Paddo’s zeer zinvol

Paddo's zijn zeer zinvol. Dat is het resultaat van een studie die in augustus 2008 gepubliceerd werd in het Journal of Psychopharmacology door toonaangevende psychiaters van de afdeling psychiatrie van de Johns Hopkins University in de VS. Deze studie kreeg in onze vaderlandse media helaas niet de aandacht die zij verdiende, vandaar dat IOCOB bij de resultaten iets langer stilstaat. Het is niet voor niets, dat de optische effecten tijdens een paddo-trip veel lijken op een raam van een kathedraal. Paddo's laten je de wereld zien als met de ogen van God. Aldus een vrijwilliger uit de studie van de psychiaters.

De auteurs geven aan dat paddo’s binnen verschillende culturen al een heel lange tijd als sacrament gebruikt zijn. 

Psilocybin has been used as a sacrament for centuries, possibly millennia, in structured religious ceremonies.

En dat het gebruik ervan in een gestructureerde omgeving al langer door wetenschappers positief beoordeeld werd. (Chwelos, et al., 1959; Leary, et al., 1963; Metzner, et al., 1965; Pahnke, 1969).

In een dubbelblinde studie enkele jaren geleden die uitblonk door haar opzet en methodologie, demonstreerden de onderzoekers dat psilocybine, het actieve bestanddeel van paddo’s, bij 36 drugs-naieve vrijwilligers zeer positieve zinvolle effecten teweeg bracht, meetbaar 2 maanden na de inname ervan.

The results showed psilocybin to occasion experiences with substantial personal meaning and spiritual significance when evaluated 2 months after psilocybin. 

Veertien maanden later deden de onderzoekers een follow-up onderzoek bij de vrijwilligers uit dat eerste experiment. Ze gebruikten daarvoor een bepaalde meetschaal: de Persisting Effects Questionnaire. De resultaten overtroffen de verwachtingen. We geven eerst en verslag van de kwalitatieve beoordeling van een aantal vrijwilligers, om te zien hoe intens de ervaring was, per vrijwilliger. [1]

Zien door de ogen van God 

Alles is verbonden met elkaar, ik ervaar de wereld door de ogen van God, er is alleen maar overgave nodig, weten wat Liefde is, mijn adem en de adem van God zijn hetzelfde, inzichten die we kennen uit de geschriften van de verlichte meesters. Nu opgeschreven door de deelnemers aan deze studie. 

Hier volgen de verbatim citaten van de deelnemers aan de studie, deelnemers die nooit eerder ‘drugs’ gebruikt hadden! 

02 The understanding that in the eyes of God – all people…were all equally important and equally loved by God. I have had other transcendent experiences, however, this one was important because it reminded and comforted me that God is truly and unconditionally loving and present.

03 Freedom from every conceivable thing including time, space, relationships, self, etc… It was as if the embodied ‘me’ experienced ultimate transcendence – even of myself.

04 A non-self self held/suspended in an almost tactile field of light.

05 That in every horrible experience or frightening experience, if you stay with it, enter into it, you will find God. That the horror is in reality only an illusion and God lies beneath it all. It has become a guiding principal in my life.

07 The utter joy and freedom of letting go – without anxiety – without direction – beyond ego self 08 Collapse of ordinary space and time sense. Realization of unity of existence and relativity of ordinary consciousness… I have had glimpses of this before – but this was profound and sustained.

09 The ‘knowing’ was so powerful and yet personal. Experiencing the Beloved and falling in love.

13 The sense that all is One, that I experienced the essence of the Universe and the knowing that God asks nothing of us except to receive love.

17 I became like a point of awareness able to travel inside myself, others and the outside world. No reference to time or space… The feeling of joy and sadness at the same time – paradoxical.

21 The experience of death, which initially was very uncomfortable, followed by absolute peace and being in the presence of God. It was so awesome to be with God that words can’t describe the experience.

23 To cease to ‘BE’, as I understand it, was not frightening. It was safe and much greater than I have words for or understanding of. Whatever is larger than the state of being is what was holding me.

27 ‘Surrender’ is intensely powerful. To ‘let go’ and become enveloped in the beauty of – in this case – music – was enormously spiritual. 28 The feeling of no boundaries – where I didn’t know where I ended and my surroundings began. Somehow I was able to comprehend what oneness is.

29 The profound grief I experienced as if all of the pain and sadness of the world were passing through me cell by cell tearing apart my being.

32 The breath of God/wind/and my breath are all the same… I really enjoy the deep knowings or truths and laughing about them with ‘God’.

36 It opened my third eye – I could see many spiritual beliefs that I hold/held and linked them – a more cohesive and comprehensive spiritual landscape became apparent to me.

37 The experience expanded my conscious awareness permanently. It allows me to let go of negative ideas faster. I accept ‘what is’ easier.

39 [I experienced] a reality that was clear, beautiful, bright and joyful… In short, this experience opened me up (gave me a tangible vision) of what I think is attainable every day.

40 I felt as if tons of information about ‘what is’ was being downloaded quickly into my knowing/understanding.

43 The part that continues to stick out for me was ‘knowing’ and ‘seeing’ and ‘experiencing’ with every sense and fiber of my being that all things are connected.    

De conclusie

De conclusie van de auteurs was, dat het belangrijkste bestanddeel van Paddo’s in hun studie de aanleiding was tot de meest intense en bijzondere mystieke ervaringen was in het leven van de deelnemers, en dat die ervaring ook meer dan een jaar na de sessie nog steeds zo gezien werd. Het Nederlandse verbod op Paddo’s dat op 1 December 2008 ingaat, is dan ook wederom een bijzonder kortzichtige beslissing van dit kabinet en van minister Klink.

The most striking finding from this 14-month follow-up evaluation of the effects of psilocybin and methylphenidate  administered to hallucinogen-naïve volunteers is that a large proportion of volunteers rate their ‘psilocybin experience’ as among the most personally meaningful and spiritually signifi- cant of their lives.

Fifty-eight per cent and 67% of volunteers, respectively, rated the experience as being among the five most personally meaningful experiences of their lives, and the five most spiritually significant experiences of their lives; 11% and 17%, respectively, indicated that it was the single most meaningful experience, and the single most spiritually significant experience.

Furthermore, 64% of the volunteers also indicated that the psilocybin experience increased their sense of wellbeing or life satisfaction moderately or very much, and no volunteer rated the experience as having decreased well-being or life satisfaction. The magnitude of these effects was undiminished from similar ratings completed 2 months after the psilocybin session.