The Yin of Civilization: An Interview with Brian Griffith

Jump to Section

Jump to Section

 

The following article originally appeared in Newtopia Newtopia Magazine

Born in Texas, Brian has fond memories of growing up
Methodist.  At about the age of
eleven he joined his family and his church heeding Martin Luther King Jr's call
for civil rights marches.  But he
also remembers other pastors warning that King was a commie, and that commies
could march right on to your street, knock on your door, and cut your head off!   A few years later Brian had the
experience of being swept up in the joyous celebration of being saved in
evangelical churches. After that he lived first in India, then in Kenya, before
settling down in Toronto as an independent historian.

Brian first authored The
Gardens of Their Dreams: Desertification and Culture in World History

(2001), which shows that for most of history, water has been the measure of
civilization, and the mess we're making of our ecology now is an old human
tradition. It's no accident that the cradles of our cultures are now deserts.  The myth of paradise lost is not a
myth.  As resources become scarce,
coercion becomes more important than production, sound familiar? 

Women, who were important when they watched after the
garden, the herd and the children, lose status in a society of scarcity.  Western religion was born in the
desert, and western economics was born from our religion. No wonder we still
hear monotheists declaring that we should use nature up, instead of preserving
it for future generations. In a world of polluted rivers and the Great Pacific Garbage
Patch this is one of those books everybody should have to read.  To give us hope, the book also provides
examples of human beings coming to their senses and preserving instead of
destroying.

Brian also wrote Different
Visions of Love: Partnership and Dominator Values in Christian History

(2008), a real eye opener about the schizophrenia of Christianity, or how a religion of peace and poverty winds up supporting wars, wealth and power. He
looks at everything from Hell to the Lord's Prayer through these two prisms
that provide very different views of the world. 

Different
Visions
pairs nicely with the book he released the following year Correcting Jesus: 2000 Years of Changing the
Story
(2009), which details exactly how Jesus got the worst make over in
history as everyone from the apostles to the Roman Emperors corrected or
explained away what Jesus really said to suit their own ends.  The Jesus who wanted people to think
for themselves, who was non-violent, and treated women like human beings, has
been twisted into all sorts of rude caricatures, many of which have had more
influence on human history than the real thing.

My favorite of his books, though, is his latest A Galaxy of Immortal Women: The Yin Side of
Chinese Civilization
.  From
female war lords who were also high priestesses to the poignant outhouse
goddesses, two girls murdered and thrown into outhouses, who became goddesses
who provide the inspirations that so famously happen when you're indisposed,
The book is a treasury of inspiration. 

 

What inspired you to write about China's immortal women?

That goddesses book comes from having a mix-up in the head
between places I've lived. I grew up in Texas with all the culture wars over
religion and the American way. Then India, where there are a lot of goddess
religions. Then Kenya, where the men are the bosses but the women are the real
leaders. And finally Toronto, where everything gets mixed together.

 

What was it like moving
from Texas to India and then Kenya? 
What impacted you most about each of those places?

In India, the thing that
got me most was the falling water table. All over the Deccan plateau our wells
were falling at maybe a foot per year, and there were already periods at the
end of the dry season when various wells went completely dry. The higher caste
people didn't want us to use their wells. Anyway, maybe there's nothing so
strangely terrifying as the prospect that even the groundwater will disappear.
I thought these huge Asian countries were facing problems of the past, but I
realized they are facing the problems of the future.  In Kenya, the villages were mostly female. The guys were
mostly off in the cities trying to make cash, leaving the women behind to
manage the farms and kids at the same time. And these people were marvelous.
They were sculpting the hills into terraces to stop soil erosion, and doing
group tree nurseries, covering their hills in young trees. I realized that
these women were the main force holding back the desert, and their values may
well save the world.

 

Having mostly heard about the prejudice against female
children in China, I was amazed to find such a rich spiritual heritage of
goddess worship in Chinese history.

In China, there are hosts of goddess traditions. The most
popular deity in the land is a woman (Guanyin, or Kwan Yin), and others like
Mazu have around 100 million devotees in the world. These cults are
international, all over East and Southeast Asia, and spread everywhere by
migrant communities or popular appeal. If we added the many goddess traditions
all together, they would count as one of the biggest religions in the world.
These traditions go back to dawn of history and have been popular in every age.
In China, the age of the goddess never died. I figured we could learn more about
what these women and their religions have to say, about life, death, health,
sexuality, partnership, spirituality, and the ultimate happiness.

Festival of the folk goddess Mazu in modern China

 

Why do so few people know about the women's spirituality of
China?

