Teonanácatl and Religious Freedom
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"PTSD is the plague of our heroes, those fighting for our fellow man, those who boldly walk toward the burning buildings and come home with a wound that no one else can see. Consuming their joy, driving dozens of suicides per day in the active military alone. In the worst cases of trauma, in cases where traditional medicine has failed, there are cures happening, [...] saving families and ending cycles of multi-generational trauma. [The] side effects? Joy, empathy, and deepening connection with loved ones. ...The cure is near. Like the sun breaking over a bleak horizon, help is on the way.... This is not a time for fear, propaganda, and prejudice. This is a time for compassion and action.”- Aubrey Marcus
As a survivor of years of child abuse and an SUV rollover accident, I was imparted with treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress during my adolescence which nearly pushed me to the point of suicide multiple times over the past several years. During this time, I heard news coming from the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research Group and the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies which found that psilocybin has the ability to heal, treat, and (in some cases) cure treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress.
Taking months and years to research the compound, I found an incredibly safe pharmacological profile, unparalleled clinical efficacy in the treatment of depression and crippling anxiety. What was most remarkable was its potential for spiritual enlightenment. Aside from the hundreds of pharmacological studies I researched, I found a rich cultural history of use by the Mazatec people of Mexico. Saint Maria Sabina (pictured above) inadvertently introduced the western world to Teonanácatl after the expeditions by Robert Gordon Wasson in the 1950s. After careful examination of her oral autobiography and documented practices, I decided to adopt her Christian syncretic practices into my own.
My first experience with psilocybin with a structured mindset and setting had effectively turned an atheist into a true believer once again. Psilocybin allowed for the processing of traumatic events from my childhood to be personally examined without the fear, pain, and dread that usually comes with “normal” states of awareness. I was effectively enabled to process these memories, gaining transcendence from decades of pain and crippling social anxiety. I personally believe that if it had not been for this medicine, I would not be here to tell my tale.
From my paper (Read my paper here): " At the height of my depression and PTSD in 2012, I was severely withdrawn, uncommunicative, agoraphobic, restless, and lost in life. I had become psychologically crippled to the point where I could not perform the essential activities of daily living. Years of ineffective therapy and countless Rx anti-depressants lead to this state. I had considered suicide many times, yet I knew that I couldn't leave my mother and sister. Every day felt like torture- that I was forced to interact with a world that I had come to fear and hate. It still pains me to remember this period of my life. After all my efforts to find guidance through the darkness which had consumed my life had failed, I felt that I had ran of options......
"One evening several years ago, I had read about the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research group and their remarkable findings. Not only did they claim high efficacy in treating patients with depression, post-traumatic stress, and anxiety, they provided plausible scientific evidence for the presence of divine spirit and God. Knowing this could be my source of salvation, I began a lifelong effort to prove that which I came to disbelieve-- that a loving God existed and that I could actually be treated for my treatment-resistant PTSD.......
"Acting on what I had extensively researched for months, I gathered a small amount of healthy Psilocybe specimens growing within the local area after proper taxonomic identification, handled them with care and respect, and returned to my home. I knew I had to go forward with an open heart and mind if I wished for this last attempt to be successful. Once I prepared my soul for the journey, I spoke a sincere prayer, asking the Christian God that is had long-felt to have forsaken me to bring me peace, love, and understanding, despite being atheistic at the time. Well, I asked, and I most certainly received......
"Timelessness, oneness with the universe, and a feeling of boundary-dissolution propelled me into a state of consciousness where I felt that I was literally being cradled in God's arms, felt the joy of being bathed in his love, and given gifts of love and forgiveness. I was assured not to fear the world as I had before, that there was certainly more good than evil within the world, that things would get better as long as I opened my heart to love, and that I needed to embody the change which I wished to see in the world. I was taught that all living beings are one; that we are to love our fellow humans as ourselves, even our enemies. The experience left me perplexed, yet I knew my time in that realm was unquestionably meaningful-- that I was given a form of spiritual healing which left me rejuvenated........
