Nora Bateson, daughter of Gregory Bateson, created an insightful documentary about her father’s ideas. You can purchase the DVD here. I also found it on YouTube:
Category: consciousness (Page 3 of 11)
The Adventure of Self-Discovery by Stanislav Grof is a fascinating book which introduces readers to the inner healing potential of their sub-conscious. The first half of the book builds on themes from Realms of the Human Unconscious. In the second half of the book, Grof explains the rather profound, yet simple, exercise of holotropic breathing. Holotropic breathing allows people access to the ancient tradition of entering non-ordinary states of consciousness without any recourse to the ingestion or smoking of plant material. Please read the entire book if you are interested in performing the breathing without the aid of an experienced holotropic guide. Do not attempt without a sitter.
I put together a music playlist based on Grof’s recommendations for your benefit. The songs are in random order. Let me know if I should add/remove any:
Holotropic Breathing – Beginning
Also, informative interview with Grof:
Dr. Stanislav Grof’s book Realms of the Human Unconscious: Observations from LSD Research surpassed any expectations I had when I purchased it. It truly takes the reader on a trip into the most remote depths of the human psyche. Grof’s model of the unconscious, based on more than 30 years of experience, provides incredible insight into a realm beyond anything you thought you knew. The model involves what Grof calls “Systems of Condensed Experience” (COEX Systems). In addition to these experiences, patients typically encounter experiences classified by Grof as either perinatal or transpersonal. I suggest reading the book to learn more about this topic and the models.
In a suitable analogy, Grof declares LSD to be psychiatry’s fundamental tool; it is like the astronomer’s telescope or the biologist’s microscope. Grof refers to the powerful ability of LSD to facilitate the revealing of deep unconscious systems like that of sonar or radar, revealing the largest and most relevant emotional disturbances beneath the surface of the unconscious ocean. It allows therapists to have a direct reading of a patient’s relevant thought systems and important experiences. Readers begin to realize how incredibly important this molecule is for the well-being of the psyche and the spiritual and mental development of humanity.
For a simple introduction, I would suggest The Holotropic Mind rather than this book. Or if you prefer an audio book, Audible has The Transpersonal Vision. I would also recommend joining the email list for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS).
I learned of Jeremy Narby’s book Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge while reading Graham Hancock’s book, Supernatural. The ideas present within both books are incredible. DNA may be an extra-terrestrial biotechnology. Of course, you don’t have to read these books to come to that conclusion. Narby further suggests that DNA actually has a mysterious way to communicate with the conscious awareness of all life, especially after the consumption of various consciousness altering molecules. It is through this alteration of the brain that life is able to receive a mysterious informational signal from DNA. Even if his hypothesis turns out to be false, the sheer intellectual creativity of Narby’s work deserves praise. As wild as that sounds, it really would not be surprising given the complexity and probability arguments presented by the panspermia supporters (Francis Crick for instance and also see: The “Wow! signal” of the terrestrial genetic code.
Graham Hancock’s book Supernatural: Meetings with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind is a great synthesis of various ideas regarding the origin of religion, the visions of shamans, UFO encounters, DMT, elves, fairies and other supernatural phenomenon. I recently read Rick Strassman’s DMT: The Spirit Molecule and Alan Shoemaker’s Ayahuasca Medicine. Thus, I had background knowledge on some of these subjects. This did not prepare me for the incredible connections made by Hancock.
Some of Hancock’s previous books, like Heavens Mirror, Fingerprints of Gods, Sign and Seal, and Underworld, I read and enjoyed more than seven years ago. I saw Supernatural when it came out in mid 2000’s, but I was not interested. At the time I thought, “Clearly Hancock has gone too far into the abyss of crazy.” It took me more than ten years to mature and discover the greatness of this work. I must say that Hancock does an incredible job and I can not wait to read his newest book, releasing in a few days. Supernatural has the power to shape your perceptions of reality and everything you thought you knew and understood. It is not to be taken lightly and I would suggest first reading Strassman’s DMT: The Spirit Molecule and perhaps even Jeremy Narby’s The Cosmic Serpent.
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