Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Carl Jung: How to stop wasting your life

The Graduate; Academy of Ideas, 8/21/22; Pat Macpherson, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

How to Stop Wasting Your Life: Therapist Carl Jung
(Academy of Ideas) August 21, 2022. Visit academyofideas.com for more content. Introduction to Carl Jung Academy of Ideas: Intro

An ancient enlightened Buddhist nun

Therīgāthā (16.1), Verses of the Elder Nuns, The Great Chapter, Mahā Nipāta, Verses of Ven. Sumedhā Theri, Sumedhātherīgāthā; Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
Guru Ma, an Indian female teacher (Yoga Ayurveda and Vedic Sciences, Glendale)
.
In the City of Mantāvatī,
of King Koñca and his main royal-consort,
she was the daughter Sumedhā,
confident in those applying the Teaching.

Virtuous, eloquent,
very learned and disciplined in the Teaching of the Buddha.
She approached her mother and father and said:
“Dear parents, listen!

I seek the joy of nirvana,
as all states of existence -- even the divine -- are temporary.
Sensual pleasures are worthless without fail:
they bring little satisfaction but much distress.

Fools become infatuated with sensual pleasures
that are acrid like snake-venom.
They are consigned to hell for long periods of time,
where they experience injury and pain.

Those who have done unskillful deeds feel sorrow
in their state of downfall, where they constantly do even more harm.
Unrestrained in body, speech,
and mind,

lacking wisdom,
not intending to stop the arising of suffering,
and not knowing the Teaching,
such fools do not recognize the ennobling truths.

Mother, most people do not understand
the truths skillfully taught by the Buddha.
They are delighted with planes of existence,
they long for rebirth as shinging ones (devas).

But rebirth as a shining one
is a finite and temporary state of existence.
Fools are not frightened,
of being reborn again and again.

From the four planes of downfall,
it is hard to obtain the two higher destinations.
For one gone to a place of downfall,
there is no going forth [as a Buddhist monastic] in the hell realms.

The two of you should allow me
to go forth in the doctrine of the One Possessed of Ten Powers.
Living at ease, I would be able to strive
for the abandoning of rebirth and death.

How can there be delight in a plane of existence
with a worthless body devoid of substance?
Allow me to go forth,
so that I may bring an end to craving for eternal existence [again becoming].

One who is distant from the arising of buddhas
has no opportunity.
I will not spoil the virtues of the spiritual life,
for the rest of my life.”

Then Sumedhā further said to her parents:
“I will not take food
from a householder,
I will be overtaken by death.”

Distressed, her mother and father start to cry,
completely overpowered.
Together they try to convince her,
while she is lying on the floor of the palace.

“Rise up, little child! What is this sadness?
You are engaged to be married in Vāraṇavatī.
King Anīkaratta is handsome
and you have been promised to him.

You will become his chief queen-consort,
the wife of King Anīkaratta.
Holding precepts, keeping celibacy,
life as an outcast [recluse] — these are difficult to do, little child.

As a queen you will have authority, wealth, sovereignty,
fortune, and pleasure.
You are a young lady; enjoy sensual pleasures!
Get married, child!”

Then Sumedhā replied:
“Who would want such a worthless state of existence?
Either I will go forth,
or I will die, but I will not marry.

What is this impure putrid body,
a dreadful corpse with a tainted smell?
Who would want to enter
this oozing skin-bag full of impurities?

What do they know about this
disgusting thing plastered with flesh and blood,
a carcass which will be given as food
to worms and birds?

Before long it will be taken to the cemetery,
a corpse deprived of consciousness,
left there like a discarded log,
by disgusted relatives.

Thrown away in the cemetery,
it becomes food for others.
Even one's own mother and father are disgusted and [afterward] go bathe themselves,
what can be expected from everyone else?

Hanging on to this worthless corpse,
bones bound together by tendons
in this putrid body
full of excrement and saliva.

One who dismembered it,
bringing the internal parts out,
would not be able to endure its smell —
even one's own mother would be disgusted.

The aggregates, elements, and sense domains,
are conditioned, rooted in birth, suffering.
Pondering wisely,
why would I wish to marry?

