French philosopher René Descartes (1596-1650) emphasized the pineal gland in his writings, calling it the seat of the soul and “The part of the body in which the soul directly exercises its functions.”
Helena Blavatsky, the co-founder of the theosophical movement described the role of the gland in an evolutionary context in her book, the secret doctrine in 1888;
“the third eye acted no longer,” … because man had sunk too deep in the mire of matter.”
· “The third eye …gradually petrified soon disappeared …the eye was drawn deep into the head and is now buried under the hair...”
· “…owing to the gradual disappearance of spirituality and increase in materiality…, it became an atrophied organ.”
· "The third eye is dead…but it has left behind a witness to its existence…the pineal gland.”
Interestingly, there is a correlation between the soul’s emergence in various spiritual traditions and pineal formation. Specifically, the gland first appears in the fetus 49 days after conception. This is the time Tibetan Buddhists believe it takes after death for the soul to finish its sojourn and reincarnate into the next body. This period also approximates the 40 days espoused by early Christians, such as St. Augustine, that it takes for the soul to enter the fetus.
Similarities between Melatonin and DMT -
DMT is structurally similar to melatonin. The biochemical precursor to both molecules is serotonin, a key neurotransmitter whose pathways are involved in mood and targeted in the treatment of psychiatric disorders. DMT also structurally resemblances other psychedelic drugs, such as LSD and psilocybin, and is the active agent in ayahuasca brew Amazon shamans use to provoke out-of-body experiences. Like many mood-controlling pharmaceuticals (e.g., Prozac), these psychedelics act through interacting with serotonin-associated pathways. Now you have to ask yourself is it the production of these hormones that create such mystical experiences or is it that they are created as a result of these experiences, or is it a mix of both? A kind of snowballing effect? Under normal conditions, enzymes will quickly degrade DMT. While we do not know when or under what circumstances DMT rises naturally, it is tempting to hypothesize that when it becomes elevated for some reason, extraordinary experiences may occur. For example, in the case of dying, Strassman speculates that the physiology that keeps DMT levels in check (e.g., degradative enzymes) during life start to break down, allowing full DMT expression, and, in turn, the out-of-body perceptions reported in near-death experiences.
[edit on 6-2-2010 by Resentedhalo08]
