J’ai raté cet anniv’. Suis tombé dessus grâce à un tweet de Larry Carlson dont la vidéo “Yell” (que voici, que voilà) a été reprise sur boingboing pour l’occase. C’est le 16 novembre 1938 que le LSD fut pour la première fois synthétisé par le chimiste suisse Albert Hofmann dans son labo de Bâle (wikipédia, eng). Pour le meilleur et pour le pire. Je vous raconte pas la suite et son influence sur toute une époque…

LSD turned 71 yesterday! Albert Hofmann first synthesised the drug 71 years ago on 16th November 1938. He wasn’t actually looking for the key to the “Doors of Perception” but trying to discover a respiratory and circulatory stimulant. He didn’t realise what he’d made either as he shelved the substance until 1943 when he splashed a small amount of the substance on his skin. Like many other pioneering scientists, Hofmann became his own guinea pig and embarked on the world’s first LSD trip.

… affected by a remarkable restlessness, combined with a slight dizziness. At home I lay down and sank into a not unpleasant intoxicated-like condition, characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination. In a dreamlike state, with eyes closed (I found the daylight to be unpleasantly glaring), I perceived an uninterrupted stream of fantastic pictures, extraordinary shapes with intense, kaleidoscopic play of colors. After some two hours this condition faded away

Startled by the effects, Hofmann decided to experiment with his new substance again and, three days later gave himself a heroic dose of 250 micrograms (a “threshold dose is actually 20mg). Becoming anxious, Hofmann asked his lab assistant to escort him home and their journey back became known as “Bicycle Day”. Hofmann alternated between worry that the LSD had poisoned him and concern that his next door neighbour was a malevolent witch. After a visit from a doctor, who assured Hofmann that he was perfectly well, our brave scientist began to relax and…

… little by little I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes. Kaleidoscopic, fantastic images surged in on me, alternating, variegated, opening and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in colored fountains, rearranging and hybridizing themselves in constant flux

Hofmann regarded his discovery as a useful tool, describing it as “medicine for the soul” and was upset by the eventual worldwide prohibition that pushed it underground. There had been embryonic studies on the effects of the drug on terminally ill patients that suggested it helps them put their lives and their place in the universe into perspective. Recently Swiss doctors have once again begun to research with terminally ill patients and we at The Notes await their findings with interest.

But whether LSD will manage to become a mainstream component of the psychologists arsenal is another matter. While existing drug laws are often criticised by scientists and legal experts as outdated, unwieldy and failing (and Duff posted on this recently in Speaking truth to power in the War on Drugs), it’s quite another thing to find a politician prepared to risk their neck for the stoner vote.

While we wait for that day, here’s my favourite LSD story, recently animated by James Blagden. Dock Ellis was a Major League Baseball player pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1970. And, to date, he is the only player to have thrown a complete game no-hitter while tripping!

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On November 16:

1384  Jadwiga was crowned King of Poland, although she was a woman.

1532  Francisco Pizarro and his men captured Inca Emperor Atahualpa.

1840 New Zealand officially became a British colony.

1896  Joan Lindsay, Australian author (Picnic at Hanging Rock), was born.

1914 The Federal Reserve Bank of the United States officially opened.

1938  LSD was first synthesized by Swiss chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann at the Sandoz Laboratories in Basel.

1940  the Nazis closed off the Warsaw Ghetto from the outside world.

1945 UNESCO was founded.

1953 Griff Rhys Jones, Welsh comedian, writer and actor, was born.

1973  Brendan Laney, New Zealand born Scottish rugby player, was born.

Sourced from NZ History Online & Wikipedia.

In Berlin hat der Mediziner Garri R. im Rahmen einer Gruppentherapie mit illegalen Substanzen zwei seiner Patienten fahrlässig umgebracht, indem er ihnen tödlichen Drogenmix offerierte, dessen genaue Zusammensetzung noch nicht bekannt ist.
Die Sensationspresse, in Deutschland vor allem bild.de und in der Schweiz blick.ch hat sich natürlich auf den Fall gestürzt, und offeriert ihren Lesern einen immerhin nicht tödlichen, aber doch eher unbekömmlichen Informationsmix. Einmal mehr werden LSD, Pilze und MDMA zu tödlichen Drogen aufgebauscht. Darum hier ein paar Basis-Informationen.

LSD
LSD ist ungiftig und führt deshalb nicht zum Tod. Die genaue Wirkungsweise dieser von Albert Hofmann 1943 entdeckten psychoaktiven Substanz ist immer noch unbekannt. Jedenfalls ist LSD beim Einsetzen der Wirkung bereits nicht mehr im Körper nachweisbar. Von allen psychoaktiven Stoffen benötigt LSD die geringste Menge, um wirksam zu werden: ein heute durchschnittlicher Trip beinhaltet etwa 100 Mikrogramm, das sind 100 Millionstel Gramm.

In den 60er Jahren wurden einem jungen Elefanten 290 Milligramm LSD verabreicht, etwa die die 3000fache Dosis eines 100 Mikrogramm-Trips, was das arme Tier ins Jenseits beförderte. Bei ganz extremer Ueberdosierung kann also auch LSD tödlich sein, wie fast jede Substanz, zum Beispiel auch Wasser, wo acht Liter ausreichen können.

In den 50er Jahren wurde LSD von Hofmanns Arbeitgeber Sandoz (heute Novartis) im Bereich von 25 bis 50 Mikrogramm als Antidepresssivum vermarktet.

Dass LSD körperlich ungiftig ist, heisst nicht, dass es ungefährlich ist. Dieser Substanz, die die Schleusen zum Unbewussten und zum Transzendentalen öffnet, muss mit grossem Respekt begegnet werden. Dennoch passieren erstaunlich wenig Unfälle damit, wird doch im Untergrund nach wie vor einiges an LSD konsumiert, und dies zumeist von Leuten, die sich wenig bis überhaupt nicht vorbereitet haben.

Pilze
Psychoaktive Pilze, auch Magic Mushrooms genannt, werden seit Jahrtausenden von indigenen Völkern konsumiert, fast immer in sakralem Rahmen. Manche Forscher behaupten, dass der Konsum dieser Pilze erst zur Bewusstwerdung unserer menschlichen Vorfahren geführt hat. Derselbe Albert Hofmann hat als erster Psilocybin als aktive Substanz synthetisiert.

Diese psychoaktiven Pilze sind körperlich ebenfalls ungiftig. Es gelten aber im psychischen Bereich dieselben Vorsichtsmassnahmen wie bei LSD. Unabhängige Forschungen haben gezeigt, dass Pilztrips sehr positive Veränderungen bewirken können.

MDMA
MDMA ist die Substanz, die ursprünglich als “Ecstasy” bekannt geworden ist. Heute sind die sogenanten Ecstasy-Pillen meistens ein ziemlich übler Mix von Designer-Drogen, die von skrupellosen Geschäftemachern ans naive Partyvolk verhökert werden.

