How Sustainable is Modern Day Spirituality?
Two days ago, I caught up with my dear friend, a Mexican-Colombian filmmaker over ramen after his screening. I had met him serveral years prior at a film festival and had stories to share. He shared with me how he had been spending time with this tribe in Sonora in Northern Mexico and a white man had come to them sometime then, to convince the tribe to say that bufotenin ingestion was an indigenous tradition that had been practiced by the tribe for centuries. This was not remotely true. The tribe had practiced no such tradition. Soon after, articles were published in LA Times, NY Times etc., and Mike Tyson made his way to them and came back to the States saying his life had been transformed. Followed by Chelsea Handler, Tony Robbins and others. The Bufotenin was NOT discovered by the natives of Sonora. It was yet another chemical brought by the white man telling them that this was good medicine for their problems, and convincing them it was a thing from their own past so it could then be sold back to the new age people.
It is an age of fast enlightenment. Of drugs (or, plant medicine) that get you there. But it is happening at the cost of the only authenticity we have left in this world. That of the indigenous peoples. Their connection with their roots and their ancient wisdom that we want to take away or pervert for our needs.
The white man has been trying to exploit them for centuries, in one way or another. If not for the land, then for business. Under the pretext of helping them and helping the world. How many indigenous elders came out of the forest looking for the white brother to offer ayahuasca to? Was it their idea? I find that extremely hard to believe. That business plan obviously belonged to the white brother first.
These plant medicines gave us the insight that big pharma is bad and coca cola is bad and sugar is bad so we turned to healthy foods. And saging. And Himalayan Salt. And coconut water. And goat milk soap. But didn’t learn about the implications of the sudden burst in demand for coconut water on the orangutans in Indonesia, (if you don’t know, look it up!)
Or the sudden demand for sage on the native plant and its people. Or how salt is mined in Pakistan for our Himalayan salt lamps and the crazy working conditions to keep up with the demand of the rich white spiritual beings who must have it ALL from all over the world. We steal from the indigenous who still have connection to nature and their roots.
The corporations steal from us. We steal from the indigenous.
And then we spread the word that big corporations are bad, don’t listen to them. Follow our way instead.
Well… how sustainable is our way?
