Hey guys, Just found this pretty interesting article stating that the Pineal Gland is quite possibly the third eye: Prof. Lili Feng and et al "Modern medical dissection has already discovered that the front section of the pineal gland is equipped with the complete structure of a human eye. Because it grows inside one's skull, it is thus said to be a vestigial eye. Yet modern medicine has, after all, already recognized that there is an eye in the middle of the human brain. In recent years, scientists gradually discovered that the mammalian pineal gland is photo sensitive. However, the mammalian pineal, unlike that of other vertebrates, is not thought to be directly light sensitive. Melatonin, the principal product of the mammalian pineal gland, acts as an internal representative of nighttime. The secretion of melatonin is increased under light-dark cycles, with an increase in the dark period and a decrease in the light period (1). Photic information reaches it via a multi synaptic pathway originating in retina and passing through suprachiasmatic regions of the hypothalamus (1). In the conventional theory, it is considered that the rod and cone photoreceptors in the retina account for all photoreceptive input (2). In the past, it is considered that photic suppression of pineal melatonin is also carried out through this conventional routine (3,4). Since the pineal gland is concealed in the skull, it is hard to imagine that it is able to respond to light directly. Even if the pineal gland is photo sensitive, it is very hard to test this hypothesis in vivo because of the existence of photoreceptors in the retina. Lucas et al. (5) published a paper in Science, one of the most well known scientific journals. They described several experiments they did with mice that genetically lacked retinal photoreceptors. The experiments revealed that photic suppression of pineal melatonin remained unaffected in mice genetically lacking cones or both rods and cones. That is to say, mice genetically lacking retinal photoreceptors responded normally to light. What is especially noticeable is that one group of mice genetically lacking retinal photoreceptors also had defection in their optic signal transduction pathways and yet their photic suppression of pineal melatonin remained unaffected. It is well known, with neither retinal photoreceptors nor optic signal transduction pathways, that the conventional visual pathway cannot be established. The authors were unable to explain how the pineal concealed in the skull could respond to light. They proposed the assumption of the existence of "unconventional photoreceptors". They proposed that there are non-rod and non-cone, ocular photoreceptors ("unconventional photoreceptors", which are able to carry "non-image, non-visual" optical signal transduction. However, little evidence could support this assumption currently. The authors Lucas and Foster also doubted the function and existence of "unconventional photoreceptors". They believed that this was still subject to further discussion (6,7). On the contrary, much evidence suggests that the pineal gland may be able to directly sense the light. Immunocytochemically, it is reasonable to believe that the pineal gland can be photo-receptive. Scientists have already realized the structural similarity between the pineal and the retina. The pineal was simply called "folded retina", a variety of genes that are only expressed in eyes are expressed in the pineal gland as well (9,10). The pineal gland not only has photoreceptors, but also has a complete system for optical signal transduction (11,13). That is to say, if there is a light-transducing passageway, a pineal gland is capable of detecting light. This can explain why photic suppression of pineal melatonin remained unaffected in mice genetically lacking retinal photoreceptors. There may exist a secret unknown light transducing passageway that allows the mammalian pineal gland to detect light directly. [img:7c058d3217]http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/article_images/Pineal_5.jpg[/img:7c058d3217]

very interesting article Blackclo.Wonder how the pineal gland works in blind people.Well those blind with cataracts probably still have a pineal thet works normally,but what about those with severed optic nerve or somthing like that?

My hunch is that if the pineal is the third eye, blind people who were to smoke dmt would actually have a full blown visionary experience. It seems that this third eye is just a whole new way of looking at things and that it doesn't depend on our normal eyes at all, that's my lil pet theory anyway.

Makes sense. I am rather new to meditation, but I have noticed that when I do a chakra meditation, if I can actually get up to the third eye without losing concentration, it feels very much like a small hit of DMT. I'm sure that as I develop my skills over time it will become more and more intense.

