The shocking truth about the Buddha they never told us
(Silent Flame) For centuries, we’ve been bowing, chanting, and meditating…. But did we ever stop to ask, Who was the Buddha — really? Was he a man who simply awakened? A divine being who walked among mortals? Or something far beyond both ideas?
This deeper dive is a controversial video as Silent Flame takes us on a journey through ancient Buddhist texts, modern science, cosmic metaphysics, and brutal honesty — to finally answer the question no monastic dares ask out loud, 🔥 Was the Buddha a God…or just a man?
✅ DISCOVER:
Why early texts portray him as a human — and why that matters
The hidden [Mahayana] doctrine of the Three Bodies of the Buddha
The shocking Mahayana view that Buddha never passed away into final nirvana (what the world mistakenly calls dying, even though dying always entails rebirth so this could not be a common death the unenlightened experience)
What neuroscience, quantum physics, and psychedelics reveal today
How we should relate to the Buddha in real life — worship or walk?
If one has ever meditated, bowed before a statue, or just wondered what “enlightenment” really means… 🧘♂️ this is the video that connects the dots — and burns away illusions.
Was the Buddha a [Creator] God? Divine? A miracle-worker? Great gurus say, "No one saves us but ourselves; no one can, and no one may; we ourselves must walk the Path; buddhas only point the way."
We as earthling humans have been depending on gods and God for too long, waiting for them to return and rule, with we peons and pawns to their larger designs, such as the Anunnaki, the Greek, Roman, and Indian pantheons.
🔔 Subscribe for brutally honest Buddhist truth every week. 👇 Comment your truth: Is Buddha a god or are we just afraid to awaken? #Buddhism #Buddha #IsBuddhaGod #DharmaTalk #SilentFlame #Enlightenment #BuddhistPhilosophy #ThreeBodiesOfBuddha #NoSelf #Anatta #Awakening #BuddhistWisdom #SpiritualAwakening #Mysticism #ReligionVsSpirituality #QuantumBuddhism #BuddhismExplained #BuddhaTruth #TheRealBuddha #LongformContent #YouTubeDharma #Consciousness #BreakTheIllusion
Silent Flame, YouTube.com, May 21, 2025; The 14th Dalai Lama; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
The REAL reason GOD is TRAPPING souls on Earth | BANNED by the Church | On the Origin of the World
(God's Whisper) The concept of the stolen soul (spirit being, subtle body, mind) is one of the most thought-provoking and haunting ideas in spiritual philosophy, particularly the teachings of Gnostic Christians.
This video explores ancient Gnostic teachings that suggest our souls (selves, egos, amalgams explained in Buddhism as the Five Aggregatesclung to as self) were ensnared by the Demiurge, a false god who created the material world to keep us trapped in ignorance.
Through texts like On the Origin of the World, we learn that humanity’s fall into this world severed our connection to our true divine/deva-realm(see Aggañña Sutta) origin, chaining us to a cycle of endless rebirths, suffering, distractions, and desires.
The material world we see around us, our bodies, our ambitions, and even our societies all work to keep us ignorant of our true spiritual purpose.
"Soul"? The subtle body pattern of the gross body
I swear to the Demiurge I will F S up: Bible
According to Gnosticism, these external forces are orchestrated by the Archons ("Rulers" Archangels), powerful enforcers of the Demiurge's rule.
The path to freedom lies in Gnosis, an inner awakening that helps us rediscover our divine spark and break free from the illusion.
This video is a guide through the Gnostic view of reality, offering insight into how to reclaim spiritual autonomy and embrace the truth hidden within us.
9 Strange Things One Will Experience if the Third Eye is Opening
(The Spiritual Bond) Aug. 14, 2024: Unlock the secrets of the mystical Third Eye (Buddhist dibba cakkhu or "divine eye"). 🌟
Ever felt that there’s more to life than what we can all see? The Third Eye, also known as the mind's eye or inner eye, holds the key to perceiving the hidden world beyond ordinary sight.
This video explores what the Third Eye is, how it opens, and the nine powerful signs that it is opening from within.
From heightened intuition to telepathic abilities, discover how awakening the Third Eye can transform life and connect us to the deeper mysteries of the universe.
