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carbolines certainly could, by virtue of their DMT-boosting effects, indirectly stimulate dream production.° THE PSYCHEDELIC PINEAL + 73 systems. This also would result in DMT levels too high for normal mental function. While researchers examined MAO activity in several human tis- sues, they unfortunately did not assesspineal MAO activity in schizophrenia. Let's now consider less pathological, but also relatively common and natu- rally occurring, altered states of awareness in which pineal DMT may play a role. Dream consciousness is one of these. The most likely time for us to dream is also the time at which melato- nin levels are highest, that is, around 3 AM. Since melatonin itself has such mild psychological effects, it suggests a role for another pineal com- pound whose levels parallel those of melatonin. DMT is a likely prospect for such a substance. However, no one has looked at 24-hour DMT rhythms in normal volunteers in an attempt to relate DMT levels to dream inten- sity or frequency. Jace Callaway, Ph.D., has suggested that pineal derived beta- carbolines may mediate dreams. While the uncertain psychological effects of the beta-carbolines shed some doubt on this hypothesis, pineal beta- Meditation or prayer also may elicit deeply altered states of conscious- ness. Pineal DMT production could underlie these mystical or spiritual experiences. All spiritual disciplines describe quite psychedelic accounts of the transformative experiences, whose attainment motivate their practice. Blinding white light, encounters with demonic and angelic entities, ec- static emotions, timelessness, heavenly sounds, feelings of having died and being reborn, contacting a powerful and loving presence underlying all of reality—these experiences cut across all denominations. They also are characteristic of a fully psychedelic DMT experience. How might meditation evoke the pineal DMT response? Several meditative disciplines bring about an intense fine-tuning of attention and awareness; for example, one-pointed focus on the breath. The brain's electrical activity, as measured by the electroencephalogram, reflects this synchronization, or bringing together, of brain activity. Many