"Several hours later, I returned with a renewed hope in humanity, a new-found love for myself, certain that my future would be brighter, and that I was reborn. The experience uplifted me, inspiring me to live the life that I wanted to lead--- to continue to move forward despite the intense fear and pain that controlled my life, prompting me to be more open, giving, understanding, compassionate. I realized that I wanted to spend my life helping others who had also suffered from PTSD. Often, when I recall that experience, I remember it as the night that my life was saved.... it was the single most valuable moment of my life. "
Last year, I found myself with felony charges related to the possession of my medicine and sacrament: psilocybin mushrooms.
Subsequently, I took it upon myself to compile several decades of scientific research, anthropological studies, and the religious history of the legitimate spiritual use of psilocybin and found sufficient grounds to establish the legitimacy of my claims. I have expressed my beliefs and practices within this document without embarrassment so that I may publicly rectify the allegations of criminality imposed upon my reputation and honor by Seminole County and Orange County, Florida.
Despite appealing to my attorneys, corrections officers, and judges for consideration in regards to this matter of religious exercise, my pleas for recognition went ignored, often finding myself at the receiving end of derision, disrespect, and indifference.
This 44,000 word document utilizes over 550 legal, scientific, and sociological sources, pertinent quotes, and ten pages of appendices. Read Here
The arguments detailed within this document are on solid legal foundations, including the unanimous Supreme Court decision permitting the UDV to partake in ayahuasca ceremonies.
I'm attempting to raise $30,000 to pay for legal costs related to my incarceration and to garner the appropriate funds to find a lawyer who would be willing to take on my civil case.
I do not seek to legalize psilocybin mushrooms. I have no political agenda. I only know that my beliefs and practices are ethical and justifiable. I am simply seeking "appropriate relief" as afforded to me by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Thank you to all those who support my efforts. God bless.
"PTSD is the plague of our heroes, those fighting for our fellow man, those who boldly walk toward the burning buildings and come home with a wound that no one else can see. Consuming their joy, driving dozens of suicides per day in the active military alone. In the worst cases of trauma, in cases where traditional medicine has failed, there are cures happening, [...] saving families and ending cycles of multi-generational trauma. [The] side effects? Joy, empathy, and deepening connection with loved ones. ...The cure is near. Like the sun breaking over a bleak horizon, help is on the way.... This is not a time for fear, propaganda, and prejudice. This is a time for compassion and action.”- Aubrey Marcus
As a survivor of years of child abuse and an SUV rollover accident, I was imparted with treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress during my adolescence which nearly pushed me to the point of suicide multiple times over the past several years. During this time, I heard news coming from the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research Group and the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies which found that psilocybin has the ability to heal, treat, and (in some cases) cure treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress.
Taking months and years to research the compound, I found an incredibly safe pharmacological profile, unparalleled clinical efficacy in the treatment of depression and crippling anxiety. What was most remarkable was its potential for spiritual enlightenment. Aside from the hundreds of pharmacological studies I researched, I found a rich cultural history of use by the Mazatec people of Mexico. Saint Maria Sabina (pictured above) inadvertently introduced the western world to Teonanácatl after the expeditions by Robert Gordon Wasson in the 1950s. After careful examination of her oral autobiography and documented practices, I decided to adopt her Christian syncretic practices into my own.
My first experience with psilocybin with a structured mindset and setting had effectively turned an atheist into a true believer once again. Psilocybin allowed for the processing of traumatic events from my childhood to be personally examined without the fear, pain, and dread that usually comes with “normal” states of awareness. I was effectively enabled to process these memories, gaining transcendence from decades of pain and crippling social anxiety. I personally believe that if it had not been for this medicine, I would not be here to tell my tale.
