Austin Mao - Psychedelic Sanctuary: Inside a Legal Psilocybin Church

In this episode, Austin Mao, co-founder of the non-profit entheogenic church Ceremonia, sits down with host Paul F. Austin to discuss his profound journey with plant medicines.

Find episode links, summary, and transcript here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-248-austin-mao/

Austin shares about the experiences offered at Ceremonia, including psilocybin and ayahuasca ceremonies, along with thorough preparation and integration work. He describes the unique status of Ceremonia as one of the few legal retreat centers in the USA offering these psychedelic medicines.

Austin and Paul explore how psychedelic ceremonies can help one cultivate skills and capacity to better embrace and navigate life’s challenges. The conversation closes as Austin shares his vision for psycho-spiritual healing and guides Paul in a brief version of the group ‘circling’ practice offered at Ceremonia.

Austin Mao is an entrepreneur, author, poet, and keynote speaker on the intersection of science and spirituality, psychology and shamanism. He is a co-founder of Ceremonia, a non-profit psychedelic church facilitating change makers and creators through what 96% of alumni share as the most profound experience of their lives. He has guided more than 400 founders including Fortune 500 executives, Silicon Valley Unicorn founders, and major blockchain leaders through their transformation towards living a life of inspired creativity, purpose, and peace.

Austin shares a process of “Modern Enlightenment”—a path to Awaken, Heal, and Manifest—that is informed by the most advanced technologies of psychotherapy and neuroscience combined with ancient shamanistic wisdom and spiritual traditions. He shares a range of direct experience with some of the most prominent business leaders of the modern world, helping them harness their inner power to create greater impact through love and inspired creation.

Highlights:

• Austin’s profound initial Ayahuasca experiences
• Cultivating skills and capacity in ceremony to navigate daily life
• “Integration begins with preparation”
• Ceremonia’s legal, non-profit psychedelic church status
• Ceremonia’s impact on the local community
• Seeking a trip vs. lasting transformation
• Austin’s vision for psycho-spiritual healing
• The practice of circling
• Conclusion & how to connect with Ceremonia

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