Ayahuasca – A discussion

[Jade]

Let us take the two examples and look at them through the lens of the Transformation of the Mind. (please excuse my dead horse)

Gemini took DMT that was extracted to be smoked in its purest form. He also took other pharmaceutical drugs to "maximize" the length of time of the experience. The other option is seeking a shaman who has spent most of his life learning the forest and becoming a friend and companion to all of its lifeforms, and asking to partake in a ritual experience with the plant. (Or you can be your own shaman) The first action seems more about trying to maximize the experience in a fun way, plus Gem said he did it many times over the course of a short period of time. He wanted the most "bang for his buck". This action is more on the scale of plundering a prostitute - and the rewards are that which is "rough, prostituted, and without great virtue". Where as doing research for a shaman (or becoming the shaman), saving up money for the trip, and setting your intentions for a serious spiritual life lesson are more along the lines of how you would gently court the maiden - the plant being your maiden. Are you going to take its plundered fruits or are you going to cultivate a relationship with her before you even begin to ask for anything?

I see this as the same, in a way, for natural vs. synthetic. If we take a look at the earth and nature, absolutely everything we could possibly need is provided by her - for instance, we can get DMT from the ayahuasca. But that's not enough. We want a quicker fix. So we try to contort nature to do things for our benefit, instead of cultivating patience to wait for her to provide for us what we need. It's a subtle thing but I think it's important to take into consideration. There's a reason why the ritual to extract the DMT is so intense and profound, to synthesize that step in a lab cheapens it IMO. This is the case with most things.