This is a guide through the subtle and profound changes that occur as spiritual awareness expands, revealing the energies and synchronicities that shape our reality.
Whether new to the concept of the Third Eye or already on a spiritual journey, this video tries to offer valuable insights and practical tips to help navigate a mystical awakening.
Find this content enlightening? Like, share, and subscribe for more videos on spiritual growth and the mysteries of the universe.
Timestamps
0:00 - Introduction: What is the Third Eye? 1:20 - The Hidden World Beyond Ordinary Sight 2:45 - The Science Behind the Third Eye 4:10 - Sign 1: A Gentle Pressure Between Your Eyebrows 5:00 - Sign 2: Frequent Headaches 6:00 - Sign 3: Enhanced Intuition 7:00 - Sign 4: Sensitivity to Light and Sound 8:00 - Sign 5: Synchronicities Start Appearing 9:00 - Sign 6: Seeing Lights and Patterns with Closed Eyes 10:00 - Sign 7: Changes in Your Diet 11:00 - Sign 8: Vivid, Meaningful Dreams 12:00 - Sign 9: Telepathic Abilities 13:30 - Conclusion: Embrace the Journey of Spiritual Awakening
Coral Castle, tarot reading, and the academic firestorm surrounding a controversial piece of ancient papyrus were among the riveting stories explored last week on Coast to Coast. And a gargantuan crater was found in Russia, an eerie "shadow creature" (shapeshifting skin-walker wolf, fox, or dog) was filmed in Maine, and a pair of Italian flat earth skeptics got lost trying to find the "edge of the world."
On Tuesday Theresa Reed detailed nearly 30 years of work with the popular divination tool called the tarot card deck. She explained that reading the cards relies on intuition honed over many sessions coupled with a strong understanding of their foundation and multiple interpretations.
NASA's fake space footage revealed by mouse
The monstrous power of Mother Nature was on full display this week: a jaw-dropping video of an enormous crater that appeared in Russia's Arctic Tundra region.
Inadvertently discovered by a news crew flying overhead, the chasm located on the country's Yamal Peninsula measures 165 feet deep. In the face of online speculation that the ominous pit was somehow related to UFOs or a clandestine weapon test, a Russia expert quickly explained to the public that it was a natural phenomenon brought about by melting permafrost.
Whoever makes crop circles goes coronavirus
The mysterious Coral Castle [American Stonehenge] in Homestead, Florida has long perplexed researchers who wonder how Edward Leedskalnin could have built the elaborate stone structure by himself.
On Monday night's program, R.L. Poole shared details from his investigation into the location and its creator. He argued that Coral Castle was crafted using a secret scientific technique related to magnetism.
Moreover, Leedskalnin hid a code in the stone which, when applied to his writings, revealed a collaboration with the wealthy heiress Doris Duke.
A curious piece of footage surfaced this week that seemingly shows some kind of shadow creature crossing a dark and spooky road. The video came courtesy of a dashcam from a Maine motorist driving through the community of Yarmouth a few days earlier and, at the time, didn't notice anything out of the ordinary from his trip.
When looking back at the footage to find out if it captured a deer he had spotted on the drive, the man was stunned to see a baffling black form zipping from one side of the road to the other in front of his vehicle. A supernatural visitor, paranormal activity, or a trick of light and shadow? We're still not sure.
Of course I was married! I was a rabbi.
The fantastic story of how a scrap of papyrus purportedly indicating that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene set off a firestorm in the religious studies world a few years ago was discussed in fascinating detail on Saturday night's program by journalist Ariel Sabar.
He recounted how the controversial piece of paper made its way to a Harvard professor who unveiled her blockbuster discovery at a 2012 conference and how her findings quickly fell apart when the artifact was said to be a fraud.
All ancient cultures described a domed flat earth
By far the most bizarre story of the week came from Italy where a pair of alleged Italian flat earth enthusiasts tried to find the "edge of the world" but wound up on an epic misadventure.
Map of Mt. Sumeru and our flat earth
The duo began by breaking coronavirus-related travel restrictions to embark on a road trip that led to them selling their car, buying a boat, and sailing to an island hundreds of miles away in the opposite direction of what they believed to be the literal end of the earth.