If day after day 300 spears
would constantly attack the body,
100 years of this torment
would be good if then there were a final end of suffering.

I would consent to this torment,
as would anyone who has heard the Teacher’s words:
‘Long is the cycle of rebirth and death,
for those who are slain again and again.’

Among shining ones and human beings,
among animals and among titans,
among hungry ghosts and in the hell realms,
no limit to torment is seen.

There is much torment in the hell realms,
for those who are oppressed in the lower realms,
Even among the shining ones there is no safety,
and no happiness higher than nirvana.

Those who have attained nirvana,
committed to the words of the One Possessed of Ten Powers;
Living at ease, they strive
to abandon birth and redeath.

Today, father, I will leave behind
this worthless wealth,
I am disenchanted with sensual pleasures,
I am at peace because I have renounced sensuality; it has been made like a palm-stump.”

As she said this to her father,
Anīkaratta, to whom she was engaged to be married,
approached Vāraṇavatī
at the time prearranged for the wedding.

Then Sumedhā cut off her thick, soft, dark hair
with a sword,
closed the palace,
and entered the first meditative absorption (jhāna)

She had already entered it,
when Anīkaratta came to town.
Then in the palace, Sumedhā
cultivated well the perception of impermanence.

As she fixed her mind intently on this,
Anīkaratta quickly ascended.
With limbs adorned with gold and gems,
joining palms (añjali), he asked Sumedhā:

“As a queen there is authority, wealth, sovereignty,
fortune, and pleasure.
You are a young lady; enjoy sensual pleasures!
Sensual pleasures are difficult to obtain in this world!

Royalty has been handed over to you:
enjoy wealth and give gifts!
Do not be downhearted,
your mother and father are distressed.”

Sumedhā, who had no need for sensual pleasures
and was free of delusion, said to him:
“Do not delight in sensual pleasures!
Look at the drawbacks of sensual pleasures!

Mandhātā, king of four islands,
embraced the path of enjoying sensuality.
He died unsatisfied,
not with desires fulfilled.

Even if the seven kinds of gems were to pour down from the sky
like rain in all ten directions,
not even then would there be satisfaction in sensual pleasures:
human beings die unsatisfied.

Sensual pleasures are like a knife on a butcher’s block,
sensual pleasures are like a snake’s head.
They burn like a torch,
they resemble a skeleton.

Sensual pleasures are impermanent, unstable,
much suffering, highly venomous;
A heated iron ball,
the root of calamity, resulting in suffering.

Sensual pleasures are like tree-fruit,
like a piece of meat, they are suffering;
Sensual pleasures are deceitful as a dream,
like borrowed goods.

Sensual pleasures are like the stake of a spear,
a disease, an abscess, a calamity, an affliction.
Like a fire pit,
the root of calamity, fear, and destruction.

In this way sensual pleasures have been declared to bring much suffering,
and to be obstructive.
Go, not to me, but to the Buddha!
My own confidence is in him.

What can another do for me,
when their own head is on fire?
When one is bound by birth and death,
one should strive for its end.”

After she opened the door,
and saw mother, father, and Anīkaratta
sitting down on the ground crying,
she said:

“Long is the cycle of birth and death for fools,
they cry again and again,
without beginning or end for the death of the father,
the death of the brother, and one’s own death.

Tears, mother’s milk, blood,
you move along in the cycle of birth and death without beginning or end.
Bear in mind the pile of bones
of all these sentient beings going through one life after the other.

Bear in mind that all the tears, mother milk, and blood
could fill the four oceans.
Bear in mind the pile of bones of one world cycle,
would be just as abundant.

Saṃsaric existence is without beginning or end,
as vast as the land of Jampudīpa [Rose Apple Land = India].
Even if the earth was made into little balls the size of a jujube seed,
it still would not add up to all the mothers among mothers.

Bear in mind all the grass, wood, branches, and foliage,
carried along since beginningless time.
Even if they were made into twigs each only the size of four fingers,
they would still not add up to all of fathers among fathers.

Bear in mind the one-eyed turtle in the eastern sea,
and, far away, a block of wood with a hole in it;
the chance of gaining a human rebirth
is like the chance of putting one’s head through that hole.