From my paper (Read my paper here): " At the height of my depression and PTSD in 2012, I was severely withdrawn, uncommunicative, agoraphobic, restless, and lost in life. I had become psychologically crippled to the point where I could not perform the essential activities of daily living. Years of ineffective therapy and countless Rx anti-depressants lead to this state. I had considered suicide many times, yet I knew that I couldn't leave my mother and sister. Every day felt like torture- that I was forced to interact with a world that I had come to fear and hate. It still pains me to remember this period of my life. After all my efforts to find guidance through the darkness which had consumed my life had failed, I felt that I had ran of options......
"One evening several years ago, I had read about the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research group and their remarkable findings. Not only did they claim high efficacy in treating patients with depression, post-traumatic stress, and anxiety, they provided plausible scientific evidence for the presence of divine spirit and God. Knowing this could be my source of salvation, I began a lifelong effort to prove that which I came to disbelieve-- that a loving God existed and that I could actually be treated for my treatment-resistant PTSD.......
"Acting on what I had extensively researched for months, I gathered a small amount of healthy Psilocybe specimens growing within the local area after proper taxonomic identification, handled them with care and respect, and returned to my home. I knew I had to go forward with an open heart and mind if I wished for this last attempt to be successful. Once I prepared my soul for the journey, I spoke a sincere prayer, asking the Christian God that is had long-felt to have forsaken me to bring me peace, love, and understanding, despite being atheistic at the time. Well, I asked, and I most certainly received......
"Timelessness, oneness with the universe, and a feeling of boundary-dissolution propelled me into a state of consciousness where I felt that I was literally being cradled in God's arms, felt the joy of being bathed in his love, and given gifts of love and forgiveness. I was assured not to fear the world as I had before, that there was certainly more good than evil within the world, that things would get better as long as I opened my heart to love, and that I needed to embody the change which I wished to see in the world. I was taught that all living beings are one; that we are to love our fellow humans as ourselves, even our enemies. The experience left me perplexed, yet I knew my time in that realm was unquestionably meaningful-- that I was given a form of spiritual healing which left me rejuvenated........
"Several hours later, I returned with a renewed hope in humanity, a new-found love for myself, certain that my future would be brighter, and that I was reborn. The experience uplifted me, inspiring me to live the life that I wanted to lead--- to continue to move forward despite the intense fear and pain that controlled my life, prompting me to be more open, giving, understanding, compassionate. I realized that I wanted to spend my life helping others who had also suffered from PTSD. Often, when I recall that experience, I remember it as the night that my life was saved.... it was the single most valuable moment of my life. "
Last year, I found myself with felony charges related to the possession of my medicine and sacrament: psilocybin mushrooms.
Subsequently, I took it upon myself to compile several decades of scientific research, anthropological studies, and the religious history of the legitimate spiritual use of psilocybin and found sufficient grounds to establish the legitimacy of my claims. I have expressed my beliefs and practices within this document without embarrassment so that I may publicly rectify the allegations of criminality imposed upon my reputation and honor by Seminole County and Orange County, Florida.
Despite appealing to my attorneys, corrections officers, and judges for consideration in regards to this matter of religious exercise, my pleas for recognition went ignored, often finding myself at the receiving end of derision, disrespect, and indifference.
This 44,000 word document utilizes over 550 legal, scientific, and sociological sources, pertinent quotes, and ten pages of appendices. Read Here
The arguments detailed within this document are on solid legal foundations, including the unanimous Supreme Court decision permitting the UDV to partake in ayahuasca ceremonies.
I'm attempting to raise $30,000 to pay for legal costs related to my incarceration and to garner the appropriate funds to find a lawyer who would be willing to take on my civil case.
I do not seek to legalize psilocybin mushrooms. I have no political agenda. I only know that my beliefs and practices are ethical and justifiable. I am simply seeking "appropriate relief" as afforded to me by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Thank you to all those who support my efforts. God bless.
Organizer
Erik Sisko
Organizer
Altamonte Springs, FL
