All language subtitles for Psychedelica.Series.1.12of14.A.Psychedelic.Society.1080p.HDTV.x264.AAC.MVGroup.org

[MUSIC PLAYING]

>> As we look at the world, at
society's impact on the planet,

many ideas abound regarding
what kind of species cannot seem

to help but destroy
its own habitat.

Is this just human behavior,
or is humanity sick?

According to interpretations
of cave and rock art,

shamanism begin as early as
humanity's great leap forward

in human consciousness, almost
as if the shamanic impulse

emerged because the planet knew
that the spiritual practices

and listening to
the Earth would be

needed to balance the behavior
of future generations.

The use of psychedelic
plants have

been associated with
shamanism since the beginning,

and many believe that the
shamanic use of psychedelics

could be one key to creating
a sustainable future,

not simply by living in
the past but by bringing

the wisdom of the past
with us and building

a psychedelic friendly
society and a holistic world,

one where the face of religion,
pharmacology, architecture,

and city planning are in
line with the morality

and conscience that the plant
sacraments tend to evoke.

But over the centuries,
modern society

has slowly replaced the
practice of shamanism

and shunned the use
of psychedelic plants.

So what are the consequences
of a species divorcing itself

from its true nature
and from its past?

>> I think one of the problems
that we face as humans today is

that we've lost touch
with human nature.

We've become so enculturated,
socialized, technolized

that we no longer recognize
what's really truly

important to human beings.

And what I've hoped to be
able to do through my work

is to help people
understand that there's

something about spirituality
that's part of human nature,

that humans evolved through
spiritual practices.

The supernatural is a natural
part of human experience

and it's been a very important
part of human evolution.

Shamanism is part
of our human nature.

We need to engage in
shamanic practices

in order to give expression to
aspects of our human nature.

And I think that there
is increasing evidence

that part of our human
nature was shaped

by these environmental
influences

that we call psychedelics, that
in essence are neurotransmitter

systems were selected for our
ancestor species that were best

capable of taking
these substances

and using them constructively.

>> In several
shamanic traditions,

as well as modern
spiritual disciplines,

the human organism is seen
as a microcosm of the planet,

and one integral way of
influencing the planet is

by living differently
from within.

One of the biggest shifts that
can occur within a human body

is through neurochemical and
hormonal transformations.

Neurotransmitters are
the chemical messengers

of the nervous system.

They signal biological processes
to initiate inside the body.

So why is it that psychedelic
plants mimic the messenger

molecules to our
neurotransmitter systems?

There are several
forms of plant mimicry

that we currently know of.

Some weeds mimic
the scent of flowers

and attract animals
for pollination.

A few of them mimic the
look of domesticated plants.

Some mimic the look of
insects and still others

mimic the leaf structure
of neighboring plants.

These are theorized to
be survival mechanisms

for those particular
plant species.

However, psychedelic and
psychoactive fungi, leaves,

seeds, flowers, roots, bark,
and even animal species

mimic neurotransmitter molecules
that affect the way we think,

feel, and even construct
our belief systems.

>> Nature communicates in
chemical signatures through

the species.

And the plant
entheogens, which are

secreted by nature,
when we take them,

they plug into our
consciousness and our, you know,

where-- and they
expand our awareness.

And it's like Gaia
is communicating

through these chemical
messengers in the same way

that she mediates other species
with chemicals in nature.

These plant sacraments
and the entheogens

may be interspecies
messengers for us.

>> If nature mediates a species
through chemical messengers,

it stands to reason that
there is a mechanism meant

for humanity as well.

But is it possible that human
consciousness has been limited

and shut off to the full
spectrum of nature around us?

If the purpose of
psychedelic plants

is to cause humanity
to wake up, how

does this truly differ
from the spiritual messages

and religions?

Why are experts now
claiming that these plants

can offer genuine insights
into the nature of our reality?

>> That's the beautiful
thing about psychedelics.

It's a thing that happens
on a personal level.

You can use your own
mind to interpret

it, make of it what you will.

