What makes an ideal Discordian?

[Kaienne]

And I thought I was crazy.

I believe in faith, I have faith in some things. The 'white light over the mountain' followed by an explosion of light and thought and unity described when one sees true nature after deep meditation, the 'light at the end of the tunnel' and 'seeing angels' at death, and rushing light explosion sensation and (relatively) high probability of 'beings contact' one experiences on DMT; coupled with the fact that the pineal gland is exactly where the brow chakra is described as being; and throw in the fact that the pineal does produce other tryptamines; and just for kicks that one Tibetian 'lower lights of Bardo' story; and that's enough circumstantial evidence for me, for the time being, to believe it is possible that the brain produces DMT.

[LMNO]

And I thought I was crazy.

See?  I told you that you weren't crazy.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Kaienne,

If you choose to believe in and have faith about the pineal gland, you should. I personally think that it might be true (or at least it would be damn cool if it were true). Although I think its just as cool that the pineal gland tissue is quite closely related (assuming that the model being used by the doctors has merit) to the retinal tissue. So all these people who have said for thousands of years that our 'third eye' was located in the  center of the forehead may well have been right... in some sense.
Of course, the pineal gland may just be another meme, like 23, 42, 5, etc. etc. They all may be quarters that we see, because we've programmed ourselves to see them... or they may all have some Siriusly important purpose that we haven't quite figured out...

[Triple Zero]

closely related to the retinal tissue? producing DMT? really it's time to link some reliable sources, guys.

also, at least according to my yoga teacher, the pineal gland does not exactly coincide with the 6th chakra. but that's details, since we're talking about an astral/ethereal thingy corresponding to a physical organlike thingy.

[hunter s.durden]

but that's details, since we're talking about an astral/ethereal thingy corresponding to a physical organlike thingy.

I'm glad you added this.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

closely related to the retinal tissue? producing DMT? really it's time to link some reliable sources, guys.

also, at least according to my yoga teacher, the pineal gland does not exactly coincide with the 6th chakra. but that's details, since we're talking about an astral/ethereal thingy corresponding to a physical organlike thingy.

The source for the idea is (as mentioned earlier) the book "DMT:he Spirit Module". It's currently a theory based on the similarity between stuff the pineal gland is known to produce (tryptamine in the form of melatonin) and a theory that doses of DMT could explain near death experiences. The evidence is kinda slim and sketchy, However, it has not yet been dismissed either.

And it would be extremely cool!

As for the retina, I think its currently a evolutionary biology theory... *checking Wikipedia*... *ah*...

Pinealocytes in lower vertebrate animals have a strong resemblance to the photoreceptor cells of the eye. Some evolutionary biologists believe that the vertebrate pineal cells share a common evolutionary ancestor with retinal cells[4].

In some vertebrates, exposure to light can set off a chain reaction of enzymes, hormones, and neuroreceptors, which may help regulate the animal's circadian rhythm[5].

In humans and other mammals, this function is served by the retinohypothalamic system that sets the rhythm within the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Cultural and social interactions produce exposures to artificial light that influence the setting of the suprachiasmatic clock. Evidence for a role for opsin-related light-sensing compounds in the skin of mammals is presently controversial. Research suggests that the pineal gland may serve a magnetoreceptive function in some animals. [6]

Some early vertebrate fossil skulls have a pineal foramen. This corroborates with the physiology of the modern lamprey, tuatara, and some other vertebrates.

So obviously, lamprey are Discordian!

[Cramulus]

So obviously, lamprey are Discordian!

FUCK

[BumWurst]

You don't think the whole "pineal gland" bit is another piece of intentionally silly psuedo-religious bumf designed to subvert... well, everything? 

[Cramulus]

how does it subvert everything?

[BumWurst]

Well, not "everything," that was a silly thing for me to say. But it seems to me that much of Discordianism, if I am correct in thinking that I understand it at all, is setting up truths, real and valuable truths, and laughing at them, robbing them of their ability to become Dogma - likewise, it sets up ideas which are clearly bollocks and causes them to become sacred, making it harder to discern what is a joke and what is not, which I suspect is the point.

Like the guy who wrote: "I drew circles, anti-clockwise on a piece of squared paper. Then, I crumpled it into a ball, and worshipped it. Then, I laughed at it, and threw it away."

If it's true that life is a poor practical joke at the expense of the participant, then this winking, knowing self subversion is, well, kinda beautiful. At least I think so.

[Chairman Risus]

To settle everything once and for all, we need to set up an experiment.


We need to surgically remove the pineal gland from a member of this forum.

Posthaste!

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

BumWurst,

IOt certainly seems possible. Most useful information about the pineal gland didn't come around until the 90's, before then there were a number of philosophers and mystics who thought that it was some secret power, or the seat of the soul or a whole host of various notions. It may be that the commentary was intended to poke fun at such things.

Or it may have been a meme-bomb. Or there may actually be some really neat-o secret.

[Forteetu]

What I really wanted was to have the 42nd post ITT ... done


While I'm here, I might as well say ....

If it works for you, do it.
If it doesn't, don't.
Everything else is sock fucking

Want to know WHY it works? Go ahead ... have fun. Whatever you discover, you'll prove yourself wrong some day, or someone else will. Doesn't change the fact that whatever it was, it was useful for awhile.

[Payne]

Actually, you only got the 43'rd post.

You DID get the 42/nd reply though.

[Kaienne]

Back in the 60's, the Pineal Gland was thought to be a vestigal organ, much like the appendix, probably why it was said to consult it.
It's just an inasne, fucked up coincidence that it happens to produce some of the most important chemicals correlated to consciousness (seratonin, melatonin, and, if correct, dmt).

The link for info on that book is http://www.rickstrassman.com