Bear in mind the form of this miserable body,
without any substance, like a lump of foam.
See the aggregates as impermanent,
bear in mind that there is much agony in hell.

Bear in mind those filling up the cemetery,
again and again, in all those lives.
Bear in mind the danger of crocodiles,
and bear in mind the four truths.

Knowing about the deathless,
why would you indulge in the five bitter drinks?
For all delight in sensual pleasures,
is more bitter than the five bitter drinks.

Knowing about the deathless,
why would you set yourself on fire with sensual pleasures?
For all delight in sensual pleasures,
is burning, boiling, trembling, aglow.

When one can be without enmity,
why would you want the many enemies that come with sensual pleasures?
Like rulers, fires, thieves, and other unpleasant things,
sensual pleasures are common and bring many enemies.

Knowing freedom,
why would you want the imprisonment of sensual pleasures?
For sensual pleasures are undesirable
and result in the suffering of imprisonment.

As a blazing grass torch
burns one who holds it and does not let it go,
sensual pleasures are like a torch:
they burn the one who does not let go of them.

Do not renounce abundant happiness
for the sake of the minute happiness of sensual pleasure.
Do not be like the fish who swallows the hook,
and is then slain.

One should willingly train oneself with regard to sensual pleasures.
You are like a dog bound by a chain:
sensual pleasures will attack you
like hungry savages would a dog.

Yoked to sensual pleasure,
you will experience unlimited suffering,
and much mental distress.
Give up these unstable sensual pleasures!

When there is the undecaying,
why would you want sensual pleasures, which are subject to decay?
All rebirths in all places are
seized by death and sickness.

This is non-decay, this is non-death,
this is non-decay and non-death, the path of sorrowlessness.
Without enmity, unobstructed,
unfaltering, fearless, not afflicted.

Attained by many,
the deathless state even today can be obtained in this way:
it is possible by whomever wisely commits themselves,
but not without striving.”

Thus spoke Sumedhā,
without desire for any conditioned things.
Teaching Anīkaratta in this way,
Sumedhā threw her hair on the ground.

Having stood up, Anīkaratta
with hands in añjali asked her father:
“Set free Sumedhā,
to go forth for liberation and seeking truth.”

Released by mother and father,
she went forth, leaving behind fear and sorrow.
She realized the six special knowledges,
the highest fruit for one who is training.

Wonderful and extraordinary,
was the Nirvana of the princess.
This is a story of some of her past lives,
that was explained near the end of her life:

“In the Buddha Koṇagaman’s time,
in a new settlement in the Saṅgha’s park,
myself and three friends,
gave the gift of a monastic dwelling.

Ten times, a hundred times,
hundreds and hundreds of times,
I was born as a Deva,
not to mention among humans.

When we were amongst the devas we had great psychic power,
not to mention among humans.
I was a queen of seven jewels,
a woman like a jewel.

This is the cause, the origin,
and root of my acceptance of the teachings.
That was my first contact,
enjoying the Dhamma and Nirvana.

This is how they act, those who have faith
in the words of superior wisdom.
They are disenchanted with states of existence,
and after becoming disenchanted, they become dispassionate.”

Thus, Sumedhā Theri [the elder nun or theri, a monastic with at least ten rains retreats or years seniority in the Bhikkhuni Sangha or Nuns Order] spoke these verses.

The Great Chapter is finished.

Complete is the Therīgathā.

THE VERSES OF THE ELDER NUNS ARE FINISHED.

Summertime: "Don't meditate. Don't try."

Lana Del Rey; Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Ananda (Dharma B Meditation) Wisdom Quarterly

I got this. I can DO this. Check me out.
MEDITATOR: I want a regular meditation practice, but I don't know how to start. I don't know how to meditate.

INSTRUCTOR: Don't meditate. Don't try. You don't know how, so what would you be doing or trying to do other than what you think it is? It isn't that.

MEDITATOR: So don't meditate?

INSTRUCTOR: That's right. You can't meditate. You'll never be able to meditate. No one can. No one ever has. And no one will ever be able to.