Of course it's obvious that the values and religions of
Chinese women have not ruled the country. The dominant values and religions had
been set by warlord rulers, so that the guiding principle of Chinese
civilization seemed to be blind obedience to superiors. The warlord rulers
claimed to be the central objects of their people's loyalty, the hired
Confucian officials claimed to be the official spokesmen for their
civilization, and the eldest males of each household claimed to be the central
figures of the family. But who believed these claims? The women commonly took
themselves as the central characters in their lives. They went ahead and built
their own social worlds and their own versions of religion. Their religions
didn't really have state backing, and the female leaders didn't have power over
other people. They were just popular. They were not "organized religions," just
"folk religions." They were countercultures, and maybe the greatest
counterculture on earth. It's very likely that the popular women's
countercultures been closer to most people's hearts than the official doctrines
of the rulers.

 

Tell us a tale you find particularly poignant.

One of my favorite stories about women's values is about the
Queen Mother of the West, Xi Wang Mu. This goddess was the chief of the
shaman-women, and perhaps the most popular deity in China down to medieval
times. And according to tradition, she paid a visit to the great emperor Wu
around the year 110 BCE. This emperor had launched victorious wars against the
barbarians, and built the might of China to rival that of Rome. He had adopted
an official version of Confucianism as the state religion, in which the main
moral obligation was for subjects to serve their superiors. In his political
and spiritual roles, Emperor Wu would be roughly equivalent to the combined
figures of Roman emperors Augustus and Constantine. To top it off, Emperor Wu
claimed that the most popular goddess in the land had come to pay homage to him
at his court. It was a piece of egotistical propaganda, and it was as if
Emperor Charlemagne had claimed that the Virgin Mary came down from heaven to
bless his rule. According to court propaganda, the Queen Mother came to offer
Emperor Wu her praise, and maybe even give him her love. But according to the
popular version of the story, the Queen Mother came to the emperor and said:
"You were born licentious, extravagant, and violent; and you live in the midst
of blood and force no matter how many Daoists you invite here in hopes of
immortality, you will only wear yourself out." Maybe that suggests something
about the role of women's religions in Chinese history.

 

What lessons can we learn from Chinese women's spirituality?

I think the many female
spiritual teachers in China developed a host of insights about living with
authenticity, partnership, balance, harmony with nature, healthy diet, natural
healing, sexuality, or inner peace. Daoist lineage founders like Wei Huacun or
Cao Wenyi, or Buddhist saints like Miaoshan, or the great Tibetan teacher Yeshe
Tsogyal had a tremendous influence on Chinese religion. Their spiritual
practices such as Tai Chi or inner alchemy might become the new yoga in terms
of popularity around the world. These teachers even developed spiritual
practices specifically for women, and even more specifically for virginal women,
those of child-bearing age, and post-menopausal women. It was not one approach
fits all.  Anyway, there's a lot
more that the counterculture of Chinese women has to offer, and I think anybody
interested in a more balanced way of life should check it out.

 

Tell us how Raine Eisler influenced your work.

I'm a bookworm for history books, and a few writers inspired
me a lot. Riane Eisler's The Chalice
& the Blade
let me see a pattern in all the culture wars I'd been
seeing. She showed how history is a running competition between visions and
values, where the dream is either real partnership between people, or else a
dominator system of proper order through a chain of command. Eisler showed how
that competition played out in Western history or religion, and I saw how it
applied in India and Africa as well. I got the idea of writing about the
competition of partnership and dominator values in other civilizations.

 

Tell us about the Chinese Partnership Research Group.

In 1996, Eisler told me about a new book from China called The Chalice & the Blade in Chinese
Culture
, that was written by a team of Chinese scholars called "the Chinese
Partnership Research Group." They basically told the story of relations between
men and women in every age of China's history, exposing tremendous detail on
how the clash of cultures had worked out in China. It was great, but the book
was very hard to get in the West, and it was written in a way where most
Western readers would mostly get lost. The authors made too many assumptions
that the readers already knew something of the events or people they were
talking about.  I decided to build
on this, and make a Westerner-friendly story of China's culture wars, that
would highlight the values and achievements of Chinese women. Especially their
religions, which were made by and for women. Because growing up in the West, I
always felt that religion was a mainly male thing. All the gods, rabbis,
priests and mullahs I knew were male. I heard there used to be women's
religions in the ancient past, but those were blown away as superstitious
nonsense a long time ago, by whatever means necessary. So I wondered, how would
women make religion if left to their own devices? And I realized the answer was
staring us all in the face. The great women's religions of India or China, or
elsewhere, were standing there, popular as ever, in the modern world.

