Ep. 339: Religion Without Belief: Psychedelics, IFS & Altered States with Dr. Joshua Pritikin

What if religion didn’t need belief at all? Zach sits down with Dr. Joshua Pritikin, a psychological counselor and Internal Family Systems (IFS) practitioner in Oregon who holds a PhD in quantitative psychology. He’s the author of Religion Unburdened by Belief: The Way of Open Inquiry. Joshua explains how IFS “parts” can help define altered states. He gives Zach a simple tweak to his transcendental meditation practice to quiet a racing mind. He also takes us inside the Santo Daime ceremonies he has attended for four years. The conversation covers psychedelics and safety, bad trips, the war on drugs, and what might happen when we die. In this episode: What Internal Family Systems is and how “parts” show up in everyday mixed feelings Defining altered states, and why the usual definition is fuzzy A notepad trick that can make meditation feel effortless How Santo Daime ceremonies use group singing to keep participants present Blending vs. unblending, and why it’s key to avoiding a bad trip Zach’s experience with ketamine therapy and grief after losing his father Joshua’s views on prohibition, harm reduction and psychedelic medicine His step-by-step path: talk therapy, then meditation, a CBD/CBN blend, then psychedelics Content beliefs vs. process beliefs, and why the book asks readers to hold content beliefs loosely Consciousness, near-death experiences, 5-MeO-DMT and the afterlife Links: Book website (contact info and promo video): https://unburdened.biz Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/Religion-Unburdened-Belief-Open-Inquiry-ebook/dp/B0GT24Z79H Estrela Counseling: https://estrelacounseling.com Feedback or guest ideas: [email protected] Podcast song by SIXFOOT 5: https://www.sixfoot5prod.com Apple: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/sixfoot-5/1551774977 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rHMzoU0G0fLhaBsrQiOOY?si=laSZ5hiKTYubJJyhrzf2JQ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.