Return to the Brain of Eden: Restoring the Connection between Neurochemistry and Consciousness

Over a period of a million years the human brain expanded at an increasingly rapid rate, and then, 200,000 years ago, the expansion abruptly stopped. Modern science has overlooked this in order to maintain that we are at the pinnacle of our evolution. However, the halt in brain expansion explains not only recently uncovered anomalies within the human brain but also the global traditions of an earthly paradise lost and of humanity’s degeneration from our original state of perpetual wonder and joy. Drawing on more than 20 years of research, authors Tony Wright and Graham Gynn explore how our modern brains are performing far below their potential and how we can unlock our higher abilities and return to the euphoria of Eden. They explain how for millions of years early forest-dwelling humans were primarily consuming the hormone-rich sex organs of plants--fruit--each containing a highly complex biochemical cocktail evolved to influence DNA transcription, rapid brain development, and elevated neural and pineal gland activity. Citing recent neurological and psychological studies, the authors explain how the loss of our symbiotic fruit-based diet led to a progressive neurodegenerative condition characterized by aggressive behaviors, a fearful perception of the world, and the suppression of higher artistic, mathematical, and spiritual abilities. The authors show how many shamanic and spiritual traditions were developed to counteract our decline. They outline a strategy of raw foods, tantric sexuality, shamanic practices, and entheogen use to reverse our degeneration, restore our connection with the plant world, and regain the bliss and peace of the brain of Eden.

Table of Contents:
Foreword by Dennis J. McKenna, Ph.D. Introduction by Graham Gynn 1 Two Sides to Everything The Double Brain Handedness Accessing the Right Brain Is Handedness Helpful? Sleep Hidden Potential Telepathy The Manchester Trial A New Hypothesis 2 From the Forest Human Evolution Juvenility and Bipedalism Hairlessness and Vitamin D Big Brains Cast Out of the Garden Aggression Why Did Our Brains Stop Expanding? Ancestral Diets Humans Are by Nature Frugivorous Protein, Fatty Acids, and Water 3 Figs, Steroids, and Feedback Loops The Core Hypothesis A New Theory of Inheritance Chemicals in Plants The First Primates A Change in Diet and an Increase in Brain Size The Pineal and Exponential Brain Expansion Surviving on the Savanna Divide and Rule The Implications of Agriculture Junk Food and Degeneration 4 Steroid Hormones: Immunity, Digestion, and the “Second Brain” The Immune System The Thymus Gland A Second Brain 5 Fertility and Function Human Fertility The Ancestral Period The Period of Steroid Inhibition Flavonoids and the Female Cycle The Lost Connection between Ovulation and Orgasm Males, Diet, and Libido The Fall Hairy Women and Bald Men Serotonin, Testosterone, Depression, and Murder Testosterone, Society, and Consciousness Melatonin, the Pineal, and Sex 6 Consciousness and the Mechanisms of the Mind The Bicameral Mind Let’s Sing about It The Written Word and Cerebral Dominance Hemispherectomy Schizophrenia Multiple Personality Disorder The Internal Liar Hypnosis The Problem with Words Confabulation Deeper into Fear Higher Function 7 Drugs, the Brain, and Peak Experiences Sex, Drugs, and Tantric Taboos DMT, the Pineal, and Spirit Ecstasy and Empathy Superman and Superwoman 8 Mad Hatters and Maverick Scientists Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Weak Electromagnetic Fields Other Research Areas Restoration Afterword Recommended Reading References Index

About the Author :
Tony Wright is a consciousness researcher who studied horticulture and plant biochemistry at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh. Graham Gynn is an agricultural zoologist, educator, and researcher who has appeared on the BBC. Both authors live in Cornwall, England.

Review :
“Return to the Brain of Eden presents a totally new way of looking at the evolution of the human brain. It is fresh and unexpected; it will make an impact and must be taken seriously in discussions of human origins.” “Graham Gynn and Tony Wright follow the implications of modern brain research to an astounding conclusion: that our culturally acquired left-brain dominance has cost us our sanity, but if we have alienated ourselves from nature and our original state of wholeness, there may be a way back. This is a startling book that makes us rethink the most fundamental issues of religion, psychology, and philosophy.” “Return to the Brain of Eden is a bold experimental journey into the largely uncharted frontier of Integral Science. This alternative thought-experiment sheds light on the great challenges faced by humanity in the twenty-first century and opens possibilities for us to rise together in conscious evolution. This courageous book deserves careful, critical attention.”