 

The Gardens of Their Dreams: Desertification and Culture in World
History
is one of those books everybody should have to read.  You were born in Corpus Christi, an
area hit by the Deepwater Horizon disaster.  Does your study of history give you any hope that we can
avoid the worst case scenario future some of our monotheist neighbors seem to
think a desirable outcome for humanity?

Probably most people in the
history of the world have hoped to make the land they live on richer over time.
They have hoped to make the land greener and more fertile as they work it, and
in many cases they have succeeded. In traditional China the village women acted
like matchmakers between plants and animals, so that the fish, the rice, beans,
algae, willow trees and water buffaloes all helped each other to grow. They
achieved something we can call "permaculture," where that land's
fertility was sustained over thousands of harvests. I think we need to learn
from that, and get back to it. Basically, local communities can save and heal
the landscape they live in, but it takes a long-range, community spirit. If we
leave everything to market forces, then the market interest is always to
maximize what we take over what we put back into the land in every season, till
we hit the dust bowl. Saving the country will take communities, and it will
take communities saying no to corporate priorities. I think people like Vandana
Shiva and her village women in India are among the greatest leaders in the
world on that.

 

Your book Different Visions of Love: Partnership and
Dominator Values in Christian History
neatly labels Christianity's
historically split personality as "partnership" and "dominator."  The Christians who joined together to
march for civil rights practised partnership Christianity.  Their neighbors who wore hoods with the
KKK after church on Sunday were dominator Christians.  Do you think partnership is the future of Christianity, or will
Christians always have a dominator shadow?

Of course I got the terms
"partnership" and "domination" from Riane Eisler. And
Eisler showed how there was a competition between partnership and dominator
visions all through the stories of the Bible, and all through our history ever
since. The histories of Islam and Christianity have run pretty much parallel in
that way.  And from meeting some
great Christian, Jewish, and Muslim women in North America, I realized that
women commonly have their own versions of their seemingly male-controlled
religions. They tend to ask their own questions and give their own answers.
Rather that asking "What does the ultimate authority require?" they
tend to ask "How good can our relations with others get?" In other
words, women have tended to ask partnership questions rather than dominator
questions. Of course lots of men want partnership answers to life as well,
since experience shows how much better that can be.  So I think women's influence and partnership values are on
the rise in all religions, and we're going to see more options for balance and
wholeness. Maybe even Christianity and Islam can achieve a balance of yin and
yang. But as always, some people freely want domination. They flock to
authoritarian leaders of the Muslim or Christian worlds, who will tell them
just what to do. Because they don't want to risk making mistakes, and they want
infallible guidance from a superhuman authority. People will always be able to
choose what they want most in life. Some will want a strong authority to obey,
and others dream of better relations between free and equal people.

 

In your book Correcting Jesus: 2000 Years of Changing the
Story
you have a chapter called "Correcting Respect for
Women."  What can you tell us
about why Christian politicians in American in 2012 would be pursuing an agenda
that has been called "the war on women?"

Well, if your main
religious question in life is "Who's the boss?" then issues of who
ranks higher than who will seem to be crucial values questions. And when people
argue for their own people being on top, they know to make it seem like a
question of what's good for everybody. In terms of racial segregation they said
it was better for black people themselves if they were separate. In terms of
superpower status, they'll say that either the good guys stay on top, or else
it will be the bad guys. And they'll say it's best for women themselves if they
stick to traditional female roles, with the traditional powers that go with
that. There's still a sense in Christian history that compassion is for women,
and it's not a manly thing. For example, James Dobson, a founder of "Focus on
the Family," wrote an article called "Gender Gap?" which listed "the countless
physiological and emotional differences between the sexes." Perhaps most
importantly, Dobson explained that for women, love is a primary need and a
"life-blood," while men have less need for love. And it seemed clear to Dobson
that this made men more fit to serve as Christian leaders. Compassion seemed an
effeminate virtue, which rendered women unfit for leadership. And of course
this is close to the strangest twist you could possibly put on what Jesus
taught.

 

Psychedelic Resources

A Foraging Trip: Where Do Magic Mushrooms Grow?
Eager to learn more about the origin of psilocybin species? Read this article to find out where magic mushrooms grow and more!

How to Make Shroom Tea: Best Recipe and Dosage
A step by step guide on how to brew shroom tea, and why entheogenic psilocybin tea is a preferred method for psychedelic connoisseurs.

R. Gordon Wasson: Author and Mushroom Expert
Learn about R. Gordon Wasson, the “legendary mushroom expert” and popular figure within the psychonaut community.

Shrooms vs Acid: Differences and Similarities Explained
Ever wondered what the differences are between shrooms vs acid, or if you can take both together? This guide explains what you need to know.

