Doofs-Field tripping in Australian bush

 

Raves and similarities to old rituals

I cannot go under 300 words so other than quotes and definitions, this time I will try to write briefly and focus only on my interests.

This time I seek to find some relation between rituals, psychedelic substances, and the similarities between rituals and modern raves.

Doof, a definition: An environ (usually remote) where a diverse spectrum of people gather to celebrate psychedelic community and culture, as expressed through characteristic psychedelic arts and music, and where people are free to explore alternate states of consciousness in a safe, supportive, and stimulating environment. The experience of autonomy is sought through the symbolic suspension or rejection of state imposed structures. Participants seek to dissolve conventional limitations on imagination and thought, momentarily inhabiting artificial islands of heterogeneity and exploration where novel connections and affiliations are forged and experimental social forms are incubated.

The collective effervescence experienced at doofs is not a consequence of a single influence, but arises from the interplay of a constellation of forces, including the nature, quality of camping, psychedelic music, exposure to the elements, kaleidoscopic light shows, religious iconography, spatial decoration, trance-inducing drugs, observance of the course of the moon, the rising of the sun, and the succession of moments. There is a sense of an authentic spiritual identity.

As much I understood, main purpose is to generate a state of trance, similar to many shamanistic rituals, sensory overload is utilized to create this trance state. “The electronic music played at doofs (usually repetitive) together with the decorations, costumes, and especially lighting, function as (positive) stress-inducing ritual stimuli, which contribute to profound alterations of the autonomic nervous system, especially when combined with pharmacological agents which trigger sensory flooding” (Lyttle & Montagne, 1992)

What I observed in these gatherings is that they end up with not individual experiences but communal ones. People in the festivals, dance for almost 10 hours in a state of trance, losing their sense of ego, generating something like a hive mind during these evets. People usually find themselves uniting with the earth, with their roots and most importantly with the community. I believe this capability of working as a collective being is important for humankind, and it states some very important aspects of our nature.

“We need to be close and sweaty and creating a greater rhythm together, so that it’s virtually impossible for people to break free from the spiral. I recall parties ending with everyone holding hands, or every- one holding hands along a beach, this is not forced or uncomfortable, it’s complete pure and wonderful delight to have made such connections with strangers.” (K.)

NEXT TIME: During this research I encountered a term called “Temporary Autonomous Zone” (Hakim Bey), which I felt interest to and deserves another focused research.