Monthly Archives: October 2011

Ayahuasca and Addiction

The CBC will be airing this shortly, but it’s very much worth keeping an eye out for.  From what I understand it should be online relatively quickly after it airs live.

From the site:

Since the publication of his award-winning book, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts, Dr. Gabor Mate has been one of Canada’s leading thinkers on addiction and its deeper causes.  The experience of making the film has had a profound impact on him: “As a physician all too aware of the limitations and narrowness of Western medicine, I have learned much from working with this plant.  The Jungle Prescription took me far physically, but even further in the spiritual realm where our deepest humanity resides.  The plant, and the experience with the plant, is no panacea. There are no panaceas. But as an opening to human possibility, even in the face of lifelong trauma and desperation, it offers much. Seeing people open to themselves, even temporarily, has been a teaching and an inspiration.”

Having experienced the way addiction can tear families apart first-hand, I’m very interested and excited to hear of newer, and better ways to work with those who have been hit hardest and most immediately by the disease.  I very much believe that there is something qualitatively different about ayahuasca and other “hallucinogens” (however antiquated the term) from other psychoactive substances.  Research in this direction has the ability to nuance our understanding of these differences, and hopefully make very real, lasting impacts for the better on people’s lives.

Earthkeepers – Ecospiritual Practice

I’ve recently gotten involved with a group at the local Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Gainesville dedicated to ecospirituality and green religion.  It’s a small group so far, we’ve only had planning meetings, but we’re enthusiastic about the prospects.  The copy below describes the group, and lists our first few planned sessions!

Free and open to the public:

 

Earthkeepers: Ecospiritual Practice

Gatherings to Cultivate and Practice Ecospirituality

Kick-off: Sunday November 6

4:00-5:00pm

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, “Common Room”

4225 NW 34th St

Gainesville, FL 32605

Ecospirituality is the recognition of our spiritual connection to nature; includes:

  • knowing and honoring the sacredness of the earth and the life it supports;
  • the deep sense of place, of belonging, that comes from understanding the ways we are part of an ecological web of interdependence;
  • experiences of awe, wonder, and beauty evoked by the natural world and the interdependence of its parts;
  • an ethical commitment to environmental activism to preserve and protect the earth and its creatures.

 

Some Sundays will be indoor practice, in the “Common Room” at the UU Fellowship. Other Sundays, we have outdoor practice in various settings. Indoor practice features chalice lighting, check-in, a presented program followed by a brief walk outside, then sharing, reflection, and a closing. Outdoor practice will feature guided outdoor walking meditations and shared reflection.

 

November Schedule:

Nov 6: Common Room. Facilitated by Dylan Klempner. “Going Locavore.” The main program features the Bioneers podcast about eating local – how to do it and why it matters.

 

Nov 13: Outdoor Practice at San Felasco County Park (not the State Park) – on NW 43rd Way, off of 43rd St. Facilitated by Rev. LoraKim Joyner. There will be ways to participate for walkers and nonwalkers. Wear suitable clothing for walking in woods if you plan on the walking option. Either way, bring a journal and pen. Begins promptly at 4:00pm.

 

Nov 20: Common Room. Facilitated by Rev. Meredith Garmon. “All Love Begins with Seeing: Poetry and Justice for All.” We’ll hear and discuss this Bioneers podcast about creating justice through art – and art through justice.

 

Nov 27: Thanksgiving holiday; no ecospiritual practice meeting.

Ayahuasca conference in Oakland

Bia Labate sent this along, asking if friends would post it to their blogs.  I’m doing so!  Anyone who’s involved in this kind of research, I know they’d love to have more people show up.  I’d go if I could, but I’m unfortunately too busy that week.

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Phillipe Lucas, Research Affiliate at the Center for Addictions Research of British Colombia, Brian Anderson, MD Candidate at the Stanford University School of Medicine, and Bia Labate, Research Associate at the Institute of Medical Psychology, Heidelberg University, have the privilege to organize a meeting and dialogue of international ayahuasca researchers as a adjunct to the upcoming MAPS conference in Oakland (http://www.maps.org/conference/25/). The meeting will take place at the conference site (Oakland Marriott City Center) on Sunday, Dec. 11th, 2:30-4:30, and is free but will be exclusive to ayahuasca academics.  Participants will be invited to share current projects, successes, and challenges, and to discuss the present and the future of the international ayahuasca research. To sign up for this Ayahuasca Researcher Dialogue, please email Phillipe (philippe.lucas1969@gmail.com) to express your interest.