Egyptian Blue Lotus

Lotus Soma-theories | Secret Drugs of Buddhism

Named in imitation of Wasson’s SOMA: Divine Mushroom of Immortality, David L. Spess’s SOMA the Divine Hallucinogen offers the hypothesis that soma was a species of lotus. Or, rather, that it may have been any of a number of lotus or water-lily species of the Nympaea and Nelumbo genera. Spess bases his reasoning on the Ṛig Veda and on Vedic mythology, supplemented with appeals to European and oriental alchemy. Yet despite the intricacy of his arguments, Spess does not tell us what, if any, psychoactive substances are to be found in lotuses. Richard Rudgley does, though. In an account of Meso-American drug traditions, he mentions the presence of apomorphine-like compounds in the Egyptian blue lotus (Nymphaea caerulens) and noted that it is used in North Africa as “an effective substitute for opium”. (Could this be the source of Homer’s North African lotophagoi?) Jonathan Ott, however, dismisses all claims to psychoactivity in lotuses and water-lilies as unfounded and pharmacologically unsound.

Secret Drugs of Buddhism pdf

Ayahuasca — The Fashionable Path of Awakening?

“Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect.” These words were spoken by Krishnamurti in 1929 as he dissolved the global spiritual organization that had formed in order to promote him as the new Messiah. As I witness the growing popularity ayahuasca, I hope we do not turn this medicine into a Messiah that has to come to save us. Although I see ayahuasca as a powerful tool of individual and planetary awakening, I am also seeing it evolve into a spiritually-sophisticated brand that we wear and glorify. As any trend becomes more popular, authentic original impulses are replaced by unconscious conformity: we follow trends as unquestioning groups, rather than as conscious free-willing individuals.

The New Yorker recently published an article on ayahuasca, calling it the “drug of choice for the age of kale”. The author narrated her only ayahuasca experience, in a Brooklyn yoga studio, next to a “thumping dance club”. The article makes no mention of the rich cultural diversity of ayahuasca traditions or the countless stories of ayahuasca-assisted personal transformation. However, I thought her association of ayahuasca with kale was spot-on. Ayahuasca may be answering the call for a global paradigm shift, yet it also fulfills an obsessive craving for wellness, detox, and healing. Plant medicines can be powerful catalysts for healing, when approached with individual and social self-awareness, and these two forms of awareness – of ourselves and of our society – are difficult to cultivate when we do what the cool kids are doing. What we can do is learn to discriminate between self-expression and imitation, and between the authentic desires of our hearts and the chatter of our minds. Are we acting from our core or simply being blown around by the cultural zeitgeist?
When to take ayahuasca?

These distinctions are absolutely necessary. Powerful tools can be misused and have damaging effects. My original inspiration for writing this article was a botched iboga ceremony that left me so traumatized that I was forced to accept that 1) there were some highly irresponsible and reckless shamans/healers out there and 2) there were highly irresponsible and reckless individuals like myself naively attending ceremonies without proper awareness. I’ll save the details for a future article, but I will share that I experienced an abyss so unbearably painful that my only wish was for it to end, without caring what came after this end. I understood the torment of suicide. These realms of consciousness are real. I share them here not out of masochism, but to emphasize the importance of preparation, discrimination, and intuition.

We can sharpen our skills by coming back to the basics: set and setting. Set – why am I here? And how do I really feel in my heart of hearts? Setting – do I feel safe? Do I trust this environment and the people around me? It is crucial to critically evaluate the shaman by their “fruits”: what type of life has this person created for themselves? How do they relate to their family and partner? How do they relate to their assistants and workers? Have the workers been there a long time? Are they happy to work there? These questions reveal a lot about what kind of person the shaman is, and therefore what kind of shaman they are.