How do you "Study" meditation.Read a book? Ive only practiced what one has learned on his own.And gets farther everytime. Does practicing new methods/ways help you? Peace,Kija.

This from another forum called Noble Realms, explores DMT and the pineal: DMT is a chemical which opens up doors in the mind into higher realms of perception. Some ancient eastern religions like Taoism call the pineal gland the Niwan palace, they beleive that the pineal gland is the palace of the soul, Descartes also described the pineal as the "seat of the soul". Through their spiritual practices and meditations many religious techniques say that many latent supernatural abilities which are normaly dormant in every single person slowly begin to open, things like seeing with your third eye etc. They also beleive that the Third Eye were talking about is actually located slightly above the spot thats between your eyebrows, and its connected to the pineal gland which is the main producer of melatonin which is actually a tryptamine closely related to DMT. In the book dmt: the spirit molecule, author Dr Rick Strassman has this rather interesting things to say about the pineal, DMT and meditative states: The pineal gland is unique in its solitary status within the brain. All other brain sites are paired, meaning that they have left and right counterparts; for example, there are left and right frontal lobes and left and righttemporal lobes. As the only unpaired organ deep within the brain, the pineal gland remained an anatomical curiosity for nearly two thousand years. No one in the West had any idea what its function was. He goes on to say that: The pineal gland contains the necessary building blocks to make DMT. For example, it possesses the highest levels of serotonin anywhere in the body, and serotonin is a crucial precursor for pineal melatonin. The pineal also has the ability to convert serotonin to tryptamine, a critical step in DMT formation. The unique enzymes that convert serotonin, melatonin, or tryptamine into psychedelic compounds also are present in extraordinarily high concentrations in the pineal. These enzymes, the methyltransferases, attach a methyl groupthat is, one carbon and three hydrogensonto other molecules, thus methylating them. Simply methylate tryptamine twice, and we have di-methyl-tryptamine, or DMT. Because it possesses the high levels of the necessary enzymes and precursors, the pineal gland is the most reasonable place for DMT formation to occur. and: Under what circumstances might the pineal gland make DMT instead of the minimally psychoactive melatonin? For this to happen, there needs to be an overriding of one or more of the following constraints normally preventing pineal DMT production: The cellular security system around the pineal gland; The presence of an anti-DMT compound in the pineal gland; The low activity of the methyltransferase enzymes that produce DMT and The efficiency of the monoamine oxidase enzymes breakdown of DMT. Another factor normally protecting the body from pineal production of psychedelic amounts of DMT resides within the pineal gland itself. A particular kind of small protein, first discovered in blood, has been shown to interfere with the activity of the DMT-forming enzymes. The pineal has quite high levels of this protein, a sort of "anti-DMT." If this inhibitor itself were blocked, DMT formation is more likely. Finally he goes on to say how many spiritual practices could possibly be ways of pulling down this DMT barrier temporarily and allowing the Pineal to make this chemical: Meditation or prayer also may elicit deeply altered states of consciousness. Pineal DMT production could underlie these mystical or spiritual experiences. All spiritual disciplines describe quite psychedelic accounts of the transformative experiences, whose attainment motivate their practice. Blinding white light, encounters with demonic and angelic entities, ecstatic emotions, timelessness, heavenly sounds, feelings of having died and being reborn, contacting a powerful and loving presence underlying all of realitythese experiences cut across all denominations. They also are characteristic of a fully psychedelic DMT experience. How might meditation evoke the pineal DMT response? Several meditative disciplines bring about an intense fine-tuning of attention and awareness; for example, one-pointed focus on the breath. The brain's electrical activity, as measured by the electroencephalogram, reflects this synchronization, or bringing together, of brain activity. Many studies have reported that experienced meditators produce brain wave patterns that are slower and better organized than those found in everyday awareness. The "deeper" the meditation, the slower and stronger the waves. Other techniques supplement these attentional practices with methods like chanting. Chants, using words from ancient languages with supposedly unique spiritual properties, may cause profound psychological effects. Visualization practices, in which one builds up increasingly complex and dynamic images in the mind's eye, also can lead to blissful and sublime states of mind. In these conditions there is a dynamic yet unmoving quality to the experience, like a standing wave in a river. It looks as if the wave is not moving at all, while water rushes along on all sides of it. In fact, it is the rushing water that produces the wave. And those waves create a unique note, or sound. Such wave phenomena, by their production of a particular note or sound associated with their frequency, establish wide-ranging and diffuse fields of influence. Objects within those fields vibrate sympathetically, or with the same frequency, a phenomenon called resonance. An example of the powerful effects of resonance is when a particular note shatters a glass, even though the sound is not especially loud. The glass vibrates sympathetically, or resonates, at the same frequency as that of surrounding sound. Certain notes can create intolerable stress within the unique structure of the glass, and it bursts. In a similar way, meditative techniques using sound, sight, or the mind may generate particular wave patterns whose fields induce resonance in the brain. Millennia of human trial and error have determined that certain "sacred" words, visual images, and mental exercises exert uniquely desired effects. Such effects may occur because of the specific fields they generate within the brain. These fields cause multiple systems to vibrate and pulse at certain frequencies. We can feel our minds and bodies resonate with these spiritual exercises. Of course, the pineal gland also is buzzing at these same frequencies. A resonance process may occur in the pineal similar to that of the shattering glass, although not quite as destructive. The pineal begins to "vibrate" at frequencies that weaken its multiple barriers to DMT formation: the pineal cellular shield, enzyme levels, and quantities of anti-DMT. The end result is a psychedelic surge of the pineal spirit molecule, resulting in the subjective states of mystical consciousness. It definitely raises alot of interesting points about DMT, the pineal and spirituality.