Despite failing in their mission, the pair persisted twice more, much to the chagrin of authorities who kept trying to get them to adhere to the country's pandemic quarantine.
Content licensed from TVF International. Inquiries contact: realstories@littledotstudios.com.
Blue Lily Flower Power
This is a mind-opening and mind-expanding series that shows footage of human experiences never before seen on television.
The blue water lily, now a rare flower, was once prized above all flowers in Ancient Egypt. It has amazing psychoactive powers, many of which are unknown. In four carefully monitored experiments, volunteers take powerful entheogenic, hallucinogenic, or narcotic substances, and viewers see the actual effects in real time.
These substances are all legal and come from plants with a rich cultural history, plants that have been used historically in rituals around the world, but about which little is known today.
Ryan Mandell; Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Ananda M., Wisdom Quarterly
I can see colors, subtle vibrations, auras
Albert Einstein once said, “Everything is vibration.” On the most fundamental level, everyone and everything else in this world-system (universe) is made of pure energetic vibrations.
In fact, about 99.999% of an atom is empty space. ["Form is emptiness, emptiness is form," as The Heart Sutra states]. The other .0001 % (electrons, protons, neutrons, quarks...) are probably also made up of empty space.
In Buddhist physics (as revealed in the Abhidharma, the "Higher Doctrine") the fundamental constituents of matter or materiality are rupa-kalapas, "fine-material particles-of-perception." These subatomic things blend into and emerge out of the immaterial (arupa) because kalapas refer to the characteristics of all material/physical phenomena.
This tiny computer screen can see all.
That means that everything we see -- the screen, the table, this body -- is made up of mostly empty space. The only thing that makes them tangible or "material" is their energetic frequencies.
This is basic high school science, but mystics have known it for millennia. Gas molecules vibrate at a higher frequency than liquids, and liquids vibrate faster (more frequently) than solids. Everything in the universe is vibrating. (If you concentrate, you can even hear the sound of the universe, the pranava, a very soothing, resonant hum or "om").
Think about the visual, the colors: They are simply different frequencies of visible light vibrating at different speeds. From slowest to fastest, these are the speeds/frequency of color vibrations:
red resonates at 405-480 THz
orange at 480- 510 THz
yellow at 510-530 THz
green at 530-580 THz
blue at 600-620THz
indigo at 620- 680 THz
violet at 680-790 THz.
The Buddha had a 6 ft. aura.
Everything has a unique vibratory code and energy. We should be aware of this before we start thinking that everything is real and solid and unchanging.
All tangible things are always changing (radically impermanent), but mostly we don't notice. We quickly/reflexively start thinking things can be satisfy and fulfill us. They are constantly changing, so they inevitably disappoint the person who clings to them. Let go. They are not what they seem.
Everything has a unique vibratory code and energy. This is particularly the case when it comes to food we put in our bodies. "We are what we eat." What else could we be? We are what we habitually think, too. "You are what you think."
What will finally activate the DNA? DMT?
We might want to watch what we're putting in between our ears, in through our six senses. Yes, six. There are the regular five senses, and mind is a sensory organ making contact with ideas and impressions, emanations and notions.
For health it’s important that, whenever possible, we eat organic. Why? Pesticides are toxic killers with a low frequency vibration; they are compounded and put on food to kill sentient life. That is their express purpose. Ask Monsanto, Inc. Pesticides, on a vibratory and physical level, lead to disease by creating oxidizing "free radicals" in the body with numerous harmful effects.
The ancient Vedic texts and later Yoga Sutras as well as Buddhist teachings speak to these quantum concepts. In fact, all Vedic (later adopted by Hinduism) and Buddhist philosophy seeks to uproot delusion/wrong view (avidya), the illusion (maya, moha) of a separate "self" or "ego" apart from its constituents.
These philosophies seek to move awareness from a place of separation or duality to an “us," a "unity." Subject and object merge. Consciousness expands to cosmic proportions. Successful meditation (absorption) adds up to right concentration, coherence, or collectedness of mind, samma-samadhi.
The chakras, including the third eye or ajna chakra, know this. Lots of purified water, preferably distilled, and these herbs can help:
tulsi (holy basil)
turmeric (curcumin)
ashwaganda
green tea
mild chili powder
goji berry
amla
bacopa
sage
reishi mushroom
cardamon
rosemary
pine needles
syrian rue...
