Join host, Greg Carlwood, of The Higherside Chats podcast as he talks consciousness, altered states, and the Pleroma with returning guest, Anthony Peake.
While we love talking about the various brands of high strangeness out there, a major unifying component to these mysterious encounters with aspects of the other side is: us. This is because all of these experiences come through the lens of the human perception. And of course, the mainstream often uses that fact as an excuse to dismiss these strange occurrences entirely, which is wrong, but it’s still a fact that shouldn’t be ignored. What role does human consciousness play in these situations, or any situation for that matter?
Back in the THC saddle after four long years, today’s guest Anthony Peake is one of the kings of consciousness research. He’s written several books along the way, but most recently his decade plus study of reality, the mind, and altered states have all come together in his latest masterpiece, “Opening the Doors of Perception: The Key to Cosmic Awareness”.
2:11 With his latest work being a play on Aldous Huxley’s famous “Doors of Perception” written back in the 1950’s, Peake choose the title “Opening the Doors of Perception”. He “believed the time has come to re-evaluate the model of perception suggested by Huxley and to view it through the lens of our modern science”. Greg and Anthony discuss where they see the greatest need for updating and what some of the biggest insights have been since Huxley’s time.
10:42 While a lot of people in the alternative realm approach consciousness studies through the examination of out-of-body and near death experiences or psychedelic and entheogen use, very few researchers have examined the connection with conditions such as migraines, epilepsy, and schizophrenia. With a cross-pollination between several areas of study, Peake’s latest book addresses these neglected conditions and how they relate to our understanding of consciousness, from an all encompassing perspective using his vast scope of knowledge and research to connect to dots. Listen as he and Greg discuss the uphill battle academia faces to expand it’s worldview beyond materialism to include other possible paradigms in the study of consciousness.
18:10 Greg and Anthony discuss modern encounters with the Greys and how they appear to share similarities to old stories of fairy folk and little people. Oddly enough, these reports seem also to coincide with people suffering from Charles Bonnet Syndrome, begging the question is there something more to this? With personal anecdotes in hand, Anthony walks listeners through the importance of understanding CBS and it’s perspective role in consciousness and death.
36:13 Although the idea of “hallucinations” can be a loaded term, there is a possibility that these observed entities and beings are real but unseen to brains in neurotypical states. Greg and Anthony address the anomaly of UFOs leaving physical traces or people found with implants and rectify what the monoculture marginalizes as hallucinations.
43:27 No conversation involving consciousness is complete without adding Dimethltryptamine into the mix. With other researchers citing a connection between multi-generational alien abductions and experiences being linked to a possible heredity condition involving DMT dumps, Greg and Anthony discuss these theories and how DMT fits into the big picture.
54:55 During his research, Peake found that schizophrenia is a decidedly common illness, affecting almost 1% of the global population, that sweeps through every continent and all cultures. Greg and Anthony discuss the implications of this in regard to the causes and functions of schizophrenia.
1:03:18 Because Peake has been able to integrate research from a variety of fields into his studies, he and Greg discuss the role of magic practitioners and esoteric traditions by giving context to their claims of communicating with entities and beings in the spirit world.
1:11:15 Peake continues by elaborating on the consequences of Nick Bostrom’s 2003 paper addressing the science behind the theory that we are living in a simulation. He also describes a new technology being used in southern Germany that has suggested merit to the Simulation Argument, and sparked the interest of Craig Hogan.
1:36:15 From the Matrix to HBO’s new show Westworld, the possibility of living in a simulated world has proven to be an intriguing narrative captivating audience attention and forcing philosophical debate. Greg and Anthony examine Hollywood’s role in dissecting reality and consciousness and whether the creators of these enlightening shows may suffer from conditions causing the widening of their perception. Perhaps this is what allows their art to be more creative, inspiring and out-of-the-box?
1:48:20 Studies of the structure of the brain suffer because many researchers find themselves of the mindset that the brain is the receiver of consciousness rather than the source itself. With the old adage “we only use 15% of our brains” referring to usage of neurons, Greg and Anthony discuss the importance of glial cells, the most abundant cell in the brain and their affect on the nervous system and perception of reality.
Want more Anthony Peake? Check out his website and titles such as “The Daemon: A Guide to Your Extraordinary Self” or “The Out of Body Experience: The History and Science of Astral Travel”.
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