DMT drug study investigates the ‘entities’ people meet while tripping

DMT drug study investigates the ‘entities’ people meet while tripping 

Stephen Johnson

• DMT is arguably the most powerful psychedelic drug on the planet, capable of producing intense hallucinations.
  
• Researchers recently surveyed more than 2,000 DMT users about their encounters with 'entities' while tripping, finding that respondents often considered these strange encounters to be positive and meaningful.
  
• The majority of respondents believed the beings they encountered were not hallucinations.
  

People described the entities in different ways. The most commonly chosen labels "were "being," (60%) "guide," (43%) "spirit," (39%) "alien," (39%) or "helper" (34%). Other labels selected by small proportions of respondents (range 10–16%), included the terms "angel," "elf," "religious personage," or "plant spirit," and very few (range 1–5%) reporting the terms "gnome," "monster," or a "deceased" person."

Most people said the beings weren't hallucinations. About three-quarters of respondents said they believe the being was real, but it exists in some kind of different dimension or reality. Only 9 percent said the being existed "completely within myself."

Most received a message during the encounter. About two-thirds of respondents said they received "a message, task, mission, purpose, or insight from the entity encounter experience."

What kinds of messages? Some people were shown that death isn't the end, that everything and everyone is connected. Others had personal insights revealed to them, such as bad behaviors that they should stop.

Some messages were strangely practical — one respondent said the beings revealed the location of a Zippo lighter that had been missing (it was buried deep in a couch, go figure). There was also the respondent who said a being "was teaching me the rules/regulations of the NFL."

The encounters were often followed by lasting changes in well-being and beliefs. About one-quarter of respondents said they were atheist before the encounter, but only 10 percent said they were after.

Why Do Jesters and Tricksters Appear in the DMT Experience?

Sam Woolfe

Strangely, jester-type entities commonly appear in the DMT experience. In DMT: The Spirit Molecule, many participants reported encountering “clowns”, “jesters”, “jokers”, and “imps” during their experiences with the substance. Many users report also describe these types of entities as ‘tricksters’. These entities are often engaged in elaborate and mind-boggling performances and tricks. The environment they inhabit can also reflect their entertaining nature, with many users finding themselves in strange dimensions that resemble a circus, carnival, or casino. In fact, Terence McKenna said that “the archetype of DMT is the circus”.

The prevalence of jesters and tricksters in the DMT experience is quite curious. Why do so many people come to meet them? I believe that the ideas of psychologist Carl Jung can shed some light on this phenomenon. I propose that the jester-type DMT entities are archetypal; manifestations of the collective unconscious. However, a Jungian perspective on the DMT experience may be able to explain why these entities exist, but it may not resolve the mystery of why DMT – as a specific substance – has a propensity to bring these entities to the surface, and in such a peculiar, idiosyncratic fashion. Of course, other archetypes may appear in the DMT experience but when jesters make their showy entrance, there must be a reason they do so.

The ultimate explanation for the appearance of jesters in the DMT experience is unclear to me. Nonetheless, I posit that – since they are archetypal in some sense – we can learn from these jesters. We can understand the trickster aspect of ourselves and find immense value in that if we dig deep enough. So let’s explore the meaning of the trickster. But first, we need to illuminate Jung’s ideas on the archetypes so we can better understand what the trickster is.