The Psychotropic Mind

Conversations on shamanism and mind-altering plants by filmmaker Jan Kounen, anthropologist Jeremy Narby, and writer/filmmaker Vincent Ravalec

• Explores how ayahuasca and iboga are tools for communicating with other life-forms

• Offers insights into the role this indigenous knowledge can play in solving the current problems facing the world

In the Amazon, shamans do not talk in terms of hallucinogens but of tools for communicating with other life-forms. Ayahuasca, for example, is first and foremost a means of breaking down the barrier that separates humans from other species, allowing us to communicate with them. The introduction of plant-centered shamanism into the Western world in the 1970s was literally the meeting of two entirely different paradigms. In The Psychotropic Mind, three of the individuals who have been at the forefront of embracing other ways of knowing look at the ramifications of the introduction into our Western culture of these shamanic practices and the psychotropic substances that support them.

With rare sincerity and depth, noted anthropologist Jeremy Narby, filmmaker Jan Kounen, and writer/filmmaker Vincent Ravalec explore the questions of sacred plants, initiations, hallucinogens, and altered states of consciousness, looking at both the benefits and dangers that await those who seek to travel this path. Focusing specifically on ayahuasca and iboga, psychotropic substances with which the authors are intimately familiar, they examine how we can best learn the other ways of perceiving the world found in indigenous cultures, and how this knowledge offers immense benefits and likely solutions to some of the modern world’s most pressing problems.

“"Wide-ranging and provocative, these trialogues entice us with colorful personal encounters with South American and African shamanism. Brimming with practical and insightful advice, and displaying a refreshingly broad conceptual framework, this book is both entertaining and informative. It will satisfy both the newcomer to the field as well as those with a well-established”

“Wide-ranging and provocative, these trialogues entice us with colorful personal encounters with South American and African shamanism. Brimming with practical and insightful advice, and displaying a refreshingly broad conceptual framework, this book is both entertaining and informative. It will satisfy both the newcomer to the field as well as those with a well-established interest in hallucinogens and their social implications.” Rick Strassman, author of DMT: The Spirit Molecule and clinical associate professor of psychiatry,
"This book will be valuable to professionals counseling young people and to those working with 12-Step programs and rehab facilities. Salespeople should understand what it is about so that it does not get passed over as being sensational and exotic." Anna Jedrziewski, New Age Retailer, March 2010
"Since the 1950s there has been considerable interest in the use of natural hallucinogens by indigenous people as part of their spiritual beliefs. . . . the conversation that is recorded does offer some insights into this strange world." The Cauldron, UK, May 2010
“In The Psychotropic Mind, three of the individuals who have been at the forefront of embracing other ways of knowing look at the ramifications of the introduction into our western culture of these shamanic practices and the psychotropic substances that support them. With sincerity and depth, noted anthropologist Jeremy Narby, filmmaker Jan Kounen, and writer/filmmaker Vincent Ravalec explore the questions of indigenous plant medicines, initiations and altered states of consciousness, looking at both the benefits and dangers that await those who seek to travel this path. Focusing specifically on ayahuasca and iboga – psychotropic substances with which the authors are intimately familiar – they examine how we can best learn the other ways of perceiving the world, as found in indigenous cultures, and how this knowledge offers immense benefits and likely solutions to some of the modern world’s most pressing problems.” Odyssey Magazine, October 2013

Jeremy Narby is an anthropologist best known for his books The Cosmic Serpent and Intelligence in Nature. Filmmaker Jan Kounen has created a number of films and documentaries, including the celebrated Blueberry, released in the United States as Renegades. Vincent Ravalec is a prizewinning writer and filmmaker whose book Iboga has been translated into English by Park Street Press.

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