Quantum Mechanics, Reality, and Magic Mushrooms
Scientist and author Dr. Chris Becker takes an in-depth approach in understanding how we perceive reality through magic mushrooms and quantum mechanics.

Psilocybin Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to Psilocybin has everything you want to know about this psychedelic fungi from its uses to its legal status.

The Psilocybin Experience: What’s the Deal With Magic Mushrooms?
From microdoses to macrodoses, the psilocybin experience has been sought after both medicinally and recreationally for millennia.

Psilocybin and Magic Mushroom Resources
Curious to learn more about psilocybin? This guide is a comprehensive psilocybin resource containing books, therapeutic studies, and more.

Paul Stamets Profile: Mushroom Guru, Filmmaker, Nutritionist, Scientist
Learn about Paul Stamets, read his thoughts on psilocybin mircodosing, the future of psilocybin, and his recent film “Fantastic Fungi”.

Microdosing Psilocybin & Common Dosage Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivably, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing psilocybin.

Psilocybin Nasal Spray: Relief for Anxiety, PTSD, and Depression
Microdosing nasal spray with psilocybin, is that possible?! Oregan a start-up Silo Wellness believes so and has created this new option for PTSD treatment.

Mazatec Mushroom Usage: Notes on Approach, Setting and Species for Curious Psilonauts
A look at traditional Mazatec psilocybin mushroom usage, and a comparison to the cliniical therapeutic approach, with an examination of the Mazatec setting and species used in veladas.

María Sabina: The Mazatec Magic Mushroom Woman
Magic mushrooms are incredibly popular today. How they became introduced to into American culture isn’t usually a topic discussed while tripping on psilocybin fungi. We all may have María Sabina to thank for exposing the Western world to the healing properties of the psilocybin mushroom.

Guide to Magic Mushroom Strains
Are there different types of psilocybin? Read our guide to learn about the different magic mushroom strains and their individual effects.

Kilindi Iyi: Mycologist, Traveler, Teacher
Learn about traveler and mycologist Kilindi Iyi known in the psychedelic community for his research and exploration of psilocybin.

How to Store Shrooms: Best Practices
How do you store shrooms for optimal shelf life? Learn how and why the proper storage method is so important.

Shroom Chocolate Recipes: How to Make Magic Mushroom Chocolates
This recipe provides step by step directions on how you can make mushroom chocolates with the necessary ingredients. Read to learn more!

Why Do People Use Psilocybin? New Johns Hopkins Study
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicines has just published a new study on psychoactive effects of psilocybin. Read here to learn more.

How-To Lemon Tek: Ultimate Guide and Recipe
This master guide will teach you how to lemon tek, preventing the onset of negative effects after consuming psilocybin. Read to learn more!

How to Intensify a Mushroom Trip
Learn about techniques like Lemon tekking, or discover the right time to consume cannabis if you are looking to intensify a mushroom trip.

How to Grow Magic Mushrooms: Step-by-Step
This step-by-step guide will show you how to grow magic mushrooms at home. Read this guide before trying it on your own.

How to Dry Magic Mushrooms: Best Practices
Read to learn more about specifics for the best practices on how to dry magic mushrooms after harvesting season.

How to Buy Psilocybin Spores
Interested in psilocybin mushrooms? We’ll walk you through all you need to know to obtain mushroom spores. Nosh on this delish How To guide.

Hippie Flipping: When Shrooms and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Explore the mechanics of hippie flipping and how to safely experiment.

Having Sex on Shrooms: Good or Bad Idea?
Is having sex on shrooms a good idea or an accident waiting to happen? Find out in our guide to sex on magic mushrooms.

Gold Cap Shrooms Guide: Spores, Effects, Identification
Read this guide to learn more about the different characteristics of gold cap mushrooms, and how they differ from other psilocybin species.

Guide to Cooking with Magic Mushrooms
From cookies to smoothies and sandwiches, we cover various methods of cooking with magic mushrooms for the ultimate snack.

2020 Election: The Decriminalize Psilocybin Movement
Are you curious if mushrooms will follow in marijuana’s footsteps? Read to learn about how the U.S. is moving to decriminalize psilocybin.

Oregon’s Initiative to Legalize Mushrooms | Initiative Petition 34
Oregon continues to push ahead with their initiative to legalize Psilocybin in 2020. The measure received its official title and now needs signatures.

Canada Approves Psilocybin Treatment for Terminally-Ill Cancer Patients
Canada’s Minister of Health, Patty Hajdu approved the use of psilocybin to help ease anxiety and depression of four terminal cancer patients.

