THE
PINEAL GLAND: ITS PHYSIOLOGY AND INFLUENCE ON
SHAMANIC STATES
The
pineal gland is a cone-shaped pea that sits on
the roof of the 3rd ventricle of the brain, directly
behind the root of the nose (3rd eye chakra)
floating in a small lake of cerebrospinal fluid.
It is our body's biological clock and has been
called a window of the brain because, as with
all mid-line structures bordering the 3rd and
4th ventricles of the brain, it doesn't have
a blood-brain barrier. Instead it relies on a
constant supply of blood via, considering its
miniscule size, a particularly rich vascular network.
It was considered for many years to be as redundant
as our appendix but this theory is brought sharply
into question because, in our body's infinite
wisdom, the pineal gland has been supplied with
the best blood, oxygen and nutrient mix available
other than that received by our kidneys! It acts
as a receiving mechanism capable of monitoring
electro-magnetic fields and helping align bodies
in space. With its central hormone, MELATONIN,
the pineal not only regulates sleep/ wake cycles
and the aging process, but also appears to act
as the Mistress Gland (sofia)* orchestrating the
body's entire endocrine system and thus, energetically
speaking, the chakra system. I believe it is also
responsible for shamanic states, visions, kundalini
e.t.c.
The
pineal gland is unique in that it sits alone in
the brain whose other parts are paired. It is
the first gland to be formed in the foetus and
is distinguishable at 3 weeks. When our individual
life force enters our foetal body at 7 weeks,
the moment in which we become truly human, it
passes through the pineal and triggers the first
primordial flood of DMT ( N-dimethyltryptamine).
Later, at birth, the pineal releases more DMT.
DMT is also capable of mediating pivotal experiences
of deep meditation, shamanic states of consciousness,
psychoses, spiritual emergence and near death
experiences.
The
pineal gland begins to harden with calcified tissue
starting at adolescence. These strange calcified
deposits between 3-5 mm are called “brain sand”.
There
are asymmetrical crystals in the pineal gland
that are ‘piezo-electric' - that is, they send
out electronic voltage creating EM waves. Whenever
a person is exposed to an EMF (electro-magnetic
field) such as that of the earth the gland vibrates,
sending out EM signals to the rest of the body.
When the pineal gland is stimulated geomagnetically
it produces alkaloids similar to plant psychedelics.
Any strong change in the earth's EMF will produce
a rush of psychedelics in our bodies enabling
us to be more psychically active in shamanic states
(earth/ land receptive). The pineal gland is effected
by coherent EM fields and it changes its
hormone production when exposed to EM at low levels.
As the earth has the greatest effect of any force
on our physiology it makes sense that the cells
of our body and brain align with it. All
life within the envelope of earth's vibrational
influence attempts to match base-frequencies (entrainment)
with that of the earth. To this end, each of our
cells is constantly shifting patterns of energy
to achieve harmonic resonance with the reference
signals of our earth. Our bodies are truly amazing
and they are intimately co-dependent with the
earth and all its inhabitants. Our bodies are
miraculous organs of phenomenal complexity and
awesome ability. We are made up of multiple trillions
of molecules, each vibrating with its own intelligence,
all interlinked just as our universe is interlinked
and interconnected. We reflect the whole. A picture
may be beginning to emerge as to how we reach
shamanic states through the wisdom of our body
in tune with the earth.
When
we experience a shamanic journey our pulse rate
increases at the same time that our blood pressure
drops. This is also what happens as the body is
preparing to die. As the life-force leaves our
body through the pineal gland, another flood of
DMT is released. I believe that the initial stages
of a shamanic journey replicate this near death
experience and so triggers DMT release in the
brain.
NOTE:
Yagé or ayahuasca, a brew made from so
called ‘death vine' which is used as a ‘plant
teacher' by shaman to induce shamanic states,
is virtually the chemical equivalent of DMT in
humans.
I
believe that shamanic work combined with breathwork
brings large volumes of oxygen and life-force
into the bloodstream and, because of its excellent
blood-supply, the pineal gland receives much stimulation
from the oxygen/ prana drenched blood causing
it to resonate/ vibrate thereby stimulating the
release of DMT, our body's own powerful psychedelic.
Lore has it that the pineal gland is the gateway
into the soul. An energy vortex; a meeting place
between psyche and soma, soul and body.
Ancient
people knew of the importance of the pineal gland.
Magician, Delores Ashcroft-Nowicki says that to
the priests of Heliopolis, the embalmers of ancient
Egypt (who were the forerunners of today's pathologists),
the Star Chamber of Isis (the Holy of Holies)
and the Halls of Anubis and Thoth were not just
fanciful terms given to mythical locations but
were actually places within the living brain
where the priests and priestesses travelled
to be taught by the gods.
The
following is a description of The Star Chamber
of Isis given by a priest of Isis undergoing the
Rite of the Meeting of Mind with Mind:
“
The corridor is long and narrow and gleams like
the inside of a shell drawn from the depths of
the sea. The curtains that guard the entrance
are of the softest gossamer, so fine that they
seem like mist on a lake at dawn. As I pass through
them I come into the presence of the Gods. The
walls are of silver and give off a faint silver
light that illuminates this holy place. Beneath
my feet is the sandy silt of the sacred Nile,
and all about me I hear the heartbeat of Isis
. Behold, I dwell in the Star Chamber of the Goddess.”
The
above sounds remarkably like the physical description
of the pineal gland, which lies deep within the
head, an important link to our deepest selves.
Tantric
techniques attempt to produce enlightenment through
sexual ecstasy. Pineal DMT release can mediate
sexual ecstasy resulting from the strenuous exertion,
intense emotions and pneumocatharthis (intense
dynamic breathing). It is known that psychedelic
features do emerge during orgasm. The link
between conscious waking state and deep Shamanic
consciousness is BLISS/RAPTURE, feelings associated
with intense sexual pleasure.
NOTE:
The secret sex techniques of the Shamanka (female
shaman) still in practice in certain rural areas
of Brazil , Mexico and South America all, generally,
involve breathing techniques.
*
Early medieval documents and alchemical texts
refer to the ‘fallen' or lost Sofia – the allegorical
term for the lost wisdom and innocence of mankind.
Sofia is also represented by the fairytale “The
Sleeping Beauty” where a prince has to toil through
a hazardous ancient haunted forest to reach the
sleeping princess. She has been sleeping for 100
years in a tower and can only be awakened by a
kiss (the breath).
| 
