A Psychedelic Journey Into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism Free

FREE BREAKING OPEN THE HEAD: A PSYCHEDELIC JOURNEY INTO THE HEART OF CONTEMPORARY SHAMANISM PDF

Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving…. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Other editions. Enlarge cover. Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Details if other :. Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Lee Fukui Designed by. A dazzling work of personal travelogue and cultural criticism that ranges from the primitive to the postmodern in a quest for the promise and meaning of the psychedelic experience. While psychedelics of all sorts are demonized in America today, the visionary compounds found in plants are the spiritual sacraments of tribal cultures around the world. From the iboga of the Bw A dazzling work of personal travelogue and cultural criticism that ranges from the primitive to the postmodern in a quest for the promise and meaning of the psychedelic experience. From the iboga of the Bwiti in Gabon, to the Mazatecs of Mexico, these plants are sacred Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism they awaken the mind to other levels of awareness--to a holographic vision of the universe. Breaking Open the Head is a passionate, multilayered, and sometimes rashly personal inquiry into this deep division. On one level, Daniel Pinchbeck tells the story of the encounters between the modern consciousness of the West and these sacramental substances, including such thinkers as Allen Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism, Antonin Artaud, Walter Benjamin, and Terence McKenna, and a new underground of present-day ethnobotanists, chemists, psychonauts, and philosophers. It is also a scrupulous recording of the author's wide-ranging investigation with these outlaw compounds, including a thirty-hour tribal initiation in Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism Africa; an all-night encounter with the master shamans of the South American rain forest; and a report from a psychedelic utopia in the Black Rock Desert that is the Burning Man Festival. Breaking Open the Head is brave participatory journalism at its best, a vivid account of psychic and intellectual experiences that opened doors in the wall of Western rationalism and completed Daniel Pinchbeck's personal transformation from a jaded Manhattan journalist to shamanic initiate and grateful citizen of the cosmos. Get A Copy. Paperbackpages. More Details Original Title. Other Editions Friend Reviews. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about Breaking Open the Headplease sign up. Be the first to ask a question about Breaking Open the Head. Lists with This Book. Community Reviews. Showing Average rating 4. Rating details. More filters. Sort order. Dec 18, Shivatva Beniwal added it. Actually, the Hebraic-Babylonian concept of God is very premature. They imagine God as an object, a person, and not as a quality. They describe God as a mighty emperor. Whereas in the Eastern religious traditions, God is a quality, not an object. They believe God is within the universe and the universe is within God. God is not God but godliness - and godliness has to be found first within our Actually, the Hebraic-Babylonian concept of God is very premature. God is not God but godliness - and godliness has to be found first within ourselves. Unless we have a taste of it in our own being we will not be able to see it anywhere else. Once we have tasted it, once we have become drunk on the divine, then we will see it in the trees — in the green of the trees, in the red of the trees, in the gold of the trees. We will see it in the sun, in the moon, in the stars. We will be able to see it in the animals, birds, people, rivers, mountains. The whole existence will reflect our understanding, will become a mirror to us. We will be able to see our own face everywhere. We can see only that which we are, we cannot see that which we are not. View all 8 comments. Jul 18, aloveiz rated it it was ok. The least insulting thing I can say about this book is maybe that Pinchbeck was too young to write this when he did. It's a complicated topic and he deserves some credit for addressing its intrigue. In general, I got the feeling he wrote this to enhance his hip, New York bachelor, image. Pinchbeck's background is in journalism, and that style is expressed pretty grossly here. He travels around being the witness, relaying different accounts of psychedelic or shamanistic encounters without expound The least insulting thing I can say about this book is maybe that Pinchbeck was too young to write this when he did. He travels around being the witness, relaying different accounts of psychedelic or shamanistic encounters without expounding on differentiations between the terms. His personal anecdotes all seem too recent, and too egotistical. I didn't finish this book, I probably should have read the conclusion but I think it ended somewhere on the playa and I've always respected the solitude of the desert too much to get in to spaces like that. Jun 11, Nina H rated it it was amazing. Reading through Pinchbeck's incredibly well-documented experiences with various plant substances such as iboga and ayahuasca, along with his quest for knowledge in understanding the dwindling shamanic culture of the rainforests was a thrilling way to live vicariously through someone's most intimate and trippiest moments. He's just that good at getting it all down on paper. But the best part of this book is the message that really gets driven home to the heart of who we are, the potential of what Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism through Pinchbeck's incredibly well-documented experiences with various plant substances such as iboga and ayahuasca, along with his quest for knowledge in understanding the dwindling shamanic culture of the rainforests was a thrilling way to live vicariously through someone's most intimate and trippiest moments. But the best part of this book is the message that really gets driven home to the heart of who we are, the potential of what we have yet to learn about ourselves, something humankind has barely scratched the surface of-- which he saves for the few chapters toward the end. I won't spoil it for you, but Pinchbeck definitely has a lot to say about where we sit in this particular branch of "time" and the how much these ancient plant worlds play a huge part. Without getting too cheesy here, I have to say if there ever was a perfect role model of a modern-day shaman, he is it. Nov 11, Andrew rated it it was ok Shelves: spirituality. Wow, I have rarely seen such an arrogrant prick writing so lazily. If the subject matter hadn't been absolutely fascinating, it would have gotten 1 star. Because of the subject matter, I only hated it or more precisely, hated the author. Jan 02, masttek rated it it was ok. Pinchbeck is the type of person that gives psychedelics a bad image. While the book starts off with a Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism Pinchbeck, one can already tell his rationality is more of a misplaced materialism. By the end of the book Pinchbeck appears to have lost all rational inquiry as he comes to believe he is a modern day shaman. Highly disappointed Oct 08, Joseph Y rated it did not like it. Apr 01, Brandon Wicke rated it it was ok. Probably just read Castaneida instead. Or drop acid and cut out the middle man. View all 3 comments. Aug 22, Nicholas rated it it was amazing. Since November of to present day August 27, I have read an estimated books. Daniel Pinchbeck is a voice that speaks to me more than any I've encountered along my self-developmental path. With a supreme command of the English language, Pinchbeck accounts the history of his and many great minds of the "Beat" generation while venturing into unfamiliar cultures, ritualistic initiations, and transcendent states of being and alteration through a number of organic substances and synthetic Since November of to present day August 27, I have read an estimated books. With a supreme command of the English language, Pinchbeck accounts the history of his and many great minds of the "Beat" generation while venturing into unfamiliar cultures, ritualistic initiations, and transcendent states of being and alteration through a number of organic substances and synthetic solutions. Mindful encounters with the drugs iboga, ayahausca, psilocybin mushrooms, DMT dimethyltryptamineand DPT dipropyltryptamine among others lift the veil from this remarkable author's eyes as he hears, "This is it. Now you know. This is it. This is my number one Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism for ; Daniel's voice and topic leaves the reader thirsty for more of his words. Apr 30, Derek Pegritz rated it it was Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism Recommends it for: Everyone interested in hallucinogens. Shelves: psychedelics. Daniel Pinchbeck is a complete fucking idiot. And a tool. Too bad it's filtered through the POV of a complete and utter idiot. Oct 01, Gnarly Authenticity. Deeply and fundamentally bogue if taken on its own terms. Jan 11, Entheogenetic rated it it was ok. Full text of "Daniel Pinchbeck BREAKING OPEN THE HEAD"

