Timothy Leary

Ralph Metzner

Richard Alpert

Ram Dass

We are in the midst of a powerful psychedelic renaissance. After four decades of hibernation, the promise of the psychoactive '60s--that deeper self-awareness, achieved through reality-bending substances and practices, will lead to greater external harmony--is again gaining a major following. The signs are everywhere, from the influence of today's preeminent psychedelic thinker Daniel Pinchbeck, to the renewed interest in the legacy of Terence McKenna, and to the upsurge of collective, inclusive (and overtly tripped-out) cultural phenomena like the spectacle of Burning Man. The Psychedelic Experience, created in the movement's early years by the prophetic shaman-professors Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner, and Richard Alpert (Ram Dass), is a foundational text that serves as a model and a guide for all subsequent mind-expanding inquiries. In this wholly unique book, the authors provide an interpretation of an ancient sacred manuscript, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, from a psychedelic perspective. This volume describes their discoveries in broadening spiritual consciousness through a combination of Tibetan meditation techniques and psychotropic substances. As sacred as the text it reflects, The Psychedelic Experience is a guidebook to the wilderness of mind and an indispensable resource from the founding fathers of psychedelia. This edition includes an all-new introduction by Daniel Pinchbeck, author of 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl and Breaking Open the Head. "It is a book for the living as well as for the dying." --Lama Govinda

A Manual Based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead

The Psychedelic Experience

ABOUT THE BOOK In this monograph the author relates findings from more than 30 years of experiences and observations with Bufo alvarius and 5-methoxy-dimethyltryptamine, in various user groups and individuals, both in the US and in Europe. The term underground is used in referring to the explorations with these substances, in the sense that they were hidden - out of respect for the restrictions and prohibitions of mainstream culture. These are ethnographic field reports, first-hand observations from an underground sub-culture, accompanied by the experiences of a selected number of participant-observers. It is important to recognize that in research with these and other so-called psychedelic or entheogenic substances, one cannot limit the observations and reflections solely to their physical and psychological effects. As most of the people cited here emphasize, the experiences with these substances at times can go far beyond their physical and psychological effects into the deepest and highest dimensions of our existence, both the cosmic and the spiritual. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Metzner, Ph.D., received his undergraduate degree at Oxford University and his doctorate in clinical psychology at Harvard University, where he was also the recipient of an NIMH Post-doctoral Fellowship in psychopharmacology at the Harvard Medical School. He collaborated with Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert in the studies of psychedelic drugs and co-authored The Psychedelic Experience. He is a psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the California Institute of Integral Studies, where he taught for 30 years. He has a life-long interest in the many different realms of consciousness and its modifications. He is the author of The Well of Remembrance, The Unfolding Self, Green Psychology, Birth of a Psychedelic Culture (with Ram Dass); editor of two collections of essays on ayahuasca and on psilocybe mushrooms; and author of a new series of seven books on The Ecology of Consciousness.

A Field Report of Underground Research on a Visionary Medicine: Bufo Alvarius And 5-Methoxy-dimethyltryptamine

The Toad and the Jaguar

In "The Ecology of Consciousness," a Harvard scholar and pioneer in the field of consciousness studies well known for his groundbreaking psychedelic research with Ram Dass and Timothy Leary presents an expansive work culminating decades of research in Eastern philosophy, shamanism, and more to offer readers a true path to transformation and complete consciousness."

The Alchemy of Personal, Collective, and Planetary Transformation

The Ecology of Consciousness

No understanding of the history of the sixties could be complete without a grasp of the work of Leary, Alpert, and Metzner, the cultural resistance to their experiments, and the way in which psychoactive drug use became a part of contemporary society. Next Generation Independent Book Awards Finalist,Birth of a Psychedelic Culture explores these experiments and their cultural milieu through never before seen photographs, personal accounts of authors Ralph Metzner and Ram Dass, and conversations with luminaries such as Aldous Huxley, Charles Mingus, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs and others that appeared on the scene.

