From Time.com:
The psychedelic drug in magic mushrooms may have lasting medical and spiritual benefits, according to new research from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
The mushroom-derived hallucinogen, called psilocybin, is known to trigger transformative spiritual states, but at high doses it can also result in "bad trips" marked by terror and panic. The trick is to get the dose just right, which the Johns Hopkins researchers report having accomplished.
In their study, the Hopkins scientists were able to reliably induce transcendental experiences in volunteers, which offered long-lasting psychological growth and helped people find peace in their lives — without the negative effects.
"The important point here is that we found the sweet spot where we can optimize the positive persistent effects and avoid some of the fear and anxiety that can occur and can be quite disruptive," says lead author Roland Griffiths, professor of behavioral biology at Hopkins.
Giffiths' study involved 18 healthy adults, average age 46, who participated in five eight-hour drug sessions with either psilocybin — at varying doses — or placebo. Nearly all the volunteers were college graduates and 78% participated regularly in religious activities; all were interested in spiritual experience.
Fourteen months after participating in the study, 94% of those who received the drug said the experiment was one of the top five most meaningful experiences of their lives; 39% said it was the single most meaningful experience.
Critically, however, the participants themselves were not the only ones who saw the benefit from the insights they gained: their friends, family member and colleagues also reported that the psilocybin experience had made the participants calmer, happier and kinder.
Ultimately, Griffiths and his colleagues want to see if the same kind of psychedelic experience could help ease anxiety and fear over the long term in cancer patients or others facing death. And following up on tantalizing clues from early research on hallucinogenic drugs like LSD, mescaline and psilocybin in the 1960s (which are all now illegal), researchers are also studying whether transcendental experiences could help spur recovery from addiction and treat other psychological problems like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
For Griffiths' current experiment, participants were housed in a living room-like setting designed to be calm, comfortable and attractive. While under the influence, they listened to classical music on headphones, wore eyeshades and were instructed to "direct their attention inward."
Each participant was accompanied by two other research-team members: a "monitor" and an "assistant monitor," who both had previous experience with people on psychedelic drugs and were empathetic and supportive. Before the drug sessions, the volunteers became acquainted enough with their team so that they felt familiar and safe. Although the experiments took place in the Hopkins hospital complex in order to ensure prompt medical attention in the event that it was needed, it never was.
As described by early advocates of the use of psychedelics — from ancient shamans to Timothy Leary and the Grateful Dead — the psilocybin experience typically involves a sense of oneness with the universe and with others, a feeling of transcending time, space and other limitations, coupled with a sense of holiness and sacredness. Overwhelmingly, these experiences are difficult to put into words, but many of Griffiths' participants said they were left with the sense that they understood themselves and others better and therefore had greater compassion and patience.
'Magic Mushrooms' Can Improve Psychological Health Long Term
Maia Szalavitz
Thursday, June 16, 2011
http://healthland.time.com/2011/06/16/magic-mushrooms-can-improve-psychological-health-long-term
Showing posts with label Grateful Dead. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grateful Dead. Show all posts
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
RIP Owsley "Bear" Stanley
From Reuters:
Owsley "Bear" Stanley, a 1960s counterculture figure who flooded the flower power scene with LSD and was an early benefactor of the Grateful Dead, died in a car crash in his adopted home country of Australia on Sunday, his family said. He was 76.
The renegade grandson of a former governor of Kentucky, Stanley helped lay the foundation for the psychedelic era by producing more than a million doses of LSD at his labs in San Francisco's Bay Area.
"He made acid so pure and wonderful that people like Jimi Hendrix wrote hit songs about it and others named their band in its honor," former rock 'n' roll tour manager Sam Cutler wrote in his 2008 memoirs "You Can't Always Get What You Want."
Hendrix's song "Purple Haze" was reputedly inspired by a batch of Stanley's product, though the guitarist denied any drug link. The ear-splitting psychedelic-blues combo Blue Cheer took its named from another batch.
