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A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF AYAHUASCA EXPERIENCES REPORTED BY

SELECTED MEMBERS OF THE SANTO DAIME CHURCH

A dissertation presented to
the Faculty of Saybrook University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in
Psychology

by

Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

Oakland, California
April 2019
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© 2019 by Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

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Approval of the Dissertation

A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF AYAHUASCA EXPERIENCES REPORTED BY

SELECTED MEMBERS OF THE SANTO DAIME CHURCH

This dissertation by Jaqueline Senator Orcutt has been approved by the committee
members below, who recommended it be accepted by the faculty of Saybrook
Graduate School and Research Center in partial fulfillment of requirements for
the degree of

Doctor of Psychology in Human Sciences

Dissertation Committee:

___________________________________ _______________________
Stanley Krippner, Ph.D., Chair Date

___________________________________ _______________________
Marc Applebaum, Ph.D. Date

___________________________________ _______________________
Allen Combs, Ph.D. Date
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Abstract

A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF AYAHUASCA EXPERIENCES REPORTED BY

SELECTED MEMBERS OF THE SANTO DAIME CHURCH

Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

Saybrook University

This descriptive phenomenological research study focused on the ayahuasca experiences

examined the changes in consciousness experienced during ayahuasca ceremonies through the

use of ethnopharmacology and rite interrelations. The research design was based on a

phenomenological approach as proposed philosophically by Husserl (2001) and adapted by

Giorgi (2009) for psychologists to investigate and understand individual experiences as actually

given to those within the encounter that is being studied. Data consisted of reports given by

participants who were willing to share their ayahuasca experiences. The phenomenological

inquiry presented the understanding of reported changes in consciousness during the ceremonial

use of ayahuasca, the experiential aspects of ritual space, and the perceived psychological value

assessed by participants. All six participants reported experiencing profound change in the form

of a dramatic permanent shift in conscious self-perceptions, which allowed for an integrated

sense of wholeness, a sense of relating to oneself differently by means of releasing psychological

patterns of unresolved past events. Participants reported experiencing an essential sense of self

beyond their bounded identity that referenced divinity.

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Dedication

I dedicate this work to my beautiful son Rowan:

Thank you for nourishing my dreams and always being so good.

And to my dearest friend Christine:

your constant love and support have meant the world to me. I am truly grateful.
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Acknowledgments

This present work would not have been possible without the truly amazing support I

received. This was a long project that took almost five years to complete. Naturally, I have many

people I wish to thank. I am truly grateful for them all.

I am grateful to Dr. Stanley Krippner, mentor and professor extraordinaire, who

supported my interests in different areas of study and always had an answer for any quandary.

Thank you to Dr. Marc Applebaum, my professor of phenomenology, who gave me the tools and

amazing support in working with this method of inquiry. I would like to thank Dr. Leslie Allen

Combs, my professor of consciousness studies, who helped me in my studies and supported me

throughout my project. I am grateful to all those with whom I studied at Saybrook University

who helped me complete my double specialization in Creative Studies and Consciousness,

Spirituality, and Integrated Health.

I am eternally grateful to all those I met through my fieldwork, especially those who

opened themselves to sharing very extraordinary experiences with me, always allowing me to

feel welcomed. I’d like especially to thank the Santo Daime churches and members who allowed

me to participate in and learn from those experiences as well as supporting my research interests.

I am grateful to the plant medicines for the opportunity to study what is possible. Thank you to

all my friends and family members who helped me stay focused on completing my goal, who

always believed in me, and who said so. Obrigado! Thank you, Rowan, Janellé, and Ryuu, for

your love and support. I wish to acknowledge the divine consciousness that first led me to this

research in a meditation that came to me, a novice without any previous knowledge, followed by
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a lucid dream to explore “other ways of learning” that launched me into a journey to complete

this work. Lastly, thank you to nature.

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Table of Contents

Abstract.......................................................................................................................................... ii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................1

Statement of the Problem .................................................................................................................1

Research Question ...........................................................................................................................2

Learning Objectives .........................................................................................................................2

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.....................................................................................3

The Church of Santo Daime ............................................................................................................5

Experiences of Ayahuasca ...................................................................................................7

Consciousness ..................................................................................................................................9

Concepts of Consciousness ................................................................................................11

Neuroscience Models for Viewing Consciousness ............................................................13

Neuroscience research of consciousness ...............................................................14

Expanded states of consciousness ..........................................................................18

Mirror neurons .......................................................................................................21

Consciousness, Spirituality, and Mediumship within Syncretic Religions .......................24

Neuropsychological research into mediumistic states of consciousness ...............26

Spiritualism and mediumship ................................................................................30

Syncretic religions .................................................................................................32

The Santo Daime church ........................................................................................33

Daime .....................................................................................................................35

Elements of the sacred ...........................................................................................37

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Historic perspective on spirit possession ...............................................................40

Present-day perspective .........................................................................................43

Motifs within spirit possession ..............................................................................45

Mediumistic training ..............................................................................................47

Individual possession .............................................................................................48

Expressive possession ............................................................................................49

Interactive possession ............................................................................................50

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY..............................................................................................52

Method ...........................................................................................................................................53

Step One .............................................................................................................................53

Step Two ............................................................................................................................56

Step Three ..........................................................................................................................56

Step Four ............................................................................................................................58

Participants .....................................................................................................................................58

Research Setting.............................................................................................................................59

Instruments .........................................................................................................................59

Procedures ..........................................................................................................................59

Recruitment ........................................................................................................................60

Data Collection .................................................................................................................60

Data Analysis .....................................................................................................................60

Ethical Consideration .........................................................................................................61

Informed Consent...............................................................................................................61

Potential Risks and Safeguards ..........................................................................................62

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Potential Benefits ...............................................................................................................62

Risk to Benefit Ratio ..........................................................................................................62

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ........................................................................64

Structure .........................................................................................................................................64

Constituents....................................................................................................................................64

Discussion ......................................................................................................................................65

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................79

REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................86

APPENDICES

Appendix A: Informed Consent Form ...............................................................................94

Appendix B: Interview Script ............................................................................................97

Appendix C: Confidentiality Agreement ...........................................................................98

Appendix D: Data Transformation [P1} ............................................................................99

Appendix E: Data Transformation [P2] ...........................................................................105

Appendix F: Data Transformation [P3] ...........................................................................124

Appendix G: Data Transformation [P4] ..........................................................................139

Appendix H: Data Transformation [P5] ..........................................................................160

Appendix I: Data Transformation [P6] ............................................................................176

Appendix J: Art Expressions by participants ...................................................................206

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Ayahuasca is a psychoactive brew consumed by indigenous people throughout the entire

upper Amazon region. It is also known as hoasca, iowaska, daime, and yage. The term

ayahuasca is a Quechua phrase meaning “vine of the spirits.” For most people who imbibe it,

ayahuasca induces intense visual imagery and other perceptual modalities. Also reported are

non-perceptual cognitive effects such as personal insights, ideations, affective reactions, and

spiritual and mystical insights. Benny Shanon (2010), a cognitive psychologist, observed:

Ayahuasca introduces participants to “other realities.” Participants may feel that they are
gaining access to profound sources of knowledge and that the mysteries and ultimate
truths of the universe are being revealed to them. All this is often coupled with what
drinkers describe as an encounter with the Divine. (p. 13)

Statement of the Problem

A great deal of recent research has produced data relating to the possible therapeutic and

healing benefits associated with the consumption of ayahuasca (e.g., Labate & Cavnar, 2013).

Shanon (2010) asserted that ayahuasca facilitates cognitive and perceptual changes that evoke

therapeutic effects on the part of the participant. Neuroscience has begun to develop an

understanding of the underlying brain mechanisms of the experience. The fields of psychology

and anthropology have studied ayahuasca’s cultural ethnobotanical properties as well as

personality variables and after-effects, especially those demonstrating transformation within a

traditional ethnographic framework. However, unanswered questions remain about how the

changes in perception and cognition that accompany the use of ayahuasca may affect individuals.

This research explored therapeutic integration, the potential long-term effects, and the intrinsic

value of the experience. These are several aspects of what could be called “the ayahuasca

phenomenon.” Participants have reported changes in their perceptions as well as shifts in

cognitive understandings (Shanon, 2010).

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Ayahuasca has been considered a psychointegrator due to its involvement with the

serotonin and dopamine neurotransmitter system within the brain, acting essentially as “an

elevation of the ancient brain process” (Winkelman, 2010). This alleged integration occurs at

various levels of brain functioning, including the cerebral left hemisphere’s objectifying and the

right hemisphere’s interpretation and pattern construction as well as perception and cognition.

This integration includes the paleomammalian brain’s evaluative functions and social empathic

responses containing both conscious and unconscious dynamics. Human behavior requires the

coordination of information with motivations and personal significance that link together

emotion and cognition. This means that the brain is engaging both cognitive and emotional

processes leading towards an integrative holistic growth experience (Grof, 1975, 1980, 1992).

Research Question

This descriptive phenomenological study investigated the experiences of six selected

ayahuasca drinkers from the United States and Brazil within a Santo Daime community in

California. It asked, “What is the phenomenological experience reported by participants in

ayahuasca ceremonies?” By studying these phenomenological reports, researchers may be able to

determine the underlying structures of these experiences.

Learning Objectives

My goal in this study was to understand the psychological meaning that participants give

to their ayahuasca experiences. Although this is a limited view of the lived experience, I

proposed that the lack of precedent for studying the ayahuasca phenomenon phenomenologically

would trigger additional investigations, providing information that would inform future research.
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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This review of the research literature sought to understand important aspects of the

ayahuasca phenomenon. I felt that this process would provide a specific focus on the relevant

research needed to support my inquiry. However, this is by no means an exhaustive review of

ayahuasca research, nor does it claim to be a comprehensive summary of all the relative research

available on ayahuasca experiences.

Ayahuasca has often been a key constituent of indigenous cultures. It appears that the

indigenous peoples of this region of the Amazon Rainforest have used the brew for millennia

(Naranjo, 1986). Among many tribes, ayahuasca was used in the making of all major decisions,

such as where to hunt or to how to heal. Even today, ayahuasca is the basic instrument utilized

by many shamans in the entire region (Shanon, 2010). Ayahuasca is treated with honor and

respect as a way to receive great knowledge. The indigenous conceptualization of ayahuasca is

that it is a teaching plant (Luna, 1984). For many, ayahuasca is a being with special, unique

qualities. In some tribes, ayahuasca is even seen as a deity (Shanon, 2010).

The ayahuasca tea is made from two plants. There may be variations in the plants being

used, but generally one plant is Banisteriopsis caapi, a liana of the Malpighiaceae family. The

other plant is Psychotria viridis, a bush of the Rubiacaea family. The term ayahuasca is used to

refer not only to the potion but also to the first of the constituent plants.

The active ingredients of ayahuasca are found separately in the two plants. “In ayahuasca

use, it is often said that the vine gives ‘power’ whereas the leaves give light; usually, the former

is characterized as male and the latter as female” (Shanon, 2010, p. 15). When preparing the

brew, the Banisteriopsis is cut into twigs and pounded; the pounded fibers are boiled in water
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together with the leaves of Psychotria. This brew is then ingested during a ceremony performed

under specific conditions.

Apart from indigenous concepts, ayahuasca is considered by many to be a powerful

entheogenic substance, one that has the potential to facilitate the expression of “manifesting the

Divine within” (Tupper, 2003). The etymological roots of the term entheogen convey a sense of

spirituality, hence reinforcing ayahuasca’s designation as a psychoactive substance used to

facilitate spiritual experiences (Smith, 2000; Tupper, 2003). However, according to Winkelman,

the term psychointegrator better reflects “the substances’ systemic neurophenomenological

affects, as it integrates brain processes and experiences” (Smith, 2000, p. 210). Ayahuasca

impels the whole organism into an integrative state through its impact on the brain’s

serotoninergic system (Mercante, 2006).

Chemically, the main active ingredients in the ayahuasca potion are the alkaloids N,N-

Dimethyltryptamine or DMT, and the harmala alkaloids, namely, harmine, harmaline, and

tetrahydroharmine; all beta-carbolines that are MAO (mono-amine oxidase) inhibitors. Usually,

DMT, the substance inducing the hallucinations, is found in the Psychotria leaves, and the MAO

inhibitors are found in the Banisteriopsis vine. DMT is a potent hallucinogen affecting the

activation of the neurotransmitter serotonin. “When taken orally, however, DMT is deactivated

by MAO. This deactivation is, in turn, deactivated by the MAO inhibitors which protect the

DMT from deamination by MAO and thus render it orally active” (Shanon, 2010, p. 15). This

means that the two plants work together to make available the DMT within the brew when

ingested, when otherwise it would remain inactive.

Ayahuasca appears to influence major neurotransmitters as a potent agonist at 5-HT2A

and 5HT-2C receptors in the layer IV pyramidal cells of the cerebral cortex (Schenberg, 2012).
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The exact way that this occurs is not completely understood. However, the effect causes

extraordinary cognitive and perceptual experiences. It is believed that the effect is mediated

through increasing glutamate release and associated excitation in that area (Sessa, 2012). Much

more research is required to investigate these chemical changes within the brain and how the

changes affect the experienced perceptions. This method of using ethnopsychopharmacological

substances, with ethnic and cultural variations, is the traditional means of treating psychological

issues for many native practitioners around the world (Winkelman, 2010).

The Church of Santo Daime

The Church of Santo Daime (Holy Daime, the latter word being a colloquial form of the

Portuguese phrase “give me”) is a blended religion that combines indigenous traditions and

Roman Catholicism, along with some Afro-Brazilian elements. In the church’s rites, Daime (the

name given to ayahuasca in this context) is consumed as a sacrament. The term refers not only to

the brew, but also to the animated force believed to reside within the brew. Importantly, the

Daime is regarded as a divine being or as the Divine itself, and is believed to be the source of

life, vitality, and health, as well as the source of all knowledge and supreme wisdom. Daime is

essential in the rites of the church that carries its name, not only as a sacrament but also as the

source of the doctrine that is believed to emanate from it (Shanon, 2010).

The founder of the Santo Daime church, Mestre Irineu (Master Irineu), “received” the

“doctrine” of Santo Daime in a vision, after seven days of isolation in the rainforest, eating only

unsalted yucca and drinking water and ayahuasca. One spirit, first identified as the Rainha da

Floresta (literally, Queen of the Forest), and later as the Virgem da Conceição (Virgin of the

Immaculate Conception), told him during a vision how he would develop the rites of Santo

Daime. The ceremonies in Santo Daime involve the singing of a sequence of songs called hinos
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(hymns), which are said to be channeled by some of the outstanding church members. Mestre

Irineu channeled the first Hinário, a collection of hymns, and several others have since been

“received” through a process of channeling by other mediums (Shanon, 2010).

The ceremonial circumstances in Santo Daime churches vary, but the primary

observances are the Concentração (concentration, or seated sessions) and the Bailados

(synchronized and repetitive dances). In general, Concentração take place on the 15th and 30th

day of each month. A sequence of hinos (hymns) is chosen to be sung by the Padrinho

(godfather) or Madrinha (godmother) ‒ the leaders of Santo Daime churches ‒ but a period of

silent meditation is also included. The session lasts from 4 to 6 hours. The Bailados (dances) take

place on festive days, e.g., the commemoration of such Catholic saints as St. Joseph, St. John, or

The Virgin of the Immaculate Conception, as well as on holidays such as Christmas and New

Year’s Eve, among others. This is a dancing rite that lasts 12 hours or through the night.

The common space where the rites take place is indoors in an Igreja (church), which can

be a rectangular or hexagonal building. At the very center of the church space is the mesa (table)

where an altar is has been placed with a cruzeiro (a two-armed cross also called a caravaca)

positioned at the center. The table, like the church, can be shaped as a rectangular or a six-

pointed star. Those who are considered the spiritually strongest within the community sit at this

center table. The Madrinha or Padrinho sits at the head of the table as the spiritual leader of the

community. The right side and behind the center table are spaces reserved for women, while at

the left side and in front are spaces reserved for men (Mercante, 2006).

The ingestion of Daime (ayahuasca) and participation in the ceremony appeared to

promote reliably the occurrence of spontaneous mental imagery and changes in other

perceptions, such as hearing and bodily feelings. Ayahuasca (Daime) appears to affect visual
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perceptions for some drinkers, but not for all. This imagery was considered by the participants in

one study as a process of inner perception, the moment when different entities (physical body,

thoughts, feelings, culture, emotions, mind, soul, spiritual space, etc.) become connected within

their awareness (Mercante, 2006).

Experiences of Ayahuasca

Ayahuasca research has documented the basic framework of the experience through

individual reports and from varied fields of knowledge such as anthropological, ethnobotanical,

physiological, and psychological. This knowledge base forms the foundation for this research.

The first sensation that drinking ayahuasca brew evokes is gustatory. It is notorious that

ayahuasca tastes awful, as it is an earthy or even bitter-tasting brew. In the doctrine of the Santo

Daime Church a basic distinction is made between the two aspects of the ayahuasca inebriation;

the two are also associated with the two plants of which the brew is made. “The first aspect,

associated with the vine, is that of ‘force’ (or ‘power’) or drunkenness; the second, associated

with the leaves, is that of ‘light’ and eventually visions” (Shanon, 2010, p.56). The two distinct

aspects are characterized in the indigenous traditions as the male and female elements of

ayahuasca (Lagrou, 1998).

The visual effects appear to be the most prominent aspects of ayahuasca inebriation. The

physiological effects of the brew are often described as an internal invasion. “The sensation is of

something heavy and viscous crawling through one’s inner parts, pressing and eventually taking

possession of one’s entire body. Often, drinkers sense that things are burning inside their system”

(Shanon, 2010, p. 56). Many times, the next sensory experience is vomiting, although this is not

reported as universal. South Americans often refer to the vomiting induced by ayahuasca as an

act of purga (purge). The experience of vomiting is often reported as one of major moments of
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transformation within the ayahuasca session (Shanon, 2010). During the ayahuasca inebriation

one’s body feels different from its ordinary state, and visions can be strong, sometimes evoking

experiences that may be frightening.

The initial difficult phase is typically followed by a period where the brew is more

manageable. During this period the ayahuasca experience becomes enjoyable. Some drinkers

report that this experience presents them with moments of exhilaration and great wonderment

(Shanon, 2010). This period usually lasts for about an hour and a half to two hours. During the

last phase of ayahuasca inebriation, reports of sensory perceptions include bliss, peace of mind,

well-being, spiritual upliftment, and great happiness. Many people report experiencing an intense

love for humanity and a deep love of nature and all existence (Shanon, 2010). Reichel-

Dolmatoff (1991) documented that indigenous drinkers often felt they were “recreated” after

ayahuasca inebriation. During the last phase, drinkers often turn their focus outwardly towards

others from the previous introspective contemplation. When this happens, it is not unusual for

people to feel that they are endowed with an exceptionally keen perception of other persons’

minds and souls (Masters & Houston, 1966). Here is an anthropologist’s account of an

indigenous drinker’s experience:

As noted by many ethnographers, the effects of taking ayahuasca follow a fairly

stereotypical course. Some time after ingesting the drug, drinkers experience severe
auditory and visual disorientation: they hear loud rushing sounds and see patterns of
colored light. This is accompanied by a feeling of intense nausea often leading to
vomiting and violent diarrhea. This phase is often extremely frightening, and many
people have reported their fear of going mad during it. It is, however, followed by more
complex hallucinations, which become clearer and clearer: drinkers see distant and exotic
landscapes and people. These hallucinations continue for one or two hours, gradually
fading to leave those who have taken the drug with a sense of elation and beauty. (Gow,
1988, p. 26)

While there is a great deal of research on the different aspects of the ayahuasca

experience, a lot is still not understood. This may be the case because ayahuasca inebriation is
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said to be different every time for each individual. Shanon (2002) summarizes this aspect of the

ayahuasca phenomenon:

My own firm belief is that there is no alternative to studying phenomenology from

within. The experiences that ayahuasca induces are extraordinary in the full sense of that
term and many are ineffable. There is no way to really appreciate what they are without
experiencing them firsthand. … Moreover, for a serious study of the ayahuasca
experience a cursory, explorative exposure to the brew is not sufficient. The spectrum of
phenomena pertaining to the ayahuasca experience is extremely broad and there is simply
no way these can be captured in a small number of probes. … What happens to one under
the ayahuasca intoxication is determined not only by the brew itself but also by one’s
attitude and stance, and these, in turn, change over the course of time. In sum, then, any
serious study of ayahuasca requires not only firsthand experience, but also substantive,
long-term familiarity ‒ indeed, training. (p. 32)

Consciousness

The definition of consciousness is one of the issues helping to underscore the challenge in

studying it, because there is considerable debate over what consciousness is and how it operates.

For many observers, consciousness contains the ultimate secret of human existence and

contemporary science. Scientists even disagree about the possibility of correlating any

physiological signals with subjective experience (Jovanov, 2011). Chalmers (2002) calls this the

“hard problem”:

CONSCIOUSNESS, the subjective experience of an inner self, poses one of the greatest
challenges to neuroscience. Even a detailed knowledge of the brain’s workings and the
neural correlates of consciousness may fail to explain how or why human beings have
self aware minds (Chalmers, 2002, p.90).

Consciousness is a vast subject, one that neuroscience is working to investigate with

every technology available. However, consciousness is difficult to conceptualize in terms of

boundary or level of awareness, and how is it facilitated. Not much is known compared with

what is still to be understood, as we continue to explore the manifestations of consciousness.

“The nature of reality, or what we are conscious of and perhaps what makes us conscious ‒

marks the frontier of human exploration, a frontier that we may never fully conquer” (Combs,
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2009, p. xiii). Understanding consciousness would benefit humanity in unimaginable ways,

potentially impacting how people view themselves while resolving the ongoing questions. “It

would answer those gnawing existential questions about who we are, how the world works, and

what is real. It would therefore tell us how to live and make sense of our lives” (Combs, 2009, p.

xiii). These questions have been pondered by the ancients and continue to be explored in the

modern age, as investigators try to explain that what seems unfathomable is more than a

challenge; even if science can answer these questions, however, ultimately the personal

intersubjective experience of heightened awareness may turn out to be valuable only when

encountered as the result of individual attainment.

The most challenging question in consciousness studies is this: “How can a physical

system give rise to conscious experience?” (Chalmers 1996, p. 25). Chalmers proposed that the

relation between the physical processes and the conscious or phenomenological experiences

depended on the dual link between the physical and the psychological, and the psychological and

the phenomenological. Whereas it is accepted that there is a link between physical processes and

psychological properties (Jovanov, 2011), it remains unknown “why and how these

psychological properties are accompanied by phenomenal properties.” Furthermore,

“understanding the link between the psychological and the phenomenal is crucial to understand

conscious experience” (Chalmers 1996, p. 25). It could be argued that phenomenological

research has demonstrated the connection between the psychological and the phenomenological;

perhaps it is a question of demonstrating that connection in a way that is globally accessible

instead of individualized as unique experiences that are difficult to replicate. Why and how that

phenomenology activates and demonstrates an interaction with psychology has yet to be

determined.
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Concepts of Consciousness

Different concepts of consciousness within current research can be distinguished in the

following categories: creature consciousness; consciousness of an organism; background

consciousness; transitive consciousness; object-directed consciousness; access consciousness;

phenomenal consciousness; introspective or meta-consciousness; and pre-reflective or primitive

self-consciousness. Thompson, Lutz, and Cosmelli (2005) defined these concepts of

consciousness in the following ways:

(1) Creature consciousness is consciousness of an organism as a whole insofar as it is awake

and sentient (Rosenthal 1997).

(2) Background consciousness refers to the overall states of consciousness, such as being

awake, being asleep, and dreaming (Hobson 1999).

(3) State consciousness refers to specific conscious mental states individuated by content

(Rosenthal, 1997; Chalmers, 2000).

(4) Transitive consciousness is object-directed consciousness (consciousness of something),

whereas intransitive consciousness is non-object-directed consciousness (Rosenthal,

1997).

(5) Access consciousness is described as those mental states whose contents are accessible to

thought and verbal report (Block 2001).

(6) Phenomenal consciousness refers to mental states that have a subjective-experiential

character (Block, 2001; Nagel, 1979).

(7) Introspective consciousness is meta-awareness.

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(8) Pre-reflective self-consciousness is primitive self-consciousness, or self-referential

awareness of subjective experience that does not require active reflection or introspection

(Kriegel 2003; Gupta 1998; Wider 1997; Williams 1998; Zahavi 1999).

These concepts are still developing, and it is unclear how they interact, inform, or supersede one

another.

The concepts most intensively debated are phenomenal consciousness and access

consciousness, specifically in terms of how they affect one another. The distinction between

them is best summarized through the example given by Block (1997, pp. 386-387) of being

engaged in a conversation at a party, while a power drill rattles outside the window. Engrossed in

conversation, one does not initially notice the noise, but perhaps eventually one does notice it.

Block’s proposition is that, as one is aware of the noise all along, one is phenomenally conscious

of it, but not access conscious of it. When one notices the noise, one becomes access conscious

of it (and perhaps also realizes that one has been hearing it all along), so that now one has both

phenomenal consciousness and access consciousness of the noise. There is a counter-argument to

this description, claiming that one does not actually hear the drill until one notice it. One’s

auditory system may respond selectively to the noise, but it makes no use of the information

provided until one notices the drill. Hence, it is generally assumed that there is no phenomenal

consciousness without access consciousness (O’Regan & Noë, 2001, p. 964). However, it seems

far-reaching to claim that there is no phenomenal consciousness in the absence of access

consciousness; in sum, not being aware of something does not mean that something ceases to

exist until it is recognized. Therefore, my position is that phenomenal consciousness can occur

with or without access consciousness. The cognitive theorists, however, are still working to

define awareness, process, state changes, and other concepts related to consciousness.
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Neuroscience Models for Viewing Consciousness

There are two key approaches used in neuroscience for investigating consciousness. The

first is the hierarchical connectionist perspective. Connectionists seek to describe the conscious

processing of each stimulus and subjective experience as specific responses in the brain in terms

of an activation of individual neurons through hierarchical processing and associations with other

brain regions (Chalmers,1994/2002). For example, recognizing somebody’s face includes

hierarchical processing of signals coming from the eyes, the emergence of face features through

hierarchical processing, and the collection of meaning through associative responses in other

parts of the cortical network (Jovanov, 2011). The second approach to consciousness assumes a

field that combines a synergistic effect of cerebral electromagnetic fields with the neural

connections. It is imagined that the field serves as a global integrating medium of neural activity

(Cosic, Cvetkovic, Fang, Jovanov, & Lazoura, 2006; Penrose, 1994; Rakovic 1991). This

perspective considers that the states of consciousness referred to as “higher consciousness” allow

access to the individual and the collective unconscious as a mechanism of insights and creativity

(Jovanov, 2011). These states can be experienced as expanded, narrowed, or constructed

alterations of consciousness. It is assumed that so-called “collective consciousness” acts as a

biological mechanism described by Carl Gustav Jung (1991) as:

a second psychic system of a collective, universal, and impersonal nature which is

identical in all individuals. This collective unconscious does not develop individually but
is inherited. It consists of pre-existent forms, the archetypes, which can only become
conscious secondarily and which give definite form to certain psychic contents. (p. 43)

Some investigators who hold the connectionist perspective suggest that the collective

unconscious and the archetypes form a genetically inherited organization of the nervous system

located in the infinite knowledge database of genetic information (Jovanov, 2011). However, this

approach does not make clear the complex psychological phenomena such as synchronicity
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(Jung, 1991). The field-based approach may provide possible explanations for phenomena like

synchronicity through interaction with the overall “field of consciousness” (Penrose, 1994;

Rakovic, 1991, 1995). The “field of consciousness” is the total awareness of an individual at a

given time. In the hierarchy of interrelated rhythms, it is believed that every thought or action

creates “ripples” throughout the hierarchy of our body and brain rhythms (Jovanov, 2011).

There is speculation whether this perspective could explain the mechanisms of

consciousness, especially “the hard problem.” It is believed that monitoring physiological

correlates as ripples in the stream of consciousness might facilitate personalized insights into the

correlates of diverse states of consciousness. This could be useful for indications of emotional

stress and anxiety that show heart rate variability and may allow researchers to gain insight into

people’s “streams of thought.” By looking at feedback about an individual’s physiological

correlates of conscious processes, “we might re-create the physiological basis of a particular state

of consciousness at will and explore it in the quest for insights that would allow the expansion of

their consciousness” (Jovanov, 2011, p. 205). This process seems very similar to the yogic

practice of deep recapitulation exercises during meditative states; reviewing, witnessing, and

letting go.

Neuroscience research of consciousness. There are several different neuroimaging

techniques available; such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), near infrared

spectroscopy (NIRS), the measurement of the brain’s glucose metabolism via positron emission

tomography (PET), and the analysis of different parameters in the electroencephalogram (EEG)

that allow investigation of brain activity over a broad range of different cognitive demands.

These techniques provide a specific ability to measure brain activity; moreover, researchers are

finding new ways to manipulate the data collected to gain further insights.
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Neuroscience research using fMRI offers the primary advantage of high spatial accuracy,

but it does not allow for the study of cognition with high temporal resolution such as EEG

techniques (Fink & Benedek, 2013, p. 208). EEG techniques have become useful in determining

the necessary calculation for examining the inner processes of cognitive activity as a means to

understand consciousness. These techniques reveal lower spatial resolution showing fine-grained

temporal analysis of brain activation that is observed in response to a specific cognitive event

(Fink & Benedek, 2013). Indeed, this method of monitoring the brain’s activity has been used in

many different areas of cognitive research, especially in terms of understanding consciousness.

Analyzing functional operation or functional coupling between different cortical areas with EEG

techniques has become an important tool in cognitive research (Bhattacharya & Petsche, 2005;

Grabner, Fink, & Neubauer, 2007; Jaušovec, 2000; Jaušovec & Jaušovec, 2000; Mölle, Marshall,

Wolf, Fehm, & Born, 1999; Petsche, 1996; Razumnikova, 2000; Sandkühler & Bhattacharya,

2008). This type of research is helping to develop connectionist models of consciousness based

on complex calculations taken from EEG data that measure electrical rhythms of the brain by the

voltage fluctuations in frequency (hertz, or Hz) through multiple electrodes placed on the scalp.

The EEG signal represents a range of oscillation frequencies divided into frequency

bands: alpha band, 8-13 Hz; beta band, 13-30 Hz; theta band, 4-8 Hz; delta band, .05-4 Hz; and

gamma band, 35+ Hz. Spectral analyses of the EEG can be used to compute the band-specific

frequency power for given periods of time. This then allows for task- or even- related power

changes to be quantified by contrasting the power in a particular frequency band during a

cognitive task with a preceding reference interval (Fink & Benedek, 2013). Research using the

EEG shows task- or event-related power changes in the alpha band when individuals are engaged
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in different types of idea generation tasks, such as meditation, and alternative states of

consciousness, such as mediumship.

According to Boden (2006), the mystery of consciousness lies in its computational

variety. “A neuroscientific explanation of a psychological phenomenon does not just identify

which parts of the brain are active when the phenomenon occurs; it shows what the brain cells

are doing, not just in terms of chemical changes but the computations, or information processing,

that the cells are performing” (p. 5). Boden suggests that these computations can reveal more

information about consciousness and the processes within the brain. This approach to

consciousness research is looking for the “conditions of consciousness,” a pattern like the genetic

code that may be found through the computational framework of neuroscience research

(Kennedy, 2011). These computational models are working to identify how consciousness

functions within cognitive processes.

The computational models can be used to determine microstates within the cognitive

brain functions. Microstates appear to register only when using the EEG technology to monitor

them, not fMRI. Studies have revealed that the basic units of cognitive processes fall in the

millisecond (ms) range (approximately 100 ms). Microstate analysis of EEG data allows a

resolution in this time range showing that the brain’s electrical states are quasi-stable for

fractions of seconds (Kennedy, 2011). It may be valuable to study the quasi-stable states more

closely to see what can be determined; perhaps there are certain micro patterns involved that help

facilitate resetting the brain state.

The states then rapidly reorganize into another state (Vaitl, Birbaumer, Gruzelier,

Jamieson, Kotchoubey, et al., 2005). This occurs so that brain activity can be placed into

sequences of quasi-homogeneous temporal segments, or microstates. Lehmann, Grass, and Meier

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(1998) showed that different classes of thoughts under daydreaming conditions correspond to

different classes of microstates, with durations of about 120 ms (milliseconds) (Kennedy, 2011).

Lehmann, Grass, and Meier (1998) suggested that the continuous stream of consciousness is

actually discontinuous, consisting of sequences of concatenated, psycho-physiological building

blocks, or “atoms of thought” that follow each other in fractions of a second and whose

functional significance is identifiable in terms of classes of subjective experiences. Those

microstates that are found under daydreaming conditions might also be similar to those of

visualizations in meditation or altered states.

Neuroscience is working to understand the physiological correlates of altered states of

consciousness, although experiments involving them are relatively rare. Most published papers

assess the overall physiological status of certain conscious states ‒ for example, during

meditation. Monitoring techniques include EEG, fMRI, and heart rate. The main dilemma with

human experiments is making exact correlations and mappings between physiological correlates

and psychological states. Participants can seldom associate a precise state with a particular

moment when a specific correlate has been recorded. This is especially distracting in data

collection, as every action performed to mark an event creates a disturbance in the flow of

consciousness and another in the current state by initiating a physical action (Jovanov, 2011).

Some researchers have provided another technique in order to try to remedy this issue. The

approach used by Lehmann, Grass, and Meier (1995) was to interrupt the session immediately

after a certain physiological correlate was recorded and annotate the event with the participant’s

description of the content of consciousness and emotional state. However, this approach breaks

up the initial event and the flow of consciousness (Jovanov, 2011). Perhaps another solution

would be to give the participants a scripted experience ‒ a guided meditation of sound and visual
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content, while taking the EEG and heart rate to see if coherence exists that would include some

neural correlate during the course of the script. An example would be a recording of

consciousness, while watching predetermined content.

Another approach is to stabilize physiological rhythms to create periods of uninterrupted

conscious experience via an indirect stabilization of the limbic system (Jovanov, 2011).

“Increased coupling of bodily rhythms and conscious decoupling of the limbic system from the

current content of consciousness may facilitate conscious exploration of the unconscious mind”

(Jovanov, 2011, p. 217). Research has indicated that the stabilization of basic physiological

rhythms may serve as a foundation for altered states that could facilitate insights (Jovanov, 1995,

2005; Rakovic, Tomasevic, Jovanov, Radivojevic, Sukovic, et al., 1999). It is believed that this

type of stabilization could allow insights into unusual conscious experiences.

