Daniel Pinchbeck introduces himself and recounts his early shamanic journeys in Gabon, Ecuador, Brazil, and elsewhere. We look at initiation practices found in shamanic cultures worldwide. What is the traditional purpose of initiation? What are the basic characteristics of initiatory trials? We explore the history of psychedelic shamanism to gain a context for today’s psychedelic renaissance: What do we know about the origins of shamanism around the world, from Siberia to Ancient Greece to South America? Psychedelics and Europe from the Mysteries of Eleusis until today. Christianity developed out of Gnosticism, rejecting initiation for indoctrination. The Gnostic Christ says: “Open the doors for yourself, so you will know what is.” The demonization of visionary states and indigenous plant knowledge in the Middle Ages, with the inquisition and the burning of the witches. European alchemy and the quest for the Prima Mater or alchemical gold. Discussion on how this history of repression has impacted our own lives and society, and how we overcome it now by reintegrating visionary states and intuition.

Host Daniel Pinchbeck dives into the works of artists and thinkers who explored the visionary state, from the Renaissance to Postmodernism: Shakespeare, The Romantics. Also the encounters of anthropologists such as Richard Schultes, Claude Levi-Strauss, and Michael Harner with Amazonian shamanism. What can we learn from the psychedelic insights of Walter Benjamin, Antonin Artaud, Ernst Junger, Henri Michaux, Aldous Huxley, Alan Watts, the Beat Generation (Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs), and so on? Rediscovery of psychedelics in the 1960s. Timothy Leary and John Lilly. Repression of psychedelics at the end of the 1960s. The post-60s psychedelic philosophy of Terence McKenna and Jose Arguelles. The evolution of modern psychedelic thought with Jeremy Narby, Tom Roberts, Rick Strassman, Kat Harrison, Wade Davis, and others. Discussion and sharing.

Host Daniel Pinchbeck leads a discussion about the current landscape of natural and artificial psychedelic compounds: Ayahuasca, peyote, mushrooms, Iboga, San Pedro, DMT, Salvia, Bufo, 2CB, Ketamine, MDMA, and so on. We review the work of Sasha and Anne Shulgin. We look at chemistry, set and setting, and other factors that influence the effects of these substances. What do we know about their varying capacities from studies at the Imperial College in London, research sponsored by MAPs, and other initiatives? We will look at recent studies of psilocybin, DMT, LSD, ayahuasca, and Ketamine. What are we learning about how chemicals like LSD and DMT affect the brain? What about the dark sides and dangers of psychedelics? Discussion on how they enhance creativity and our capacity for innovative problem-solving.

Host Daniel Pinchbeck explores the current status of the psychedelic movement including the increasing professionalization and corporatization of the psychedelic realm, seeing the good and bad sides to this. New career paths are opening up as psychedelic therapists, integration specialists, microdosing coaches, and so on. The financial landscape includes hundreds of new companies raising investment in the psychedelic space. As Capitalism sees profit potential in the future of psychedelics, it becomes likely that the legal taboos around them will be loosened. We have already seen several states and counties in the US decriminalize psychedelic use. This trend will continue. At the same time, as the psychedelic movement has focused narrowly on personal healing it has ignored some of the most important and fascinating aspects of these experiences. For instance, that psychedelics can reveal latent psychic and paranormal abilities. Also, in moments of transformative insight, we see the potential for a deeper transformation of our society and culture away from consumerism, linear technological progress, and exploitation of resources toward partnership and symbiosis. Discussion on how psychedelic insights can help humanity address its collective trauma and move beyond our currently broken systems toward something better.