Control Freaks: America and its Uncontrolled Substances
I’ve analyzed the psychology of Prohibition before, concluding that the War on Drugs is a deceit maintained by the national ego. In this article I take a deeper look at how the desire for control affects our laws and language. This is a prelude to my six-part essay on language called Reclaiming the Prohibition Debate. None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free. —Goethe Humans like to feel in control. This is not always a bad thing, but it becomes problematic when we are so obsessed with the illusion of control that we forego the...
Help Heal Trauma Survivors by Supporting MDMA Research
MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, has been an instrumental force in psychedelic research and advocacy since its formation in 1986. In my opinion, this non-profit organization has done more to establish psychedelics as legitimate medicines than anyone else in the world. Their biggest project is proving the safety and effectiveness of MDMA-assisted therapy as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They have performed a number of studies around the world indicating its effectiveness — even with the one-third of PTSD patients who do not respond adequately to other treatments. As you can imagine, MAPS does...
Endtrip, a Sublime and Disturbing Take on Death
This video will take you on one freaky journey. Some parts will remind you of Enter the Void, the DMT-dusted death journey from Gaspar Noé, but other parts are completely original. From the Vimeo descripton: Endtrip is an animation short film in which we experience a breathtaking trip through the bizarre and fantastical unconsciousness of a drug overdosed girl. This visually stunning journey offers a glimpse into the extraordinary and strange workings of the mind. Check it out (full-screen mode recommended): Liked this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed to get much more! Or enter your email address for weekly updates:
Squareeater: Entrain your brain with strobes & binaural beats
“Welcome to a new generation of brain exploration,” says the front page of Squareeater, a free service offering audio-visual experiences called “squares.” The squares are described as “meditative devices” with names like “Chakra,” “Deep Down,” “Upper,” and “Strange Night.” Each square uses binaural beats and other unusual sounds to achieve brainwave entrainment — the fairly recent and not-well-understood practice of causing one’s brainwaves to fall into step with an external stimulus. What’s a binaural beat? It’s the pulse or tone created in one’s mind when the left and right ears hear two distinct tones that are very close in pitch. Searching “binaural beat”...
One Last LSD Trip The Beautiful Death of Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley was known for his incredible books and essays, among them The Doors of Perception, a 1954 book discussing his experiences with mescaline, and Island, a novel about a utopian society. In Island, the citizens inhabit a constant state of acceptance thanks to meditation and a psychedelic agent they call “moksha medicine.” A character describes moksha as “the reality reliever, the truth-and-beauty pill,” allowing users to “catch a glimpse of the world as it looks to someone who has been liberated from his bondage to the ego.” Huxley was an elder statesman of the psychedelic movement, one who advocated the intelligent and cautious use of...
Steve & Steve, a brilliant web comic about an acid trip
Steve & Steve, an online graphic novel by Patrick Farley, follows fictionalized versions of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak as they embark on an LSD trip in Silicon Valley, 1975. Together they discuss lost love, the Cold War, the history of human evolution, and much more. The second “issue” was just released, and it’s just as incredible as the first. Patrick Farley is also the creative force behind electricsheepcomix.com, perhaps best known for bringing Terence McKenna’s “Stoned Ape” theory to life in the form of an animated comic called The First Word. Check it out, it’s just as trippy as...
Video: The War on Drugs is a War on You
This excellent new video from Truthloader, a Youtube channel dedicated to “citizen journalism,” exposes the truth about the War on Some Drug Users: Truthloader recently followed up with Part Two, about the drug war abroad. They also have a separate series about the horrific effects of drug policy in Mexico. Liked this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed to get much more! Or enter your email address for weekly updates:
Mind-bending fluorescent coral reef photography
Daniel Stoupin takes underwater photography to a new level, revealing a dazzling spectrum of colors in fluorescent coral reefs. I’ve seen alien worlds like these behind closed eyes before, but never in such stunning high-resolution photos. As it turns out, some of the most psychedelic landscapes on earth are underwater and microscopic! Daniel’s blog also does a fabulous job of explaining the nature of fluorescence, the way our brains perceive color, and the importance of lighting and context in both photography and everyday vision. To achieve such astounding colors, he uses special lights that bring out the natural...
Entheogenic Spirituality as a Human Right
The following essay by Martin W. Ball is an edited excerpt from his book, The Entheogenic Evolution: Psychedelics, Consciousness and Awakening the Human Spirit, published by Kyandara Publishing in 2008. It was previously published on Reality Sandwich. For more information, visit martinball.net. The true heart of any religion or spiritual tradition is direct spiritual experience. It is from the immediate experience of the sacred that traditions arise, grow, and take on a life of their own as institutions and systems of belief. Yet without that initial spiritual experience, the inspiration that originally gave rise to the tradition, there is very...
Jason Grapples With a Star An Interstellar Trip Report
Setting: The riverfront in Hartford, CT. Chemical Lens: 25I-NBOMe, a “research chemical” with effects resembling LSD Jason and I settle down on a green patch of grass in Riverfront Plaza. The fireworks are spent and the crowds have gone home. We are alone except for the cleanup crew, who rustle around collecting garbage and putting away equipment. They give us some strange looks as we remain there into the wee hours of the morning, but mostly they leave us alone. Floodlights illuminate the city park. I feel like we are lying in the middle of a football field, complete...
Time lapse of Burning Man 2013 from a mountaintop
There are lots of Burning Man videos on Youtube these days, but this one caught my eye. According to the creator: This video captures Burning Man 2013 from an elevation of 5495 feet above sea level and over 4 linear miles from the center of Black Rock City. Old Razorback, aka Trego Peak, provides a unique vista of this incredible annual event. Climbing to the peak of Old Razorback has become a challenging and rewarding tradition for our team. This is a view that most will never experience in person. It is our passion to share it with...
The Perception Scope How to Promote Visual Imagination and Conjure Open-eye Visuals at Will
People talk about how subtle psychedelic hallucinations can be. As long as your eyes are open, they say, objects may appear different — more vibrant, breathing in and out, or covered with patterns — but they won’t morph into faeries and slithering monsters like they do in the movies. Unless, of course, you take a heroic dose; then anything is fair game. I disagree. I see “things that aren’t really there” on any decent dose, sometimes into the following day. If you haven’t seen more than patterns and wobbling walls, you probably just need some direction and practice. In...