Along the way we discuss the concept of “character loops” which Alejandro brings in from the HBO TV Series “Westworld”.

We reflect on how we can “de-armour” the ego and what it truly means to “surrender” to the medicine.

We find time to reflect on a recent mushroom ceremony, and in particular, the implications of this recent ceremony for Alejandro and his upcoming meeting with “the medicine” in the Peruvian Amazon.

And we toss around the concept of the “Daimon”, which Alejandro brings in from James Hillman’s book “The Soul’s Code”, and in particular consider the implications of what we call “daimonic derailment.”

As we mention in the episode, this will be the final episode for Season 1 of the Altered Mates Podcast. We are both keen as mustard to get cracking on Season 2, which will happen just as soon as I (Alejandro) return from South America.

Adios Amigos!

References

• Jonathan Nolan & Lisa Joy — Westworld (2016—2022)
• Hayao Miyazaki — Spirited Away (2001)
• The Daniels — Everything, Everywhere, All At Once (2022)
• The Wachowskis — The Matrix Franchise
• Chris Letheby — Philosophy of Psychedelics (2021)
• Game of Thrones — Dothraki
• James Hillman — The Soul’s Code (2017)

Links

Altered Mates Website

Altered Mates Instagram

Music for the show by Si Mulumby

A Glimpse of Eternity by Alejandro Tuama

• Purchase the novel here.
• Listen to the serialised audiobook here.

Choomah Island 2 (2015) — written and animated by Jarrad Wright — is the finale of Season 3 of The Big Lez Show. In this feature length episode of The Big Lez Show, Leslie and his mates fly to Choomah Island to blow up the Choomah’s hive and get rid of their species for good. They also find time to eat some psychedelic mushrooms they find growing in a field, and Big Lez smokes a joint of some mysterious psychedelic, given to him Sassy the Sasquatch.

In this episode we cover the basic plot of Choomah Island 2, but narrow down especially on those two psychedelic trips, expertly depicted in the film. In response to the experience of the characters during a magic mushroom trip, we take an extended sojourn into a discussion of trees… treating trees as individuals capable of communicating with us, and we discuss the power of considering a tree (and by extension the rest of the natural world) as “thou” rather than “it”, and even find a way to bring in James Cameron’s first Avatar film.

Finally a warning: if you’re at all squeamish about swearing then this probably isn't the episode for you…

We hope you enjoy our discussion of Jarred Wright’s The Big Lez Show — Choomah Island 2.

References

• Jarrad Wright appearances on the “Your Mate Tom” Podcast
• The Big Lez Show
• The Big Lez Show — Choomah Island 2
• The Big Lez Show — The Mike Nolan Show — Episode One
• The Big Lez Show — Trippa Snippa
• The Big Lez Show — Sassy the Sasquatch
• The Wachowskis — The Matrix
• Aldous Huxley — The Doors of Perception
• Alejandro Tuama — A Glimpse of Eternity
• James Hillman — The Soul’s Code
• Ursula K. Le Guin — Late in the Day
• Altered Mates: Episode 7: Jung, The Shadow, and A Wizard of Earthsea
• Alejandro couldn't remember the name of… The Fitzroy Gardens in Melbourne.
• Paris Williams — Rethinking Madness: Towards a Paradigm Shift in our Understanding and Treatment of Psychosis
• Alejandro couldn’t remember where “standing reserve” came from— it’s here… Martin Heidegger — The Question Concerning Technology.
• Martin Buber — I and Thou
• Altered Mates: Episode 6 — F-ing the Ineffable: William James, Mysticism, and the Psychedelic Experience
• James Cameron — Avatar — Destruction of the Home Tree

Links

Altered Mates Website

Altered Mates Instagram

Music for the show by Si Mulumby

A Glimpse of Eternity by Alejandro Tuama

• Purchase the novel here.
• Listen to the serialised audiobook here.

Our conversation centres around a classic work by pioneering American psychologist and philosopher William James (January 11, 1842–August 26, 1910), and specifically, the 1902 masterwork based on his Gifford Lectures: The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature (public library | free ebook).

The discussion begins with Alejandro describing what he considers to be his first mystical experience at Machu Picchu in 2011, after a four day hike along the Inca Trail, and importantly, a few days after the first two ayahuasca ceremonies of his life.