Stanley briefly managed the Grateful Dead, and oversaw every aspect of their live sound at a time when little thought was given to amplification in public venues. His tape recordings of Dead concerts were turned into live albums, providing him with a healthy income in later life.
"When it came to technology, the Bear was one of the most far-out and interesting guys on the planet," Cutler wrote. "The first FM live simulcast could be, in part, attributed to his vision, as could the first quadraphonic simulcast on radio."
The Dead, a fabled rock band formed in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965 known for its improvisational live concerts, wrote about him in their song "Alice D. Millionaire" after a 1967 arrest prompted a newspaper to describe Stanley as an "LSD millionaire."
Steely Dan's 1976 single "Kid Charlemagne" was loosely inspired by Stanley's exploits...
Psychedelic icon Owsley Stanley dies in Australia
Sun Mar 13, 2011
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/13/us-owsleystanley-idUSTRE72C3AF20110313
Owsley "Bear" Stanley, a 1960s counterculture figure who flooded the flower power scene with LSD and was an early benefactor of the Grateful Dead, died in a car crash in his adopted home country of Australia on Sunday, his family said. He was 76.
The renegade grandson of a former governor of Kentucky, Stanley helped lay the foundation for the psychedelic era by producing more than a million doses of LSD at his labs in San Francisco's Bay Area.
"He made acid so pure and wonderful that people like Jimi Hendrix wrote hit songs about it and others named their band in its honor," former rock 'n' roll tour manager Sam Cutler wrote in his 2008 memoirs "You Can't Always Get What You Want."
Hendrix's song "Purple Haze" was reputedly inspired by a batch of Stanley's product, though the guitarist denied any drug link. The ear-splitting psychedelic-blues combo Blue Cheer took its named from another batch.
Stanley briefly managed the Grateful Dead, and oversaw every aspect of their live sound at a time when little thought was given to amplification in public venues. His tape recordings of Dead concerts were turned into live albums, providing him with a healthy income in later life.
"When it came to technology, the Bear was one of the most far-out and interesting guys on the planet," Cutler wrote. "The first FM live simulcast could be, in part, attributed to his vision, as could the first quadraphonic simulcast on radio."
The Dead, a fabled rock band formed in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965 known for its improvisational live concerts, wrote about him in their song "Alice D. Millionaire" after a 1967 arrest prompted a newspaper to describe Stanley as an "LSD millionaire."
Steely Dan's 1976 single "Kid Charlemagne" was loosely inspired by Stanley's exploits...
Psychedelic icon Owsley Stanley dies in Australia
Sun Mar 13, 2011
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/13/us-owsleystanley-idUSTRE72C3AF20110313
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Phish dusts off deep cuts in return to stage
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j3AhzqTQnjIL0RJ3BMqUhpd4RgDQD96P7AK00Phish dusts off deep cuts in return to stage
By JOSH L. DICKEY
3-7-9
HAMPTON, Va. (AP) — The Phish has landed.
The Vermont jamband ignited the second stage of its career as a touring juggernaut Friday night at the Hampton Coliseum, rocketing deep into their past to sate fans who've been waiting years to see them play live again.
With deep cuts like "Fluffhead," "Divided Sky" and "Chalkdust Torture," the foursome built the backbone of its first set on old-school material, expertly navigating hairpin changes and showing as much spunk as they ever have in this millenium.
Fans began to materialize around the spacecraft-styled hockey arena in Virginia by early afternoon, then swelled to a hollering mob by nightfall -- a scene the band's fiercely devoted following has longed to see since Phish called it quits in 2004.
Guitarist Trey Anastasio, brisk and energetic, snapped into the crisp form he was feeling around the time of their New Years Eve show in 1999, a widely accepted zenith for the band (except the moment ABC's coverage of Y2K cut to Peter Jennings introducing them to their largest TV audience ever as "The Phish").
