Featured art by Simon Haiduk 
Sound researcher, musician and world-traveling gnostic-adventurer, Alexandre Tannous returns for another mind meld!LISTEN|ITUNES YOUTUBE ARCHIVE STITCHERThese mind melds are brought to you by YOU! Find out how to support us and receive rewards in the process at our Patreon page.
This episode features one of those time-traveling flow-state dialogues where nearly 90 minutes flies by seemingly instantaneously (at least from my perspective). It was like some tiny quantum brain fairy caressed my pineal gland causing it to secret just the right amount of tryptamine to elicit an extended state of wonder and awe. It was truly that pleasurable. On that note, it would be fascinating to see what’s going on neurologically during an awesome, life-affirming, metaphysically stimulating chat like this one.
Musings in this mind meld include -
- Why we lose the feeling of awe and mystery as we age and what we can do to nurture it
- The cultural forces that compel you to think the way you do and value what you do
- Why we romanticize ancient cultures
- Why religion and science alone aren’t existentially satisfactory
- Fine-tuning your awareness and curiosity and creating a practice
- Were the works of Plato hiding universal truths about math and melody?
- The trial of Socrates and his forced suicide
- What were the ancient “mystery schools" that so many famous philosophers speak of?
- Hermeticism and the Kybalion
- The shamanic model, ayahuasca and the culture clash that occurs when they enter modern life and the modern mind
- The power of sound in shamanistic systems
- You can only listen to the experiences of others for so long, eventually you have to do your own work
- Why the language we use for "spiritual" experiences is lacking
- Exploring inner-spaces takes practice, just like anything else
- John Lamb Lash and his book Not in His Image
- The importance of the multidisciplinary approach and why we need a well-rounded tool set to explain reality
- Alexandre’s personal spiritual experiences and
- The difference between romantic love and cosmic love
- The power of sound to enhance meditative or psychonautic exploration
- Unlearning and creating a new relationship with sound
I don’t even know how or why I came upon this fact, but if you google "philosophy is,” the two first suggestions are “dead” and “bullshit.” Unfortunately I couldn’t resist the carrot, so I followed through with the "philosophy is dead" search. 
Whether you're in a rock-bottom pit of depression, existing in a state of pure cosmic bliss or just feeling "meh," this conversation is going to speak to you. Not just because this is a show comprised of talking, but because the story of Dr. Octavio Rettig is a heroic tale of challenge, adventure and redemption that will stir the soul of any sentient being. He battled vice, addiction and temptation in a very serious way. In fact, he may not have survived at all if not for the help of what he calls "toad medicine." 
The forces that coerce the persistence of the bleak paradigm referred to in the quote above are numerous and complicated. So much so, that it’s worth discussing whether or not it’s even possible to shake off the shackles of culture's dominant power structures. Perhaps we should just recognize the game for what it is and play it to the best of our ability. 
By virtue of the time we were gooily extruded into this dimension, we've been charged with an odd task. We've got to grapple with cultural expectations, the informational techno-torrent we're immersed in and we've got to work on ourselves. Making those disparate duties harmonize in a way in a way that makes some sort of existential sense can require some serious ontological gymnastics. 
Though that sounds daunting and grandiose, I think there’s some relief wrapped up in that paradigm. In other words, there is no failure if you truly try. Failure only comes when you refuse your calling in favor of a cushy, mediocre, beige, Hotpocket™ life where you live out your
Ralph Abraham
The concept I’ve really been pondering ever since this conversation is the mind’s constant need for novelty. We chase down anything that shines and engage with it for however long it holds our attention. Then, we inevitably get sick of it and move on. You have to admit, it's useful. It’s that restless desire that pushes things collectively forward and keeps us on our ever-evolving recursive quest toward infinite improvement.
It's really that simple, you either let your self-constructed fears and anxieties run the show or you don't. You either go for what you want in life with full vigor and determination, consequences be damned, or you settle. I don't often make such authoritative proclamations about life, but this is an exception. It's so glaringly obvious. Fear of failure is everywhere, it's hugely present in my own mind and in the minds of everyone I've ever met. The only difference is some people face it. They get familiar with it. They actually taste the dirt of defeat, adjust and rise to try again.
The idea that we may be living in some sort of simulated universe makes a lot of people supremely uncomfortable. Unfortunately for them, the logic behind the simulation argument is pretty sound (take it from