So this is not encouraged
in our society.

What's encouraged in
society through most

of our institutions-- religion,
academia, all of those things,

social media, all of this--

we are encouraged to give up our
ability to think for ourselves.

>> And that's the big difference
is religion is something

you're told and taught.

Psychedelics is a direct
experience that you have,

and so it brings an element
in that is more real than what

you've been told.

Your own experiences
is much more real.

Psychedelics definitely can
break long-held patterns,

and beliefs systems are
nothing but patterns.

And so I think it's a
re-envisioning, a renovation

of these world religions, the
reintroduction of the sacrament

that we need at this time.

>> The shamanic perspective
of the sacrament differs from

culture to culture, but from
a historical perspective,

psychedelic plant sacraments
for religious purposes have been

used for tens of
thousands of years.

Since there are so many
psychedelic plant species that

mimic the same
neurotransmitters,

can this still be considered
a survival mechanism

of these particular plants
or is the survival mechanism

more broadly associated with
human behavior's effects

on the Earth at large?

>> I think that it's really
important to mention that with

all this psychedelic insight
that people are gaining with

all of the mystical experiences,
with all the skills that are

being improved, and all these
different things that come out

of it, it's most important
to remember that ecological

awareness is probably first and
foremost what the psychedelics

are trying to impart on us.

>> Is it possible that just
like plant mimicry used

by individual plant species
for their own survival that

psychedelic plants anticipated
the rapid growth of the human

neocortex and the complicated
behavior that this evolutionary

leap would cause
for this planet?

And if so, how exactly
are psychedelics

changing humanity's
relationship with nature?

>> One of the interesting things
that has emerged out of the use

of psychedelics is that many of
the people who have these kinds

of experiences develop a very
different perception of nature.

Here in the Western
world, we're told

that it's just a bunch
of physical stuff,

it's just material world.

But when you take the
psychedelics and all

of these filters
are stripped away

and we start to have this more
direct perception of nature,

nature appears alive.

It's dynamic, it's
animated and the trees move

and the trees emit
energy and plants move

and they have messages for us.

And of course, what
we see in the shamanic

cultures is the continued
use of these kinds

of substances in healing.

So we know that there's a
variety of important influences

that come in terms of human
social bonding, altruism,

concern for others.

I think it's very fair to
say that in important ways,

psychedelics influenced human
evolution for the better.

>> The major problem in the
world now is alienation.

We are disconnected
from our own bodies,

we are disconnected
from each other,

we are disconnected
from nature, we

are disconnected from the
cosmos, from the divine.

So we need spirituality
that you can get only

from personal experience.

>> If these specific plants
provide a way for humanity

to reestablish our connection
with the natural world,

as well as supernatural realms,
what is the next step that

our modern society needs to take
in order to establish a healthy

and lasting relationship
with the planet?

>> A medicine-friendly
society I think would be very,

very beneficial.

I think a medicine-friendly
society is what we need.

I think the fact that we
have banned these medicines

and replaced them
with pharmaceuticals

is what has led to
so many problems.

I think if we were taught
these traditions early

and we were allowed to
use these medicines,

we would not have this
dysfunctional society.

We wouldn't have this
massive amount of sickness.

These aren't drugs,
they're medicines

like any other
medicines that you

get from any other plant
that can heal yourself

in different ways.

Only these can heal you
in psychological ways

and spiritual ways.

People that have gone through
30, 40 years of psychotherapy

can go and drink ayahuasca
once and get more benefit

than 30 or 40 years
of psychotherapy.

>> As these plants seem to bring
the users awareness directly

into the heart of the issue,
to face it head on, the current

drugs on the market
within psychiatry--

while useful and
effective on some levels--

only dull or reduce
the symptoms,

which brings the patient even
farther away from actively

engaging with the root of what
they're attempting to resolve.

>> Psychiatry as a field
of medicine is really--

and even psychiatrists in
the field will tell you,

I can't do anything, the
drugs are not that good,

we don't have anything new.