While the band's detail-oriented crowd has never let Jennings live that one down, they were forgiving of Phish's five-year absence, crowding the Hampton area with rental cars, "no vacancy" signs and ticket-seekers, who patrolled highway exit ramps Friday evening, offering to trade cash or tickets for stops along the band's sold-out summer tour.
Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, keyboardist Page McConnell and drummer Jon Fishman are playing three shows in Hampton, their first since an amicable split that turned out to be more burnout therapy than the end to their 20-year run on the road.
Fans responded. When the reunion concerts were announced last fall, seats for the opening show were being resold for as high as $1,000 — and even more nefarious tactics than scalping were at play: Inside the venue on Friday, 29-year-old Rod Stewart said he bought a fake with a happy ending.
"We bought three tickets in the parking lot for $100 each, and when the lady scanned them, they came up 'counterfeit,'" said Stewart, of Chesapeake, Va., "but she let us in anyway."
Ryan Lafata, a spokesman with the Hampton Convention and Visitors Bureau, said it's possible to have upwards of 75,000 people come to the area for the three shows at the Coliseum, which holds about 13,000 for general-admission events.
Many of those fans included those who didn't have concert tickets, but traveled to congregate outside the coliseum to take in the scene and reunite with old friends.
Brett Hinckley of Greenville, S.C., said the coliseum is a favorite venue for Phish and its fans, who call the building "the mother ship" because of its resemblance to a giant UFO.
"The energy in the building is second to none," Hinckley said before the show. "Once you experience it, you just kind of need to be back."
Phish, which formed at the University of Vermont in 1983, is known for its amorphous blend of rock, jazz, bluegrass and other styles, which often launch into intense improvisations. Often likened to the Grateful Dead, they are a moderate commercial success in terms of sales, but remain a lucrative touring act.
Associated Press Writer Zinie Chen Sampson contributed to this report.
By JOSH L. DICKEY
3-7-9
HAMPTON, Va. (AP) — The Phish has landed.
The Vermont jamband ignited the second stage of its career as a touring juggernaut Friday night at the Hampton Coliseum, rocketing deep into their past to sate fans who've been waiting years to see them play live again.
With deep cuts like "Fluffhead," "Divided Sky" and "Chalkdust Torture," the foursome built the backbone of its first set on old-school material, expertly navigating hairpin changes and showing as much spunk as they ever have in this millenium.
Fans began to materialize around the spacecraft-styled hockey arena in Virginia by early afternoon, then swelled to a hollering mob by nightfall -- a scene the band's fiercely devoted following has longed to see since Phish called it quits in 2004.
Guitarist Trey Anastasio, brisk and energetic, snapped into the crisp form he was feeling around the time of their New Years Eve show in 1999, a widely accepted zenith for the band (except the moment ABC's coverage of Y2K cut to Peter Jennings introducing them to their largest TV audience ever as "The Phish").
While the band's detail-oriented crowd has never let Jennings live that one down, they were forgiving of Phish's five-year absence, crowding the Hampton area with rental cars, "no vacancy" signs and ticket-seekers, who patrolled highway exit ramps Friday evening, offering to trade cash or tickets for stops along the band's sold-out summer tour.
Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, keyboardist Page McConnell and drummer Jon Fishman are playing three shows in Hampton, their first since an amicable split that turned out to be more burnout therapy than the end to their 20-year run on the road.
Fans responded. When the reunion concerts were announced last fall, seats for the opening show were being resold for as high as $1,000 — and even more nefarious tactics than scalping were at play: Inside the venue on Friday, 29-year-old Rod Stewart said he bought a fake with a happy ending.
"We bought three tickets in the parking lot for $100 each, and when the lady scanned them, they came up 'counterfeit,'" said Stewart, of Chesapeake, Va., "but she let us in anyway."
Ryan Lafata, a spokesman with the Hampton Convention and Visitors Bureau, said it's possible to have upwards of 75,000 people come to the area for the three shows at the Coliseum, which holds about 13,000 for general-admission events.
