Yogic Perception, II.3-4 

 

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3

Transformation of Consciousness through Suffering, Devotion, and Meditation

Dagmar Eigner

369-388

 

p. 369 Taman tribe

"The Tamang ... came from the southern part of Tibet and speak a Tibeto-Burmese language ... ."

 

pp. 370-1 mantra [magical spell for summoning assistance from a deity] received in dreams

p. 370

"One Tamang healer I have met calls herself a tantric, but ... the mantras she works with have not been given to her {along with empowerment to employ them efficaciously} by a human teacher but in her dreams and visions {with implication (in such dreams and/or visions) of empowerment to employ them for summoning assistance from a deity}. ...

p. 371

According to most traditional healers it is the connection with deities and tutelary spirits that is crucial in order to make the treaments effective."

 

p. 371 connection with deities : vocation (being called to public service by a deity) to be a shaman

"Shamans and mediums usually have a calling experience, which signifies that they have been chosen by a spiritual power [viz., by a deity or by a tutelary spirit] to become a healer. ...

A calling experience is obligatory [viz., the deity or tutelary spirit is obliging the human mortal to become a shaman in public service] and if it is not complied with it will lead to death or madness {such death or madness being, of course, divinely imposed}."

 

p. 372 divinely-instigated praeternatural electrical sensation felt bodily, empowering to shamanic power of miraculous healing

"First it was a very small snake {goddess Manasi may appear in serpentine-spectre guise} that felt cold on my skin ... where I felt some kind of heaviness. ... When I saw that it was standing on its tail, ... I took a bunch of paddy [rice-plants] where the snake could crawl into and put it on the ground {as couch for this serpent-deity}. Right after that

I felt a sensation like an electric current running through my body. ...

{"people who explain the kundalini, normally say that it feels like an electric current running along the spine." ("WhIK")} {"The Kundalini does not always feel hot traveling up the spine ... as it ascends; it may feel like an electric current" (K&Ch, p. 177).}

That ... gave me the power to heal other people."

{This apparently is an instance of "the mystical power to heal through the application of realized kundalini energy or "serpent power"." ("K&E")}

"WhIK" = "What is the Kundalini?" https://gnosticwarrior.com/kundalini.html 

K&Ch = Genevieve Lewis Paulson : Kundalini and the Chakras. Llewellyn Publ, St. Paul (MN), 1993. http://the-eye.eu/public/concen.org/Kundalini%20Tantra%20Yoga%20Chakra%20Meditation%20[book%20pack]/PDF/Genevieve%20Lewis%20Paulson%20-%20Kundalini%20The%20Chakras%20%28High%20Quality%20Version%29.pdf 

"K&E" = "Kundalini and Enlightenment". https://www.1paradigm.org/kundalini.html 

 

pp. 373-5 a typical Newar (tribe in Nepal) instance of temporary seeming madness transmuting itself into spiritual abilities and eventually culminating in investiture with spirit-mediumistic power by the grace of a divinity

p. 373

"A male medium had extraordinary experiences from his early childhood that were due to his special connection with

 

Hariti Ma.

{"Ajima, also known as Hariti, is the tutelary grandmother goddess for Newar women healers called Dyamaju {Dhyana Matr. Juju ('trance-mother magic'}" ("KAGG"). This could be one of the Ajya-pa (PE, q.v. -- Matsya Puran.am) 'goat-ghee-drinkers', who are pitr.-s ('fathers', viz., male ancestral ghosts) [and, of course, matr.-s ('mothers', viz., female ancestral ghosts), of whom "Hariti Ma{tr.}" would be an instance].}

 

 

(PE, q.v. -- Padma Puran.am, "Sr.s.t.i Khan.d.a") 

 

She is the Buddhist goddess of smallpox, who is believed to be a spirit (yaks.a {\yaks.ini\ in the feminine; usually a tree-spirit}) converted to Buddhism and the guardian of young children (Gellner 2001:2003). Although this medium had to suffer a lot, it was because it was because it was not realized that a deity had come over him ... . When, finally, Hariti spoke through him, it was also his legitimisation ... . ...

p. 374

Later in life ... :

"After I had married off my daughter, I was possessed very often. ... Since then I have had a lot of power." ...

p. 375

As soon as the strange behavior has ceased, the power of the deity invested in the shaman can be used fully. A calling experience or a deity revealing itself through a chosen person is usually followed by a long period of intense personal and spiritual development that should also lead to a life-style that is suitable for deities. ...

