MB5 - The Martin Ball 5-MeO-DMT Documentary

[physics envy]

Posting this here in case anyone hasn't heard about this project but might be interested...and for those who might like to help fund them.

They have a kickstarter campaign going on to raise $30,000 by the end of August.  As of the 9th, they've only raised $3k so far...

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2143070069/mb5-the-martin-ball-dmt-documentary

https://www.facebook.com/groups/MB5theproject/

Here's a quick description from their website:
"WHAT IS THE DOCUMENTARY ABOUT?

Travel with us as we document the experiences of five intrepid participants as they undergo an incredible 5-MeO-DMT session with Martin! Unlike any other practitioner in the world, Martin actually takes this powerful medicine with each client in a one-on-one setting, and then works with the individual to unlock trapped energies and provide energetic guidance. Participants often speak of having the governing reins of their ego temporarily loosened and the reception of a sense of infinite, universal, love, unity and delight - and we will document Martin's process of working with his clients to aid them in achieving their desired outcomes. Brad Adams, Ph.D., cancer researcher and founder of L.A.M.P.S. (Los Angeles Medical Plant Society), will be on hand to study session results from a scientific perspective - charting participant responses and any emotional and physical changes they may experience."

I haven't worked with him, but the description of his sessions and how he worked with his clients sounds very interesting, so I'm hoping this gets made.

I've posted this to the DMT-Nexus and Shroomery as well to help spread the word - I'm hoping this post doesn't violate this forums guidelines...

[HumbleVoyager]

I have found there to be a lot of ego in the way this individual does work with people. He claims that he is the only person in the world doing what he does, but he has no idea what various protocols underground therapists use who have been working with this molecule since the 80s. It has been a well-kept secret for quite a long time. In addition, he makes claims that he is able to move dark energy out of people...people are perfectly capable of doing that themselves. I question the efficacy of a practitioner that claims they have some power that their clients do not have. People can be taught to do the energy work they need to do as they identify a need for it. If you have someone telling you what you need to clear out of your body that you are not able to perceive then they are probably running a power play on you.

[beatoute23]

The guy, Martin sounds like a real dickhead.. no wonder he get anywhere near the funding for his tom foolery 

[HumbleVoyager]

The guy, Martin sounds like a real dickhead.. no wonder he get anywhere near the funding for his tom foolery 

Who knows? It's possible that he has good intentions...but if you don't know what you're doing and aren't aware of your effects it can be truly problematic.
I do think that the greater collective knows enough to avoid funding something that would promote something harmful.

[Gaius]

I like Martin very much and follow his podcast. He creates conferences and devotes himself entirely to the matter. I can understand that someone look at him as a dickhead in some talks or interviews. I've learned some good tips from him but also think that the experience speaks for itself and and also doubt the meaning of his energy work. But he does it with love and dedication and he helps that someone gets their full "nondual" experiences.

[HumbleVoyager]

I like Martin very much and follow his podcast. He creates conferences and devotes himself entirely to the matter. I can understand that someone look at him as a dickhead in some talks or interviews. I've learned some good tips from him but also think that the experience speaks for itself and and also doubt the meaning of his energy work. But he does it with love and dedication and he helps that someone gets their full "nondual" experiences.

I appreciate your thoughts here Gaius. I think that something good and useful can come from anyone regardless. The meaning of his energy is the part that I question most and his general demeanor as a practitioner. He definitely has some useful ideas regarding the experience itself and some interesting theories around it.

[nottwo]

To give credit where it's due, Martin's run his excellent Entheogenic Evolution podcast for a long time now and has had many incredible talks and interviews with people associated with 5-meo. These have generally been mature and well thought out and he certainly hasn't shown any of the arrogance that rubbed people up the wrong way so much in former times. Unfortunately Martin has quite a heavy sort of aura about him - whether that is due to self-importance or what I don't know - and is not an immediately likable character in the same way that Rak Razam is instantly likable and good fun. As it so happens, I don't in any way agree with Rak's dualist, shamanistic approach whereas Martin has arrived at a purely non dual understanding of how 5-meo works.

Out of interest, Martin doesn't do his one-to-one sessions anymore - he abandoned them quite a few months ago. He used to take 5-meo at the same time as the person and said that this allowed him to pinpoint where they were constricting their energy. I never saw any of these sessions or talked to anyone who had them and I wouldn't like to comment whether this is a valid method of working with 5-meo.

[physics envy]

I agree that when he first started going through his 5-Meo process back around 2009 and shortly thereafter, he came off as very blunt and rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.  Sincere, but blunt and at times abrasive.

Nowadays, he comes off much more 'gentle' in his podcasts/lectures/interviews.  He hasn't changed his beliefs, but his presentation and overall demeanor seem much more tolerable to the masses.  Over the last few years, he has been interviewed on many different podcasts...usually giving roughly the same information on each, but he is much easier on the interviewers when their beliefs differ from his.

I also agree there may be other people doing what he did during his sessions that aren't promoting it.  But he IS willing to describe his experiences in detail to the world, and was willing to go on video to show his method.  For those interested in this type of thing, it could have been very useful. 

BTW - I've not heard him say he moves 'dark' energy out of people.  To me, using the term 'dark' implies 'evil' or something similar.  He certainly does not believe in 'evil' of any kind.  He does say he helps remove 'stuck' energy.

He states that he used to occasionally purge the stuck energy for his clients in their initial/early sessions (many of his clients had several sessions) - which seemed to allow them to then have a full release.  After a while they would purge on their own if they didn't do it themselves initially.  Hard to say what was really happening, but the effect seemed to be that the client was able to move forward in some way.

But after one client tried to kill him by beating the shit out of him a couple years ago during their first hit, he says he started purging for everyone almost right away - possibly his body's way of trying to prevent that situation from happening again.  He said he lost about 30 pounds from then on and led him towards his retirement. 

He also says during heavy periods, he had 3-5 clients per week.  With each client, they usually did 3 rounds of the medicine.  He did a full dose with them each round.  He did this for about 7 years.  After 4000+ doses himself, and watching his clients reactions over that time, I would have felt very comfortable in believing that he knew what he was doing :-)