Lange wurde behauptet, dass MDMA schwere Hirnschädigungen verursachen würde, bis herauskam, dass ein Forscher bei seinen Tests an Affen die Substanzen verwechselt hatte, siehe dazu meinen Blogbericht.

Amerikanische Psychiater hatten sich in den 80er Jahren vehement aber vergeblich gegen das Verbot von MDMA gewehrt, da es eine der wirksamsten Substanzen bei der behandlung von psychischen Traumata ist. In den letzten Jahren wurden vor allem auf Initiative von MAPS mehrere neue Studien gestartet, die positive Resultate gezeitigt haben.

Bei MDMA besteht die Gefahr von Ueberdosierung. Todesfälle sind in England bei Ravern beobachtet worden, die allerdings an Dehydrierung gestorben sind – sie hatten, ohne zu trinken, stundenlang durchgetanzt.

Hier die Erowid Basis-Information zu MDMA.

Steve Jobs

Well, it seems psychedelic drugs and the modern computer age have more in common than one might expect. Apple CEO Steve Jobs once said his experience taking LSD was “one of the two or three most important things I have done in my life.”

According to New York Times technology reporter, John Markoff:

Psychedelic drugs pushed the computer and Internet revolutions forward by showing folks that reality can be profoundly altered through unconventional, highly intuitive thinking.

Douglas Engelbart, who invented the computer mouse, was someone who experimented and explored using psychedelic drugs. Kevin Herbert, who worked for Cisco Systems in the early days, has stated:

“When I’m on LSD and hearing something that’s pure rhythm, it takes me to another world and into anther brain state where I’ve stopped thinking and started knowing.”

Herbert apparently claims to have “solved his toughest technical problems while tripping to drum solos by the Grateful Dead.”

“It must be changing something about the internal communication in my brain. Whatever my inner process is that lets me solve problems, it works differently, or maybe different parts of my brain are used.”

Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the founders of Google, are longtime visitors and participants in Burning Man, an annual gathering in the Nevada desert devoted to communal enlightenment by creating an environment which invites its attendees to use different parts of their brains.

According to John Gilmore, the fifth employee at Sun Microsystems:

“What psychedelics taught me is that life is not rational. IBM was a very rational company.”

To this end, Steve Jobs was once quoted as saying that Bill Gates would “be a broader guy if he had dropped acid once.”

Chemist Kary Mullis once told Gilmore that acid helped him develop his 1993 Nobel prize-winning polymerase chain reaction, a significant and crucial breakthrough for biochemistry.

According to British wire service reporter Alun Reese, Francis Crick who, along with James Watson discovered DNA, had told friends that he first saw the double-helix structure while tripping on LSD.

Albert Hofmann

So back to Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann who, for those who don’t already know, was the inventor of LSD. Hofmann, at the ripe age of 101 (he died at 102), wrote to Steve Jobs asking for his financial support in the study and exploration of both the medical and psychiatric benefits of psychedelic drugs.

Here is that letter in its entirety:

Dear Mr. Steve Jobs,

Hello from Albert Hofmann. I understand from media accounts that you feel LSD helped you creatively in your development of Apple computers and your personal spiritual quest. I’m interested in learning more about how LSD was useful to you.

I’m writing now, shortly after my 101st birthday, to request that you support Swiss psychiatrist Dr. Peter Gasser’s proposed study of LSD-assisted psychotherapy in subjects with anxiety associated with life-threatening illness. This will become the first LSD-assisted psychotherapy study in over 35 years.

I hope you will help in the transformation of my problem child into a wonder child.

Sincerely,

A. Hofmann

Albert Hofmann. Photo: Stefan Pangritz

“Dear Mr. Jobs,” begins the 2007 letter from Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann to Apple’s (AAPL) CEO. “I understand from media accounts that you feel LSD helped you creatively in your development of Apple computers and your personal spiritual quest. I’m interested in learning more about how LSD was useful to you.”

Hofmann, as students of the sixties will recall, was the chemist who first synthesized, ingested and experienced the psychedelic effects of lysergic acid diethylamide.

Steve Jobs, as readers of John Markoff’s “What the Dormouse Said: How the Sixties Counterculture Shaped the Personal Computer Industry” may remember, dabbled in psychedelics in the 1970s and has called his LSD experiences “one of the two or three most important things I have done in my life.”

“I’m writing now,” Hofmann’s letter continues, “shortly after my 101st birthday, to request that you support Swiss psychiatrist Dr. Peter Gasser’s proposed study of LSD-assisted psychotherapy in subjects with anxiety associated with life-threatening illness.”

Hofmann, who died last year at age 102, was writing at the request of his friend Rick Doblin, founder of the nonprofit Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies.

Doblin was hoping for a financial contribution from the billionaire co-founder of Apple. What he got instead, according to Ryan Grim, who posted the previously unpublished letter Tuesday in the Huffington Post, was a half-hour telephone conversation with Jobs. As Grim describes it:

“[Jobs] was still thinking, ‘Let’s put it in the water supply and turn everybody on,’” recalls a disappointed Doblin, who says he still hasn’t given up hope that Jobs will come around and contribute.

Grim got permission to publish Hofmann’s letter from the chemist’s estate. Grim’s Huffington piece is adapted from his book “This Is Your Country on Drugs: The Secret History of Getting High in America.”

See also: Top 10 moments in Steve Jobs’ career

Albert Hofmann photo courtesy of Stefan Pangritz via Wikipedia Commons.

Below the fold: a snapshot of the letter.

Albert Hofmann, the father of LSD, passed away on Tuesday 29 April 2008 at his home in Basel, Switzerland. Today, 19 April 2009, also known as bicycle day, will be the first time in history that we celebrate this day without Hofmann, the discoverer of LSD.

“Hofmann (January 11, 1906 – April 29, 2008) was a Swiss scientist best known for synthesizing Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Hofmann authored more than 100 scientific articles and wrote a number of books, including LSD: My Problem Child (free online book). On January 11, 2006, Hofmann became a centenarian, and the occasion of his 100th birthday was the focus of an international symposium on LSD.”

LSD “was first synthesized on November 16, 1938 … at the Sandoz Laboratories in Basel, Switzerland, as part of a large research program searching for medically useful ergot alkaloid derivatives. Its psychedelic properties were unknown until 5 years later, when Hofmann, acting on what he has called a ‘peculiar presentiment,’ returned to work on the chemical. He attributed the discovery of the compound’s psychoactive effects to the accidental absorption of a tiny amount through his skin on April 16, which led to him testing a larger amount (250 µg) on himself for psychoactivity on April 19, the so-called bicycle day.”

“Three days earlier, he had absorbed a small amount of the drug either through his fingertips or by accidentally ingesting it. On Bicycle Day, he took 250 µg of LSD intentionally and, fearing he had made himself ill, cycled home from his lab. During his bicycle ride, he experienced the effects of LSD, making this the date of the first ever acid trip. He wrote about his experiments and experience on April 22, which was later put into his book LSD: My Problem Child.”