And so the psychedelics come
in and they sort of just blow

that all up.

I think it will sort of
resurrect psychiatry.

>> Were it to be approved --and
that occur anytime from two

to 10 years--

were it to be approved, I
would envision it initially

to be approved under very
restricted conditions, where

psilocybin perhaps would be held
by a single central pharmacy

and would be dispensed to
specialized therapeutic centers

with people who are trained
in psychedelic psychotherapy.

>> I think they will have
their therapeutic uses,

but I think the idea to just
have places where you can go

and have the experience in
a safe environment and focus

on the experience with
people there who can help you

facilitate it, whether
you call them shamans

or psychotherapists or
some combination of that,

it doesn't really matter.

The point is they are
facilitators more than anything

else, but they enable you
to have a rich experience.

>> These seemingly new
approaches to psychiatry

and pharmacology are actually
throwbacks to a more ancestral

method of mental health.

In a historical context,
modern psychiatry and medicine

has taken over in
the blink of an eye

with brand new drugs, brand
new methods, and a form

of historical amnesia.

It is this conventional
mindset that

has caused for groups like
MAPS to increase awareness

of the potential
benefits of psychedelics

through the scientific method.

Many other groups are also
spreading this awareness,

but few of them are willing to
interface with federal agencies

in order to move this
research forward.

Founder of MAPS,
Rick Doblin, has

waded through the
laundry list of gripes

about the current
pharmaceutical paradigm

in order to increase
transparency,

circumvent conflicts
of interest, and more.

>> The key thing about the
Benefit Corporation is that

it's not about
maximizing profits,

it's about maximizing
social benefit.

The only investor in the
for-profit Benefit Corporation

is the nonprofit MAPS.

So that's our structure.

So we're going to be
focusing just on donations.

There is no private gain here.

It's all about trying
to really improve

the health of our society
and help us all survive.

Here's the psychedelic clinics
of the future, one day.

This is a beautiful one.

One day you'll go to
Google Maps and you'll

say, where is a psychedelic
clinic, and you'll get this.

>> With a new approach to
keeping future pharma ethical

and efficient, what might we
see for the future of medical

and therapeutic industries?

>> I think what you may see
not too far in the future is

something like spas or places
you can go and have these

experiences highly structured,
appropriately structured

to optimize people's
experiences.

>> I see a future where
they're fully integrated

into our society, or at least
in some societies of the world,

that there are psychedelic
facilitators that are

supporting people in big healing
and awakening experiences.

But I also see them being
used in scientific inquiry

and technical advancements,
advanced creative problem

solving, and that sort of thing.

So I like to see them as
being instrumental in moving

our future forward in
a positive direction.

>> Psychedelics in society
might change the nature of how

business interfaces
with the public,

not only through client
engagement and technical

approaches, but also might be
seen in the look and function

of architecture.

Even tribes that lived
embedded in the natural world

placed different values on
living and working spaces

that the modern world
rarely understands.

The Oneida Indian Nation
in upstate New York

even build their casinos
to flow with the landscape,

rather than squaring them off.

This is based on their
philosophy that boxed off

spaces cause energy to flow
improperly and even the mind

to operate unnaturally
within the visual aesthetic.

An observation that
some people make

after a psychedelic
experience is

how alien or industrial modern
urban sprawl tends to look.

Housing developments without
plant life around them

seem to stand out, rather than
integrate into the landscape.

If these plants are agents
of Mother Earth placed here

to enhance our
relationship with nature,

industry might lean in the
same direction and even

the cultural norms
that our youth commonly

grow up with might change
into something closer

to what our shamanic
ancestors used to employ.

>> One of the important uses
of psychedelics in shamanic

societies were to develop
you into an adult.

You went on a vision quest
and the plant substances were

supposed to enhance your ability
to encounter the spiritual

entities that were going
to guide you in your life.

So at 18, instead of saying,
yeah, I can go out and get

drunk, we'd have a retreat.

We'd send our 18-year-olds
off for a week or two

and they'd use psilocybin or LSD
or ayahuasca two or three, four

times.

