitioners came in to "tame" the land gods of Tibet. There was a monastic order that attempted to bring the Dharma (with the Tibetan king's blessing) and were hounded out. The last monk that left told the king, he needed to bring one of the Vajrayana people. The level of intensity of the dark and negative stuff was just that bad.
There had always been and likely, always will be the Guru syndrome. Even sincere teachers getting themselves trapped by that. (And that was one of my few favorite parts of the Last Jedi). It is as much as the failings of the guru as it is people seeking for something projecting all sorts of idealizations and failings onto their teachers. It doesn't matter whether it is Tibetan or not. This happens with any religion or spiritual path.
One last note, something I heard from several teachers: you can be awakened and still be an ass. You would just be very clear, realized ass.
It sounds surprising, I think, because the Western, or perhaps popular view of spirituality is one of idealization. Focusing excessively on Light is as problematic as focusing excessively in Shadow.
I have a reprint of one of the mandalas to Vajrayogini on my personal altar. Most of the imagery and iconography will evoke the reaction you described. At the bottom is the most wrathful form of Vajrayogini, naked and all black with fangs, an intense, fiery aura, standing on a corpse. She holds a butchering knife in one hand, and a tantric staff (with three skulls) in the other. Various entrails being eaten by various animals. Yet the top one depicts a peaceful Vajrayogini, reposing in a meditational posture.
Both are Vajrayogini. What is not apparent is how any of this is an act of compassion. The middle Vajrayogini is red and she holds a cup made from severing the top of someone's skull. There is blood in it. How is _that_ an act of compassion? Isn't that just a depiction of evil and corruption? And Tibetan Buddhist will take this depiction as a yidam, ritually become this diety/Buddha. Why would anyone do that? Why do I have that on my altar?
Vajrayogini takes the most horrific karma and spiritual poisons and drinks it. She is called the trauma goddess for that reason. All the horror and abuses one might experience in this life and in past lived, she takes and drinks. And because she is a full Buddha, that karms burns and dies within her. In many ways, it is an extreme form of empathy, yet at the same time, the Buddha nature remains unstained.
Her two wrathful forms looks horrific because the pain and trauama she takes on are that horrific. That is why she is depicted in those wrathful forms. She enters fearlessly into your hell to give you the chance to awaken and to heal.
And this is why she is appealing to some people.
I have never set someone's broken bone or worked as an EMT or a nurse. Yet when I hear stories from them, it is like this. Giving care to the person even when really horrible things happen to them. I am not one of those Japanese cleaners who clean a houses after someone dies, or that Austrailian woman who clean hoarder's houses after they die. They clean away the pain, when no one else will do it. It is like that.
Are there abuses? Yup, there are. Is it excusable? No. And yet, there is a lor more going on than what is apparent.
”don't hesitate get laid that's wisdom sitting around chanting what crap” - Ikkyu
There is also 'cross pollination' across history when teachers learn from other traditions and sometimes very similar styles are developed independently. For example, Trekcho practice in Dzogchen is very similar to Zen training of shikantaza or 'silent illumination'. On the other hand it's very fundamental practice just like following the breath, so it can be traced back to the beginning of Buddhism.
Jnana-vichara (self-enquiry method) taught by hindu guru Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi is very similar to Zen koan practice. The question of "Who am I" is often used as first koan in Zen.
https://qz.com/1196408/scientists-studying-psilocybin-accide...
In this case, though, it's a bit hard because the article is cobbled from multiple sources that aren't all about the same thing.
Edit: we changed the URL from https://qz.com/1196408/scientists-studying-psilocybin-accide.... Turned out that its two most substantive mainstream sources were about the same study. They threw in a Ted talk and some Alan Watts and made a vague mash. My self either found this annoying or imagined that it did, so it changed the URL to one of the articles about the ongoing study.
Study with small sample size suggests that brief drug-induced mystical experiences change people over time, leading them to report better moods, heightened altruism and forgiveness, more closeness with others, and a sense of connection six months later
And the TLDR: The part of your brain that some claim "invents your identity" is temporarily shut off, leading you to see alternate possibilities.
