Last night, a curious blend of ancient ceremony and modern activism came together in a powerful panel to launch the crowdfunding campaign for The God Molecule and the Shamanic Toad. This documentary explores the mystical realms of 5-MeO-DMT, its sacred use, and its potential to transform consciousness on a planetary scale.
The event, which I had the honor of hosting, was more than just a fundraiser. It was a collective exploration into the numinous world of entheogens, guided by fellow seekers, shamans, and change-makers. Together, we believe that we are standing on the brink of a consciousness revolution, united in our quest for deeper understanding and connection.
A Call to Ceremony
"One of the things that I would love, as a filmmaker," I said at the top of the night, "is for people to feel called to support this documentary. Because for most of my life I've been fighting spot fires, uranium mining, vaccinations, global warming. But I believe that to bring about lasting change, humans need to deepen their relationship with nature."
This quote underscores the shift from external activism to internal evolution. It's a recognition that real change isn't just about protest or policy, it's about reconnection. In advocating for this film, I wanted to invite people to invest in a tool for reawakening our bond with the natural world, through the doorway of ancient plant and toad medicines.
It's not for the light-hearted. This is a very extreme initiation. You need a strong calling.
The gravity of this statement underscores the seriousness of engaging with 5-MeO-DMT. This is no casual trip; it's a full-spectrum spiritual immersion. One must be psychologically prepared, spiritually grounded, and above all, called to the work. It is a medicine of intensity and profound transformation, not escapism.
The Toad and the Turning Point
My first encounter with the toad was featured in Aya: Awakenings. The wisdom came from both experience and years of observation of this medicine's impact on the individual and collective soul.
My first experience in 2006 completely reset me. I didn't go back to the toad for nearly a decade, because I knew it demanded the right context and container. It's not something to dabble with.
My long hiatus after his first journey speaks volumes about the depth of the encounter. It's a potent reminder that these medicines are best approached with respect and caution. Unlike casual psychedelic use, the toad calls for intentional preparation, community support, and proper integration.
"God's factory reset" is how I put it, clearing emotional, physical, and energetic blockages, returning people to a state of cosmic unity.
This metaphor captures the essence of what many describe as a total ego dissolution, where old trauma and conditioning fall away. The experience offers a chance to remember one's true self beyond fear, identity, or separation, aligning with a divine state of being.
All the entheogens are like baubles on the Christmas tree of life. And the toad? That's the star at the top.
Here, I place the toad in the broader pantheon of plant teachers, suggesting that while all have value, 5-MeO-DMT provides a direct line to Source. It's not about hierarchy but resonance; the toad's medicine resonates with the crown, the ineffable, the sublime.
This reflection on legality opens a conversation about access, context, and the cultural moment we're in. When unregulated, such medicines can be dangerous; yet when supported and understood, they can be revolutionary. We should remind ourselves of a time when the medicine moved more freely, and with it, powerful transformations.
Spirit Beings in Amphibian Form
Dan then offered a mix of shamanic insight and systems thinking, tying together chemistry, ecology, and cosmic purpose.
People forget that these toads, especially the Sonoran desert toad and even the cane toads here in Australia, are brilliant beings. They're not a mistake of nature.
Dan's reminder reframes toads as more than biological oddities. He invites us to recognise them as carriers of consciousness, beings with agency, wisdom, and purpose in the ecological and spiritual web. This changes the way we relate to them, from resource to relative.
The serotonin in plants, microbes, and humans is the same. These molecules, like 5-MeO-DMT, are nature's way of connecting us to the divine.
This statement bridges science and mysticism. The universality of serotonin and tryptamines implies that life is wired for transcendence. The divine isn't separate from the physical world; it's coded into our very biology, ready to activate when the time is right.
The heavenly people gave the Sequoia tribe this plant as a communication device. Whenever they drink yagé, they reconnect with them. That's how they navigate the spirit realms.
Dan's recounting of Sequoia mythos illustrates the sacred origin of these medicines. They're seen not just as tools, but as gifts, bridges between worlds. This idea reinforces the necessity of reverence, ceremony, and lineage in the use of entheogens.
The Integration Challenge
Jewelli, a humble yet articulate voice, brought the conversation back to Earth. He reminded us that the peak moment of the medicine is only one part of the journey.
Jewelli's insight cuts to the heart of modern spiritual work. It's not just about glimpsing the divine; it's about living with that awareness in daily life. The challenge lies in bridging transcendence with embodiment.
I'd strongly recommend anyone considering this medicine to leave a lot of time after the ceremony. You're not the same person anymore. And holding that knowing in your day-to-day life, that's the real ceremony.
This is a call for spaciousness and self-care. The days and weeks following a journey are when insights must be woven into habits, relationships, and identity. Without that, the experience risks becoming just a story rather than a lived transformation.
Having had direct experience of that state of oneness… I can imagine how that's already shifting the noosphere. It's changing things for the better.
Jewelli points to a collective ripple effect. Personal awakenings don't stay personal; they contribute to the subtle fields of thought and emotion that bind humanity. Every return to unity feeds a planetary healing process already underway.
Psychedelics and Politics
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the evening came from Ray, an old-school herbal warrior turned Senate candidate for the Drug Law Reform Party. His stories from decades on the frontlines of plant activism struck a different, but equally passionate, chord.
"Why is it ayahuasca comes from South America?" he asked.
"These antigens exist all over the world. They're not here by accident."
Ray challenges the idea of exoticism in plant medicine. He suggests a global distribution of entheogens for a reason: that these tools have always been around us, waiting for us to remember their purpose. It's an invitation to see medicine as part of our local landscapes, not just faraway jungles.
I'm not a politician, but I've stood for freedom all my life. And I'll stand up in the Senate too, if you vote me in.
This quote is raw, honest, and powerful. Ray positions himself not as a career politician but as a warrior for consciousness, willing to challenge outdated systems and defend natural rights in the halls of power. His path is as much spiritual as it is political.
A Vision for Global Awakening
To round out the night, I reflected on the broader implications of what we're co-creating. The ceremony, the storytelling, the collective dreaming, all of it is part of something larger. A planetary recalibration.
What if every time someone experiences this ritual, this direct connection to Source, we crack the dark encasement over the planet? What if we let new light in, one ecstatic surrender at a time?
Here, I'm speaking to the potential of these medicines to act as spiritual acupuncture, opening channels in the planetary body to let more light in. Each awakening is a beam of clarity, a dissolution of darkness, a signal that the great turning is real.
This isn't just about psychedelics. It's about the flowering of consciousness. It's happening to everyone, whether through toads, breathwork, or dreams. Nature built this backdoor into us. And now, it's opening.
I place the psychedelic journey within a larger evolutionary context. I want to remind us that awakening isn't confined to substances; it's a natural progression. These molecules are simply tools, unlocking capacities already seeded within us by nature.
All we really have to do is say yes, in whatever form is right for you.
This is the invitation. It doesn't matter if your path is plant medicine, meditation, or art. What matters is your willingness to meet the mystery halfway, to surrender to the unfolding and do your part in midwifing the new world.