They'd have a purpose
to try to figure out

how they want to sort
through their life, what

they want to do next.

And we'd go through
life this way.

When we'd reach major milestones
or major difficulties,

we'd return to these
substances and try

to find out what it is that
we can learn about ourselves,

our goals, our desires in order
to be happier about what we do.

I think there's also
important social implications.

I think it would be
really useful to take

the leaders of conflicting
societies and cultures

and make them spend a weekend
together doing ayahuasca

or psilocybin talking
to each other,

starting to see each
other's points of view.

>> The amount of ways that
our world might change due

to the adoption of psychedelics
into the fabric of society

seems to be all pervasive, as
these plants cover a wide range

of applications from religious
sacraments to psychotherapy

to rites of passage for our
youth and all the roadblocks

on the way to the final
moments of one's life.

The only thing slowing
our societal adoption

of these plants as
viable medicines

is the approval of their
scientific research.

If the cultural stigma and legal
restrictions were loosened,

what could these plants teach
us about who we are as a species

and what our place
is on this Earth?

>> Psychedelics represent unique
opportunities for modulating

and understanding the
nature of consciousness,

the nature of awareness, the
nature of perceptual process,

how we understand ourselves
and others within the world.

And so there's a lot
that we can do in terms

of scientific understanding.

So that needs to move forward,
and move forward aggressively,

because they're
uniquely powerful tools.

I actually sometimes feel when
I reflect back on the fact

that these compounds were
removed from the research

laboratory for
decades, literally

I feel kind of like
Rip Van Winkle,

awakening to the opportunity
now to reinvestigate

these compounds and the world.

The scientific
field has moved on.

I mean, we have all these
imaging methodologies,

we have much better
psychometric measures

for measuring subjective states,
we have different receptor

models for looking at
interactions of these compounds

and brain processes.

We understand spirituality and
some of these subtle states

of consciousness much better.

And all of these tools of
science now are available,

and now we have this very
powerful intervention.

So there are literally
thousands of different questions

to be addressed.

>> Entertaining thoughts of the
future are always loaded with

what ifs--

how far can the
envelope be pushed,

how safe is the approach,
how can external technology

liberate us from
internal illness,

and how do technologies
undermine our body and mind's

natural abilities?

In a psychedelic society,
the emphasis of life

likely wouldn't revolve purely
around the use of these plants,

but what new ideas for the
future they can conjure.

One highly debated topic
in the information age

is the future of mankind's
integration with technology

and where it may lead us.

As new discoveries of
neurophysiology come to light,

what advancements might
we see in the near future?

>> We may end up understanding
the brain mechanisms that

underlie some of these
alterations of moods,

attitudes, behavior,
consciousness that would

ultimately make psychedelic
drugs unnecessary.

So it could be that there will
be ways to stimulate brain, be

it electronically or
with lasers or whatever,

and manipulate history
and context to also induce

these kinds of states
of consciousness.

And then the future of
that is really unknown.

>> If psychedelic states could
be evoked by technologies

in any amount at any time,
could this reduce our capacity

to appreciate nature, not
just the flora and fauna,

but the nature of foraging
or growing psychedelic plants

or even the necessity
of ceremony?

If an otherworldly
experience were

possible at the
push of a button,

would this be counter-intuitive
to these plants speaking

messages of Mother
Earth to our species?

Another unknown for the future
of technology and psychedelia

is in regards to the DMT
synthesizing gene in humans.

We asked the author of "DMT:
The Spirit Molecule," Rick

Strassman, about
this possibility.

>> Well, there is an interplay
between genetic medicine

and the psychedelics.

And I think in
one case, it would

be with respect to
the psychedelics

that the body makes on its own.

And I think we're just
beginning to learn

about the genetic regulation
of DMT synthesis, which I

think will be very important--

what conditions turn it on,
what turn it off, are there

variants, are there
other influences which

would modify the
synthesis of endogenous

or naturally occurring DMT?