Conversations about Leary, the Harvard Experiments, Millbrook and the Sixties

Birth of a Psychedelic Culture

A classic and perennially relevant book, written by one of the world's foremost authorities in the field, The Unfolding Self Varieties of Transformative Experience Back to Titles The Unfolding Self examines in detail the transformations which an individual undergoes in the process of their expansion of consciousness. Referencing ancient and modern cultures from around the world, Dr. Metzner accomplishes what only a great teacher can do; conveying subtle concepts and fascinating breadth through an engrossing tapestry of myth, allegory, cross-references and historical context. Drawing upon 50 years as a pioneer in the study of consciousness, beginning with his triune collaborations with Dr.'s Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert at Harvard University in the early 1960's, Dr. Metzner brings unique experience and sagacity to this most important of inquiries. Now required reading in a number of progressive psychology courses, The Unfolding Self promises to provide its reader with valuable tools to become "wise, impartial judges" in their process of transformation into a more integrated and fulfilled person.

Varieties of Transformative Experience

The Unfolding Self

Gunther M. Weil

Originally published: New Hyde Park, N.Y.: University Books, 1965. New introduction by Erik Davis, 2007.

Classic Selections from the Psychedelic Review, the Revolutionary 1960's Forum of Psychopharmacological Substances

The Psychedelic Reader

"The authors were engaged in a program of experiments with LSD and other psychedelic drugs at Harvard University until sensational national publicity, unfairly concentrating on student interest in the drugs, led to the suspension of the experiments. Since then, the authors have continued their work without academic auspices"--front cover.

Years after the Summer of Love, the promise of the psychoactive 1960s—that deeper self-awareness and greater harmony can be achieved through reality-bending substances and practices—is close to becoming a mainstream phenomenon. The signs are everywhere, from a renewed interest in the therapeutic effects of LSD to the popularity of ayahuasca trips and the annual spectacle of Burning Man. The Psychedelic Experience, created by the prophetic shaman-professors Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner, and Richard Alpert (Ram Dass), is a foundational text that serves as a model and a guide for all subsequent mind-expanding inquiries. Based on a unique interpretation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead, The Psychedelic Experience remains a vital testament to broadening spiritual consciousness through a combination of Tibetan meditation techniques and psychotropic substances. For a new generation seeking the trip of a lifetime, The Psychedelic Experience is the essential guidebook to getting there.

'The psychedelic reader' collects the very best writing from the dawn of the psychedelic era. Luminaries such as Alan Watts, Timothy Leary, Sir Julian Huxley, and Ralph Metzner contribute insights on subjects as fascinating as 'Botanical Sources of New World Narcotics' and as controversial as 'The Treatment of Frigidity with LSD and Ritalin'. From precise dosage guidelines to ruminations on the poetry of Herman Hesse, this powerful anthology presents the entire psychedelic spectrum with both the seriousness and open-mindedness it requires.

