2025/029: The Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge — Jeremy Narby

2025/029: The Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge — Jeremy Narby

I was now of the opinion that DNA was at the origin of shamanic knowledge. By “shamanism,” I understood a series of defocalization techniques: controlled dreams, prolonged fasting, isolation in wilderness, ingestion of hallucinogenic plants, hypnosis based on a repetitive drumbeat, near-death experience, or a combination of the above. [loc. 1410]

Narby's hypothesis is that shamanic ritual, and in particular the use of botanical hallucinogens ('plant-teachers'), allows indigenous peoples to access botanical and medical knowledge imparted at the molecular level via DNA. He's a hands-on experimenter, and his own experiences of ayahuasca -- a complex preparation, which shamans claim was taught to them by the plants -- inspired his theory that hallucinations and visions of entwined snakes, vines etc actually represent DNA. ( Read more... )