Alchemy Z ~ Waking Within Blog

Dear Readers, I highly recommend the interview with Richard Meech about the recently released film Vine of the Soul: Ayahuasca His use of Spirit and direct channels through this sacred herb and his filmaking are priceless and this comes across with you speak with this man. I was truly empressed with the way he is a role model for healers and artists as a filmaker and moreso as a human being. Honored to call Mr Richard Meech my friend. Sincerely, Trevahr Ryan Hughes Listen to internet radio with EntheoRadio on Blog Talk Radio

Hi Sacred Spiral Friends, I am doing ONE FINAL SHAMANIC DRUM JOURNEY with the methods that I learned from Thaddeus Wilson (guest on Entheoradio.com tomorrow at 930am). So tomorrow is your last chance to experience my teachings before i continue to UPGRADE my education and training by visiting Dr. Michael Harner in San Francisco next weekend. Thank you so much for helping me to learn and teach about shamanism. Next weekend marks my ascendance on this path as I will be INITIATED by my Teacher's Teacher's MASTER TEACHER. Some my recent ideas and life long philosophies are expressed in my recent blog entry entitled "If you can read this, YOUR LANGUAGE KILLED SHAMANISM" (http://wakingwithin.org) I encourage everyone reply, tag, comment and share more of your opinions with the Sacred Spiral and on my FB profile. So a reminder: Thaddeus Wilson (Shaman, teacher, healer) live on the Radio tomorrow (http://entheoradio.com) 930am Sunday/tomorrow ...and Shamanic Drum Journey at t

Shamanism is Dead! Just like punk rock! And the next questions are natural: How/Why is it dead? And Who or What killed it? First let me explain the title of this essay: "if you can read this, your language killed shamanism." This concept has arisen in my life in two incidents. First, let it be known that I am a shamanic practitioner, neo shamanic priest, alchemist, and fluent English speaker(reader and writer). I also studied science, math, linguistics, and Asian philosophy in college. I became a yoga teacher before I was an ordained Shamanic Minister. The reason that I am so excited about Yoga as a path to free was that I experienced (in college for the first time), a concept of existence without words and thought outside of the languages i knew. This concept of thought outside of the language i knew, wasn't due to a lack awareness of language (remember I studies languages as my major) rather it was an awareness of something i didn't have words for. Meaning that word

Dear Friends and Alchemists, I am writing out of excitment and satisfaction. Last week we completed class number three and the experiencial portion of the Salvia Divinorum Ethnobotany series. In a well intended, meditative setting with wonderful friends we experimented with altered states of consciousness induced by Salvia Divinorum leaves... ...and we were totally SUCCESSFUL with amazing and fun journeys and deep meditations. So in honor of Spiritual Growth and with reverence to the Spirit of the Sage we are planning to add regular experiential groups for people like you to experience this God Given Sacrament (while it's still legal). Everything comes with intentions for the highest good and the most learning so we will offer a lecture on the herbs and the traditional context (shamanism) of the herbal practices and we encourage you to do your own homework and research. Check out the British documentary series: "Sacred Weeds" for more info on Salvia Divinorum a

Last week, I was granted the esteemed privilege of interviewing Ralph Metzner on live internet radio...I have included the interview from that experience within this blog post. The highlights of this interview include some awesome perspective shares of experiences the Ralph had at Harvard, with Timothy Leary, and with Ram Dass. Enjoy this and call in weekly to ask live questions to shamanistic guest speakers and psychedelic celebrity teachers and researchers. Namaste, Trevahr Listen to internet radio with EntheoRadio on Blog Talk Radio

About an hour ago I felt my body having a war of three tribes... My father's tribe with their Druidism and Celtic ways... My Mother's tribe with Persian influences and Egyptian magick... This "other" tribe...feral bloodline that I call the Jaguar...which extends into both sides of my family. Recent savages bred in to old blood. I remember the tribes of this land...the Americas...I remember these most vividly (or at least this is where my mind is interested most). Plains Indians of the Americas, Mix-tec and Zapotec Indians of Mesoamerica, and even as far back as the great migrations from Asia...Mongolians... These ancestors roll around in my joins. They crawl up and down my spine. They live in the TREE that is ME. One throws a spear from the branch of my shoulder down to his opponent who hides at the roots of my tree near my hips... These people fight...these genetic memories have their wars and have it out for each...just like my birth parents. My Father

"Most discipline is "hidden discipline" designed not to liberate but to limit. Do not ask Why? Be cautious with How? Why...leads inexorably to paradox. How traps you in a universe of cause and effect. Both deny the infinite." -Heretics of Dune

Tonight while out on the town for Cinco de Mayo, myself and my friend (switchboard operator Lori) interviewed Sara Huntley on EntheoRadio. (http://www.entheoradio.com/) Sara is a visual artist, art teacher, makeup artist, dance teacher, fire spinner, and contributing author to the MAPS (http://www.maps.org/) bulletin. I included some the art that she contributed by being true to her passion and inspired by psychedelic and entheogenic culture. Sara's art can be found at http://www.myspace.com/machineagemaya The interview went great and Sara is a peach! Sara even knew about Frank Herbert and the Dune series which really excited and tickled me. I nearly started dropping phrases that only Dune nerds would know (like the spice must flow and kwizat-hateract). I encourage you to listen the the interview and I assure you that it gets better as we go on late into the show...especially after having such incredible difficulty with getting Sara on the line. That interview was very in line with