The Revolutionary 1960s Forum of Psychopharmacological Substances

A deeply personal account of the scientific, shamanic, and metaphysical encounters that led to the development of Metzner’s psychological methods • Recounts the author’s meetings and friendships with Albert Hofmann, Alexander Shulgin, the McKenna brothers, Wilson Van Dusen, Myron Stolaroff, and Leo Zeff • Details his lucid dream encounters with G. I. Gurdjieff, profoundly healing sessions with Hawaiian healer Morrnah Simeona, experiences with plant teachers iboga and ayahuasca, and ecological and mystical lessons learned from animal teachers • Shares his involvement in the beginnings of the therapeutic use of MDMA and how it safely and effectively supports the healing of trauma, PTSD, and interpersonal relationships Just as the search for the philosopher’s stone is the core symbol of the alchemical tradition, Ralph Metzner, Ph.D., psychotherapist and one of the respected elders of the psychedelic research community, sees it as the central metaphor of his life-long quest to find methods of healing and insight through heightened states of consciousness. Through captivating stories Metzner shares his encounters from the 1960s through the 1990s with genius scientists, shamanic healers, mystics, plant spirits, and animal guides that led to the development of his “alchemical divination” psychological methods, a structured intuitive process of accessing inner sources of healing and insight. He details lessons learned with psychedelic research legends Albert Hofmann, Alexander Shulgin, Terence McKenna, and Dennis McKenna. He reveals his deeply healing encounters with the Kahuna bodywork healer Morrnah Simeona, the first to introduce the Hawaiian Ho’oponopono healing method to the West, and his experiences with West African trance dancing and the psychoactive plant-drug iboga. Metzner recounts in vivid detail his unwelcome encounter with malignant sorcery during an ayahuasca experience in Ecuador and the lessons it taught him about connections with spirits, both harmful and beneficial. He tells of his involvement in the beginnings of the therapeutic use of MDMA and shows how it is an effective and safe substance to support psychotherapy for healing trauma, PTSD, and interpersonal relationships. In sharing his remarkable encounters, Metzner shows how the most meaningful lessons in the alchemy of life come not only from the geniuses we meet but also from the spirits we encounter along the way.

Encounters with Mystics, Scientists, and Healers

Searching for the Philosophers’ Stone

Jace C. Callaway

Ever since the "consciousness revolution" in the 1960s, dedicated spiritual seekers and scientific researchers from all continents have explored the world of psychoactive and hallucinogenic plants. In Ayahuasca, objective scientific information and the narratives of ayahuasca users -- shamans and others -- are presented together. Readers will also learn the pharmacology of this Amazonian plant.

Hallucinogens, Consciousness, and the Spirit of Nature

Ayahuasca

ABOUT THE BOOK These poems were written over a period of about 30 years, in the course of my travels in America and Europe, teaching courses and workshops in consciousness expansion, meditation, psychedelics, shamanism, alchemy and emerging new worldviews. Some of these poems were recorded on a spoken voice CD called Spirit Soundings with sonic and musical accompaniment by Kit Walker and friends. The Song of the Pearl is my adaptation of a 5th century Gnostic hymn describing the soul's journey from incarnation, through birth and growth, and to ultimate return to the origin. Epilog I: Gnostic Themes in The Song of the Pearl Epilog II: The Road to Language Epilog III: A Riddle with Six Answers ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. received his undergraduate degree at Oxford University and his doctorate in clinical psychology at Harvard University. He collaborated with Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert in the studies of psychedelic drugs and co-authored The Psychedelic Experience. He is a psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the California Institute of Integral Studies, where he taught for 30 years. He has a life-long interest in the many different realms of consciousness and its manifestations. He is the author of The Well of Remembrance, The Unfolding Self, Green Psychology, Birth of a Psychedelic Culture (with Ram Dass); editor of two collections of essays on ayahuasca and on psilocybe mushrooms; and author a series of short volumes on The Ecology of Consciousness. His most recent book is Allies for Awakening.

Poems and Epilogs

Diving for Treasures

Bufo Alvarius and 5-Methoxy-Dimethyltryptamine

Toad and the Jaguar a Field Report of Underground Research on a Visionary Medicine

