In reconciling the relationship between consciousness and the material world -- a perceptual distinction created by the classical conception of science, recent theoretical developments supported by experimental evidence in the fields of quantum physics and psychology indicate a significant connection that bridges this schism. Scientists working at the fringes of both fields agree on the limits of objective observation, which has theoretically been framed as the measurement problem. This probability of consciousness and quantum mechanics being inextricably linked is evident in the traditional initiation rituals of the Isángoma -- a group of highly respected healers among the Zulu people of Southern Africa.
The simultaneous experience of multiple timelines through instantaneous modes of communication characterizes the first step of training as an Isángoma initiate.
This period is marked by episodes of physical distress accompanied by heightened extra-sensory perceptions -- a process known as Ukuthwasa. Emerging from specific family lines, the young initiates are identified and led under the care and strict tutelage of a class of master practitioners, who guide them in unlocking their unique gifts and developing their practice.
With riveting affirmation from the work of physicist David Bohm and neurophysiologist Karl Pribram -- an architect of the modern understanding of the brain, the holographic principle of the universe appears to explain many of the unresolved mysteries in physics such as out-of-body experiences, synchronicity, telepathic communication, lucid dreaming, experiences of cosmic harmony and healing through deep resonance. Correspondingly, among the healers of the Zulu people and the wider cultural groups known as Bantu, a subtler level of energy -- undetectable by the current technological worldview of modern science, is said to exist. This energy field is understood as the fabric that forms all reality -- known to the Zulu healers as Ncumu, and is said to permeate through everything in our universe. Stanislav Grof -- one of the founders and chief theoreticians of transpersonal psychology observes, "In the last five decades, various avenues of modern consciousness research have revealed a rich array of anomalous phenomena so radical that they question the basic metaphysical assumptions of materialistic science." (Stanislav Grof, 2012)
A beckoning of new vistas of knowledge beyond the boundaries of academia distinguishes all shamanic rites of initiation in Africa. These rites include the use of ceremonial medicines that hyper-activate the neocortex -- the region of the brain responsible for spatial reasoning, the amygdala -- the integrative center for emotional behavior and motivation, and the insula which modulates sensory information and motor control. The main utility of these medicines is to help identify and purge the root causes of neuroticism, which is seen as the foundation of predominant psycho-physiological illnesses affecting our modern world. Combined with meditation techniques and a host of other traditional rituals developed for integrating well-being -- varying in application from one culture to another, these technologies are said to activate the capacity for channeling information through the quantum phenomenon known to experimental physicists as non-locality.