“Hofmann always expressed his disappointment with LSD eventually being criminalised, saying the drug had the potential to deal with psychological problems caused by ‘materialism, alienation from nature through industrialization and increasing urbanization, lack of satisfaction in professional employment in a mechanized, lifeless working world, ennui and purposelessness in wealthy, saturated society, and lack of a religious, nurturing, and meaningful philosophical foundation of life’.”

“Despite the controversy, Hofmann became a celebrated figure in the scientific community, and in his retirement served as a member of the Nobel Prize Committee as well as being a Fellow of the World Academy of Sciences.”

“In 1988 the Albert Hoffman Foundation was created ‘to assemble and maintain an international library and archive devoted to the study of human consciousness and related fields.’”

What follows is a documentary about Hofmann’s life and his discovery, and some information regarding LSD and its uses:

1) The following National Film Board of Canada documentary “Hofmann’s Potion” (56:26), directed by Connie Littlefield is an excellent introduction to this topic. “Featuring interviews with many LSD pioneers, Hofmann’s Potion is much more than a simple chronicle of the drug’s early days. With thoughtful interviews, beautiful music and stunning cinematography, it is an invitation to look at LSD, and our world, with a more open, compassionate mind. The film features interviews with the following people: Albert Hofmann, Myron Stolaroff, Stanislav Grof, Humphrey Osmond, Abram Hoffer, Duncan Blewett, Ralph Metzner, Ram Dass, Laura Archera Huxley, and in spirit: Aldous Huxley, Al Hubbard, and Timothy Leary.”

2) LSD is “a white, odorless powder (Erowid Note : LSD generally comes in ‘blotter’ form; small squares of paper which have been soaked in liquid LSD. It is also found as a liquid, microdot, sugar cubes, and gelatin squares, but is quite rare as a ‘white, odorless powder’) usually taken orally, its effects are highly variable and begin within one hour and generally last 8-12 hours, gradually tapering off. It has been used experimentally in the treatment of alcoholics and psychiatric patients. [Where it showed some success.] It significantly alters perception, mood, and psychological processes, and can impair motor coordination and skills. During the 1950s and early 1960s, LSD experimentation was legally conducted by psychiatrists and others in the health and mental health professions. Sometimes dramatic, unpleasant psychological reactions occur, including panic, great confusion, and anxiety. Strongly affected by SET and SETTING.”

3) If you would like to know how important this discovery has been to our society, then see the following information: Nobel Prize genius Crick was high on LSD when he discovered the secret of life – “Francis Crick, the Nobel Prize-winning father of modern genetics, was under the influence of LSD when he first deduced the double-helix structure of DNA.”

4) If you would like to know how the government of the United States used LSD to conduct secret experiments on its citizens then read the following story: Mind Control, LSD, the CIA and the American People: What the Government Does Not Want You to Know – “The Army tested LSD on approximately 1500 military personnel in the mid-60’s, including many men who took their first trip when acid was given to unwitting GI’s at mess parties.”

5) If you would like to know how the British government used LSD to conduct secret experiments on its citizens then see the following story: Secret LSD tests now being compensated – “British secret intelligence service MI6 has agreed to compensate soldiers who were dosed with LSD without their consent during the 1950s, according to an article in The Guardian. Similar experiments were carried out by a number of governments during the 1950s and 60s, in an attempt to create ‘mind control programmes’ and ‘truth drugs’.”

6) If you would like to know how the Canadian government used LSD to conduct secret experiments on its citizens then see the following story: Military funded McGill LSD trial - “The documents, obtained by Southam News and the Ottawa Citizen, are believed to be the first public indication the Canadian military tested brain-altering drugs, albeit on a much smaller scale than the Americans.”

7) If you would like to know the impact of LSD and other Psychedelics on the arts community and how they helped shape our society then see the following story: Psychedelic Fungi and Its Impact on Music and Art - “Inspired by their LSD experiences, musical groups began making their musical compositions more complex, and added more sound effects to their music. Their music was an attempt to recreate their experience while still under LSD.”

If you want to read books about LSD then check out Albert Hoffman’s LSD: My Problem Child or Martin A. Lee and Bruce Shlain’s book Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD: the CIA, the Sixties, and beyond. Both are available for free online at the provided links.

9) If you would like to know how people have been treated, how much it has cost our society, and what the police really think about drug laws then see the following information and video: Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) – “To me, this a pretty damned powerful video. The guilt, regret, and introspection apparent in these former cops is striking — and admirable.” Since 2002, LEAP has grown from five founding police officers to a membership of 10,000 people. “LEAP is now made up of police, judges, prosecutors, prison wardens, FBI and DEA agents and others. LEAP has a bureau of 85 speakers and membership in 86 other countries.”

10) And If you would like to hear a positive “drug” story, then see the following from Bill Hicks – “Today a young man on acid realized that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream, and we are the imagination of ourselves.”

Enjoy your journey.

Sometimes young musicians ask me about using psychedelics to work creatively and I tell them about our times in the late seventies and early eighties when Stella and I started working on the PSYCHOTRON album of our Schaltkreis Wassermann project and usually took some LSD (info at Erowid) more or less every weekend. At that time we were in close contact with Dr. Albert Hofmann, discoverer of LSD, and Prof. Jiri Roubicek, the Czech psychiatrist who had done intensive research on LSD healing of psychiatric patients together with Stanislav Grof. We would have loved to set up our experiments under scientific supervision but that wasn’t possible at that time. Anyway, this is what turned out to be our findings and our favorite method.

Cover of the Psychotron Album by Schaltkreis Wassermann

As outlined by Timothy Leary set and setting are the determining factors for a psychedelic experience. Set being the mood you’re in when you take the substance and setting the place, surroundings and people you’re with. So you have to carefully think about where you can be without being disturbed, preferably in a pleasant environment with people you like and who’ll be supporting and positive. Of course it helps to be in a balanced mood yourself and without any tensions with the people you’re with. It is best to have eaten some light but substantial food like Muesli, fruit and nuts about two to three hours before taking the substance.

Stella Wassermann with Dr. Albert Hofmann in the 90ies

After the ingestion there’s a waiting period of about 20 to 40 minutes and then the action starts to set in. You’ll begin to notice that your visual and aural perception changes. With closed eyes you see colorful whirling patterns and maybe you start to wonder who you really are. The effect gets stronger and stronger until it reaches a peak. Its height depends on the dosage you’ve chosen and of course on set and setting. After the peak you come down a bit to a plateau level where the psychedelic effect is still clearly there but not overwhelming anymore. This is the time to work musically. If you have some kind of a studio it’s practical to have set up, turned on and tested everything before embarking.