Expanded states of consciousness. A great deal of research has focused on the potential

insight that may come from studying the brain images of meditators. The neuroscience research

complied from these practitioners has proven useful. Meditation is practiced by stilling one’s

attention and self-regulating it. The first surviving piece of instruction can be found in Patanjali’s

sutras (Prabhavananda & Isherwood, 1953/1981). The yogah cittavrtti nirodhah instructs that, to

attain union with the divine mind (chitta), the movements in consciousness known as thought-

waves (vritti) must be controlled (Prabhavananda & Isherwood, 1953/1981). Many people

practice yoga or some form of meditation to “clear the mind” of activity and, over time, to learn

to focus the mind to gain incredible awareness. Practice over long durations has been shown to

have an effect not only on the psychology of the practitioner, but also on physical aspects of the

body, including apparent changes in brain structure. It is known that the brain can rewire itself in

the presence of the appropriate sensory input, even after maturation of the nervous system
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(Jovanov, 2011). Recent research results have revealed long term changes in brain electrical

activity in meditators (Tei, Faber, Lehmann, Tsujiuchi, Kumano, et al., 2009), especially during

integrative body-mind training (Tang, Ma, Fan, Feng, Wang, et al., 2009). It seems possible that

the activity in which an individual engages will in some way affect the function and perhaps the

structure of the brain.

Meditation and spiritual practices encourage a unique mindset, an alternative

consciousness that might be influencing brain structure through the creation of diverse neural

pathways and, perhaps, by helping to execute potentiality in brain function. Rosenzweig (2007)

stated that a meditative practitioner activity could lead to new neural connections; that is,

“neurons that fire together, wire together” (p. 13). Perhaps spiritual experiences help to prime the

brain for receptivity to future phenomena; creating a latent ability. Research has found that brain

function may be affected by conscious activities. One example can be seen in a recent research

study (Luders, Kurth, Mayer, Toga, Narr, & Gaser, 2012) that showed cortical regions reporting

to vary in meditation practices. Since cortical folding occurs early in the brain’s development, its

activity may be connected to behavioral traits.

Meditation is traditionally taught to elevate consciousness, or awareness of the self,

whereby practitioners become more dharmic (righteous) and ananda (blissful). Interestingly, its

practice may be connected to the brain structures associated with behavioral traits and emotions.

Although the exact functional implications of larger cortical gyrification (the pattern and degree

of cortical folding) remain to be established, these findings suggest that the insula is a key

structure involved in aspects of meditation (Luders et al., 2012). The insula, which is thought to

be one of the many brain areas involved in dreaming consciousness, participates in diverse

functions usually linked to emotion (Domhoff, 2003). This study hinted at the possibility that
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dreaming consciousness may affect the way the brain functions, as does meditating

consciousness.

Traditional seated meditation is another practice wherein the body is inert while the mind

remains active. The possible implications are interesting, as the neurological dream model of

Hobson, Stickgold, and Pace-Schott (2000) (see also, Hobson & Pace-Schott, 2002) posited a

brain concentric system where dream consciousness originates in brainstem activation. Both

psychodynamic and neurocognitive models might find support in this research, in terms of the

theory that dreams originate from unconscious activity (Freud, 1900/1998) or abstract knowledge

and figurative thought (Foulkes, 1985) that is translated into brain activity. It may be the case

that both pathways are used in informing brain functioning, which, in turn, responds by

triggering cascading changes in consciousness.

Other research studies have revealed that a long-term practice of meditation (focused

awareness) can affect brain structure (Kennedy, 2011). Perhaps practicing any discipline

associated with purposeful awareness repeatedly would affect the brain structure, as brain

development may be driven by conscious intention. I have often wondered if each brain is unique

to the activities in which it participates, much like an athlete’s body differs from that of a person

with a sedentary physique. Would those individuals who experience altered states have

distinctive patterns within their brain structures? And could those structural differences shed

light on the function and capacity of psychic ability or lucid dreaming? Nunez and Shrinivasan

(2006) have suggested that “maybe consciousness is a resonance phenomenon and only properly

tuned brains can orchestrate the beautiful music of sentience” (p. 525). Also, according to

Withaker-Azmitia, Shemer, Caruso, Molino, and Azmitia (1990):

The final consequence of receptor-mediated development is that psychotropic drugs may

actually be neurontropic ‒ which is to say that these drugs may not only alter
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neurochemistry but may also alter brain structure. This idea is more understandable when
one considers that the mature brain is not static, but in fact shows quite dynamic
characteristics, such as synaptic turnover. That is, new synapses are constantly being
made while old ones are eliminated. If the same factors which regulate development are
responsible for this as well, and it seems probable that they are, then altering receptor
function would also alter synaptic profiles in the nature brain. This would also explain the
long onset for therapeutic response seen with psychoactive drugs. In summary we have
described a new and exciting role for serotonin ‒ the regulation of brain development. (p.
329)

As the human brain is studied more extensively and with the help of the increasing number of

brain imagery instruments, there may be enough data to start comparative studies to test this

idea. It would be interesting to see if the human brain is ‒ like our fingerprints ‒ unique to the

individual. But, unlike our fingerprints, which are predetermined at birth, our brains can change,

depending on the nature of our focused activities.

Mirror neurons. Mirror neurons may hold the key to helping neuroscience find more

answers about consciousness and how the brain processes information. The human brain is

thought to contain approximately 100 billion neurons, each of which makes contact with

thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of other neurons. These connections (or synapses) are

thought to be the actual pathways of knowledge accumulation. They are understood to be the

primary means by which neurons communicate with each other (Gazzaniga, 2008). The

importance of synaptic events was emphasized by Pribram (1991), who noted that the complex

electrochemical activities in the neocortex are at the root of brain processes. These

electrochemical connections, which are in constant dialogue, act like the superhighway of brain

communication and may well foster coherence. However, it has not been determined whether

macro-level processes of inflection affect the overall activity of the brain, yielding to experiences

of “collective consciousness” (Combs & Krippner, 2008, p. 269).

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Discoveries in neuroscience have revealed the existence of mirror neurons. These are

specialized neurons in the brain that appear to respond to behaviors of others by triggering a

similar arousal pattern in an observer, such that the experiences are mirrored. Mirror neurons

were first discovered in the frontal cortex of monkeys, responding both during the execution of

motor acts and during the perception of others performing similar motor acts (Hickok, 2009).

This mirrored perception is thought to generate learning. Mirror neurons found in the pre-motor

and posterior parietal cortices were found to respond to other people’s intentions and actions

(Hickok, 2009). Mirror neurons found in the anterior insula and anterior cingulate respond to the

emotions of others (Rizzolatti, Fogassi, & Gallese, 1996). It has been suggested that mirror

neurons are the foundation for action and understanding, including the perception of speech and

understanding of language (Rizzolatti & Arbib, 1998). Mirror neurons are thought to be

important to imitation and emulation and may have played a key role in the adaptation of

language. Imitation of a complex act requires the brain to adopt the other person's perspective.

Thus mirror neurons seem to adopt another person’s point of view as though performing a

simulation of the other person’s action in a virtual reality (Ramachandran, 2009).

There is a great deal of speculation within neurocognitive psychology and neuroscience

about the function of mirror neurons. The current hypotheses are related to self-awareness,

empathy, language, imitation, motor mimicry, and theory of mind, which refers to the ability to

infer another person’s mental state from one’s own experiences or their behavior. According to

Rizzolatti and Fabbri-Destro (2008), mirror neurons do not have a unique functional role. Their

properties represent a mechanism that maps the pictorial description of actions carried out in the

higher order visual areas onto their motor counterpart (Rizzolatti & Fabbri-Destro, 2008). This

matching mechanism may underlie a variety of functions, including both dream imagery and
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meditative visions. Mirror neurons may offer a potential explanation for many of the brain’s

diverse functions; more research is needed to strengthen and clarify these foundational insights.

Iacoboni (2008) raised the possibility that mirror neurons may assist in the intersubjective

experience or shared consciousness (p. 197). Mirror neurons, in a way, create a shared

consciousness in that they allow someone else’s experience to be understood; this perception

then helps to shape our cultural connections. The mirror-like networks in the human prefrontal

and inferior parietal cortices have been determined by using functional magnetic resonance

imaging (fMRI) (Grezes & Decety, 2001), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) (Fadiga,

Fogassi, Pavesi, & Rizzolatti, 1995), and magnetoencephalography (MEG) (Hari, Forss,

Avikainen, Kirveskari, Salenius, & Rizzolatti, 1998). These studies discovered that the same

neural networks are engaged when participants perform and when they observe actions, even

though neurons with “mirror neuron” properties in the emotional domain have not yet been

recorded in the monkey brain research. Meanwhile, fMRI studies on humans in the domains of

emotion and empathy suggest that neural networks with mirror-like properties are not restricted

to the motor domain or confined to the prefrontal cortex, but extend to other brain areas such as

somatosensory and insular cortices (Singer & Leiberg, 2009). “This is evidence for the existence

of shared neural networks for facial expressions, sensations, and emotions, which enable one to

feel-by merely perceiving or imagining another person’s sensations or emotions ‒ what the other

is feeling” ( p. 975). This research has validated the concept of a shared neural network for

emotions that may translate into understanding empathic communication and connection.

Although the research is developing foundational understanding, it seems possible that

mirror neurons will be found in other parts of the brain functioning similarly to what has already

been discovered in the frontal cortex ‒ namely, matching and mirroring. Mirror neurons appear
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to accomplish a simple task, but they may be far more integrated and multidirectional in function

and purpose ‒ perhaps involved in contemplation or inner reflection, dreaming, or altered states.

Mirror neurons will continue to keep us connected to some degree as they have for thousands of

years, while the scientists and neurophysiologists determine to what extent it is happening.

Human beings are sensitive creatures, fundamentally and subtly connected by our shared

emotions. As Combs and Krippner (2008) have pointed out, these feelings and interactions could

have been highly adaptive in the course of human evolution and may continue to shape the future

of humanity even in an era that ignores their presence. As we become conscious of these subtle

connections that link us, perhaps understanding and better communication will prevail.

Ramachandran (2009) has speculated that mirror neurons may provide the neurological basis of

human self-awareness; as we are quite literally connected by our neurons, a whole chain of

neurons around the globe talking to each other, there is no real distinction between your

consciousness and somebody else's consciousness. This idea of a collective consciousness, or at

least the potential of a shared consciousness, seems reasonable, and perhaps one day will be

validated through further mirror-neuron systems research.

Consciousness, Spirituality, and Mediumship within Syncretic Religions

Consciousness when viewed from the perspective of spirituality is compounded by the

notion of a soul, viewed as a psychological aspect within the human mind-body. It is important

to note a distinction within these spiritual experiences:

There is an overlap between “spiritual” experiences and those referred to as

“transpersonal,” “mystical,” or “religious,” but these are not regarded as synonyms. In
“transpersonal” experiences, one’s sense of identity appears to extend beyond its ordinary
limits; in “mystical” experiences, this extension appears to unite with something
considered “divine,” “sacred,” or “holy”; in other words, all “mystical” experiences are
“transpersonal,” but not all “transpersonal” experiences are “mystical.” In “religious”
experiences there is a reported contact with something that an organized body of
believers considers to be “divine,” “sacred,” or “holy.” (Krippner & Sulla, p. 340).
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Science has often found itself in opposition to the ethereal field of spiritual research that

has primarily been investigated by religious, philosophical, and, at times, psychological fields of

inquiry. It is without question that certain individuals believe in the efficacy of the human soul as

an essential sense of self beyond the bounded identity. This is often viewed as a consciousness

that transcends the physical aspects of human existence beyond the temporal and spatial, as

demonstrated through beliefs in the afterlife. The soul is a central concept in reincarnation as a

belief in the procession of souls on a continuous journey through the cycle of life, death, and

rebirth into another physical life. The Tibetan religious traditions abound with references to this

non-ordinary field of consciousness, with elaborate and intricate models that form a type of

phenomenological inquiry. Over centuries, this inquiry has created a “science of the soul”

(Rinpoche, 1994). Western beliefs regarding the afterlife tend to be varied depending on the

viewpoint taken within different forms of the Christian, Judaic, and Islamic faiths (Winkelman,

2010).

Stories abound from non-religious individuals whose belief systems have been

transformed after undergoing near-death experiences (NDEs) ‒ those images, perceptions,

events, feelings, or a combination thereof reported after a life-threatening episode. The typical

features of NDEs include a sense of separation from the body and the ability to look down on the

situation with a peaceful and pleasant state of mind that is often followed by an interaction with a

spiritual being. Although there has been research (Grayson, 2000) on NDEs in the fields of

spiritual investigations, biomedical sciences, and anomalous psychology, controversy prevails.

There is no doubt that people have these experiences, although there is no conclusive evidence

that has confirmed that life continues beyond death. However, this does not mean that NDEs

hold any less value to those who have had the experience, nor does the lack of verification prove
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the non-existence of the afterlife. The path of the soul remains an open investigation that seems

to be more valuable to the individual than, perhaps, to science, and yet the search for answers

continues.

Neuropsychological research into mediumistic states of consciousness.

Neuropsychology is the blending of the field of psychology with neuroscientific research

methods. Neuroscience offers a revolutionary means of investigating and approaching

consciousness by offering a more detailed perspective into the systems and functions of the

brain. Mediumistic states of consciousness provide a unique opportunity to investigate a specific

form of conscious awareness, by providing a specific set of subjective outcomes that can be

studied. Mediumship refers to the state of a person who functions as an instrument of alleged

communication between the living and the dead, or between spirits (human and/or non-human)

and humans. Neuropsychology has begun to investigate these unique patterns of consciousness

found within the phenomenon of mediumship with the use of neuroimaging techniques (Oohashi,

Kawai, Honda, Nakamura, Morimoto, et al., 2002).

EEG research studies have been particularly important within the phenomenological

study of mediumship and shamanism, helping to show related areas of brain activation during

these altered states of consciousness (ASC). Using a wide range of culturally patterned induction

techniques has shown the way to global parasympathetic dominance, in which the frontal cortex

exhibits high-voltage, slow-wave, synchronous EGG patterns within the theta rhythms that

originate in the limbic system and proceed to frontal regions via limbic-frontal innervations

(Winkelman, 1986). It does appear that religious experiences tend to involve higher activity of

the frontal and prefrontal cortices (Azari, Nickel, Wunderlich, Niedeggen, Hefter, & Tellmann,

2001; Beauregard & Paquette, 2006; Jevning, Ananda, Beidebach, & Fernando, 1996). Increased
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activity in the frontal cortex may reflect focused concentration during the altered states of

consciousness (ASC) experiences elicited by meditation practices, while the correlation between

the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the superior parietal lobe may reflect a non-ordinary sense

of space or time, leading to the implication that mediumistic and trance experiences, as well as

intense religious and spiritual experiences, are distinct and mediated by several brain regions and

systems. Penfield (1978), who electrically stimulated the live brain to map cortical functions,

hypothesized that neural networks alone would be incapable of producing consciousness, stating

that the mind had a distinct existence from the brain although closely related to it. Although it

cannot be ascertained that brain function alone is responsible for the achievement of these altered

states of consciousness, it is a beginning point to determining which part of the brain is involved.

To-date, however, there have been limited studies of ASCs relative to the research that is

required.

Researchers have proposed that higher activity of the dopaminergic system (DRD4) and

parallel lower activity of the serotonin 5-HT system may be involved in individuals who have

shown higher scores on measures of spirituality (Comings, Gonzales, Saucier, Johnson, &

MacMurray, 2000; Kjaer, Bertelsen, Piccini, Brooks, & Alving, 2002; Previc, 2006). Some

researchers have postulated that these results might be due to the higher concentration of

dopamine in the D4 receptor in the frontal cortex, although it has been shown that the

dopaminergic system is, in part, under the regulation of 5-HT protections (Hageman, Peres,

Moreira-Almeida, Caixeta, Wickramasekera, & Krippner, 2010). For example, stimulating 5-

HT1A or 5-HT2A receptors may elicit dopaminergic release (Diaz-Mataix, Scorza, Bortolozzi,

Toth, Celada, & Artigas, 2005). These studies have helped to develop the neurochemical

constructs involved within the brain processes during ASCs. Yet, many researchers believe it is
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unreasonable to postulate a role for neurotransmitters in trance and religious experiences, as the

needed research has not been adequate definitively to assess and define such involvement

(Hageman et al., 2010). More research is required not only to further this investigation to

confirm previous findings, but also to determine the neural pathways involved during ASCs.

Many researchers have contended that the medium is engaged in a form of dissociative

trance while in a state of mediumship. A medium or possessed person generally undergoes

dramatic shifts that may include manifesting changes in behavior, voice, expression, movements,

or physiognomy, or the appearance of an alternate personality or identity (Goodman, 1988).

Dissociative trance is characterized by involuntary alterations in consciousness, identity,

awareness, memory, or motor function (Winkelman, 2000). Winkelman (1986) indicated that

involvement of the limbic system is a central part of the neural architecture of dissociative

trance. It is believed that a trance-like state of consciousness can be achieved through rite

practices that affect brain function (Don & Moura, 2000); moreover, evidence has shown that

parasympathetic dominance can be induced through excessive sympathetic activation found

within common features of rite practice, such as through the use of drumming, chanting, and

rhythmic dancing, all of which are homeostatic reciprocal action of the autonomic nervous

system (ANS) collapses (Winkelman, 2010). Many of these corporal techniques designed to

affect changes in brain processes are utilized to induce the altered states of consciousness needed

for the type of mediumship that exists within traditional forms of shamanism or that has been

adopted by the new syncretic religions.

EEG studies have indicated functional implications for the dynamics associated with

cortical networks by measuring the rhythmic oscillations of brain waves associated with

alterative states of consciousness. The shamanic drumming that is used to enter an altered state
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of consciousness consists of a steady monotonous pattern of 3-4.5 beats with frequencies that

correlate with the delta frequency band of brain electrical activity. In electrophysiology this state

is an indicator of the first phase of deep sleep and coma (Jovanov, 2011). Maxfield (1990)

discovered increased theta activity while individuals were listening to rhythmic monotonous and

patterned drumbeats, as compared to when they listened to unstructured beat sequences. The

alpha, theta, and beta wave activities have all been linked with different processes of alertness,

focused attention, and awareness (Fanji, Xin, Shen, & Zhijie, 2003). EEGs have demonstrated

changes in attention, sensory processing, and cognitive processes highlighting the different

cortical network interactions (Lopes da Silva. 1991). Researchers have confirmed a connection

with self-reported dissociative experiences and theta brain wave activity (Giesbrecht, Jongen,

Smulders, & Merckelbach, 2006). Findings also suggest a positive relation between dissociation

and delta activity, while “cortical power within the alpha range was inversely related to

dissociative symptoms” (Hageman et al., 2010, p. 91). An EEG study that involved trance

channelers found statistically noteworthy increases in amount and percentage of beta, alpha, and

theta brain-wave activity (Hughes & Melville, 1990). These research findings seem to suggest

that the brain wave activity during mediumistic experiences is distinctive to that particular state

of consciousness and deserves further investigation.

Another explanation of mediumship is that it is a neodissociative ego state that highlights

the normal polypsychic nature of human identity (Frederick, 2005). Neodissociative theory

explains the paradoxical phenomenon that occurs within hypnosis of divided consciousness, “so

that it probably should not be too surprising that individuals might be able to encounter another

ego state within themselves during a hypnotic-like procedure” (Hageman et al., 2010, p. 99).

This explanation seems to suggest that mediums are not in communication with a separate spirit
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entity rather, it indicates that mediums may be in dialogue with another aspect of themselves

within their own psyche/mind. This theory suggests that the origin of the channeled identity

stems from the ego states or a cognitive subsystem that has not been properly integrated within

the mediums’ normal experience of identity (Hageman, Peres, Moreira-Almeida, Caixeta,

Wickramasekera, & Krippner, 2010). This explanation does not take into account personas that

transmigrate from medium to medium, where more than one medium has been channeling a

specific persona who is identifiable as a unique spirit entity, such as in the case of “Dr. Fritz,” a

German physician, who has allegedly been channeled by Zé Arigó, Edson Queiroz, and,

currently, Rubens Farias, Jr. More research will be required to understand the unique

phenomenon that occurs when an individual is in a trance-like state or involved in mediumistic

activities. It appears that research that combines neurophysiological, psychological, and

phenomenological assessments of mediumistic experiences would be essential in the

development of “a more precise understanding of the neurobiological substrate of its

manifestation and disruption of the integrated functions of consciousness” (Hageman et al.,

2010, p. 92). This approach would allow for a broad range of physical, mental, and experiential

inquiries that might resolve conflicting theories postulated from different fields of study.

However, as important as the technique of inquiry is, the necessity of carrying out research with

particularly gifted individuals who can demonstrate consistency and reliability in terms of their

abilities as mediums is paramount, for, if they cannot perform to task, then the investigation is

useless.

Spiritualism and mediumship. Spiritualism is a metaphysical term that holds the

position that the fundamental reality of the universe is nonmaterial. It is held within this belief

that the spirits of the dead survive in another plane of existence, and that it is possible for the
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living to receive communications from them through other individuals who are capable of

practicing mediumship. Spiritualism within the realm of magical and occult arts may be

considered the philosophical and religious counterpart to parapsychology. Spiritism refers to the

belief that all humans, animals, plants, and natural objects possess souls and are part of a larger

universal cosmic spirit. The two terms have been used interchangeably, although most syncretic

religions seem to use the term spiritism to describe the form of mediumistic practices that govern

their beliefs.

Mediumship is the fundamental ritualistic practice within the three major spiritistic

religions found primarily in Brazil, namely: Candomblé, Kardecismo, and Umbanda (Hess,

1994). Candomblé and Umbanda are African-derived practices; their mythologies are ruled by

the “Sky God,” and his intermediaries are called the orixás, who symbolize the primordial forces

of nature. The orixás are believed to have the ability to take hold of the mind and body of a

human being through acts of spirit “incorporation,” which is practiced by group members.

Practitioners of these African-based rites believe that they can gain access to supernatural power

in three ways: (1) by making offerings to the orixás; (2) through divination; and (3) by being

taken over by an orixás, ancestral spirit, or other benevolent spirit that may assist the community

through healing or with timely warnings (Hageman et al., 2010). The trance state used to obtain

this form of altered consciousness is brought about through drumming, singing, and dancing, as

well as by using a mind-altering substance such as strong tobacco (Villoldo & Krippner, 1981).

Candomblé remains closely associated with the original religions of Africa by retaining the

original names and worship practices of African orixás (deities) (Bastide, 1960). Umbanda

practices in Brazil place more emphasis on an assimilated Christian heritage than on the

traditional African orixás. Kardecismo, or Kardecism, is a popular form of modern Spiritism that
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was first introduced to Brazil in the early nineteenth century through the teachings of Allen

Kardec (1861-1867), a celebrated French spiritualist (Hageman et al., 2010). These spiritistic

traditions helped to form the philosophical foundations for the new syncretic religions that are

prevalent in Brazil today and are spreading globally.

Syncretic religions. Syncretism is the integration of elements from two or more systems,

theories, or concepts into a new system, usually applied to one in which cultures, beliefs, or

doctrines that may appears incompatible are nevertheless combined. This terminology is a

perfect description of the new ayahuasca religions recently established within Brazil’s growing

spiritistic culture. Ayahuasca religions (Labate & Araújo, 2002; 2004), a description first coined

by anthropologists, is a working term used primarily by academic researchers to speak of these

groups as a whole; it is not necessarily used by the groups themselves, which often view

themselves as unique and independent manifestations (Labate, Santana de Rose, & Guimarães

dos Santos, 2009). Santo Daime is the oldest and most geographically dispersed of Brazil’s

ayahuasca religions currently growing internationally, the other two being Barquinha and the

União do Vegetal (Vegetable Union), which is also gaining an international following. Within

these religions, the generic term ayahuasca denotes the combination of the vine Banisteriopsis

caapi and the leaves of the shrub Psychotria viridis (Dawson, 2007), which then creates a

substance traditionally consumed as a sacrament fundamental to the religions. Ayahuasca is

generally believed to have been discovered by indigenous inhabitants of the Amazon, who then

passed the concoction on to non-indigenous cultures through its use among mixed-race

communities and rubber-tappers in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. At the same

time, there is substantial evidence that this assumption may be misleading, as the true origins of

these religions are still definitively unknown.

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The Santo Daime church. Raimundo Irineu Serra (1892-1971), known as “Master (or

Mestre) Irineu,” is recognized by many as the reincarnation of the spirit of Jesus. Master Irineu is

the founding prophet of the Santo Daime religion, having retreated in solitude into the forest

where he received a series of visions inspired by the Queen of the Forest to bring the Holy

Daime (ayahuasca) to the ailing. These visionary experiences gave birth to his epiphany, which

would create the central doctrine of the church. Santo Daime emerged as a religious entity in the

late 1930s (Dawson, 2011). “The name Daime, which has also come to identify the religion, is

derived from the invocations made by the users of the brew during its consumption and ensuing

religious ceremonies” (Labate, Macrae, & Goulart, 2010, p. 2). Daime, which is derived from the

verb “to give” (dar), refers to the notion of grace received in the form of health, healing,

knowledge, revelation, peace, and love from a divinity or spiritual being. Mestre Irineu

developed his religion and installed his church in 1945 in a place known as Alto Santo (Holy

Rise) in a rural area of Rio Branco in the Brazilian state of Acre. “Mestre Irineu registered his

religious group in the government registry just three months before his death in July 1971, after

which it came to be officially called Universal Light Christian Enlightenment Center [Centro de

Iluminação Cristã Luz Universal] or CICLU” (Labate, Macrae, & Goulart, 2010, p. 2).

Subsequent to Irineu Serra’s death, a breakaway organization known as CEFLURIS, The

Eclectic Centre of the Universal Flowing Light Raimundo Irineu Serra [Centro Eclético da

Fluente Luz Universal Raimundo Irineu Serra] was founded by Sebastião Mota de Melo in 1974

and is the branch known internationally (Dawson, 2011). Although this is the official name of

the organization, worldwide it is simply referred to as the practice of Santo Daime.

Mestre Irineu worked as a curandeiro (healer), learning the basic patterns of ayahuasca

shamanism and adapting it by recomposing the shamanic system, through a series of defined
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movements capable of exercising control over the reality experienced in an “altered state of

consciousness” by directing the domain of conscious individuals over their emotional and

unconsciousness awareness (Cemin, 2010). The alterations made to the shamanic system within

the church practices work to initiate and instruct novices in order to expand their consciousness

in order for them to participate safely in the rituals:

The[re is a] multiplicity of techniques in which the body serves as support: concentration,

coordination of movements in the dance steps, the singing of hymns and the rhythm of
the maraca rattle, and even the physical effects of the liquid which go from accepting its
smell and taste, to the sensations that it can cause: drowsiness, palpitation or quick
beating of the heart, vomiting, diarrhea, ‘astral journeys’ (the sensation of death and
rebirth, anxiety, pleasure; beautiful, illuminating and/or terrifying visions), besides
acceptance of the codes of conduct within the system, notably ‘obedience’, ‘humility’,
and ‘love” for all members of the church. (Cemin, 2010, p. 40)

This practice seems to allow the corporeal techniques in the Maussian sense of adaptation

through the “arts of using the body” to alter consciousness and properly indoctrinate the

neophyte into the system (Cemin, 2010). According to Mauss (1974), this is a function in society

within its social practices; stating that “behind all our mystic states, corporeal techniques … are

biological means for entering into contact with God” (p. 233). Space, time, and movement are

coordinated through the use of the body by making the details essential, as they point to the

principles of movement and action, thereby creating an anchoring point within the altered state

of consciousness. In this way, body movements become classifications that establish identities

and social positions in relation to the sexes, as well as the social division of labor (Mauss, 1974).

The daimista corporeal technique as applied to the transmutation of the “vegetal body” (plant)

into the “divine body” (entheogen), is further applied to the bodies of adepts seeking to make

them capable of transporting themselves to the “realm of the higher astral plane” (Cemin, 2010),

by gaining access through the shamanistic system of controlled movements within the altered

state of consciousness. A catalyst is thereby created in the body through the chemical constructs
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found within the brew, with additional effects accomplished through synchronized movement to

rhythmic sounds, allowing the achievement of a pristine state of altered consciousness.

Daime. Ayahuasca is referred to as Daime by those who are practicing members, known

as daimistas, of the Santo Daime religion. Daime is regarded as an “entheogen,” an agent whose

properties facilitate or act as a catalyst in the interaction of humankind with supernatural agents

or forces (Polari, 1999). The indigenous conceptualization of ayahuasca is that it is a teaching

plant (Luna, 1984). Indeed, ayahuasca is viewed not just as a brew or a plant, but also as a being

with special, unique qualities, often seen as a deity (Shanon, 2010). “Ayahuasca allows a distinct

perception of the other world without losing consciousness of this one … supporting the

hypothesis that another reality can be found just behind the apparent world: ayahuasca allows a

point by-point comparison” (Calavia Saéz, 2014, p. xxii). “The notion of cosmovision here finds

its perfect expression: the alteration of consciousness caused by drinking the beverage affects the

visual field above all, often giving rise to miraçōes (visions)” (Soares, 2010, p. 68). Daime is

known not only for its illuminating visionary powers as a form of plant medicine, but also for the

plant’s spiritual energy or power to cure as a holy being.

Ayahuasca links the “seeing,” “learning,” and “knowing” that transpire through visions,

purportedly to see the world ultimately as it truly is (Peluso, 2014, p. 234). By virtue of the

psychotropic effects of drinking Daime within the rite participation in Santo Daime, participants

are required to learn to work (trabalhar) within an altered state of consciousness (Dawson,

2011). The “work” is achieved through the body and thoughts that are the symbolic productions

of the imaginary (Cemin, 2010). The powerful visions (miraçōes) given by the Daime are treated

with great respect, as they often profoundly change those who have them by encouraging life-
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altering transformations; while not all who imbibe the concoction have visionary experiences, all

seek to have them.

The miraçōes are considered “the noblest instrument of spiritual work, with powerful
didactic effects: for the doctrine, precisely on account of its flexibility and openness, is
(re)constructed and attained (through divine grace) – and there is no paradox here – by
the subject of each spiritual adventure or introspective journey. There is no paradox
because the construction resulting from individual and subjective efforts, translated into
images, concepts, narratives, teachings, moral conclusions and emotions ‒ always firmly
rooted in the experiences, sometimes harsh and painful, physically felt, that are
associated with sensible movements of the imagination – coincides, according to shared
convictions, with cosmic truth, made accessible as a divine gift, the revelations being
precisely the awareness of this coincidence, the matrix of acknowledgment of the holy
unity, which reconciles, with the supreme connection it brings about, matter and spirit,
self and other, individual and collectivity, the human and the natural, the natural and the
cosmic whole, the cosmic whole and the deity, and – through this association the human
and the divine. To the holy and holistic unity there corresponds the ceremonial practice,
in which the singing of hymns in unison and the collective uniform dance (which
establishes oppositions only between male and female, and between proto-priests or
propitiating leaders and the congregation of the faithful), in a space ritually
circumscribed, is counterposed to the fragmentary, solitary, individualizing and
rigorously intersubjective multiplicity of the meditations and miraçōes. (Soares, 2010, p.
68)

Miraçōes are held to be the actual form of healing delivered on the astral plane that transcends

conscious obstacles within the recipient, allowing transcendence of physical ailments, bringing

health and healing cures similar to lived miracles. Although these miraculous healing

experiences happen within the ceremony, they extend beyond the rite space where they arrive,

often permanently altering the health effects of the individual.

The daimista system has two vectors: drink Daime, and pay attention to the hymns. These

two vectors demand a set of techniques that establish the religion as a “way of life” (Cemin,

2010). According to Mauss (1974), it is the formation of techniques that helps to establish the

indoctrination as a way of being in the world by circumscribing techniques by which to live:

The daimista system provides techniques for every aspect of life, beginning with the
“techniques of birth and obstetrics” through the use of Daime during pregnancy and birth;
the “techniques of childhood” ‒ a little spoonful of Daime to give protection and grace;
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“techniques of adolescence” primarily applied to girls, as the ritual includes a space set
aside for “virgins”; “techniques of dreaming, sleep and wakefulness” in granting visions
with the same ontological status as dreams, the act of dreaming taking them into the
sphere of sacred, and true experiences; “techniques of movement” to concentrate, to
dance, to sing, to meditate and “techniques of body care” to purify, to wash, to abstain
from sexual relations; also “techniques of consumption” mandating the eating of light
foods, and abstention from alcoholic beverages. During the making of the Daime (the
feitio) one must consume only sweet manioc without salt accompanied by lemon balm
tea, and, above all, “to drink Daime.” These corporeal techniques also are applied to the
imagination as one must control the thoughts and not to think useless thoughts outside the
prescriptions of the doctrine by paying attention to the hymnals. This fully takes hold by
allowing oneself to be subjected to frequent and systematic sessions of singing and
listening to the hymns, in an “altered state of consciousness,” where the “hymn is
something that is fixed in the memory and never leaves.” (Cemin, 2010, pp. 42-43)

Daime, which is considered a guide, easily becomes a way of life for many, as every aspect of

life is transformed through the alteration of consciousness, not only through the rites of drinking

the Daime, but in the mannerisms required by the doctrine that accompanies it. Some believe

that, once Daime is ingested, it resides permanently, altering that person’s consciousness

whereby he or she is never the same. This would be an interesting construct to investigate in a

long-term study, to see if, in fact, the brain chemistry of single-dose drinkers shows permanent

alterations that affect brain processes.

Elements of the sacred. The symbolic representation found within, or given to, objects

or places holds a significant power in the representation of the sacred when viewed by the

spiritually minded individual. It is within these esoteric symbols that the mundane become

extraordinary, often leading to the experience of what could be called the supernatural. “A

symbol, therefore, necessarily unifies. It seeks to overcome a separation and reunite the parts

back into the whole” (Silva Sá, 2010, p. 169). Within the Santo Daime religion, there are esoteric

symbols from varied sources creating a blended symbolic language revealed in ritual practices.

Some symbols are borrowed from Catholicism, others are based in customary shamanistic
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practices, while still others seem to have been adopted from esoteric traditions from Europe ‒ all

of them meant to unite the cosmic whole.