 

The traditional shamanic initiation ceremony that introduces the neophyte to the public and after which he or she is accepted as a mature shaman ... (Peters 1998:77 ff) is often not carried out anymore, especially in the Katmandu Velley."

"KAGG" = "Knowing All the Gods : ... Women Healers in Nepal". http://aas2.asian-studies.org/absts/1995abst/southasi/sases112.htm 

Gellner 2001 = David Gellner : The Anthropology of Buddhism and Hinduism. Oxford Univ Pr.

Peters 1998 = Larry Peters : Tamang Shamans : ... Ecstasy and Healing in Nepal. Nirala Publ, New Delhi.

 

p. 376 a Taman shamaness's erratic behaviour (laughing in her sleep!) when under control by a divinity who is oddly irritated at her having just eaten meat of a domestic fowl which had become prey of a feral cat

"At exactly twelve o'clock in the night deities ascended on me and I began to tremble. ... When my husband looked at me, I laughed. ... Then he tried to wake me up shaking me and asked me why I was laughing like that. He told me later that the more he wanted to know the reason for my laughter, the louder I went on laughing. ... After this I trembled vehemently. I went on trembling and shivering all over."

 

p. 377 pilgrimage

"Pilgrimages are important for gaining and renewing {spiritual} power ... . At the pilgrimage places people are under the protection of the deities ... so ... that no accident happens and in a trance-like state people avoid everything that could cause pollution."

 

pp. 379-81 consequences of a shamaness's ceasing her shamanry; how she is praeternaturally compelled to resume her practice

p. 379

"if a calling {by a deity, commanding a chosen mortal to become a spiritual practitioner} is accepted, ... The growing union with spiritual powers cannot be reversed anymore. ... A shamaness told about her life :

"After I got married ..., I did not work [again] as a healer for ... years. ... Then ... For three months I was

p. 380

lying in bed sleeping. ... At the beginning of the fourth month -- it was on a full moon day -- I heard a voice ordering me to get the shaman's equipment that I had used before. When I had everything with me I should do a ritual in my house. ... I was not able to get up and so I asked my husband to bring the equipment. ... In the evening I did a special ritual ... . ... ."

When the shamaness was prepared to practice again as a healer, all her complaints suddenly disappeared. Her instant recovery from the crisis lasted until the end of her life. Being her neighbor ...,

p. 381

I had a chance to observe and take part in her healing work ... . She never showed any signs of ... lack of energy again."

 

p. 381 the calamitous result of neglect to obey the call from the deities

"A calling influences a person's whole life until the end. If the demands of deities or ancestor spirits are not obeyed, suffering, insanity or death will ensue."

 

p. 382 in the city, where there are a great many clients arriving : abbreviated rite of shamanic healing

"he ... sees sixty to a hundred clients per day. ... Performance of onlyshort therapies also means that there is no more reciting on a regular basis of the "creation myths", telling about the beginning of shamanic practice and the paraphernalia that have been used since primordial time. Those myths used to be an essential part of a traditional healing ritual."

 

p. 383 use in shamanry of special words, melodies, and ritual materials

"Many Newar mediums follow a very strict daily discipline. ... Special words are spoken in rhythmical ways or sung in melodies ... by the individual healers in connection with their tutelary deities. The various kinds of materials used as offerings are arranged according to the wishes of the deities."

 

p. 384 spontaneous activation of shamans by deities; a shaman's being taught and guided by deities during dreaming

"Deities can act through shamans and mediums at any time, but it never happens at an inappropriate moment."

"A shamaness told me that she has learned everything from ... the deities with whom she has been connected. During her dreams spiritual teachers lead her to some places, and give her mantras and everything else she needs for her work.

The teaching might also take place when she is awake ... .

"My ... body remains here, but I reach to places far away.

{projection of the subtle body}

At that time I am fully absorbed in my ... conversations with the spirits.""