Timothy Leary on blotter paper

We found that moderate dosages of 80 to 120 or maximum 150 micrograms work best for electronic music. You don’t want to feel sorry to sit in front of a screen or an electronic keyboard when the effect is so strong that you’d prefer to be in nature, dancing or just lying on the bed with your beloved one and let your mind float. You need to be enough down to earth to think logically but still wired to the astral spheres and in direct contact with your intuition. Of course you must know the ins and outs of your instruments – you don’t want to read a manual in that state, it would be a terrible waste of energy. Playing a real instrument like the guitar is even more rewarding, you can be pretty sure to make some interesting or even amazing progress.

The ARP 2600 synthesizer that we enjoyed to work with at that time

For us it worked best to be out in nature for the first stages. If you don’t live in the country you would need a tripsitter to drive you home or to the studio safely and pleasantly. Maybe you need some nuts or dried fruit before work to give the body some energy.

Unfortunately in these times of repression it is very difficult to know about exact dosage and purity of substances. If you find a good source then it’s best to get yourself some supply, start out with low dosages and then slowly approach the right level that works for you.

Have fun, get wise and create well!

Disclaimer
This advice isn’t meant to encourage anybody to take illegal drugs. If you really have to take it:
- Don’t buy from anybody who gives you a bad or insecure feeling.
- Always start out with a low dosage to test what you got.
- Do not drive under any circumstance! Stay away from cars, traffic and machinery in general.

Leo wrote me:

[...] [A]nnounce the New Religion for 2012 Matrixism, yes Matrixism is the official religion of my Ordo Illuminatorum Universalis nothing else will be tollerated amongst true illuminated beings of light working for the Science of God and the Kingdom of God in 2019. This is the only possible solution in front of all superstition and bigotry trust me Brother. And Im glad to announce you I am the Prophet of Matrixism because I sure it works is tested to perfection [...]

From Wikia:

Matrixism or The path of the One is a new religious movement inspired by the motion picture trilogy The Matrix. Conceived by an anonymous group in the summer of 2004 it has attracted over 16,000 adherents.

Matrixism is described as a syncretic or ecumenical religion. Though Matrixists cite references to “the matrix” from an obscure text of the Bahá’í Faith, called “The Promulgation of Universal Peace”, to make a connection with broader world religious history, The Matrix trilogy, along with related mass media products such as video games, is generally considered to be the “sacred text” of the movement.

Matrixism carries with it four main beliefs that are described as “The Four Tenets of Matrixism”. Briefly these are: belief in a messianic prophecy, use of psychedelics as sacrament, a perception of reality as multi-layered and semi-subjective, and adherence to the principles of at least one of the world’s major religions.

The Matrixism website indicates April 19th as a holiday known as Bicycle Day. This day marks the anniversary of Albert Hofmann’s 1943 experiment with LSD. Matrixism also observes the anniversary of the passing of Aldous Huxley, John F. Kennedy and C.S. Lewis, November 22nd 1963, as a holy day called the Day of Remembrance and Reflection.

Religious laws specific to Matrixism include; The abrogation of the use of the human image in advertising, the legalization of file sharing, the abrogation of pornography, the legalization of same-sex marriage, the abrogation of professional sports and the legalization of both polygyny and polyandry.

The adopted symbol for Matrixism is, 赤, the Japanese Kanji symbol for “red”. This symbol was used in the video game Enter the Matrix. The color is a reference to the redpill, which represents an acceptance of and ability to see truth, as established early in the first Matrix film.

The original webpage

http://www.geocities.com/matrixism/

De aceasta mediatizare a tinerei de 33 de ani a profitat rapid si un producator de filme pentru adulti, care ii ii ofera mamicii nu mai putin de un milion de dolari pentru a juca intr-un film porno, anunta tmz.com.
Se pare ca barbatul se straduieste din rasputeri sa o convinga pe Nadia sa accepte contractul, oferindu-i chiar si asigurari medicale si stomatologice pentru intreaga familie.

Fotbalistii
transferati din Romania traverseaza mai multe paradisuri fiscale
inainte de a ajunge in iadul bancii de rezerve a clubului care a platit
milioane de euro pentru achizitionarea sa.

Dupa ani de anchete si schimb de informatii intre procurorii DNA si
autoritatile fiscale din alte tari, a fost trimis in instanta dosarul
“Transferuri“, care are astazi un nou termen la Tribunalul Bucuresti,
unde a fost retrogradat de la Inalta Curte ca urmare a faptului ca
George Copos a pierdut calitatea de parlamentar.

Conform rechizitoriului, impresarii Victor si Ioan Becali, cu
complicitatea directa a presedintilor de cluburi si tacita a
autoritatilor fotbalistice, au driblat impozitele catre stat si
contabilitatea societatilor sportive, alimentandu-si conturile
personale dupa ce banii, ca un alergator la maraton, se plimbau prin
mai multe conturi ale unor firme din Olanda sau din Insulele Virgine
Britanice.

Criza economica generalizata ar putea strica insa mecanismul prin care
fratii Becali si-au sporit averea in detrimentul cluburilor si al
bugetului de stat.

Reuniti la Berlin pentru a pregati Summitul G-20 de la Londra, liderii
europeni din Franta, Germania, Marea Britanie, Franta, Italia, Spania
si Olanda au luat in discutie “paradisurile fiscale“ care sunt un
adevarat pericol “sistemic“.

“Ne gandim la sanctiuni mai dure pentru a ne proteja de pericolele care
vin din aceste jurisdictii necooperante, adica aceste paradisuri
fiscale“, s-a precizat intr-un comunicat, citat de “Le Monde“,
presedintele francez Nicolas Sarkozy adaugand: “Un regulament fara
sanctiuni nu se poate“.

Photo: Stefan Pangritz

An interesting, albeit brief, New York Times article appeared last month regarding Albert Hofmann, the famous Swiss scientist and “father” of LSD. The article discusses the legend of Hofmann discovering the drug by falling off his bicycle on the way home from work. It includes some great quotes, such as Hofmann describing his (and mankind’s) first experience with LSD:

“At home I lay down and sank into a not unpleasant intoxicatedlike condition, characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination.”

A few days later, Hofmann experimented with a different dosage. The results, recorded in the following lyric quote, would later be described as a “bad trip”:

“A demon had invaded me, had taken possession of my body, mind and soul. . . . It was the demon that scornfully triumphed over my will.”

While Hofmann displayed clear enthusiasm for the mystical elements of the drug and its possible creative and therapeutic applications, he found the recreational use of the drug in the U.S. quite disturbing, particularly the drug’s connection with “materialism, alienation from nature through industrialization and increasing urbanization, lack of satisfaction . . . a mechanized, lifeless working world, ennui and purposelessness in a wealthy, saturated society.”

Also addressed in the article is Hofmann’s work with hallucinogenic mushrooms in Mexico, and his fascination with the ritual practiced by the ancient Greeks at Eleusis. Hofmann theorized that the Greeks employed psychedelic ingredients (ergot) in their sacred potion, kykeon, used during the ritual. North Atlantic recently released a title by Hofmann and contemporaries R. Gordon Wasson and Carl A. P. Ruck that looks at this interesting theory in depth. Entitled The Road to Eleusis, the book explores the Greek ritual at Eleusis, and expands to show that natural psychedelic agents have been used in spiritual rituals across history and cultures.

