What Is Consciousness?

The Mystery at the Heart of Experience

Scientists can map brain activity, correlate neural networks, and even manipulate behavior, but they still do not know why subjective experience exists at all. Why does seeing red feel like something? Why is there an inner “I” that experiences the world, rather than just a mechanistic system processing data? This is what philosophers refer to as the “hard problem of consciousness.”

The hard problem asks: How do physical processes (neurons, synapses, electrochemical signals) give rise to the felt sense of being aware? Many theorists concede that we can chart how awareness behaves, but the question of why consciousness arises remains fundamental and unresolved.

Philosophical Perspectives on Consciousness

Over centuries, thinkers have offered several broad frameworks:

Materialism (Physicalism): Consciousness is an emergent property of matter, arising when complex physical systems reach a threshold of organization.
Dualism: Mind and matter are distinct. Consciousness is not reducible to the physical; it interacts with the body but is ontologically separate.
Panpsychism / Panexperientialism: A more subtle view: consciousness, or proto-experience, is a fundamental feature of all matter. Complex forms (brains) yield rich consciousness; simpler systems have rudimentary awareness.
Idealism / Nondualism: Consciousness is primary; the physical universe is a manifestation within awareness. The “external world” is a projection or expression of consciousness, not the cause of it.
Neutral Monism / Monistic Views: Mind and matter are two aspects of a deeper underlying reality; consciousness and physicality emerge from a deeper ground (sometimes called “neutral substance” or “pure awareness”).

Each view has strengths and challenges. None command universal consensus, especially when dealing with the first-person mystery of experience.

Consciousness in the Yogic & Mystical Lens

From the perspective of Yoga, Vedanta, and mystical traditions, consciousness is not a byproduct of the brain. Consciousness is the ground of being itself. The world, the body, the mind are all transient forms dancing within this infinite awareness.

In yogic philosophy, Sat–Chit–Ananda (Being – Consciousness – Bliss) is the essential nature of reality.

Sat — existence, beingness
Chit — pure awareness, consciousness
Ananda — the inherent joy or bliss of that ground

The ego, personality, thoughts, and perceptions are like waves on the surface of the ocean. Through disciplined meditation (as in Kriya Yoga), one learns to quiet the waves, withdraw identification from them, and abide as the infinite, unchanging ocean itself.

Kriya Yoga teaches that by consciously regulating the life force (prana) and directing attention inward. Directing the attention along the subtle spinal path one can gradually dissolve mental turbulence and merge individual consciousness into the universal. After Kriya Pranayama, in paravasthra meditation, we abide in the most high, as Jesus called it. The effects of Kriya Yoga are:

Deepening internal stillness and clarity
Dissolution of egoic boundaries
Intuitive insight beyond discursive thought
A felt unity with all life
Persistent inner peace, love, and joy

Paramahansa Yogananda encouraged a spirit of experimental inquiry: “It is possible to put religion into practice, to use it as a science that you can prove by experimenting on yourself.” In other words: meditate, test, experience. See for yourself what lies beyond dogma.

Consciousness Expanding Soma

Throughout human history, many spiritual traditions have used consciousness-expanding modalities (sacramental or visionary practices) as paths to deeper states of awareness. These rituals, entheogens, sacramental substances, guided visionary practices, etc. are used within tradition, preparation, and reverence.

Some historic examples and connections:

Soma in the Vedas: An ancient sacred plant or sacrament in Vedic ritual, said to confer immortality, divine vision, and communion with gods.
Eleusinian Mysteries (Ancient Greece): Mystical rites centered in Demeter/Persephone mythology — some scholars suggest psychoactive kykeon or barley brews played a role in inducing altered states of consciousness.
Shamanic & Indigenous Sacraments Worldwide: Ayahuasca, psilocybin, peyote, iboga, and others have been used in ceremonial, community, and guided settings to facilitate breakthroughs, healing, and vision.