Description Created by the prophetic shaman-professors Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner, and Richard Alpert Ram Dassthis foundational text serves as a model and a guide for all mind-expanding inquiries. Based on a unique interpretation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead, The Psychedelic Experience remains a vital testament to broadening spiritual consciousness through a combination of Tibetan meditation techniques and psychotropic substances. More than fifty years after the Summer of Love, the promise of the psychoactive '60s--that deeper self-awareness and greater harmony can be achieved through reality-bending substances and practices--is close to becoming a mainstream phenomenon. The signs are everywhere, from a renewed interest in the therapeutic effects of LSD and micro-dosing, to the popularity of the ayahuasca trips and the annual spectacle of Burning Man. Now, for a new generation seeking the trip of a lifetime, The Psychedelic Experience is the essential guidebook to getting there. Product Details Price. Earn money by sharing your favorite Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism through our Affiliate program. Become an affiliate. About the Author Timothy Leary was one of the most famous countercultural icons of the s. Inthe Harvard psychologist experienced a "profound transcendent experience" Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism taking hallucinogens in Mexico. No longer content with his work in personality assessment, Leary began advocating the psychotherapeutic and spiritual benefits of LSD. His "experiments" with LSD often involved students and wild "tripping" parties, which eventually led to his dismissal from Harvard. With patronage from heirs of the Mellon fortune, Leary continued his experiments and prolific writing career at an estate in upstate New York known as Millbrook. He died of prostate cancer in ; the following year seven grams of his ashes were launched into space aboard a Pegasus rocket. Ralph Metzner is a professor emeritus of psychology at the California Institute for Integral Studies and president of the Green Earth Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to reconnecting humans and the environment. He is also well known for his decades of research and writing on the subjects of consciousness, psychedelics, the practice of yoga, meditation and shamanism. He eventually made a philosophical split from Leary and traveled to India to study Hinduism and yoga. This transformational experience led him to write the classic spiritual text Be Here Now. Having founded a number of spiritual organizations that promote personal growth, the importance of serving others, and unity among different religious traditions, Ram Dass is considered one of the most important spiritual teachers of the 20th century. In much of his recent work, he explores the profound implications of the shamanic experience and the possibility that a revival of archaic knowledge of visionary plants and psychedelic substances could accelerate a transformation of global consciousness. Conversation Starters from ReadingGroupChoices. Psychedelic Author Daniel Pinchbeck Flashbacks Feud | Observer

Through his writing and research, Pinchbeck has become an authority and advocate Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism modern radical ideas including psychedelic drug use and free love. Her evocation of her childhood is one of my favorite works of art. I also love his interviews, collected in Spontaneous Mind. His work reveals very subtle and elevated dimensions. The Duino Elegies is sweeping, majestic, tragic, mystical, and many other things. His wanderings through the city are described in loving, careful detail. This book is a neglected masterpiece. I followed the instructions for a time, and found they worked. My dreams opened up and I started to gain lucidity. If you follow these techniques out to their furthest extreme, you will realize the dreamlike nature of reality and attain enlightenment. The result is not breakdown but the immediate formation of new structures that are community based, participatory, and directly democratic. She sees in this secret history the potential for a new form of revolution, which would support the people in establishing true democracy, rather than leading to new forms of hierarchical and authoritarian control. She was with him when On the Road came out, and witnessed how his sudden rise to prominence Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism his dissolution. Moments of Being Virginia Woolf Woolf defines the most subtle and evanescent experiences within consciousness. Collected Poems Allen Ginsberg Ginsberg was one of the most authentic, fearless, openhearted chroniclers of the last century. Tibetan Yogas of Sleep and Dream Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche This book is a practical manual, following esoteric Tibetan practices, to attain lucidity in dream and even dreamless sleep. On Revolution Hannah Arendt Arendt looks at what happens when societies undergo insurrections and breakdowns of centralized authority. Minor Characters Joyce Johnson My mother wrote this memoir about her childhood, her bohemian and Beatnik friends, and her early love affair with Jack Kerouac.