Mapping the DMT Experience
With only firsthand experiences to share, how can we fully map the DMT experience? Let’s explore what we know about this powerful psychedelic.

Guide to Machine Elves and Other DMT Entities
This guide discusses machine elves, clockwork elves, and other common DMT entities that people experience during a DMT trip.

Is the DMT Experience a Hallucination? 
What if the DMT realm was the real world, and our everyday lives were merely a game we had chosen to play?

How to Store DMT
Not sure how to store DMT? Read this piece to learn the best practices and elements of advice to keep your stuff fresh.

What Does 5-MeO-DMT Show Us About Consciousness?
How does our brain differentiate between what’s real and what’s not? Read to learn what can 5-MeO-DMT show us about consciousness.

How to Smoke DMT: Processes Explained
There are many ways to smoke DMT and we’ve outlined some of the best processes to consider before embarking on your journey.

How to Ground After DMT
Knowing what to expect from a DMT comedown can help you integrate the experience to gain as much value as possible from your journey.

How To Get DMT
What kind of plants contain DMT? Are there other ways to access this psychedelic? Read on to learn more about how to get DMT.

How DMT is Made: Everything You Need to Know
Ever wonder how to make DMT? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how DMT is made.

Having Sex on DMT: What You Need to Know
Have you ever wondered about sex on DMT? Learn how the God Molecule can influence your intimate experiences.

Does the Human Brain Make DMT? 
With scientific evidence showing us DMT in the brain, what can we conclude it is there for? Read on to learn more.

How to Use DMT Vape Pens
Read to learn all about DMT vape pens including: what to know when vaping, what to expect when purchasing a DMT cartridge, and vaping safely.

DMT Resources
This article is a comprehensive DMT resource providing extensive information from studies, books, documentaries, and more. Check it out!

Differentiating DMT and Near-Death Experiences
Some say there are similarities between a DMT trip and death. Read our guide on differentiating DMT and near-death experiences to find out.

DMT Research from 1956 to the Edge of Time
From a representative sample of a suitably psychedelic crowd, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who couldn’t tell you all about Albert Hofmann’s enchanted bicycle ride after swallowing what turned out to be a massive dose of LSD. Far fewer, however, could tell you much about the world’s first DMT trip.

The Ultimate Guide to DMT Pricing
Check out our ultimate guide on DMT pricing to learn what to expect when purchasing DMT for your first time.

DMT Milking | Reality Sandwich
Indigenous cultures have used 5-MeO-DMT for centuries. With the surge in demand for psychedelic toad milk, is DMT Milking harming the frogs?

Why Does DMT Pervade Nature?
With the presence of DMT in nature everywhere – including human brains – why does it continue to baffle science?

DMT Substance Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to DMT has everything you want to know about this powerful psychedelic referred to as “the spirit molecule”.

DMT for Depression: Paving the Way for New Medicine
We’ve been waiting for an effective depression treatment. Studies show DMT for depression works even for treatment resistant patients.

Beating Addiction with DMT
Psychedelics have been studied for their help overcoming addiction. Read how DMT is helping addicts beat their substance abuse issues.

DMT Extraction: Behind the Scientific Process
Take a look at DMT extraction and the scientific process involved. Learn all you need to know including procedures and safety.

Microdosing DMT & Common Dosages Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing DMT.

DMT Art: A Look Behind Visionary Creations
An entire genre of artwork is inspired by psychedelic trips with DMT. Read to learn about the entities and visions behind DMT art.

Changa vs. DMT: What You Need to Know
While similar (changa contains DMT), each drug has its own unique effect and feeling. Let’s compare and contrast changa vs DMT.

5-MeO-DMT Guide: Effects, Benefits, Safety, and Legality
5-Meo-DMT comes from the Sonora Desert toad. Here is everything you want to know about 5-Meo-DMT and how it compares to 4-AcO-DMT.

4-AcO-DMT Guide: Benefits, Effects, Safety, and Legality
This guide tells you everything about 4 AcO DMT & 5 MeO DMT, that belong to the tryptamine class, and are similar but slightly different to DMT.