MEDITATOR: What to do then?

INSTRUCTOR: We're going to set up the circumstances, the causes and conditions, for meditation to happen by itself. Meditation happens. We don't "do" it. No one does.

MEDITATOR: What are those things?

In the sensing, let there be just the sensing.
INSTRUCTOR: Here's an example. Can you grow plants in a garden? No, no you can't. They grow by themselves. What can you do? You can set up the circumstances for them to grow -- give them what they need, remove the hindrances to their growth. Then they grow great all by themselves. What do they need? Seed, soil, water, warmth, some sunlight, some shade. What hinders their growth? Weeds, pests, too much water, too little water, too much sun, too little sun, and so on.

MEDITATOR: But I do garden. I do grow things myself!

INSTRUCTOR: How do you do that?

MEDITATOR: I don't know. I just plant things, and they sort of come up by themselves. I follow the directions on the seed packet.

INSTRUCTOR: So you can't grow things? You don't know how. You don't even know how they do it, but they do do it. THEY do it themselves. You, for your part, just cultivate the causes and conditions for them to do it, right?

MEDITATOR: Yes. I guess I never thought about it that way. I thought I was doing it.

INSTRUCTOR: Yet when you didn't do it, they did grow, sometimes?

MEDITATOR: Yes!

INSTRUCTOR: Meditation is the exact same way. We can't make (create, produce) meditation, we can't force meditation, we can't do meditation. It can happen. It can arise like a magical sprout that grows into a fulsome, fruiting plant that flowers and produces wonders. When does it happen? It happens when we provide what it needs -- attention, silence, persistence, relaxation, removing the Five Hindrances to it, providing the Factors of Absorption. When those are here, it happens all by itself. So don't meditate. Know that you can't, and give up. Do not. Stop trying. Think of Yoda.

"NO! Try not! DO or DO NOT. There is no try." Yoda in Star Wars (eBay.com).
.
Sit up. Sit still. Be comfortable (zmm.org).
MEDITATOR: I get it! What are the specifics I should do if I want meditation to happen by itself?

INSTRUCTOR: Good question! Sit in a comfortable position, spine straight but not stiff or straining. Relax. Breathe in deeply then let go. Place attention to the breath under the nose, where you know the body is breathing. Attend to the breath without interfering. Mind wanders? Bring it back gently, without scolding or despairing. Gone a million times, return it a million-and-one times. Start again. This will keep one in the present moment, as the mind doesn't know past breaths or future ones. There's only this one. Be with it from beginning to end, the full cycle of inhaling and exhaling, whether breathing in or breathing out. Keep the attention here gently, lightly, happily. There's nothing to do. Be. Be here now, awake, attending, and still.

MEDITATOR: I can do that! But isn't that "meditating"?

INSTRUCTOR: No. Gardening is one thing -- cultivating the soil, -- growing is another. It's a mystery. It happens by itself. It's effortless.

MEDITATOR: I get it. You're distinguishing the form from the, the?

INSTRUCTOR
: From the meditation. Meditation (jhana, bhavana, dhyana, zen, kammatthana) is what happens when the causes and conditions for it to happen are present. It meditates. It happens to us. It is a function or result of calm, of persistent attention, of relaxing, as things cohere (come into coherence). Wanting, striving, efforting, thinking, stressing, struggling...all of these things get in the way. They aren't "meditation," but if you think they are, don't meditate. Stop it. Let go.

MEDITATOR: I get it, I think. I keep thinking I get it.

Three kinds of desire get in the way of meditation
INSTRUCTOR: It might be better to "Go Zen," that is, just sit, shikantaza. It's vital to remember the words of the enlightened Western Theravada Buddhist teacher Ajahn Sumedho (American Robert Karr Jackman), who teaches that there are three kinds of desire. All three get in the way get in the way of meditation and progress in meditation. So let them go. But continue to sit. And don't think that that sitting is meditation. It is not. That's preliminary. When meditation happens, you'll know and see that you were confusing forms with actual meditation, projections with the actual thing, thoughts and ideas about reality with reality.