The secret is to discover the characteristics of each of the seven main chakras (wheels, energy nexus points) and, knowing the properties of herbs, what they exacerbate and calm, one can bring the former into balance with the help of the latter.
Baba told him, "Come close to me." Then he said, "What do you drink in your hostel? Why do you keep a bottle [of alcohol] hidden on your bookshelf? Nobody knows about it, but I know. Move closer, near to me."
Then as he touched the student's trikuti [forehead], the student went into samadhi [trance, mental unification, collectedness, stillness, deep concentration].
Where exactly is the trikuti or confluence to three sacred "rivers"?
Thanks but I prefer water to immortality.
Baba explained, "During samadhi [a coherent and blissful state of mind] there is a hormone [DMT, melatonin?] secretion from the pineal gland. It is amrtarasa[amata, ambrosia, a "nectar of immortality"], a nectarean hormone. The student is not senseless; rather, he is in samadhi.
"After a while his senses will become active again and when he regains normal consciousness his eyes will be red, as if he is drunk. This is divine intoxication, not wine intoxication."
After 20 minutes the student opened his eyes. Everybody could see that they were reddish as if he were drunk.
Baba asked him, "How do you feel? Are you enjoying it?"
Baba then added, "The student's state is a thousand times better than being in a wine-drunken state. When people drink wine their senses become dull, and their minds become more crude and blind [obtunded].
"But when devotees go into samadhi, they go into a fine [sublime] state of subtlety. And after, when they become normal again, they are fully refreshed."
Baba requested the student, "Promise me not to drink wine again." Then Baba promised him, "If you do more spiritual exercises (sadhana), you will be able to enjoy samadhi.
"The hormonal secretion from the pineal gland will give you more concentration of mind and you will be able to study well, whereas after drinking wine, you lose your sensory awareness and feel sleepy. Then you miss your studies and waste you father's money by purchasing wine. For the blissful experience of samadhi, you don't have to spend a single [cent]."
Learn more. This highly compelling film offers a front row seat on an around the world exploration of how individuals, groups, and entire cultures tap into an alternative “true reality” through spirituality, meditation, and entheogens.
Join Michelle Rodriguez (of Fast and the Furious fame) and Zappy Zapolin as they meet with thought leaders from around the world, including Bruce Lipton, Deepak Chopra, Ram Dass, Marianne Williamson, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Foster Gamble, Gerard Armond Powell, and many more, on their journey to find the reality of truth.
WHAT'S IN THIS FILM?
Easter magic mushrooms
0:13 Manna from heaven 0:29 The Reality of Truth intro - my life was about to change 1:26 I call up Deepak Chopra 2:00 Is there a plant sacrament connection? 2:14 Deepak talks about ancient religious possible connection to mushrooms 2:53 Deepak explains that we are all connected and the hallucination of separation 4:03 Could these sacred ancient plants be the solution to our problems? 4:32 Let's help enlighten people 4:45 Did Deepak Chopra tell me to go to Peru and drink ayahuasca tea? 4:58 Gerard Armond Powell's story begins - struggling with addiction and unhappiness 5:33 Who I am - Zappy's story - living the American dream 6:57 We need to change our collective consciousness to solve the world's problems. 7:54 I talked to Deepak's friends about reality 8:07 Marianne Williamson 8:26 Sri Sri Ravi Shankar - beyond the 3 states of consciousness 8:55 Bruce Lipton - reflecting light as a forcefield of energy 10:15 Maharishi Mahesh Yogi - teaches transcendental meditation 11:09 John Hagelin continues Maharishi's teachings 12:03 Dr. Fred Travis 13:36 I talked to religious teachers about meditation 13:56 Joel Osteen 15:20 Peter Coyote talks about his psychedelic experiences 15:36 Fabian Piorkowsky talks about how ayahuasca ceremonies use two separate plants that use chemicals our bodies produce. 