How Much Does LSD Cost? When shopping around for that magical psychedelic substance, there can be many uncertainties when new to buying LSD. You may be wondering how much does LSD cost? In this article, we will discuss what to expect when purchasing LSD on the black market, what forms LSD is sold in, and the standard breakdown of buying LSD in quantity.   Navy Use of LSD on the Dark Web The dark web is increasingly popular for purchasing illegal substances. The US Navy has now noticed this trend with their staff. Read to learn more.   Having Sex on LSD: What You Need to Know Can you have sex on LSD? Read our guide to learn everything about sex on acid, from lowered inhibitions to LSD users quotes on sex while tripping.   A Drug That Switches off an LSD Trip A pharmaceutical company is developing an “off-switch” drug for an LSD trip, in the case that a bad trip can happen. Some would say there is no such thing.   Queen of Hearts: An Interview with Liz Elliot on Tim Leary and LSD The history of psychedelia, particularly the British experience, has been almost totally written by men. Of the women involved, especially those who were in the thick of it, little has been written either by or about them. A notable exception is Liz Elliot.   LSD Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety LSD, Lysergic acid diethylamide, or just acid is one of the most important psychedelics ever discovered. What did history teach us?   Microdosing LSD & Common Dosage Explained Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing LSD.   LSD Resources Curious to learn more about LSD? This guide includes comprehensive LSD resources containing books, studies and more.   LSD as a Spiritual Aid There is common consent that the evolution of mankind is paralleled by the increase and expansion of consciousness. From the described process of how consciousness originates and develops, it becomes evident that its growth depends on its faculty of perception. Therefore every means of improving this faculty should be used.   Legendary LSD Blotter Art: A Hidden Craftsmanship Have you ever heard of LSD blotter art? Explore the trippy world of LSD art and some of the top artists of LSD blotter art.   LSD and Exercise: Does it Work? LSD and exercise? Learn why high-performing athletes are taking hits of LSD to improve their overall potential.   Jan Bastiaans Treated Holocaust Survivors with LSD Dutch psychiatrist, Jan Bastiaans administered LSD-assisted therapy to survivors of the Holocaust. A true war hero and pioneer of psychedelic-therapy.   LSD and Spiritual Awakening I give thanks for LSD, which provided the opening that led me to India in 1971 and brought me to Neem Karoli Baba, known as Maharajji. Maharajji is described by the Indians as a “knower of hearts.”   How LSD is Made: Everything You Need to Know Ever wonder how to make LSD? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how LSD is made.   How to Store LSD: Best Practices Learn the best way to store LSD, including the proper temperature and conditions to maximize how long LSD lasts when stored.   Bicycle Day: The Discovery of LSD Every year on April 19th, psychonauts join forces to celebrate Bicycle Day. Learn about the famous day when Albert Hoffman first discovered the effects of LSD.   Cary Grant: A Hollywood Legend On LSD Cary Grant was a famous actor during the 1930’s-60’s But did you know Grant experimented with LSD? Read our guide to learn more.   Albert Hofmann: LSD — My Problem Child Learn about Albert Hofmann and his discovery of LSD, along with the story of Bicycle Day and why it marks a historic milestone.   Babies are High: What Does LSD Do To Your Brain What do LSD and babies have in common? Researchers at the Imperial College in London discover that an adult’s brain on LSD looks like a baby’s brain.   1P LSD: Effects, Benefits, Safety Explained 1P LSD is an analogue of LSD and homologue of ALD-25. Here is everything you want to know about 1P LSD and how it compares to LSD.   Francis Crick, DNA & LSD Type ‘Francis Crick LSD’ into Google, and the result will be 30,000 links. Many sites claim that Crick (one of the two men responsible for discovering the structure of DNA), was either under the influence of LSD at the time of his revelation or used the drug to help with his thought processes during his research. Is this true?   What Happens If You Overdose on LSD? A recent article presented three individuals who overdosed on LSD. Though the experience was unpleasant, the outcomes were remarkably positive.

The Ayahuasca Experience
Ayahuasca is both a medicine and a visionary aid. You can employ ayahuasca for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual repair, and you can engage with the power of ayahuasca for deeper insight and realization. If you consider attainment of knowledge in the broadest perspective, you can say that at all times, ayahuasca heals.

 

Trippy Talk: Meet Ayahuasca with Sitaramaya Sita and PlantTeachers
Sitaramaya Sita is a spiritual herbalist, pusangera, and plant wisdom practitioner formally trained in the Shipibo ayahuasca tradition.

 

The Therapeutic Value of Ayahuasca
My best description of the impact of ayahuasca is that it’s a rocket boost to psychospiritual growth and unfolding, my professional specialty during my thirty-five years of private practice.

 

Microdosing Ayahuasca: Common Dosage Explained
What is ayahuasca made of and what is considered a microdose? Explore insights with an experienced Peruvian brewmaster and learn more about this practice.

 

Ayahuasca Makes Neuron Babies in Your Brain
Researchers from Beckley/Sant Pau Research Program have shared the latest findings in their study on the effects of ayahuasca on neurogenesis.

 

The Fatimiya Sufi Order and Ayahuasca
In this interview, the founder of the Fatimiya Sufi Order,  N. Wahid Azal, discusses the history and uses of plant medicines in Islamic and pre-Islamic mystery schools.