Look, I did it! I look like a doll. I've achieved total lotus posing. But nothing's happening.
.
Hey, Kids, sit like me. And you'll be a meditator.
MEDITATOR: So what shouldn't I do?

INSTRUCTOR: Don't meditate. Don't "try." Just cultivate the causes and conditions for it to happen by itself, without grasping, struggling, or trying to get something, get rid of something, or become something.

MEDITATOR: It sounds very Zen.

INSTRUCTOR: It sort of is. But don't begin to "stink of Zen." Zen is achievable by trying, by doing, by anything but allowing, accepting, letting go, and persisting in attention (mindfulness of this moment).

MEDITATOR: I get it! I think I really do get it this time! It was semantics that were throwing me off. It's like how you said the Buddha, when he was the Bodhisatta, realized that if he struggled, he exhausted himself, and if he did nothing, he sank. Somewhere between the two, between effort and exhaustion, between nothing and struggling, right?

Group meditation Mondays in Los Angeles.
INSTRUCTOR
: Yes. Sitting in a group can also be helpful. There's more energy in a collection of coals than any single one until it gets going. When it gets going, the others may become a hindrance to it. Then having used the group for what it's good for, set it aside, like a raft that took us to the further shore.
Young master is just sitting zazen
(Wiki WQ edit) Zen means jhana. Zazen, considered the heart of Japanese Sōtō Zen Buddhist practice, means "sitting." The aim of zazen is "just sitting" (shitankaza), that is, suspending all judgmental thinking and letting words, ideas, images, and thoughts pass by [like little clouds across a clear sky] without getting involved in them. We avoid becoming distracted by distractions this way. Practitioners do not use any specific object of meditation, instead remaining as much as possible in the present moment, aware of and observing what is occurring [such as this breath] and what is passing through the mind. Dogen says, in his Shobogenzo, "Sitting fixedly, think of not thinking. How do you think of not thinking? Non-thinking. This is the art of zazen." More

Spiritual bypassing and narcissism (video)


Narcissists and spiritual bypassing
(Dr. Ramani) August 31, 2022. First of all, what spiritual bypassing? Second, what is a narcissist? It's not just the self-absorbed jerks who love themselves but part of a spectrum of narcissistic personality disorder, which at least 1% of the population suffers from. The number of people with narcissistic tendencies is higher and growing, but no percentage has yet been given. With the rise of TikTok, social media, and online therapy, lots of people are realizing they're behaving in this dysfunctional way. It's a shocker. Get your head out of the clouds or out of your butt, and admit it. They're not likely to admit it. But early childhood traumas are insidious and have a real impact; they are the gift that keeps on giving. Watch out for being a narcissist or associating with one. They're not just romantic partners anymore but may be parents, friends, or bosses.
DISCLAIMER: THIS INFORMATION IS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR CLINICAL CARE. PLEASE CONSULT A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER FOR GUIDANCE SPECIFIC TO YOUR CASE. THIS VIDEO DISCUSSES NARCISSISM IN GENERAL. THE VIDEO DOES NOT REFER TO ANY SPECIFIC PERSON AND SHOULD NOT BE USED TO REFER TO ANY SPECIFIC PERSON, AS HAVING NARCISSISM. PERMISSION IS NOT GRANTED TO LINK TO OR REPOST THIS VIDEO, ESPECIALLY TO SUPPORT AN ALLEGATION THAT THE MAKERS OF THIS VIDEO BELIEVE, OR SUPPORT A CLAIM, THAT A SPECIFIC PERSON IS A NARCISSIST. THAT WOULD BE AN UNAUTHORIZED MISUSE OF THE VIDEO AND THE INFORMATION FEATURED IN IT.

Tuesday, August 30, 2022

Kula Shaker: Faith & Music Documentary

ITV1, Dec. 2006; Pablo LagosMay 3, 2019; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

Singer Crispian Mills (Kula Shaker): Faith & Music Documentary
(ITV1)  Faith & Music: Crispian Mills discusses faith, spirituality, and devotion in his modern psychedelic rock music and his musical influences. Music: 1. Grateful When You're Dead, 2. Tattva, 3. Hey Dude (2011 remastered), 4. Govinda (Radio Mix), 5. Hush, 6. Sound of Drums (album version), 7. MYSTICAL MACHINE GUN by British rock band Kula Shaker.
Rock profile: Who is Kula Shaker and how did they do it?