{The projection is directed to the divine abodes of the deities, where sociable communication with the deities is available.}

 

p. 385 Bagh Bhairab

"Bagh Bhairab, a fierce powerful deity in the shape of a tiger,

{In Kirtipur of the Newar, sheep-devouring god "Lord Bagh Bhairab in the temple has an open mouth and without a tongue" ("LLBBh").}

comes in critical stages of healing sessions ... .

When I asked a shamaness how she feels when Bagh Bhairab comes over her she answered :

"At that time my awareness changes, and ... I can feel the shape of a tiger from the inside.""

"LLBBh" = "The Legend of Lord Bagh Bhairab". https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/mycity/news/the-legend-of-lord-bagh-bhairab 

 

p. 386 shamanic practitioners are awesomely treated as deities

"During the healing sessions shamans and mediums are treated like deities. Clients bow down to them, offer incense ... . ... .  

... a video recording ... showed deities coming over her during a healing session together with a medium, the shamaness ... Sounds, gestures, and movements were determined by the deities."

 

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4

Psychedelics, Culture, and Consciousness

John R. Baker

389-405

 

p. 394 large number of psychoactive substances in existence

"The number of plants, fungi, minerals, and even animals capable of rapidly inducing profoundly altered states of consciousness is unknown, but it is large (see Ra:tsch 2005)."

Ra:tsch 2005 = C. Ra:tsch : The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants. Rochester (VT).

 

p. 395 various terms for psychoactive substances

Those "psychoactive substances ... with the most profound effects upon consciousness have become known by many names.

Lewis Lewin ... called them "phantastica" (Lewin ... [1927]).

Some of the other terms that have been put forth include "hallucinogens" (Hoffer et a. 1954),

"entheogens" (Ruck 1979), and

"psychointegrators" (Winkelman 1995)."

Lewin 1927 = Lewis Lewin : Phantastica : ... Genussmittel.

Hoffer et alii 1954 = A. Hoffer, H. Osmund, & J. Smythies : "Results of a Year's Research". J OF MENTAL SCIENCE 100(418):29-45.

Ruck 1979 = C. A. P. Ruck, J. Bigwood, D. Staples, J. Ott, & R. G. Wasson : "Entheogens". J OF PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS 11.1-2:145-6.

Winkelman 1995 = M. Winkelman : "Psychointegrator Plants : Their Roles in Human Culture, Consciousness and Health". In :- M. Winkelman & W. Andritzky (edd.) : Sacred Plants, Consciousness, and Healing. YEARBOOKS OF CROSS-CULTURAL MEDICINE ... . Berlin. pp. 9-53.

 

p. 395 merger of sense of self with cosmos

With "such substances as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin ... higher dosages can lead to a complete dissolution of an individual's awareness of himself {or herself} as an individual (producing a sense of "merging") ... .

A wide variety of substances can produce such effects, and the use of these substances has been documented throughout the world (Dobkin de Rios 1984, Furst 1990, Schultes 2001)."

Dobkin de Rios 1984 = M. Dobkin de Rios : Hallucinogens : Cross-Cultural Perspectives. Albuquerque (NM).

Furst 1990 = P. T. Furst : Flesh of the Gods : the Ritual Use of Hallucinogens. Prospect Heights (IL).

Schultes 2001 = R. E. Schultes, A. Hofmann, & C. Ra:tsch : Plants of the Gods : Their Sacred, Healing, and Hallucinogenic Powers. Rochester (VT).

 

p. 396 imperial prohibition of the authentic antient religions within the Imperium Romanum

"The proscriptions against "pagan" issued by the Emperor Theodosius in 380 C.E. when he adopted Christianity as the official religion of the empire suppressed such previously accepted practices as the Eleusinian and Dionysian Mysteries (or forced them far underground) ... ."

 

p. 397 medical uses for psychoactive substances

"Humphry Osmund, .... who coined the term "psychedelic", used LSD to treat ... patients ... . He and his colleagues administered extremely highly doses (usually once) in order to evoke experiences that would literally overwhelm their patients ... (Osmund 1957). This treatment method, which aimed at ... eliciting a religious "conversion" experience, worked especially well ... (see also Sherwood 1967-68).