 

Consideration Ayahuasca for Treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Research indicates that ayahuasca mimics mechanisms of currently accepted treatments for PTSD. In order to understand the implications of ayahuasca treatment, we need to understand how PTSD develops.

 

Brainwaves on Ayahuasca: A Waking Dream State
In a study researchers shared discoveries showing ingredients found in Ayahuasca impact the brainwaves causing a “waking dream” state.

 

Cannabis and Ayahuasca: Mixing Entheogenic Plants
Cannabis and Ayahuasca: most people believe they shouldn’t be mixed. Read this personal experience peppered with thoughts from a pro cannabis Peruvian Shaman.

 

Ayahuasca Retreat 101: Everything You Need to Know to Brave the Brew
Ayahuasca has been known to be a powerful medicinal substance for millennia. However, until recently, it was only found in the jungle. Word of its deeply healing and cleansing properties has begun to spread across the world as many modern, Western individuals are seeking spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical well-being. More ayahuasca retreat centers are emerging in the Amazon and worldwide to meet the demand.

 

Ayahuasca Helps with Grief
A new study published in psychopharmacology found that ayahuasca helped those suffering from the loss of a loved one up to a year after treatment.

 

Ayahuasca Benefits: Clinical Improvements for Six Months
Ayahuasca benefits can last six months according to studies. Read here to learn about the clinical improvements from drinking the brew.

 

Ayahuasca Culture: Indigenous, Western, And The Future
Ayahuasca has been use for generations in the Amazon. With the rise of retreats and the brew leaving the rainforest how is ayahuasca culture changing?

 

Ayahuasca Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
The Amazonian brew, Ayahuasca has a long history and wide use. Read our guide to learn all about the tea from its beginnings up to modern-day interest.

 

Ayahuasca and the Godhead: An Interview with Wahid Azal of the Fatimiya Sufi Order
Wahid Azal, a Sufi mystic of The Fatimiya Sufi Order and an Islamic scholar, talks about entheogens, Sufism, mythology, and metaphysics.

 

Ayahuasca and the Feminine: Women’s Roles, Healing, Retreats, and More
Ayahuasca is lovingly called “grandmother” or “mother” by many. Just how feminine is the brew? Read to learn all about women and ayahuasca.

What Is the Standard of Care for Ketamine Treatments?
Ketamine therapy is on the rise in light of its powerful results for treatment-resistant depression. But, what is the current standard of care for ketamine? Read to find out.

What Is Dissociation and How Does Ketamine Create It?
Dissociation can take on multiple forms. So, what is dissociation like and how does ketamine create it? Read to find out.

Having Sex on Ketamine: Getting Physical on a Dissociative
Curious about what it could feel like to have sex on a dissociate? Find out all the answers in our guide to sex on ketamine.

Special K: The Party Drug
Special K refers to Ketamine when used recreationally. Learn the trends as well as safety information around this substance.

Kitty Flipping: When Ketamine and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Read to explore the mechanics of kitty flipping.

Ketamine vs. Esketamine: 3 Important Differences Explained
Ketamine and esketamine are used to treat depression. But what’s the difference between them? Read to learn which one is right for you: ketamine vs. esketamine.

Guide to Ketamine Treatments: Understanding the New Approach
Ketamine is becoming more popular as more people are seeing its benefits. Is ketamine a fit? Read our guide for all you need to know about ketamine treatments.

Ketamine Treatment for Eating Disorders
Ketamine is becoming a promising treatment for various mental health conditions. Read to learn how individuals can use ketamine treatment for eating disorders.

Ketamine Resources, Studies, and Trusted Information
Curious to learn more about ketamine? This guide includes comprehensive ketamine resources containing books, studies and more.

Ketamine Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to ketamine has everything you need to know about this “dissociative anesthetic” and how it is being studied for depression treatment.

Ketamine for Depression: A Mental Health Breakthrough
While antidepressants work for some, many others find no relief. Read to learn about the therapeutic uses of ketamine for depression.

Ketamine for Addiction: Treatments Offering Hope
New treatments are offering hope to individuals suffering from addiction diseases. Read to learn how ketamine for addiction is providing breakthrough results.

Microdosing Ketamine & Common Dosages Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing ketamine.

How to Ease a Ketamine Comedown
Knowing what to expect when you come down from ketamine can help integrate the experience to gain as much value as possible.

How to Store Ketamine: Best Practices
Learn the best ways how to store ketamine, including the proper temperature and conditions to maximize how long ketamine lasts when stored.