What if I could learn to dance? (video)



(Body Groove) What if there was a fitness program that everyone could do and experience incredible results? Thousands of 5 Star reviews ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Join over 742,883 women who love Body Groove. Here are seven reasons why people love Body Groove and why it'll work:

1. Start slowly. 2. It can't be done wrong. 3. It's not just exercise. 4. Confidence will soar! 5. Fresh new workouts every day. 6. It's so much fun. 7. The results are amazing each day.

Each day sees a new release, a new collection of dance routines, approximately 30 minutes long. These routines are hand-selected from a massive library of dances, and they give a complete dance workout, with warm-ups, strength training, flexibility improvements, cardio conditioning, and a unique method of cooling down that keeps the feel-good hormones flowing.

Since each Body Groove workout is designed to be doable but challenging for everybody, today’s workout of the day is perfect. Want to keep on grooving? There are hundreds of additional workouts at Body Groove On-Demand. Body Groove works because it's totally different, completely doable, and outrageously fun. More

If System of a Down (SOAD) were from India

WISDOM QUARTERLY: If we're dancing, we're already likely not meditating, so we might as well start singing, too. Meditation, while not limited to sitting, is about touching stillness (samadhi) and nobly silent. This is absorption (jhana, zen, dhyana). Then this purified mind can take up insight-practices (vipassana) for liberation of mind.

(Andre Antunes) What if System of a Down were from India? August 10, 2022. The Nooran Sisters plus SOAD and the Patakha Guddi remix is based on these SOAD songs: "I-E-A-I-A-I-O," "Revenga," "Chop Suey," and "B.Y.O.B."  Like it? Maybe buy me a coffee: buymeacoff.ee/andreantunes.

Advanced ruins that survived Great Flood?


Advanced ruins that survived the Great Flood?
(Mystery History) August 19, 2022. Join this channel to get access to perks. Contact: mysteryhistory@mail.com. To support Mystery History do so via the following avenues: Become a member for exclusive content by making an ongoing donation to help the mission via Patreon: patreon.com/MysteryHistory.

(Every donation received is reinvested into the channel amd used to continually bring improved quality productions). Other avenues to help are hugely appreciated no matter how small the donation. It all helps produce more content. PayPal: All donations to PayPal are welcomed and appreciated, Join the waiting list to pre-order a first print of the first book: attach postal address to donation and send to: mysteryhistory@mail.com, Go Fund Me: gofundme.com/f/mystery-his... Or donate anonymously using a cryptocurrency transfer to one of our cryptocurrency wallet addresses. Bitcoin address: 1MW6SZ3qoqZt8S3dudem533ovfuf3gw2Nq Ethereum address: 0x21c23688670A25210DfF86dFAcc25B33296cB52D Monero (most confidential) address: 47sw8yRwYwVPCGN34SfSNWJSG6uKy4RB5N1bKAiVkzvZ4r6FFckSUZVgT5sR6ZUGVpJLTTC2PbU5mY83F86KXeA3BpumfZ9

Main Narration by Don Moffit: donmoffit.com Music SONG Dragon and Toast ARTIST Kevin Macleod ALBUM Dragon and Toast LICENSES Creative Commons Attribution license (reuse allowed)

Monday, August 29, 2022

Psychedelics really can lift depression

Natalie Maximets (originally appeared in Your Tango.com via MSN.com, 8/28/22); Pat Macpherson, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Hope or Hype: Can Psychedelics Treat Depression? 
I was feeling low then I got high.
As difficult as it can be to manage depression, there is hope. It begins with education — and it helps to have an open-minded approach. Depression or major depressive disorder is a serious mental health illness that affects the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

In a nutshell, it is a mood disorder that brings a persistent feeling of sadness, loss of interest, and other severe symptoms.