We also need to de-romanticize our understanding of shamanic traditions. We crave for more natural, organic lives, for health, and for wisdom, so it is not a surprise that we fantasize about Amazonian tribes and their psychedelic brews. But our colorful projections have consequences and can reinforce racist, neocolonial dynamics. Not all medicines are appropriate at a given time or compatible with a given person. Indigenous peoples are born into tribes, whereas Westerners self-select into their tribes. Not all shamans heal; some throw curses; others do both. And I have yet to meet a shaman who calls themselves a shaman. Shaman is a word from Siberia popularized by Western anthropologists to categorize a wide variety of seemingly related spiritual practices.

Our interaction with indigenous medicines is not a one way street – with us simply “gaining wisdom” from them. As any quantum physicist or modern anthropologist will tell you, observation entails participation. It’s a two way street: the massive influx of ayahuasca tourists to the Amazon impacts local economies, culture, and healing traditions. In addition to our own healing, we need to remember that indigenous communities have their own healing to do. Are we operating as co-creators or are we imposing ourselves on them? Am I giving as much as I am taking? And where is all this ayahuasca coming from? This is not a question of shame, but of awareness.

The reality of indigenous peoples is not a Jungle Book fairy tale. Their cultures are steadily declining in the face of consumerism, missionary activity, and the rape of nature by oil pipelines and industrial super-farms. Ayahuasca tourism is a booming industry in much of the northwest Amazon and its reality is more nuanced than we like to think. Explore the backstreets of Iquitos, Peru and see for yourself the shadow side of the Western appetite for healing.

Please don’t mistake my words for pessimism. The intention that infuse these words is for renewed awareness and courage. Charles Eisenstein writes that “no optimism can be authentic that has not visited the depths of despair…no despair is authentic that has not fully let in the joy.” The world is not ending. It is only changing, as all things change. Stop, breathe, be gentle. May all beings be happy and peaceful.

by Félix de Rosen

Félix de Rosen is a free spirit who aims to catalyze conscious planetary evolution. His long-term vision is to organize sacred arts festivals and create spaces of trust, spontaneity, and transparency. He was born in France, grew up in the US, and is learning how to let go and relax. He is currently based in California.

The evolutionary purpose of depressive rumination

The evolutionary purpose of depressive rumination -- Science of the Spirit -- Sott.net:

[...] Depressed people often have severe, complex problems, and rumination is a common feature. Depressed people often believe that their ruminations give them insight into their problems, but clinicians often view depressive rumination as pathological because it is difficult to disrupt and interferes with the ability to concentrate on other things. Abundant evidence indicates that depressive rumination involves the analysis of episode-related problems. Because analysis is time consuming and requires sustained processing, disruption would interfere with problem-solving.

The paper continues:
The analytical rumination (AR) hypothesis proposes that depression is an adaptation that evolved as a response to complex problems and whose function is to minimize disruption of rumination and sustain analysis of complex problems. It accomplishes this by giving episode-related problems priority access to limited processing resources, by reducing the desire to engage in distracting activities (anhedonia), and by producing psychomotor changes that reduce exposure to distracting stimuli. Because processing resources are limited, the inability to concentrate on other things is a tradeoff that must be made to sustain analysis of the triggering problem [...]

In other words, the inability to feel pleasure or enjoyment during depressive episodes may be the brain ridding itself of distractions to focus on solving the problem causing the depression. This challenges the familiar remedy of going out or having fun as an effective approach, as this theory suggests the whole point of depression is to analyze and solve. The research and their sources can all be found in the publication "The Bright Side of Being Blue: Depression as an Adaptation for Analyzing Complex Problems," which can be read for free here.

Interestingly, this theory supports the idea that self-inquiry, if guided and structured, can effectively combat depressive episodes. This common method is referred to as "The Socratic Method." It is a system of questioning based on the teachings of ancient Greek philosopher Socrates. In this method, a therapist suggests questions for the patient to ask themselves. This series of circumstantial questioning leads the patient on a path of self-analysis, dissecting their perspectives and allowing them to understand their problems and approach the roots of their depression with clarity. Critical thinking as a cure for depression. Who would have thought?