In modern discourse, people often call them “psychedelics,” “entheogens,” or “visionary medicines.” Regardless of what you call them, they are tools that, when used with intention, preparation, integration, and guidance, can illuminate inner terrain. They are not shortcuts or superficial thrills, but can, in rare cases, catalyze deep insight when approached with respect and spiritual maturity.

However, such practices carry potential risks (psychological, legal, ethical). They are not replacements for disciplined spiritual practice, but for some traditions, tools in the greater map of awakening. At Kriya House, we see the value of glimpsing Sat-Chit-Ananda as the fullness/emptiness that is otherwise indescribable. At the same time, we do not advocate the use of these tools without the development of a daily meditation practice.

If your heart is drawn toward exploring consciousness, from thought to silence, from ordinary perception to transcendence, we invite you: try it for yourself. Sit in meditation, return inward, and discover the source behind the source.

I’d like to share my experience with you now that I’ve given you the generic information compiled by a Large Language Model above. Sure, it’s largely accurate, but it doesn’t have the soul. I’ve always been curious about spiritual matters, and lived my life according to spiritual principles. When the time was ready, the universe provided me with mushrooms at the age of 18, and I was ablet to experience the unity of life, and that the spirit that grows the trees and the grass and the spirit within myself were no different. When I was 36, the universe provided me with the experience of an element endogenous to all of us, an element that is released during birth and death. Dimethyltryptamine is a compound that is grown in Reed canary grass the venom of the sonoran desert toad, and leaves of the Psychotria Viridis plant. One is able to extract it using simple chemistry, and ingest it orally or through smoking.

I saw something I can never unsee and I am so grateful. It forever changed my life. If you are past your mid 30s and don’t have any signs of schizophrenia, I recommend it. I have watched at least 30 people take it by now, and at least 4 of them have had breakthrough experiences like I did, where they see the nature of reality and comprehend the magnitude of what “God” is, before coming back into our divine human form, experiencing God through our consciousness. Everybody else who experiences it has a lovely time, and goes back to their lives as usual. But for those of us who had a breakthrough experience, we come back and try to put it into words but what we saw or became was a dimension before or beyond words. It is beyond time and space. It’s beautiful, and I know everyone will experience it one day. Now, if you’re curious about trying the most psychedelic in the world, here is everything you should know.

What You Should Know

5-MeO-DMT (5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine) is potent and fast-acting. The effects are felt within one held breath. The experience itself is short-lived lasting around 15 minutes. This entheogenic compound is found naturally in some plants and the venom of the Sonoran Desert toad. 5-MeO-DMT interacts with serotonin receptors in the brain, specifically having an effect on mood regulation, antidepressant action, and mental health. 5-MeO-DMT leads to significant changes in perception, cognition, and emotional state. It has been associated with positive long-term effects on mental health and well-being, although it is not without its contraindications (see below). This powerful substance induces a mystical and transcendental experience, and many people proclaim it to be a peak experience of their life, having significant effects on their spiritual worldview and/or attribute great healing to use of this sacrament.

Ethical Use

Due to the increasing popularity of 5-MeO-DMT for spiritual and recreational use, these toads are being overharvested, leading to significant stress on their populations and habitats.

Synthetic 5-MeO-DMT is produced in a laboratory setting with specialized equipment, through a series of chemical reactions that convert simpler compounds into a pure, consistent, powerful entheogen. The consistency cannot be had with the toad, because 5-MeO production will vary with environmental factors. Furthermore, synthetic production leaves out the venom. Synthetic production does not harm any animals or disrupt ecosystems. By choosing synthetic 5-MeO-DMT, users can experience the same profound effects without contributing to the decline of this unique species.