CLICK HERE for more info on The Road to Eleusis

CLICK HERE to read the New York Times article on Hofmann

Teo Macero, 82 lata, zmarł 19 lutego. Saksofonista, kompozytor, ale przede wszystkim producent jazzowy. Zrewolucjonizował spojrzenie na pracę studyjną jeszcze przed Lee Perrym i Brianem Eno, pracując jako “reżyser” albumów Milesa Davisa, szczególnie tych z przełomu lat 60. i 70., czyli edytując, tnąc i sklejając fragmenty długich sesji nagraniowych na prośbę mającego doń pełne zaufanie Davisa. Oprócz biografii (które nietrudno będzie znaleźć) polecam długi wywiad z Macero, który znajdziecie tutaj. Po resztę wystarczy sięgnąć do którejkolwiek biografii Davisa. Ten człowiek produkował mu płyty przez ponad 30 lat trzy kolejne dekady – od “Kind Of Blue” po “Tribute To Jack Johnson”! A to tylko jeden ze śmietanki jazzmanów, dla których pracował Macero.

Buddy Miles, 60 lat, zmarł 26 lutego. Perkusista znany przede wszystkim z grupy Band Of Gipsies Jimiego Hendrixa. Więcej tutaj.

Klaus Dinger, 61 lat, zmarł 21 marca. Znany z Kraftwerk i Neu! perkusista-minimalista, jeden z tych, którzy stworzyli brzmienie kraut rocka. Pomyślcie o TYM brzmieniu, które potem zaowocowało powstaniem całej sceny postrockowej. Więcej tu.

Albert Hofmann, 102 lata, zmarł 29 kwietnia. Szwajcarski chemik, który zsyntetyzował LSD w roku 1938, a potem robił doświadczenia z substancją (na sobie), pozostając rzecznikiem psychodelicznego undergroundu aż do śmierci. Skojarzcie z “Próbą kwasu w elektrycznej oranżadzie”, okładkami ery Day-Glo i rockiem psychodelicznym – od lat 60. po dziś – jeśli komuś brakuje podbudowy muzycznej. Jeśli komuś przeszkadza to, że narkotyki niszczą organizm, niech skojarzy z tą informacją wiek zmarłego chemika albo niech po prostu poczyta więcej tutaj.

Bo Diddley, 79 lat, zmarł 2 czerwca. Posiadacz najbardziej charakterystycznej gitary na świecie i równie charakterystycznego brzmienia. Jeden z ojców rock’n'rolla w latach 50.  A co było potem, znajdźcie sobie tu.

Esbjörn Svensson, 44 lata, zmarł 14 czerwca. Pianista i kompozytor, lider E.S.T., czołowa postać jazzu szwedzkiego, europejskiego, a wreszcie światowego, choć tym ostatnim faktem nie zdążył się nacieszyć, bo kariera E.S.T. w Ameryce dopiero się rozkręcała, gdy zginął w wypadku, nurkując przy jednej z wysp nieopodal Sztokholmu. Jeśli nawet nie zmienił oblicza jazzu, to na pewno zmienił odbiór jazzu, trafiając z nim do rockowej publiczności, o czym przekonać się można, przy okazji zdobywania wielu innych informacji, tutaj.

Isaac Hayes, 65 lat, zmarł 10 sierpnia. Król R&B, funku, soulu, wokalista i multiinstrumentalista, kucharz z “South Parku” i legenda wytwórni Stax. To nazwisko może rzadko gości na blogach poświęconych alternatywie rockowej i awangardzie, ale podejrzewam (a w paru wypadkach nawet wiem), że płyty Hayesa często goszczą za to w odtwarzaczach ludzi z tym kręgiem związanych. Poza tym sporo w jego dawnej muzyce odniesień do psychodelii. Ścieżkę dźwiękową do “Shafta” zna każdy – nawet jeśli nie zna Hayesa – ale warto też posłuchać na przykład “Hot Buttered Soul”. Po więcej wiadomości zapraszam tutaj.

Hector Zazou, 60 lat, zmarł 8 września. Francuz algierskiego pochodzenia. Producent i kompozytor działający na wielu polach muzyki alternatywnej i awangardowej, szczególnie dobrze łączący ich nurty z wpływami muzyki świata. Chorował długo, zdążył jeszcze nagrać przed śmiercią album “In The House Of Mirrors” – znakomitą pożegnalną płytę. Szukajcie informacji na stronach jego macierzystej wytwórni Crammed Discs, pod hasłem “Hector Zazou R.I.P.”.

Jimmy Carl Black, 70 lat, zmarł 1 listopada. Perkusista i wokalista grupy The Mothers Of Invention, czyli formacji Franka Zappy, od jej sławnych początków. Indianin z pochodzenia, freak z wyboru, można przypuszczać, że Zappa zawdzięcza mu wiele w dziedzinie poczucia humoru. Trzeba go posłuchać na “Freak Out!” i “We’re Only In It For The Money”, jeśli ktoś nie jest zaznajomiony z dyskografią Zappy – znajdzie tam Blacka i bębniącego, i gadającego. Więcej informacji we wspomnieniu w “New York Timesie”. Swoją drogą, co za paskudny rok dla perkusistów.

Freddie Hubbard, 70 lat, zmarł wczoraj, czyli 29 grudnia. Grał z Johnem Coltranem i Theloniousem Monkiem, na bardzo wielu płytach wytwórni Blue Note. Jeszcze jeden trębacz lepszy od Chrisa Bottiego na tym świecie, przynajmniej do wczoraj. Poważnie – bez porównania lepszy. Więcej tu.

Swoją drogą na pewno o kimś zapomniałem. Dopiszcie więc, kogo tu brakuje, żeby na początek podsumowań roku mieć za sobą to najsmutniejsze.

Viaggi acidi: intervista ad Albert Hofmann 

Burg (Basilea). Zero virgola cinque milligrammi di acido lisergico in soluzione. Tre gocce, un sorso. Si siede e aspetta. Il sole entra nella stanza bianca del suo laboratorio di ricerche farmacologiche, secondo piano della Sandoz, Basilea. Sono le due del pomeriggio di un giorno speciale, il 19 aprile 1943: il chimico Albert Hofmann, 37 anni, da cinque impegnato in esperimenti sugli alcaloidi contenuti nella segale cornuta, ha appena ingerito la prima dose di LSD della Storia.

Aspetta, e ancora non sa di avere appena socchiuso quella che Aldous Huxley, un decennio più tardi, avrebbe chiamato «la porta della percezione». Ancora non sa che quella soluzione incolore – dietilamide dell’acido lisergico ottenuta per caso, provata per curiosità – vent’anni dopo avrebbe fatto il giro dei mondi possibili, conquistato ragazzi californiani, musicisti anglosassoni, scrittori europei, sognatori viaggianti. Avrebbe creato ostinati cercatori di sé e grandi parole come Rivoluzione Psichedelica. Avrebbe generato lampeggianti terrori, rivelazioni solitarie, decadenze floreali, paranoie, infelicità, amori, illuminazioni, nuovi sguardi sul mondo, nuovi mondi.