Although many members do not have explanations for the meanings of these symbols,

they seem, nonetheless, to be inherently and profoundly transformed by that which they cannot

name. The sacred symbols within the Santo Daime are, most importantly, expressions of that

which is profoundly experienced within the unseen reality made visible through the ritualized

practice of drinking Daime. The main sacred space for daimistas is the Amazon rainforest, the

woods, the source of the raw material needed for the tea they ritually imbibe. The secondary

sacred place is the center, which is divided into three liturgical spaces: the hall, the Casa do

Feitio (the house for making Daime), and the secondary forest in the back of the center’s

grounds. The sacred wooded area is reserved for the special recognition of the “Queen of the

Forest,” where special works (trabalhos) are celebrated. typically on August 15. The Queen of

the Forest is considered the living representation of spirit energy and the guiding force within all

of Nature. The architecture of the hall, which was defined by Mestre Irineu, highlights two

features: it is oriented to the rising sun, and it has no complete walls. This design allows for wide

internal and external visibility of the surrounding forest, with the east and south sides being

occupied during ceremonies by the female members, while the west and north sides are occupied

by the male members (Cemin, 2010).

The mesa (table) serves as the altar in the center of the hall. The mesa is considered to be

the source for receiving and transmitting energy currents from the astral plane. It constitutes a

mechanism capable of capturing and distributing the power of the astral plane between the

brotherhood and the cosmos. The ritual objects located on the table consist of the Santo Cruzeiro

(“Holy Cross”), placed in the center (also known as the “Caravaca Cross”), which represents
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power, plus an image of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception and a jar of flowers,

symbolizing the mission of the church. The flowers are representative of the garden of followers

of the religion. Also featured are a copy of the Holy Bible and a glass of water symbolizing aid

to spirits in need, as well as three lit candles that represent the Holy Trinity. The chair is an

important symbol of power, as it represents the leader of the congregation. It is from the chair

that the leader guides the trabalho (work), while facilitating the full manifestation of “light” and

“force.” The maraca rattle, a musical instrument, is also considered a spiritual weapon. It marks

the beat and summons up force for the trabalho by calling in the spiritual power, similar to the

hymns enacted through the guided individual; it also intensifies the force through the vibration it

makes (Cemin, 2010).

The hinários, or hymnals, hold special significance within the works (trabalhos), forming

the written manuscript of teachings to which the membership must adhere. The hinário (hymnal)

is received by a member directly from the astral plane, for it is considered that, in the spiritual

world, there is a linha (lineage) of trabalhos whose teachings are transmitted through hymns;

moreover, this lineage of trabalhos was first delivered by the “Queen of the Forest” to Mestre

Irineu. In order to receive the hymns, adepts do not have to imbibe Daime, but they may feel as

though they had “taken Daime,” as they sense that they are connected to the astral plane. This

experience may occur while they are at home, in the street, and, very often, while sleeping. It is

reported they wake up with the hymn after having had a dream of receiving it, which may

manifest in the dream through hearing or seeing it being delivered by a spiritual being or

visualized as texts “floating in the air” or printed on a sheet of paper. When an individual

receives more than one hymn, it constitutes a hinário. The pattern of the hymns and the process

of “receiving” them was established by Mestre Irineu based on his own experience of receiving
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his own book of hymns, titled the “Cruzeiro.” The rhythms of the music that accompany the

hymns are placed in one of three categories: the waltz, the mazurka, and the march. These

themes are modeled on the rhythms used in Mestre Irineu’s hinário. When a hymn is received,

the adept must show it to the leader, who evaluates whether it is consistent with the lineage

(linha); then the hymn is presented to the brotherhood and later tested by being sung in the works

(trabalhos). This process is referred to as “instructing” or “educating” the hymn in order to get

the melody and the words of the hymn perfectly aligned with the linha (Cemin, 2010).

Historic perspective on spirit possession. The trajectory of spirit possession in Santo

Daime has three main phases (Dawson, 2011). The first phase covers the period of Mestre

Irineu’s leadership, from the time of the religion’s inception until his death in 1971. Mestre

Irineu had a reputation as a healer (curandeiro), whose power resided both in his knowledge of

folk medicine and in his ability to work with spirits. It is believed Mestre Irineu’s life was

influenced by a certain type of “Afro-Amazonian religiosity” that he learned in his childhood ‒ a

mixture of Afro-Brazilian, Catholic, and indigenous beliefs (Furuya, 1990). These different

ingredients were combined to produce a worldview infused by the everyday ritualized

components of a widely diverse range of spiritual agencies and interactions (Galvão, 1955;

Maués & Villacorta, 2004).

Mestre Irineu’s background reflects a combination of oral history, narrative analysis, and

anthropological investigation that shows the centrality of spirit-oriented activity within the early

religious repertoire of Santo Daime (Goulart, 2004; Labate & Pacheco, 2004). Evidence suggests

that interaction with nature spirits was the primary form of spirit-oriented activity undertaken by

the early daimista community, although engagement with the spirits of the dead might also have

occurred. Early daimista activities involved curandeirismo, a practice that consults spirit guides
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regarding the cause of an illness or allows engagement with spirits to ward off spirit infestation,

thereby treating illnesses caused by maleficent spirits or guarding against possible spirit assault

(Dawson, 2011).

During the late 1940s, the religious repertoire of Santo Daime began to change as a result

of Mestre Irineu’s increased interest in European esotericism such as Theosophy,

Anthroposophy, and Rosicrucianism, as mediated through the publications of The Esoteric Circle

of the Communion of Thought ‒ Círculo Esotérico do Comunhão do Pensamento (Moura da

Silva, 2006). Esotericism is a study of the mind that seeks to understand the secrets of conscious

thought by investigating experiences that grant access to particular forms of hidden knowledge.

These interior realities are nurtured through a wide range of techniques such as meditation,

introspection, and regression that allow access to truths located deeper within the conscious self

(Faivre, 1986).

By the time of his death, Mestre Irineu had distanced himself from the Esoteric Circle.

However, the esoteric influence stayed within the Santo Daime ceremonial practices, where the

primary focus was the cultivation of the “higher self” by harnessing impersonal cosmic energies,

rather than encouraging personal wellbeing through the ritualized interaction with spirits

(Dawson, 2011).

During the mid -l960s, Sebastião Mota de Melo joined the Santo Daime religious

movement, becoming known as Padrinho (Godfather) Sebastião. He practiced as a medium in

the Brazilian Kardecist tradition, where communication with disembodied spirits of the dead

constituted the sole supernatural reference point (Cavalcanti, 1983). Sebastião acted as a medium

for some of the most exemplary spirits of Brazilian Kardecism, such as Bezerra de Menezes and

Antônio Jorge, using symbolic components of caboclo (peasant) spiritism that involved the
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recognition of the supernatural agency of certain animals (Dawson, 2011). However, this

association with spirit-oriented activity impeded his campaign for leadership after Mestre

Irineu’s death, which led him to found, in a remote area of the jungle, a new branch of Santo

Daime he named Céu do Mapiá, establishing the organization known as CEFLURIS (Labate,

MacRae, & Goulart, 2010).

By the mid-1970s, Padrinho Sebastião had reestablished Kardecism as a formal

component of the Santo Daime ceremonial repertoire. Mediumistic activity did not replace the

esoteric framework that had become vital to Mestre Irineu, but, rather, integrated the two

paradigms within a single doctrine. Consequently, the esoteric concerns of developing the

“higher self” remained central, while interactions with the spirits of the dead increased the

legitimacy of daimista activities, including caboclo (peasant) spiritism based on the supernatural

agencies of certain animals. The interaction with “animal spirits, however, was and continues to

be regarded both with a degree of suspicion and as likely to result in some form of illness or bad

luck” (Arruda, Lapietra, & Santana, 2006;). The adoption of New Age spiritual practices and

beliefs that involve spirit-oriented activities increased the appropriation of ritual components

from Umbanda and had a substantial impact upon the subsequent direction of the daimista

repertoire. Umbanda practices complement Brazilian Kardecism’s practices, as both traditions

focus on the spirits of the dead. By the time of Sebastião’s death in 1990, “Umbanda-inspired

possession rites were being practiced by nascent daimista communities throughout Brazil,

although not officially” recognized (Dawson, 2011, p. 147).

Since the turn of the century in 2000, under the dual leadership of Alfredo Gregório de

Melo (Sebastião’s son) and Alex Polari (a former political prisoner and founder of the Santo

Daime church, Céu da Montanha,, in the state of Rio de Janeiro) the incorporation of spirits
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appropriated from Umbanda practices has become customary in the mother church of Céu do

Mapiá. The most important of these ceremonies are named Saint Michael (São Miguel) and The

White Table (Mesa Branca),which occur respectively on the 7th and 27th of each month.

Perhaps, due to the progressive influences of the urban professionals across the ever-expanding

CEFLURIS movement, the beliefs and practices appropriated from Umbanda have increasingly

found their way from the ceremony margins toward the reportorial core of Santo Daime

(Guimaraes, 1992; Junior, 2007). This represents a fundamental modification of the Santo Daime

religion, since its inception and original doctrinal practices set forth by Mestre Irineu. Since the

ceremonies of Saint Michael (São Miguel) and The White Table (Mesa Branca) were intended as

arenas for incorporation, the formalization of these rites validates Umbanda-inspired practices as

compared to the established motifs of Brazilian Kardecism (Dawson, 2011). The Santo Daime

religion has seemingly always had a fluid evolution, as its very nature derives from the etheric

realms of the astral plane; thus these new developments may be brought forth from that

connection.

Present-day perspective. Santo Daime has, over the years, become a global New Era

religion, practiced predominantly by the white urban middle class, that embraces an eclectic and

experimental mix of traditional European esotericism, Kardecist Spiritism, New Age spirituality,

and possession rites drawn from the traditional Afro-Brazilian religions of Umbanda and

Candomblé (Labate & MacRae, 2010). Dawson (2011) referred to the spirit idiom of Santo

Daime as a form of “hyper-heteroglossia,” based on a term first coined by Bakhtrin as

“heteroglossia” (Besnier, 1996), a “variegated phenomenon comprising multiple voices which

articulate often contrasting, if not incompatible experiences” (p. 149). Santo Daime is

tremendously syncretic in its doctrine, making it both inclusive and, perhaps, challenging to
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navigate. Some of the appeal of the Santo Daime movement may actually be the fact that it is

shifting the paradigm from a monotheist representation of higher consciousness to a polytheist

perspective that invites many representations of the sacred that have traditionally been unrelated

or even in opposition to exist together.

There are, perhaps, as many different ways to understand personal experiences of spirit

interaction as there are individuals who have had these experiences. This is largely thought to be

attributed to the power of the plant medicine interacting with the individual’s own requirements

for healing at the time of the ceremony, along with whatever spirits may be present during each

particular ritual. These experiences vary not only from individual to individual, but also from

ceremony trabalho (work) to ceremony trabalho (work), as each time one partakes in an

ayahuasca ceremony it is considered a unique expression of interaction with the plant medicine,

no matter how similar it may be to former experiences. Shanon (2010) attested that every

ayahuasca ceremony is a distinct experience, without exception.

A number of daimistas describe their interaction with spirits as a form of possession, an

event involving suppression of one’s conscious self accompanied by an inability to remember

anything from the point of possession until the moment of “dispatch,” when the spirit leaves

one’s physical body. Other daimistas seem to experience a typically Kardecist form of

mediumship, describing themselves as remaining conscious throughout the experience. Some

individuals state that their subjective presence is essential to directing the spirits, while others

describe the self as an interested, but passive witness to what the spirit is doing to their body.

There are daimistas who express the experience of the interaction as an ecstatic progression that

dislocates the self from its physical moorings, whereby astral flight occurs, allowing for trips

across the globe or to different historical periods to interact with other personalities. Some
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daimistas describe a form of indigenous shamanistic soul-flight that involves disincarnate

journeys to spiritual realms populated by supernatural agents of both human and non-human

spirit beings. It is common to hear expressions of expanded consciousness or broadened spiritual

vision stemming from the interaction with the world of spirits. Similarly, several daimistas

explain the spirits with which they interact as astral counterparts, “variegated aspects of the

material self” (Dawson, 2011, p. 149). It is not uncommon for several of these different forms to

be experienced by an individual within a single work (trabalho), although not all individuals

have these experiences of interaction with the spirits.

Motifs within spirit possession. Daimistas employ several different motifs within spirit

possession, although not every member regards incorporation of disembodied spirits as a

necessary expression of daimista religiosity (Dawson, 2011). The pantheons of spirits within

Santo Daime are as unique as the doctrine of the syncretic religion, both malleable and diverse.

The Creator deity holds absolute authority within the Santo Daime cosmology as the generative

astral component to the metaphysical playground played out by all forms of spirit possession.

The god of Santo Daime is called the “Father” (Pai), but there are also the “Mother” (Mãe), the

Master (Mestre), the Queen (Rainha), the Catholic trinity of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, and the

archangels Michael (São Miguel), Gabriel (São Gabriel), Raphael( São Rafael), and John (São

João), to name a few featured prominently within the daimista hymns (Dawson, 2011). Although

God and the higher-level forces from the upper echelons of the spiritual realm tend not to be

incorporated by individuals, they are seen as providers of protection and grace through their

eternal presence within the ritual space of the ceremony. However, when they do appear in

material form, it is through special karmic grace attained by the individual and held within the

concept of reincarnation as a more permanent manifestation (Dawson, 2011).

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The ceremonial form of incorporation appropriated from Brazilian Kardecism and

Umbanda practices carries influences regarding the types of spirits invited into the Santo Daime

repertoire. “Antônio Jorge,” “Doctor Fritz,” and “José Bezerra de Menezes” were famous

personas of Brazilian Spiritism who are regularly called upon during incorporation rites (Santos,

2004). Another aspect of the spiritual hierarchy involves spirits in need of charity, known as

“suffering” or “inferior” spirits, who are incorporated as a form of karma building and generosity

to help lost spirits. These spirits may attach themselves to a medium, referred to as encostar ‒

literally, “to lean on” the spiritually unwary, ill-prepared, or careless, thereby causing illness, bad

luck, and other unwelcome effects. Although not practiced by every community member, some

spirit possession is termed atuação ‒ literally, “action” or “performance” that distinguishes

involuntary possession from voluntary incorporation (incorporação) of a medium (Dawson,

2011).

Santo Daime regards everyone as having the ability for mediumship, with the

understanding that some may have a natural proclivity to become practicing mediums. As a

result, every individual is open to some form of interaction with the spirit-world within the

ceremonial practices of Santo Daime. This interaction may be so subtle that the experience of the

spiritual domain may go largely unnoticed at a conscious level. This creates a challenging

situation, as the lack of awareness of the spirit-world may have an actual impact upon the

consciousness of individuals, perhaps influencing them in some capacity.

In the worst-case scenarios, the unwary are left open to spiritual assault. It is for this

reason that all members are given some form of instruction, whether they wish to become

practicing mediums or not (Dawson, 2011). It is not unheard of for individuals to have had
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experiences for which they required some form of assistance, because they were overwhelmed

by their interaction with the spirit realm during the ceremonial practices of Santo Daime.

Mediumistic training. The primary lesson, perhaps the most important aspect of

incorporating, requires that the individual learn to control the physical side-effects of being

possessed by a disincarnate spirit, which often causes shaking, expostulating, and gesticulating.

In addition to inducing and managing the possession event, mediums must learn to identify and

express appropriately the particular type of spirit by which they are being possessed, as different

kinds of spirit execute different ritual tasks. The medium’s ability to communicate which type of

spirit has been incorporated is one of the most critical parts of the ceremonial aspects of

mediumship. Moreover, mediums must also know the context of the possession in relation to the

ceremony, whenever it is appropriate. Although most kinds of spirit possession are actively

encouraged in the ceremonies of Saint Michael (São Miguel) and The White Table (Mesa

Branca), only limited types of possession are permitted within Concentration (Concentração)

and Dance (Bailados). Other ceremonies do not tolerate any form of possession at all, such as

Mass (Missa) and the Feitio (making of the Daime) (Dawson, 2011).

Santo Daime is beginning to allow different types of spirit incorporation within the

rituals, as a result of the increasing influence of Umbanda practices of incorporating the orixás

(deities). Daimista rites are typically very controlled events with defined spaces, actions, and

behaviors. This extends to the form of incorporation that must occur at the correct point within

the ceremony and for the proper duration. Incorporating the wrong type of spirit, or incorporating

at the incorrect time within the ceremony, may lead to the spiritual current within the group

being disrupted, which could lead to a reprimand from the leadership. Mediums must be acutely

aware of the social hierarchies and cosmological status of the spirits they choose to incorporate.
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Social standing within the group membership may also determine which individuals get to

incorporate and at what moment that is acceptable. The rite space is decidedly discriminating in

terms of where participants dwell within the ceremony, as determined by sex, age, marital status,

and seniority, and even, at times, by height (Dawson, 2011). It is the mediums’ responsibility not

only to incorporate the right kind of spirit at the appropriate time, but also not to transgress the

assigned spatial boundaries within the ceremony by distracting others’ trabalhos (works).

Santo Daime ceremonies acknowledge spirit activity both as a symbolic and a practical

expression of the psychotropic experience provided by the ritualistic drinking of Daime. The

ceremonies provide a practical and symbolic space for the classic types of shamanism

(xamanismo), mediumship (mediunidade), possession (incorporoção/atuação), and trance

(transe), although they are usually understood simply as spirit activity. The practices range from

those who participate in the ceremony as witnesses and do not interact with spirits, to those who

interact with the spirits by speaking or visiting without being inhabited, and to those who

actively practice spirit possession (Dawson, 2011). Interestingly, these experiences are not seen

as necessarily different or mutually exclusive of each other within the Santo Daime perspective

of symbolic space of spirit activity, instead inviting the collective to participate as individuals

themselves determine.

Individual possession. “Individual possession” identifies the person being possessed as

the central focus of spirit-oriented activity. There are two divisions within individualized

possession, a private form of mediumship and a more outwardly expressed form termed

“expressive possession.” The private expression of mediumship is the traditional form of

spiritism practiced by daimistas, which shows greater alignment with the older communities that

consider more discreet interactions with “suffering” spirits as a primary notion to build good
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karma (merit) in this life and the next. Incorporation affirms the established daimista notions of

“trial” (prova) and “firmness” (firmeza) within the rite drinking of Daime, as it requires

concentration and determination to remain within the confines of the ceremony under the

influence of the psychotropic substance (Dawson, 2011).

Private incorporation must also be conducted in a way that does not distract other

members from remaining firm within their own particular trials; hence the focus is inwardly

based. As an act of charity, incorporated spirits are prayed for and at times instructed in the ways

of Daime, as a means to help them accept and evolve from their path of suffering, and perhaps to

gain better incarnations when the time comes for them to re-enter the physical domain.

Expressive possession. Expressive possession is another form of individualized

incorporation recently added into the Santo Daime ceremonial space. It is becoming increasingly

popular as a part of the ceremonies. Unlike private mediumship that serves a defined purpose,

expressive possession lacks a clear ritualistic function other than the simple expression of the

presences of the spirits. This form of incorporation typically includes orixás (deities) from the

Umbanda traditions, or spiritual guides of caboclos (indigenous spirits) and pretos velhos (spirits

of the old black slaves), although the presences of spirits such as children (herês), cowboys,

gypsies, and aristocrats are also represented (Dawson, 2011). Expressive possession, designated

as such due to its theatrical presentation. is thought to have no obvious ritualistic function

besides feeling the experiencing of an incorporated spirit’s presence.

Varied reasons are given by daimistas for expressive incorporation, such as that the

spirit’s presences is serving to protect against the unwarranted appearance of inferior spirits; or it

is the spirit’s desire to enjoy the trappings of physical sensations like singing, dancing, and

drinking Daime; or that benefits are being transferred to the host by the spirit’s presence; or,
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finally, that the presence of the spirit is an outward manifestation of the higher self (Dawson,

2011).

The spirits of expressive mediumship must maneuver the customary procedures of the

ceremony and honor the confines of the ritualistic space of the trabalhos (works) by not

distracting others too greatly from their own particular work. When that occurs, other mediums

step in to calm the offending spirit.

Interactive possession. Interactive possession is based within special mediumistic

ceremonies held to serve other group members. Usually practiced only by the qualified mediums

in the group, interactive possession is more restricted in the parameters of incorporation and has

three principal ritualistic purposes. Indeed, it is primarily practiced as a form of charity towards

lesser spirits, most often the suffering souls of the dead. “Here, the medium works upon lesser

spirits whom she has incorporated or upon spirits in possession of others who may or may not be

trained mediums” (Dawson, 2011, p. 156). At times, skilled mediums may need to relieve an

untrained daimista by assuming responsibility for a difficult spirit, transferring the spirit into

their body, and then working with other mediums or higher spirits to instruct (doutrinar) and

enlighten (iluminar) the incorporated spirit by assisting its passage back into the spirit-world.

During this type of intense interaction between mediums and spirits, the giving of Daime to the

troubled spirit through the host is a common practice.

Acts of charity towards fellow daimistas are another form of interactive mediumship

through the use of the Kardecism practice of the “pass” (passe). This involves the medium

passing her hands around the head, limbs, and torso of another person to heal, soothe, and

mitigate negative energetic spirits.

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The last ritualistic form of interactive mediumship takes place through the delivery of

wisdom and teachings from the highest echelons of the spiritual domain; it is typically restricted

to the most senior mediums. This practice of edification tends to employ the incorporation of

spirits of Kardecist Spiritism, along with other spirits of the deceased daimista community,

including Padrinho Sebastião. As with all forms of spirit incorporation, mediumship is seen as an

act of charity that earns cosmic merit or good karma (ethical retribution) for its practitioners.

Those who practice this form of mediumship within the Santo Daime community tend to be

almost exclusively women, due to the greater receptivity women have to the spirits (Dawson,

2011).
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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

The qualitative methodology used was based in the phenomenological approach called

“back to the things themselves,” as proposed by Husserl (2001), in order to analyze and

understand individual experiences (p. 168). The philosophical phenomenological methodology

was later adapted for psychological research by Giorgi (2009) as a descriptive approach, defined

as a careful examination of experiences to attain detailed descriptions used for a structural

analysis in order to reveal the psychological essence of the experience. This means that the lived

meanings of these attitudes are sought after, rather than simply collecting observed data, thereby

providing a phenomenological and humanistic approach to methodology rather than an

experimental and behavioral one.

Husserl pointed out that the “whole scientific enterprise is grounded ultimately in the

perceptual and meaning-making operations of human consciousness” (Polkinghorne, 1988, p. 9).

It is the meaning that is found within the individual’s experience that is of most relevance, and

that allows for the opportunity to uncover the essence of the experience. Giorgi (2009) described

the Husserlian approach to phenomenological methods as requiring researchers to employ the

phenomenological psychological reduction, by setting aside presumed past knowledge of a

phenomenon, while simultaneously withholding from making ontological claims regarding the

phenomenon being witnessed, and using imaginative variation to discover the essential nature of

the phenomenon being investigated. Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological methodology is

contrasted with an interpretative methodology, which means, for Giorgi, “an articulation of the

given object ‒ relevant to the experience, but not limited to the strictly given” (Giorgi, 2006, p.

91). This research, in sum, utilized the descriptive phenomenological methodology rather than an

interpretive one. The approach required the researcher to remain mindfully aware of the
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phenomenon and its context. As Merleau-Ponty asserted, “The phenomenological attitude is

assumed because it tries to understand the natural attitude better than the natural attitude can

understand itself” (1962, p. 26). This was attained by following Husserl’s (1982) Principle of all

Principles, which emphasized that what was presented to the researcher “is to be accepted simply

as what it is presented as being, but also only within the limits in which it is presented” (p. 44).

The process called for not adding anything, nor taking it away, but for simply reducing it to the

essence of meaning. This phenomenological aspect is a very important consideration within this

research design, because it honors the contextual aspects in terms of the ritualistic atmosphere

that underpins the ayahuasca experience in the Santo Daime tradition.

Method

The descriptive phenomenological approach involves a five-step method of data analysis.

This analysis, which was carried out after the interview had been transcribed, became the

empirical evidence used as the source for its psychological implications.

Step One

I read and re-read the entire narrative description to get a sense of the whole experience

(Giorgi, 2009). I assumed a phenomenological attitude, which meant being present to the data as

they was given. This was done without presuppositions, in order to reflect on the participant’s

experience as a way of describing how it was phenomenally experienced (Giorgi, 2009; Husserl,

1931/2008, cited in Broomé, 2011). The phenomenological attitude is different from the

everyday way of understanding the world, as researchers must bracket their everyday knowledge

in order to look with fresh eyes at the data, putting aside all judgments and preconceived notions

about the phenomenon being studied. “The concept of ‘bracketing’ comes from Husserl’s

(2008/1931) epoché (attitude) in which the researcher allows him or herself to be present to the
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data without positing its validity or existence” (Broomé, 2011, p. 11). Giorgi wrote, “it is not a

matter of forgetting the past: bracketing means that we should not let our past knowledge be

engaged while we are determining the mode and content of the present experience” (2009, p. 92).

Thus the “bracketing” of past knowledge, along with non-presented presuppositions about the

given object, is critical to ensure that nothing contaminates the presented description of the lived

experience. Husserl posed bracketing as a way to place critical attention on the present

experience, stressing that bracketing means not letting our past knowledge become engaged

while determining the mode or content of the present experience of the phenomenon (Giorgi,

2009, p. 92). This means remaining open to how the phenomenon was being presented within the

experience regardless of one’s former experiences, knowledge, ideas, or even expectations.

The descriptive phenomenology method consists of two reductions: the psychological

phenomenological reduction, and the eidetic reduction (Wertz, 2005). The psychological

phenomenological reduction perceives the object from the perspective of being reduced to the

phenomena presented as the lived experience. The eidetic reduction, on the other hand, is the

process by which a particular object is intuitively reduced to its essence through the discernment

of the invariant characteristics and unchanging structures of the phenomenon. Giorgi (2009)

wrote that “the primary meaning of reduction is that the object presented to consciousness must

be understood as something that is present to consciousness exactly as it is experienced, and one

does not claim that it exists exactly the way it is experienced” (p. 90). This is important, because

it is the psychological meaning of the experience that we are seeking to understand. The

descriptive phenomenological method focuses at the level of lived reality at which

psychologically lived experiences reside. This method is clearly appropriate for seeking
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clarification of the meanings of the phenomena experienced by participants in the Santo Daime

tradition.

The space within the ceremony is both physical and ethereal in the Santo Daime Church,

as members report experiencing an alternative plain. According to Merleau-Ponty (1962), space

is seen as a “relationative” field (p. 284). Space “is not the setting (real or logical) in which

things are arranged, but the means whereby the position of things becomes possible” ‒ the

“universal power enabling [things] to be connected” (p. 284). This suggests the idea of space

holding things together, connecting things into union rather than creating distance. Merleau-

Ponty (1962) affirmed that, when someone knows the space between two things, this person is

uniting those things, no matter how distant they appear to be. The resulting awareness promotes

a more realistic approach to the phenomenon being studied.

A fundamental question was presented by Laughlin, McManus, and d’Aquili (1990):

“How much can we know about consciousness from direct experience ‒ that is, how much can

we discover by looking at our own mind through ‘introspection’?” (p. 21). According to

Laughlin and his colleagues, this is because introspection is not equal to the experiential:

“Introspection frequently fails as an accurate data source precisely because the scientist is

unskilled as a contemplative” (p. 24). Experiential observation can produce valid information

only if the researcher has had some training in the spiritual tradition being researched (Mercante,

2006). The researcher who experiences the traditions under study would have a better

comprehension of them than adopting the position of an objective or participative observer.

Researchers who observe the studied culture experientially ‒ principally by being initiated into

local mystical traditions ‒ try to situate themselves in that culture, giving themselves the chance

to try, at least for some time, to see reality through the eyes of those being researched (D. E.
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Young, personal communication, 05/15/2000, cited in Mercante, 2006). This shift in perception

may present itself readily. As William James (1902/1929) wrote:

Our normal consciousness … is but one special type of consciousness, whilst all about it,
parted from it by the filmiest of screens, there lie potential forms of consciousness
entirely different. We may go through life without suspecting their existence; but apply
the requisite stimulus, and at a touch they are all there in all their completeness. (p. 328)

This concept of experimental participation supports the phenomenological descriptive

approach attested by Giorgi when seeking the psychological essences of the experienced

meaning. During the process of making the data clear, the feelings and intuitions that arose in the

researcher’s consciousness must be described carefully.

Step Two

I re-read the whole description, demarcating spontaneous shifts in meaning in the text, by

discriminating among the different units that express a self-contained meaning in terms of the

whole. I formed “meaning units” ‒ a purely descriptive term ‒ within the narrative, so that the

data might be tended to in manageable portions (Giorgi, 2009). Moreover, “the divisions are to

be these that naturally cohere in the text rather than those imposed by expectations of a

researcher’s theoretical positions” (Polkinghorne, 1989, p. 54). This admonition allowed for

unexpected meanings to be discovered. The meaning units then were re-expressed in the third

person, while remaining true to the meanings given by the participant. By taking each third-

person meaning unit individually, the researcher dwelt with it and considered what was being

psychologically expressed through it.

Step Three

I reflected on the meaning units, using imaginative variation to transform them into

psychologically sensitive representations of the given descriptive expressions of the participants

for each unit. This meant reflecting on the meaning to discern what it revealed about the
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phenomenon under investigation, and gaining insight from it by looking for the invariant and

unchanging characteristics of the phenomenon. Wertz (2005) described imaginative variation

this way.

One starts with a concrete example of the phenomenon of which one wishes to grasp the
essence and imaginatively varies it in every possible way in order to distinguish essential
features from those that are accidental or incidental. This is the method par excellence for
the acquisition of qualitative knowledge, for it informs us of what something essentially
is. Eidetic seeing or insight provides evidence of those features that must be present in
any and all possible instances of a subject matter. (Wertz, 2005, p. 168)

This meant stretching the variation to see if it was still coherent with the whole and authentically

descriptive of the given meaning. The search for the essence of the phenomenon puts the focus

on a specific instance of the object of study, which might be something real or imagined. Free

imaginative variation seeks to know more precisely how to articulate what makes the object a

specific example or instance of the type of phenomenon it is (Giorgi, 2009). According to Giorgi,

once the essence of the phenomenon or state has been determined, the next obligation is to

describe it as accurately as possible. “The sense of phenomenon in phenomenology is that one

must be present to the ‘given’ precisely as it presents itself, neither adding to nor subtracting

from what is given” (Giorgi, 2009, p. 9). This is not interpretation but realignment, through

description of the essence of what is being said. This is a very important aspect of the descriptive

phenomenological approach, articulated by Giorgi thus:

Description is the use of language to articulate the intentional objects of experience. This
sense of description is contrasted with interpretation, which is the use of language to
articulate the intentional objects of experience with the help of some nongiven factor,
such as an assumption, hypothesis, theory, or the like. Description is also contrasted with
construction, which is not satisfied to stay strictly with the given, but uses imagination or
other nongiven factors to either present or account for the objects of experience. Finally,
description is contrasted with explanation, which attempts to account for what is
presented, usually by employing factors that are not necessarily given or in terms of other
known but nonpresent events (for example, causes). But its goal is not simply to exhibit
what is given. (Giorgi, 2009, p. 89)
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Step Four

I clarified the analysis to form constituents of the experience. I did this by synthesizing

the transformed meaning units into a consistent statement, again using free imagination to pull

the essence of the phenomenon into clear expression. The result was a description of the essential

structure of the lived experience. Giorgi (2009)pointed out that the unity of the consciousness of

each person must be respected if a single structure is to emerge from the data, thereby making

the constituents holistically and relationally formed. Constituents are context-dependent and

interrelated with each other, forming the essential parts of the whole structure (Giorgi, 2009).

Moreover, “Gurwitsch (1964) makes the valuable distinction between elements and constituents

clearly and directly: an element is a part that is independent of the whole in which it resides,

whereas a constituent is a part that is mindful of its role in the whole” (Giorgi, 2009, p. 102).

This means that each constituent clarifies the understanding of the other constituents, helping to

form a holistic representation of a psychological experience. The constituents are put together in

a descriptive paragraph, which then forms the psychological structure (results) of the analysis.

This represents the objective knowledge of the participant’s experience, not what actually took

place. The result is an objective description of the transcendental structure of the phenomenon as

it was experienced (Neegaard & Uhøi, 2007). In sum, the descriptive phenomenological method

offers a viable means for understanding the lived experience of the phenomenon of drinking

ayahuasca in ceremony within the Santo Daime Church.

Participants

Six selected ayahuasca drinkers, originally from the United States or Brazil, within a

Santo Daime community in California were purposefully selected based on their experience with

drinking ayahuasca and their willingness to participate in the research study. This entailed
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selecting research participants according to the needs of the study (Robson, 2011). This selection

criterion included experienced ayahuasca drinkers, who had participated in Santo Daime ritual

inebriation for more than a year (approximately 10 or more times), and reportedly had a

transformative experience while drinking ayahuasca in ceremony. This form of sampling is

suitable when participants are selected for special characteristics in information-rich cases that

manifest the phenomenon intensely, but not extremely (Patton, 2002). Recruitment was through

telephone contact. Participants received no compensation for their participation. The total

amount of time requested from participants was about 60 minutes for an in-person interview.

Research Setting

The research took place in the privacy of the individuals’ own homes or in some other

place of the participants’ choosing. The activity was recorded during in-person interviews.

Instruments

Resources included computer, cell phone, and pen and paper, all of which I had available

to be used.

Procedures

I presented the consent form and answered any questions participants had, prior to their

confirmed consent. I described the purpose of this study as a phenomenological inquiry into their

experience of being profoundly changed during a specific occasion of drinking ayahuasca in

ceremony. I then explained that this meant that their experience, as they experienced it, was what

was of most importance. I reminded the participants that they were not obligated to continue the

study and could stop at any time. Then I asked them to describe their experiences of ayahuasca

through a recorded in-person interview: “Please describe in as much detail as possible a specific

experience drinking ayahuasca in ceremony which has profoundly changed you: What was it
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like?” Participants were coded P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, and P6 to ensure confidentiality. All collected

data were coded and transcribed. The documents were stored on a secure computer during data

analyses in an office at my residence accessible only to me. At the conclusion of the study, all

files will be deleted. Results have been presented in such a way as to minimize the possible

identification of any one individual.

Recruitment

Recruitment for the study was through personal interactions of the researcher with the

Santo Daime Church community. Participants were contacted through their email or by phone to

confirm their willingness to participate and to arrange in-person interviews, which were

conducted face-to-face in a venue of the participant’s choosing. A single-question interview

script was used for in-depth interviews of the selected participants, with the researcher asking

minimally-directive, open-ended follow up questions as needed.

