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A review by beak
Consciousness Medicine: Indigenous Wisdom, Entheogens, and Expanded States of Consciousness for Healing and Growth by Kristina Hunter, Françoise Bourzat
1.0
As stated in some other reviews, the rating of 1/5 is based on current accusations of ethical misconduct by Francoise Bourzat and her husband Aharon Grossbard. (links below).
https://medium.com/@willhall/psychedelic-therapy-abuse-my-experience-with-aharon-grossbard-francoise-bourzat-and-their-a1f0f6d06d64
https://www.inverse.com/mind-body/grossbard-bourzat-psychedelic-assisted-therapy-abuse
I pondered this rating a lot, and ultimately concluded that these ethical concerns fundamentally undermine the content of this book and draw into question the overall credibility of the author and her writing. There is no question that the author is experienced and knowledgeable on the exploration of expanded states of consciousness, but every point made is marred by an asterisk of what is not being said, and to what end she is engaging in these practices if she been a participant in repeated misconduct.
As a review of the book aside from these allegations, I do feel that there is strong information presented on the necessary considerations for use of psychedelic medicine, and the potential that these medicines have in addressing many of the difficulties that we face. However, I found that this book felt unedited, repetitive, and somehow vague despite the repeated exploration of a few key themes. Though the author speaks from a perspective of strong connection to Mazatec Indigenous traditional practices, her writing comes across at times as braggadocious in just how profoundly deep this connection is, and seems to ascribe the appropriation of Indigenous practices to our society while somehow wholly excluding herself from this evaluation.
My review for this book, ethics concerns aside, would have been 3.5/5, as I feel it provides a strong overview of basic information, while failing to provide any in-depth exploration and instead just reverting to general sentiments about connectedness. Considering the ethical concerns, I would strongly recommend looking for other resources on this subject, as I do not feel that this book contains any particular wisdom that cannot be found elsewhere.
https://medium.com/@willhall/psychedelic-therapy-abuse-my-experience-with-aharon-grossbard-francoise-bourzat-and-their-a1f0f6d06d64
https://www.inverse.com/mind-body/grossbard-bourzat-psychedelic-assisted-therapy-abuse
I pondered this rating a lot, and ultimately concluded that these ethical concerns fundamentally undermine the content of this book and draw into question the overall credibility of the author and her writing. There is no question that the author is experienced and knowledgeable on the exploration of expanded states of consciousness, but every point made is marred by an asterisk of what is not being said, and to what end she is engaging in these practices if she been a participant in repeated misconduct.
As a review of the book aside from these allegations, I do feel that there is strong information presented on the necessary considerations for use of psychedelic medicine, and the potential that these medicines have in addressing many of the difficulties that we face. However, I found that this book felt unedited, repetitive, and somehow vague despite the repeated exploration of a few key themes. Though the author speaks from a perspective of strong connection to Mazatec Indigenous traditional practices, her writing comes across at times as braggadocious in just how profoundly deep this connection is, and seems to ascribe the appropriation of Indigenous practices to our society while somehow wholly excluding herself from this evaluation.
My review for this book, ethics concerns aside, would have been 3.5/5, as I feel it provides a strong overview of basic information, while failing to provide any in-depth exploration and instead just reverting to general sentiments about connectedness. Considering the ethical concerns, I would strongly recommend looking for other resources on this subject, as I do not feel that this book contains any particular wisdom that cannot be found elsewhere.