While depression is indeed complicated, and cases should not be generalized or considered the same, these theories, methods, and results do indicate it is possible that proper therapy may be more effective in treating depression than SSRIs and other mood stabilizers. While medication has been effective in treating some, it rarely acts as a long-term solution, hence the common scenario of stacking medications on top of one another to combat each other's side effects. Additionally, these medications don't actually cure anything. They amount to putting a band-aid on a gaping wound that requires stitches. The problem isn't just the bleeding — the problem is the open wound.

Addressing the roots of depression is far more important than putting the symptoms to rest while allowing the demons that create them to continue plaguing people's minds. It simply puts a haze between the person and the influence of the disorder. An effective method of curing depression is also economically wise, especially since America, as a society, spends around $210 billion a year treating depression — and much of that money flies right into the pockets of pharmaceutical companies. However, there is hope on the horizon, as methods like problem-solving therapy and research into psychedelic treatment are becoming more common. Watch out, Big Pharma.

Mother Ayahuasca

wild honey with natural psychoactive properties

sacred shroom

we used them as currency
cost sometimes more than a reindeer

first chewed by the women
then eaten by the men
baked in the rysbes

the flesh of the gods
high in protein
when meat is scarce

illud tempus of the soma
by snake and by toad
we seek thee

divine mushroom of immortality

Graham Hancock and Lorna Byrne in conversation

In this fascinating dialogue, two bestselling authors and explorers of the spiritual realm discuss the big questions at the heart of their latest books: Is there a battle between Good and Evil? Why are some people drawn to the dark side? Do we only see a fraction of reality? Do angels really walk amongst us and what would it take to see them? How much do the daily choices we each make affect the positive future of the universe? Also discussed is the influence of angels and demons on human affairs, the threat posed by science for limiting our spiritual experience and the power of the internet as a tool of global awakening.

Depriving the emotional centre of its proper energy?

THC, in my experience, moves fine energies to the intellectual and instinctive centres and away from the emotional and moving centres. effect on the creative impulse was neutral.

upsides - perceptions were more vivid. thinking used more of available knowledge base and was more discerning. downsides - emotions and movement were most likely to be experienced intellectually and instinctively. true emotional drive was dampened, i tended to recede into my mind, interaction with outer world was reduced.

for me, the substance was useful for putting together the pieces, so to speak, and for conceiving of what would be appropriate to do, but was ultimately unproductive in that it lead to no real doing, and in certain ways, prevented it.

there is a tendency among those who wish to see differently to dabble, and i cannot recommend one way or the other as it is a personal choice. although i know the positive effects are attainable without chemical assistance. whats more, in light of the Mouravieff material, depriving the emotional centre of its proper energy would seem to have serious negative consequences in terms of esoteric development.

this is my experience, for your perusal. and, as always, its subject and open to change.

Birdman on cassiopaea.org/forum smoking is good?

shamanic Mckenna

care not

you think you've reached a level
that your comfortable with
you find that it's just another shortcut to the pain
there are certain situations
that shove you out of your comfort zone
that is where the pain is

even though you used to be so secure
in those kind of situations
now you are a fish out of water
because you have become more real
open now to men in a whole different way

one that is closer
to you
to the pain
new opportunities arise
for growth
they say

i cannot handle
cope

i choose alcohol
i choose to harm
poison this body
i choose oblivion
give me vodka

i cannot understand
how this good stuff makes me
so frustrated
something good happened
never felt so low

i want death
i want to never
leave the house again

people like you
you are very nice
to have
around

cannot handle
cope

feel only sadness
when they approach
or look
at me

i feel I am gasping for air
knowing  that I am
as the breath
that leaves the body

i cannot show myself?
the real
so painful?

it was never a problem
naked in the night
for sex
never much of a deal
confident

change is here
reiki
i do not understand
this frustration
just being out there

split personality
cannot heal
this is here
hate suddenly all things
that remind me
of those years

that remind me
that there are people
interested in me
that like me

understand it not
my purpose
that is
pain
not worth this

when step out
wanting
find only inner pain

vodka
weed
numbness
comfort
self medication

know not how to move
care not

Morphine - Cure for Pain (Full Album)

THE EVOLUTION OF REALITY by Terence Mckenna

so long Jane?