Data Collection

Interviews required less than 60 minutes of the participants’ time. No financial or other

compensation was given to subjects for participating in the interview process, nor was there any

expense on the part of the participants.

Data Analysis

Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using a psychological phenomenological

method. The data analysis consisted of the following steps:

(1) The researcher assumed the phenomenological attitude, including bracketing any

previous assumptions on the topic;

(2) Each narrative, once transcribed, was read in its entirety in order to develop a sense of

it as a whole;
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(3) Each narrative was re-read, marking off units of meaning;

(4) Each meaning unit was transformed into a psychologically sensitive statement

reflecting the lived experience of the interviewee; and

(5) The transformed data from all interviews were examined for key constituents, which

then were synthesized into a general psychological structure.

Ethical Considerations

The nature of the subject being researched by this pilot study required extreme caution in

protecting subject anonymity. Individuals opting to participate in this study were given

pseudonyms as identifiers at the beginning of the interview. The data collected were downloaded

to password-protected files on the primary researcher’s computer from the recordings from the

researcher’s digital device. Afterwards, all data were deleted from recording devices.

Participants who, during initial screening, demonstrated signs of emotional or mental

instability or trauma due to the experience in question were not selected to participate in

interviews/ Instead, they were urged to seek professional assistance in processing these issues.

Informed Consent

The purpose and procedure for the research study were explained to selected participants

prior to the interviews being conducted. An informed consent form was presented for

participants to sign, and all had the opportunity to ask questions about the study prior to and after

being interviewed.

No minors participated in this study. Participants had a fluent understanding of and

ability to communicate in English. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996

(HIPAA) regulations did not apply.

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Potential Risks to Human Participants and Safeguards

Potential risks to human participants included social or psychological harm in the form of

having private behaviors exposed. Interviews also carried the potential risk of bringing up strong

emotional memories in participants. Safeguards for participant privacy were addressed through

previously described procedures. Participants at obvious risk for strong, emotionally disturbing

reactions were excluded from the study. No deception, manipulation, control, or coercion was

used in this study, and participants had the opportunity to ask questions or withdraw from the

study at any time without stating a reason. Appropriate professional or medical assistance would

have been recommended, but no such need arose.

Potential Benefits

The primary benefit of this study was to guide future researchers in continuing this line

of inquiry. Published literature resulting from future studies may assist service providers and the

general public in understanding the lived experiences of those participating in ayahuasca

activities in a more positive light. Participants, as well as others who drink ayahuasca in

ceremony, stand to benefit in several areas where they may currently be stigmatized, by

providing mental health, medical, and legal professionals as well as spiritual leaders a better

understanding of the potential health benefits arising from ayahuasca consumption.

Risk to Benefit Ratio

The risks of this study were low, and every possible precaution was taken to shield

participants from any negative impact. However, the need for adequate research in this area of

study calls for serious inquiry. All professionals working with individuals involved in drinking

ayahuasca stand to gain valuable understanding and insight into these practices and the potential
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positive outcomes of such activities, thus reducing the stigmatization of these individuals. The

risk-to-benefit ratio was clearly in favor of conducing this research study.

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CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

Structure

 The first constituent was a shift in self-perception.

 The second constituent was the sense of permanence that enlightened participants to

how they had permanently changed psychologically through an experiential shift.

 The third constituent represented an experience of wholeness and peace gained from a

sense of being released from past unresolved events.

 The fourth constituent was an embodied somatic visionary component.

 The fifth constituent was the reported experience of a soul expression as an expanded

essential sense of self beyond the bounded identity.

 The sixth constituent was the reported psychological experience of witnessing

consciousness as an active relaxed mental state with the capacity to focus and support the

process.

 The seventh constituent was the reported experience of a divine connection expressed

as a form of enlightened awareness or as a sense of knowing the essential self through a new-

found intimacy by being connected to a divine other.

Constituents

The structures of all the participants (P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, and P6) revealed seven distinct

constituents of the phenomenon of profound change as psychologically experienced in the

drinking of Daime during ceremony, namely:

(1) a shift in self-perception such as to change the way one sees oneself;

(2) a sense of permanence in this new state;

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(3) a feeling of integrated wholeness and peace, through an embodied somatic visionary

component experienced as an expanded essential sense of self beyond the bounded

identity;

(4) an embodied somatic visionary component;

(5) the experience of a soul expression as an expanded essential sense of self beyond

one’s ordinary bounded identity;

(6) a witnessing consciousness with a sensation of divinity attributed to the plant

medicine; and

(7) the reported experience of a divine connection expressed as a form of enlightened

awareness as a sense of knowing the essential self.

Discussion

All the drinkers reported pronounced change as a conscious shift in self-perception ‒ in

other words, a different perspective related to understanding as a form of realigning with an

integrated sense of wholeness. They felt a change in their experience of themselves as a sense of

relating differently through permanently shifted self-perceptions. The experience, which was

psychologically transformational, had a profound effect on their mental perceptions. Emotional

reactions to themselves and the world around them held a new sense of permanence. All the

participants felt they experienced a form of becoming more whole and psychologically

integrated, as the result of attaining a sense of inner peace and a sense of being released from

conscious entrapments. As embodied emotionally, painful psychological retained wounds from

past unresolved events were transformed into a sense of inner peace, emotional freedom, and

integrated wholeness. This transformation was understood as having been facilitated as a form of

knowledge attributed to the plant medicine. Each participant reported an embodied somatic
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visionary experience though a lucid presence, which helped give a sense of validation that

supported integration. A sense of greater wholeness, along with changes in self-perception,

helped them to follow the dramatic psychological shifts of consciousness through the somatically

visual element, which reportedly transported them to a state beyond normal space and time that

led to feelings of divinity. This experience affected deep changes in self perceptions and the

releasing of patterns of mental and emotional disharmony. All participants explored an expanded

essential self, described as separate from the corporeal, as a distinct expression of identity

unbounded by time and occupying a spatial awareness. It took the form of an embodied soul as

an essential sense of self beyond the bounded identity. All the participants experienced a

witnessing consciousness as an active mental state, with the capacity to focus and support the

process of integrated wholeness. All of them also reported similar aspects within their expressed

phenomenon of acknowledging a form of divinity. The divine connection was expressed as a

form of enlightened awareness, as a sense of knowing the essential self, as being in the presence

of a divine other as a recipient of undiscovered knowledge, with a sense of compassionate

understanding attributed to the plant medicine. An enhanced protective grace through a new-

found intimacy came through the plant medicine that helped them through their process.

A shift in self-perception was the first constituent. It consisted of a pronounced change

that allowed for a different perspective, one related to understanding as a form of realigning with

an integrated sense of wholeness such as to change one’s experience of oneself. It led to a sense

of relating to oneself differently, through permanently shifted self-perceptions. All the

participants reported a feeling of knowing that what they had previously been thinking was

altering, that the inner direction of conscious thought patterns that they had been following was

making a course correction for healing integration as a way to wholeness. The changes in self-
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perception were reported as deeply understood truths that reworked previously held belief

patterns, accompanied by a feeling of purposeful intention for the change as a means to satisfy an

evolutionary progression of mental and emotional growth, going beyond limited thoughts and

associations. This feeling of conformational change was important psychologically, because it

lifted the burden of doubt from within the psyche of the drinkers. This may have assisted the

experience of transformational change by removing any inner conflict, to allow the embedding of

newly formed belief patterns, perhaps assisting in making them more permanently viable. This

change in self-perception not only represented a psychological change in conscious thought

patterns (having different kinds of thoughts), but also an intrinsic understanding of the reason for

the change (why it was important or necessary to think differently), as well as the added

psychological belief in the benefit given by the plant to grant a newly formed conscious

awareness that completely altered their future thought patterns (a belief in permanent change in

the way thinking occurs). As an example, P3 reported developing a completely new perspective,

overcoming a deeply rooted sense of aversion to attentive admiration; she understood the reason

for this change, because she became able to rectify an inner conflict stemming from a strong

cultural-ideological programming in childhood. After drinking the plant medicine, she observed

that this state permanently shifted to a new belief of honoring self-determination through

acceptance of personal expression

The second constituent was the sense of permanence that the drinkers reported having

after drinking Daime during the ceremony, which enlightened them as to how they had changed

psychologically through an experiential shift in their feelings and self-reflections. They saw this

shift in self-perception in terms of feeling firmly rooted in a new state of conscious awareness

that now informed all of their perceptions. This reported sense of permanent change in their
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mental and emotional psychology seemed to allow the drinkers to feel supported in their changed

behavior and provided them with a new belief system to act differently. All the participants

reported feeling that they had made permanent psychological changes to their mental and

emotional states due to ingesting the plant medicine, which later had positive effects on their

behavior and life choices. They mentioned the feeling of a quality of permanence as a resolution

that moved from a sense of wounded fragmentation psychologically into a greater integration as

a sense of enhanced self-awareness. P2, for example, reported having a sense of mastery in her

ability to speak fluently, understanding Portuguese without formal study as a novice, while P4

reported ceasing painful past psychological patterns connected to childhood issues, now resolved

in a strong sense of self-awareness, achieving relationship harmony through compassionate

understanding of self and others with a sense of empowering self-expression. The participants

generally reported permanent psychological change after drinking Daime that had a great impact

on the way they experienced their lives.

The third constituent represented an experience of wholeness and peace gained from a

sense of being released from conscious entrapments through interaction with the plant medicine.

These entrapments had been embodied in emotionally painful, psychologically retained offenses,

disturbances, and hurts of past unresolved events. Participants reportedly experienced a journey

to wholeness, away from previous awareness of ailments experienced as mental unrest and

emotional disharmony, into permanently transformed states of consciousness felt as emotional

and mental expressions of wholeness and peace through dynamic shifts of identity and associated

woundedness. This psychological sense of wholeness and inner peace was reported, at times, as a

feeling of being healed, seeming to suggest that there was a particular opportunity for the

participants to become whole ‒ to develop a sense of self-worth and self-acceptance, as

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unresolved residual psychological imprints that hindered self-expression and interpersonal

relationships were worked out through a process of integration, as a new self-perception helped

support a feeling of healing and completeness. P4, for one, reported feeling healed from

repetitive negative mental patterns of childhood that stemmed from feelings of being unnurtured

and unloved, now transformed into self-acceptance and a sense of self-respect. P1 reported

feeling a sense of becoming more whole and peaceful, after experiencing an alteration in her

perceptions that revealed issues with intimacy and closeness with others, a problem with which

she had struggled from youth. P3 reported a sense of wholeness and peace. after finding a

resolution to her childhood stories, with a new sense of authenticity in honoring her emotions.

The significance of becoming whole, with a feeling of achieving a state of inner peace, spoke to

the new alignment of the psychological states, away from a place of disharmony or unrest found

prior to the ingestion of the plant medicine. P2 spoke about experiencing a new psychological

state of fearlessness, inner confidence, purposefulness, and deep joy that recalled the integration

of psychologically fragmented pieces of self into wholeness and vitality. These encounters of

wholeness and inner peace found in the experience of the plant medicine appeared to lend a

feeling of support, protection, and great belonging, a sense of safety to incorporate insights

through acknowledged integration that facilitated a permanent shift in self-perception. This was

expressed as acknowledging something great within themselves, as when P5 found a sense of

resurrection within him through a perceived death experience, a sense of the eternal filled with

tangible faith, inner peace, and a release from fear of death. The process of integrated wholeness

was also articulated as a need to heal psychological trauma, especially for P6, an abuse survivor.

This revealed a need for her to come into wholeness from perhaps fragmented psychological

states of disharmony and anguish from retained offenses, distresses, disruptions, and hurts of past
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unresolved events into a natural psychological state of balanced self-awareness, freed emotional

expression, and inner harmony. This constituent might also provide a sense of identity, a greater

value of self that may increase psychological inner peace.

An embodied somatic visionary component was the fourth constituent for the structure of

profound psychological change experienced in the drinking of Daime during ceremony. Each

participant reported a sense of the indelible reality of the experience, as though the lucid

presence of the embodied somatic vision helped give a sense of validation. This supported a level

of self-acceptance that seemed to lead to integration in a sense of greater wholeness and changes

in self-perception. The drinkers all reported experiencing intense, extraordinarily insightful,

visionary and somatic elements, felt as a total embodied experience that psychologically

propelled them into a new state of awareness through time and space, even a sense of divinity.

This experience seemed to be what led to a sense of empowerment for the participants, as they

accepted the psychological shifts they had experienced under the influence of the plant medicine.

The embodied somatic visionary qualities supported the psychologically meaningful messages

that were uniquely given for each participant, compelling the profound mental and emotional

shifts in perception that changed the conscious awareness for the drinkers. These were

experiential truths made evident through the somatic engagements that shape awareness beyond

simple mental notions into a lived sense of comprehension. The embodied somatic visionary

expressions were reportedly seen as enlightened messages that gave them a sense of strength and

connection to the communication of healing or transformation, a way to understand and identify

what was happening in the internal field of the psyche. The reported embodied visionary

experience seemed to remind drinkers of its significance within the experience of transformation.

P5, for instance, reported a somatic visionary journeying after experiencing death through what
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was described as a porthole in time and space that appeared to arrive in a heavenly paradise of

immense beauty, whereby he proceeded to meet divine others who invoked in him feelings of

joy, kinship, faith, and a sense of becoming fearless and immortal. This embodied somatic

visionary experience propelled P5 into a state beyond conscious thought and into a new world of

experiential understanding, which reportedly returned him to the living after he had left his

corporeal consciousness in a way that permanently changed his view of the world and himself.

The embodied somatic visionary element carried enough strength to help move the drinkers

beyond the moment they were experiencing to an understanding of multiple layers of

psychological integration or wholeness. This was seen in the example of P6, who experienced an

alteration of consciousness through a series of intense somatic visions that led to the

understanding of her repetitive behavioral patterns elicited by a long history of sexual abuse that

she reported to have resolved through the plant medicine’s visionary teachings. All the

participants reported an intense embodied somatic visionary experience, which formed as a kind

of symbolically meaningful discourse directed with a sense of immediate comprehension, felt

through all the senses physically, with emotional and mental components attributed to having

been facilitated through the plant medicine. The psychological support from this type of somatic

visionary symbolism may, perhaps, be compared to having an additional instructional aid that

imparts knowledge and potentially complex conceptual ideology in a way that leads one to

comprehend images and somatic components easily, to assist in helping to remember having

lived the experience.

The fifth constituent was the reported experience of a soul expression as an expanded

essential sense of self, beyond the bounded identity of the individual, due to the ingestion of the

plant medicine. All six participants reported experiencing an ability to connect with a
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psychological aspect within them that had somatic, visual, auditory, emotional, and mental

components that seemed to be separate from the distinct corporeal sense of connection and

extension of self beyond bounded identity. This led them to have an essence of the timeless,

which accompanied a specific somatic orientation with a sense of separateness within spatial

dimensions, as if traveling to what was described as an alternative astral place attributed to the

plant medicine. P2 and P3 reported experiencing a sense of soul expression through mediumship

as an instrument of communication between the living bounded soul and what appeared as the

astral field of disembodied souls, as intermediaries or as conduits of conscious engagement with

another in a noncorporeal orientation within the field of somatic visionary experience. P5

reported experiencing a somatically visual sensation understood to be an expression of soul as a

spiritual component that seemed to inform the state of death that felt independent of the

corporeal and journeyed through highly visual, somatic, and auditory sensations to an alternative

world with many divine Others. All the participants referred to an experience of soul as a

representation of an expanded essential self, distinctly separate from the corporeal self occupying

a specific space and connected over varied expressions of time.

The sixth constituent was the reported psychological experience of a witnessing

consciousness as an active relaxed mental state with the capacity to focus and support the

process of integrated wholeness during the somatic visionary mental alterations due to the

ingestion of the plant medicine. All participants reported experiencing an ability to maintain the

sense of a being a witness within the psychological process, both as an experiential, somatically

connected recipient of teachings and as a continuous witness. The latter appeared as an active

coherent mental resource that seemed to help facilitate a reference point of the experience, as

well as generate a sense of an integration of the communication attributed to the plant medicine.
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P3 expressed having a strong witnessing consciousness during her experience as a sense of

surrendering to the process of mediumship and as an extension of awareness during the visionary

expression. P2 also reported feeling a deep connection and purpose of being consciously guided,

as if from a soul level, while witnessing a flawlessness in physical execution and somatic

alignment in the physical act of singing during the ceremony. P1 described the sense of

witnessing consciousness as recipient perception of an intelligent other that presented a direct

response, understood as a force from outside the bounded consciousness of personal perspective.

P5 reported an embodied sense of witness consciousness, which somatically felt to him like a

form of resurrection, appearing through his somatic visionary experience as a lived

demonstration that may have contributed to integration of a greater sense of wholeness and a

change in self-perception. All participants reported experiencing different perspectives of soul

expression during the visionary experiences, which maintained an actively engaged mind, fully

present with relaxed attention, as though to witness the action taking place as the recipient of

knowledge or insights thought to be given through the plant medicine that is often reported as an

intelligent other.

The seventh constituent was the reported experience of a divine connection expressed as

a form of enlightened awareness as a sense of knowing the essential self. This was experienced

as an enhanced protective grace through a new-found intimacy as being connected to a divine

other, similar to a feeling of being a recipient of undiscovered knowledge. That also held a sense

of compassionate understanding, attributed to the plant medicine that helped them through their

process as an intelligent other. All participants reported experiencing an ability to connect with a

psychological aspect within themselves that had higher knowledge or greater wisdom, seemingly

divinely generated and attributed to the plant medicine. P3 and P4 expressed this feeling when
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reporting that the plant medicine taught them how to navigate challenging relationships, make

better personal choices, be contributing members in their community and be in ceremony, along

with a permanent sense of connectedness to the divine. They saw this as an expression of

supported inner recognition of self-honoring wisdom, as a sense of integrated wholeness and

compassionate self-perception. The conscious awareness of divinity was reported within the

experience as a visionary somatic sensation that transcended ordinary wisdom into enlightened

understanding. P5 described this experience of divinity through his reported journeying to a

place where he had an interaction with a female deity in a place of immense beauty and delight

that intensely affected his perceptual awareness. This experience of death changed his

perspective, allowing him a sense of resurrection, renewal, and tremendous faith, all attributed to

an embodied somatic visionary expression of a divine connection during the ceremony. All

participants reported experiencing a sense of divine awareness through an embodied somatic

vision, with emotional and mental interactions within the process as an enlightened form of

conscious awareness of an intelligent other that came to assist them while they were drinking

Daime during the ceremony. P6 reported a sense of being comforted through a perceived

reassurance by a divine Other that continued as a permanent sense of divine connection. It

enabled her to feel a sense of support through a process of resolving psychological wounds of

self-esteem and behavioral patterns stemming from sexual abuse that seemed to have begun in

infancy.

Additionally, all six participants reported their experience of divinity as a form of

enhanced protective support that reportedly assisted them through their process of integrated

wholeness, even as a sense of compassionate self-acceptance as a resolved pattern may help to

support changes in self-perception. All of them reported being comforted and guided throughout
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their experiences, allowing them to go deeper into their psychological patterns; a sense of

protective grace gave them a feeling of assurance in embodied awareness of faith and trust, as if

being with a divine caretaker. This divine element within their reported experiences seems to

have helped lift their psychological states to a level of increased conscious awareness of unity

and integrated wholeness, which them seemed to enhance their ability to change self-perceptions.

This constituent of divine connection appeared to leave the drinkers with feelings of beauty,

protection, unity, compassion, and peace, something that lingered in a profound and permanent

way through an embodied somatic visionary experience attributed to the plant medicine. The

divine aspect within the experience reportedly had a pronounced effect on the participants,

perhaps making the plant medicine ceremony more memorable and, therefore, even more

impactful.

One of the profound changes experienced through the drinking of Daime during

ceremony seems to follow Shanon (2010), who reported that, for many, ayahuasca is not just a

potion or a plant, but also a Being with special, unique qualities; it may even be seen as a deity.

This would explain the feeling expressed by participants that there was a divine element within

their experiences that helped to inform them of knowledge that was previously unavailable to

them. This came about through a reported feeling of enlightened awareness stemming from the

plant medicine. All the participants indicated that this enlightened awareness within their

consciousness was directly attributable to their interaction with the plant medicine, reportedly

believing that the divine element came directly from the plant. It was this special feeling that

acted to inspire the drinkers, perhaps regardless of content, although content did appear to

support the magnitude of the experience to impact them. Participants reported that this aspect of
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divinity from the plant medicine helped them through their process, through a heightened feeling

of protective grace, enlightened knowledge, and joyful peace.

All participants reported the sense of a divine aspect within their experience as a form of

heightened awareness and knowledge that facilitated a change in self-perceptions and emotional

states of understanding and integrated wholeness. The findings appear to validate information

found in the literature that attests to the plant medicine’s capability to shift the drinkers’

awareness psychologically in such a way as to help them release past pain patterns in favor of

positive mental health. The shifts in consciousness were reported to be so transformational that

many referred to the experience as matching the benefits of several years of psychotherapy

within one ayahuasca ceremony (Shanon, 2010). The current findings help to strengthen this

association, as all the participants indicated that they had worked through some form of

psychological barrier that was previously present and that reportedly altered after they ingested

the plant medicine.

These findings also coincide with documented experiences of indigenous drinkers who

have reported feeling they were “recreated” after ayahuasca inebriation (Reichel-Dolmatoff,

1991). This report resembles the element of permanence reportedly experienced by participants,

who described themselves as being permanently psychologically changed from the experience.

Drinking Daime, according to the statements from the participants, seems to be capable of

stimulation that helped to resolve impending psychological difficulties and reportedly enabled

them to cope with on-going mental and emotional challenges. Profound change through the

drinking of Daime during ceremony, as reported by participants, appears to have a divine

enlightening quality, or some form of a message that confirms integrated wholeness,

compassionate awareness, and inner transformation, due to profound shift in self-perception.

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This outcome confirms the findings in the literature that attest to the traditional use of the plant

medicine as being aligned and known as a teaching plant (Luna, 1984).

A good amount of research has been carried out on the different aspects of the ayahuasca

experience. However, there is still a great need to conduct more research in order to understand

how this unique plant medicine interacts with perceptual awareness and its effects on

consciousness. The plant medicine is said to be different every time for everyone, making the

research inquiries challenging, as each individual and each session is different. This is one reason

why descriptive phenomenological research fits well, as it is an investigation into a specific

experience that individuals have had that seeks to find a shared structure to identify and

understand the phenomenon.

There are many areas of ayahuasca research that still need to be addressed. These include

questions about how the plant may affect an individual over time, or if the plant medicine effects

change with dosage and frequency, or if there is a continuum within the psychological

expressions of drinkers. There are many unanswered questions as to the potential impact of this

particular plant medicine and to whom it is best suited. Each participant had unique experiences,

and yet an overall phenomenon was found within all of these different experiences. Shanon

(2002) encapsulated this aspect of the ayahuasca experience as being an explorative practice that

each individual must undertake in order to find the substantive answers that can be revealed only

through first-hand experience. He posited that there was no alternative to studying this

phenomenology from within (Shanon, 2002, p. 32), thus making a substantial argument for

further descriptive phenomenological studies to investigate the ayahuasca experience through its

impact on different individuals. Consciousness, a subjective experience of an inner self, may be

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best served by investigating the phenomenological aspects through the individual. This topic

deserves more research to validate this small sampling.

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CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS

The profound shifts attributed to imbibing ayahuasca have become increasingly sought as

those who have partaken have claimed to have had transformational experiences. This has led

many others to seek out this medicine as a means to find a sense of integrated wholeness. Such

an undertaking is often accompanied by a strong desire likened to a spiritual quest to connect

with that part of the self that is beyond the human-bounded identity, thereby moving into a sense

of expanded consciousness that seems interconnected with others.

According to McKenna (1992), traditional healers have been using this medicine in

ceremony to draw out aspects of an individual’s personal history where psychic tension comes to

rest. These methods have exhibited startling parallels to the techniques of modem psychotherapy,

as well as seeming to represent access to new possibilities and energies through a spiritual

understanding still largely unrecognized by Western theories of healing (p. 229) The potential for

ayahuasca to become a medicine in the Western sense may require accepting a shift toward

therapeutic modalities with a more holistic approach to the individual that incorporates aspects of

the spiritual. The expression of a person’s soul, as an essential sense of self, may be pertinent in

achieving a state of integrated wholeness in terms of wellbeing. It appears relevant to inquire

more into the plant medicine experience as an entheogen substance. Participants in this study

reported a lived conviction of their transformative experiences, suggesting that we consider a set

of phenomenological findings that seem to point toward a psychic integration of consciousness,

including an expanded essential sense of self, or soul component. These findings seem to support

ayahuasca as a “psychointegrator” of integrated development. The reported stimulation of the

mind, emotions, and a sense of soul as a spiritual component was significantly consistent within

the ayahuasca phenomenon. The plant medicine appeared to help bring individuals into states of
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integrated wholeness, along with forming a type of awareness of a sense of the essential self that

also seemed to extend into a holistic interconnectedness of a communal vision of the world.

Whether or not these spiritual aspects, which are found within the ayahuasca experience and are

well-documented, may have more relevance to the integrated wholeness of an individual than has

been previously understood is yet to be determined.

Ayahuasca is considered by many as a form of the Tree of Knowledge, a resource that

presents access to wisdom (McKenna, 1992). Participants reported that the plant medicine felt

like a teacher, through their experiences of emotional insights, gained wisdom, and a sense of

learning and realization attributed to drinking it. Ayahuasca is often seen as a course of training,

as if in preparation to enter a school (Gorman, 1992) that appears to require a certain level of

training in order for students to participate effectively (Shanon, 2010). Looking at the plant

medicine within this study as an entheogenic agent seemed to call for the mindful participation

of individuals who, in a sense, put forth an effort as conscious witnesses and willing contributors

in order to dialogue with an intelligent other while under the influence of the plant medicine. The

findings within this study implied a shift in self-perceptions that allowed participants to realign

their understanding , based on teachings revealed through imbibing of the plant medicine. These

outcomes were accompanied by an expression of intentionality by participants beforehand,

which seems to suggest that they experienced both a sense of being affected by the plant

medicine and a recognition of their role as intentional contributors. It is not uncommon for

individuals to set intentions before a ceremony. Quite often in the Santo Daime Church those

intentions are also set collectively, as a form of focused guidance for the group experience.

Several of the participants attested to the experience as one that required some form of

involvement as a conscious witness, perhaps as a good student or steward of knowledge. This

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often seemed connected to a sense of goodwill, reconciliation. and compassion. Participants in

this study reportedly considered the possibility of an intelligence within the plant medicine that

was interacting with them. Perhaps the plant medicine facilitates access to a disconnected or

undiscovered part of oneself, or a connection to something outside the bounded identity. To

know definitively would require an extensive investigation of ayahuasca, as well as a greater

understanding of consciousness than has yet been determined.

Although varied ayahuasca experiences have been extensively documented through

cognitive psychological research (Shanon, 2010), this descriptive phenomenological approach

seemed to capture several different ayahuasca experiences within a single reported phenomenon.

This was, of course, a small sampling, and more research will be required. Researchers will need

to consider the intersubjectivity of participants to determine variations in the phenomenon, if

any.

Reported findings related to the participants included elements that seem to correlate with

neuropsychology research, as in altered states of consciousness (ASC) experiences elicited by

meditation practices that reflect a non-ordinary sense of space or time. There were reports

consistent with dramatic shifts as measured by changes in voice, expression, and movements

(Goodman, 1988). These might suggest a form of dissociative trance characterized by

involuntary alterations in consciousness (Winkelman, 2000). The neodissociative theory that

explains the paradoxical phenomenon occurring within hypnosis of divided consciousness

(Hageman et al., 2010) may be applicable; indeed, it seems to suggest that mediums are not in

communication with a separate spirit entity, but rather in dialogue with another aspect of

themselves within their own psyche/mind. Participants reported a distinct sense of witnessing

consciousness within the mediumistic experience with an intelligent Other, which suggests a
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form of duality with consciousness that may reflect the neodissociative trance characteristics.

Further descriptive phenomenological research with a larger sample may help to shed light on

this possible connection.

It is interesting to note that traditional indigenous ayahuasqueros (directors of ayahuasca

sessions) have indicated the importance of a participant’s personality, as if each person receives

exactly what he or she merits according to his or her focus. This can be understood as a level of

openness or being clear physically, mentally, and spiritually to receive what is offered through

imbibing the ayahuasca, as determined by the individual’s mindset (Shanon, 2010). Such an

understanding of the ayahuasca experience reveals an inter-relational aspect that appears to

invigorate and intensify the individual’s area of focus, even as a religiously oriented person

might be inclined to experience visions of a divine nature or an adventurous person might

experience a journey to a surreal or fantastical place. Another might have experiences that relate

to daily life, one’s profession, or one’s relationships. if that is where the primary focus is found.

It seems reasonable to assume that ayahuasca may be especially useful in researching

consciousness, in addition to medicine and healing. Perhaps it could help in treating

posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by alleviating the psychological trauma of unresolved past

events. More research will be required to understand better the inter-relational considerations of

ayahuasca and personality based on an individual’s conscious predisposition. Other factors, such

as the effectiveness and intensity of the medicine, may be relevant in terms of its use in a

therapeutic setting.

Experiences reported during the plant medicine ceremony seemed to encourage the

process of integrated wholeness through a sense of emotional encouragement and safety in self-

expression. A feeling of acceptance often appeared as a kind of creative response of openness,

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curiosity, and exploration in acts of creativity such as art, music, poetry and dance. These may

reflect a release of build-up emotional and mental energy gathered through personal shifts of

perception, as a part of the process of psychic integration and mental adherence to the

information presented through somatic, visual, auditory, emotional, and mental expressions of

insight during the ayahuasca inebriation. An ayahuasca vision, or miração (healing vision),

experienced by the participants reportedly provided a strong impetus for resolving experiences in

terms of a sense of integrated wholeness, with symbolic imagery holding meaning to the

individual and subsequently becoming incorporated into creative expression upon reflection in

such forms as paintings, poetry, sculpture, music, and lyrics. The creativity coming from these

intense transformative experiences may offer another aspect for study, leading to greater

understanding of the creative connections and symbolic resolutions of psychological trauma

found in artistic expressions, even while delving deeper into the study of ayahuasca as a

psychointegrator.

Although it is not unusual to have creative expression arise from some type of inner

reflection, the plant medicine seems to push the boundary in the field of conscious activation, in

that a feeling is reportedly experienced whereby mysterious forces seemed activated and

participatory in the creative act while under the influence of ayahuasca. This experience of the

impact of ayahuasca inebriation on the individual has been described by Benny Shanon as

follows: “It was not that I was an automaton nor was I enslaved by any external agent, rather the

playing was the expression of a wondrous co-operation between me, my very self, and forces I

felt were superior to me “(2010, pp. 220-221). This perceived presence of an apparent intelligent

other or mysterious outside force is a unique quality of the ayahuasca experience, in that it feels

relatable, connected, and intelligent, as if able to bridge consciousness in order to reach a higher
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potentiality within its own field of experience ‒ or, in a sense, to transcend to a higher

potentiality that may only appear to be separate. To understand this mechanism within the

experience of ayahuasca use will require greater inquiry into ayahuasca studies and the

parameters of individual consciousness, in order to reveal the potentiality and hidden aptitude in

the alterations thereof.

The changes of consciousness acquired through the ritualized practices found in the

syncretic religion of Santo Daime appeared to demonstrate a collective awakening of the deep

human desire to discover that which lies beyond our normal, everyday lives. The search for spirit

connection within the ritualized journeys of drinking Daime appears to be specifically designed

to help answer the quest for God or a higher consciousness. Although each experience is unique

to the individual, the clear sensitivity to the religious experience of each member expresses

authenticity for all, even within the highly regimented ceremonial practices. Science may not be

able to verify what is happening within the consciousness of mediumship, but the journeys

traveled by the mediums attest to profound changes taking place within the consciousness of

individuals who practice this form of altered perception:

A symbolic or ceremonial experience is real and affects one as much as an actual event.
The psyche is unaware of the difference between an outer act and an interior one. Our
shadow qualities are lived out equally well ‒ from the viewpoint of Self ‒ either way.
Culture can only function if we live out the unwanted elements symbolically. All healthy
societies have a rich ceremonial life. Less healthy ones rely on unconscious expressions:
war, violence, psychosomatic illness, neurotic suffering, and accidents are very low-grade
ways of living out the shadow. Ceremony and ritual are a far more intelligent means of
accomplishing the same thing. Ceremonies the world over, and from every age, consist
mostly of destruction: sacrifice, fasting, and sexual abstention. Why? These are the ritual
languages that safeguard the culture by playing out the shadow in a symbolic way. It is
easy to fall into the error of thinking that we protect the culture by obliterating the
destructive elements. But we will see that there is no way to energize a culture except by
incorporation of them … true religious ceremony has to contain as much darkness as
light. (Johnson, 1993, pp. 52-53)
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85

The symbolic representation of consciousness as the other world of spirits allows for a

dialogue that cannot happen in any other conscious way except, perhaps, through dreaming. The

idea of spirit incorporation may frighten many people, as it opens the door to that which lurks

within the shadows of the mind. However, spiritistic ceremonies seem to permit a “paying out to

the shadow” in a ritualized form of redemption, thereby clearing the consciousness of the

recipient who is allowed to make a way through to health that is not entirely understood. Clearly,

that the Santo Daime religion is a strange eclectic container, ever-evolving, potentially bringing

certain challenges to those who try to navigate it without a guide. Thus it appears that a guide is

needed, whether it is a disembodied spirit or a physical human in the form of a medium.

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86

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________________________________________________________________________________________________www.neip.info
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APPENDIX A

Informed Consent Form

(For subjects participating in interviews)

INFORMED CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE IN RESEARCH

Purpose: It is the goal of this research to study the essential psychological structure of the
experience of being profoundly changed through the use of ayahuasca in the context of a
communal spiritual rite and to understand a limited view of this lived experience. The resulting
data from this pilot study will inform the direction of future research studies. This project is
being conducted by Jacqueline Senator Orcutt, a graduate student at Saybrook University, in
partial fulfillment of the dissertation requirements.

Principal Researcher:
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt
P.O. Box 557
Tiburon, CA 94920
[email protected]

Procedures:
[1] This study involves a brief interview conducted by the researcher in person.
[2] Completion of these procedures will require approximately 30 minutes of participation.
[3] The interview will be digitally voice-recorded.

