“Cultural change may be seen as occurring in the context of an even larger change. A paradigm shift is a big grid of assumptions and perceptions of which the majority of people view reality”
-William A. Richards from the Book; Sacred Knowledge
There is a major shift happening in the undercurrent of our society. As someone who is part of a team working at the ground level with this work, I have been able to peek behind the curtains of what others are going through out there, their desires, and outcomes when working with plant medicine. The big theme is moving away from the current modalities of healing towards a natural approach that provides more massive benefit; sacred psychedelic medicine.
More and more people, now more than ever are turning to this medicine as a way to heal from the root and create deep change in their lives so they can experience healing, joy, presence, and love again.
When a paradigm shift slowly begins to occur; there is always resistance to it as people cling onto a past worldview or perspective that is outdated.
In the book; Sacred Knowledge by William. A. Richards– he talks about the major paradigm shift in the scientific world.
The Ptolemaic view- was a view Aristotle & Pope Paul V held onto tightly- the view that our earth was flat and planets moved in irregular patterns through the sky.
Others began questioning this dominant view of reality- even Giordano Bruno, a philosopher at the time was burned at the stake for questioning this worldview.
A decade later; Galileo with the new tool; the telescope; began to see evidence to support the Copernican perspective (how we view reality today in the scientific world-with the Sun at the center of our galaxy and earth and other planets in our solar system orbit around it in a circular pattern)
Even with his evidence; Galileo was put under house arrest and censored.
Eventually; the shift began to take shape as more people researched and had evidence of the Copernican view of reality.
I see this happening currently in our society; some view psychedelic plant medicine through the lens of a past narrative that is no longer valid.
But, with the amazing research happening at prestigious universities and institutions, with the decriminalization and legalization happening at state levels combined with the distrust in pharmaceuticals and people desiring alternatives- it is shifting.
From what I have seen unfold in my own life, my practice, and the work we are doing at the ground level is nothing short of amazing.
Please note, it is not a magic pill or quick fix- as you still have to show up for yourself and your well-being. When you do that in combo of working with plant medicine WITH a therapeutic intention; in ceremony, micro-dosing, or heroic doses and integrate the lessons into your life- that is where real deep change happens.
Plant medicine is a tool for searching deeper into oneself, healing from the root, and connecting us to something larger.
This will change our society as a whole for how it impacts the individual in a positive and therapeutic way- for when we heal individually, it creates a ripple effect that changes families, communities and societies.
“It does not seem to be an exaggeration to say that psychedelics, used responsibly and with proper caution, would be for psychiatry what the microscope is for biology and medicine or the telescope is for astronomy. These tools make it possible to study important processes that under normal circumstances are not available for direct observation.”
-Stanislav Grof