A very timely article for me, as I’m just reading How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan. Is the universe guiding me toward a psychedelic experience?!?
Great article. Just had an experience that could have been described as frightening- yet it wasn’t- it was necessary and through it i was able to embrace the experience- not resist- and it was indeed transformative. 🌸🌸
Interestingly, while researching this essay, I came across several interviews in which Santana recalls taking different psychedelics before the performance. In some accounts, he says it was mescaline. In others, he says it was LSD.
That said, given that the substance came from Jerry Garcia and that the Grateful Dead's sound engineer was Owsley Stanley III (the era's most prolific LSD chemist), it seems reasonable to assume it was likely LSD.
But for the purposes of this symbolic parable, the specific substance matters less than the experience itself. You could just as easily replace LSD with peyote, psilocybin, or another psychedelic. The deeper themes of surrender, transformation, and encountering the unknown remain the same.
Peyote remains king and EVERYONE remembers the PURGE. Acid can’t touch the experience and, I’m experienced. Carlos is still on the side of the Sacrament so I’ll let it go.
I went to Mexico in early '68 with some lab equipment, intending to extract morning glory seeds, which I did. But the first project was extracting a total alkaloid mixture from a 50 kilo sack of Lophophora - aka peyote - which you could freely buy on the upper level of the main Guadalajara market. Loaded the result into 00 caps, took some back to NY to give to my friends at the Psychedelicatessen. The only truly believable experience I ever had of mental telepathy occurred that evening... with a very nice lady who I really had nothing in common with. More on the Mexico '68 scene
Nice recounting of a special day on Earth! Can you believe it: I was staying in a little rented cottage nearby Woodstock on that day, and decided not to bother going!
Anyway, see if you can understand all the "effects" of psychedelics, especially LSD, using this new paradigm:
A very timely article for me, as I’m just reading How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan. Is the universe guiding me toward a psychedelic experience?!?
Love that book! 👀
Great read, Santana and psychedelics are indeed a powerful symbiosis.
Highly recommend putting a Santana song on that trip playlist btw.
Thank you! Couldn’t agree more
https://youtu.be/JaaT_HRb4GU?si=b-_tJVSH5sRyAMS8
true
6:17
Now playing
Santana - Soul Sacrifice 1969 Woodstock live concierto HQ
Unreal footage!!
Jerry gave Carlos the magic pill.
The Dead played on acid a lot early days. And were extraordinary.
Totally! Acid definitely shaped the Dead's sound and, more broadly, the entire San Francisco scene of that era
Awesome article! Truly awesome.
Great article. Just had an experience that could have been described as frightening- yet it wasn’t- it was necessary and through it i was able to embrace the experience- not resist- and it was indeed transformative. 🌸🌸
Thanks so much for sharing. I'm so glad you were able to lean into the experience and that it ultimately proved to be meaningful and transformative 🙏
Namaste ~ excellent read ~ i can relate completely thanks 🙏📿
Thank you! 🙏
And yet years ago I heard Carlos say: I was flying on 12buttons of Peyote? Which is it. Acid is cool but Peyote is KING!
Interestingly, while researching this essay, I came across several interviews in which Santana recalls taking different psychedelics before the performance. In some accounts, he says it was mescaline. In others, he says it was LSD.
That said, given that the substance came from Jerry Garcia and that the Grateful Dead's sound engineer was Owsley Stanley III (the era's most prolific LSD chemist), it seems reasonable to assume it was likely LSD.
But for the purposes of this symbolic parable, the specific substance matters less than the experience itself. You could just as easily replace LSD with peyote, psilocybin, or another psychedelic. The deeper themes of surrender, transformation, and encountering the unknown remain the same.
Peyote remains king and EVERYONE remembers the PURGE. Acid can’t touch the experience and, I’m experienced. Carlos is still on the side of the Sacrament so I’ll let it go.
I went to Mexico in early '68 with some lab equipment, intending to extract morning glory seeds, which I did. But the first project was extracting a total alkaloid mixture from a 50 kilo sack of Lophophora - aka peyote - which you could freely buy on the upper level of the main Guadalajara market. Loaded the result into 00 caps, took some back to NY to give to my friends at the Psychedelicatessen. The only truly believable experience I ever had of mental telepathy occurred that evening... with a very nice lady who I really had nothing in common with. More on the Mexico '68 scene
https://peterwebster.substack.com/p/awakenings-iv
Peyote is King!
Nice recounting of a special day on Earth! Can you believe it: I was staying in a little rented cottage nearby Woodstock on that day, and decided not to bother going!
Anyway, see if you can understand all the "effects" of psychedelics, especially LSD, using this new paradigm:
https://peterwebster.substack.com/p/how-do-psychedelics-work
That's wild! You were right there and decided to sit Woodstock out! What a story.
And thanks for sharing this! Your salience amplification theory looks really fascinating. Looking forward to digging into it more!
yeah... it looked like rain, so...
The SA theory is part of a series about awakening, starting here
https://peterwebster.substack.com/p/awakenings-0d5
a detailed review of the series by Perplexity AI
https://peterwebster.substack.com/p/a-review-of-awakenings-i-vii