Hello friends,
Kauai Intensive Chi Gung course was awesome! I wonder if anyone ( especially Sifu) has insight into this story and what my friend should do now. Here is the story:
But first a note on ayahuasca according to wikipedia and closely matched what my friend described too.
"People who have consumed ayahuasca report having spiritual revelations regarding their purpose on earth, the true nature of the universe as well as deep insight into how to be the best person they possibly can.[2] This is viewed by many as a spiritual awakening and what is often described as a rebirth.[3] In addition, it is often reported that individuals feel they gain access to higher spiritual dimensions and make contact with various spiritual or extra dimensional beings who can act as guides or healers."
On returning home from Kauai, I met with a friend who shared an experience of hers with me from when she was in Peru over a year ago. She went to a shaman and tried Ayahuasca for the first time. It was a two day event and the first day she said even though she drank a few extra glasses of the hallucinogenic brew, nothing happened. Afraid she was 'not doing it right' and would leave without the promised spiritual experience, she told the translator her concerns and plans were made for the next night to help her succeed. They gave her the first cup, a special cup it seemed to her, and she went on a nightmare trip. She thought she was overdosed and going to die, literally felt all the pain of every suffering person she had ever met in her nursing career and was swallowed up in darkness. After who knows how long of enduring this pain and terror, she came out the other side of the trip and had the "survivor feelings" that come when people who face severe trauma realize their going to live, and was overwhelmed with gratitude and love. She had to rush home and go to work right after this and was never able to ask the shaman about any of her experience or have any of it explained. To this day she is confused about the whole experience because even though she has a profound value for loving others now, it came with changes to herself. She can not meditate without severe anxiety, feels completely changed from the person she used to be and can not get back to who she was, but she wants too. She relayed this story in tears. She went to a healer and was told that she could sense a large area of "impenetrable blackness" around her chest and core. In my opinion though, she doesn't seem sick, she is a vibrant person with a good vibe and very loving personality. I don't have a good feeling about this type of practice even though it is reputed to have a positive change on folks and even do some of the things we learned in zen class like expanding into the cosmos but I don't want to judge ignorantly either.
My questions are: could this blackness be a chi blockage? If not, what is it? Has anyone else tried ayahuasca? Can she start to practice lifting the sky as is instructed in Sifu's book and in my classes with Sifu, until she can find an instructor?
I look forward to your comments and advice,
Peace,
Lee Sliffe
Kauai Intensive Chi Gung course was awesome! I wonder if anyone ( especially Sifu) has insight into this story and what my friend should do now. Here is the story:
But first a note on ayahuasca according to wikipedia and closely matched what my friend described too.
"People who have consumed ayahuasca report having spiritual revelations regarding their purpose on earth, the true nature of the universe as well as deep insight into how to be the best person they possibly can.[2] This is viewed by many as a spiritual awakening and what is often described as a rebirth.[3] In addition, it is often reported that individuals feel they gain access to higher spiritual dimensions and make contact with various spiritual or extra dimensional beings who can act as guides or healers."
On returning home from Kauai, I met with a friend who shared an experience of hers with me from when she was in Peru over a year ago. She went to a shaman and tried Ayahuasca for the first time. It was a two day event and the first day she said even though she drank a few extra glasses of the hallucinogenic brew, nothing happened. Afraid she was 'not doing it right' and would leave without the promised spiritual experience, she told the translator her concerns and plans were made for the next night to help her succeed. They gave her the first cup, a special cup it seemed to her, and she went on a nightmare trip. She thought she was overdosed and going to die, literally felt all the pain of every suffering person she had ever met in her nursing career and was swallowed up in darkness. After who knows how long of enduring this pain and terror, she came out the other side of the trip and had the "survivor feelings" that come when people who face severe trauma realize their going to live, and was overwhelmed with gratitude and love. She had to rush home and go to work right after this and was never able to ask the shaman about any of her experience or have any of it explained. To this day she is confused about the whole experience because even though she has a profound value for loving others now, it came with changes to herself. She can not meditate without severe anxiety, feels completely changed from the person she used to be and can not get back to who she was, but she wants too. She relayed this story in tears. She went to a healer and was told that she could sense a large area of "impenetrable blackness" around her chest and core. In my opinion though, she doesn't seem sick, she is a vibrant person with a good vibe and very loving personality. I don't have a good feeling about this type of practice even though it is reputed to have a positive change on folks and even do some of the things we learned in zen class like expanding into the cosmos but I don't want to judge ignorantly either.
My questions are: could this blackness be a chi blockage? If not, what is it? Has anyone else tried ayahuasca? Can she start to practice lifting the sky as is instructed in Sifu's book and in my classes with Sifu, until she can find an instructor?
I look forward to your comments and advice,
Peace,
Lee Sliffe
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