Applying lateral thinking to psychic experiences has enabled the pieces of the puzzle to fit into a scientifically acceptable synthesis. Personal psychic experiences in life were the catalyst for study. He sleepwalked once as a child, waking up in another bed.

A study of meditation, using biofeedback methods and equipment, led to a significant enlightenment which he was eventually able to explain in rational terms, leading to many other discoveries.

His hypothesis, showing the nature of trance, its trigger and the reason for its evolution, together with its relationship to ecstatic enlightenment, are the main thrusts of his book.

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Natures Helping Hand - The Vision Quest

The vision quest also known as the vision fast, is an ancient tradition. It is an ancient ‘rite of passage’ among many cultures, the Celtic Nations and Native American Nations, to name just a few. Then there is also the major religions such as Buddhism, Islam, Judaism and Christianity/Catholicism etc..

The ceremony itself involves sitting in a natural place away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, a place of isolation where you can be alone with your thoughts, beliefs, nature and the issue(s) you are there to ponder, or the transition in life you wish to celebrate. This place is your sacred space, where you spend several days without food, only drinking water as a means of cleansing your body of all unwanted toxins. In essence purifying yourself on many levels as a means of preparation, to enable you to receive the insights and the answers you seek in a clear and concise manner.

There have been many historic and legendary figures that have undertaken the vision fast. Most recent would have to be the many Native American leaders and chiefs such as Geronimo and Crazy Horse. Even further back you have Jesus, Moses, Mohammed and Buddha. Each spent time in wilderness isolation to connect with creation, to connect with the creator and essentially to connect with themselves.

Essentially the vision fast is about confronting your fears, truly identifying your problems and recognising how to move forward. It’s only in this sacred space that you truly realise what is important to you, you can really let go and essentially be yourself for yourself. For that brief time you are the only one that matters, no one else exists. It’s just you, the wilderness and all that exists within it. The animals, the insects, trees, plants and if you are extremely lucky you will have the beauty of the mountains, rolling hills and valleys or perhaps even a splash of water! The latter is particularly beneficial if you happen to be fasting at a hot time of year!

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In that space you can commune with nature and learn from everything you encounter. It is the most enlightening experience. But in order to get the most out of the experience you have to really let go, relax with the environment. Drop your normal everyday barriers, open yourself to the beauty of creation and everything it has to teach you. Believe me you will be surprised where the most influential teaching comes from. In this place, your usual perception of the world disappears, almost as if it was a false reality. I could go on describing what it is like all day, but the only true way to know what it is like, is to experience it for yourself. Each individuals experience is unique to them.

When you leave your sacred space, in a very real sense you are transformed. You leave behind your fears and everything that has been holding you back, you have been cleansed and renewed. Now it is time to step over the threshold, now it is time to move on. You now have the clarity, you now have the vision and strength to essentially deal with your life and start your change.

Vision fasting has in recent years been a rising form of therapy in itself. Particularly in the USA, where it is mistakenly believed to be a tradition solely originating with indigenous peoples such as the many Native American Nations. This is not the case and as I said at the beginning of this article, we as humans have been doing this since the dawn of time. That said it’s popularity and revival in the modern sense, is something that can be attributed to the many indigenous populations of the Americas and indeed the world.

In the USA there are many groups offering the vision fast experience and newer ones are popping up all the time. Apart from that it is slowly expanding worldwide. It has many parallels with other forms of treatment and therapy, but by far the biggest difference is you have the wonder of nature as your guide. With nature there is no difference of opinion, there is no conflicting beliefs, there is no one sitting in judgement. There is just you, that is all you need. You know the problem and you ultimately know the answers, nature gives you the time and patience to find your resolve and bury your burdens.

Here in the UK there are very few groups offering this service, and those there are tend to be based in the remotest parts such as Scotland and Wales. One such group is Healing Quest, based in Scotland, and run by Marie Herbert. You can visit her site and find out more by clicking here. In time though Healing-Paths aims to offer the Vision Quest as a valuable addition to our existing services, helping create even better solutions and results for you and your life.

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