I'm set to release Mary. The days are already less hazy as I slow down. I wait for the night, fortunate to know the dreaming once again. Numb for so long but she has served me well. A seductive guide but with a promise. Whatever you desire, like smoke. I never made it to the house of the rising sun. By the wall of water I openly wept, moonbathing for awhile. Quite sober I returned to my bed for I longed to sleep.

psy

An expanded model of the human psyche offers the possibility of deeper understanding and assistance for those who need it.

- Christina Grof

extra-sensory

I am more aware of projection now, the projecting of personal traits onto others and yet at the same time I am also more clear-cut with perceptions. It would often be the case that I would perceive something but linger too long and absorb some of the emotions, I would also translate and internalize other people’s problems and lifestyles believing them to somehow be my own.

Really I made them my own but detached later.

Now I have perceptions and insights but I can separate easier, less absorption, less confusion, less comparisons. Marijuana can have something to do with the heightened perception but also with the intake of vibrations. The fact is that subtle matter can linger in the aura and weaken it or provide a boost and strengthen the aura, allowing expansion.

Be aware, know when enough is enough.

new cosmic connections

there is something quite wrong upstairs now

08-06-08

I am in the ‘waiting room’. I feel disconnected from the usual things, estranged from the usual worldliness, now inspired by the leaving behind of those people that once seemed so glorious and fulfilling, the land that seemed so bewitching, enticing, glamour-drama.

I would want to be alone if that meant not being in confusion or anxiety, I would like to be solitary if that meant not having to fit in, I would like to be lost if that meant not having to conform and be disappointed.

I know that I am meant to be surrounded by all these people all the time and live in this world, live in this city, throw off the self-pity and acclaim the right to be who I am even if it is irregular, never before displayed around here, never before heard of in this place.

I dream about leaving and starting anew in a foreign place, in a far wilderness. Today these have been my thoughts, slowly gaining enthusiasm and sometimes contemplating the end; the termination. God though gives me determination; I read the bible and prayed. I know that even a wretch like me can be saved.

Dad called me this morning with encouragement, it helped because I was feeling guilty and shamed.

I still have very dark, hopeless thoughts about myself and my future, so insecure at times. I desire to be the same, I desire to be heterosexual, I desire to be loved, I desire to be secure but these things are keeping me down.

Acceptance is still difficult when not stoned or drunk or abusing some other chemical. There is this forever plaguing sexual confusion and now twisted terrible thoughts assault me, I can only believe in God to lead me. I am like a blind beggar on a crowded boulevard, stumbling without a stick, mumbling without a tongue. I am hungry for meditation (medication) and my former ease, my former numbness to these things.

Closing my eyes to rest can cause distress, lying in on a Sunday morning can cause sin. I define sin as cruelty to self. Meditation now causes me to be fearful when before it was my tranquilizer, my work-out, my spiritual battery recharging mechanism. I cannot do that anymore.

I went jogging today and it felt good, it felt like a drug, I am really coming to appreciate the endorphin release. This must become my new substance.

Thank you for the music, thanks to all those praying for me, again I cannot comprehend this love from all these people, some unseen, many unknown. This must be the new love. My brain is close to being fixed, near to being restored to balance and rest. Today was not inside or outside, it was disconnected but not so bad. Tomorrow back to work, I am not thinking about the new job or this one I am leaving.

I still keep thinking that I don’t need anti-depressants because I sometimes feel o.k., sometimes I feel good and content for long periods of time. I am starting to accept that there is something quite wrong upstairs now, something needing repair.

