Interaction and Narration 109

In each case, I was shown how the animals in question behave. My eyes accommodat
ed
and I could see what the animals themselves saw. In effect, the entire set of
visions was a very instructive course on animal behaviour. Also concerned with
animal behaviour is the series reported to me by one informant when recounting
his first experience with Ayahuasca (this was in the context of the UdV). The se
ries
consisted of scenes depicting the collective aspect of animal life. These scenes
presented several biological species, beginning with insects and ending with
humans.
Lastly, there is one of the most marvellous Ayahuasca sessions I ever hadit
consisted of two interlacing thematic series. The first series presented various
scenes depicting the glorification of the gods in different contextsscenes of
religious rituals in various ancient civilizations as well as scenes of adoratio
n by
supernatural beings and by animals. The second series presented various scenes o
f
dance. The first series was the primary one, and between every two successive
scenes pertaining to it there appeared, as an intermezzo, a scene of the second
series. The entire sequence consisted of about seventeen scenes extended over a
period of almost three hours.
Narratives
When scenes are sufficiently complex, veritable stories unfold. With this, a who
le
spectrum of new considerations for analysis presents itself: What is the inner
structure of the story? What are its parts and what are the relationships betwee
n
them? What contributes to the complexity of the plot? And overall, how good a
story does the vision make? With the recent developments in the study of narrati
ves
and texts, contemporary cognitive psychology has much to contribute in this
regard. Here only very preliminary observations will be made.
From the perspective of narrative, the minimal type is that of mere presentation
of an action in a given place and time. It seems to me that most scenes are of t
his
type. But, in general, a good story consists of more than one scene. Similarly,
powerful Ayahuasca visions may consist of several scenes. The serial thematic
variations discussed above may be regarded as an interim case. They consist of
several scenes that are semantically related but, from a narrational point of vi
ew,
they are not related to one another. The relationship is that of a serial transf
ormation,
not of a narrative composition.
The simplest kind of narrative linkage is that associated with spatial transloca
tion.
For instance, when one experiences oneself as flying one may move from one
place to another; with this the things one sees and encounters will change, and
a
narrative sequence will evolve.
Another simple type of linkage is one that has already been mentioned above,
namely, passage. This type, recall, consists of the drinker moving from one well
defined
locale to another; consequently, he or she may discover new things,
persons, and creatures and thus the narrative of the vision will evolve. The
different places he or she passes through may define a structurally progressive
110 Interaction and Narration
series. They may, for instance, be ordered in terms of difficulty or danger or t
hey
may, as in the case of the various heavens, define a hierarchy. Some examples we
re
noted above when progression was discussed.
Semantically more complex are scenes that are connected by a proper narrative
dynamics. In these, the development of the plot is dictated by actions and event
s
rather than by physical movement or transformation. Here, in principle, all the
distinctions madeby linguists, psycholinguists, and students of literaturein
the textual analysis of stories apply. I should note, however, that in general t
he
narratives of Ayahuasca visions are not very complex. By and large, it seems to
me
that structurally they are less complex than the narratives of dreams. Overall,
what
makes Ayahuasca visions impressive is their magnificence, grandeur, supernatural
ness,
and the psychological and spiritual impact they have on their viewers. Only a
relatively small number of the visions in my corpus of data define multi-unit,
complex narrational structures.
Ideation
Also pertaining to semantics is ideation. Usually, a rich vision is one in which
one
learns something. This may be achieved through conversation with persons or
beings one encounters in the vision, through non-verbal communication with such
persons or beings, or through enhanced mentation and insight. The ideas, insight
s,
and reflections induced by Ayahuasca will be the subject matter of Ch. 10. Here
I
confine myself to some general, structural comments.
First, the noetic quality of visions will be emphasized. In some visions one fee
ls
that one not only sees apparitions, as in the cinema, but that the vision consis
ts of a
discovery in which another reality is revealed. With this, one's knowledge is fe
lt to
be expanded. Indeed, the key feature of some visions is precisely thisthe experie
nce
that one attains knowledge and discovers the truth.