ABOUT THE BOOK Entheogenesis means the growing realization that we human beings and the world around us are much more than simply material organisms living and evolving on a material planetary body. We are multi-dimensional spiritual, cosmic, noetic, psychic and physical beings. The central insight that emerges from entheogenic states and is confirmed by the perennial spiritual traditions of East and West, is that at every level, from macro-cosmic to micro-cosmic, from atoms and animals, to trees and planets and stars, Spirit dwells within created forms and expresses through them. This monograph is based on 50 years of experience as a participant-observer in the international underground sub-culture involved with entheogenic, consciousness-expanding substances. The author discusses the uses and values of such substances when the explicit intention or purpose is for spiritual awakening, psychotherapy, healing, increased understanding and the enhancement of creativity. The intent of this documentation is not to prove or promote any particular method or treatment of any condition. The evaluation of entheogens needs to be in terms of how productive these experiences are of healthier approaches to the issues of living in these times, in this world. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. received his undergraduate degree at Oxford University and his doctorate in clinical psychology at Harvard University, where he also held a post-doctoral fellowship in psychopharmacology at the Harvard Medical School. He collaborated with Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert in studies of psychedelic drugs and co-authored The Psychedelic Experience. He is a psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the California Institute of Integral Studies, where he taught for 30 years. Ralph is the author of The Well of Remembrance, The Unfolding Self, Green Psychology, Birth of a Psychedelic Culture (with Ram Dass); editor of two collections of essays on ayahuasca and on psilocybe mushrooms; and author of a series of seven books on The Ecology of Consciousness.

Guidelines for Productive and Safe Experiences with Entheogens

Allies for Awakening

ABOUT THE BOOK In Part One (which is unchanged from the first edition) the author describe how the transformation teachings of alchemy, originating in the sacred science of ancient Egypt, persecuted by the Church in the Middle Ages, and ridiculed by scientific modernism, were revived in the 20th century by the work of two Swiss scientists: C.G Jung, who identified alchemical symbolism as the objective language of the psyche; and Albert Hofmann, whose discovery of LSD reconnected the broken link between spirit and matter - the mysterious link known traditionally as the Philosophers' Stone. In Part Two (which is completely re-written) the author describe a seven-stage octave series of transformations of collective consciousness starting in 1945, with the peace treaties and atomic bomb explosions that marked the end of World War II. The first three stages of the octave of societal transformations culminated in the tumultuous 1960s - which saw fundamental expansions of consciousness in all areas of culture and society - but also the unresolved assassinations of four leaders, two white and two black. The synchronous expansive movements came to a crashing halt with the repressive politics of the Nixon years, as counterculture became underground culture, and the use of psychedelic substances became stigmatized and illegal. The expansive momentum of the 1960s never recovered. With the as yet unsolved criminal attacks of 9/11/2001, which cannot even be publicly discussed, a fateful blow was struck at the American polity and the global economic and political order. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. is a recognized pioneer in studies of consciousness and its transformations. He is a psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco. He participated in the Harvard studies of psychedelic drugs in the 1960s, and in 2010 co-authored (with Ram Dass and Gary Bravo) Birth of a Psychedelic Culture. His other books include Maps of Consciousness, The Unfolding Self, The Well of Remembrance and Green Psychology. The present book is a revised edition of Volume I in his 7 volume series on The Ecology of Consciousness.

Vol. 1 of the Ecology of Consciousness Series

The Expansion of Consciousness Revised Edition

Matthew McKay

Seán ÓLaoire

Do you wonder what your true path in life is? We each have a purpose and a mission. However, uncovering this purpose can be challenging, and often daunting. If you are like most, you have probably asked yourself, “Why am I here?” But where do you turn for answers? Religion? Psychology? Spirituality? Written by psychologist and bestselling author Matthew McKay, charismatic Silicon Valley spiritual leader Seán ÓLaoire, and bestselling author Ralph Metzner, Why? will help you see what your past and present experiences are telling you about the spiritual theme in your life; one that is visible when you know how to read the signs. Your experiences may be that of a Healer/Peacemaker, an Explorer/Scientist, a Warrior/Guardian, an Artist/Designer, a Teacher/Communicator, or a Builder/Organizer. By showing you how to uncover your unique path, this book will help you discover your life’s true meaning. This book will help you dismantle tired, old traditions that tell us that we should avoid pain and seek pleasure or pursue power, and shows us that even pain can play an important part in how we choose to live. The book also helps you to create your own cosmology that unites your beliefs with your life’s mission, helps you recognize that individual mission, and outline exercises to bring you into alignment with this mission via personal practices. Despite these heady topics, the book is written in an accessible, inspiring, and entertaining tone. We are here to see, to know, to gather whatever wisdom our life offers, and to make use of that wisdom as our soul matures. A seamless blending of deep spirituality, good psychology and practical living, Why? offers the tools that you need to gain knowledge and awareness of yourself at the deepest level. So get ready to reveal your personal path in life, and begin living life to its fullest.

