The Rise of Psychedelic Narcissism and Conspirituality
On 6th January, Trump supporters stormed into the United States Capitol to disrupt the formalisation of Biden's election victory. Forefronting the violent riots was the self-proclaimed psychedelic shaman, Jacob Chansley aka Jake Angeli the “Q-Anon Shaman, distinguished by his iconic, Viking-like image, with furred hat, horns and painted face. Responding to the media accounts of the self-proclaimed guru, one Reddit user quoted:
"I always figured the world would be a better place if everyone took psychedelics once. I'm now rethinking that position."
Jake Angeli and rioters storm the United States Capitol in Washington D.C.
Research studies have shown that psychedelics advocate feelings of unity and connectedness, and decrease the likelihood of violence. Anecdotes report psychedelics' ability to "lift the veil", allowing one to see truths with better clarity. How then, could a shaman of these peace-promoting and truth-uncovering sacraments, embark such far-right political aggression in the name "Q", an unlikely conspiracy theory of Satan-worshipping cannibalistic paedophiles?
Psychedelics can elicit remarkable effects and are powerful tools which could combat our ongoing global mental health and ecological crisis. However, the same screwdriver which can help fix broken parts can also be a dangerous weapon. Building on this analogy, merely owning a tool (ie. having had a psychedelic experience) does not necessarily mean repair, you need to work yourself with the tool correctly.. The potentials of psychedelics are boundless. Yet, with mainstream media psychedelic glamorisation and a lack of education on risk and risk-avoidance, the shadow side of psychedelic-use is beginning to emerge. Manifesting narcissism and conspirituality, Angeli exemplifies such shadows.
Narcissism is an exaggerated sense of self-importance. Angeli certainly embraces this with self-descriptions on his now-removed Facebook profile such as
"He is a metaphysical warrior, a compassionate healer and a servant of the Divine Creator God.”
And
"[He] has walked the Shamanic path for 20 years and has had numerous paranormal and UFO experiences.. He has also defeated dark demonic forces, held sacred ceremonies, cleansed ecosystems and liberated minds."
Furthermore, he describes himself to be a "seed star", meaning he belongs to a group of select highly advanced spiritual beings, coming from a beyond realm with advanced knowledge. Even if Angeli's spirit did come from elsewhere to us mere Earth dwellers - his inflated sense of ego is very much apparent.
Angeli, the starseed, featuring on the podcast Soul Freedom Show
Psychedelics are renowned for their ability to induce ego-death, eliminating one's sense of self temporarily. However, this does not mean psychedelics wipe the slate clean of the ego clean. Our sense of self is part of our inbuilt essential biology. Buddhists and practitioners of other Eastern traditions dedicate their lives to dampening the ego, requiring years and years of integrated effort. One inhalation on a DMT pipe is unlikely to fully-remove such an ingrained, crucial survival mechanism. Furthermore, temporarily quieting the ego could cause an elastic band effect, where it bounces back even stronger than before. Not to mention that psychedelics are non-specific amplifiers, exaggerating already-existing narcissism.
People's experience with psychedelics can be profound and revolutionary. Witnessing reality beyond our everyday perception and journeying into new streams of consciousness could unquestionably make one feel wise and important. But to hold oneself in such regard that belittles those who haven't "seen the light" creates discrimination. And when this high ego turns into power influence over others, this can have dark outcomes, including manipulation and exploitation.
Alongside his role of "energetic-healer", "spiritual & political consultant" and others, as read in his Twitter bio, Angeli is an archetypal example of the new-age, self-initiated shaman. The article "New Age Frauds and Plastic Shamans" outlines the discrepancy between traditional shamans with self-labelled shamanic followers of new-age spirituality. For example, shamanic native elders will traditionally follow and teach tribe-specific beliefs, whereas new-age spiritual teaching can often be an ambiguous combination of various Eastern and Pagan philosophies. Furthermore, the article outlines traditional shamans believe the only way to transmit spiritual knowledge is face-to-face, and don't think it is ethical to charge people money for ceremonies and teachings. In contrast,Western shamans of the new-age can adhere to something somewhat different - such as Angeli, whose shamanistic knowledge is available online - at the cost of $44.44.
