Being in Right Relationship with Sacred Medicines
When we speak about mushrooms, MDMA, or 5-MeO-DMT, we are not speaking about substances in the recreational sense. We are speaking about medicines, sacraments, and living intelligences that have been in relationship with human beings for far longer than modern culture remembers.
One of the greatest distortions of our time is the belief that humans sit at the top of the hierarchy of intelligence where we believe we are the most advanced. When you begin to work intimately with these medicines, that illusion softens and you start to feel something much older and wiser.
Take the mushroom, for instance. It does not belong to the plant kingdom, but belongs to its own kingdom entirely. Mycelial networks weave beneath the forest floor, connecting root to root in what scientists now call the “wood wide web,” quietly facilitating communication and nourishment between wildlife.
When you ingest this sacrament, it is no surprise that mystical experiences often arise, as you are communing with the very intelligence that connects and composts all of life. Its wisdom far surpasses the analytical human mind for it draws you beyond the illusion of separateness and into a deeper reality of unity and interbeing. In those moments, you are not merely observing interconnectedness, but are being reintroduced to it experientally.
Each medicine carries its own distinct personality and its own spirit. As you deepen into practice, you begin to know them intimately and they become teachers, allies, and oftentimes, they feel like members of your soul family.
Let’s explore these spirits one by one. MDMA is often referred to as the heart opener. Biochemically, it quiets the amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for fear and hypervigilance) allowing the nervous system to soften. In that softening, you are brought directly into your heart center and more into your body. For many, this is the first time in years they have felt truly safe inside of themselves.
This is why MDMA has shown such promise in the treatment of PTSD and trauma, however, beyond the clinical lens, it is a medicine of true connection. Connection to your own body, your inner truth, and to the people you love.
Surprisingly, it can feel subtle and strong at the very same time. Those who live primarily in their heads can sometimes miss its potency because they are searching for fireworks instead of presence. The relationship begins when you are willing to meet the medicine in the body and drop into sensation, allowing your defenses to rest.
In many cases, beginning with MDMA (especially in the presence of a skilled guide or facilitator) is wise. We often want to leap into the most dramatic and mystical experience by heading straight into a deep mushroom journey or sit with what some call Jaguar. However, MDMA is a beautiful entry point into this work and teaches your nervous system to trust in yourself, the medicine, and in your guide. From that foundation of safety, deeper work can organically unfold over time.
It is important to remember that psychedelics are not a one-and-done cure. Modern culture sometimes markets them as a silver bullet, but in truth, this path is relational and devotional. For many, it becomes part of their lifestyle of exploring consciousness and an ongoing deepening into awareness, humility, and integration.
I often say that MDMA is like riding the wave, while mushrooms are like becoming the entire ocean. With mushrooms, the experience can be vast, mystical, and immersive. In Mexico, the Mazatec people refer to them as Niños Santos which translates to little saints or little children. There is definitely a trickster quality to them for they can be playful and light, and in the next breath turn you toward profound confrontation. It takes humility, skilled facilitation, and deep trust to navigate this terrain well.
If you wish to develop a deeper relationship with the spirit of the mushroom, begin before the ceremony. Pray to it, speak to it, and maybe even place a mushroom image or symbol on your altar as an act of reverence. Offer fresh flowers, water, or even write a letter of intention and read it aloud. Spend time in nature listening to the forest floor. These gestures are not superstition, but are signals of respect. The more intention you arrive with on the day of your ceremony, the more trust is built. Where there is trust, there can be deeper learning.
Even after the ceremony ends, the relationship does not end there for the intelligence of the mushroom still exists. In your daily life, you can ask inwardly, “What would you have me see here?” and listen. The medicine is not confined to the ceremonial container for the relationship continues in the way you walk, speak, and choose differently on a daily basis.
And then there is 5-MeO-DMT which is sometimes referred to as Jaguar, and often called the God molecule. It is one of the most potent psychoactive substances on the planet. Endogenously, DMT is present within the human body, and while there are many theories about its role at birth and death, the science is still evolving. What can be said with certainty is that 5-MeO-DMT has the capacity to dissolve the sense of individual identity with extraordinary speed and force.
This is not a recreational experience. It is an encounter with the ground of being itself and with what many would call God. To approach this medicine without reverence is unwise. The relationship with 5-MeO is built slowly, intentionally, and with humility and guidance. It asks you to surrender completely and asks you to let go of everything you think you are. Oftentimes, when working with this powerful medicine, you will be asked to take a smaller dose in the beginning of the session which is lovingly called a “handshake.” This is to meet the power of the medicine with reverence and to also feel into your own system if you area really ready to “meet your maker” so to speak.
At Boulder Canyon Retreat, I offer both private and group ceremonies designed uniquely for each individual where there is a no one-size-fits-all approach. The journey is carefully curated, grounded in safety, skill, and deep respect for these sacred intelligences. My role is not to override the medicine, but to help you build a conscious relationship with it that is rooted in humility, devotion, and integration.
This work is not about chasing experiences, but about remembering that you are in relationship to something far greater than yourself. When approached with reverence, these medicines do not simply give you visions, but initiate you into a deeper way of living.