«No, non sapevo niente di tutto questo. Non potevo immaginare. Ero solo un giovane chimico seduto sulla propria sedia, nel proprio laboratorio, dentro al confortevole mondo delle formule, in attesa di qualcosa.»

Oggi Albert Hofmann ha i capelli bianchi, voce rauca, accento spigoloso da svizzero tedesco, sorrisi improvvisi. Ha appena compiuto 86 anni, ha provato ogni tipo di allucinogeno chimico, ha fumato l’oppio, ha masticato le piante magiche degli indiani d’America, i funghi sacri di Messico e Centroamerica. Da vent’anni è in pensione. Ha quattro figli, nove nipoti, una moglie. Cerca ancora una sintesi di quello che ha vissuto. E cercando, scrive, pensa, nuota, guida velocissimo, viaggia.

Hofmann abita (per dir così) in bilico su tre confini della vecchia Europa, in una villa solitaria tra le colline sopra Burg, cinquanta chilometri da Basilea, Svizzera, duecento metri dal confine con la Francia, quindici chilometri da quello con la Germania. Dalle sue finestre vede l’Alsazia e i Vosgi. Ma i suoi occhi azzurri guardano molto più in là, sono affacciati su quel pomeriggio del ‘43.

«Bevo e aspetto. Guardo fuori. Sale piano qualcosa di strano, un soffio, una vibrazione. Di colpo mi cambia il quadro ottico. Vedo per la prima volta: gli oggetti hanno colori abbaglianti. Sento per la prima volta: è come se ogni più piccolo rumore avesse trovato la strada segreta per arrivare fino a me, con precisione. È a quel punto che succede.»

Hofmann chiude gli occhi, rallenta il racconto, sceglie le parole.

«Improvvisamente ho paura. Sento che mi sto staccando. Si è creata una distanza tra me e il mio corpo. La paura diventa terrore. Mi alzo, ho una sola idea: voglio andare a casa. Salgo sulla bicicletta e tutto quello che vedo intorno è diverso. Ho la precisa sensazione di essere immobile. Sto pedalando sempre più veloce, lo spazio intorno a me si allarga, mi inghiotte. Non ho vie di scampo, non riesco a muovermi. I rumori intorno diventano colori, lampi di blu, strisce di rosso.

Non so come, mi ritrovo a casa, da solo. Sono seduto sulla poltrona, gli oggetti sono animati, si muovono, il mondo è completamente diverso eppure io penso: è così che deve essere. Penso: sono pazzo, voglio tornare indietro. Panico, panico. Lontano da me, molto lontano, nel mondo delle cose, vedo comparire il mio assistente, poi mia moglie. Sento parole, c’è un medico. Sono nel mio letto. Sento che dentro di me si sta fermando il cuore, si sta fermando il tempo. Sto morendo e nessuno se ne accorge. Il cuore è fermo. Dico al medico che ha la faccia sfigurata: “Sto morendo”. Ma lui mi sta misurando la pressione, mi ascolta il battito, dice: “È tutto perfetto, non si preoccupi”.

D’improvviso la paura rallenta. Sono nel mio letto, non mi può succedere niente di terribile. Ecco, piano piano, cado nel torpore. I pensieri rallentano, smetto di reagire. Il tempo ricomincia a fluire, è notte fonda, ho sonno. Dormo benissimo e alla mattina, quando mi sveglio, provo una sensazione bellissima. Intorno a me è tutto nuovo, tutto fresco, tutto piacevole. Mi guardo intorno e ho la netta sensazione di essere in un mondo nuovo.»

Gli occhi azzurri di Hofmann tornano a concentrarsi sul presente. Fa impressione ascoltare il racconto di un trip – di un viaggio lisergico – da un piccolo vecchio in giacca, cravatta e ottime maniere che ora si alza, dice «Venga», attraversa il grande salone della villa, supera il pianoforte a coda, le vetrine con statuette azteche, la porta a vetri da cui si intravede l’azzurro della piscina coperta, il verde delle piante, e approda nel suo studio, due pareti di vetri, il resto libri.

Questa intervista con Albert Hofmann è nata in un pomeriggio del gennaio 1992 nella sua villa a Rittimatte, frazione di Burg, una cinquantina di chilometri da Basilea. Quattro ore di chiacchiere, molte tazze di caffè, una passeggiata tra gli alberi a fine giornata, quando la nebbia ha già cancellato il verde dell’Alsazia.

Hofmann vive circondato dal silenzio, è cordiale, ma non si lascia andare subito, ci mette un po’ a imboccare la discesa. È un chimico, sa che le cose vanno fatte poco alla volta. I suoi ricordi sono precisi. Quando parla di esperienze con le sostanze allucinogene, torna a immedesimarsi, come se ogni particolare, ogni sensazione, lo abbia scavato una volta per sempre. Sugli altri ricordi divaga. A volte si lascia conquistare dal silenzio. Gioca con la gatta. Allora chi gli sta di fronte ha il tempo di pensare a quello che è successo anche in Italia, molto indietro nel tempo, a certi concerti, certe feste nei parchi, nel bel mezzo di certi incontri. Di ricordare come quell’onda procedeva, piena di chiacchiere, musica, scoperte, nomi di ragazze, nomi di amici, facce, storie, appartamenti, libri, strade. Di come è stata sfiorata quella generazione che si è messa in viaggio pensando di essere la prima. Di quello che è rimasto. Di quanto tempo è passato.

La gatta salta, Hofmann tossisce. Riprende a parlare. Il suo inglese è indurito dal tedesco e camuffato dall’accento svizzero. Capisce appena l’italiano. Pronunciarne qualche parola lo rende visibilmente felice, ma l’effetto è del tutto incomprensibile. Ci sono un mucchio di domande da fare. Ci sono un mucchio di risposte da annotare. Questa intervista sarebbe stata impossibile senza l’ottimo tedesco (e curiosità e pazienza) di Marco Zapparoli, che ringrazio (Pino Corrias).

Viaggi Acidi: Intervista ad Albert Hofmann di Pino Corrias

musica : grateful dead

Mushrooms get a bad rap in English language and culture. We have only three words for mushrooms – fungi, toadstools, and mushrooms – and none is positive. Case in point: calling a pale complexion ‘mushroomy’ is distinctly unflattering.

But in other cultures, these versatile organisms are regarded with affection, respect, and even reverence. We might scoff at the phrase ‘sacred mushroom,’ but indigenous Mexican peoples regard certain hallucinogenic fungi as exactly that. Religions around the world have been using consciousness-altering substances in their sacred rituals for millennia. Even frankincense, a common element of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim ceremonies, has lately proven to be a mild psychoactive agent.