For example, if you
get an infection,

certain genes get turned
on to make antibodies

and activate the
T-cells and whatnot.

So that's called the
genetic regulation

of antibodies or antibody
synthesis at the gene level.

>> Causing the human organism
to produce different amounts

of DMT naturally within
the body sounds intriguing,

but does the knowledge and
technology exist to be able

to alter our genetics to
self-produce psychedelic

compounds in the body?

>> There is a technology
called CRISPR,

which is kind of going
down into the gene level.

They've characterized
the gene that

makes the enzymes that are
responsible for the formation

of DMT.

You could engineer a
rodent, let's say, to not

have any DMT synthesized.

Or you can modify
a rodent, perhaps--

it's not known yet--

to overproduce DMT.

So, if that's established to
be feasible in lower animals,

I think as we advance in
our understanding of how

to insert genes
into higher species,

there's going to be
an interest in that.

>> Could using technology such
as CRISPR-Cas9 genetically

alter the natural DMT
synthesizing gene already

present in our bodies?

Would it be possible
to control the amounts

of endogenous or
self-produced DMT in the body?

As many technologies are
becoming consumer-friendly

and price and the
knowledge and skill

sets to perform these medical
miracles are becoming more

accessible through
information sharing,

what would happen if our
neighbors and community members

began engineering themselves
to bring about the DMT state

on demand?

One of the greatest
divides happening

in the field of
psychedelica is how

to get in touch with that space.

Many psychonauts, such
as Terence McKenna,

spoke about the debate of
whether we should be training

ourselves through meditation
and movement practices

to achieve the
same state as when

taking a psychedelic substance.

He asked why one has to
spend years in meditation,

isolated in the
mountains, before catching

a glimpse of the same experience
that a plant can give anyone

within one hour of
ingestion, while others

believe that avoiding the inner
path to those expanded states

and always relying
on external sources

is the very essence of
why we are a species that

is dependent upon
externalities in order to feel

validated and meaningful.

The concern seems to be growing.

New advancements of psychedelic
substances and technology

are emerging at an
unbelievable rate.

Well after the DMT
trials that Dr.

Rick Strassman conducted in
the early to mid-'90s, a new

evolution of psychedelic
theory emerged.

If the DMT trip is so
short yet gives so many

different insights than
do other psychedelics,

such as superintelligent
entities and a predictable type

of landscape, then
extending the experience

is the next frontier.

Neurobiologist Andrew
Gallimore began

seeing how possible this
process is and began

developing the formula
and protocol in order

to establish a reliable
process for communication

with this other world
and the beings therein.

>> If we are to
look to the future--

I mean, if we--

I can imagine a
society where the idea

of extradimensional
intelligence is accepted,

a society where it
is normal for someone

to enter a psychedelic state
and to receive information

from beings from
another reality.

I mean, this is radical stuff.

For modern, rational
kind of human,

the idea that there are
intelligences beyond

this reality is extraordinary.

It occurred to me that the time
that people spent in this space

was often frustrating.

People would enter
this space and then

they would be dragged
back out, often just

as they had established
some sort of communication.

They said, I have
to go, I have to go,

and they're dragged back,
often against their will,

into the consensus world.

DMT has a number of
properties, a number

of its unique properties,
that are not shared

by other classic psychedelics.

Now, the main one, the
characteristic feature of DMT,

is it's very short-acting.

The second feature is this
lack of subjective tolerance.

So you can inject
someone with DMT.

This is something
Rick Strassman did.

he showed that you
inject someone with DMT,

let them have the experience and
come down, and then inject them

again maybe 30 minutes later.

And you can do that
repeatedly and the experience

reaches the same
level every time.

So these two qualities, this
very rapid but short-acting

effect and the
lack of tolerance,

means that DMT is amenable
to a continuous infusion.

This would allow you to induce
someone into the DMT state

and hold them there not
just for a few minutes,

but perhaps for a few hours.