In contrast to this largely North American methology, much of the climnical work performed in Europe followed a protocol in which a series of low to medium dosages of a psychedelic agent were administered ... . ... This treatment strategy ... gave researchers unanticipated insights into the dynamics of the mind (... Grof 1976)."

Osmund 1957 = Humphry Osmund : "A Review of the Clinical Effects of Psychotomimetic Agents". ANNALS OF THE NY ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.

Sherwood 1967-68 = J. N. Sherwood, M. J. Stolaroff, & W. W. Harman : "The Psychedelic Experience". J OF PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS 1:96-111,

Grof 1976 = S. Grof : Realms of the Human Unconscious : Observations from LSD Research. NY.

 

pp. 397-8 psychedelics-enabled trips into worlds mysterious and beautiful

p. 397

"psychedelic substances were also given to artists and others ... (Dobkin de Rios 2003). As increasing numbers of people were exposed to psychedelics ...,

 

some people were unprepared for the personal and transpersonal insights that accompanied the spectacular visual and other sensory effects, and they experienced "bad trips". ...

{More to the point, said "bad trips" may have been induced the divinities who praeside over these herbs and herbal substances; for, the divinities, requiring a pious and worshipful attitude on the part of all persons partaking of their divine eucharists, and would naturally become enraged at any sign of materialist-oriented lack of faith in transcendent (immaterial) divine entities. Pious believers in transcendental divinity never suffer "bad trips".}

 

Yet for many,

 

the inner worlds revealed by

{More actually such transcendent worlds are no more "inner" (actually less so) than is the material universe : for, though the material world can be controlled by mortals, the transcendent universes of mighty deities are quite beyond mortal ken.}

p. 398

these substances were mysterious and beautiful ... . For many in this group, the vistas revealed by psychedelics suggested

 

alternative ways of living that were quickly perceived as threats to the existing social order." {The "social order" alluded to is one marked by gross contempt for "Voluntary Poverty" and for all the other lofty ideals of all religious persons everywhere.}

{The "alternative ways of living" thus suggested are combinations of "Communion of the Saints" and "Angelic Orders of Heaven". Only crass atheist-materialists would regard such heavenly pieties any threat to the "existing social order" (viz., the "social order" of entrenched greed-maddened atheistic hypocrisy).}

Dobkin de Rios 2003 = M. Dobkin de Rios & O. Janiger : LSD, Spirituality, and the Creative Process. Rochester (VT).

 

p. 399 traditional societies' institutional use of psychoactive substances

"traditional societies both respect these substances and provide supervision for novices ... . In such societies, the first use of a psychedelic substance often has an initiatory quality, and experienced users coach novices about the types of experiences they should expect. Armed with a detailed "map" of the worlds they will be entering, convinced of the significance of their experiences, and supervised while they are in an altered state ... ."

 

p. 400 serotonin-receptor

"the effects of LSD are known to be at least partially related to a specific type of serotonin receptor site known as 5-HT5a ... ."

 

pp. 402-3 small-scale processes produce large-scale results : potential for large number of persons to visit other worlds

p. 402

"psychedelics ... explicitly remind us of the role that even small-scale ... processes can play in the large-scale picture of human consciousness. ...

 

Psychedelic substances also provide us with ...

p. 403

effects ... rapid in their onset and almost impossible to ignore. ... Consquently, they have the potential ... making it possible for large numbers of people to explore

 

the worlds that exist within them ... ."

{INCORRECT! Though approached through intradimensional portals existent within the biochemistry of the brain (because of the mind's affinity for transcendental planes-of-existence); yet never-the-less such vast subtle universes (dwarfing the mere material universe) do not themselves in any meaningful way "exist within" mere mortals' material limitations.}

 

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Eli Franco (ed.) : Yogic Perception, Meditation, and Altered States of Consciousness. BEITRA:GE ZUR KULTUR UND GEISTESGESCHICHTE, Nr. 65 = O:STERREICHISCHE AKADEMIE DER WISSENSCHAFTEN, PHILOSOPHISCH-HISTORISCHE KLASSE, SITZUNGBERICHTE, 794. Band. Wien, 2009.