Many of those fans included those who didn't have concert tickets, but traveled to congregate outside the coliseum to take in the scene and reunite with old friends.
Brett Hinckley of Greenville, S.C., said the coliseum is a favorite venue for Phish and its fans, who call the building "the mother ship" because of its resemblance to a giant UFO.
"The energy in the building is second to none," Hinckley said before the show. "Once you experience it, you just kind of need to be back."
Phish, which formed at the University of Vermont in 1983, is known for its amorphous blend of rock, jazz, bluegrass and other styles, which often launch into intense improvisations. Often likened to the Grateful Dead, they are a moderate commercial success in terms of sales, but remain a lucrative touring act.
Associated Press Writer Zinie Chen Sampson contributed to this report.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Grateful Dead Song of the Week
"Crazy Fingers"
Words by Robert Hunter; music by Jerry Garcia
Copyright Ice Nine Publishing
Your rain falls like crazy fingers
Peals of fragile thunder keeping time
Recall the days that still are to come
Some sing blue
Hang your heart on laughing willow
Stray down to the water
Deep Sea of Love
Beneath the sweet calm face of the sea
Swift undertow
Life may be sweeter for this, I don't know
See how it feels in the end
May Lady Lullaby sing plainly for you
Soft, strong, sweet and true
Cloud hands reaching from a rainbow
Tapping at the window touch your hair
So swift and bright
Strange figures of light
Float in air
Who can stop what must arrive now?
Something new is waiting to be born
Dark as the night
You're still by my side
Shining side
Gone are the days we stopped to decide
Where we should go
We just ride
Gone are the broken eyes we saw through in dreams
Gone - both dream and lie
Life may be sweeter for this I don't know
Feels like it might be alright
While Lady Lullaby sings plainly for you
Love still rings true
Midnight on a carousel ride
Reaching for the gold ring down inside
Never could reach
It just slips away but I try
Words by Robert Hunter; music by Jerry Garcia
Copyright Ice Nine Publishing
Your rain falls like crazy fingers
Peals of fragile thunder keeping time
Recall the days that still are to come
Some sing blue
Hang your heart on laughing willow
Stray down to the water
Deep Sea of Love
Beneath the sweet calm face of the sea
Swift undertow
Life may be sweeter for this, I don't know
See how it feels in the end
May Lady Lullaby sing plainly for you
Soft, strong, sweet and true
Cloud hands reaching from a rainbow
Tapping at the window touch your hair
So swift and bright
Strange figures of light
Float in air
Who can stop what must arrive now?
Something new is waiting to be born
Dark as the night
You're still by my side
Shining side
Gone are the days we stopped to decide
Where we should go
We just ride
Gone are the broken eyes we saw through in dreams
Gone - both dream and lie
Life may be sweeter for this I don't know
Feels like it might be alright
While Lady Lullaby sings plainly for you
Love still rings true
Midnight on a carousel ride
Reaching for the gold ring down inside
Never could reach
It just slips away but I try
Friday, December 21, 2007
FeedBack: The strange death of Jerry Garcia
FeedBack: The strange death of Jerry Garcia
Matt Beal
palomine55@yahoo.com
Tue Dec 18, 2007
I read somewhere, I think it was an article by you that was posted on the Internet, that Jerry Garcia was an advocate of the theory that The Committee of 300 controls the world, and that his death may have been linked to his political views.
Can you tell me where I could find more information about this?
Thanks
Robalini's Response: There used to be a Website dedicated to the "Jerry Garcia Was Murdered" theory, but it was closer to "Bert Is Evil!" (i.e. a joke site) than "Stephen King Murdered John Lennon!" On this site, there was a quote from Jerry claiming he believed in the 300 Committee conspiracy theory (ironic since Lyndon Larouche claims the Dead were a British intelligence operation tied to LSD.)