Possible Risks and Safeguards:

This study is designed to minimize as much as possible any potential physical, psychological,
and social risks to you. Although very unlikely, there are always risks in research, which you are
entitled to know in advance of giving your consent, as well as what safeguards will be taken by
those who conduct the project to minimize the risks. Those risks include personal identification,
association with certain practices, and psychological triggering of intense memories or emotions.

I understand that:
[1] Although my identity shall be known to the Principal Researcher, all identifying
information shall be removed at the time of transcription of the digital voice recordings.
[2] My responses to the questions will be pooled with others, and all identifiers, such as
name, address, and related information that might be used to identify me, will be given
a number or pseudonym.
[3] This informed consent form will be kept separate from the data I provide, in a locked
file for five years, known only to the Principal Researcher, after which it will be
destroyed.
[4] The data collected in their raw and transcribed forms are to be kept anonymous, stored
in a locked container accessible only to the Principal Researcher for five years, after
which they shall be destroyed.
[5] Transcribed, anonymous data in the form of an interview transcript will be kept
indefinitely for future research.
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95

[6] All the information I give will be kept confidential to the extent required by law. The
information obtained from me will be examined in terms of group findings and will be
reported anonymously.
[7] There is to be no individual feedback regarding interpretations of my responses. Only
general findings will be presented in a Summary Report, to a copy of which I am
entitled, and my individual responses are to remain anonymous.
[8] None of the personal information I provide associated with my identity will be released
to any other party without my explicit written permission.
[9] If quotes of my responses are used in the research report, for the final pilot study report
or dissertation, or in any and all future publications of these quotations, my identity
shall remain anonymous and at most make use of a fictitious name.
[10] I have the right to refuse to answer any question asked of me.
[11] I have the right to refuse at any time to engage in any procedure requested of me.
[12] I have the right to withdraw from participation at any time for any reason without
stating my reason.
[13] I have the right to participate without prejudice on the part of the Principal Researcher
and other persons assisting the Principal Researcher.
[14] It is possible that the procedures may bring up thoughts of an emotional nature that may
upset me. In the unlikely event that I should experience emotional distress from my
participation, the Principal Researcher present shall be available to me. She will make
every effort to minimize such an occurrence. However, should an upset occur and
become sufficiently serious to warrant professional attention, a recommendation to that
effect will be made by the Principal Researcher.
[15] By my consent, I understand I am required to notify the Principal Researcher at the
time of any serious emotional upset that may cause me to seek therapy.
[16] I will receive a copy of this signed consent form for my records.

Regarding any concern or serious upset, you may contact the Principal Researcher at
415.259.9561. You may also contact the Research Supervisor of the project, Dr. Stanley
Krippner, at [email protected]. Should you have any concerns regarding the conduct and
procedures of this research project that are not addressed to your satisfaction by the Principal
Researcher and her Research Supervisor, you may report and discuss them with Dr. M. Wilson
Williams ([email protected]), the Director of the Saybrook Institutional Review Board.

Possible Benefits:
I understand that my participation in this study may have a possible benefits, namely, that of
enabling the Principal Researcher and others working in the topic area to contribute to
knowledge and theory of the phenomenon under study.

Summary Report:
Upon conclusion of this study, a summary report of the general findings will become available.
If you would like a copy of the report, please check the box below and provide the address to
which you would like it sent (your email or postal address):
________________________________________________________________________________________________www.neip.info
96

 I would like to receive a copy of the Summary Report

Postal or Email Address:

______________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

Consent of Principal Researcher

I have explained the above procedures and conditions of this study, provided an opportunity for
the research participant to ask questions, and attempted to provide satisfactory answers to all
questions that have been asked in the course of this explanation.

Principal Researcher Signature Date

_____________________________________________________________________________
Principal Researcher Name

Consent of the Participant

If you have any questions of the Principal Researcher at this point, please take this opportunity to
have them answered before granting your consent. If you are ready to provide your consent, read
the statement below, then sign and print your name and date on the line below.

I have read the above information, have had an opportunity to ask questions about any and all
aspects of this study, and give my voluntary consent to participate.

Participant Signature Date

Participant Name
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APPENDIX B

Interview Script

Please describe in as much detail as possible a specific experience drinking ayahuasca in

ceremony which has profoundly changed you. What was it like?

(The researcher asks minimally-directive, open-ended follow-up questions as needed.)

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APPENDIX C

Confidentiality Agreement for Transcription Services

I,____________________________________________, Transcriptionist, agree to maintain full

confidentiality in regard to any and all audiotapes, videotapes, and other documentation received
from Jacqueline Senator Orcutt related to her Phenomenological Study of Ayahuasca
Experience. Furthermore, I agree:

1. To hold in strictest confidence the identification of any individual that may be

inadvertently revealed during the transcription of audio or videotaped interviews, or in
any associated documents;
2. To not make copies of any audio or videotapes or computerized files of the transcribed
interview texts, unless specifically requested to do so by Jacqueline Senator Orcutt.
3. To store all study-related audio or videotapes and materials in a safe, secure location
as long as they are in my possession;
4. To return all audio or videotapes and study-related documents to Jacqueline Senator
Orcutt in a complete and timely manner.
5. To delete all electronic files containing study-related documents from my computer
hard drive and any backup devices.

I am aware that I can be held legally liable for any breach of this confidentiality agreement, and
for any harm incurred by individuals, if I disclose identifiable information contained in the audio
or videotapes and/or files to which I will have access.

Transcriber’s Signature Date

Transcriber’s Name
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APPENDIX D
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P1 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
I'll describe the first P1 describes the first time P1 reported drinking a
experience, because that was drinking Daime with a group preparation taken as a
a very profoundly changing sponsored by a university. P1 form of what was
experience, where I drank it is invited due to the fact thatdescribed as plant
with a group of people, she knows a member of the medicine as something
including X [chuckles], at a group. P1 does not feel the that would potentially
place in the Haight with Y. It effects of the medicine she perpetuate a form of
was sponsored by a ingests and desires more. P1 psychological or in a
university. And I got invited thinks about requesting a way spiritual healing for
just because I knew X. So, I larger dose of medicine. the first time in a
didn't feel the effects of it. ceremony and felt a
We drank it. It was a Daime. sense of questioning the
And I was waiting, and I was strength and power of
thinking of going and asking the drink to affect some
to see if she could give me kind of a recognizable
more, because I didn't feel it. physiological change or
shift in awareness that
follow a feeling of
impatience.
Then I just sat with my eyes P1 takes a moment to close P1 reported resting in a
closed for a minute, and I her eyes. P1 experiences a relaxed state when what
saw this post get slammed surprising dynamic vision felt like an energetically
down right before my eyes, with her eyes closed of a post somatic form of
even though my eyes were being forcibly placed in front awareness descended,
closed. of her. grabbing her attention
unexpectedly, while
simultaneously
presenting an intensely
colorful and light
enhanced visual
depiction of an image,
as clear as though her
eyes were open, of a
post being forcibly
planted directly in the
center place of
consciousness as if
placed right in front of
P1.
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P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
And then I saw two snakes P1 experienced a vision of a P1 envisioned within
go up on either side of it, like caduceus :two snakes going the Miração, or healing
intertwining. And then their up on either side of it, like vision, what was
heads moved back like cobra intertwining. And then their described as a visual
heads, and then this golden heads moved back like cobra depiction that evolved
ball on top. heads, and then this golden into a more elaborate
ball was on top. display revealing two
snakes that moved up
the post, as if inter-
twining rhythmically,
then stopping at the
very top of the post to
extend themselves,
displaying their full
presences, with their
hoods out, followed by
having a light-filled
spherical orb that
appeared above the post
and twin snakes and
glowed brightly,
completely engrossing
the consciousness.
Oh, I need to preface this by At this special ceremony for P1 reported being asked
saying that it was Curá, and healing, P1 was instructed in to focus on an area to
when we drank the tea, they the Curá to think about what receive healing and
told us to think about what she wanted to heal. P1 was decided to heal what
we wanted to have healed. physically healthy and was described as the
And so, when I drank it, I decided to heal her inability inability to feel
wasn't really sick of any- to feel connection to others. connection or closeness
thing, but I was feeling and affection that leads
alienated from people. So I to intimacy and deeper
thought about [how] I would relationships with
like to heal feeling alienated others.
from people.
And so back to the vision; it P1 describes her vision of a P1 reported an
was this pole with the snakes pole with snakes on either expanded and elevated
on either side. And then this side. P1 describes a ball in state of awareness that
ball in the middle said, “Get the middle that said, “Get seem to allowed a
closer to God and you'll be closer to God and you'll be Miração healing vision
closer to other people.” And closer to other people.” P1 that was somatically
it was just this message that I experienced a feeling of visually and mentally
really didn't expect, and I being stunned by the insight received in the form of
didn't have it already in my of the message, as she imagistic symbolism
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P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
mind. It was not something experienced a feeling that the with a somatic sense of
that I felt like I thought up message came to her from other that included an
and then showed myself. I outside of her own auditory message that
felt like it had externally consciousness. P1 speculated acted like a direct
been shown me from some about being in answer to the healing
alternate intelligence. communication with some request, as if the
form of higher intelligence. question was answered
by a powerful presence
that appeared out of the
quiet of the mind into
an elaborate display of
unexpected wisdom,
like saying, Find what is
sacred and it will bring
a feeling of
connectedness to
everyone. P1 reported
being stunned by the
insight of the message,
as the experience gave
her a feeling that the
message came from
somewhere beyond P1’s
own comprehension, a
thought P1 believed she
could never have come
up with by herself and
seemed so insightfully
directed to the point of
the healing issue that P1
understood it as a force
from outside of the
bounded consciousness
of personal perspective
and with a feeling of
being in communication
with something that was
viewed as other and
wiser than P1’s own
mind, something that
was of higher
intelligence that could
help if asked.
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P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
It just convinced me that P1 experienced a shift in her P1 reported a profound
there was some other perception of her awareness change in perceptual
doorway to some other place, that opened her up to more awareness that gave her
where I could get more information and gave her the the feeling that this was
information or some feeling that she had a new a new conscious
intelligence smarter than me conscious connection with a connection with what
that had a way of showing higher intelligence. P1 was described as a
me or talking to me that I experienced the message supremely higher source
didn't really experience given to her as having an of inner knowing that
before. enlightening piece of had an elevated
wisdom that felt within her awareness and wisdom.
as a recognition of truthful P1 reported a candid
knowledge being bestowed knowledge from what
unto her in order to heal felt like an outside
through the instructions in source that represented
how to move into healing by a foreign concept with a
specifically identifying the completely unknown
issue beyond her feelings of answer to the heart of
separation and alienation. P1 the issues. P1 was
felt the dialogue was struck by having the
communicating with message given in a way
something other than her that could be
mind and was unlike understood instantly as
anything she’d ever if a divine Other could
experienced. see into the depths and
relieve suffering by
giving the most succinct
and beautifully faceted
gift of knowledge that
also bestowed a
pathway to attain the
goal, a message
perfectly crafted to the
inquiry.
I've taken drugs that caused P1 had experienced drug During the miração
hallucinations, but they induced visions before that healing vision, P1
weren't like you have a were without a felt sense of noticed the experience
question and then you get an connection to a higher of the plant medicine
answer to that question in source. P1 described her was different from what
such a direct way. experience as being was experienced with
connected to a higher other psychedelic drugs,
intelligence through making because, unlike a typical
inquiries that were followed random visual spectacle,
by direct answers. P1 experienced a
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P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
directly scripted
response, as if it were a
purposeful, detailed
reply in dialogue with
an enlightened
intelligent Other that
instructed P1 by
answering the query
with what was reported
as a dialogue with a
wiser intelligence, a
distinctively separate
Other from P’s normal
consciousness that
directly responded with
an unimaginable answer
to the request for
healing the feelings of
alienation. P1 reported a
direct connection to an
intelligent transcendent
Other through visual,
somatic, and emotional
sensations in the mind
that had reportedly
never happened before,
convincing her that the
plant medicine was like
a form of intelligence
that had entered into
communication with her
through the act of
imbibing it.
It changed me, because I P1 allowed the experience to P1 reported a strong
started going to work and it act as a catalyst in her life desire to follow the path
changed my whole life that creating a new social circle, that would continue to
way. That event was career interest, worldview, connect to what was
important because of that. and strong dedication to understood as a Source
(Background note: P1 is continue to participate in of healing through a
referencing her lifestyle and ceremonies. sense of inspiration and
career choice as an wisdom. She felt that it
ayahuasca researcher, author, seemed to be found
artist, and active practitioner within the plant
of an ayahuasca religion). medicine ceremony.
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P1 Meaning units P1 Transformed meaning P1 Further

units transformations
The experience was
reported as to have
profoundly changed P1,
who then became
dedicated to working
with the plant medicine,
which acted as a
catalyst, creating the
foundation for new
social circles, career
interests, life practice,
worldview, and strong
dedication to continued
study of the plant
medicine.
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APPENDIX E
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P2 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P2 Meaning units P2 Transformed meaning P2 Further

units transformations
Well, the experience that I'm P2 felt a strong desire to P2 reported still being
thinking of was basically I show up with integrity in in the early stages of
was still in my whites, and I honoring her mission of initiation and having a
had kind of come into the service by intending to passion to align with
Daime, and I'd been coming support the ceremonial the doctrine with what
more, and feeling really structure by adhering to the felt like a strong desire
called to it. And, so there highest standards in her to show up with
was this element of my own participation within the integrity in a way
intention being there, just ceremony and her role in it honoring the mission of
really adhering to the as a conduit of light and service by intending to
structure - me wanting to service. P2 intended to be of support the ceremonial
show up, right? So that was service within the ceremony structure by following
something I was bringing to by acting as a channel for the all the rules and
the experience, that I wanted energetic force within the standards in
to show up. I wanted to be of practice by invoke the participation within the
service. I wanted to do my awareness of being the ceremony and the role
best in that container and container for this force as in it as a conduit of
become a part of it, and bring well as anchoring the graceful service as
all of the gifts, and the light vibration of energy that filled described as an open
that is in my being, this the space. P2 described this channel of presences
channel could bring. And I force as a representation of and awareness. P2
feel like that's what I brought energetic gifts and light that reportedly intended to
to this work, and that's what I is her pure essence, felt and be of service within the
showed up with. That set the experienced within the ceremony by acting as
stage for the experience that emotional and mental fields a pathway for the
I had. of awareness. P2 dynamically powerful
experienced a sense of inner surge of physical,
power in her intentions for mental and psychical
the ceremony as a foundation vitality and strength
and permission to be open. building within the
practice by invoke the
awareness of being the
container for this force
as well as anchoring
the vibration of energy
that filled the physical
and rite space of the
ceremony. P2 reported
this force as a
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P2 Meaning units P2 Transformed meaning P2 Further

units transformations
representation of
energetic gifts that felt
like empowerment,
confidence and grace
that was defined as a
sense of pure essence
of soul presence, felt
and experienced within
the emotional and
mental fields of
awareness. P2 reported
a sense of centered
awareness within a
feeling of inner power
in the intentions for the
ceremony as a
foundation and
permission to be open.
And, so I had this feeling P2 realized that she would be P2 reported having a
that there wasn't going to be called into a leadership distinct feeling of
any woman to push - to sit at position by being asked to precognition to be
the table and to pull the fill the role of the female asked to lead and felt
hymns - and that was a lead singer when no one else both sense of
concentration of work. And I was there to do it. P2 felt excitement at the
knew the hymns okay, but I confident in her ability even opportunity and
didn't know them that well. though she had never done it feelings of awe at being
And I had been going before. Additionally, P2 felt summoned by the
enough that they were in me others knew her voice was building energy of the
enough, I'd heard them strong. ceremony to come and
enough times that on a lead as the central force
subconscious level, I felt like of the rite as a channel
I knew them well enough. and singing the
And I just had this feeling hinarios, sacred text
that it was going to happen. hymns believed to be
And, so I get there, and I sit authored in the astral
back. I see there's no one world. P2 reported
there and I'm sitting back, feeling a calling to a
and I didn't sit at the table. specific service within
And finally, right before the the ritual, one of honor
work starts, W calls me up held by the entire group
and he goes, "Q, you need to and as understood as
sit here because no one responsibility and
showed up to sit in the recognized both the
pushadora's spot." And they potential limitation in
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P2 Meaning units P2 Transformed meaning P2 Further

units transformations
knew I had a voice relationship to the
[chuckles]. hinarios as well as its
power as a living force
already awakened and
well-practiced that
linked the hinarios to
guide the singing of
them well. P2
reportedly arrived and
found that the thoughts
and feelings had before
coming had accurately
described what was
about to take place that
helped P2 to further
surrender to the
invitation to take the
lead as Pushadora. P2
reported confidence
and saw it reflected
back by the
expectations and
recognition by other
members who seem to
know it too.
So, I just remember in that P2 felt a surge of excitement P2 reported a feeling of
moment it was like-- because and slight anxiety just before anticipatory excitement
I knew it was coming, I being asked to sit at the and slight anxiety of
could feel it, and I was kind table. P2 experienced an being aware of what
of scared. There was just a increased awareness of her felt like the pending
little bit of fear of-- but I potential to express beauty. shift in opening
think it was this fear actually P2 decided to center herself consciousness as if, a
of just like, "Oh, my God, and focus inwardly with her form of spiritual action
the beauty of opening to such eyes closed to calm herself. accompanied with
beauty that I knew was performing the lead
coming." My heart was role as orator and
beating. I just relaxed with it, feeling of faith as if, to
and just sat there and closed believe and be centered
my eyes. in personal confidence
and a sense of sacred
trust in way was
understood as the
process of psychically
stepping into a
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P2 Meaning units P2 Transformed meaning P2 Further

units transformations
powerful alignment
with what felt like a
divine mantle of
strength, wisdom and
grace that then gave
way to feelings
surrender in joyous
hopes and aspirations.
P2 reported an
increased awareness to
express beauty and
focused on a sense of
grounding and
anchoring the intense
energy into a rooted
place within as
preparation to serve as
an instrument as an
open recipient of
increased energy.
In that moment, when I first P2 experienced a profound P2 reported having felt
sat down in that chair, I shift the moment she sat in a sense of divine will
completely surrendered. I the pushedora’s seat of being arriving in the
completely surrendered completely open to the designated position of
myself, my being, to God, moment and releasing authority ‘the chair’ at
and I let go of everything to everything in favor of her central table in the
the most I think I've ever let intention to be conduit of the middle of the rite space
go in that moment. It was Divine within herself. P2 at the main altar to lead
this complete opening like, stated her intention with the ceremony finding in
"Thy will be done. Just do prayer to let go of her it a sense of celestial
what needs to be done rational mind in favor of communion with the
through me. I am yours." spontaneous action in spiritual aspects of
And this prayer to let go of singing naturally. souls both as a somatic
my mind, to let go of the sensation of increased
thinking part, the doing part, energy in the physical
and to just be, and to allow body and that felt in the
myself to be sung, to be space around the
lived, to just be a conduit. corporeal as a release
from the bounded
mental attitude with the
willingness to serve at
will in a feeling of
surrender. P2 reported
a shift releasing the
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P2 Meaning units P2 Transformed meaning P2 Further

units transformations
conscious limits in
awareness that allowed
a sense of the divine
alignment in fulfilling
the role of Pushadora
(the person
energetically
responsible to push the
vibratory force behind
the singing by actively
lifting the vibration of
the room by what felt
like tending focused
mental attention on the
mystical nonphysical
domain held within the
rite of consciousness of
set parameters through
the felt sense of the
current changes in
nuances within the
group maintaining a
continual connection to
somatic, psychological
and physical fields
revealed in the rite
space and its members)
being in mediumship,
as an instrument of
communication
between the living
bounded soul and what
appears as the astral
field of disembodied
souls, as the
intermediary for the
ceremony. P2 reported
a shift that felt like
complete immersion
into a vibrant force that
flowed out unimpeded.
P2 reported entering
into mediumship where
the voice became that
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tool to project the
energy of the full force
of the hinarios that
gave the sense of being
the instrument to lift
the vibration higher as
a radiant vehicle of the
sounds.
So, I think that was my P2 recognized her own P2 reported feeling
portion in it, which is also connection to divinity within confident and
the piece of me that is the action of her prayer to be connected to an inner
God inside of me making of service through her feeling of Divinity that
that prayer. So, the work singing. P2 experienced a informed an intimate
started. Part of that was release from the mental fears acceptance of the self
letting go of the fear, right? that normally distract her that allowed expansion
I'm not going to let these from feeling confident and into a sense of freedom
things that normally get in by choosing not to focus on in the confidence to
the way-- because I think others. carrying out of P2 own
we're all channeled; we all expression, fully
have this ability to channel. competent and
But the things, I see them get completely in
in the way of my channeling, alignment with P2 own
of such purity and divinity, sense of divinity and
and the fear, the judgment of feeling independent
I'm not doing it right, from outside influences
or holding back because and associated
somebody's going to be upset judgements of the
with this. All of that, bounded person and
just clear that, don't let any relations to that role
of that come in. gaining feelings of
deeply rooted in love
and acceptance. P2
reported this as a
voluntary giving over
to this force while still
holding a sense of
reverence and respect
as it felt like tending
this connection as a
form of service through
actively surrendering to
the process to the
perceived will of the
Divine Other.
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And, so I just opened, and it P2 experienced a pure state P2 reported an
was my voice, it was like, of being a living instrument alternative awareness
"This is my voice?" This is creating music by allowing that felt like being a
my voice singing. And the herself not to judge herself or living instrument
words, the Portuguese, making any additional effort creating music with the
everything, it was to have the experience. voice as if, a conduit of
just coming through me. I energy that felt
was being sung. It was movement somatically
the experience of being sung through the body with a
- letting go, not in the mind, mental state of
not in me doing it, not me alertness witnessing as
making it happen and a centralized focal
thinking about it, but just point of the
being sung, and I continued nonphysical that came
opening. pouring out exquisitely
formed and perfectly
executed as if
performed in the
corporal by this
mystical energetic
force as if, having a
sense of connection to
a powerful current of
what felt like kinetic
energy that was
somatically felt like
pressure that continued
to expand.
And, normally, the first P2 experienced an increased P2 reported
drink, the force comes kind awareness within the consciously permitting
of softly and not super sensations she normally felt the expansion of the
strong, but I remember like and attributed the increased powerful force that was
five or six hymns in, the awareness in her mental and building within as a
power and the strength of the sensatory state to her somatic expression to
force, it was so strong. It was conscious state of flow. grow unimpeded
so strong. And it wasn't the feeling it grow more
medicine; it was the state powerful as by letting
that I allowed. go into the experience.
P2 reported the intense
receptivity to the
nonphysical energetic
field sensed from
within the corporal as a
focal point of entry that
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somatically felt as
kinetic movement like
a pressure building and
expansion that
encourage the platform
for the plant through a
sense of actively
surrendering to the
somatic expression
with a heighten visual
perception and a
feeling of increased
mental awareness.
And, so as soon as it came in P2 experienced within this P2 reported an
to that strength, that my state of flow the ability to alternative state of
voice, these high notes, it achieve a new level of consciousness through
was like, I just let go. performance skill with ease mediumship that
Because sometimes in my and delight. P2 reflected on included a somatic
voice, my mind gets in the her state of consciousness as expression of mastery
way on higher notes, it's like being full of clarity that that transported the
I want to--I'm worried I'm informed and expanded her mind from feeling as if,
not going to hit it or I'm experience. making an effort to an
trying too hard. It was just experience of having
coming. It was like there was the ability to what felt
nothing even-- it was just like to achieve a new
coming through. It was no level of performance
effort, no pushing, just skill with ease as being
complete relaxation, and it full of clarity that
was so powerful too. It informed the
wasn't like I was trying to performance and
push the voice above expanded the
everything. It was just there, knowledge of the act.
like this crystal light P2 reported feeling
illuminating everything. fully released from the
state of being the doer
as the active director of
performance as if, free
from actively doing to
a sense of having it
done through oneself as
if, moved by a fluid
somatic force that did
not require any
apparent participation
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mentally to facilitate
beyond what was
described as a state of
open receptive mental
concentration, as if
surrendering to an
apparent powerful
current of what felt like
kinetic energy that was
somatically felt like a
continuum of
momentum and vigor
expressed as easeful
mastery and found a
sense of great freedom
and joy in the
expression filled with
profound clarity and
appreciation for
everything in this
alignment as easily
sustained energy that
felt effortless and
nourishing in the sense
of feeling great love
and compassionate
wisdom.
I was like, "Well, this is so P2 experienced a state of P2 reported an
much fun [chuckles]." I was harmony with a sense of alternative state of
having such a good time deep joy and purpose being a consciousness filled
because it was like dancing free expression of her with harmony and a
with that power, and not in creative self. The sense of deep joy and
this way of like, "Oh, I want experienced left P2 feeling purpose, in a sense of
more." It was just like, "This awe-struck. being a free expression
is what I was born to do." of the creative self an
The first [?] song, we sang expression that seemed
[?], and by the end of that, I filled with animated
was just like, "Oh, my God talent as a dynamic
[chuckles]. Oh, my God." ability to bring forth
beauty as if, awe-struck
by the natural aptitude
and to find such a
powerful connection to
what felt like an
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endowment of
competence as
performing with
expertise. P2 reported
feeling a destined
alignment having been
delivered to the perfect
place connected with
purpose and natural
gifts, as if, a sense of
perfectly designed
divine expression of a
totality made from all
the elements of people,
places and appearances
including an expansive
sense of unifying
connectedness within
the cosmos felt through
a somatic mental
awareness.
I remember the lights go P2 recalled a break in the P2 reported an elevated
down for the concentration. singing to focused silent meditative state of
As soon as it went down, the meditation within the awareness that
sounds, the cars on the ceremony. The suddenly permitted speaking
freeway, it was like each car silence in the room brought with what was
that went by, like three or P2’s awareness to the outside understood as energetic
four times, just leveled. I noise jarred her. P2 then others that somatically
went into this really high reported she experienced an felt like separate
astral plane. I've never been altered state of consciousness entities and mentally
that high before, and I was where she visited her spirit identified as familiar
just in this space of my mind. guardians. P2 felt a deep guides that informed
It was an expression of my connection with the beings about potential changes
mind, and all my guides she encountered in this to behavior and mental
came. And they came, and I alternative conscious state of states of awareness.
just had the most profound awareness. P2 then Miração P2 reported
experience with my guides, experienced an object within having an experience of
and I saw myself with them, her field of awareness that mentally witnessing the
and we were dancing and symbolized negative forces corporal body receive
becoming one, and it was that were pulling on her labored attention that
just this plain-- and then I awareness until she made a also had an
saw this thing appear; it was statement of denial that accompanied somatic
like the gates of Hell in the landed her in a conscious sensation within the
plain. And it was coming state of dullness. P2 physical body as what
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closer, and I was looking at experienced intensely was described as a
it, and it wanted to take me insightful dialogue with healing that was
in, and I said, "No." And I different aspects of perceived to be
went into boredom. I met my conscious awareness that performed on the
boredom too in that space, revealed ways to alter her physical body by
and all the guides, they were behavior to heal. During this etheric others while in
just like, "Do, do, do." It got exchange P2 for had a what was described as
really slow, and it was like, visionary and somatic a state of altered
"Oh, this is this thing. This is experience of the healing consciousness and felt
what--" And, so I went into forces removing toxins from a physical sensation at
this really powerful healing her throat and face allowing witnessing as if, the
too in this whole different her to fully access her healing forces were
way that I had. It was in this potential. removing toxins from
mental expression, so it was- the throat, face and
- that part was really, really body that were
powerful. And they came, understood as to allow
and they healed me, and I fully access to potential
could feel them pulling by removing blockages
things out of my throat that had a sense of
chakra, and all over me - limitations both
pulling things out of my face, adopted from past
just opening everything in experience as well as
my body for my voice. that remnant residue
absorbed from negative
projections of self and
others within those past
experiences as if, to
allow potential freed
energy expression to
flow unobstructed. P2
reported entering into
communication with
these inner forces that
felt like a stream of
conscious emotional
states delivered through
an actively moving
visual display of mental
imagery and somatic
emotional presence of
the material visited that
took expressions of
different visceral places
of collected feelings
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and mental
determinations, as if a
survey of the inner
field that felt as though
physically visited as
separate distinctive
areas during the healing
passage and found a
somatic and mental
comprehension of them
passing through them.
Then, when the P2 expressed the time spent P2 reported an intense
concentration ended, I had in concentration allowed her healing during the time
gotten leveled up even to deeply tap into a in meditation and
further, because I had given mindfulness state of understood that the
myself this space. Sometimes permission to heal that gave time was given to
when we're singing it's like her a greater sense of being process thoughts and
we're so-- it's hard to have lifted up emotionally. P2 reflect on the
enough space to take a really acknowledged not always knowledge received in
powerful healing. I'd given allowing the mental space to meditation that had felt
myself the space to really heal due to being too focused as if, allowed the
receive in that concentration on performance when healing that often
period, singing. eluded because of the
mental activity required
while singing. P2
reported a sense of
released old judgments
and concerns that
affirmed a new
wholeness as though
healed in an expression
of upliftment, like an
empowered opening in
a what felt like a new
spacious acceptance.
and I met my soul mate too. P2 recalled experiencing her P2 reported a state of
His name is Z in the astral, soul mate within her height consciousness
and he came. It was just this state of meditation that communication with an
incredible timeless reflected a sensation of the expression of what P2
experience. eternal. describes as an eternal
Other, a spiritual
companion and
understood this
exchange as a level of
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support and beauty
from an elevated
spiritual potential
expressed within the
mind that felt a warm
loving sensation that
uplifted the emotional
state with feelings of
significant connection
as if, presented a
foundational sense of
healing acceptance of
self and empowered
wholeness that gave a
deep sense of the
eternal.
And then the concentration P2 experienced a witnessing P2 reported feeling a
hymns came. My voice was consciousness within her freedom from thinking
just even more open, even awareness that allow her to or initiating action
more perfect. It was just have freedom from thinking instead, felt as though a
perfect. And I didn't have to or initiating action. This conscious conduit of
try, I just let it come. I just awareness of the Daime led the hinários. P2
let the Daime teach me. And P2 through a pathway within reported a sense of
I paid attention, I watched, I the spirit of hinários leaving mastery while singing
listened, so that I could P2 with a feeling of deep the hinarios as though
retain, but not in a grasping connection and purpose as envisioning they’re
way. It was like the feeling she sang effortlessly. were being performed
of what was happening through P2 to learn, as
versus trying to mentalize it, if, in essence a direct
trying to, like, "Oh, this is lesson from this
this thing, and the sound, and elevated psychic field
the shape." That's sometimes expressed as an
how I want to analyze things, otherworldly dimension
with my mind, and get very from where the hinarios
nitty-gritty detail. But it was are believed to
more just like, "Feel this. originate and that this
Feel the hymns. Know the force felt like an energy
hymns, where they come beam that felt like it
from, and being with them in came down from the
the place that they're from heavenly spheres and
and pulling that down. And out into the salão (the
as you pull that down, open container for the
yourself to the unique beauty ceremony as the rite
that you are." space that includes the
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physical chairs, tables,
altar space, the
members and the entire
equal counterpart in the
astral realm of the
disembodied spirits) of
the rite as if, through
the body in spiritual
participation through of
surrendering as thought
to being led by the
Daime through a
pathway of the spirit of
the hinários that are
believed to be a living
vibrational link with
the spiritual realm from
where they are held,
honored, studied and
received from the astral
and considered to be
direct transmissions
from the astral as living
teachings that P2 felt
connected as a feeling
of anchoring the
spiritual energy that
was propelling the
unfolding spiritual
canon as if, as a living
doctrine into the rite
and felt as an embodied
the energy that was
then expressed through
the singing. P2 reported
feeling a deep
connection and purpose
of being consciously
guided as if, from a
soul level while
witnessing a
flawlessness in
physical execution and
somatic alignment in
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the physical act of
singing as both radiant
and special.
That rest of the work was P2 discovered that her P2 reported singing as
just really being in that experience of singing in such being divinely guided
space, but me seeing the an exquisite and divinely and gave the true sense
unique being that I am and guided way gave her the true of being a vital
what I was born to bring into sense of being a vital and presence in the world,
that space or wherever I go, bright presence in the world not only when singing
my potential to bring beauty in everything P2 does not as a divine spark of
and light in a way, and to only when singing and what conscious light that has
smile, and to be the light, and a valuable gift that is to the potential to lift
to laugh, and to break up the others. P2 experienced others through its
rigidity, to break up the herself as a divine spark of conscious presence in
seriousness. This light, this conscious light that has the the world. P2 reported
lightness, this pure like potential to lift others a profound change
crystal beauty that just through her conscious within the rite that was
dissolves all that. And the presence in the world. P2 expressed as a bright
voice is one expression of experienced a profound light of inner awareness
that, and I think that's what I change with the rite that was that open the mind and
discovered. My voice can be expressed as a bright light of heart to accept
one expression of that, but inner awareness that open transformations of
it's also in everything. her mind and heart to accept mental obstructions and
Everything can be an transformations of mental heavy feelings into a
expression of that same thing obstructions and heavy sense of confidence and
that I'm learning through the feelings into a sense strength emotional vitality
voice. and emotional vitality. grounded in the
feelings of unity and
uplifted encouragement
for everyone while
envisioning a catalyst
of energy and
celebrating this special
unique presence in an
offering to others with
the vision that this
expression was as if, a
special gift like a
heavenly vocation as a
gifted unique presence
in the world.
Ever since that day, I kept-- I P2 felt the experience P2 reported a
feel my Portuguese changed changed her permanently by permanent change in
forever, and my improving her skills set and the ability to speak and
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understanding, my ability to expanded her understanding understand Portuguese
feel what I was singing, and of the language. P2 that was attributed to
to also let go, and to let experienced a state of an the initiation that was
myself be a conduit, to let alternative consciousness thought to have been
myself be a channel. And that she described in her received during the
I've never had, since awareness as being a mediumship through
that day, any experience medium or instrument for the the spiritual dimension
quite like that with the medicine. of the ritual. P2
Daime. reported being
completely different
having undergone the
journey as it felt like an
imprinting of the
hinarios and also what
felt like a trained way
to access the same
current of energy at
that level continually to
grow and expand as a
living part of the ritual.
P2 reported a
permanent shift in the
ability to connect with
the hinários in a deeply
intimate way that gave
a feeling of having an
enlightened
understanding, a state
of an alternative
consciousness that was
described in awareness
as being an
intermediary channel
for the spirit of the
plant medicine.
And I think part of it was P2 attributes a large portion P2 reported feeling
that I had to step up, and I of her experience to her pulled by a sense of
think that was a big part of it willingness to participate, responsibility and a
for me was realizing that part engagement in the process desire to service as no
of what allows us to open in and following the request to other could do what P2
these profound ways is manifest her highest had been called to do
having the opportunity to potential and perform her that evening as if,
have to, to have the pressure. best. through a preordained
There's no choice. If you agreement with such a
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don't do it, nobody's going gift of mediumship
to. And so, so the comes the opportunity
opportunity, this invitation for great service that
like, "This is your chance to feels actuated by the
do it." To offer yourselves. sense of a willingness
And to just give it all you to serve and as P2 was
got, to be the best of yourself capable of doing this
right now. task even though
unproven and a novice,
filled with trust, faith
and the connection felt
before the ceremony
help to assure the
decision to step
forward and fulfill the
service without holding
back, encouraged to
explore the unexpected
potential. P2 reported
as sense of having an
opportunity to perform
a task that required an
alignment with the
other members and
confirmation by a vital
sense of divine order
that informed everyone
through the presence of
a collective mental
agreement in a felt
sense of energetic
balance and
preparedness. P2
reported a sense of
courage and
expectancy that
transformed into lived
acceptance of
responsibility with
feelings of assured
confidence.
And I feel for me, that's how P2 discovered that her P2 identified a sense of
I thrive. And that's part of emotional self is best served self that was felt to
what that experience taught when she feels that she is have led to a sense of
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me is the way I thrive is by being in service as an emotional freedom that
really feeling that I have a offering from her to the inspired a sense of
role to fill, a service that isn't community. P2 found her empowerment that help
a burden, but is a choice. inner power to create her to ground a sense of
That's the journey that's own opportunities of service purpose as capable to
unfolding now, and to learn without waiting to be invited actively give something
to create that for myself, to by others. that is valued and
not wait for somebody to put useful.
it out there, but that
I actually can create for
that myself.
I may not sit at the table and P2 realized that the role she P2 reported a profound
be the Pushadora, but it's not plays within the collective change in the
about where I end up. I know does not determine or limit awareness of self-
I can be that if I want to, and the gift of who she is and her identity that shifted
that there's something really ability to offer her highest self-values, feelings of
special that I bring with my self is possible at all times, competence, ability and
being no matter where I am - especially within ceremony. actualize potential with
and especially in these works a sense of liberty to
- and to keep remembering envision a continual
that and to hold onto that link with what was
experience as a guiding star understood as divinity
so that in the times when I that felt like a form of
forget, it's there. reliable guidance. P2
experienced self-
discovery that gave the
opportunity to be in the
leadership role within
the collective that
helped connect a
feeling of inner worth.
P2 experienced the gift
of the ability to reach
within to a sense of
honoring and
respecting all the
unique abilities as a
way to offer the very
best of oneself through
the experience of
witnessing radiant self-
expression. P2
reported a profound
change in awareness
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that P2 plans to use as
an anchoring point in
the future to keep this
connected feeling to the
highest potential
focused in the forefront
of consciousness.
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APPENDIX F
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P3 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P3 Meaning units P3 Transformed meaning units P3 Further

