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This episode is titled "DMT: The Spirit Molecule - An Interview with Dr. Rick Strassman" and is being released on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. My interview with Rick Strassman was recorded on Nov. 15, 2010.
Rick Strassman MD performed the first human studies with psychedelic drugs in the US in over 20 years. His research involved the powerful naturally-occurring compound, DMT – N,N-dimethyltryptamine. Led to this substance through his earlier study of the pineal gland as a potential biological locus for spiritual experiences, he administered several hundred doses to DMT to approximately 60 volunteers between 1990 and 1995. He wrote about this research in the popular book, DMT – The Spirit Molecule, now in its 15th printing. With three distinguished collaborators, he co-authored Inner Paths to Outer Space, which looks more carefully at the common “other worlds” experience volunteers typical of the DMT effect.
Since 1996, Dr. Strassman has been exploring models for the DMT effect, and has focused primarily on the Old Testament concept of prophecy. This is a spiritual experience which takes into account the apparently external, free-standing nature of the DMT “worlds,” in which one’s sense of self is highly preserved and interactive. This is in contrast to previous models that borrow more heavily from Eastern religious systems, ones that emphasize unitive, ego-dissolving experiences. In addition, the prophetic model deals directly with ethical and moral concerns, adding a crucial element to our ability to understand and integrate the content of the psychedelic experience. He is developing these ideas in his next book, The Soul of Prophecy, due to appear in 2011.
Dr. Strassman is currently Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. He is also President and co-founder of the Cottonwood Research Foundation, which is dedicated to consciousness research.
www.rickstrassman.com www.thespiritmolecule.com