What Your Life Is Telling You about Who You Are and Why You're Here

Why?

Dr. Metzner discusses the experience of birth and of prenatal life, the unconscious psychic imprints of the conception event, the soul's choosing of a human incarnation, and the connection with familial ancestors. He also discusses the experience of death of the physical body and the soul's life in the intermediate realms before choosing rebirth into another life.

Incarnation -- Conception -- Birth -- Death -- Hereafter -- Reincarnation

The Life Cycle of the Human Soul

Who are we, really? In The Ecology of Consciousness, a Harvard scholar and pioneer in the field of consciousness studies—well known for his groundbreaking psychedelic research with Ram Dass and Timothy Leary—presents an expansive work culminating decades of research in Eastern philosophy, shamanism, and more to guide you along the path of true consciousness and transformation. Questions surrounding consciousness have intrigued humankind throughout time, and have been addressed through a wide range of perspectives and traditions. From age-old philosophies to New Age spirituality, consciousness—and its various forms—has been the topic of much contemplation. This unique book is a comprehensive exploration that covers a wide range of disciplines and subjects within the framework of psychospiritual and consciousness studies. The Ecology of Consciousness revives ancient alchemical knowledge, spiritual traditions, and thoughtful theories about consciousness—drawing on ancient Eastern philosophy, shamanism, mythology, and others sources, and covering topics such as personal growth and reincarnation—to give you an expansive foundation for self-inquiry and transformation. Written by a leading authority, this book will give you a deeper understanding of consciousness, show you how to access your own spiritual intelligence, teach you about shamanic and alchemical traditions and connect them to healing practices of today. With this consciousness-expanding book, you’ll explore the human life cycle from a spiritual perspective, reflect on your own personal journey, and discover which pathway guides your life purpose for your ultimate fulfillment, growth, and well-being.

Ecology of Consciousness

ABOUT THE BOOK In the emerging worldview of our time, the two key paradigm revolutions are - a recognition of the multiple dimensions or worlds and recognition of the autonomy of meta-physical spirits inhabiting these many worlds. In this book, Dr. Metzner describe two multi-dimensional paradigms we have used in our entheogenic and meditative journeys of exploration and healing. One is the Tibetan Buddhist Wheel of Birth and Death - a mandala of our human journey through many lives and many worlds. Another multi-dimensional paradigm for shamanic journey practice is the World Axial Tree, with its upper, middle and lower worlds. In the last chapters, drawing on the perspectives of an expanded systems worldview and the Pythagorean octave principle, I present three divination meditations on worlds within and worlds beyond. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. is a recognized pioneer in studies of consciousness and its transformations. He is a psychotherapist and Professor Emeritus at the California Institute of Integral Studies, where was also the Academic Dean for ten years in the 1980s. He collaborated with Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert in the studies of psychedelic drugs at Harvard in the 1960s, and co-authored The Psychedelic Experience. His books include The Well of Remembrance, The Unfolding Self, Green Psychology and Birth of a Psychedelic Culture (with Ram Dass and Gary Bravo). This book is the seventh and last in a series on The Ecology of Consciousness. Vol. 1, The Expansion of Consciousness; Vol. 2, The Roots of War and Domination; Vol. 3, Alchemical Divination; Vol. 4, Mind Space and Time Stream; Vol. 5, The Life Cycle of the Human Soul; Vol. 6, The Six Pathways of Destiny. All are available from Regent Press.

Ralph Metzner

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