The remainder of the episode is structured around William James’ four markers of mystical states:

1. Ineffability, 2. Noetic quality, 3. Transiency, 4. Passivity.

And while these so-called “mystical” experiences may be almost impossible to convey to one another, we disregard them at our peril... for, in the words of William James:

“Our normal waking consciousness… is but one special type of consciousness, whilst all about it, parted from it by the filmiest of screens, there lie potential forms of consciousness entirely different… No account of the universe in its totality can be final which leaves these other forms of consciousness quite disregarded.”

References:

William James — The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature (1902) (public library | free ebook).

Quentin Tarantino — Pulp Fiction

• (The ‘Miracle’ scene)

The Wachowskis — The Matrix

• (The ‘Pill’ scene)

David Foster Wallace — This is Water.

Maya Newell — In My Blood It Runs

Robert Anton Wilson — Acceleration of Knowledge (Note: use chrome. The section around 38 mins is related to what we were talking about).

Albert Camus — The Myth of Sisyphus.

The Alex Grey Poster (Net of Being) featured in Alejandro’s house.

Tool — [Rosetta Stoned](https://open.spotify.com/track/0D8l86LXxKcgKAO17DfQsl?autoplay=true) — 10,000 Days

To find out more about the time Alejandro pissed himself during an ayahuasca ceremony, jump online and order a copy of his novel: A Glimpse of Eternity.

Links:

Altered Mates Website

Altered Mates Instagram

Music for the show by Si Mulumby.

In coming to terms with our respective “mystical” experiences, we discuss: ego-death; who or what is the intelligence we encounter in high dose breakthrough psychedelic experiences; noetic experiences of connectedness with the great green web of life; and finally, what is it that lies at the centre of the universe.

Please note:

The Altered Mates have been engaging in ceremonial psychedelic use for over 10 years. We have each sought out experienced and trusted guides, and are always careful to put in place systems that safeguard our physical, psychological, spiritual and emotional wellbeing.

We do not suggest that psychedelics are appropriate for everyone. But for those who choose to use them, we strongly recommend great caution and great care, and consideration for psychological, emotional as well legal factors specific to your context.

The safest way to undertake a psychedelic journey is in legal contexts, under careful supervision from experienced and qualified guides.

References

• Episode 2 — Take it easy, dude…
• Alan Watts — Are we out of time?

Links:

Altered Mates Website

Altered Mates Instagram

Music for the show by Si Mulumby

In this episode we take seriously, the late, great Terence McKenna’s famous words: “Take it easy, dude… but take it!”

Tune in as we discuss our preparation process for a so-called “hero’s” dose of psilocybin mushrooms, taken in the manner advised by the man himself, as “five dried grams in silent darkness.”

The conversation starts with our reasons for undertaking a high-dose psychedelic journey in the first place.

We discuss how psychedelics can help us to remember something of the sacred when we get lost in the daily grind. We compare notes on our own personal preparations— including specific diets and abstinences. And we outline our intentions for the ceremony.

And from there the conversation undergoes many twists and turns through soul, self, creativity, and sexuality.

We hope you enjoy the episode.

*Please note: *
The Altered Mates have been engaging in ceremonial psychedelic use for over 10 years. We have each sought out experienced and trusted guides, and are always careful to put in place systems that safeguard our physical, psychological, spiritual and emotional wellbeing.

We do not suggest that psychedelics are appropriate for everyone. But for those who choose to use them, we strongly recommend great caution and great care, and consideration for psychological, emotional as well legal factors specific to your context.

The safest way to undertake a psychedelic journey is in legal contexts, under careful supervision from experienced and qualified guides.

References:

Arne Rubenstein — Rites of Passage Institute

Jamie Wheel — Recapture the Rapture

Frank Herbert — Dune

Links:

Altered Mates Website

Altered Mates Instagram

In the conversation that follows the Altered Mates discuss three particularly challenging experiences from Alejandro’s psychonautical journey. The first with ayahuasca, the second with psilocybin mushrooms, and the third with DMT.

We use these three experiences as a launching point to consider what, as psychedelic practitioners, we can do with such experiences. How can we make sense of them? How do we reconcile them with our picture of the world? Because, if we are to take psychedelics seriously, and incorporate them into our lives responsibly, surely, we must consider their potential to present us with mystery, confusion and sometimes, complete and utter terror.

References

Graham Hancock on Ayahuasca, DMT and Entities.