The Psychedelic Path: An Exploration of Shamanic Plants for Spiritual Awakening Kindle Edition

Most of THE PSYCHEDELIC LEAP reads like a charming memoir of the author’s experiences using psychedelics in his quest for awakening.The latter part of the book consists a Q&A that I found quite interesting. In it, Richard Haight says, “The very intention is born of the assumption that there is an ultimate truth—” He mentions the suffering caused by belief and the futility of seeking ultimate truth at several points in the book. I like how he explains that during his psychedelic trips and especially when he thinks about them afterwards, he constantly lets go of belief in ideas that he might hold as true. This letting go of belief is a radical approach that I’ve practiced and written about for some time now, and I find it refreshing to discover others talking about this very thing.I also like what he says about attitude. With the right attitude and intention, any activity, including taking psychedelics, can be beneficial. This is a deep message that, as the author says, has many useful applications in many areas of life.Mr. Haight goes out of his way to be highly responsible when presenting the possibility of using psychedelics as an aid to spiritual awakening, suggesting that readers follow their inner “pull” (which he describes as having nothing to do with desire) and do their research prior.He makes it clear that this isn’t for everyone, and while research shows that psychedelics are generally safe, he offers suggestions for maximizing both the safety and the benefits that can be gained.Mr. Haight doesn’t mention the downside to taking psychedelics because from his perspective (a highly useful one in my opinion), a “bad trip,” is only bad if it is perceived as such. With the love and the intention of unearthing even the deepest underlying darkness, there can be no bad experiences, only deep spiritual lessons that have the potential to free the practitioner from the internal disharmony that is blocking the experience of awakening.Read this book with loving openness, and you will find plenty of treasures that may serve you, whether or not your “pull” leads you to psychedelics.

There is much to admire about this book, and the wisdom if offers. It has teachings from someone who has followed a deep spiritual path and is offering unusually deep teachings. That said, I would not recommend using magic mushrooms and salvia diviinorum as he did. We have learned from hard experience of many people that a sober sitter is very important even for experienced psychonaughts for safety and support in the darker parts of a journey. Also, I was troubled by his lack of integrity in taking his first mushroom journey at home intentionally not telling his wife who was also at home. Entering into a journey with these sacred plants without a basic level of honesty dishonors the plants and open one up to the kinds of paranoia Haight experience. He is clearly a man of extremes and has benefitted from it. In that he is an exception, and I wish he would make clear that what he did was definitely not a recommended path except for a special few. The rest of us, if we chose to follow the psychedelic path, would be wise to follow the well established guidelines to be found in Pollan's How to Change your Mind, and Rachael Harris's Listening to Ayahuasca, both better books on how to use psychedelics. So Haight's book as a book of wisdom gets five stars from me, but as a book abut using psychedelics, it gets two stars. So I compromised on four stars. Thank you, Richard, for your courage, compassion, and wisdom, but please remember the first rule: do no harm.

This book is amazingly accurate regarding the effects of Psychedelic's for unfoldment. Anyone that is wondering whether to use or not needs to explore ALL the research used to achieve a well written analysis. I especially like the "personal experience," laid out in a fashion that clearly respects the readers interpretation and or decision without leading the reader one way or another. A rare quality of writing style. This is a must read if you have ever contemplated the Psychedelic Path. Good luck with whatever path you take.

I had previous exposure to psychedelics when I was 18 in 1969. My experiences basically tracked on the same course as yours. At that time such terms like "default mode network" were not in use. I had forgotten some of the anxiety related side effects that I had but they were not as pronounced as yours. No demon ever pursued me abnd the physical side-effects were not severe but I did become accutely aware of the evil in others around me and within myself. I immediately became aware of the need for universal forgiveness. It can be a startling realization to know there are members of your own family who in the ancient karmic past were participants in witch hunts and that I might have been involved as a victim. To also know that as a warrior before I also have the death of many on my hands was troubling. When Jesus told the woman at the well after he forgave her to "Go and sin no more" I understood its profound implications. Only by forgiveness do we obtain redemption. While my family are generally fundamentalist conservatives, after psychedelics (LSD, psilopsybin and peyote) I was always a free-style spiritual type and buried my anger and rebelliousness. Your book offers insight to others whohave not experienced this and for me it was useful as a refresher reawakening old latent memories.

Makes some good points but reads more like a self-help book about a guy trying to expel his inner demons. Doesn't really describe a 'psychedelic' experience at all. The only thing 'psychedelic' is in the title of the book, not in the confines of its pages. The authors described use of Salvia is also suspect as he seems to confuse it with the way DMT is smoked (with multiple hits of the pipe). If you do Salvia right you sure as hell won't be arround (this plane of exsistence) to be able to take another hit as he describes.

Its an account of a particular way a male person might go about taking certain hallucinogens if he is lucky enough have a really supportive, non judgemental female partner, but there is no direct or reported input from "her indoors" (as I came to mentally label her all pervading, but completely one dimensional presence, while reading this narrative). Nor do we learn how his various escapades impacted her. Which they must have done, if the extent of her role as a facilitator is to be believed.... now that might have been interesting...Having experienced two out of the three ethnobotanicals in question in some significant measure I am peturbed by some of what the author has to say on these topics. His experiences just are not congruent with mine at all. Whilst I hesitate to say he is making some of it up, the fact is that his accounts are totally underwhelming..... where are Terrence McKenna's ruined planets and machine labyrinths? Where are all the other revelations that abound in this area of literature, and which I know to be true?I bought this book wanting to like it, and I have read a lot of related material over the years, most of which I have hugely enjoyed, understood, learned from and for the most part agreed with, from personal experience. This book is an outlier, it is situated away from that main body of work I've just mentioned and it describes something that, in truth I don't really recognise. My initial thought was that he hasn't done any of the things he claims to have done because his experiences are so different from my own, however I have no way of knowing that to be true. Maybe being an accomplished martial artist changes the way these things affected him? I wouldnt know, I just used to do a bit of martial arts now and again, I'm not a black belt or anything. There seems to be an intensity in the author, a desire to achieve measurable goals in an area where nothing is measureable. He seems very uptight for one who has clearly devoted so much effort to achieving such varied and lofty goals. He seems to come to ethnobotanicals as if they are a terrible challenge, an ordeal to be endured, there is nothing remotely ecstatic about this book. Its as if he is trying to vanquish these wonderful substances and subdue them, as if they are a deadly foe.I humbly opine that this may be the wrong approach.My reluctant and disappointed final view is that, despite being very well written, this book does not describe a spiritual path or indeed any path of any kind that I can recognise, where I'm defining a path as a route that others could follow.Its not even a journey, its very introspective and its all about him basically. The trouble is that on its own that doesn't feel like enough.It is not in my bookcase with all my many other treasured books on this and related shamanic and mystic topics, my copy went straight to the charity shop.

I found this book very interesting to start with but as i proceeded through the pages, that the writter contradicts the psycadelic experience. I dont think psycadelics are for the writer i beleive he is more interested in "jesus" and out dated spirituality. Psychedelics should be used to steer people away from the lie that has been told for so many years, yet the writter seems to bring christianity into it to much for my liking. I think this book is ideal for christians who want to experiment with psycadelics

Richard's book showed me what it's like to be truly courageous and I felt fascinated by his experiences. I also enjoyed Richard's attitude of no judgement as psychedelics are not for everyone, you're either drawn to them or you're not and it's a question of timing. Maybe the book will encourage or discourage you from venturing into psychedelics. It's not important whether you do or you don't. Either way it gives a helpful understanding and insight.

Not what i expected but great read all the same

Very interesting