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Wow, that's ... it is pretty P3 remembered an alternative P3 reported having
profound, the question. The state of consciousness since she remembered an
first thing that came to mind was a child that made her aware alternative state of
was, it's going to sound of what she described as an consciousness as a state
religious, but I was having a additional world filled with of noncorporal
lot of issues with etheric energy beings. P3 did determination as if,
mediumship and contact with not know how to identify these having a self-awareness
the spirit world since I was a experiences. that felt as a spiritual
child, but I didn't know how being capable of
to refer to or put a name the travelling to what
it. seemed like the astral
world that seemed to
bridged contact with
multiple others
described as energetic
beings during
childhood and with a
willingness to go
deeper as it felt natural
even though P3 didn’t
have any names or
definitions of what P3
was doing she felt
comfortable with it
happening since P3 was
a child that made aware
of what was described
as an additional world
filled with etheric
energy beings that then
later came to
understand that the
experiences were a
kind of mediumship.
P3 reported feeling a
sense of a burden with
this connection as it
was outside secular
life.
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So, the Daime was a great P3 learned through the use of P3 reported
school to teach me how to the medicine how to use her experiencing an
navigate the spirit world and natural ability to explore alternate state of
I would go in these altered alternative states of consciousness where it
states and completely be consciousness that took her to felt like being in a
somewhat transported to past deeper levels of her familial place of learning in a
life memories, ancestral roots within her psyche. kind of presence of an
realms, and with all that I intelligence master that
would access things of my appeared to have an
lineage. ability to foresee into
all facets of the
individuals’
consciousness in a
sense of
multidimensional time
as a sense of the past
that included what was
understood as
preincarnations of the
individuals’ former
lives and life
connections that
included all relatives
living and deceased, a
sense of present time as
a reference point of
orientation of the
individual and future as
a form of directional
actions to take and then
appears to effectively
organize a lesson plan
as if, being given
guidance in the form of
insights into the deeper
aspects of the
individual seeming to
adjust perspectives,
releasing emotional
attachments and a sense
of limitation, in a sense
processing
psychological
constraints of identity
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and associations of past
experiences as what is
described as healing
school of knowledge
through what was
assumed to be the
entheogenic plant
medicine as the
expression within the
experience seemed to
follow a prescribe logic
that appeared visually,
somatically, mentally
with an emotionality
that accompanied a
specific somatic
orientation that had a
sense of separateness
within spatial
dimensions as if
travelling to what was
described as an
alternative astral place.
P3 described that the
plant medicine felt as
though it had become
the teacher that
deepened the fluid
connection to what felt
was the spiritual realm
connected to an etheric
plane where P3 felt was
able to pull from a vast
data base of ancestral
knowledge. P3
reported an initiation
into a school of
learning in the Santo
Daime tradition and
through the rite use of
the plant medicine was
described as what gave
support and a type of
knowledge based on
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what felt like how to
use the natural ability
of mediumship to
explore alternative
states of consciousness
that went as if, to
deeper levels of
familial and inherited
cultural roots within the
psyche that felt like a
deeply spiritual
connection that felt as
if, presented feelings of
navigating past lives
and ancestral lineage
through a somatic
emotional and mental
expression of
understanding what felt
like a collection of
stories, notions,
prejudices, injustices,
associations with
identity, inherited talent
with a sense of pride
and in a sense releasing
all that appeared to
weigh down the
potential for growth
and personal
expression as if,
unburdening as to gain
a sense of freedom,
empowerment and
supportive knowledge
to in a sense act from a
place of personal
confidence and self-
empowered awareness
through honoring and
acknowledging the
perceived teachings
reportedly given
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through the imbibed
plant medicine.
My mother's side primarily, P3 experienced a very strong P3 reported feeling
and the suffering of the recall of maternal connections capable to openly
women on my mother's side. and deeply rooted wounds of express the emotions as
I remember the first time inherited cultural pain from the in physical tears filled
Daime I cried so much, women she connected too. P3 with a sense of held
nonstop. I've never cried like experienced herself as an open back reactions that
that in my life. My culture, conduit of emotion and found weren’t allowed to be
Latino culture, we're taught the freedom to fully release all shed or shown seemed
to be strong. To somewhat, those emotions through her to opened feelings of
like, hold back those type of tears. P3 reported she had repression, a sense of
feelings, and it was at never been allowed to cry and being not allowed that
Daime, it completely opened felt a shift in adhering to then lifting up freely to
my heart, and it was like the cultural norms. P3 experienced be accepted as if,
floodgates just opened, and I the outpouring of her tears as a present in a heart
cried and was remembering release of karmic build up as centered way with
other lifetimes, you know? pictured through her mind. permission, a sense of
compassionate
acceptance to
experience feelings,
with a sense deeply
rooted recall of
maternal connections, a
sense of the emotional
depth of feelings
carried consciously by
females with the
heightened awareness
of wounds and that
seems to be understood
as inherited cultural
pain from the women
connected too P3 that
felt as an open conduit
of emotion with a sense
of the freedom of
expression to fully
release all those
emotions through tears.
P3 reported a shift in
awareness that allowed
the freedom to express
openly without shame
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to cry because it was
authentic as the
outpouring of tears was
determined through the
visual storyline and
emotional mental
dialogue that
accompanied these
linear historic somatic
expressions was the
formation of an
understanding that a
lifetime of karmic build
up released as if
watching what was
releasing as it was
pictured through the
mind through a visually
somatic emotional and
mental expression of
what appeared as a
collection of stories,
notions, prejudices,
injustices, associations
that seemed to be
regarded as
psychologically
limiting as if, to clear
away constraints to
self-expression of
emotional freedom.
It was on the big island. I P3 experienced a challenging P3 reported working
was laying down in the force within her consciousness with emotional and
healing room, and I was kind during the ceremony while she mental energies in
of trying to navigate lay in the healing room. P3 association with what
mediumship and the spirit worked to balance her mental was described as
world and spirit stuff come state within the challenging different noncorporal
to me, and I remember being realm of energetic beings she others that
by myself and trying to found within her consciousness overwhelmed with an
trance and trying to by focusing on eastern intense presence that
visualize, kind of more philosophical remedies of needed a response to
Oriental, Eastern ... Krishna. invoking different deities to claim space among the
Lord Krishna in my mind, to create a feeling of safety and entities P3 asked for
get me through the passage inner peace within her mind. protection from the
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of the spirits that I was spiritual orientation of
dealing with. Krishna to ask for as if,
the esoteric meditation
and chanting practices
P3 was apparently
using as a means to
reach a higher level of
consciousness might
somehow help to call
out for a form of
spiritual refuse through
the divine presence
within those specific
practices as represented
as the Lord Krishna as
a kind of relief and
peace. P3 reported
feeling a challenging
force within
consciousness during
the ceremony and
wanted to create a
feeling of control over
the immediate
emotional state with a
sense of safety and
inner peace as though
to gain a sense of
freedom from what
appeared to be outside
influences that felt like
mental agitations and
emotional unrest within
the mind.
One sister sat down by my A close personal friend who P3 A close maternal friend
side. She's been Fardada a lot trusted and felt a maternal bond appeared during the
longer than I have, and I with came and sat with P3 and reported distress and
used to call her like my held her hand and told her to seemed to know that
mother in the church, pray to Jesus for help. Jesus would serve
because she would care for better to clear away the
me and support me. She sat bad spirits P3 reported
next to me, she held my encountering as if,
hand, and she prayed to connecting to what was
Jesus. perceived as the energy
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of Jesus Christ by
calling the name Jesus
would somehow be a
stronger kind of
spiritual anchor as to
bring a feeling of
peaceful protection and
P3 reported listening
closely and then chose
to let the feeling of
trust guide the passage
through the challenged
moment followed the
kindred spirit of a
friend’s advice like
being soothed by a
loving mother.
When she did that, at first P3 had a strong somatic At first P3 only felt
my tongue would not allow experience of total resistance in resistance to Jesus as
me to say, "Jesus." It would response to saying the name there felt to be too
just stop firing. It was like “Jesus”. P3 saw the resistance much in the way to
against anything I wanted to as a hindrance to her growth in relate, a sense of
do, to say those words. But at the conscious expansion of her defiance towards an
the same time, seeing that I awareness and ability to adverse feeling of
was struggling, and I was perform mediumship and chose programming from
just kind of wanting to to verbalize the words “Jesus, childhood and society
advance and further in my Lord Jesus”. that seemed to be
development with avoided and ignored
mediumship, I opened then shifted to a place
myself, and so I started of releasing what felt
repeating, "Jesus. Lord like an aversion as an
Jesus." attachment to the past,
mental and emotional
feelings of censure and
rebellion griped
progress until actively
asserting to call Jesus
with a conscious
awareness to surrender.
P3 reported a strong
somatic response of
total opposition to
participate in calling
“Jesus” a sense of
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defiance and refusal to
accept that progressed
into a understanding a
sensed as a hindrance
to maturing awareness
and ability to perform
mediumship, as a sense
of being in the full
acceptance of what felt
like a spiritual truth as
felt to be focused on
love, followed by a
chosen conscious shift
that brought acceptance
and released a feeling
of conflict by
verbalized the words
“Jesus, Lord Jesus”.
I remember how liberating it P3 experienced a feel of P3 reported witnessing
felt to come to terms with the freedom and empowerment a Miração (healing
name, and everything the within the understanding of the vision) that transported
name represents. What is symbolic view of the Lord awareness to a visually,
saw was image, you know Jesus Christ. P3 experienced a mentally and
Miração? An image of Lord Miração, Divine healing vision somatically to feel as if
Jesus Christ walking along of Jesus. P3 experienced her in a heavenly Paradise
the dessert. So calmly and so consciousness as an alternative with a strong sense of a
gracefully along the desert moment in time witnessing the divine Other identified
and the horizon, and what living presence of Jesus as the presence of Jesus
looks to be maybe the sunset. walking in a vividly colored - accompanied by Him
And the colors, you know, desert at sunset. During the with a feeling of being
the orange sherbet and gold. vision P3 experienced a freed, as a sense of
If that in itself, just looking transformation of being lifted from past
at him walking and it just consciousness that removed all attachment, judgments
he's Jesus, you know? It the negative energies and and associations that
really comforted me. That emotions from her awareness. were felt as though had
comfort released all that somehow limited the
tension I had, all the spirits, full potential of
those things I was feeling personal expression
around me just kind of that seemed to be
disappeared. released that
encompassed somatic
and vivid emotional
imagery imprinted
what felt like the
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essence of Jesus and as
if, in that instant felt a
sense of miraculous
peacefulness. The
Miração that helped to
shift the awareness had
profoundly changed the
perception of the Christ
and through a sense of
being with the Christ
felt a sense of
empowerment within
the understanding of all
the symbolic
viewpoints of the Lord
Jesus Christ and what it
represents as a Living
Presence that felt filled
with intimate
knowledge and what
felt like direct
experience. P3
reported feeling as if
having been with the
living master Jesus
during the Miração, as
presented as if
transported with a
feeling of traveling
back in time to walk in
the presence of Christ
and it filled the space
with a feeling of divine
grace as all the
afflictions and
harassing energies
faded away into
feelings of calm
beauty, a sense that
removed all the
negative energies and
emotions from
conscious awareness.
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It was that powerful to P3 experienced a powerful P3 reported a powerful
connect to that archetype, to healing in the form of an inner healing of released
connect to that name, and to, connection within her psyche mental obstructions
within myself, to finally that allowed her conscious that help to shifted
come to terms with it, it was awareness to change and belief systems that felt
healing. become identified with the filled with emotional
sacred. freedom through the
Miração described as a
perception of the
Divine Other that
seemed connected that
allowed the awareness
to be intimately
acquainted with Christ
and to be identified as a
sacred encounter.
It was in that moment that I P3 experienced an epiphany of P3 reported a sense of
realized that there was a insight revealing the multi- wholeness as healed of
distinct separation between layered symbolic impact and feeling estrangement
Jesus, the man, the master, representative meaning within within societal
and the church. culture and society juxtapose a expression of Jesus
lived experience of the with a new sense of
archetype of Jesus. direct connection, a
sense of deep
communion with the
Christ during the vision
that gave a personal
understanding of that
presence in different
places in life. P3
reported feeling like an
epiphany of insight that
revealed multi-layered
symbols that
represented meaning
within culture and
society that were put
aside in what felt like a
shared lived experience
of Jesus. P3 reported a
permanent shift in
consciousness that
reclaimed the personal
meaning of Christ as it
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was felt as a genuine
and authentically
intimate exchange
through the Miração
(healing vision).
That in itself changed my life P3 experienced a profound and P3 reported a strong
forever, because before that, permanent change in her belief resistance from feelings
you know, being raised and viewpoint. P3 experienced experienced during
Catholic and everything, I a complete reversal of strongly childhood and the
had developed such a strong held viewpoints that revealed education that left a
... It was more than a hidden triggers and old wounds complex pile of
resistance, it was like, you of the past centered in the unwanted beliefs that
know, you just don't want to “Jesus” of her youth. suddenly felt changed,
look at it. You just don't even released feelings of
want to think about it. It was rebellion and angst
like repulsed by the name associated with the past
Jesus. It was just a trigger. It simply seemed to drop
would bring up so much away. P3 reported a
emotion. It would bring up profound and
so much feeling. It's charged. permanent change in
That name was so charged. how she felt towards
and conceived her
relationship with Jesus
as a personal direct
connection of a living
being, that determined
a new perception that
felt as if it completely
reversed the previous
strongly held
associations, beliefs
and feelings of
resistance in childhood.
It was, what I came to realize P3 experienced a past life P3 envisioned a series
in that time, it wasn't just regression within her conscious of visual and somatic
because my Catholic awareness that revealed a series sensations as a form of
upbringing in this lifetime as of lifetimes with similar themes regressive cleansing
Luna, but it was multiple of systematic repression that within conscious, a
lifetimes, you know? That I included her current ancestral sense of resolution and
got to see the Daime. I'd line. P3 experienced a understanding with
been a witch in Europe or my tremendous surge of awareness what appeared to be the
ancestral lineage of the that freed her consciousness to soul of the individual
native central American. So evolve beyond repression and as though beyond the
that memory in itself was so limiting belief structures that bounded identity of
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powerful that to actually changed the way she perceived individual that revealed
accept it, I would say that the world. P3 believes this what felt like a review
that was probably one of the permanent shift in her of lifetimes each with a
great gifts that I received in awareness was due to the similar themes of
the Daime, and that was life ingestion of the medicine. systematic repression
changing. that included current
feelings within the
cultural identity and
close associations with
relatives that were
accompanied by a
tremendous surge of
awareness that freed
consciousness to
evolve beyond feelings
of repression with the
sense of releasing
limiting belief
structures that changed
the way the world is
seen and interacted. P3
reported a permanent
shift in awareness
because of what felt
like an interaction with
another that focused on
learning that took place
after imbibing the plant
medicine and reported
feeling completely
changed as she felt a
better understanding
about how she was the
way she was from the
perspective of what
was understood as a
collective soul story
revealed through what
was described as the
teachings received by
the plant medicine. P3
reported profound
gratitude for the what
she considered as
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teachings given by the
plant medicine as it felt
as though a living
being was in deep
communication with as
the sense was that the
plant was the teacher
and the meeting came
through the
commingling act of
ingestion.
Because this name, this name P3 experienced a shift in her P3 reported a
is this Master, this name ... conscious awareness that heightened awareness
you know, he's still a showed her the impression of of Jesus Christ as a
presence that lives, and it the Christ energy throughout result of what felt like
really, and anywhere you the world as a living presence being in the Holy
turn and look there's being echoed in symbols presence after saying
reference, a church or a cross throughout society. P3 the name Jesus and
or a cemetery. It made me experienced the transformation being engrossed in a
really happy to be able to of her old persona into a newly powerfully somatic and
tune in to this universal love formed identity that appeared highly visual, mentally
that he represents. In a sense more bonded to the Divine. focused on the Holy
it made me a born-again name it felt that an
Christian. I would say that impression of the
was definitely more Christ energy was in
significant, because that was attendance throughout
the first thing to came to the entire world as a
mind when you ask living presence being
questions. echoed in symbols
throughout society. P3
reported feeling a
sense of transformation
of the old persona that
felt repressive with past
associations into to a
newly formed
awareness that enjoyed
feeling more bonded to
the Divine, had a sense
of empowered self-
acceptance and
envisioned what felt
like a continued
connection as the most
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momentous and
meaningful gift of
profound change
received through the
rite drinking of
Ayahuasca.
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APPENDIX G
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P4 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P4 Meaning units P4 Transformed meaning P4 Further

units transformations
That's a very hard one to P4 experienced a challenge P4 reported feeling
narrow down to one. I feel when having to choose one overwhelmed with the
that I've had so many particular transformative idea of having to
profound experiences event within ceremony as she choose only one life-
drinking Daime. My very reports having had many changing experience
first time was absolutely prolific experiences. during rites drinking
incredible. Not because it Daime (form of
was all just spliced out, but Ayahuasca made
because I really went into the ritualistically from only
deeper places of myself leaf and vine) as felt
where I was not well, really strongly that many
followed things, and was times there were given
able to release them. It set valued insight. P4
me out on the path that I'm chose the first after
on now. That experience has contemplating that the
only continued to blossom. experience had felt
The self-discovery, the self- deliberate, as if, to
realizations, the beauties, and present a way that felt
the pains. It is really hard to like being given the
narrow it down to one perfect directions for
experience because I really wholeness, as it felt
have had so many profound like it had taken P4
experiences drinking Daime. deep into what felt like
Is there something specific the broken places
that I could speak to? within the
psychological space of
the mind and spiritual
aspects of self as
emotional and esoteric
associations and
beliefs, then felt as
though being taught by
what was described as
given by the plant
medicine that appeared
as a form of a teacher
and seem to provide a
type of knowledge that
was understood as
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essential instructions
for progress in what
appeared a quest to feel
wholeness, a sense of
peace, self-acceptance,
and health.
That would have to be then, P4 chose the first time she P4 reportedly felt the
the first. That was the first drank Daime in ceremony as first time drinking
time it ever happened. The the most profound Daime in ceremony as
first time I ever drank experience to share. P4 the most profoundly
Daime, I ended up having a experienced a full range of insightful as though
really beautiful experience. I emotions that clearly being in a type of
also ended up throwing up revealed all psychological marathon described as
and crying for about six patterns and personality traits being made up of many
straight hours, which is a that requested reconciliation. hours of therapy, as a
very deep experience. It was Although P4 was challenged sense of reviewing a
very much like a rebirth. I during her experienced she wide range of
went through my inner pain, never felt a sense of fear as psychological
my insecurity, jealousy, she inherently trusted the predispositions that
greed, everything that a process the medicine was also seemed to have a
person doesn't want to see in taking. P4 understood that visually somatic
themselves. I was never this experience was truly connection in the form
afraid. I just knew I was in transformational even during of what was reported as
something very deep. I had the process of being ill and physically purging that
so much trust for the grieving. P4 welcomed the seemed to be
experience, and it was medicine with total faith in accompanied by what
absolutely opening. I've its ability to transform her felt like all the
never been the same. wounds. P4 found she emotional baggage
experienced a truly with limited mental
transformational shift within associations that
herself in the ceremony that appeared as a type of
permanently changed how built up of negative
she viewed herself. feelings and judgments
that were felt to be
cleared away through
what was described as
a regenerative process,
as surrendering as to
facilitate a type of
released resolution. P4
report that at times
there was a sense of
being intensely
uncomfortable, as a
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somatic sensation of
the physicality of
purging and a sense of
mentally off-putting as
having a sense of the
shadow part of the
individuals’
psychology as what
appeared as potential
character flaws,
judgments, bad habits
and prejudices that P4
appeared as a type of
limitation to growth in
a sense of achieving
what was thought to be
an integrated
wholeness, a sense of
peace, self-acceptance,
physical and mental
health. P4 reported
what felt like a
presence of complete
trust as if, being guided
through what was
understood as a very
deep curative process
that was described as
being led by the plant
medicine that
somatically gave the
sense of a tremendous
assurance of faith in the
plant medicines’ ability
to work positively as a
type of healer teacher
that was apparently
believed to be the plant
medicine itself. P4
reported surrendering
to what felt like
witnessing a life review
with a full range of
somatic, mental and
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visual information that
seemed to reveal what
was described as a full
range of psychological
patterns and personality
traits that were shown
in a way as to teach
how to best reconcile
for wholeness and what
appeared as the greatest
benefit for individual
personal growth. P4
reported that this
experience felt truly
transformational even
during the process of
being ill and grieving
there seemed to be a
sense of acceptance and
permission to move
forward as though
understanding that this
was in a way part of the
process to what felt like
healing of past
psychological
disturbances and
attachments as
described as a means to
a kind of integrated
wholeness as a sense of
peace, self-acceptance,
and health. P4 reported
a sense of being altered
psychologically, as if
her perceptions,
judgments and
associations had
somehow changed
within in the ceremony
that was described as
being permanently
changed in what
appeared to be the way
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in P4 viewed herself, as
if being able to take
action without any
hinderance from the
past perceptions and
attachment in a sense
resolved as a freer
expression with
empowered choices, as
if supported by
knowledge of what is
best.
Like I said, it opened me on P4 experienced such a P4 reported a
to my path that I'm on now. tremendous shift that it tremendous shift in
It's been 14 and a half years ignited her dedication and perspective so much
of being a regular member, practice of the doctrine and that it felt as though it
singing the hymns, learning social membership in the has ignited a form of
the maracas, learning the Santo Daime church for dedication, a sense of
rituals, learning how to be a almost 15 years. P4 diligence, commitment
sister to the brothers and experienced a continued and earnestness to
sisters in the Santo Daime, fortification of the powerful practice the doctrine of
and continuing to deepen my inner support to transform the plant medicine as if,
journey of self-discovery. and evolve with the use of to embrace a proficient
the medicine. knowledge of all
aspects of the
ceremony and rite
practice as well as what
was described as
becoming an active
social member in the
Santo Daime church for
decades. P4 attested to
a deep belief that felt as
though the medicine
had continued to act as
a powerful inner
support and catalyst of
personal growth as
directed from what was
believed to be the plant
medicine as if, the plant
medicine was able to
act as a master teacher
as a sense to bringing
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instructive knowledge
as if, directed for
personal growth, a
sense of peace, self-
acceptance, and
wholeness, as an
integrated state of
health in mind, body
and spirit.
It was kind of all-inclusive. I P4 had a somatic, visual and P4 reported a sense of
felt like it was visual, but not auditory experience that complete immersion
hallucinogenic. It felt like the informed her through inner into what felt like a
veils had been removed. I visual awareness and a felt depth of knowledge
saw, deeply, in a visual way sense of empathy that that seemed to
but nothing that was fake and reflected the information that communicate on many
dancing, like walls melting was psychologically levels using the
in front of my eyes. It was transforming her perceptions. different senses in the
more in my inner mind's eye. P4 had a synchronistic form of auditory,
It was also very tactile. It experience where painful somatic and visual
was like being revealed memories from childhood symbols, as a means of
something that happened in would arise in the mind communication to what
childhood, and then throwing followed by a purging that felt like to uncover
up and having it actually, left P4 with the distinct meaning of deeper
physically, leave my body. feeling of fully releasing in a issues as though being
At the same time as having a physically and psychological clearly understood the
clear vision of what that was. manner the toxins from the meaning. P4
event. P4 experienced a envisioned this
heighten awareness within communication not
her consciousness that outwardly or
allowed her to witness this psychedelically but as a
passage of healing with full visual mental
understanding. awareness as if, seeing
with an inner vision
that felt intimate and
mysterious. P4 reported
receiving somatic,
visual and auditory
information through
what was described as
inner visual awareness
that felt like an
embodied sense of
empathy that seemed to
reflect the
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psychologically
material that was
understood as helping
to change perceptions
as a means to resolve
attachments that
seemed in a sense a
form of healing
childhood
psychological wounds.
P4 reported feeling a
level of what was
described as
synchronized events as
if painful memories
from childhood would
arise in the mind that
appeared to be
followed by a physical
purging that seem to
give the distinct feeling
of fully releasing in a
kind of physically and
psychological manner
the toxic thoughts,
ideas and associations
from the remembered
childhood wound that
seemed somehow as
aligned expressions as
if, to yielded a feeling
of letting go of the
entangled emotional
burden with a sense of
freedom from the
psychological
remembrance that
reportedly
accompanied the
physical sensation of
releasing a kind of
physical version of
what appeared as
mental and emotional
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disturbances. P4
envisioned a heighten
consciousness that
seemed to allow a
sense of holding P4 as
a type of witness to
what appeared as a
passage of healing with
what was described as
having a full
understanding as to
what was apparently
being released as a kind
of childhood wound
that then appeared to
given a sense of
resolution, a sense of
peace and wholeness, a
self-acceptance.
It was multi-level. On a P4 experienced a state of P4 reported a sense of
mental level, I understood it. consciousness that organized immersion within the
On a physical level, I was input from her mental, Miração (healing
experiencing it. On a physical, and emotional vision), a state of fluid
spiritual level, I was able to intelligence with a deep soul consciousness that felt
see into the depths of it. For awareness of the entire like it organized the
me, it was all-inclusive. It process that included mental, physical, and
definitely had a visual understood meaningfulness. emotional intelligence
component. It was taking me P4 experienced clairvoyant as a visually somatic
on a journey, but it was vision during the healing mental and emotional
inside of my mind. It was process. expression with an
inside of my vision. It wasn't envisioned deep soul
in front of me, like a movie. awareness, as a kind of
soul awareness of what
was described as an
entire process that
seemed to include an
understood
meaningfulness and a
sense of contextual
reference. P4
envisioned the
communicated spiritual
and mental teachings
during the Miração,
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(healing vision) as what
was understood as a
healing process that
seemed to help to
inform what appeared
as a healing journey, a
kind of clearing away
misconceptions in a
way of restoring
balance and harmony
psychologically
through what was
described as an inward
way of seeing, a sense
of clarity, edified
knowledge and a kind
of immediate
understanding of what
was presented.
It felt and changed as it P4 experienced a fluid ever P4 reported a sense of
grew, as I went along. In the changing inner landscape progression during
beginning, it was more of the that informed P4 intimately what felt like a healing
beauties and the splendors. I with uniquely symbolic journey of self-
closed my eyes and I felt like language that helped P4 acceptance a kind of
I was in a cosmic garden. I make adjustments for greater review of positive
love flowers, so it spoke to harmony and balance. P4 moral changes,
me on a personal level. I experienced a level of envisioned as deep
would experience things in a communion with the communication with
very garden-esque kind of medicine that led P4 to the plant medicine
way. Experiences like, I deeper understanding soul. through somatic visual
would be in a journey and cognition as a kind of
then I would see a cockroach looking at all aspects of
in my garden and realize that self with the feeling
a hand was twisted in a extended out to what
funny way. When I relaxed appeared as an
my body, the cockroach expanded whole as if,
would move out of the way to include the whole
and I would continue through cosmos as an evolving
the garden. fluid inner landscape
It was kind of like the garden that seemed intimately
of my soul. informed with uniquely
symbolic language in a
sense a dialogue that
felt as if, as an active
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participant in what
appeared as a moving
living world that
seemed to have an
intelligent other
guiding what felt like a
journey and was
understood to be the
plant medicine. P4
envisioned a level of
communion with the
plant medicine that felt
as if to give a deeper
understanding to the
awareness and ability
to connect with what
appeared as an
alteration of
consciousness as a
means to discover
knowledge through an
intelligent other that
was understood to be
the plant medicine. P4
envisioned a loving
connection of what was
described as being like
the level of the soul, a
sense of identity
beyond the bounded
individual through
what appeared as an
intricate beautiful
pathway assumed to be
led by the plant
medicine as an
intelligent other that
seemed to allow an
appreciation of
everything even that
which could be
improved, a sense of
self-acceptance.
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Then it changed from a P4 experienced a transition P4 envisioned
garden kind of place, to a to a deeper level of soul travelling down what
darker place and was awareness discovering the appeared as a visual
showing me all the pain and suffering that was held pathway described like
suffering that I held in my within her body. P4 a deeper level of soul
body. It was also helping me experienced the medicine awareness, a sense of
to release it. (You feel like it allowed her to release it with totality discovering
stayed with you?) I do. a sense of permanence. P4 suffering, a sense of
Especially, because it was remembered being very wounding from
the first one. I was young. I dedicated to her spiritual childhood as what
was 24. I'm 38 now. It had a studies spending many years appeared to be held
really profound connection before finding Santo Daime. within the body as
with me. I was so sincere at P4 experienced a feeling of uncomfortable
the time of really wanting to confidence that she had attachments and
change myself and to have a found the correct path to psychological
spiritual connection. I had allow her to achieve her hinderances to personal
been working on myself at spiritual goals. growth and peaceful
that point, before I found self-acceptance. P4
Ayahuasca about six years, reported that the plant
really intently. I was looking medicine felt like a
for a way to open the door. It vehicle to fortified and
brought me to that. I wanted supported a kind of
to walk through the door that release of suffering
it opened for me. with a sense of
permanence, a sense of
resolution. P4 reported
feeling very dedicated
to spiritual studies
spending years
developing spiritual
maturity that felt as if,
a kind of preparation
before finding Santo
Daime as if, P4 had
become as though
ready for what felt like
a way to become in a
sense into a state of
sustained enlightened
awareness, as if, to
have a sense of
completeness, a
foundational sense of
self-acceptance and a
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sense of peace with
others. P4 reported
feeling confidence in
finding what felt like
the precise path to
allow a sense of depth
in spiritual goals as it
appeared as though the
plant medicine gave
access to a place that
felt inaccessible before.
I continued to do the work P4 experienced a tremendous P4 described making
afterword as well. I was amount of discipline driven cherished efforts with a
really diligent, especially in mainly by her desire to strong sense of
the beginning, at doing all of transform and be a perfect commitment and a
the homework that was student for the instructions sense of
offered to me. I feel like that she received from the conscientiousness by
was a part of what gave it the medicine. P4 experienced a attempting to follow
same power, was the feeling of success because through with what was
discipline that I brought to it she was able to follow the understood as the
as well. I can see how other instructions due to her spiritual work and
times, when I haven't been as diligence and dedication. P4 perceived directions
disciplined or if one is not as experienced the fruit of her that were felt to have
disciplined, that it could studies because she made an been given through the
fade. I feel like because I'm effort to really honor the plant medicine as a
so intent on change and so lesson she was presented. form of intelligent
eager to follow the Other, as kind of a
instructions I was given that master teacher as
it really helped it to be though P4 was enrolled
concrete. I feel the following in a type of school. P4
through with doing the reported a feeling a
homework that's given to you sense of discipline
and having the self-discipline driven by what was
to obey the requests that are described as a desire to
given to you, is a really be a diligent student in
important part to making the following what was
teachings last. understood to be the
instruction that felt as
though it was received
from the plant medicine
as an intelligent other.
P4 felt success was
happening by being
able to follow the
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teachings given by the
intelligent other that
was described as the
plant medicine because
of what was described
as an intense devotion
to absorb all that was
presented through what
felt like an act of active
participation as if, to
pay attention like being
in a class and then
understand what was
given and then to
apparently practice
through a form of
continuation in daily
life with a sense of
dedication to study
what was understood to
be the lessons received
from the plant medicine
as an intelligent Other
during the ritual. P4
envisioned the fruit of
the studies happened by
an effort that felt as if
to act in honoring what
was apparently
received and then in a
sense cultivate the
lesson as putting
directions into actions
as to adopt changes to
behavior that seemed to
be taught by intelligent
other that was
described as the plant
medicine.
In the experience I was given P4 received instructions from P4 reflected on the
instructions on how to work the plant medicine about her teachings thought to
on letting go of feeling that I self-worth and desire of have been given by the
deserved to be punished. To better treatment towards plant medicine seemed
heal my relationship with my herself. P4 experienced to have a sense of
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mother. To begin a yoga being able to let go of old connection to a sense
practice. At the time, I was a behavioral patterns and heal of self-worth with a
huge sugar addict. I was interpersonal relationship kind of desire to take
given the instruction, for wounds, especially with her better care as if, to be a
instance, to do a really big mother. P4 experienced a better person by
cleanse, which I did. I did a depth of perception that making better choices
six-month sugar-free diet. revealed the woven out of feeling honored
That really changed my inner connections between past in a kind of way of
being. That was definitely behaviors, interpersonal becoming more healthy
one of the homeworks I was relationship dynamics, self- physically, emotionally
given that I followed through care and how it played out in and mentally. P4
with. I really saw how my her life with food. P4 reported feeling
relationship with my mother experienced witnessing her capable in converting
was not super positive and pattern of using sweet tasting old behavioral patterns
how I used eating sweets as a foods to fill her desire for and sensed a form of
way to shield the sweetness happy and meaningful life change possible within
of life. Then it really affected experiences. interpersonal
my body in a way that didn't relationships that
feel sweet, happy, and good seemed to help past
in life. wounds to heal. P4
envisioned the plant
medicine had acted in a
sense as a therapist and
revealed connections
between past behaviors,
interpersonal
relationship dynamics,
food and self-care that
then kind of became a
process to re-evaluate
behaviors
constructively by what
felt was being led by
the instruction given by
the intelligent Other
that was the plant
medicine. P4 reported
feeling as though the
plant medicine had help
in the
acknowledgement of
what appeared to be a
destructive pattern of
using sweet tasting
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things to fill the desire
for happy life
experiences and had a
feeling as to be ready to
make change as there
was a feeling of
empowerment to act on
the lesson given by the
plant medicine, a sense
of edified support.
To actually make a better P4 felt drawn to have a P4 reported feeling
relationship with the cosmic deeper connection with the drawn to act on a desire
mother and have more trust cosmic mother and trust the to have a deeper
in the divine. divine. P4 experienced connection with what
being drawn to a healthier felt like the cosmic
relationship with herself by mother as if, by trusting
trusting the Divine Mother. in that perceived divine
connection that was
experienced as a
somatic, visual and
emotional expression
that seem to follow the
suggestions that were
understood as revealed
by the plant medicine,
as an intelligent Other
in the form of a
teacher. P4 reported
feeling propelled to
follow what was
instructed a sense of
honoring respectfulness
through what appeared
as adopting healthy
behaviors in a sense to
feel connected to the
supportive Divine
Feminine power
encountered through
the plant medicine.
Also, make a relationship P4 experienced a feeling of P4 reported feelings of
with my birth mother and to compassion for her own compassion for P4’s
start forgiving her and mother as an individual and a mother as a wounded
understanding that she's a wounded person without person and felt able to
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person. Not just my mom, support that did the best she heal the past through
but a person who has her could as her mother. P4 what felt like new
own pains and her own experienced forgiveness for feelings of compassion
sufferings who did what she her mother as part of her and envisioned this
could and didn't have the healing process. understanding was
tools that she needed. somehow capable to
helped to bring a sense
of forgiveness for the
mother as part of the
healing process, a sense
of mending through
acceptance.
It was important to me to no P4 experienced a choice to P4 reported feeling a
longer eat a package of mature emotionally in favor sense of alignment with
cookies a night, because it of healthy living and the lessons received
was going to take me down a connected relationships with and felt as though it
path. It was already taking people rather than would be making the
me down a path that I didn't substituting that human choices easy to
want. Instead of finding love connection and fulfillment of accomplish with the
to sweets and yummy things, intimacy with the joy of support of what was
to let go of that and develop eating sugary foods to fill a understood as insights
my emotional maturity and void. gained, as a sense of
sweeten my relationship with healthy living and
life and myself. connected relationships
with people as though
to felt better than
substituting human
connections and what
felt like fulfillment of
intimacy with what felt
like the superficial
feeling of joy in
mindless eating of
sugary foods to
apparently fill what
appeared as a feeling of
emptiness in
connections with
others.
It was a long time ago, so I'm P4 experienced recalling P4 reported recalling
trying to come back to this childhood pain. P4 what was described as
place. Just seeing how it was experienced the realization childhood pain that
with me and my mom, how that her mother was seemed filled with
bad I felt inside, seeing unavailable to soothe her revelations that felt like
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myself as a child and how with love and affection P4’s mother had been
my mom was really lost and instead pacifying her with aunavailable to soothe
didn't understand what to do. substitute of sweet treats. with love and affection
So, if I cried, she would give because of the mother’s
me a cookie to make me feel own apparent suffering
better. I started going to eat and in a way gave the
cookies to make myself feel feeling to replace a
better. Instead of having the desire for the mother’s
love for my mother, I affection with some
substituted it with these form of replacement
sweet things. sweetness in food.
I kind of saw it like watching P4 experienced a visual P4 described a heighten
something, but it wasn't in insight that was more state of awareness that
front of me. It wasn't visual, clairvoyant than felt more clairvoyant
like hallucinogenic. It was hallucinogenic. P4 than hallucinogenic, as
inside my mind, but I feel experienced a clairsentient a somatically visual
like when I closed my eyes, I awareness of her physical mental expression
could see it. I felt inside of body’s discomfort due to the where the imagery
my stomach and my colon, it unhealthy choices that came viewed with the mind
was so compacted and so from a psychological felt similar to a kind of
uncomfortable. All the extra wounding from her mother’s visual memory. P4
sugar, wheat, and everything lack of affection. P4 reported having sensed
I've been packing in there for experienced a series of stages an awareness of the
so long and then I would within the process of healing physical body’s
throw up. I would throw up a through purging and discomfort as though to
lot, or I'd then have to use the releasing her bowels. P4 understand it was
bathroom a lot. Then, going experiences a high level of related to apparent
through the physical aspect emotionality through the unhealthy choices that
of releasing that pattern, and process that then released her seemed to have come
then a lot of tears. Then into a state of recovery and from a psychological
finding deep relaxation and a compassionate awareness of wounding that was
lightning and understanding. what was being healed. understood as if,
retraced and
rediscovered as a
mother’s lack of
affection that seemed to
create what was
thought and understood
as if, to be a pattern for
bad eating habits. P4
reported what felt like a
series of stages within
the process of
understanding the
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depths of cause/effect
while purging and
releasing her bowels as
what felt like a physical
validation to what
appeared as an inward
emotional journey. P4
reported feeling a sense
of release as
emotionality through
the process that then
felt like it pushed her
into a peaceful state
where there was a
sense of recovered
compassionate
awareness as to what
seemed as being healed
throughout the process.
Then more love for my P4 experienced a return of P4 envisioned
mother and an understanding greater compassion and compassion and
that she wasn't a happy affection for her mother affection for P4’s
person. She didn't following her healing mother following what
understand. She was doing process brought on by the was described as the
the best she could to live medicine. P4 experienced a healing process as both
with her own broken place. discerning awareness that physically and mentally
I've been working on my propelled her understanding purging thought to have
relationship with my mother towards forgiveness, been facilitated as by
my whole life. It really had compassion and appreciation the plant medicine. P4
to just come to a place of for who her mother is and reported feeling
acceptance of exactly who not who she’d been wishing capable to discern what
she is. She will never be the her to be. P4 experienced a seemed to propel P4’s
mother I wanted her to be. place of peace in her mother and felt ready
She's exactly who she is, and relationship with her mother. to work towards
I love her for that. I can't ask forgiveness, as
a pear from a banana tree. I compassion and
had to really accept, she's not appreciation for P4’s
going to be the kind of mom mother instead of
I would've loved for myself feelings of as though
in this life, but she is who judging the mother for
she is, and I love her. not being the kind of
mother P4 felt wished
the mother to be to P4.
P4 reported changed
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feelings, a sense that
instead of being at a
loss for not having the
type of mother wanted,
P4 felt rooted in a place
of peace and
acceptance in
relationship with the
mother as a feeling of
accepting who the
mother is as a person,
as to acknowledge the
good aspects present
within the relationship,
a sense of honoring
what’s presented, as
released attachment to
what could be
perceived as missing.
This is what God gave me, P4 experienced a new place P4 reported feeling a
and so this is my lesson, of peace within her release of expectations
which is coming to more of a relationship with her mom by in favor of honoring
place of peace and letting my trusting that it is divinely what appeared as a
relationship be what it is given. P4 experienced divine gift as to now
with her. It's not the deeply gratitude for her mother. feel like it allows a
nurturing kind of love that I sense of appreciation
would love to have. We have for the mother as a
a nice, light, funny, bantering sense of who the
sweetness that I accept. I'm mother is as the mother
glad that we have that. I'm is as to feel grateful for
really glad. what it is. P4 reported
feeling a change, a new
place of peace within
P4’s relationship with
P4’s mom by tapping
into feelings of faith as
to trust what was
believed to be divinely
given as a divine
teaching from the plant
medicine. P4 reported
a shift feeling a new
appreciation for P4’s
mother as now there
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feels as though there is
a way to be grateful for
their relationship as
honoring what is
present.
Also, as I'm becoming a I'm P4 experienced a level of P4 envisions a level of
almost 40. It's been a equipoise having matured equipoise feeling a
journey. If we talked about over time into acceptance but sense of being matured
this when I was 24 or 25, I remembers when these over time into what
probably would have wept. I memories would have caused feels like acceptance
probably would have gone great distress. and described what felt
on about how much pain I like a form of
was in still about it. It really remembering when
has been a journey. At this these memories would
point, I have so much more have caused feelings of
acceptance. grave distress and
upheaval as a kind of
freshness to the wound
that seemed to be
carried for a long time
that now having
appeared to have been
healed seemed less
traumatic through the
process of
remembering.
Also, as I'm becoming a P4 experienced the P4 reported a feeling of
mother myself and just awareness that as a new reflection on the
knowing that I can be the mother she will be capable of awareness that felt as
mother that I needed. I'm not demonstrating the type of though in becoming a
going to try to fix my maternal relationship she mother will in a way
relationship with my mom would have liked to have had demonstrate the type of
through my own relationship with her own mother and maternal harmony and
with my child, but instead, without the need to change affection P4 would
just knowing that I can be the her mother or heal from her have liked to have felt
mother that I know that I mother through her own with P4’s own mother
wanted to have. child. and felt a sense without
the need to change P4’s
mother or a sense to
heal from P4’s mother
through her own child,
P4 described as though
to have achieved a
sense of freedom and
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balance, a sense of
permanent healing of
what felt like a prior
childhood wound.
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APPENDIX H
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P5 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P5 Meaning units P5 Transformed meaning P5 Further

