Throughout the ages various wisdom teachings have operated within humanity with the aim and intention of permanently raising a person/group/community’s consciousness to a ‘finer’ – or altered – level of perception. Temporary glimpses of these ‘altered perceptions’ have fascinated humankind for millennia, stretching as far back as when our human ancestors were cave dwellers. This lineage of what we may call the visionary path has a long history: including shamanism; spiritual practices; religious ritual; and the inculcation of ecstatic states, etc, both in pre-modern as well as modern cultures. For as long as humanity has existed, it has been experiencing glimpses of other realms, and thereby attempting, through many and various means, to recapture these experiences. In some instances people have accidentally and temporarily glimpsed these states through such events as a near-death experience, tragedy, or similar ‘shock impacts.’
Similarly, there can be ‘almost random’ contact achieved with such altered states of consciousness within ordinary life. Often these contacts have been glimpsed – in a transitory way – by the use of artificial aids, such as by means of induced intoxication. Yet these glimpses are more or less temporary, though some people attempt to continue to recapture these experiences, perhaps incorrectly thinking/believing that it will lead to a permanent state. This activity, and this way of thinking, is often more destructive than good. What this frequently shows is a lack of information/knowledge on the part of the individual. This often reveals itself when a person attempts to induce such transitory experiences when they clearly lack the knowledge of how to correctly learn from and utilize its significance. Without a correct developmental function, such experiences are more likely to confuse and misdirect a person rather than induce developmental understanding in them...read more>>>...
