By MARCUS HENRIKSSON—Since the beginning of time we Humans have been using different methods of inducing altered, heightened or trance-like states. Like the native humans used rituals, drumming, dancing and chanting to get “into” an trance-like state.

Trances and altered states follow the pattern of a journey: departure, traveling through (inner worlds and dimensions) space, and then returning home.

In the classic shamanic journey traditions, rhythmic drumming, rattling or chanting is used to facilitate the entering into, traveling through and returning from the spirit world.

Another method in shamanic traditions worldwide involves psychoactive, visionary or entheogenic plants or mushrooms to provide an amplification of perception. In classic enteogenic plant ceremonies the ingestion of plant is usually combined with rhythmic drumming and chanting. By the use of hypnotic and deep dance music in combination with psychoactive substances brings in the shamanic journey into todays society.

When an psychoactive substance is used in a spiritual, shamanic or religious context it is called Entheogen.

Entheogens is used as a medicine for understanding oneself and one’s psychological blockages. Not for escaping the world and the civilization we live in. When used as an “escape drug” we run away from our self instead of acknowledge what it really is that wants to run away from oneself and why we run away.

The view has to change. The focus has to be directed inwards and not out into the external world.

One could say that to use an entheogen is to change focus and intention to an more introspecting view and with the intention to heal and to explore who we really are.

It is only the last 50 years of human history that the war on drugs started. And we can all see that this war is making millions of people around the world suffer. It is not the substances that is the danger. The danger lies within ourselves. To look upon the external world and say that the problem lies out there is not going to help. It is only going to make it worsen. We have to look within to see where the problem is coming from.

Every word we use in our daily life is charged with energy. Words are important and they set the energy of the experience. Just think about the word “drug” and see how much negativity it is charged with. You even might get inner pictures when you look upon it more closely.

The war on drugs is an never ending loop that we human beings have put ourself in. And it will only end when we realize that the problem lies within and not in the external substances that we call drugs.

So what are we projecting onto the external substance when we call it a dangerous drug?
We project negative energy and fear upon the substance. We are putting the internal problem onto the external substance.

What is this creating if we say that we have to fight a war against “drugs”?
A war against ourselves that can never be won. As long as we believe that the problem lies in the external substance, the war will never end! We have to understand that the problem lies within.

Who are we fighting and who is suffering?

We are fighting ourself and we are suffering ourselves over this war.

We need to raise the awareness of entheogens and what they really are!

I am not promoting the use of psychoactive substance. They are to be used in a responsible way and with awareness and wisdom.

In an indigenous society there is always an elder or shaman who is the one with the awareness and wisdom of the entheogens. He/she is the societies doctor/psychologist you could say.

If there are someone within this indigenous society who is creating a “crime” he/she is taken to the elder/shaman. They see this person as sick and that he/she needs medicine. As we would see ourselves sick with the flu for example.
Then this person has to take the entheogen and have a session with the edler/shaman to be able to get rid of the sickness. They go within to find what made this person create the “crime” in the first place. It is a psychological problem within that is making the person act out and behave in this negative way.

The entheogen together with the shaman will cure the inner problem and the person is healed.

In our society we punish the one who made the “crime” and then maybe also put them in jail! That is making the problem worsen and the psychological pattern is pushed even deeper within. This is affecting the collective psyche of the whole world.

Here is my hope and vision for the future.

Bring up the awareness on psychoactive substances and entheogens so that the governments and politicians start to understand that the problem lies within ourselves and not in the external. So that the laws can be changed accordingly.

Let the indigenous shamans educate the modern psychologist on how to use the entheogens in a safe and correct way.
If people are to get a “punishment” for their “crimes” then it will be to meet the shaman and the entheogen.
Help the people who create the “crimes” in the first place with the use of entheogens to solve the collective disturbance.

Love, light and world peace,

Marcus Henriksson a.k.a. Son Kite, Minilogue, Nobody Home