16:02 Foster Gamble's movie "Thrive" - Foster talks about changing global consciousness 16:46 Aubrey Marcus talks about his experiences with ayahuasca 17:13 Amazon John Easterling - it's like ten year's of therapy in 7 hours 17:25 Kundalini Yoga icon Gurmukh teaches celebrities 18:44 Tim Booth - these plants are powerful tools 19:46 Dr. Drew Pinsky talks about the medicine 20:08 Dr. Jeff McNairy - 10 to 12 years of psychotherapy in 1 to 2 sessions 20:25 Shiva Rea - insight into plant medicine 21:01 Ram Dass - Richard Alpert - Worked with Timothy Leary at Harvard with psychedelics 21:44 Study shows 60% of alcoholics that took psilocybin were cured of alcoholism 22:24 A talk with Ram Dass 22:54 I decide to take a journey with friends 23:43 San Pedro 24:22 Fredy Puma - Shaman 25:13 Experience the healing effects 25:28 Daniel Macmillan - what drew him 26:14 Adam Singer - plant medicine ceremonies 27:08 We take the journey 27:30 Michelle Rodriguez - her San Pedro experience 28:50 Why suffer? 30:31 20 years of pain lifted 31:22 Enrique Umbert 31:49 Each person has a pattern - ayahuasca can change the pattern 32:38 Day of ayahuasca ceremony 32:49 My ayahuasca experience 33:27 Why do bad things happen? 34:47 Michelle Rodriguez talks about her ayahuasca experience 37:13 Laurent Levy 37:32 The plants will help your will to transform 38:38 Back to reality 38:56 Nature provides healing medicines 39:10 Sri Sri Ravi Shankar - breathing technique 39:54 Altered states of consciousness 40:47 Psychonauts gather 45:35 We should set up a haven for like-minded people in Costa Rica 45:50 Was it making a difference? 46:30 Gerard Armond Powellcalls 46:58 The moon comes to Gerard Armond Powell 47:08 Gerard Armond Powell - addictions - Ibogaine experience helps come to grips with childhood trauma 48:39 Gerard Armond Powell goes back to the moon 50:02 Gerard Armond Powell hasn't touched drugs since 50:14 Brandee Alessandra talks about her experience 51:11 Plant medicine helps Brandee and Gerard Armond Powell find happiness together 52:18 Gerard Armond Powell broke his addiction in 1 plant medicine session and set up a center to expand consciousness, heal, and break addiction 52:52 The moon helps Gerard Armond Powell make the right choices 53:15 Rythmia in Costa Rica 53:46 Rythmia - spiritual growth - Rev. Michael Beckwith "The Answer Is You" 54:44 The miracle you get at Rythmia is the Reality of Truth 55:25 My journey has been worth it 57:33 Plant-based medicine, meditation, and breathing are all tools of ancient spiritual tradition 58:05 Ayahuasca in a clean, safe, and comfortable place 58:11 Credits 1:04:59
Meditate with Deepak Chopra, Michelle, Zappy, WQ, and friends:
Ancient traditions knew of the pineal gland (shaped like a pine cone behind the forehead acting as a third eye). It's shrouded in mystery and the subject of lore in many cultures. These cultures knew that the pineal plays a role in our spiritual development and communication with spirit beings. But in an increasingly toxic world, many of us are losing the innate gifts of an open and active pineal.
(Tiff Trailers) "Embrace of the Serpent" is an Academy Award-nominated true story that tracks two parallel odysseys through the Amazon. In theaters now or watch here.
Ayahuasca: "Embrace of the Serpent"
Two stories set three decades apart are woven together. One is of a European ethnobotanist who has "dedicated himself to knowledge of plants" meeting the last shaman, Karamakate, of an Amazonian tribe.
They go in search of medicine to save the scientist that, most importantly, will allow him to dream. (One is reminded of the 1980 American movie "Altered States" with William Hurt). Decades later, after reading what the first white man found, a younger white man comes in search of a flower, yakruna, and sacred plant knowledge. He meets the same shaman, who has forgotten the sacred knowledge after the devastation of the living jungle. This visionary adventure epic from Colombian director Ciro Guerra offers a heart-rending depiction of European colonialism laying waste to indigenous culture. But along the way to finding themselves, they drink ayahuasca (DMT). They are in search of answers to awaken or communicate with "the serpent" (Kundalini in the spinal column?) In addition to from Christian slavery, there's sex, drugs, and messianic-delusions at the mission (concentration conversion camp) in an "Apocalypse Now" part of the movie. Highly recommended.