Suddenly, they'll care about their well being above others and their eternal connection to everyone else is shattered.
The most exciting part of these type of studies is the ability to take depressive people and ‘kick’ them out of the cognitive ruts they are in.
Those cognitive ruts are often world-views, thought structures and learned behaviours from childhood or their parents which constantly reinforce that the sufferer is worthless or stupid or unwanted etc.
In those world views, other people are often seen in very negative light - they’re critical, or assholes, or dangerous, or perhaps you’re so needy for love and attention that you endlessly see other people as your savior (and constantly make bad relationships as a result).
The idea that we just need love and kindness and selflessness and we’re all connected maaaan - that’s a childish interpretation. As is the idea that interconnectednesa and empathy falls apart in a realistic adult world of possessions and basic needs.
In the context of mental illness, being able to experience connectedness and heightened empathy might mean seeing other people for who they really are, not who they appear to be in your distorted worldview. It might mean realizing that other people are similar to you and you’re not alone in your struggle, or realizing that you can give support to someone else instead of constantly needing support from them. Sometimes breakthroughs like that take years in therapy, but might be achieved much more quickly using mushrooms.
Hope that helps dissolve the cynicism.
Well... yeah. I mean, imagine you had super critical parents who picked on your every mistake as a child. Now you suffer from social anxiety and feel intense shame and fear in public because you think everyone is constantly criticizing you and talking about you.
Being able to relax and be yourself knowing that most people won’t care either way is a huge step forward.
For some people, I suppose.
For others, a non-trivial point of the work is to learn not to care that other people don't care. It's about improving yourself, changing the relationship you have with the only person you will always be with, regardless of what other people might say, think, or do — that their behavior is entirely about them and has nothing whatsoever to do with you.
And that trying to make their behavior about you is just as much an ego-trap as the more obvious things you'd associate with that notion.
It's pretty remarkable the degree to which a little compassion and self-awareness can take the sting out of other people's lacking those things.
Hence the psychological narrative may be backed by an actual psychiatric, physiochemical change. An actual change, in “reality” - in other words, assuming some form of inflammation is involved in most depressive states...
[1] DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0075426
If you've suffered some mental problems you can even have multiple thoughts in your conscious scope at once or thoughts whirling past so fast you can barely make out what their contents are. You may not even want to think or like these thoughts. Some traumatized people are affected by what they describe as intrusive thoughts that have so much momentum or energy that they greatly modify their consciousness and behavior and emotions, for example cause depression.
The false ego is a tough nut to crack because it has so much invested in thinking it is real and acting out whatever. Whatever the consciousness or your brain or body experiences as you is an accumulation of traits, thought patterns, reactions all layered up to form a somewhat consistent/cohesive/continuous experience.
If you have the drive to look behind the curtain or are interested in altered states of consciousness, you can experience these insights into the nature of consciousness by prolonged daily meditation practice, with or without psychedelics. Eventually with enough awareness you may be able to simply 'step outside' of thoughts or witness thoughts happening and see as they pass through your consciousness without being involved in or affected by them.
Despite all this, you may still want to put that body before someone else and that may be totally ok.
Which all probably sounds like mumbo-jumbo to someone who hasn't traveled the path.
You probably know all this, but I think with further inquiry and experience it is inevitable to come to the conclusion that there is no free will, it's just atoms dancing and vibrating and from that an elaborate interconnected mechanism rises. With no free will there is no doer or you as a person, it is simply the universe unfolding and these bodies are only 'pawns' reacting to stimuli or whatever variables these human biocomputers work on.
Us humans have the capacity for pretty advanced heuristics and we can become aware of the underlying mechanisms and the subconcsious, and through that awareness manipulate the system but that still forgoes any doers. I guess you could say they're revelations and be grateful you stumbled on them in this life.
We need to go deeper.
Of course, it can be very hard to avoid thinking "sure, my model will evolve, but those things will still be there." Our metaphysics is very hard to give up!
In every case, if the proponents dutifully performed their beliefs, that would merely indicate they hold the belief, not that it is true.