Walsh, Pearce, Hughes

Walsh Part VII-
This chapter was very interesting because it pointed out that the Shamans do not nesseccarly use "drugs" to enter into an ASC. So it was merrily sticking up for them. I am going to be taking a yoga class next semester for a gym credit I'm very excited to take it and learn all about it. When Walsh talks about "Has Consciousness Evolved" it is merely close to what we call past, present, future. Because the past according to waslh "sees history as a cyclical affair of recurrent ups and downs, the present as " a downhill view that sees things as getting worse and consciousness ad devolving, and sees no change in consciousness or at least religious consciousness, since prehistoric times", finally future "upward view of progressives that sees culture and consciousness as evolving." The conclusion to part VII is true " the more we explore shamanism, the more it points to unrecognized potentials of the human body mind and spirit. For untold thousands of years the world of shamanism has helped, healed, and taught human kind, and it has still more to offer us."

Pearce-
In the beginning of the chapter it is true that when parents tell their children fairy tale stories they can bring them back from la la land into reality. And drugs can do the same with the help of a guide. How on pg 18 do "what we loose on earth is still loosed in heaven." How can that be when Heaven under Gods eyes is a total different demintion of time and Gods time is not our time like minutes, seconds, hours, days. Pierce made reference to the crack in both worlds on pg 131. "The crack between the worlds" is neither a "real world" nor an opening into such- for there is no such thing as a "real world" other than that one from which one makes such a statement." The last statement mentioned by Don Juan " advised us to thinking carefully about our baths before we set out on them. For by the time a man discovers that his path "has no heart," the path is read to hill him." That is true because we should think about the path on which we wish to explore and further examine it before we walk it and wander what the consequence could be, and if we will be able to handle it.

Hughes-
Creativity is also used by artist for spiritual worships. According to Hughes."The purpose of religious art is to guide the viewer's mind to thoughts of the divine, and this is at variance with the end-in-itself nature of ordinary creativity." That is true because when you worship God you see his pictures and that helps focus you to him. The lord of the dance, is also a shamanistic way because dancers enter an altered state through their dancing rituals that are performed to others. I seen people being hypnotised 3 times and it is quite a show. People believe what they want to believe in that trance and they listen to that voice no matter what it is telling them an they have no recollection of it. But how can that become a ASC if you don't recall it?