Dear Great Spirit, I am reaching out to you with my thoughts and prayers because lately and several times this year (and last night) I dream of Snakes...venomous snakes with rattles at the end of their tails...many times they don't pose a threat to me...but rather they are stretched out in passage of the landscape on the dreamworld. I feel asleep last night reading about divination and praying as usual (everynight that I sleep in my bedroom) with my emeralds and my stibnite to the coyote spirit of the Money of this Nation of the people of the Corn, and to the wolf spirit of Abundance and Collaboration....I remind myself that the YOU are coming, Great Spirit, to play the game of giving and receiving and prosperity with my person and my passion... ...my tiny twin bed near my bearded dragons terrarium, in my humble room in Cardiff California, blinks in an' out of existence as my eyes draw heavy and my muscles give out...in a last ditch effort (effort! so not taoist of me!) to reac

Question #1: What is Shamanism? How does this dance with Ethnobotany, the plants of the earth, and the fungi? Trevahr: As a modern alchemist, teacher, yogi, and metaphysician, I am forced to answer this from a perspective of faith and one who believes in Great Spirit. I am fully aware that there are many no so blessed as to have contact with the holy spirit/soul/source/miracle consciousness/samadhi and each of those...skeptics/scientific method oriented peoples will have a different opinion...and let me say that their opinion matters...in fact many of them are in face my teachers when it comes to plants, fungi, technology, and the sciences. So what is shamanism? It is something that faithful people experience from the inside out and others simply observe as a tradition. I fully awaken to the differences of opinion and observation people share their definitions of this practice... Practice. Shamanism is a practice (which involve "all that is" and therefore involves bel

What is it to be a Shamanic Priest? I was called upon to embody this new title recently as Sacred Spiral organization here in San Diego begins an education process of Ayahuasca (an ancient psychedelic healing sacrament from the Amazon Rainforest peoples). Our organization is becoming legally similar to other churches with shamanic sacrament. Thus creating a daily process of ritual and transformation to be “one” with Shamanism and Priesthood becomes a practice that wakes me up early and keeps me up late (and lately, has me answering questions). What is a Shamanic Priest? Short answer is that it’s different than a “traditional anything”. So I would like to start by saying even though this path “legally” qualifies as a Reverend, Monk, Minister, or Pastor…it isn’t that as we know or understand in our American Christian Culture. Although as a Shamanic Priest, one can walk those paths (Reverend, Pastor, Minister, or Monk) and feel in perfect service to the Divine, the Earth, or whatever Sham

So the topic has come up clearly amongst my students and friends whose interested around psychedelics and altered states has finally peaked into practice: Is vomiting good for you? Is it healthy to throw up? Do the medicines considered Purgatives, have negative effects that throw the body off to the point of dysfunction? Do magic mushrooms have negative/toxifying effects when compared to someone else's so called cleaning medicines (ayahuasca and peyote)? _____________________________________________ My teacher and I went round and round today in speculation of herbs and healing as it relates to the body's psychoactive breakthroughs and potential healings. As he spoke, so many memories reminded me of how my primary medicinal study had been with mushroom medicine as it was originally involved with yoga, the rig veda, Christianity, the garden of Eden, and Aryan or Brahman Shamanism (not just psychoactive shrooms but all fungi). We talked about the mellow and medicinal effect of m

Dear Friends, Some of you joined us and many of you heard that last weekend we completed a beautiful series on the Magic Cactus with our Ethnobotany students. I held space along with some of my dearest friends and presented a series of Neo-Shamanic altars and rituals. The divine Earth we walked upon for our journey to healing was a blessed and sacred site that my family owns on the back side Palomar Mountain. As we got out of the city and into the country, I prayed for perfect weather and perfect community. Sunday throughout the ritual and the hiking that preceded said ritual, I was overwhelmed with GRACE for those who chose to stay behind and not attend this journey. I honored their path and allow them to continued to build trust in themselves and the medicine work and in nature and weather. When we arrived, the weather was perfect and mild and incredibly...there was rain everywhere except for where we hiked. All week and the day before, people were scared of bad weather and hard time

To All My Relations, I just recently went for an epic hiking journey to visit my family and Dr. Ralph Metzner. But before I left, I dealt with some epic learnings that as I sip on my Tulsi (Holy Basil) tea today (as it is my new daily habit recommended by my acupuncturist), I reflect and invoke healing towards. Just the other week, I was so stressed and high strung that I had a shock reaction in my acupuncture session (or rather my body did). Often times, this doesn't bother me but rather triggered in me a space of clarity to think about my life and healing from the past traumas and how that relates to my moving forward. When I saw Dr. Metzner for the first time this was what he talked about. It was at a hidden hippie gallery in "THE CITY" on a Saturday night when he (now in his 70's) approached to audience to talk about his new book "The Birth of the Psychedelic Culture" (co-authored by Ram Dass). With a passion that blew the younger crowd away, Ralph spoke

Through space and time, I returned to myself holding and allowing new principles and deep guidance. I am guided to work with my family and the medicine people up North and to be open and giving with my gifts even in the face of fear and rejection for I have nothing to lose and everything if I do nothing. I know that I will be journeying again today as I have done with my teacher Thaddeus in the past and then again on the next day with my friend Lisa (all shaman people and good hearted ones). And earlier tonight, I journeyed with my teacher and my ancestors and I heard their voices. Now I know that I am not alone. Just like in Avatar the movie, our souls live on in Gaia (earth mother) and can be returned to her. My teacher Leah Tenderfoot taught me the practice the channels and the ritual of the medicine wheel. Her spirit was with me in my journey, as I was considering the ghosts from my partners/lovers, from friends, and from the Old Town Ghost Hunt http://www.meetup.com/sacreds