Second, it is important to note that structurally the perceptual and the noetic
aspects of visions are intrinsically related. Often, the reception of knowledge
is the
main act in the vision. At times, the image itself, like a parable, is the mecha
nism
by which truth is revealed to one. Furthermore, in powerful visions the distinct
ion
between seeing and acquiring knowledge dissipates. This has been noted throughou
t
the writings of Carlos Castaneda (in particular Castaneda, 1971) in which a
different kind of 'seeing' is prominent. Such seeing is akin, I find, to Spinoza
's
third mode of knowledge, on which I shall comment further in Ch. 15 (see
Spinoza, 1670/1989). Similar reports are also encountered in the mystical texts
of various cultural and religious traditions {inter alia, the writings of Plato,
Plotinus, Swedenborg, and William Blake); I shall return to these in Ch. 16.
Metaphorical Parables
Finally, I would like to mention a special type of visual narration, one which m
ay
be regarded as a visual metaphor. Essentially, visions of this type are not unli
ke
parables in the Bible: an image is presented and the viewer draws a moral from i
t.
Interaction and Narration 111
In the data I have collected, almost all instances of this type involve personal
psychological insights with ramification on the drinker's conduct of his or her
life. For instance, one woman told me that in her first Ayahuasca session she sa
w
herself fully encased in a transparent plastic sheet. Whenever she moved, the co
ver
moved with her. She realized that she had been leading her life separated from o
ther
people. Even though it seemed that she was in contact with other people, in esse
nce
she was insulated and had no direct contact with anyone. The realization made th
is
person change her attitude vis-a-vis human interpersonal relations. Of the same
type is a vision of a dilapidated building I have heard reported independently b
y two
different individuals. Apparently, when originally constructed the building was
a
nice one, but now it was shabby and in disrepair. Upon inspecting their visions,
the
Ayahuasca drinkers understood that the building was themselves; this, in turn,
made them appreciate that they should make some basic changes in their lives. On
ly
once was a metaphorical parable reported to me in conjunction with ideations not
related to the drinker's personal life. The informant saw a chain of pearls. Thi
s
visualization, she reckoned, revealed to her how time is structured. With this,
she
gained insight to the nature of time and new metaphysical understanding.
Summary
The patterns surveyed in this chapter mark a couple of progressions that should
be
added to the list presented at the end of the previous chapter:
10. A progression towards higher degrees of interaction. The stronger the
visions are, the more involved the drinker is in them and the more active and
complex his or her interaction with the content of the visions is.
11. A progression towards immersion. The more powerful a vision is, the greater
the degree of the drinker's immersion in it. In the case of virtual reality this
experience is total.
12. A progression towards higher degrees of narrative complexity. Most visions
do not even allow any narrative analysis. Only the more powerful visions exhibit
sufficient narrational complexity, structure, and development.
13. A progression towards enhanced ideation. Visions that strike people as
powerful are often associated with reflections and insights. The experiences in
question are not only perceptual but also ideational. In these cases, the vision
s are
often regarded as significant learning experiences. At times, people feel that t
he
visions carry special messages to them and that they have a noetic quality, that
is
they serve as vehicles for the acquisition of veridical knowledge.
A Comment on Open-Eye and Closed-Eye Visualizations
Closing the typological survey of the last three chapters, I would like to retur
n to
our starting point, the open-eye visualizations discussed in Ch. 5, and comment
on
their difference from closed-eye visualizations with which the discussion in Chs
. 6
U2 Interaction and Narration
and 7 was by and large concerned. Which are more powerfulthe visualizations
with open eyes or with closed eyes? All drinkers of Ayahuasca will vouch that th
e
likelihood of experiencing visualizations is greater when the eyes are closed.
Therefore, the likelihood of experiencing powerful visualizations is greater as
well. For this very reason, drinkers wishing to have visions purposely close the
neyes.
With the closing of the eyes, one frees oneself from sensory input that
grounds one's perception in reality, and thus enhances the power of mentation
that is not grounded in external reality (for an independent characterization of
perception along a similar line of thought, see Llinas and Ribary, 1994). Yet, i
t is
also true that in those cases in which people do have visions with their eyes op
en
the visionary experience can be very powerful; in extreme cases, even more
powerful than visions had with the eyes closed. This is so because what is seen
with open eyes is normally taken to be real. If one's eyes are open and extraord
inary
scenes are seen, the impact of the experience and the sense of reality conferred
on it
may be stronger than that of comparable visions one might have with the eyes
closed. The difference in question is even more striking when the drinker actual
ly
moves about in the world while under the intoxication. Such cases are exceedingl
y
rarein most contexts of Ayahuasca use there are strict regulations forbidding
independent movements that are not part and parcel of the ritual. However, when
this does happen, the effect can be very powerful indeed; an example is the visi
on
of the celestial palace recounted in Ch. 5