A hallucinogenic drug gives the Jivaro shaman entrance to the "real" world and gives him the power to cure or bewitch.
"And when they went, I heard the noise of their winds, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of a host: when they stood, they let down their wings" (Ezekiel 1:24).
Dr. Harner begins at Min. 2:47 and explains healing in the Amazon
Dr. Harner, founder of The Foundation for Shamanic Studies, gives keynote address on the ancient and contemporary practice of shamanic healing at the first conference on global healing at the University of California at Santa Barbara. More: shamanism.org.
He had drunk, and now he softly sang. Gradually, faint lines and forms began to appear in the darkness, and the shrill music of the tsentsak, the spirit helpers, arose around him.
The power of the drink fed them. He called, and they came:
First, pangi, the anaconda, coiled about his head, transmuted into a crown of gold. Then wampang, the giant butterfly, hovered above his shoulder and sang to him with its wings.
Snakes, spiders, birds, and bats danced in the air above him. On his arms appeared a thousand eyes as his demon helpers emerged to search the night for enemies.
The sound of rushing water filled his ears, and listening to its roar, he knew he possessed the power of tsungi, the first shaman. Now he could see. Now he could find the truth.
He stared at the stomach of the sick man. Slowly, it became transparent like a shallow mountain stream, and he saw within it, coiling and uncoiling, makanchi, the poisonous serpent, who had been sent by the enemy shaman. The real cause of the illness had been found.
The Jivaro Indians of the Ecuadorian Amazon believe that witchcraft is the cause of the vast majority of illnesses and non-violent deaths.
The normal "waking life"
There are other, better ways to reach expanded consciousness than drugs. Try breathing.
("Waking Life") From the director of "Dazed and Confused" and "Slacker" comes one of the
most imaginative animated films ever made. This funny, ingenious movie explores the fascinating question: "Are we sleep-walking through our
waking state or wake-walking through our dreams"? Join Wiley as
he searches for answers to life's most important questions in a world
that may or may not be reality in the "most visually alive movie of the
year" (Roger Ebert).
The normal waking life, for the Jivaro, is simply "a lie" or an illusion [maya in Buddhism], while the true forces that determine daily events are supernatural and can only be seen and manipulated with the aid of hallucinogenic [entheogenic] drugs [in Buddhism with self-mastery through meditation].
A reality view of this kind creates a particularly strong demand for specialists, who can cross over into the supernatural world at will to deal with the forces that influence and even determine the events of the waking life.
These specialists, called "shamans" by anthropologists, are recognized by the Jivaro as being of two types, bewitching shamans and curing shamans.
Both kinds take a hallucinogenic drink, whose Jivaro name is natema[a local form of ayahausca, a combination of bark, leaves, and vine], in order to enter the supernatural world.
Ayahausca: shaman's brew
The elements of "ayahuasca" include leaves, bark, and the "Vine of the Dead."
The flower Banisteriopsis (caapi) is a key ingredient in ayahuasca (Joao Medeiros).
The Jivaro boil it with the leaves of a similar vine, which is probably also a species of Banisteriopsis, to produce a tea that contains the powerful hallucinogenic alkaloids harmaline, harmine, d-tetrahydroharmine, and quite possibly DMT (dimethyltriptamine).
These compounds have chemical structures and effects similar, but not identical to LSD, mescaline of the peyote cactus, and psilocybin of the psychotropic Mexican mushroom.
Washikta, an outstanding Jivaro shaman, quietly listens to a visitor's request for assistance. As is customary when dealing with strangers, he keeps a shotgun in readiness during the consultation.
Shamanic journey
When I first undertook research among the Jivaro in 1956-1957, I did not fully appreciate the psychological impact of the Banisteriopsis drink upon the native view of reality, but in 1961 I had occasion to drink the hallucinogen in the course of field work with another Upper Amazon Basin tribe.
For several hours after drinking the brew, I found myself, although awake, in a world literally beyond my wildest dreams.
I met bird-headed people [suparnas, garudas in Buddhist terminology], as well as dragon-like creatures [nagas, reptilians] who explained that they were the true gods of this world.