units transformations
Well, I'm thinking of this P5 experienced witnessing During the ceremony
time in X many years ago. It his physical body as being P5 reported that he felt
was during feitio and the St. dead followed by a highly that he had died
Michael work. I seemed to visual and auditory journey meaning felt as if a
have died and went ... and I through a dark tunnel and physical death had
saw my dead body there and into the light where he occurred with a somatic
then I did the ... I went down arrived in an extraordinarily and emotional
the tunnel in the dark to the beautiful place. At the sensation of what was
light. I came upon the entrance P5 experienced a understood to be an
threshold of this other world deep kinship as he found it expression of soul as a
and it was what I suppose filled with loved ones, spiritual component
you might think of as heaven guardians and divine beings that seemed to inform
because it was a place that of light. the state of death as it
was so indescribably felt like the soul was
beautiful that it can't be put capable of perceptions
into words how beautiful this that felt tangible and
place was. I don't remember independent of the
ever seeing it. In any event, I corporal and journeyed
arrived there. It was kind of through highly visual,
like a portal or a threshold or somatic and auditory
something like that and I was sensations to what felt
aware of a number of beings like an alternative
there that some of whom I world that felt like an
was really recognized as actual valid place that
what might be described as gave the impression of
some of my guardian angels coming into contact
or, some of whom I've with many divine
known all my life since I Others with an
have a memory of meeting immediate feeling of
some of them actually in my recognition that seemed
birthing process. Then there's based in an unimagined
some other ones. alliance, and a sense of
epic majesty
accompanied by an
intensely rich visual
splendor of what
appeared as a utopia.
P5 reported feeling a
sense as though being
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outside the physical
body and described
seeing the body
visually from a distance
as if, as a separate
object being viewed
from above and was
determined that the
physical body was
separate from what felt
like the soul that
appeared as the
consciousness of what
was happening and felt
through a somatic,
visual, auditory
expression of
consciousness that was
understood as the soul,
a sense of the
individuals’
personality, collected
knowledge and
associations had
somehow felt as though
traveled towards place
that seemed as if, it was
a type of destination
like a celestial place
where life appeared to
continue as if, in a
wonderfully delightful
place sensed as the
feeling of moving
through a dark narrow
long space that held a
beacon of brilliance at
the end of the journey
that felt as if, arriving
in an otherworldly
place filled with bliss,
beauty and a feeling of
holiness where
described that divine
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Others greeted this soul
who had a distinct
feeling of familiarity
with an elevated
respect as if these
others were deeply
virtuous with a
cognition that they
were like guardians of
a kind, as well as a
sense of intimacy and
trust that had a feeling
of eternity, a sense of
being beyond the
boundaries of time as
if, knowing these
individual mystical
beings in relation to the
soul envisioned as what
felt like many life
cycles as though having
an understanding and
sense of recognition of
what appeared as other
lived experiences in the
form of what was
understood to be
additional different
forms of embodiment
within a kind of
physicality at what
appeared as occurring
at different points
within a kind of
alternative time and
what was understood as
a different expression
of the individual as
though being connected
to what was understood
to be the soul, as a kind
of continuous
consciousness, a sense
of that will never die.
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So, then I'm beholding this P5 experienced standing at P5 reported an altered
place, this realm beyond this the entrance to this heavenly state of awareness that
portal, this threshold and it paradise with a desire to was understood to be a
was so beautiful, like I said, explore it with the awareness spiritual component, a
indescribable in Earthly that he’s left his physical sense of consciousness
terms. It was super attractive, body back on earth. separate from the
and I thought, "Oh wow, this corporal that appeared
is great. I want to go in there to be a kind of
because it's just so beautiful. awareness as an
Who would not want to go?" expression of soul that
Then I still realized that my seemed to inform the
body had died, and I'd left it state of death as it felt
back wherever in this salão independent of the
obviously and wherever I corporal and journeyed
was, someplace pretty far through highly visual,
away it seemed. somatic and auditory
sensations to what felt
like an alternative
domain that felt like an
actual valid place that
gave the impression of
being transported to
mystical abode that felt
so inviting that the idea
of leaving the physical
connection to life did
not dissuade the desire
to stay. P5 reported
having a dual sense of
being aware that the
physical body was what
felt like somewhere at a
far distance from where
the soul was in what
appeared as an different
world with a sense of
awe being at a gateway,
a place that felt to be a
greeting area where at a
distance there was a
vast unexplored place
of unimaged beauty
with a feeling bliss,
harmony and pleasure.
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In any event, so I decide, P5 experienced a strong P5 reported feeling
"Okay, I'm going to enter desire to enter this paradise intensely drawn to
this place because it's the but is stopped and warned by enter into the splendor
only thing I want to do the guardians that once he of this place of
because it's just so attractive enters into this paradise he incredible beauty and
and beautiful." I started to do cannot go back to earth. felt that his entire being
that and then some of these was ready to go explore
beings were like, "Oh wait, a sense of feeling being
hold on dude. Here, just stop drawn to a place of
for a minute because we delight. P5 reported a
need to let you know that if feeling of being halted
you cross over here you can't from continuing as
go back." distinct visually,
auditory and somatic
impulses envision that
the path was barred by
the guardians that felt
as though counseled
with a warning that had
a sense of finality and
envisioned that
entering this domain
had a sense of
permanence that gave
the understanding of
not being able to return
to life in the physical
world, a sense of
leaving behind all that
was contained within
what was understood as
the bounded
individual’s life.
Then I was in a P5 experienced having an in- P5 reported feeling in
communication with them depth discussion with the communication with
that went something like this. guardians of paradise about these other beings gave
I'm like, "Well, I mean you the logistical situation he a response to this
know, I'm you know dead so, found himself in as being perceived message that
I mean that's one thing." physically dead. P5 had a sense of utter
Then I thought about it for a experienced considering the conviction as if, P5 was
while. Okay, what would it consequences of this choice. physically dead as felt
mean if I didn't- obvious almost factual
that the perceived soul
had detached from the
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physical body through
a distinct visual,
auditory and somatic
sensatory impressions
that gave the notion
that the individual was
already dead and this
line of thinking than
turn to a feeling of
reflection and inquiry
as to the ramifications
of what if dead. P5
reported an altered state
of consciousness that
had a sense of lucid
awareness of
communications with
separate spiritual
entities that felt like
guardians of wisdom
and caretakers of life
about the perceived
situation as physically
dead as if the soul was
away from the body.
P5 reported a sensation
like an extension of
time where feelings of
consideration as to
what it would mean to
leave the living world
behind with a sense of
understanding what it
would portend to be
letting go of all those
known, loved and
connected to in life.
Right, yeah. Well, I already P5 experienced an alternative P5 reported feeling
was dead. I knew that much consciousness where he is convinced that he
because I'd seen my dead witnessing himself seeing his appeared to be dead
body as I kind of left the physical body as dead from during an alternative
salão floating above it there. the awareness of being state of consciousness
Well, here I'll tell you the outside his physical body and where he perceived the
really remarkable part as separate in the form of spirit. soul had detached from
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things go. Then I decided I P5 experienced having the physical body
wanted to go cross over this discussions with those he felt through distinct visual,
threshold into this a tremendous intimacy and auditory and somatic
indescribably beautiful place closeness too about the sensatory impressions
and I'm about to do that and repercussions of crossing where visually
these beings, some of whom, over. P5 experienced the perceiving from what
as I mentioned, I might guardians warning him that it felt like a distance his
describe as some of my was a definitive choice with dead physical body as
guardian angels, some beings no second chances. P5 lifeless form on the
I've had communication with experienced himself mentally floor from the
before, had some familiarity going through the litany of awareness of being
with. They said, "Well hold outcomes based on the outside his physical
on, before you cross over apparent facts, notably that body with a feeling of
you should know that it's a he is dead, and his daughter buoyance and
one-way trip. If you enter will be sad. P5 experienced separateness in the
you can't return." Then I himself coming to terms with form of what could be
thought about, "Well, what death and being ready to described as a spiritual
would that mean?" I thought cross over to heaven. P5 aspect of self that felt
of my daughter Q and I think experienced himself like the composite of
it was really sad because I choosing to go into heaven. the individual through a
thought, "Gosh, she'll be so sense of timelessness as
bummed out if Dad dies." I a locus of personhood
thought, "Well, I'm already in the moment as an
dead and this place is really energetic expression.
beautiful." and "Well, you P5 reported feeling a
know, someday she'll desire to cross what felt
actually be here herself I like a threshold into
figure and then she'll what appeared as
understand why I didn't come paradise as a place of
back." infinite beauty, joy and
Then I decided to go, one- fulfillment through
way trip. highly visual and
somatic sensation of
what begins to feel
aligned with this
mental focus of
crossing over to the
place that appeared
filled with rapture and
enjoyment a sense of
pure happiness and
wellbeing than an
interruption enters
consciousness with an
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alerting impulse that
was expressed mentally
as a conversation with
many divine Others
that had a clear felt
sense presence as holy
protectors with felt
connections of kindred
longtime companions
that appeared
somatically as benefic
and virtuous, reportedly
felt as though shared
concern over potential
irreversible
consequences that had
a sense of finality and
envisioned that
entering this domain
had a sense of
permanence that gave
the understanding of
not being able to return
to life in the physical
world. P5 reported
mentally going through
a logical process of the
litany of outcomes of
death, this was
envisioned as
recognition that the
person would no longer
be among the living
that seemed to trigger
the awareness as a
special mental and
emotional focus point
on the immediate
relationship with his
daughter that then
turned to the awareness
of great sorrow and
what would be her
devastating loss. P5
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reported entering a
state of rationalization
where the mental focus
shifted to one of how it
would feel alright to
die, as there was a
sense of the eternal and
an almost obvious
feeling that those loved
and left behind would
eventually be reunited
envisioning in this
same place that felt like
an eternal paradise. P5
felt as though prepared
to face death and felt
ready to make the
decision to cross the
threshold to what
appeared to be a place
of eternal bliss. P5
reported feeling a sense
of peace envisioning
that his daughter would
understand the choice
to be in a celestial
paradise once her time
came with a feeling of
confidences in being
reunited. P5 reported
coming to a state of
choosing to accept
death with a sense of
life as a continuum.
I began to step across this P5 experienced himself as in P5 reported feeling a
threshold and then the Divine the process of decidedly somatic sense of
Mother, the really big mama, going forward into heaven moving to cross the
she kind of grabbed me and when the Divine Mother boundary when a
she's like, "Oh wait, Guy. interceded. P5 experienced feeling of being
You passed the test and now being in direct suddenly seized by
I'm going to send you back." communication with the what felt like an
I objected because I said, "I Divine Mother who revealed enormously supreme
can't go back. I'm dead. I she had tested him, but his godlike feminine force
already saw my dead body. I time had not yet come so he that then felt as though
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already know that I'm dead." was returning back to his entered into mental and
She said, "Well, do you think body. P5 experienced being emotional sense of
that's a problem for me?" I'm confused about how far into communication
like, "Hmm." the process he was and envisioned as a Divine
protested saying he was Mother acknowledging
already too far along the the sense of detachment
process and questioned the and thereby rewarding
logic of coming back from a return to life that
the dead. P5 experienced seem to create a mental
being confronted by his lack crisis of belief as the
of faith in the Divine envision perception of
Mother’s all-powerful personhood was that of
authority and ability to send someone who had
him back in to his body. already physically died
and this mental
construct then shifted
the awareness to a
perceived potential
challenge to what
appeared as the Divine
to demonstrate what
seemed like a power of
over life and death. P5
reported feeling a sense
of being confronted by
a lack of faith in what
was envisioned as the
Divine Mother’s all-
powerful authority and
ability to send P5 back
into the physical body
and in a sense
reanimate life from the
perception of death that
then shifted awareness
mentally with a
envision response from
the supreme celestial
feminine presence as if
to say nothing is
beyond the reach of
this infinite power that
then shifted the
awareness to a mental
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and emotional state of
contemplation with
feelings of reflection.
The next thing you know, I P5 experienced his P5 reported feeling a
know is I'm opening my eyes awareness returning to his sudden sense of
and I'm lying on the floor of body as he opened his eyes corporal alignment in
the salão what's going on and to see that he was out of his consciousness as the
it's been about three hymns. body for 3 hinários and the perception of having
As the master instructs you two fardados tending to him body awareness with
shouldn't be out of your are in a state of shocked somatic sensations of
place more than three hymns. surprise at his return to viewing the physical
I'm looking up at a couple of consciousness and life after surroundings with
friends of mine, a couple of having gotten no pulse or clear, optical, auditory
the brothers their fardados, respiration for five minutes. and sensatory
who I've known for some awareness of the salão
years and they're looking at the ceremonial room,
me like they've just seen a and an awareness as to
ghost. I mean they are pale, the concept of time that
they're eyes are bugging out had passed by
and they're testimony is that consciously knowing
yes, my body was dead. the specific song
They couldn't find a pulse or currently being sung
respiration for five minutes. and understanding as
described in terms of
the time it takes to
singing 3 hinários,
sacred hymns, known
as the prescribed limit
by the Mestre, the
church founder to be
the accepted duration
of time to be out of one
designated spot during
the rite and the
awareness of the
presences of two
fardados, male
members who appeared
to be standing over P5
with what was
described as visual
facial expressions of
shocked surprise as to
see consciously present
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as the two members
reported they could
find no pulse or
respiration for what
was reported as a
period of five minutes.
P5 reported feeling a
sense of strong
verification of coming
back to life as if, with
sense of resurrection
though a mentally
somatic and visual
expression that seems
to accompany a feeling
of reanimation of the
physical corporal
presence, a sense of
embodiment. P5
reported a sense of
confirmation of what
he described as having
a strong conviction of
having died through
what appeared by
having two observers
that told their
experience of
witnessing P5
unconscious and under
further inspection
found that the physical
body was without
respiration or heartbeat
for an extended period
of time that was said to
be about 5 minutes that
P5 felt like a sense of
confirmation of the
perceived experience of
death that helped to
create an additional
feeling of validation
beyond P5’s own
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experiential inner
journey that came from
an outside
physiological
perspective. P5
reported feeling a sense
of having received
conclusive evidence of
the Divine occurrence
through a sense of
matched experience in
the feeling of being out
of what he perceived to
be the physical body
for what seemed
divinely ordained
amount of time by the
founder as the duration
of three hinarios sacred
hymns, that felt
somehow supported as
a part of the living
doctrine and appeared
reinforced through
further what appeared
as a physically
demonstration as
reportedly witnessed in
the testimony of two
seasoned members as
actual physical
consciously aware
individuals who were
paying attention to the
ordeal as eye witnesses
that said according to
them P5 appeared
lifeless for an extended
period of time that felt
concerned and then
relief and bewilderment
as the return of
animation to the body.
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Yeah, so I came back from P5 felt changed with a new P5 reported feeling
that experience and I did feel level of tremendous faith profound and
different, I do feel different. after encountering a near permanent change as a
In a nutshell I would just say death experience. new foundation of
that it amounts to an issue of tremendous belief with
faith. I have a lot of faith a sense of confidence
now than I did before that. in never-ending
reliance, a sense of
trust and support after
encountering what felt
like a genuine death
experience with a sense
of resurrection. P5
stated feeling as though
no longer the same
person as now an
awareness of personal
knowledge that there
feels like there is more
to life as an actual
spiritual dimension and
that for P5 it feels
tangible.
Well, I have personal P5 underwent a profound For P5 it felt as if being
experience with resurrection. change in his consciousness involved in a miracle of
That's a pretty convincing awareness that led to the having what felt like a
trick to come back from the acknowledgment of mortality visit to the Afterlife
dead when you know you're through a physiological and followed by what could
dead. It's not just like, "Oh spiritual journey that be label as a near death
yeah, I died and went down unfolded in his near-death experience that felt
the tunnel to the light.” experience. P5 experienced validated by two other
which I did. That's a pretty death confirmed for him a people’s report of
ubiquitous cross-cultural level of truth beyond a lifelessness witnessed
experience regardless of symbolic form of death and that matched strongly
what language people speak transition used the inward experience
or what culture they're from, metaphorically in visions, visually, somatically
that when you die then you dreams and meditations. P5 and auditory as a
do that, but occasionally experienced a physical form journey to what felt
people do come back and I'm of death that coincided with like a heavenly realm
one of those people. I'm not a rich and fully supportive as described from an
really sure exactly what that spiritual expression of life awareness as an
is like for other people, but beyond death. P5 energetic form of self-
as I said there's two people experienced being validated outside of the physical
who were looking for a pulse by the two witnesses that body and to feel
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and respiration and they watched over his physical consciously returned
couldn't find it for five lifeless body for five minutes back to a sense of the
minutes. while he apparently floated spirit in the physical
above ready to depart awareness of the body.
permanently only to then P5 envisioned a
return. profound change in his
consciousness that led
to the acknowledgment
of mortality through a
sense of the
physiological and a
sense of the eternal
through a spiritual
journey that unfolded
as an apparent near-
death occurrence that
seem to confirmed a
level of truth beyond a
symbolic form of death
although seemingly
aware of a certain
symmetry in the
expression as
something easily
recognizable cross-
culturally worldwide.
P5 strongly associated
with a felt sensation of
resurrection through his
Miração, miraculous
healing vision and its
perceived alignment
with a sense of a strong
physical confirmation
from peers and added
to the personal felt
sensatory experienced
in body and what
appeared out of the
body as having died
and been miraculously
resuscitated as though
having touched a place
of immense beauty, a
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sense of power and
glory as if, a Heaven
and then returned to the
living to tell the tale, a
sense of the
extraordinary .
(Regained consciousness) P5 experienced feeling P5 reported a state
Oh, I was just like pretty relaxed and ready to sleep exhaustion and feeling
blown out. I could just pretty after returning to his body. sleepy after the
much barely sit there for the P5 experienced being wiped perceived near-death
rest of the work and after the out after an encounter with experience as though
work I was just kind like the divine that revealed a emotionally, mentally
time for bed. That was about connection between the and physically wiped
it that was a full day. physical and spiritual out as if having
dimensions of conscious actually travelled to a
awareness. far-away place through
an a perceived exertion
of energy and mental
focus where it felt as if
an authentic encounter
with the divine
occurred and that
revealed the close
connection between the
physical and spiritual
dimensions of
conscious awareness
and that felt like it
presented a lot to
process and integrate.
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APPENDIX I
Template for Data Transformation
RES 9500 P6 description of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