According to statistics from the World Health Organization, around 3.8% of the entire world population is affected by depression, which translates to approximately 280 million people of all ages.
This illness interferes with one’s daily activities and may lead to suicidal thoughts, which is why treating this condition properly is crucial for everyone who is facing it. How to deal with it? According to the National Institutes for Mental Health, depression treatment typically involves three basic elements:
  • Self-help, such as
  • meditation,
  • healthy nutrition,
  • sports,
  • and so on.
Professional therapies with psychologists and other mental health professionals.

Taking the right medicines, such as SSRI antidepressants

This is the traditional formula for treating such mood disorders. But many people diagnosed with depression are turning to an alternative treatment option: psychedelics.
  • RELATED: How the most deeply happy people deal with emotional pain (without covering it up)
How do psychedelic trips (entheogenic experiences) treat depression? In recent years, alternative (non-clinical) ways of treating depression have been gaining momentum.

[Magic mushrooms, LSD, DMT, MDMA]

One such alternative treatment method involves psychedelic trips. People who’ve tried them, as well as researchers and scientists, claim that the consumption of psychedelic drugs can contribute to healing a depressed mind in ways that medicine can’t.

According to experts, psychedelic trips can even improve the conditions of people who suffer from non-treatable, severe depressive disorders. But is it really true?

Can psychedelics alleviate depression, or is it just hype? In this article, we are going to answer this question and help grasp the concept behind psychedelic depression treatment better.
  • RELATED: What it feels like to have anxiety and depression at the same time
Psychedelic drugs, such as LSD, “magic mushrooms,” and the like, have long been known as powerful tools for consciousness transformation.

Psychedelic experiences, which often cause powerful hallucinations or "trips," are believed to trigger outside-the-box thinking, give access to “hidden” knowledge, and provide a new, deeper outlook on life.

No wonder why such drugs have been used for holistic healing for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. But what does psychedelic therapy look like these days?

Today, psychedelic trip sessions are broadly used for treating severe mental disorders, such as depression. According to numerous studies, such an approach can help even with non-treatable cases.

Apparently, psilocybin contained in psychedelic mushrooms can reduce the activity of certain brain regions, thus, regulating and improving a number of cognitive functions.

Studies suggest that even a single psychedelic session can significantly alleviate the symptoms of depression. However, an important part of the therapy is the presence of an experienced mental health professional.

Under the supervision of a reliable guide and supported by talk therapy (before, during, and post-session), psychedelic trips can lead to complete healing.
  • RELATED: 10 agonizing truths depressed people never talk about how does psilocybin affect the human brain?
Psilocybin is a chemical compound contained in certain species of fungi (mushrooms). It is a prodrug element responsible for the hallucinogenic effects of “magic mushrooms."

Simply put, psilocybin normalizes the brain’s landscape, allowing more seamless mind-wandering and, thus, paves the way for more efficient depression treatment in the future.

It relaxes fixed patterns of thinking that often get in the way of success in untreatable depression cases. In order to assess the possibility of psychedelic treatment of depression, it’s crucial to understand the mechanism of action of this compound on the human brain in the first place.

So how does it affect the brain? The first and primary effect of psilocybin consumption is the relaxation of the Default Mode Network (DMN).

This network spans brain regions that remain more active during passive tasks when a person is not focused on the external world. The DMN is active during mind-wandering and daydreaming.

It also becomes active when we think about ourselves and others, as well as when we remember the past and plan for the future. According to numerous studies, people who score higher in depression ratings also have higher compulsive activity in the Default Mode Network.

Thus, by relaxing and reducing the activity of the DMN, psilocybin can really treat depression. According to a recent study by scientists from UC San Francisco and Imperial College London, psilocybin also improves connections between different brain regions, thus, freeing people from long-held patterns of excessive self-focus and rumination.

Finally, this compound is also proven to fix human patterns of thinking. According to fMRI scans, depressed people’s brains have more chaotic “landscapes,” with deep wells that prevent seamless movement between one’s own thoughts and perspectives.

At the same time, fMRI scans show that psilocybin therapy basically flattens the depressed brain’s landscape, allowing a person to access new insights, thoughts, and perspectives.
  • RELATED: The 6 types of depression — and how can tell the difference can using psychedelics be dangerous?
We already know that the mechanism of psilocybin’s action on the human brain is scientifically proven to have a therapeutic effect and, thus, has the potential to alleviate depression even in its most severe conditions. But does this mean that any use of psychedelics has a positive effect? Not at all!