New-age spiritual gurus may come with pure positive intentions and advocate many shamanistic roles and attributes. However, to label oneself without genuine cultural connection raises alarm bells. And going beyond cultural appropriation, pseudoshamanism can be incredibly sinister, morphing into malpractice or even more daunting cases of manipulation and sexual assault.
With psychedelics and new-age spirituality becoming more prevalent, alongside the ego-inflating psychedelics' potential, the number of people claiming to be gurus, without the proper authority, knowledge or guidance, has multiplied. Therefore, those wanting to explore psychedelics under the guidance of another must be vigilant, ensuring they aren't fuelling narcissistic behaviour or, worse, allowing themselves to be exploited.
The viking-like, tattooed Shaman, Jake Angeli
Angeli also embodies conspirituality. Combining the word "conspiracy" and "spirituality" - conspirituality represents how those with spiritual or alternative beliefs are especially prone to conspiracy-like theories, and is a rapidly growing movement of today’s society. Author and philosopher, Jules Evans, explains how those following new-age spirituality are likely to fit into a personality type which makes them more susceptible to believing conspiracy theories. With an overlap between psychedelic subculture and new-age spirituality, it could be presumed psychedelic-users share these traits. Perhaps it is little surprise then that the new-age, psychedelic advocate, Angeli is a conspiracist. Who has made it very prevalent on his Facebook page that he is a firm believer in QAnon, the elite Satan-worshipping paedophile ring, but not so much a “believer” of COVID-19.
Pictures and text from Jake Angeli’s Facebook page (source)
Having shamanistic status means one could more easily push such pseudoscientific beliefs onto others - encouraged in the case of narcissists who are convinced their views are the ultimate truth. With the pandemic leading to a breakdown in knowledge and certainty, the spreading of conspiracies is of higher risk as more people distrust governments and seek alternative explanations to global events. Being sceptical or having alternative views is not a problem in itself. But when such ideas can impact in a big way on society, induce fear and take-over people's lives, the power of narcissistic conspiracy theorists over others becomes very real and dangerous.
The power of political influence is also a cautionary tale. A pro-Trump supporter, Angeli has made it clear he adheres far to the right, and speculation could deem him as racist. He showed lack of support for the Black-lives matter protests, trying to divert the protesters attention from the global issues to the dubious Q. Furthermore, his choice of tattoos are Pagan and Norse symbols which have been co-opted by white supremacy groups. One of which is a Nordic sun-wheel, which was appropriated by the Nazis in their attempt to "invent an idealised Aryan or Norse heritage." Although psychedelics are associated with unity and peace, they are also non-specific amplifiers with the potential to reinforce intolerance and chauvinistic ideals. We can’t say from interpreting his tattoos alone that Angeli is a white-supremicist. Yet he highlights the need to be cautious of ignorant and bigoted gurus, and the message these figures promote.
Shamans have a serious responsibility when guiding others through vulnerable states. Without authenticity, pure intention and thorough training, shamanic malpractice is immensely hazardous. Pseudoshamanism is not a new phenomenon. But with the expanse of Western alternative thinking, a steep rise in the number of global psychedelic users, and our current worldwide instability, we need to be cautious about the authority of narcissistic, self-claimed shamans and healers who are using these substances to inflate their ego further. We must be wary of the beliefs they impinge onto others.
Angeli's media presence has highlighted threats faced by psychedelic mainstreaming. That said, he has also shone a light on some valuable messages, namely:
When tools for repair also have the potential for damage, we must follow the instruction manuals carefully, instead of naively trusting guidance from others.
We need to be cautious about whom we are handing power over to, especially when in vulnerable states
We must stay mindful of the beliefs and politics we choose to feed ourselves.