????=God

Source: journal of my recent burn-out/psycho/depression/anxiety disorder /rediscovering God trip

Thought Entities

Humans are far from the only aware beings in this reality. As individuals we reside in multiple realms, obviously our body occupies the physical realm, whilst the mind has the ability to exist across numerous realms simultaneously, many of which we access without even realising. Affording abilities such as intuition, prescience, telepathy - which on however small a level, most of us have experienced. Some of those other realms our mind wanders, are “spirit” worlds which can be accessed through meditative techniques or via other means such as taking shamanistic vines like Ayahuasca. Beyond this however, our mind is also a realm unto itself.

Within that individual realm reside all manner of non-physical manifestations. In that place - thoughts, when given sufficient power give birth to beings - these thoughts become “entities” in and of themselves. They reside within our minds, sometimes hidden and at other times they rise to the fore and can momentarily posses us. Influencing a decision or an action; “I can’t understand why I did that!” we say. The more power we feed such beings, the more potential influence they can have over us - until eventually our every waking moment is occupied by thoughts that are not our own. Such beings have the ability to transcend individual mind-spaces, crossing over to another individual. How many times have you had an infuriating moment with someone - only to later find their words (or thoughts?) playing over and over in your mind. This is how those entities attempt to take root.

Read the rest of this article here, source: The Thoughts.

Sacred Blue Lily of the Nile

Nymphaea Caerulea (Blue Lotus or Sacred Blue Lily of the Nile) was the most sacred plant of Ancient Egypt, prized above all others. Nymphaea Caerulea (Blue Lotus) was worshipped as a visionary plant and was a symbol for the origins of life. It was frequently depicted in works of art, where it is most often shown in party and other social scenes, and sometimes in scenes of sexual debauchery. The flowers were noted for their delightful perfume, suggestive of the sweat of Ra; 'A divine essence, for bringing euphoria, heightened awareness and tranquility'. The Blue Lily was also a symbol of creation, and was according to legend the first object to emerge from oceanic chaos. Though exceedingly rare in the wild today it is thought to have been widespread across Ancient Egypt, where its psychoactive properties were apparently well known.

I had known about the Blue Lotus for quite awhile but became especially interested in the psychoactive properties of the plant and the connection to the ancient Egyptians as my interest and knowledge on the subject of ancient civilizations and mysticism evolved. Well last week I decided to try it out and purchased a 10gr bag at the local smartshop (head shop) in Utrecht, Netherlands.

After reading up about the Blue Lotus I decided to soak the dried flowers in red wine for about an hour and then consume the mixture. Apparently this is the method the ancient Egyptians used and the best way to ingest the sacred plant. After about half an hour I began to notice some mild sedative effects and a light euphoria but this was very subtle and somewhat clouded by the wine. After consuming 5gr of lotus and half a bottle of wine I realized that drinking the wine with the lotus had been a mistake, I felt the effects of the Lotus -dreamy, sedated, and tranquil- but the feeling was not optimal or pure because of the wine. I smoked a joint and felt a definite opiate like high though very mild. I slept very deeply and woke refreshed.

I was a little disappointed but I still had half a bag left of the Blue Lily and so the next night I decided to boil the flowers in water and drink the mixture as tea. I figured that without the wine I would be able to feel the effects of the Lotus properly. I drank three cups of tea and ate the remaining flowers, bitter but edible. The effect this time was stronger; gradually I felt a light buzz and soft glowing all over my body, my muscles relaxed and my mood definitely lifted. Although the effects are not overwhelming, they are pleasant and I’m sure they resemble the effects of opium. I enjoyed the dreamy space I found myself in, definite psycho-active effects, mind stimulation and a mild spiritual mystic effect.

The psycho-active effects of Blue Lotus are mild and subtle and a lot must be consumed in order to really appreciate this plant. Blue Lotus is definitely sedative but also tranquil and I can easily see why the ancient Egyptians used this drug at parties and social occasions, the Blue Lotus would also have been used by Priests to seek contact with the gods, for spiritual practices and as a pain-killer, sleeping-aid and all round wonder-herb. I found the effects similar to Valerian, GHB, and marijuana.

Erowid Blue Lotus Vault Watch two people as they try the Blue Lily during a scientific experiment here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5760375070244574893