How To Buy Ketamine: Is There Legal Ketamine Online?
Learn exactly where it’s legal to buy ketamine, and if it’s possible to purchase legal ketamine on the internet.

How Long Does Ketamine Stay in Your System?
How long does ketamine stay in your system? Are there lasting effects on your body? Read to discover the answers!

How Ketamine is Made: Everything You Need to Know
Ever wonder how to make Ketamine? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how Ketamine is made.

Colorado on Ketamine: First Responders Waiver Programs
Fallout continues after Elijah McClain. Despite opposing recommendations from some city council, Colorado State Health panel recommends the continued use of ketamine by medics for those demonstrating “excited delirium” or “extreme agitation”.

Types of Ketamine: Learn the Differences & Uses for Each
Learn about the different types of ketamine and what they are used for—and what type might be right for you. Read now to find out!

Kitty Flipping: When Ketamine and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Read to explore the mechanics of kitty flipping.

MDMA & Ecstasy Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to MDMA has everything you want to know about Ecstasy from how it was developed in 1912 to why it’s being studied today.

How To Get the Most out of Taking MDMA as a Couple
Taking MDMA as a couple can lead to exciting experiences. Read here to learn how to get the most of of this love drug in your relationship.

Common MDMA Dosage & Microdosing Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing MDMA.

Having Sex on MDMA: What You Need to Know
MDMA is known as the love drug… Read our guide to learn all about sex on MDMA and why it is beginning to makes its way into couple’s therapy.

How MDMA is Made: Common Procedures Explained
Ever wonder how to make MDMA? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how MDMA is made.

Hippie Flipping: When Shrooms and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Explore the mechanics of hippie flipping and how to safely experiment.

How Cocaine is Made: Common Procedures Explained
Ever wonder how to make cocaine? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how cocaine is made.

A Christmas Sweater with Santa and Cocaine
This week, Walmart came under fire for a “Let it Snow” Christmas sweater depicting Santa with lines of cocaine. Columbia is not merry about it.

Ultimate Cocaine Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
This guide covers what you need to know about Cocaine, including common effects and uses, legality, safety precautions and top trends today.

NEWS: An FDA-Approved Cocaine Nasal Spray
The FDA approved a cocaine nasal spray called Numbrino, which has raised suspicions that the pharmaceutical company, Lannett Company Inc., paid off the FDA..

The Ultimate Guide to Cannabis Bioavailability
What is bioavailability and how can it affect the overall efficacy of a psychedelic substance? Read to learn more.

Cannabis Research Explains Sociability Behaviors
New research by Dr. Giovanni Marsicano shows social behavioral changes occur as a result of less energy available to the neurons. Read here to learn more.

The Cannabis Shaman
If recreational and medical use of marijuana is becoming accepted, can the spiritual use as well? Experiential journalist Rak Razam interviews Hamilton Souther, founder of the 420 Cannabis Shamanism movement…

Cannabis Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to Cannabis has everything you want to know about this popular substances that has psychedelic properties.

Cannabis and Ayahuasca: Mixing Entheogenic Plants
Cannabis and Ayahuasca: most people believe they shouldn’t be mixed. Read this personal experience peppered with thoughts from a procannabis Peruvian Shaman.

CBD-Rich Cannabis Versus Single-Molecule CBD
A ground-breaking study has documented the superior therapeutic properties of whole plant Cannabis extract as compared to synthetic cannabidiol (CBD), challenging the medical-industrial complex’s notion that “crude” botanical preparations are less effective than single-molecule compounds.

Cannabis Has Always Been a Medicine
Modern science has already confirmed the efficacy of cannabis for most uses described in the ancient medical texts, but prohibitionists still claim that medical cannabis is “just a ruse.”

Related Posts

Ready to explore the frontiers of consciousness?

Sign up for the Reality Bites newsletter and embark on a journey into the world of psychedelics, mindfulness, and transformation. It’s where the curious minds gather.

Become a conscious agent with us.

Featured Partner

Cosmic Melts

Cosmic Melts are the latest mushroom gummies we’ve been munching on. Choose from five fruity flavors, each gummy containing 350mg of Amanita muscaria.
 
Amanita muscaria offers a unique (and totally legal!) mushroom experience, and Cosmic Melts is an ideal entry point for the curious consumer.
Featured Partner

Lab Link Supply

Our go-to source for spores so you can grow your own shrooms right at home. Carrying several of our favorite species including B+, Golden Teacher, Jedi Mind F*ck, Blue Meanie and more. Browse their selection of spores and get started with your home grow.

Our Partners

Welcome to Reality Sandwich. Please verify that you are over 18 years of age below.

Reality Sandwich uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By entering Reality Sandwich, you are agreeing to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.