Mind, Body, Spirtit

Ah, the difference between the mind, the body, and the spirit. It is an ancient question that those of a philosophical nature have attempted to answer for centuries. The wonderful thing about the human mind that separates us from animals (as far as we know) is that animals simply act and react on mostly their instincts; humans also have this animal instinct, however, after we act a certain way we have the ability to think about how we have acted. Although this is an amazing trait that allows for humans to strive for knowledge on the human physiology and genome it has been the cause of much turmoil and inner strife amongst many. The problem is that in order to completely understand the inner workings of a human, you yourself cannot be human. It is impossible. Right when your mother and father came together that special night and brought about your conception, at that very moment you began developing your bias towards the human race. As you grew older your genetic makeup and various experiences have tainted your ability to maintain a true tabula rasa.

In an effort to catalyze the ability of humans to understand themselves, various researchers have turned to drugs. I mean, everyone knows of “legal” drugs, such as Zoloft, Xanax, Klonopin etc that numerous psychiatrists have used in order to help their patients deal with various psychological issues. Therefore, how come an intelligent person of inquiry cannot turn to psychedelics as a means for exploration on their own? Professor X (Shulgin) gives a wonderful explanation of his first “drug” experience and why he decided to pursue the use of various others:

''I realized that all of this experience had been brought about by a fraction of a gram of a white solid, but that in no way whatsoever could it be argued that these memories had been contained within the white solid. . . . I understood that our entire universe is contained in the mind and the spirit. We may choose not to find access to it, we may even deny its existence, but it is indeed there inside us, and there are chemicals that can catalyze its availability.''

In agreement with Shulgin, I believe that the drug accommodates and expedites but it itself does not actually do anything. Upon attainment of the drug, one does not instantly start an experience, you must ingest it. It is the human mind that is doing all the work; we are just giving a little jump start. The drugs would not be able to affect the mind if we did not have endogenous neurotransmitters for them. And with the various research that has come about towards the idea of adult Neurogenesis, we now know that upon extensive use of a neurotransmitter it is very possible for our brain to come back in full function. The idea of an overused “druggie” brain is only applicable to the person that allows themselves to be labeled as such and act in accordance with the misnomer. We need answers to the capabilities of the mind, and we are on an everlasting search for the spirit, we need all the help we can get; so get out there and start your discovery.