Ironically enough, three days after my post on the topic of mind-altering substances (Sunday, April 27) ..Albert Hofmann, a Swiss Pharmacologist and foremost expert in the field ..passed-away. He was 102. On April 16, 1943 ~ Albert accidentally ingested the first batch of LSD ever made. He was looking for medication to help improve blood circulation. The event altered the course of his life. He became an expert on psychoactive ingredients in plants all around the world ..including the psilocybin mushroom used in South American Indian ceremonies. He took more than 50 ‘acid trips’ himself ..claiming: “Before then, I had always believed there was only one reality ..under LSD, however, I discovered other realities that were just as real ..if not more real ..than the one I’d been living.” I pay homage to Dr. Hofmann ..a true modern-day pioneer. Although we usually think of ‘pioneers’ as people who discover new frontiers on land or in space ..I think it applies just as much to those who explore the uncharted territories of the mind.
4 comments:
Lol, at first glance I thought you were posting on Abby Hoffman :s I recently ran into some really cool websites and followed many links around cyberland, with info on he and his wife among the links. I remember my sister used to have Abby's book Steal This Book (I think that was the title). Very interesting about Albert Hofmann. Who knows what's standing beside us, that we are not even aware of... we think we rule the world... perhaps only in our minds.
Abby Hoffman ..how funny. That’s what my sister said when I asked if she knew who I was talking about ..with the same last name as our mother’s maiden name ..there are so many ways to spell it ..hofmann ..hoffman ..hofman ..hoffmann ..I suppose she could’ve said dustin hoffman ..but she would’ve already about known that ..albert hofmann is kinda of an obscure guy ..but he was the ‘go to’ guy for people exploring the amazon, back in the 30’s and 40’s ..looking for hallucinogenic plants ..they’d send him samples and he'd test it to see what made them that way ..there’s a little trivia to go along with your web surfing
People thought I was on acid a year before I tried it, a year after, I took a class called Creative Perception at Valley College in N. Hollywood. This is where I started developing interest in conceptual art (& properties.)
I found the DVD called "How To Draw A Bunny" about conceptual artist Ray Johnson who "developed a revelatory level a living without the psychedelics"
Although I think psychedelics have value in guided situations ..I agree they are a poor substitute for higher-level consciousness. I talk more about my own history of thought on the subject ..if your interested click here ~~>april 27
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