the nature of reality(my favorite subject)

[mikaya]

Lily Tomlin (one of my heroines) said, "Reality is a collective hunch."

I really agree with her. It almost seems to me sometimes that it's quite arbitrary what we decide is real and what is not. Taking LSD in my twenties was the first time I realised there is SOOOOO much more to reality than I had been taught. Yet, i find I have to be careful talking about this kind of thing -- people are very attached to their concepts of reality and often seem quite threatened if it's questioned.


Have others of you had that kind of reaction? How do you deal with it?

[Michelle]

Mikaya - I can relate to this as well. When I was in my late teens and twenties, I smoked (quite a bit of) marijuana and it took me years to finally be able to talk about why I did and also to feel comfortable about sharing my personal experiences with the world. 

I realize now though, that I had actually used the drug to drown out the "voices" that were talking to me on a daily basis and back then (in the late eighties) my reality did not match many of my peers realities. I wanted to fit in and not be judged or outcast from the teenage tribe, so I found a way to silence the voices for a while -

Now, I am in a whole different place and speak openly about my perception of the different types of realities and help teach others to work with their own. I occasionally have the person who sets appointments with me in secret, so that they are not given a hard time by their family and friends for exploring them. But this doesn't happen nearly as much as it had in the past.

have you read the book "The four agreements?" Don Miguel really put things in perspective for me when he talks of the different "dreams" that we choose to believe throughout our lives. The so called dreams that he speaks of, could easily represent the realities of others! With the recent rise in vibrational energies over the past few years, I think it is important for people to explore and discover their own personal scope(s) of reality...AND then expand it!!

[mikaya]

Yes Michelle, Don Miguel is awesome. My favorite quote from him goes something like: "don't believe what you read; don't believe what anyone else tells you; and above all don't believe yourself!" I love it.

I think a lot of people take drugs to drown out what they are hearing, and that is really sad. Nowadays, as a shamanic practitioner, I come across quite a lot of people who are doing drugs such as peyote in order to have a shamanic experience. Although I support a person's desire to do that, I personally do not need or want to take drugs at this point in my life. I get quite high enough from things like watching tree branches dancing in the wind!

[Michelle]

Yes, it is quite amazing to be able to experience some "out of this world" feelings, visions and mind altering states without the use of drugs.

I have heard of people using Peyote to assist with Shamanic Journeying and although I am on the same page as you about supporting their choice to do that - but on another level, I can't help but wonder why as I hear the Shamanic Journey is quite incredible on it's own!

[mikaya]

Yes, Michelle, I think that once a person has opened up to the existence of a myriad of other realms, taking drugs to do it would just blow your mind away. Perhaps some people need the drugs to blow the gate open in the first place -- but most of the people I know have been able to walk through that gate by simply setting a very clear intention, and then finding a situation or a person who can facilitate the experience.