And then there are the Eleusinian mysteries. Considered so sacred that its participants were forbidden on pain of death to speak of them, these ancient Greek rituals have become a scholarly puzzle composed mostly of missing pieces. In The Road to Eleusis: Unveiling the Secret of the Mysteries, ethnomycologist R. Gordon Wasson, chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann, and classicist Carl Ruck offer a solution:

Eleusis was the supreme experience in an initiate’s life. It was both physical and mystical: trembling, vertigo, cold sweat, and then a sight that made all previous seeing seem like blindness, a sense of awe and wonder at a brilliance that caused a profound silence since what had just been seen and felt could never be communicated: words are unequal to the task. Those symptoms are unmistakably the experience induced by a hallucinogen.

Examining the Eleusinian mysteries from anthropological, chemical, historical, and mythological perspectives, the authors present a strong case that this profoundly moving experience was in fact produced by a hallucinogenic fungi that grows on barley. Despite the skepticism that accompanied its first publication, this 30th anniversary edition emerges amidst increasing acceptance of its theory.

With photos, diagrams, and updated notes by the authors, The Road to Eleusis is an eye-opener, not only into the Eleusinian mysteries but also into experiential religion and the role of psychedelics, in Dr. Hofmann’s words, “in creating, by transforming consciousness in individual people, the conditions for a better world.”

CLICK HERE to learn more about The Road to Eleusis.

CLICK HERE to learn more about the Eleusinian mysteries.

La fotografía de esta entrada pertenece a esas cosas que tanto me gustan y que son tan del terreno de la arquitectura. Estas baldosas, cuando se colocan juntas, siempre me han “mareado” intentando seguir los caminos que dibujan sus colores (en este caso sus grises) y sus formas. Son como psicodélicas, por llamarlo de alguna forma.

 El químico Albert Hofmann tropezó con el LSD y cuentan que, bajo los efectos de una mínima cantidad, pudo llegar a su casa haciendo eses con su bicicleta. Lo que ocurrió después ya es harina de otro costal. Sin ánimo de presumir me permito la osadía de aportar al tema unas fotografías de mi cosecha que para nada encajan en lo arquitectónico, pero adornan con un poco de colorido.

 A la arquitectura, como a casi todo, también le llegó la psicodelia si bien en modo más formal y reglado si lo comparamos con otros terrenos, o al menos eso me parece. Dejo algunos casos en este sentido que me han parecido interesantes.

Miguel Angel Latorre, noviembre 2008

Un grande “Ve l’avevo detto” è quello che probabilmente direbbe Timothy Leary, perseguitato per le sue sperimentazioni e la sua promozione degli allucinogeni, dopo aver letto questa notizia.

L’immagine è un tributo ad Albert Hofmann, da parte del pittore Alex Grey.

Studiosi svizzeri riaprono la sperimentazione sull’uso terapeutico per i malati terminali
Agisce positivamente sul mediatore cerebrale dell’umore. E non dà dipendenza
La riabilitazione scientifica dell’Lsd
“Può curare cefalee e depressioni”
L’iniziativa a pochi mesi dalla morte di Albert Hofmann, lo scopritore dell’acido
“Sull’effetto allucinogeno molta leggenda: il ‘trip’ colpiva persone già malate di mente”
di CRISTINA NADOTTI

La rivalutazione scientifica dell’Lsd è cominciata. L’acido lisergico, il più famoso tra tutti gli allucinogeni, ritorna nei laboratori di ricerca dopo oltre trent’anni e dopo la morte, lo scorso maggio, del suo scopritore, il chimico svizzero Albert Hofmann. E sarà proprio un centro svizzero a portare avanti la prima sperimentazione scientifica sulla psicoterapia psichedelica da quando, negli anni ‘70, l’Lsd e sostanze quali la psilocibina (quella estratta dai funghi allucinogeni) furono relegate al solo ruolo di droghe della controcultura e le ricerche sulle loro potenzialità terapeutiche osteggiate e abbandonate. I ricercatori svizzeri stanno conducendo test con Lsd e psilocibina per trattare depressione, cefalea a grappolo, disturbi ossessivi compulsivi e disturbi post-traumatici da stress. Sperimenteranno inoltre l’uso della psicoterapia psichedelica per il trattamento dei malatti terminali.

L’avanguardia svizzera. Che sia proprio la Svizzera a riprendere uno studio sull’Lsd non dipende solo dal fatto che Hoffmann, morto lo scorso maggio a Basilea a 102 anni, ha fatto scuola nel suo Paese. La Svizzera, oltre ad essere rinomata per la ricerca chimica, ha una tradizione di sperimentazione libera da pregiudizi. In Svizzera si portano avanti con buoni risultati piani di accompagnamento dei malati terminali alla morte si usano da tempo le “sale del buco”, luoghi per il consumo igienico di sostanze stupefacenti sotto la supervisione di uno staff appositamente formato: si offrono accesso a siringhe sterili e altro materiale sanitario, assicurando il rapido intervento del personale nei casi di emergenza.

Il riferimento alle tossicodipendenze, tuttavia, non deve far pensare a un uso ricreativo delle sostanze allucinogene: il punto di partenza dei ricercatori è che la crociata contro queste droghe, portata avanti negli anni ‘70, impedì di fare chiarezza sul modo in cui, per dirla con il presidente dell’americana Associazione per gli studi psichedelici, queste sostanze possano essere di grande aiuto “non per il mistico che vuole sedere sulla cima della montagna a meditare, ma per tutti”.

I primi esperimenti. La ricerca svizzera è cominciata a giugno e i primi risultati, non ancora ufficiali, secondo i sostenitori della psicoterapia psichedelica, sono molto promettenti. La psilocibina si è già dimostrata efficace nel trattamento dei sintomi dei malati terminali di cancro e i ricercatori hanno usato con successo l’ecstasy per il trattamento dei disturbi post traumatici da stress. Ora però quello che si vuole fare è capire meglio in che modo Lsd e affini agiscono sul cervello. All’inizio della sperimentazione, negli anni ‘70, si era all’esordio nelle ricerche delle neuroscienze, una branca per la quale le sostanze allucinogene furono fondamentali. Si sa che Lsd, psilocibina e mescalina agiscono sul cervello perché le droghe si attaccano ai recettori chimici delle cellule nervose che fissano la serotonina. Questo neurotrasmettitore è responsabile di un gran numero di attività del cervello, ma il modo in cui la sinergia tra allucinogeni e serotonina avviene e perché porti a stati alterati di coscienza, percezione e umore non è ancora chiaro. Nell’esperimento svizzero saranno verificati e osservati tutti i comportamenti, gli stati di alterazione appunto, che accompagnano il “trip” da allucinogeno.