When resorting to psychedelic treatment without supervision, one can face a variety of threats and negative side effects. Namely, here are the biggest hazards of self-use of psilocybin:

1. Development of psychosis and schizophrenia
According to many experts, psychedelic therapy is contraindicated for patients who have a certain family history of mental illnesses. Namely, people who have relatives diagnosed with schizophrenia should stay back from such treatment due to the high risk of the development of such disorders.

Of course, psychedelics aren’t always associated with the development of schizophrenia symptoms. There is a wide array of genetic, environmental, and other factors that can push the progression of this disease.

However, it’s important to understand that any substance abuse can lead to a so-called drug-induced psychosis. It is a form of the condition that takes place when a person experiences symptoms linked to clinical psychosis, such as hallucinations or delusions.

According to experts, episodes of drug psychosis may eventually pull the clinic psychosis or schizophrenia trigger and provoke the development of these diseases in people prone to them.
  • RELATED: 15 things to know about people who have concealed depression
2. Bad trip
Oh no, it's happening again, a bad trip!
One of the largest risks of taking psychedelics is the experience of a bad trip. In a nutshell, a bad trip is a highly negative experience that can be accompanied by fear, dysphoria, terrifying illusions, paranoia, panic, obsessive thoughts, and even physical pain.

Needless to say, bad trips can be incredibly traumatic and have a lasting negative effect on one’s physical and mental health. There are several things known to increase the probability of such a journey. These include:
  • Taking excessive doses of a drug
  • Starting the session in a negative emotional state (set and setting)
  • Running the session in the wrong setting with excessive external stimulation
  • Mixing drugs with alcohol
Although these are the things that increase the likelihood of having a bad trip, the truth is that it can happen to anyone, anytime. And the biggest problem is that once someone has a bad trip, it can be barely possible to stop it.

Therefore, being in the right set and setting and having an experienced sitter alongside for the trip are crucial for having a positive, healing experience.
  • RELATED: 6 hidden signs a depression is more than temporary
3. Existential crisis
Another big threat associated with psychedelics consumption is the development of an existential crisis. Due to their hallucinogenic effect, psychedelics can cause the distortion of the habitual picture of the world.

Without proper preparation and post-session discussion (called integration), such experiences can cause false memories or make one feel like one has received life-changing insights that are difficult to integrate.

For instance, a person of non-Jewish origin may recollect the horrors of a concentration camp. This can cause severe existential anxiety and bring unbearable harm to one’s mental health.
  • RELATED: The best depiction of depression
4. Risky behavior
Finally, there is one more fact that should keep one away from the self-use of psychedelics on one's own. When experiencing a psychedelic trip, one can have impaired judgment.

Sometimes, people report believing that they have superhuman powers, which causes them to do hazardous things, such as trying to jump off a building. [While it may never have happened, it is the source of moral panic to scare people away from medicinal use of natural healing agents.]

Without paid professional supervision, there might be no one to stop a person from flying. So to stay alive and safe on the sofa, and avoid actual threats to personal safety, always consult with a doctor and do only what s/he says to do, for the safety of people all around. We cannot have people trying to cure themselves or doctors would have no work and could not make their house, car, college, and boat payments.
  • RELATED: 9 subtle signs of depression I was too depressed to notice
Education, an open mind — and patience
A psychedelic trip can be a very blissful, eye-opening, and profoundly healing experience, one remembered for life, taking on spiritual and cosmic significance.

At the same time, in the wrong setting and with the wrong set, it can be an incredibly frightening and painful experience.

All in all, psychedelic trips really CAN treat depression. But there is a need for the right mindset and physical setting -- and a shamanic, compassionate, or professional guide. And, often, it takes more than one session to get tangible results. More
  • RELATED: 7 surprising things that make depression even worse
Natalie Maximets is a life transformation coach with expertise in clinical and existential psychology. This article originally appeared in YourTango.com