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I think the entire message of the psychedelic experience, which is basically the sine qua non of the rebirth of alchemical understanding, the very basis of that understanding is that nature seeks to communicate.
Terence Mckenna
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote emphasizes that nature has a communicative aspect that is fundamental to understanding and experiencing transformation.

Terence McKenna explores the idea that psychedelics can facilitate a deeper connection to nature, highlighting that nature itself strives to convey messages and insights. He posits that this communication is essential for a rebirth or revival of ancient wisdom, particularly that which relates to alchemy and transformation, suggesting that understanding this connection can lead to profound personal and spiritual growth.

Themes

PsychedelicNatureCommunicationTransformationAlchemy

In practice

Example use cases

In a lecture on consciousness, one might reference this quote to illustrate the connection between psychedelics and nature.

More from Terence Mckenna

We want freedom. We want freedom from the constraints of the cycles of the sun and the moon. We want freedom from drought and weather, freedom from the movement of game, the growth of plants, freedom from control from mendacious popes and kings, freedom from ideology, freedom from want. This idea of freeing ourselves has become the compass of the human journey.
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LSD burst over the dreary domain of the constipated bourgeoisie like the angelic herald of a new psychedelic millennium. We have never been the same since, nor will we ever be, for LSD demonstrated, even to skeptics, that the mansions of heaven and gardens of paradise lie within each and all of us.
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A hallucination is a species of reality, as capable of teaching you as a videotape about Kilimanjaro or anything else that falls through your life.
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Animals are something invented by plants to move seeds around. An extremely yang solution to a peculiar problem which they faced.
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If the words 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness' don't include the right to experiment with your own consciousness, then the Declaration of Independence isn't worth the hemp it was written on.
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It is no coincidence that a rebirth of psychedelic use is occuring as we acquire the technological capability to leave the planet. The mushroom visions and the transformation of the human image precipitated by space exploration are spun together. Nothing less is happening than the emergence of a new human order. A telepathic, humane, universalist kind of human culture is emerging that will make everything that preceded it appear like the stone age.
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