Oftentimes, when we speak of a mental breakdown, what we are referring to is the temporary lowering or collapse of an unnatural, culturally constructed wall of separation that was long ago implanted in the mind of the suffering victim. As this acquired, dividing wall disintegrates or dissolves, so do many of the false, artificial dualisms or antagonistic oppositions that were made possible by this dividing mental wall. This explains why many persons who are undergoing such a breakdown often bear a close resemblance to persons who have taken a large dose of LSD or some other psychedelic substance. Both the victim of a psychotic break and the “tripper” are in a blessed (or cursed) position to perceive the underlying, un-split (and therefore undifferentiated) unity of all things (psychic) before the walls reassert themselves and ‘normalcy’ is restored! (To be sure, “something there is that doesn’t love a wall,” but without them human life would quickly be reduced to the hallucinatory state of barbarism such as we find among the ancient Scythians in Herodotus’ penetrating account.)
It should be fairly obvious that what we call “ego” consists largely in the erection and regular maintenance of these various mental walls, fences, and membranes that divide and separate deeply connected or merged qualities, elements, and levels in the tidy dualisms we are all familiar with. Just like the walls of our homes that keep out the rain and the cold, the stifling heat and the dirt of “nature,” our mental walls and roofs insulate and protect us from the undifferentiated chaos of 𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑝𝑠𝑦𝑐ℎ𝑒, a mere taste of which we receive from our wildest dreams. The sufferer of psychosis, however – just like anyone who had had a very bad ayahuasca trip – will attest to the terrors awaiting anyone who gets caught “with their walls down” before they’ve learned to 𝑏𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑤𝑖𝑚 𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟.
Learn about the psyche, yes – but take things one step at a time, if you have that privilege. Otherwise, there’s a good chance you will bite off more than you can chew and you’ll be scared off before you learn anything of real value.