Our Commitment to Our Community

In Colorado (and other places), facilitators of 5-MeO-DMT and other natural psychedelic substances have the legal right to engage in these practices for the purpose of community-centered spiritual healing. In accordance with Colorado Proposition 122, which grants access to psychedelic substances for religious and spiritual purposes, facilitation activities are fully decriminalized and protected under this provision. The practice of using these sacraments aims to foster a connection to the divine and mystical, a greater sense of unity, consciousness, and well-being within our community. Although the legalities of healing centers and facilitators is still in the process of being established, we trust that our intentions are true to the meaning of the proposition, as our intentions are aligned with the purpose of community healing, with a commitment to safety, spirituality, and bufo sustainability.

Spiritual Intent and Practice:

All psychedelic ceremonies and sessions facilitated are conducted with the primary intent of spiritual exploration, healing, and personal growth.
Participants are, upon reading this page, fully informed about the spiritual, psychological, physical, and emotional nature of these experiences, as well as the implications and recommended protocols thereafter, and the legal context in which they are held.
Our 508 Ministry includes psychedelic sacraments (soma) as part of our spiritual practice.

Donation-Based Model:

Any financial contributions made by participants are sliding scale donation based.
Donations can be made via Zelle, Cashapp, Venmo, cash in-person, or through our Zeffy-powered nonprofit Stripe payment method.
These donations are intended to support the sustainability of the practice, cover expenses related to the safe facilitation of ceremonies, and ensure ongoing availability of integration support. We do not aim to make a profit,

Legal Compliance and Transparency:

We operate transparently within the framework established by Proposition 122 and other applicable legal guidelines.
Participants are made aware of their rights to participate in these spiritual practices, as well as the outcomes of participating in these practices, and resources available to them for integration.

Ethical and Respectful Facilitation:

The facilitator adheres to high ethical standards in all facilitation activities, ensuring respect, safety, and integrity for all participants.
Provide thorough pre-screening, safe ceremony settings, emergency preparedness, post-ceremony check-ins where we can provide resources.
The facilitator’s main objective is to prevent you from doing harm to your body if you flail about, run towards something, or attempt to put your face into the earth. Therefore, they may guide your body into a safe place, which may involve some form of physical contact.

By upholding these principles and adhering to the legal framework provided by Proposition 122, the facilitator is dedicated to offering a legally compliant, spiritually enriching, and supportive environment for all who seek healing and transformation through the responsible use of natural psychedelic substances.

What To Expect

We want to ensure that you are fully informed about both the potential positive and negative outcomes of participating in a 5-MeO-DMT ceremony. This powerful substance can lead to profound experiences, but it is crucial to approach it with awareness, respect, and responsibility. On this page are the need-to-know statements before you take the most powerful entheogen known to humans.

Because of the intensity and unique nature of this experience, we highly recommend preparation and thorough integration support.

I offer you this Guide and integration Workbook for choosing which psychedelic to explore, how to prepare, and how to integrate.

Potential Outcomes:

Ego Dissolution. You may experience a sense of merging with the universe, leading to feelings of oneness, interconnectedness, and profound spiritual insight. This may not be felt as a ‘positive outcome’ in the moment or the moments following, but from there you can re-integrate your perspective on how you go about the world. Integration is crucial here, so please reach out to the community when you need.

Emotional Release. Deep-seated emotions and traumas can surface and be released. This may be uncomfortable depending on your comfort with vulnerability and feeling the undesirable emotions, but it comes with potentially leading to a sense of relief and emotional clarity after it has been felt and released.

Enhanced Self-Awareness. Insights into your life, behaviors, and relationships may emerge, helping you to better understand yourself and your motivations. Self-forgiveness is vital here, as we may become aware of mistakes that we have made out of ignorance of universal laws.

Increased Compassion. Many people report heightened feelings of empathy and compassion for themselves and others.

Spiritual Awakening. The experience may trigger a spiritual awakening or deepen your existing spiritual practices that will carry on into your life. Unless you’re living perfectly aligned with your values, it will begin to be very difficult to live out of alignment. This is a good outcome, but it is very challenging to change our modus operandi, so we encourage you to integrate with your new community of psychonautic spiritual seekers.

