A comparative analysis of Jungian depth psychology and Tibetan Buddhist Tantra reveals a fascinating array of similarities, which are united in their most essential form through the manner in which mythic imagery is employed in both disciplines as a powerful agent of inner transformation. Various forms of creative engagement with sacred symbols–including mandalas–are enacted in each...
Humans have employed an incredible variety of plant-derived substances over the millennia in order to alter consciousness and perception. Among the innumerable narcotics, analgesics, 'ordeal' drugs, and other psychoactive substances discovered and used in ritualistic contexts by cultures around the world, one class in particular stands out not only for its radical psychological effects, but...
As a "wild," drumming thunder shaman, a warrior mounted on her spirit horse, Francisca Kolipi's spirit traveled to other historical times and places, gaining the power and knowledge to conduct spiritual warfare against her community's enemies, including forestry companies and settlers. As a "civilized" shaman, Francisca narrated the Mapuche people's attachment to their local sacred landscapes,...
Freud and Jung are the pillars of the modern scientific study of the mind. Their ideas are based upon diverse sources, ranging from mythic literature to the case studies of their individual patients. The work of those who came later, even when it veered away from that of these two pioneers, still took into account the theories they forged. Today, modern laboratory techniques and equipment have...
This paper critically reviews assertions that near-death and out-of-body experiences (ND/OBE) offer proof of extra-corporeal existence when the brain is supposedly “dead”. While this field has almost moved away from mere anecdotal recording, the current trend is focussed on demonstrating existence without functional brains. These endeavours have fallen far short of anticipated results—that...
Shamanic practices frequently create hypnotic-like states, with altered states of consciousness, heightened suggestibility, and a perception of an abundance of meaning in everyday events. Jaguar medicine (JM) is a form of shamanic healing with roots in the indigenous cultures of South and Central America. Recent years have seen increasing interest in translating shamanic practices for use in...
The rare occurrence of the continuation and magnification of dream content, "reality," and "free-wheeling" dynamics (fleeting, poignant, meaningful, and meaningless), intersecting with and interspersed within awake reality and consciousness is here described, for lack of better terms or known conditions, as infra-dreaming, or infra-reality.This term is borrowed from a literary source,...
Altered states of consciousness (ASCs) are perceptual states, such as dream, delirium, or hallucination that fall beyond a commonly accepted normal waking consciousness. This article discusses Entoptic Phenomena in Audio, a collection of four electroacoustic compositions that are based upon the author’s research regarding these states. The compositional process utilised involves consideration...
Clinical and polygraphic hallmarks of type 1 narcolepsy (NT1) are the occurrence of episodes of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep at the onset of nocturnal or daytime sleep (SOREMP) and dissociated wake–REM sleep manifestations (cataplexy, sleep paralysis, hallucinations) [1]. Some recent neurophysiological findings, demonstrating that SOREMP in NT1 lacks the typical sympathetic activation of REM...
Freud's "Project for a Scientific Psychology" (1895) reflected his attempt to explain psychic phenomena in neurobiological terms. The recent discovery of the neuron motivated him to embark on this endeavor. His basic hypothesis was that neurons were vehicles for the conduction of "currents" or "excitations," and that they were connected to one another. Using this model, Freud attempted to...