I can't find it on the web, nor can I even find an old link to it via the now defunct Conspire.com (I believe that's how I first heard about it) through Archive.org, but someone may have it, as I did pass it around. If I find the old URL, I'll look for it on Archive.org for you.
The quote is tongue-in-cheek mentioned in passing in the October 1997 Beast of the Month Award for Queen Elizabeth:
http://www.konformist.com/botm/volume01/botm1097.htm
Then there is Dr. John Coleman, who writes about THE COMMITTEE OF 300, an international secret society that rules the world with an iron fist. (Ironically, Jerry Garcia, shortly before his "overdose" - yes, that's right, another potential conspiracy - reputedly became a big proponent of the Committee of 300 theory, which proves that, as far as reputed British mind-kontrol operatives go, he was one of the most unwitting.)
This is probably how you heard about it. That little tidbit received a lot of interest back then, and I would later pass around text from the Jerry Garcia site in response. One of the people who received it was R.U. Sirius of MONDO 2000, and he passed it to Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow. In response, Barlow vehemently denied there was any truth to the quote, and also denied there was any truth to the claim Garcia was murdered. What a spoilsport! John Perry Barlow, don't tase me, bro!!!
As a final note, check out the 1997 movie Conspiracy Theory, with warm and cuddly Mel Gibson playing a conspiracy theorist (ironically named Jerry.) Here's an exchange between Gibson and Julia Roberts:
Jerry: You know why the Grateful Dead are always on tour? Because they're all British intelligence agents. They're all spies. Jerry Garcia himself has a double 00 rating, just like James Bond.
Alice: Jerry Garcia is dead.
Jerry: That's what they want you to think.
Matt Beal
palomine55@yahoo.com
Tue Dec 18, 2007
I read somewhere, I think it was an article by you that was posted on the Internet, that Jerry Garcia was an advocate of the theory that The Committee of 300 controls the world, and that his death may have been linked to his political views.
Can you tell me where I could find more information about this?
Thanks
Robalini's Response: There used to be a Website dedicated to the "Jerry Garcia Was Murdered" theory, but it was closer to "Bert Is Evil!" (i.e. a joke site) than "Stephen King Murdered John Lennon!" On this site, there was a quote from Jerry claiming he believed in the 300 Committee conspiracy theory (ironic since Lyndon Larouche claims the Dead were a British intelligence operation tied to LSD.)
I can't find it on the web, nor can I even find an old link to it via the now defunct Conspire.com (I believe that's how I first heard about it) through Archive.org, but someone may have it, as I did pass it around. If I find the old URL, I'll look for it on Archive.org for you.
The quote is tongue-in-cheek mentioned in passing in the October 1997 Beast of the Month Award for Queen Elizabeth:
http://www.konformist.com/botm/volume01/botm1097.htm
Then there is Dr. John Coleman, who writes about THE COMMITTEE OF 300, an international secret society that rules the world with an iron fist. (Ironically, Jerry Garcia, shortly before his "overdose" - yes, that's right, another potential conspiracy - reputedly became a big proponent of the Committee of 300 theory, which proves that, as far as reputed British mind-kontrol operatives go, he was one of the most unwitting.)
This is probably how you heard about it. That little tidbit received a lot of interest back then, and I would later pass around text from the Jerry Garcia site in response. One of the people who received it was R.U. Sirius of MONDO 2000, and he passed it to Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow. In response, Barlow vehemently denied there was any truth to the quote, and also denied there was any truth to the claim Garcia was murdered. What a spoilsport! John Perry Barlow, don't tase me, bro!!!
As a final note, check out the 1997 movie Conspiracy Theory, with warm and cuddly Mel Gibson playing a conspiracy theorist (ironically named Jerry.) Here's an exchange between Gibson and Julia Roberts:
Jerry: You know why the Grateful Dead are always on tour? Because they're all British intelligence agents. They're all spies. Jerry Garcia himself has a double 00 rating, just like James Bond.
Alice: Jerry Garcia is dead.
Jerry: That's what they want you to think.
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