Una droga rivoluzionaria. La morte di Hoffmann ha riacceso la discussione sulla valenza storica della scoperta dell’Lsd. Molti tra gli articoli che hanno ripercorso la vita del suo scopritore si sono soffermati sulla connessione tra Lsd e la cultura psichedelica, il suo carattere sovversivo e i suoi potenziali di leva per scardinare la visione conformista del mondo. Sono state di nuovo sottolineate anche le tante leggende sugli effetti dannosi degli allucinogeni, ritenuti responsabili di comportamenti distruttivi e della morte di centinaia di ragazzi. Alla ripresa della sperimentazione scientifica, i ricercatori contraddicono tutta la letteratura contraria a queste sostanze. Gran parte delle storie su gente che si è lanciata dalla finestra durante un trip o ha avuto comportamenti autodistruttivi o aggressivi, ribadiscono i ricercatori, è falsa e se il “trip” si è rivelato mortale sono sempre state accertate situazioni pregresse di malattie mentali gravi.

La verità è che, per quanto tali sostanze non possano essere considerate sicure proprio perché alterano lo stato mentale, sono quasi del tutto atossiche, non portano alla dipendenza e solo in caso di malattie pregresse si sono registrati comportamenti psicotici. “Gli allucinogeni hanno un effetto potente sulla percezione e la coscienza e aiutano ad avere esperienze di grande valore personale e spirituale – sottolinea Roland Griffiths della Scuola generale di medicina di Baltimora, citato dal Guardian – ed è per questo che riteniamo possano aiutare i malati terminali ad affrontare la morte in modo diverso, liberandoli dall’angoscia esistenziale che spesso accompagna queste malattie”.

(da Repubblica.it)

I have never tried any but this obituary shows that the Swiss man who created LSD could not have been further from a psychedelic hippie in lifestyle, instead advocating getting high on life.

May 8th 2008
From The Economist print edition

Albert Hofmann, chemist, died on April 29th, aged 102

HIS first experience was “rather agreeable”. As he worked in the Sandoz research laboratory in Basel in Switzerland on April 16th 1943, isolating and synthesising the unstable alkaloids of the ergot fungus, Albert Hofmann began to feel a slight lightheadedness. He could not think why. His lab was shared with two other chemists; frugality and company had taught him careful habits. And this was a man whose doctoral thesis had revolved around the gastrointestinal juices of the vineyard snail.

Perhaps, he supposed, he had inhaled the fumes of the solvent he was using. In any event, he took himself home and lay down on the sofa. There the world exploded, dissolving into a kaleidoscope of colours, shapes, spirals and light. It seemed to have something to do with lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD-25, the substance he had been working on. He had synthesised it five years before, but had found it “uninteresting” and stopped. Now, like some prince in faery, he had got the stuff on his fingertips, rubbed it into his eyes and seen the secrets of the universe.

The next Monday, ever the good scientist, he deliberately took 0.25 milligrams of LSD diluted with 10cc of water. It tasted of nothing. But by 5 o’clock the lab was distorting, and his limbs were stiffening. The last words he managed to scrawl in his lab journal were “desire to laugh”. That desire soon left him. As he cycled home with a companion, perhaps the most famous bike ride in history, he had no idea he was moving. But in his house the furniture was ghoulishly mutating and spinning, and the neighbour who brought him milk as an antidote was “a witch with a coloured mask”. He realised now that LSD was the devil he couldn’t shake off, though in his senseless body he screamed and writhed on the sofa, certain that he was dying.

After six hours it left him. The last hour was wonderful again, with images “opening and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in coloured fountains.” Each sound made colours. His doctor found nothing physically wrong with him, except for extremely dilated pupils. The substance evidently left the body quickly, and caused no hangover. But the mind it flung apart, reassembled and profoundly changed, leaving him the next morning as fresh as a newborn child.

Over the next decades, Mr Hofmann took an awful lot of LSD. He ingested it listening to Mozart and looking at red roses. He learned not to take it when tired, or with amphetamines (a very bad trip). As head of the natural products division at Sandoz, he revelled in its potential for psychiatry. Though he also developed derivatives of ergot that helped circulation and respiration, and had a drawerful of useful pharmaceuticals to his name, it was LSD that filled him with “the joy of fatherhood”. And the sense it had given him, of union with nature and of the spiritual basis of all creation, convinced him that he had found a sacrament for the modern age: the antidote to the ennui caused by consumerism, industrialisation and the vanishing of the divine from human life.

Yellow and purple and green

It proved disastrous for him that Timothy Leary at Harvard had the same idea. When the professor told his students in the 1960s that LSD was the route to the divine, the true self and (not least) great sex, use of the drug became an epidemic. People ingested it, in impure forms, from sugar cubes and blotting paper. They blamed it for accidents, murders and wild attempts to fly. The media flowered in psychedelic shades of orange, purple, yellow and green, and in the melting shapes and dizzying circles of a world gone almost mad. Mr Hofmann in 1971 met Leary in the snack bar at Lausanne station; he found him a charmer, but because of his carelessness LSD had by then been banned in most countries, and production and research had been stopped. They never resumed.

Mr Hofmann turned his chemist’s attention to other things: the Mexican magic mushroom, whose active compounds he synthesised into little white pills, and the LSD-like properties of the seeds of the blue morning-glory flower. He continued his self-experiments with both of them—noting that on his mushroom trip his very German doctor became an Aztec priest who seemed about to slice his chest open with an obsidian knife. He loved his work, but still mourned the disappearance of his “problem child”. LSD, treated with respect, could have powerfully instructed men and women in the glories of the spiritual dimension of life. But they had abused it, so it had given them terrors instead.

Without it, however, Mr Hofmann knew it was still possible to get to the same place. As a child, wandering in May on a forest path above Baden in a year he had forgotten, he had suddenly been filled with such a sense of the radiance and oneness of creation that he thought the vision would last for ever. “Miraculous, powerful, unfathomable reality” had ambushed him elsewhere, too: the wind in a field of yellow chrysanthemums, leaves in the sunlit garden after a shower of rain. When he had drunk LSD in solution on that fateful April afternoon he had recovered those insights, but had not surpassed them. His advice to would-be trippers, therefore, was simple. “Go to the meadow, go to the garden, go to the woods. Open your eyes!”

“Es gibt kein Ende,nur ständige Wandlung,Transformation” A.H.

Albert Hofmann transformed  furthur on April 29th 2008, at the age of 102.

Thanks for all & Happy trails !

Listen to Albert Hofmann:

 LSD and the nature of Reality
(on Future Hi)

MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies):
Albert Hoffmann Birthday Broadcast

Watch:

LSD und sein Entdecker Albert Hofmann (deutsche Dokumentation 1993) avi

… more visual footage here

Read:

Gaia Media
London Times
London Telegraph
Chicago Tribune
NY Times
LA Times
Washington Post
CNN
Reuters
SFGate
National Post (Canada)
The Economist
NZZ (German language only) 
NY Times Obituary by Benedict Carey
Rick Doblin comments on Albert’s life inGoogle News
Gaia Media Memorial of Albert Hofmann