Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge by Terence McKennaMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Sometimes I ask myself some weird questions like what would a new color look like? Or what exists outside the universe? Or what happens when I die? And sometimes I wonder about the existence of reality itself.
Psychedelics are super interesting. Society considers them as drugs in a similar way as cigarettes or some other stimulants. But this book shows that they are quite different. For a start, these things are naturally occurring in plants and in our bodies, plus, current and archaic societies have been using them for a long time. The fact that these plants are strictly prohibited and culturally discouraged without any serious reasons related to health tells me that these things have the potential/ability to destroy/transform the assumptions upon which our culture is based.
I am not saying that I think everything the author says is right; all I am saying is that even if some of it is correct, it might be something worth considering. These plants might contain the things that are able to reveal what lies beyond the impenetrable edge of the universe within which I exist.
I thought I would give 4 stars but the last section of the book changed my mind.
"Like sexuality, altered states of consciousness are taboo because they are consciously or unconsciously sensed to be entwined with the mysteries of our origin—with where we came from and how we got to be the way we are. Such experiences dissolve boundaries and threaten the order of reigning patriarchy and domination of society by unreflecting expression of ego."
"The effect of these compounds is largely psychological and is only partially culturally conditioned; in fact, the compounds act to dissolve cultural conditioning of any sort. They force the corrosive process of reform of community values. Such compounds should be recognized as deconditioning agents."
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