Warnings

People with heart issues, a history of seizures, or psychological instability (bipolar disorder or schizophrenia) should not participate in the ceremony. Psychological or emotional instability due to a disconnection to spirit is not a disqualifying factor.

Ensure you are not taking any medications in particular, antihistamines or SSRI’s.

The intensity of the experience (of feeling like one is dying) might induce feelings of anxiety and fear, both during and after the ceremony. This is not to scare you away, but prepare you to be courageous, should you move forward. Our ego does not want to die, so you will get cold feet before diving in. That’s normal.

Physical Discomfort may arise. Reactions such as nausea, vomiting, shaking, and sweating are possible during the ceremony. Please bring a change of clothes. Know that this catharsis and purging is good for you and that there’s no need to be embarrassed. Simultaneously, shakti moving through your body may manifest as orgasms. It’s ok. You’re in a safe space.

Emotional Distress. Confronting deep emotions and traumas can be distressing and may require significant time and effort to process and integrate. You know yourself the best. Make sure you’re honest with yourself and aren’t taking this deep dive lightly.

Rarely but occasionally do Psychological disturbance may be experienced for a prolonged time. These include depression, paranoia, or confusion, which can last for weeks or months. It stems from living misaligned from your highest values. Be honest with yourself about where you’re at, and be willing to make the changes in your life.

Disrobing, loss of impulse control, and loss of motor control may happen during the experience. If a white-out/black-out event is coupled with a disrobing event, it may cause confusion as why they are suddenly naked and unable to remember what happened. But now you’ve been informed, so when we tell you you took your shirt off, then you’ll believe us.

People often don’t remember what they said or did during their experience. They often do mudras with their hands and bodies, and often experience many emotions. Other times, they just lie there peacefully. It’s a mixed bag of things. We can record it if you want to see what it was like from the outside, but what you see for yourself at the peak of it and as you come back into your regular state is what will stick with you the longest.

Reactivations

After the initial experience, you might experience reactivations. For me, I had to start becoming very careful on when and how much cannabis concentrates I smoked because it would often reactivate my DMT trip.

Other ways of reactivating may be spontaneous re-experiencing the booming stillness or the love-filled emptiness that is luminous reality. Your meditation practice may get deepened with reactivations, but it may happen at other times, too. High stress or emotional upheaval after the trip can make reactivations but they are also possible in every day life. It may be visual, emotional, or psychological. If you’re not prepared and ready for it, it may distress you!

The reasons for reactivations are multiple, including the possible intense psychological impacts the experience engenders, such as Ego Dissolution experiences which can leave lasting impressions that resurface. If any deep-seated emotional or psychological issues brought to the surface during the trip might not be fully processed. Furthermore, Psychedelics can temporarily or permanently alter brain chemistry and neural pathways.

This experience may forever transform you and your perspective and you cannot unsee what you have seen.

Know Thyself:

“Setting intentions” is a nice practice in general, but we may not know consciously what we truly intend, be honest with ourselves, or tend to make unrealistic ‘wish-lists’ of what they hope to achieve through this powerful experience. However, having a strong intention can also guide and shape your experience as a point of focus and meditation leading up to the event, and as a point of contemplation and reflection after the event. Make sure you have realistic hopes for your positive outcomes, and reasonable expectations and resources for how to handle the possible challenging outcomes. This page as well as the following guidebook may help with reflection on what you’re looking to get out of this experience. It also outlines various other psychedelics that have different expected outcomes.

What to Expect on the Big Day

We dedicate the whole beautiful day to facilitation. Leading up to it, we are calm, peaceful, and loving. We hold space for those coming to us for healing and discovery. We spend the days leading up to it with dedication to our spiritual practices. Please do the same, and tie up loose ends with your friends and family to the best of your ability. Be peaceful and loving. Eat well. Sleep well. Laugh heartily!

