Genetic Predisposition Towards Hypersensitivity Shared Between the Shaman and the Schizophrenic
To enter the subtle realm of spirit with clear intention and mastery constitutes our species' oldest profession. Hypersensitivity to one's surroundings is the curse shared by the shaman and the schizophrenic, both. And it is no coincidence that, in the early stages of the disease, rare and unexplainable spiritual experiences are often described by both the afflicted and those close to them. These exceptional sensitivities, without the guidance, temperance, or education of a culture that values them, do tend towards social alienation and a gradual degradation of functioning. Losing all sense of self and its boundaries, drowning in sensitivity, is a good metaphor for the low latent inhibition, loose associations, and chronic hyperpriming characteristic of thought disordered schizophrenia's later stages.
The stories of the exceptional human experiences witnessed by the older clinical staff on the schizophrenia wing of the state hospital were always shared with me in confidence, one-on-one, in almost hushed tones, when they heard I studied the disease. I often use this quote of Campbell's for conference presentations on shamanism and psychedelics, as there is definite overlap, especially in regards to the genetic predispositions that constitute the lineage of heightened sensitivity; considered, in those shamanic cultures, to be a prerequisite for the mediumship abilities our species traditionally relied on so heavily.
Yea, that sensing of subtle ranges of energetic fields, even as children, is really central to what a lot of schizophrenics contend with. Only, in shamanic cultures, the heightened sensitivity of those kids is looked for early on. They are usually pulled aside from the other kids by the community healer in those cultures, placed on a different track where training and mentorship is arranged for them so they may learn to manage and eventually control and temper their sensitivity. This training usually entails, first, learning to more clearly sense those subtle fields - the energetic signatures of illness and of spiritual entities - and, later, how to interact, influence, and control them to help others.
Pathologizing that sensitivity and tranquilizing it away with Thorazine, as is done in First World materialistic cultures like our own, can eliminate the symptoms, it's true, but often cripples the kids, alters their development in genuinely detrimental ways, as the pills fail to address the core roots of the perceptions.
One head psychiatrist who had worked at my facility for decades told me about Charles, one of his patients who made a life-changing impression on him during his early years as a clinician. Charles was a catatonic schizophrenic who would spend weeks essentially frozen, staring off silently, unresponsive, as if not in his body. Yet, every so often, Charles would "come back" from wherever he had been journeying and would have long conversations with the doctor, revealing a wit, depth, and good humor as his beautiful and sensitive personality suddenly returned.
Once, during one such instance of Charles returning to the room, the doctor found him looking out the window onto the yard. He greeted Charles and stood beside him for a moment, sharing the view. Silently, Charles simply placed the fingers of his right hand onto the back of his doctor's neck saying, "The room is very active today."
In that moment, the doctor said that, all at once, he felt a flood of incredible energy enter his body and, looking around the room, he saw it was awash with millions of particles of ethereal light, all swirling in intricate currents and interacting fields, radiating as auras from every person in the room. He said his mouth simply dropped, eyes wide as he wept for the beauty of it. He said it was incredible, this hidden world quietly revealed to him by young, gentle, unassuming man.
Charles looked the doctor in the eye with a slight sly smile and walked away... This clinician said his understanding of life was forever changed by that one short interaction. He never thought of the "illness" in the same way again.
