Jan 20, 2020
Dr. Dennis McKenna, PhD is an ethnopharmacologist, renowned researcher, highly sought-after lecturer, and brother of well-known psychedelics proponent Terence McKenna.
He has been featured widely on many podcasts, and in books, documentaries and films including the Joe Rogan Experience, on Brian Rose’s London Real, DMT: The Spirit Molecule, Fantastic Fungi: The Mushroom Movie, and countless others. McKenna's memoir, The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss retells his experiences and adventures with his brother Terence's McKenna. Dennis has authored & co-authored 50+ scientific publications on the interdisciplinary study of ethnopharmacology and plant hallucinogens.
He is a founding board member of the Heffter Research Institute where he continues exploring the therapeutic uses of psychoactive medicines derived from nature and used in indigenous ethnomedical practices. Most recently, Dennis is working on launching his mystery school, The McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy, in Peru.
This episode was recorded in Costa Rica at Soltara Healing Center. The #SoltaraSeries is a collection of awe-inspiring tales of personal growth and healing from an array of guests and thought leaders. To learn more about Soltara Healing Center visit https://soltara.co/thoughtroom
Special Offers in This Episode:
→ $200 off Ayahuasca retreats at Soltara Healing Center with code THOUGHTROOM. Use link: https://soltara.co/thoughtroom
Topics Explored:
> Dennis shares fascinating stories about his first experiences with ayahuasca, over 30 years ago in the early 1980’s
> The importance of set, setting and structure for the psychedelic experience, allowing for an individual interaction with the medicine
> The “set is the most complicated part of it...because the set is YOU.”
> The novelty of the psychedelic experience and how that can help provide meaning in our lives
> Default Mode Network & the Reality Hallucination
> Dennis’s psychedelic journey of photosynthesis, experiencing it through the lens of a water molecule being translocated through the roots & osmotic pressures into the chloroplast of the plants
> The Gaia Hypothesis, plant intelligence, the potential fate of human life on earth and the importance of cultivating symbiosis with the whole biosphere
> Dennis’ legacy and mission to educate people about psychedelics in order to shift collective consciousness
> The Experiment at La Chorrera and psychedelic research
> Dennis’ legacy and the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy
Show Resources:
(Book) The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss - Dennis McKenna
(Website) McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy
(Book)The Invisible Landscape: Mind, Hallucinogens, and the I Ching - Dennis McKenna, Terence McKenna
(Book) Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs: 50 Years of Research - Dennis McKenna, Ghillean Prance, Wade Davis, Benjamin Leonen
(Book) The Psilocybin Solution: The Role of Sacred Mushrooms in the Quest for Meaning - Simon Powell
(Book) Darwin's Unfinished Business: The Self-Organizing Intelligence of Nature- Simon Powell
(Book) Magic Mushroom Explorer: Psilocybin and the Awakening Earth - Simon Powell
(Book) Eckhart Tolle: The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
(Documentary Series) One Strange Rock (On Amazon Prime Video-- No longer available on Netflix as of Jan. 2020)
→ Ayahuasca Plant Medicine at Soltara Healing Center: http://bit.ly/soltara
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Website| https://mckenna.academy/
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Special thanks to Emmy-Award winning composer Kodomo (Chris Child) for allowing us to use his brilliant track Concept 1 as our theme song.
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The Thought Room is a combination of edge-of-your-seat storytelling and groundbreaking interviews with celebrated thought-leaders like Erick Godsey and many more from around the world.
Recorded everywhere from hotel rooms in New York City, to a camper van in Maine; from the coastal forests of Costa Rica, to a picnic blanket amongst grapes in a vineyard in Sedona—host Hallie Rose captures rich, face-to-face interviews and intimate storytelling in a variety of eccentric locations.
From musicians to mathematicians, life coaches to psychonauts, PhDs to professional athletes—we’ll invite them all to step into the Thought Room to spill their stories and share their most distilled wisdom. The show covers a breadth of topics including psychology, spirituality, sex & relationships, psychedelics, ayahuasca, non-violent communication, law of attraction, bio-hacking, fitness, nutrition, alternative health, personal development, business & entrepreneurship, mindfulness, yoga, and meditation.
Quotes from my guests on Psychedelics:
“Psychedelics are like a direct portal to the Psyche” - Erick Godsey
“What my experience with psychedelics has taught me is that all the magic is here!” - Kyle Buller
“The medicines have a way of changing one's perspective powerfully and profoundly.” - Luke Storey
“Psychedelics are not suppressed because they are dangerous to users; they’re suppressed because they provoke unconventional thought, which threatens any number of elites and institutions that would rather do our thinking for us.” - Dr. Dennis McKenna
Quotes from my guests on Consciousness:
“I’m a true believer that our lives are a product of our imagination.” - Ollie Ollerton
“Never let those who lack belief in themselves rob you of yours.” - Dorian Yates
“Your ability to feel good in any kind of environment is up to you.” - Dr. Craig Koniver
Quotes from my guests on Ayahuasca:
“And I am leaving, knowing — I don’t want my dharma revealed to me...I want to create it, I want to walk it, I want to dance it, moment by moment. Thank you, Ayahuasca.” - Erick Godsey
“Ayahuasca is a symbiotic ally of the human species.” - Dennis McKenna
Celebrated guests include Dr. Dennis McKenna, Justin Wren, Erick Godsey, Ollie Ollerton & Dorian Yates.
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