>> Though the idea of keeping
people in an extended DMT state

is new in this manner, longer
DMT trips have been going

on for thousands of years in
the Amazon with the admixture

of the banisteriopsis
caapi vine.

In the ayahuasca
brew, the DMT state

lasts roughly four to six hours.

Most people's first impression
of the extended state DMT

journey is that it should be
no different than an ayahuasca

journey.

>> Yeah.

But at the same time on
ayahuasca, if it goes on

you can work with it.

And with DMT,
you're down and you

aren't able to work with it.

And so that's one of the
advantages of an extended state

is it might allow more
psychological work than occurs

with just peak up and down.

>> There is interest in that
state and it will turn out

to be an interesting
state, no matter what.

>> If the interest in using
this fusion of technology

and biology is directed at
understanding the world it

sends you to and the
beings that reside there,

the question becomes, what truly
are these seemingly intelligent

creatures?

>> I decided to call them beings
just because that was how they

seemed, they were being.

They were apprehensible,
the volunteer

was able to see them
and interact with them.

And like everything
else in this state,

they were made of light,
quite bright light.

And there's an interaction
between the volunteer

and the being.

And the nature of
that interaction

is like any other types of
interactions we encounter--

fear, love, arguing,
bargaining, storytelling.

>> Because this seems to
be uncharted territory

for humanity, the hope is that
explorers of DMT X or extended

state DMT would be able to gain
useful insight from the beings

about how to navigate the
turbulent ecological and social

issues we face.

But what are the
potential dangers?

>> The main danger, I guess,
would be in how people would

manage that kind of experience.

And you would need very
well trained individuals

to enter the space
and stay there.

It's still uncharted
territory, to some extent.

Having this level
of DMT in the brain

over a long period of
time, we don't know what

the effects are going to be.

We don't know what the effect
on an individual's psychology

is going to be,
how they're going

to manage that experience.

>> It's fascinating to entertain
the thought of what the future

of technology might bring us.

However, some
caution that in order

to responsibly move
into the future

to create a
psychedelic society, we

must honor sustainable
practices and truly

listen to the messages that
we receive from the plants

themselves in order
to move deeper

into the ever evolving world.

>> We live in a very
interesting time.

This is probably
the first time when

almost the entire human
population of the Earth

has the opportunity to
communicate and interact

with one another, whether
it's through travel

or whether it's
through the mass media.

We're aware that we're part
of a large human family,

and it's a troubled human
family, full of pain

and full of anger and hatred
and war is a prevalent feature

in the world today.

It's our state of consciousness
as the human race as a whole

that is the problem here.

I mean, this is a
really messed up state

of consciousness, the global
state of consciousness.

And we need
consciousness change.

That's where the
work has to be done,

at the level of consciousness.

Nature has provided
us with the vehicles

to change our
consciousness, to make

that shift into a sustainable
world where we act with love,

rather than with hate; where
we act with trust, rather

than with suspicion; where
we want to make things grow,

rather than to destroy them.

A shift of
consciousness is needed,

and I believe strongly
that the psychedelics can

play a key role in that, just
as they took our ancestors out

of a state of sleep
40,000 years ago.

It does alter your
thinking about everything

that you look at, and that's
precisely what's needed now.

That's precisely
what's needed now.

We need desperately a
change of consciousness

as the human species if
we are to have any future.

>> Whatever the
future may bring,

however it may transform the
face of religion, pharmacology,

architecture,
technology, and more,

perhaps the main importance of
all of our advancements is that

we move forward as a team, that
we acknowledge we are a species

made of many desires,
fears, values,

and ways of moving
along the path of life.

The idea of a
psychedelic-friendly society

is not to encourage more
use of this peculiar variety

of plants, but to
encourage those

who intend to use them
anyway to do so responsibly.

And for those with concern
for the future of our species,

may we come to understand or
truest connection with nature

and use the tools we have
to truly know ourselves,

realize our potential, and
guide one another to a brighter

future here on Earth.

Up next, join us as we explore
the ancestral and modern use

of sonic in musical tools to
reach psychedelic-type states

of consciousness.