P6 Meaning units P6 Transformed meaning P6 Further

units transformations
Okay, there was a work. It P6 experienced a profoundly P6 reported having
was probably somewhere in transformative and experienced a
my first ten or fifteen works powerfully dynamic profoundly
with M at the X in the big ceremony that was filled transformative and
room. It was a very, very with a mysterious spectacle powerfully dynamic
strong work and it was a very within the shared awareness ceremony that included
amazing, it was an amazing of the group consciousness a visually somatic and
work. Actually, a friend that witnessed a member auditory sensation of
turned into a hummingbird capable of shape-shifting lucidity of what
and flew above the room. I form into a hummingbird appeared as a
didn't even realize that that took flight and flew mysterious spectacle
because there was so much around the room. P6 within the shared
going on that it wasn't until experienced an amazing awareness of the group
later when we were sharing incident during an alternative consciousness within
on a different day after a form of awareness in shared the rite that seemed as
different work. Somebody group conscious that was though, a member
had said they saw the same later confirmed unsolicited appeared to change
person turn into that that I by another person for P6. physical form from that
remembered seeing it. as a woman that then
seemed to somehow
morphed in such a way
that seemed to suggest
a physical
transformation of
corporal form of a
human body into that
of what appeared to be
like a hummingbird
that appeared to lift off
into the air above the
group and take flight
around the ceremonial
space, a sense of awe
inspired mystery that
seemed to be
considered
extraordinary and
somehow believable as
a sense of the possible.
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P6 reported feeling
transported to what felt
like a place where it
felt conceivable that
others might easily
appear as though to
possess what appeared
as a paranormal
capability like a
suggested form of
mastery over what
appeared as the
spiritual and physical
dimensions of
embodiment a sense of
manifestation with the
sense of acceptability
that felt almost
obvious, a sense of the
expected. P6 reported
what felt like access to
an alternative form of
awareness, a sense of
amplified and enhance
dynamism as though
being filled with vigor
within the shared group
conscious that appeared
to be confirmed as
though shared with
specific others that
participated in the rite
as reported later in a
way that seem like an
unsolicited form of
confirmation by
another person who
also apparently
witnessed the visually
somatic and auditory
spectacle of a human
transforming as though
shape shifting into what
appeared as a
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hummingbird as if to
fly around the room
during the ceremony.
Anyway, I guess my point is P6 experienced being at a P6 reported feeling a
that there were a lot of powerful ceremony filled sense of intensity like
amazing things happening. I with astonishing energetic power as a dynamic
went to go lay down because feats of consciousness when energy within the
I needed to lie down. While I she felt the need to lie down. ceremony that was felt
was lying down, I had this P6 experienced a flashback somatically, auditorily
memory of an experience in her consciousness to and visually in a way
that I had when I was just herself at the age of almost 2 that envisioned
probably like, I was less than years old. P6 experienced astonishingly mystical
two. Somewhere like maybe remembering herself when feats that seemed to
18 months, something like she was very young. suggest great energetic
that. I believe that's what I alterations of
was, I was less than two. I physicality within what
was very small. appeared as an
expanded
consciousness that felt
shared with others
simultaneously within
the execution of scene
and perceived timeline
that seemed to accept
the variations of
potential perceptions
within the physical
surroundings of the
ceremonial space. P6
felt a sense of being
overwhelmed by the
physical intensity felt
as a response to the
plant medicine and felt
a need to find a sense
of relief as to lie down
in a sense to relax the
body as to find a sense
of peace in the mind.
P6 reported witnessing
a Miração (healing
vision) that seemed to
transported awareness
to what appeared as a
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visually somatic,
emotional and mental
expression as if, to
travel back in time to
what felt as though P6
would have been the
chronological age of
almost 2 years old with
a sense that felt
connected to P6 at that
young age, as if to
actually feel as though
P6 was almost 2 years
old with a sense of
childlike innocence as
if, a baby a sense of
naivety.
I was in my crib with my P6 experienced being in a P6 reported the
sister. My sister, a year older crib with her older sister who Miração, (healing
than me, S, she was a year was only one year older than vision) seemed to
and a week older, so we were P6 but who made P6 feel enthralled the sensatory
very close. She was like the protected. P6 and her sister perception as P6
pillar of strength between the were born to teenage heroin envisioned what felt
two of us. I was very scared addicts who were incapable like reliving in a clearly
as a child a lot. I didn't feel of proper care for her and her somatic, auditory and
safe. Anyway, being with her sister. P6 experienced visual way emotions
I felt safer. My mom, well neglect as a child. and mental associations
my parents ... I'm not sure of what felt like it was
how much background you based on an actual past
want but my parents, they recollection, almost
were both drug addicts as like being put back in
teenagers, heroin addicts. My time to when a baby in
mom had my sister when she a crib with the feeling
was sixteen and me when she of being with an older
was seventeen. Just to give sister with a sense of
you an idea of the safety who had been
environment we grew up in. older by only a year but
It's hard to be a good who always seem to
attentive parent when you're instilled a feelings of
on heroin. safety and assurance
for P6 when they were
together, as though
together they were
protected. P6 reported
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the sisters had
experienced abusive
and unstable care as
children, a sense of
neglect and fear as
having been born to
teenage heroin addicts,
a sense of the erratic
and volatile that
seemed to be
prominently featured in
the visually somatic
and auditory expression
as an awareness
seemed to portray the
sensatory experience as
though having the same
feelings of being back
in time as if, in the
actual place of neglect
with feelings of sadness
as though being
uncertain with a sense
of understanding what
it felt like to have been
the chronological age
of 18 months old, a
sense of childlike
innocence.
Anyway, she had this P6 experienced feeling P6 envisioned what
boyfriend down the road unsafe around one of her seemed as a familiar
after my dad, though I think mother’s male friends who scenario through what
probably during. His name came into the room where appeared as a somatic,
was P. I remember he her and her sister were in the auditory, mental and
frightened me. One time we crib crying. P6 experienced emotional awareness
were at my grandpa's house, witnessing violent acts of with feelings of being
which is where ... That's my aggression toward her unsafe around one of
mother's father. I remember beloved sister by the male P6 mother’s male
that house well. We were in friend of her mothers, one friends, a sense of fear
the crib, me and S, and when she almost died three and foreboding who
crying. I don't know why we time after being kick in the seemed to enter into
were crying or ... Actually, stomach leaving permanent a what was perceived as
what happened was that this scar. the room P6 was in
guy P, the mean guy, he just within the Miração,
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always seemed to have it in (healing vision) that
for S. She ended up when appeared to coincide
she was three, she died three with expressions of
times on the operating table distress for what was
because he kicked her in the understood to be the
stomach with a steel-toed perspective of the
boot. It ruptured her sisters that felt
intestines and so she had a sorrowful and full
big scar on her stomach. distress as if, sobbing
physical tears with a
feeling of despair and
fear. P6 envisioned
what appeared to be an
actual memory of the
severely violent acts of
aggression toward the
beloved older sister by
the male that was
appearing within the
vision, seemingly to
focus in on an
expression of particular
brutality, a sense of
wickedness that
included a mental
awareness, a sense of
cruelty of what
appeared to be an
actual past event, a
sense of tremendous
pain and unfairness
when the sister almost
died, three time after
being kick in the
stomach by this
particular male who
seemed to have a
particular focus in the
vision that left a
permanent physical
reminder, a large scar
on the sister’s stomach
that seem to underline
the perception of this
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individual as an
expression of absolute
violent aggression with
a felt-sense of an
indelible cruelty.
Anyway, he just didn't like P6 experienced witnessing P6 envisioned a change
her, and he just always had it the male friend of her mother within the mental
in for her. He had it in for routinely become aggressive perception of the
her one time and we were in and attack her sister. P6 Miração (healing
the crib in this room experienced a memory recall vision) that seemed to
together. He was at the house of an incident where this feel as though P6 was
and then my Aunt K who man fought her young aunt in the physical dwelling
was just a teenager herself who defending P6’s sister of what felt as if in the
who often watched us when took her away into another maternal grandfather’s
we were kids. She ran into locked room to flee his house, a sense of the
the room with a broom and aggression. P6 experienced familiarly unsettling as
she yelled at him to get away feeling left behind and scared if, to feel the erratic
from her and kind of as she relived the memory of and unstable
defending herself with the crying in a dark room. environment as though
broom. She grabbed S out of physically present that
the crib and ran off into the seem to accompany a
back room with her and story as the perception
locked the door and left me progressed in what
there. I was just completely seemed to clarify a set
freaked out and crying and of conditions as to set
aaah. I was in this dark the scene, a sense of
room; it was really dark and explanation of a
under this crib. situation for what had
happened to the others
present at the time
shown within the
vision, a sense of
confusion and fear,
where it appears as
though the aggressive
man presented as if, to
be fighting a young
aunt who appeared to
fortified herself with a
type of protection as a
broom with the feeling
that it’s a weapon to
defend against a what
was perceived as a
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terrifying threat
followed by what
appeared as an attempt
to garrison away from
the threat that seemed
as this man’s
aggression that then
changed as the sister
and the aunt seem to
escape without taking
P6 to the perception as
if, being physically
abandoned and left
behind with a mental
and emotional
awareness of complete
loneliness with somatic
feelings of hysterical
fear and sorrow in what
was described as a very
dark place.
Then my only thing I felt P6 experienced a feeling P6 reported feeling in a
safe around was just taken terrified and loss of security sense terrified and
away and I was there by after witness violence of a helpless during what
myself after all this fighting childhood event that P6 had appeared as a violence
is going on. Anyway, I was blocked from her episode that seemed to
just beside myself screaming. consciousness until that be from her childhood
This is the memory that I had moment in the ceremony that P6 felt as if, a
the work, and of course I with the help of the reclaim memory that
didn't remember any of this medicine. In a lucid vision felt as though it had
until the work when I laid P6 had a somatic been potentially
down. I actually remember experienced of being blocked from the
hanging on to the bars of the completely overwhelmed conscious mind
crib and just, I was just with devastating grief and apparently until that
crying and felt so lost and fear that she collapsed in the moment in the
scared that I was just beside crib onto her back. ceremony with what
myself. Then I was just so felt like the facilitation
uncontrollably crying that I of the plant medicine
just fell backwards and was that through the
screaming and everything Miração P6 felt as
else. though being
physically back in the
crib with a sense of
somatic emotionality
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and envisioned as if, to
be reliving a part of
what seemed to be P6’s
childhood life through
what felt as a sense of
being completely
overwhelmed with
devastating grief and
fear as if, collapsing in
deep distress.
I was scared. Then as I'm P6 experienced being in a P6 reported feeling as
lying there and then I hear state of fear and crying if, in a state of
my name. I hear Brandy, uncontrollably when she uncontrollably fear
through all my sobbing. I clearly hears her name being when through what
quieted down a little bit gentle called. P6 appeared as an auditory
because I thought I heard experienced coming to a sensation of something
something. Then I hear my state of calmness as she that’s as if, clearly
name again, V, there, there response to her name being called what sounded
V. Then I pulled myself up called and lift herself up into like P6’s name as if
back up and off my back curiosity to see a Miração of being gentle beckoned,
onto the bars and I looked the Mother Mary of Infinite a sense of soothing
and there was this beautiful, Grace radiantly surrounded gentleness that
beautiful woman. It was like in flowers and light. P6 reportedly drew the
from her torso up and she experienced a shift in attention away from
was like blue, she had like a awareness that the Divine somatic mental and
blue veil and glowing and Mother had always consoled emotional distress that
flowers around her. I know P6. then felt like it changed
this is the Virgin Mary. Now as though entering a
I know and I knew like as state of calmness as if,
I'm having this memory that responding to being
it was her and she came to gently recognized and
comfort me. with somatic curiosity
felt a sense to rise up to
view what looked to be
like an apparition as an
augmented part of the
Miração, (healing
vision) described as the
perceived physical
presence of what could
be identified as the
Mother Mary of
Infinite Grace that
appeared as if, in
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traditional and
symbolic garb, a sense
of recognition and
relief that held feelings
of acknowledge
identity, a sense of
comfort and admiration
that appeared further
depicted as radiantly
surrounded with
fragrant flowers, a
sense of immense
beauty, warmth, caring
and love as a sense of
smelling roses filled the
space and what seemed
to be an increase in the
visible light as the
space had the sense of
being lit up with a
brilliance that then had
accompanied feelings
of beauty, that then felt
awe-struck by an alter
state of consciousness
that shifted awareness
to that of being
consoled by what’s
described as a celestial
Other, as if, by a form
of Divine Feminine
energy within visual,
somatic and auditory
sensations of awareness
that was envisioned
specifically as what’s
described as the
presence of the Virgin
Mary and then felt to
convey an impression
as if, this presence had
always been there with
P6 to comfort through
what was felt as a sense
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of an eternal presence
of love and
reassurance.
She was like, “there, there, P6 experienced being P6 reported a sense of
it's okay V”. She was so reassured by the Divine being comforted
beautiful that I pulled myself Mother who she felt through a perceived
up on the bars and I was just naturally attracted too. auditory sensation like
like cooing and crying at this being spoken too with a
beautiful lady. sense of relief through
both a somatic feeling
of the comfort that
arose from being
reassured by a divine
Other through what
appeared as though
actually in the presence
of this Other
accompanied by a kind
of visual absorption in
a loveliness that
conveyed feelings of
acceptance and security
through what appeared
as a celestial Mother
that felt naturally
appealing as though
gaining relief by a
sense of being soothed
by this particular divine
presence.
Had that going on. She was P6 experienced being in an P6 reported feeling a
over to my left, so I was alter state of awareness of sense of physical
looking over off in the seeing a divine apparition orientation within the
corner. Then that guy S when the man reappears in location of the others in
comes walking in the room. the room and disturbs the the shared place that
As soon as he walked in the vision by picking her up out informed the narrative
room she disappeared. Then of the crib. of what seemed to be
he's like oh, sweet little V. the disappearance of
Then he picked me up and I the divine other as
was so enamored by that perceived as the
woman in the corner that I Mother Mary that
was still looking over there seemed to coincide
like where she went. with the arrival of an
alternate other that
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came with a sense as a
recognition of cruelty
that then followed with
the sensation as though
being taken out of the
crib with feelings of
surprise and confusion
as to the apparent
sudden change in
circumstance.
He picked me and laid me on P6 experienced being P6 reported having a
my back. Then he started physically assaulted and somatic, auditory and
unstrapping my diaper and violated by the man. visual sensation of
then he pulled my diaper being taken as though
back. Then he started putting being physically lifted
his hand up me. up into what felt like
the control of another, a
sense of uncertainty
and confusion that then
felt as though being
laid down somewhere
else with the sensation
of having a diaper
undone with a
sensation like having
the diaper pulled away
with a sense that felt
like exposure then as if,
to have the man’s hand
inside of the body with
a mental and emotional
awareness that felt like
a sense of confusion.
I'm looking over for where'd P6 experienced feeling P6 reported staying
she goes. Then he was even confused at the focused on what had
like, he was wondering what disappearance of the Divine been the vision of the
I was looking at, so he Mother and seeks for her that Divine other that had
looked off over in the corner causes the man to also look felt in attendance, a
to see what I was looking at to see what the child is sense of loss and
and of course he didn't see looking for. puzzlement that then
anything. shifted to a sensation of
confusion at what
seemed like the
disappearance of the
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Divine Mother that P6
described the intent as
to where that other as
the image of Mother
Mary had been with
such a feeling of focus
as if, to cause the man
to look and question
what P6 was perceiving
that P6 then felt this
other could not see
what was shown to P6,
a sense that he was not
worthy to have such a
vision.
I'm just like whew you know. P6 experienced feeling P6 reported feeling a
I was so mesmerized by her disorientated after being torn sense of exasperation
and then here he comes in from the state calm as the notion of being
and he just totally ruined the reassuring beauty of the in a state of sacred
whole thing. Then he's doing vision into the man’s space filled with
this thing to me that's destructive molestation as he somatic feelings of
invading my privacy. assaulted her sexually. love, recognition and a
visual sense of
immense beauty, as if,
in a place where it felt
like peaceful assurance
given from what was
described as a benefic
female other, a sense of
a caring mother that
then shifted to a sense
of disorientation that
accompanied a
sensation of being torn
from the previous
feeling of calm
reassurance into what
felt like a form of
assault through what
appeared to be the
reception of another’s
acts of aggression that
had a somatic sense of
feeling as if, being
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enter by force by the
perceived other with a
mental and emotional
awareness of cruelty
with the specific idea
that personal space had
violated and in a sense
been taken away, a
sense of loss and abuse.
That went on for about a P6 experienced being P6 reported being in a
minute or two and then physically violated for state of somatic visual
people came home, like my several minutes before others and auditory awareness
mom and whoever she's approached causing the man of what felt like being
with, they came in. He starts to stop his assault and hide forcibly penetrated as
putting my diaper back on his true actions. P6 if, being raped by a
and wrapping it back up and experienced feeling unable to perceived other that
they came walking in the speak up for herself as she was like a
bedroom. He goes oh I was was too young and did not representative of a
just changing her diaper. I know how to formulate the person from the past, a
remember thinking ... I words to express what had sense of conviction and
couldn't speak at the time truly happened, and fully validation as through
really. I was a very quiet recognized she knew he was what was understood
child anyway. It's not like I lying. was like a kind of a
could put together in words. I imparted knowledge
was just thinking that's not from the plant medicine
what he was doing. that this was somehow
an actual true past
event as if, it had
actually happened as
somehow shown, that
then appeared to be
interrupted by
additional others as if,
approaching that then
followed the distinct
sensation as if, having a
diaper pull up and
fasten to the skin as
through a somatic
expression with
feelings of
bewilderment that felt
as if, the act lasted for
an extended period of
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time with an emotional,
and mental notion that
this was an
unspeakable act that
felt highlighted by the
feelings of not having
the ability to speak as
in a sense to give
testimony to the truth
along with a mental
awareness that was
described as knowledge
that felt like the other
had hid the act through
lying. P6 reported
feeling a sense of
confidence in knowing
even at what appeared
to be that young age
that it felt like the
perpetrator
misrepresented the
truth with a sense of P6
knowing right action
from wrong, a sense of
validity and resilience.
I grabbed ahold of my aunt P6 experienced being P6 reported a sense of
and was hanging on to her traumatized and clinging to safety through a
neck really tight. I remember her aunt for protection as she perceived visually
her even commenting god, pointed to where the vision somatic, emotional and
what are you hanging on to had been. P6 experienced mental awareness that
my neck so tight for. She had she was unable to get the was described as
come out of the room with others to validate the vision clinging onto the aunt
my sister because she knew as they had not seen the that then felt like P6
that people had gotten home. vision and she could not immediately preceded
Then I pointed over into the communicate about her to inquire with the
corner where the woman vision. P6 experienced others as to what felt
was. Everyone was looking others guessing about her like the whereabouts of
over there and they're like oh communication as they could was seemed like the
maybe there was somebody not understand her. P6 Divine Mother that had
looking, a prowler outside experienced knowing others seemed to have gone
the window. I was thinking did not understand the truth that then felt that the
in my mind; I'm thinking in about what happened. others were unable to
my mind that's not it. know, a sense of not
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being understood. P6
reported feeling a sense
of being traumatized
and felt unable to get
validation about the
vision with a sense as
if, they had no
knowledge, incapable
as it seemed like there
was no way to
communicate as it felt
as though the others did
not understand the truth
about what happened, a
sense of not being seen,
heard or understood.
Anyway, that was a really P6 experienced that the P6 reported feeling a
beautiful profound Divine Mother had been with sense of healing in a
experience for me. As I was her and she was reminded form of insightful
laying there, and I had this through an exquisite vision awareness as a kind of
whole memory that was that held the first buried optimistic sensation
actually the first memory I retention of being sexually helped to give a sense
had of any type of being assaulted as an infant. of protection through
molested. the presentation of
what appeared as new
off-putting knowledge
within the expression
of the Miração, healing
vision, through a sense
as if, in the presence of
a celestial Mother that
felt as though a
protection through
what felt like the
process to unfolded
what felt like a secret
hidden within that
seemed to hold trauma
that was described as
having no prior
remembrance that felt
in a way genuine as
what seemed to be the
first incident of what
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felt like being sexually
assaulted as an infant, a
sense of shock and
revelation that seemed
plausible and with a
sense of high
probability that
appeared to have been
accepted as valid.
It was also amazing that I, P6 experienced a vision of P6 envisioned a
the most beautiful part was the Virgin Mary being with connection with a
that the Virgin Mary came to her to support her since the celestial Other that was
comfort me. In the Daime beginning of her life and that described as the Virgin
that's her church, and she she now was in the Divine Mother Mary, felt as a
was care taking me from Mother’s sacred place where physically present
infancy. It was just very she continued to be uplifted. within the Miração,
comforting. That's a P6 experienced wonder and healing vision, that
beautiful, beautiful thing to confusion in what way she seemed to constitute by
remember. So much so I was could have she recalled this a mentally,
like gosh how could I forget awareness prior but realized emotionally, visually
something like that, you she was only a toddler. auditory and
know? Of course, I was not somatically felt
even two when it happened. sensation with an
That's the first part of that. accompanied sense of
Should I go on? smell of presence with
magnificent imagistic
and aural sensation that
included a sense of
warmth and
compassion, as was felt
like an authentic
exchange with feelings
described as comfort
and reassurance that
seemed to soften what
was presented as
painful knowledge that
was described as being
sexually abused as
though to have a
reference to the past
that also seemed to
keep the focus on a
sense of the
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compassionate
awareness that was felt
as the Divine Mother
presence there as if,
always in attendance as
a presence felt through
the awareness both
described as mentally
and emotionally with
feeling of hope and a
sense of faith that felt
like that divine
presence continues to
maintain that same
connection as what
feels like being
watched over as if, in a
sense of feeling as
though receiving
spiritual care. P6
envisioned that through
the church that was
described as being
under the spiritual
domain of the Virgin
Mary’s felt in a sense
continuously connected
with a sense of synergy
like a type of concerted
effort through a
perceived alignment
that felt related and was
described as the
celestial Other Virgin
Mother Mary felt like a
life protector, a sense
of security and solace.
P6 reported a sense of
mental preponderance
with feelings of
confusion in what felt
like a lack of recall
both in what appeared
as potential sexual
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abuse and a sense that
there seemed to be a
celestial Other as if, a
form of what felt like
continuous support that
then seem to enter a
state of logic with
thoughts as if, long ago
that then became
consciousness of what
felt like truth that P6
had been an infant
during what was
perceived to be the
time of abuse, a sense
of shock as if,
acknowledging an
unimaginable act
somehow made more
unfathomable by the
understanding that P6
was apparently less
than 2 year.
Okay, again, I was laying P6 experienced a needed P6 reported an
down and I was crying just release through her tears as intensely deep desire
like ... I was just crying. they were cleansing and for a sense of
There were just like sort of required for her healing physically release
tears of relief and joy, just a process. P6 experienced through an act of
relief really. Unfortunately, another person who could crying as if, to utilize
since there was a guardian not respect her process and the ability to release
that was on duty that just continued to interrupt her tears as a way in kind
didn't have very good healing by inflicting her own to release the emotional
boundaries. I'm going agenda on to what P6 should hardship P6 as what
through this beautiful be doing and intruding on was perceived as the
wonderful experience and her process by constantly pain that was felt as an
needing to cry. This woman requesting to be in dialogue. awareness of sexual
just kept coming over to me abuse, a sense of
and asking me if I was okay. sorrow and trauma. P6
I'm trying to tell her, look I'm reported feeling as
fine, I'm fine. I need to cry. I though P6’s mental and
tell you she probably asked physical boundaries
me like six or seven times, were not being honored
but you're crying. She just as there was another
member that felt like an
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didn't get that the crying was intruder in what felt to
part of it. P6 as like a process of
healing. P6 reported
encountering another
member that felt
intrusive with feelings
of disconnection and
what seem like an
inability to
communicate to assert
what felt like a
boundary for personal
space that felt like not
being heard or
understood.
It was just; it was a little P6 experienced being P6 reported an
distracting when I'm having interrupted during her impression that the
this process happen that was healing process both during process had been
really beautiful. I was just, the initial vision and at the derailed with a sense of
felt really held. I felt really remembrance. P6 feeling interrupted by
loved and cared for. The fact experienced a profoundly life what was described as
that it just totally moved me affirming vision that helped another member that
to the bone that the Virgin to heal her feelings of felt filled with awe and
Mary would come and hear abandonment and reassured wonder at what felt as
my cries and come to her of Divine support and if, a life altering
comfort me. care. connection through
what was described as
the interaction with the
Divine Mother within
the Miração that had a
sense of being loved
and supported by an
infinite all loving
divine mother as if,
someone cared as
though P6’s pain was
acknowledge when
needed comfort.
Anyway, at some point it P6 experienced the P6 reported feeling
was really hard to, you realization that she would not interrupted with a sense
know, because that guardian be allowed to continue her of inference by another
just wouldn't leave me alone. healing process in the way it member that P6 felt ill
I could just see that I wasn't felt natural to follow because equipped to
going to be able to lay there the other person has focused communicate even
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and play it out like I wanted their intention onto her and though feeling gravely
it to be played out because would not leave P6 alone. distress and mentally
this woman kept coming dealing with emotional
over to me. She was traumas, actually felt
concerned for me but she just the need to cry in safety
... I could not make her that there was a notion
understand that she need not of being held by a
be concerned for me. I was divine presence of love,
fine, I was just crying. a sense of comforting
Anyway, she just, I don't support and that felt the
know, she just zeroed in on person who appeared as
me and just like wouldn't caretaker was not ok
leave me alone. with P6’s process as a
sense of being too
traumatic that drew P6
in a sense set aside P6’s
desire and healing to
calm the reaction of the
member that felt as if,
unable to state the
conditions of the
internal state that then
complied with the
desire of the other
person feeling in a
sense unable to
communicate an
established boundary.
Then L came by. As I was P6 experienced an P6 reported a sense of
laying there this other thing expression of mediumship as being unable to process
was happening with my arm she channeled energy trauma as wished that
and it was almost like a through her body that P6 shifted awareness to a
medium type thing where witness with awe inspired part of the physical
something else was ... It curiosity. body to act seemingly
wasn't like a bad thing at all. of its own volition in
I thought it was interesting what appeared to be an
that some mediumship was expression of
coming through with my mediumship, a sense of
arm. I laid there for like ten being connected to
minutes and watched this what was thought to be
thing happen with my arm. the astral, a sense of
freedom as permission
to have self-expression
where the arm moved
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in a swaying fashion
with a somatic
sensation as if, the
movement came
undirected from an
awareness of personal
volition instead through
some Other that
appeared to have in a
sense independent
physical motor control
of the single limb
without any feelings of
disconnection that
seemed to evoke more
of a spectacle with
feelings of mystery and
distraction as acting in
a foreign way without
feelings of judging the
action and allowing it
to be ok that felt
somewhat of a curiosity
as it was happening.
Then L came along and said P6 experienced being P6 reported being
okay it's time to get up. instructed to come back to instructed to stand as
When I got up, I remember I standing and as she rose up, though to come to
got up and I was ready to get she felt a buoyance fill her vertical position with a
up and I felt really good. I and color her mood with joy. feeling of buoyance
came up with just like an ear- P6 experienced making a and filled with a sense
to-ear grin. I just thought I conscious effort to sing well of exuberance joy and
had went through this really as she returned to group happiness as if, being
amazing experience. I'm sure participation. renewed with feelings
everybody else is having of enthusiasm that
their amazing experience but rejoined the singing
I just couldn't wipe the smile feeling free to
off of my face. Then I went participate making a
back and sat in my chair and conscious effort to
then started, got back into the follow the hinários
singing. Of course, I was hymns and participate
new at the singing so it's not with the group feeling a
like I was ... I was doing my sense of belonging and
best to follow along. a sense of being
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inexperience as singing
in Portuguese was new.
Then in this same work ... I P6 experienced being P6 reported being
was moved from where I was relocated to a new seat physically shifted to a
sitting. L and N were moving behind the leader of the new position in the
people around. They kept ceremony and felt an ceremonial space that
moving me behind M. It was astonishingly powerful was placed behind the
an amazing, amazing place energetic shift in her leader of the ceremony
to sit. It was one of the most consciousness as soon as she that seemed to be felt
amazing experiences I've was seated in that place. P6 as an astonishingly
ever had in the Daime. I experienced an incredible potent animated
mean along with seeing the transformative energy that alteration felt through a
Virgin Mary come to help moved her awareness to sense of somatic,
me but Padrinho Sebastião’s encompass the energetic link auditory and emotional
language had come through of force the connected the awareness as what was
N. I felt like there was this primary energy centers described as an
line from the ... the Daime within the ceremonial space encounter with an
serving table was behind me. to her psychic awareness in incredible
Then I was behind M, and N the center of her heart. P6 transformative spiritual
was to the right of M. I felt experienced witnessing a energy that had a sense
this line going from the medium channel the revered of dynamic momentum
Daime table right through the presence of Padrinho and strength expressed
center of my heart and it was Sebastião that raised the as increase physical
like a chord and N was, she energy within the rite to a vigor and heighten
was, I can't think of the word level that had allowed sensation of emotional
right now. Meaning she was members to enter higher elation that shifted
doing her mediumship and it states of alternative awareness to
was Padrinho Sebastião was consciousness. P6 encompass what felt
coming through her. Then I experienced an alternative like an palpable
could feel like something state of consciousness that somatic energetic force
was breathing me, Padrinho had a somatic component of that seemed both active
Sebastião or I don't know a sensation and awareness inside and outside of
what it was, but my breath that her body was an the physical that
was not my own. I was being apparatus that was being seemed connected to
breathed which was really operated in an exaggerated what was described as
interesting. That whole fashion by the energetic the primary energy
process was very, very vibrational forces of the centers within the
interesting and I felt totally visiting spirit of Padrinho ceremonial space. P6
elevated in this high Sebastião in mimicry of reportedly felt a
vibration that was like out of breathing. P6 experienced a somatic connected and
this world. I've never had an profound change in her envisioned this as a
experience like that, even till perceptual state of linking force of psychic
now, and I've had lots of consciousness that allowed energy like a direct line
amazing experiences. her awareness to encompass of power stretching
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an expanded view of totality between the power
that effectively uplifted her centers within the rite
mental, emotional and space of the salão
spiritual consciousness sacred space that felt as
through the physical senses. though it transversed
through the heart center
with a sense of elevated
awareness at
witnessing what was
described as a medium
channel the revered
presence of Padrinho
Sebastião that seemed
to raise the momentum
of the ceremony
through a sense of
excitement within the
rite to a level that
seemed to influence
members to enter what
was described as higher
states of alternative
consciousness. P6
reported an alternative
state of consciousness
that had a distinctive
somatic sensation and
mental awareness that
the body felt like that
of an apparatus that
was in a way being
operated in an
exaggerated fashion by
what felt like the
energetic vibrational
forces of what was
described as the
visiting spirit of
Padrinho Sebastião
founding father of
mediumistic lineage of
the church, in what felt
like a mimicry of
breathing that felt
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witnessed in both a
feeling of awe and
wonder and that of
physically sense the
body being used as a
respirator. P6 reported
a profound change in
the perceptual state of
consciousness that
allowed awareness to
encompass an
expanded view of
totality that felt as if,
effectively uplifted the
mental, emotional and
spiritual consciousness
even higher to an
envisioned higher
vibrational realm
through the physical
senses as what
appeared as an
impromptu
participatory
mediumship.
Then when the Padrinho P6 experienced an alternative P6 reported an
Sebastião said farewell and state of consciousness that experience of seemed
he left; we went on with the allowed her awareness of the like shared collective
singing. Then I had this other Divine Mother to be consciousness within
amazing experience. It was witnessed through a somatic the group ritual, a sense
all within the two hours of experience of smelling of influence that was
the vision of Mary. I fragrant flowers. P6 described as an
remember even Paolo saying experienced a shared increased awareness of
our mother is here in the alternative awareness with a spiritual nature that
room with us. That's back other members of a Divine had somatic, visual
when I could smell flowers energetic presence in the emotional and mental
when she would come up. room. P6 experienced an sensation that included
I'm kind of sad I don't smell alternative state of awareness what seemed like the
them so much anymore, but that opened her mind to the strong fragrance of
you could smell these Divine Presence of roses that had a notion
beautiful flowers. Then I consciousness that appeared to suggest the presence
knew she was near. There's in a vision of brilliant light of what was described
other signs of course too. I and a feeling of divine glory as Virgin Mother Mary
was sitting behind him and I that sparked feelings of as if, the benefic
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was like bowed down humility and reverence. P6 celestial energetic
because I felt like I was at experienced a state of presence was in the
the throne of God. All I enlightened bliss and room. P6 reported a
could do was bow down profound joy that lifted her shift in consciousness
because it was so bright in into a heighten state of that had an mental and
the light and I'm in God's ecstasy that included a emotional feeling in
presence. I was just in awe, somatic component of awareness of what was
just in humble service to physical arousal ending in an described as the Divine
completely bow down with all-embracing sexual climax Mother’s presence that
my hands up in the air. It was unlike any other leaving P6 felt in a way to be
just so amazing. It was the in awe. confirmed through a
most amazing thing. It was somatic experience of
an orgasm. I had a complete smelling fragrant roses
orgasm in that experience, that were taken as a
even checking my underwear kind of a sign within
later, I've never ... It was the collective group
amazing. membership that
seemed to be a way of
affirmation with other
members that also
reported a similar
recognition as a sense
of smelling roses, a
sense of connectedness
as what appeared to
suggest a kind of
manifestation of
Mother Mary within
the ceremony. P6
envisioned being
amazed with feelings of
respect, humility and
wonderment by what
appeared as a visual
expression of increase
brightness and somatic
intense illumination
within a Miração,
healing vision of the
main altar as if, the seat
of God, and envisioned
a sense of bowing
down with feelings of
humbleness at what
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was described as an
altar of divine spiritual
energy as if, basking in
a Holy Presence and
feeling in a way that
seemed to radiate
through what was
described as a physical
whole body sensation.
P6 reported feeling an
ecstatic state
emotionally and
mentally that seemed to
progress to what felt
like an explosive level
as described as an
alternative state of
awareness that felt a
presence of divine
Other that appeared in
a spectacle of visual
dazzling light and a
feeling of celestial
grandeur that seemed to
provoke feelings of
humility and reverence.
P6 described a state of
what felt like a form of
enlightened bliss and
profound joy that in a
way lifted into a
heighten state of what
was described as
mental and emotional
ecstasy that included a
somatic component of
physical arousal that
ended as what felt like
an all-embracing sexual
climax unlike any other
sensation prior and that
P6 felt wonderment and
a sense of curiosity as
to what had seemed to
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have happened that
seemed
incomprehensible as if,
having no reference
point for such an
experience.
Then, here we go again. A P6 experienced being in a P6 reported being in a
church member comes along. euphoric state of blissful euphoric state of
This was when she really, consciousness when a church blissful consciousness
she did not have her member came behind her and when the awareness
boundaries in check at all. physically assaulted her was interrupted by
Here I am and it is the most during her meditation another member that
beautiful place I could ever demanding that she begin to physically assaulted P6
be in my life. She comes and sing by violently and during meditation by
she starts shaking the back of repetitively shaking her head what was described as
my head, my neck and my back and forth. P6 demanding that P6
shoulders, saying V, V, you experienced a delayed begin to sing by way of
need to open your eyes and reaction to her physical violently and
start singing. I'm just like, assault because she was so repetitively shaking P6.
I'm in this beautiful place enraptured by the alternative P6 reported feeling ripe
and I'm thinking who in the state of consciousness that with anger in response
fuck is back there? Then I'm filled her inner space. P6 to the assault but chose
like okay don't be cussing experienced ripe anger in to mitigate the
here at the throne of God. I response to the assault but immediate emotional
was really trying to be mitigated her emotional response in an attempt
patient. I didn't know who it response back to calm and to calm and remain in
was at the time because my tried to remain blissful in the blissful state that
eyes were closed, and I was spite of the continuous felt warm and
in some other land. I was in assault on her physical body. comforting despite
another realm; it was totally P6 experienced having to what felt like an assault
where I wanted to be. Then relinquish her blissful inner on the physical body.
somebody takes ... She peace and begin to sing due P6 reported feeling a
wouldn't stop; she was like to the relentless demands of familiar sense of
the guardian in there with my another member. P6 having to relinquish
other experience. I was in the experienced self-awareness personal desires as in a
most heavenly place I could that she did not stand up for sense of not doing
possibly be, and she would herself by honoring her own what felt most
not ... She just kept shaking voice in the situation and to comforting in order to
me, shaking me, shaking me. keep better boundaries with in some way to
She wouldn't stop, stop, stop. others. P6 experienced accommodate another’s
I needed to open my eyes compassion for the other desires that made a
and I needed to start singing. person while still self-awareness that this
Anyway, I finally just had to recognizing that P6 desired felt like an expression
leave from that peaceful to be more responsible for of not speaking to
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place because this woman being clear about what the demand a sense of
would not stop. She just experience meant to her honor, respect and in a
wouldn't stop. Anyway, I while allowing others to way claim a personal
guess that pretty much sums acknowledge her truth boundary as feel secure
it up. I just finished the work instead of just saying that and respected by
and that's back when my their actions are permissible others. P6 reported a
boundaries weren't so good because it seemed easier than feeling of compassion
either because I should have sharing her feelings about the for the other person
... She apologized after the experience. while still recognizing
work. That old me said, you what felt like a desire
know, it's okay but really to be more responsible
honestly, I should have told for being clear about
her it really wasn't okay. I what the experience
appreciate you meant to P6, in a way
acknowledging you stepped to allow others to
over the line, but I wish I acknowledge what P6
would have spoken my truth saw as truth instead of
about how it affected me at seeming to act in
the time rather than saying agreement because
it's okay. somehow finding the
words to communicate
felt challenging and
that seemed easier than
sharing feelings about
the experience.
I see where that comes from P6 experienced a profoundly P6 reported having a
now, too. It's all part of that insightful moment of self- profoundly insightful, a
first experience of being awareness while seeing a sense of understanding
molested. pattern of abuse that repeats healing that felt in a
throughout her life in way explicative and
different scenarios that was healing as to bring a
born out of the initial act of sense of compassion
sexual molestation at almost within a moment of
2 years old that does not self-awareness that felt
honor the autonomy and contemplative and that
personal space of P6. seem to see what was
described as a
psychological pattern
of programming within
the mental and
emotional reflection
that in a way did not
honor autonomy and
personal boundaries
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due to what was
perceived as sexual
abuse that was
described as repeated
throughout life in
different scenarios that
felt as though began
with what was seen
during the Miração,
healing vision as what
was understood as the
initial act of sexual
molestation that
apparently began under
2 years of age.
Yeah, that pretty much wraps P6 experienced a profound P6 reported a profound
up that vision, that most change within the rite change as a sense of
profound vision that I had. through a divine vision of recognition and support
Knowing that she's been Mother Mary that has P6 as a mental and
there for me. recognized it’s an eternal emotional expression
presence with her. that an eternal presence
of what felt like a
celestial other
described as the Mother
Mary was felt as
continuous presence
with feelings of hope as
if, to reassure and
affirm a sense of
connection with the
Divine Mother that felt
actively in attendance.
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APPENDIX J
Participant Art Expression
RES 9500 P6 creative expression of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt
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APPENDIX K
Participant Art Expression
RES 9500 P2 creative expression of experience
Jacqueline Senator Orcutt

Hinario Little Bird

received by P2

You are a little bird on wings so wide

You can fly, you can fly
You can fly, you can fly
Above the waves, through the storm
On wings so wide you will soar
On wings so wide you will soar

You are a little bird, in a foreign land

Walk with me, hand in hand
Into the darkness through the night
Walk with me, you are the light

You are a little bird, in an open sky

No one to stop you, nowhere to hide
Where will you go, who will you be
What will you know within the dream?

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