Thanks, delphine. Dr. Strassman explains it very well. Endogenous DMT seems to be the root of all religious movements throughout history. Religions are started by people that have this mystical experience and try to communicate it to others, but most people cannot fully understand it. Not even the prophets themselves fully grasp what happened, and offer varying subjective intetrpretations of the same mystical experience. This is why the teachings of the various prophets differ from one another. Jesus, Buddha, Ramakrishna, Tim Leary, Mohammed, Maynard James Keenan, Jerry Garcia, Aldous Huxley--- ALL of these men are prophets that have directly perceived the Divine, and realized we are ALL part of it, eternally. Those of us that have journeyed there have reached the SAME level of understanding as these prophets, and just like them, we must spread the word and bring as many people as we can with us... we need to start a revolution. We have an advantage over the prophets of old, in that we can "give" this experience to others directly, instead of just telling them about it using the available symbols. Have you ever tried to explain the DMT experience to people that have not experienced it? This is an area where language fails. This is why Jesus' message has been so distotrted and misunderstood over time. However, WE, the urban shamans, the prophets of our time, have the unique ability to GIVE this experience to others directly, in the form of DMT crystals. WE should introduce as many people as possible to the DMT experience. WE should give it to them for free, and guide them through their first breakthrough, help them understand the spiritual/philosophical implications of the experience, and when they understand, WE should give them enough DMT to show their friends. Only a major shift in the collective reasoning of humanity can save us from ourselves, and WE have a RESPONSIBILITY to share this message and spread it as widely as possible. This is how revolutions are born.

hi enthogenist, you are right about the basis for spiritual revelation and how this gets distorted by the churches etc. I doubt that these revelations came exclusively through psychedelics though. Long term meditation can have the same effect ultimately. As for giving people tis experience, it's not as easy as it sounds. I've offered to share my acacia brew with a friend who is open to such things, but she is convinced it would be risky without an experienced "psychonaut" to assist her through it. Just one example. Psychedelics are not for everyone, and again, not the only route to expanded consciousness. But as long as you're giving away DMT crystals...Ive never had the opportuniy to try them, you could bestow some on me, if you like... Cool avatar, btw!