On the day of ceremony eat lightly, with purity in mind. As with any psychedelic experience, you get out of it to the same level of what you put in. If it’s relatively easy for you to be vegetarian or vegan, do so. We believe the energetic weight of animal products affect the experience. Furthermore, purging a vegetarian meal is easier than a heavy meal.

What to Bring

Bring health-giving foods as an offering to the people you’ll be sharing the day with.
Bring a change of clothes (just in case) and a towel, in case you want to shower.
Optionally, you may bring a piece for the altar, a form or representation of God embodied.
If you’re musical, bring an instrument.

In Ceremony

Please leave cell phones out of the facilitation space, as a sign of respect, reverence, and total presence.

Besides the pre-takeoff instructions, we keep words to a minimum while in the facilitation process, nodding for readiness and using hand gestures for another dose. This keeps the logical, rational, egoic bodies out of the picture for better attunement to the astral and causal bodies.

The experience lasts 15-20 minutes, with the time thereafter being a sensitive period of astral and human connection. Your time not partaking in the sacrament will be the majority of your time. We have facilitated different levels of crowds, individually, in pairs, four at a time, 8 in a row, etc. We want people to feel free to talk and be social, but simultaneously want people to be respectful that other participants may need quiet to process and just Be. The beautiful period after the soma could be spent journaling for your own benefit or meditating on existence. It may also be a time for connecting deeply with the people around you. Be spiritually sensitive and socially aware.

We have space in the ‘tent’ for 4 people to comfortably lie down. Facilitators will help administer the first dose (3 seconds, 4.5 seconds, 6 seconds, or to 4.5 second inhalations for a total of a 9 second full dose). After initial take-off, the participant usually settles into the experience. Occasionally some people might have boisterous and loud experiences, which may or may not be disruptive to other participants. In this case, we will hold off on administering to other people until peace has been re-established. After your experience, feel free to lie there in peace until you’re ready to get up. You may ask for water or food or whatever you need. Also feel free to get up. Either way, there’s no rush.

Please be open, curious, loving, nonjudgmental, and calm while observing others during their experience.

“Integration”

You will never unsee what you saw. Something will move in you. You may push it away and ignore any strong messages you’ve gotten, and that’s okay as part of your journey, too. But to “integrate” what you came to know in your journey will require active habit and lifestyle modification, as well as a friend or group of friends with whom you can talk about your personal paradigm shift. Of course, having been blasted into a place that is beyond concepts, we are unable to really ever fully grasp it, though we can quickly find a peace in the intuitive knowing (faith) that we have gained through the experience. This aftercare and integration is where the majority of improvements in your life will happen.

You may feel like going into hermitage, and creating strong boundaries between the world and yourself. You may do so, but may it be pleasant and liberating and maintained in peacefulness until you feel like being part of the world again. Don’t be afraid to speak up, reach out, and seek support after the ceremony. You are not a burden. Your process and journey benefits all those you share it with. Your preparation as you read this could include securing a relationship to a mental health professional or hiring an integration coach.

You can get so much out of dedicated journaling time, daily meditation, and habit modification protocols. It is highly possible that following any ceremony containing DMT, you will naturally and/or intentionally make lifestyle changes. Maintaining or developing good sleep hygiene is incredibly important to support overall mental health, along with healthy nutrition and physical activity. Establishing social and vocational boundaries to maintain a peaceful life is also of utmost importance. Furthermore, using personal practices like yoga, deep breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques will help center you so you know what to think, say, or do next. Use the plethora of online and in-person resources that teach a comprehensive understanding of yoga, which is an ancient practice of ‘integration’ or union with the divine.

Thank You For Being.

Now you understand the potential risks and benefits, you can accept or decline them before embarking on this life-changing experience. Thank you for being everything you are. In all your self-perceived flaws, imperfections, and problems, you are a perfect emanation of nature and spirit. Thank you for your respect regarding these powerful plants, animals, and fungi, and for being willing to expand your consciousness through this divine tool found here on earth. Enjoy your experience of curiosity, revelation, and your play with the divine!