I enlisted the services of other spirit helpers in attempting to fly through the far reaches of the Galaxy. Transported into a trance where the supernatural seemed natural, I realized that anthropologists, including myself, had profoundly underestimated the importance of the drug in affecting native ideology.
Therefore, in 1964 I returned to the Jivaro to give particular attention to the drug's use by the Jivaro shaman.
The hallucinogenic trip (Hollywood version)
("Altered States" by Ken Russell) The Harvard protagonist imbibes the shaman's brew in Mexico centered around psilocybe magic mushrooms.
The use of the hallucinogenic natema drink among the Jivaro makes it possible for almost anyone to achieve the trance state essential for the practice of shamanism.
Given the presence of the drug and the felt need to contact the "real," or supernatural, world, it is not surprising that approximately one out of every four Jivaro men is a shaman.
Any adult, male or female, who desires to become such a practitioner, simply presents a gift to an already practicing shaman, who administers the Banisteriopsis drink and gives some of his own supernatural power -- in the form of spirit helpers, or tsentsak -- to the apprentice.
These spirit helpers, or "darts," are the main supernatural forces believed to cause illness and death in daily life. To the non-shaman they are normally invisible, and even shamans can perceive them only under the influence of natema.
Shamans send those spirit helpers into the victims' bodies to make them ill or to kill them. At other times, they may suck spirits sent by enemy shamans from the bodies of tribesmen suffering from witchcraft induced illness.
The spirit helpers also form shields that protect their shaman masters from attacks. The following account presents the ideology of Jivaro witchcraft from the point of view of the Indians themselves. The darts (tsentsak)
During the trip, who is the serpent, a tsentsak?
To give the novice some tsentsak, the practicing shaman regurgitates what appears to be -- to those who have taken natema -- a brilliant substance in which the spirit helpers are contained.
He cuts off part of it off with a machete and gives it to the novice to swallow. The recipient experiences pain upon taking it into his stomach and stays in bed for ten days, repeatedly drinking natema.
The Jivaro believe they can keep magical darts in their stomachs indefinitely and regurgitate them at will. The shaman donating the tsentsak periodically blows and rubs all over the body of the novice, apparently to increase the power of the transfer.
The novice must remain inactive and not engage in sexual intercourse for at least three months. If he fails in self-discipline, as some do, he will not become a successful shaman. At the end of the first month, a tsentsak emerges from his mouth.
With this magical dart at his disposal, the new shaman experiences a tremendous desire to bewitch [negative sorcery rather than beneficial healing]. If he casts his tsentsak to fulfill this desire, he will become a bewitching shaman.
If, on the other hand, the novice can control this impulse and swallow the first tsentsak, he will become a curing shaman.
(G. Morris) How to Experience Altered States (Without Drugs) More
If the shaman who gave the tsentsak to the new man was primarily a bewitcher, rather than a curer, the novice likewise will tend to become a bewitcher. This is because a bewitcher's magical darts have such a desire to kill that their new owner will be strongly inclined to adopt their attitude.
One informant said that the urge to kill felt by bewitching shamans came to them with a strength and frequency similar to that of hunger.
Only if the shaman is able to abstain from sexual intercourse for five months will he have the power to kill a man (if he is a bewitcher) or cure a victim (if he is a curer).
A full year's abstinence is considered necessary to become a really effective bewitcher or curer [brujo or curandero].
During the period of sexual abstinence, the new shaman collects all kinds of insects, plants, and other objects, which he now has the power to convert into tsentsak [microbes, viruses, Trojan horses for energetic packets?].
Almost any object, including live insects and worms, can become a tsentsak if it is small enough to be swallowed by a shaman.
Different types of tsentsak are used to cause different kinds and degrees of illness. The greater variety of these objects that a shaman has in his body, the greater his ability.
According to Jivaro concepts, each tsentsak has a natural and supernatural aspect. The magical dart's natural aspect is that of an ordinary material object as seen without drinking the drug natema.
But the supernatural and "true" aspect of the tsentsak is revealed to the shaman by taking natema.
When he does this, the magical darts appear in new forms as demons and with new names.
In their supernatural aspects, the tsentsak are not simply objects but spirit helpers in various forms, such as giant butterflies, jaguars, or monkeys, who actively assist the shaman in his tasks. More
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