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Timothy Leary
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The Psychedelic Experience: A Manual Based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead (Citadel Underground) Paperback – January 1, 2000

by Timothy Leary (Author), Ralph Metzner (Author), Richard Alpert (Author),
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,542 ratings
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“It is a book for the living as well as for the dying.”—Lama Govinda

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. The Psychedelic Experience 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.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    160 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Citadel Pr
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2000
  5. Dimensions
    6.25 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0806516526
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0806516523
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Timothy Leary was one of the most famous countercultural icons of the 1960’s. In 1957, the Harvard psychologist experienced a “profound transcendent experience” while taking hallucinogens in Mexico. No longer content with his work in personality assessment, Leary began advocating the psychotherapeutic and spiritual benefits of LSD. His “experiments” with LSD often involved students and wild “tripping” parties, which eventually led to his dismissal from Harvard. With patronage from heirs of the Mellon fortune, Leary continued his experiments and prolific writing career at a rambling estate in upstate New York known as Millbrook. In 1967, Leary spoke at a San Francisco “Be-In,” where he coined the phrase “Turn on, tune in, and drop out.” Labeled as “The Most Dangerous Man in America,” Leary had many run-ins with the law and served several prison sentences. He died of prostate cancer in 1996; the following year seven grams of his ashes were launched into space aboard a Pegasus rocket.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Citadel Pr (January 1, 2000)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 160 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0806516526
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0806516523
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 5.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,542 ratings

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Timothy Leary

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
1,542 global ratings
Are you experience?
5 Stars
Are you experience?
It was brand new. It arrived 2-3 days later than expected due to covid. However, it was worth the wait. Amazing book with an wonderful take on the Tibetan book of dead, extrapolated to the use of psychedelics. Every psychologist, psychiatrist, mental health profesional and psychonaut should have this book on hand.
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Top reviews from the United States

A mirror
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read in this day and age
Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2024
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This book changed my life for the better. I could say the same for Be Here Now by Ram Dass (Alpert) but i found that book before i found this one ironically. I wish it was the other way around but it had to happen the way it did... I am now able to concentrate on doing things i couldnt imagine of looking at years ago.

I cannot recommend this book enough for any and every person's education. There's probably a reason a majority of people won't read this book but that doesn't change the fact that this book is one of the best and most important historical translations of the Tibetan Book of the Dead.
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chillian75
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2024
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The media could not be loaded.
 Here is the cover that comes with the book that is ordered here. This is a great read and a must for anyone interested in the history of the psychedelic revolution.
2 people found this helpful
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Tina
5.0 out of 5 stars Great information
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2023
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Helps you learn about what to expect in a journey and how you can prepare for it
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Benjamin D. Dodson
5.0 out of 5 stars Bring a friend
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2023
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Let me just say if you can find this book with out the introduction from Daniel Pinchbeck get that one instead. Because it seems he didn’t really read the book. It just seems like he wanted to get his name out there for his own books. Talking about global warming and over population in the introduction. Those things are not talked about in the book.

The rest of the book is well written and presented.
13 people found this helpful
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reed savvy
5.0 out of 5 stars Today My feet are on the ground but still studied and practice being in the "Now" Echart Tolle is a good source for today on get
Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2015
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I was there, or you could say now, then. My friends and I took our first hit on sugar cubes in 1963. Just before the book came out . One of my friends ordered it special cause it came out in 1964 so we waited for it by the mail-box daily till it came . When it did, as a group we used it to navigate through the difficult places the book suggest. Seeing the whole structure of the material world on a micro / macro level. Understanding the structure of the mind/brain/personality process. We discovered the clear light and used to say when we saw each other weeks after we took trips together "Are you still where it's at". We could maintain 2-3 days of total awareness of the effects of the L.S.D. At this time that we took it, It was still Legal. It became Illegal in 1966 at which time we stopped taking it. (disclaimer) Ha! Ha!. The book was responsible for changing the way we view the world and our selves. We did loose our ego's. We did experience most of the levels in the book as real to us. Nothing short of a full on Eastern Mystical experience. The real thing only from a drug and an instruction book. With out the book we had no way of labeling our experiences so as to identify them as they happened. We missed a lot without the book, although the intensity of the experience was self explanatory with out it.Today My feet are on the ground but still I study and practice being in the "Now" Echart Tolle is a good source for today on getting there on the Nach! I dont recommend use of any drugs or mind altering substances because with drugs you come down and forget how you got there. But today we have many books and practices that get you there for real and forever. Remember this is a life time work to be done by everybody regardless of your religion or belief but without Drugs. The bottom line is to see and diminish the ego domination of you personality and see and feel your pure, innocent nature as a human being. I'm 70 years old now. I took my first L.S.D trip when I was 18. That experience changed the way I saw the whole system so I had problems adjusting to society and life in general. But today I have a good handle on whats real and what's not real. Remember It's your mind that interprets everything.Your mind is all stored past memory. So you see through the past. When you loose the ego the past dies' so whats left is "what is". Thats where you start to understand whats true and whats false in life. Good Luck, R
439 people found this helpful
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J. Gleaves
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read, it's a step by step guide on enlightenment, not an academic discussion
Reviewed in the United States on September 22, 2014
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This has been an interesting read so far. I appreciate the idea of it, I guess I was hoping for some more psychological background to it. Instead I get more background glares from people when I read it on the train. Oh well, never asked them. This is more presented as if he is a Shaman of some sort, guiding you through your journey. Leary does not ponder academically (or western academically) as to what goes on in the mind during this, but goes straight into preparing you for what's ahead. While the topic interests me, I was hoping for a combination of psychology and psychedelics, but I read the reviews and really should've picked up on what it was from the get-go. Still a great read for perspective.
5 people found this helpful
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Jimy
5.0 out of 5 stars Understanding Leary's Psychedelic Program
Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2022
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This for me was really quite interesting . Leary et al using a portion of the Tibetan book of the daed to inform a psychedelic experience. It was written in the 60's when the LSD fad was raging. There are insights here but bear in mind that the whole book of the dead was only translated recently. This portion has been what passed for the whole has been around longer is what Leary is using here.
The first bardo of clear light is a far cry from everyday awareness and I am presuming this Harvard crew assumes it in the use of their psychedelic drug of choice that their experience would be or be analogous to the car light state. At any rate that approach is flawed but the intro gives some insight to that. I think the Tibetan aspect was probably inspired by Alpert. Instant enlightenment is of course tempting and that was the religion Leary was selling.

In general its a quite interesting document to the Leary Years and one might even get some insight in Tibetan Buddhism traditions.
9 people found this helpful
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CMWolf
5.0 out of 5 stars It was a must read in the sixties and is as relevant today.
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2022
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This slim volume should be in the hands of anyone who participates in the psychedelic experience. Altered states of consciousness can sometimes present disturbing and potentially traumatic confrontations with Reality. A little familiarity with ancient wisdom interpreted for contemporary seekers is often all it takes to meet these challenges with a calm and receptive perspective, and resolve possible negative responses.
I'm grateful to have had access to this guidebook when I was young. Being informed by this book has helped me access the wisdom of my experiences and avoid falling into fear when encountering unfamiliar insights.
If you are going to participate in psychedelic travel, enter into it with a little preparation and a few guideposts. This book is a small, inexpensive, and timeless gem for all seekers.
11 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Nadia Cecilia Zepeda
5.0 out of 5 stars Es un manual para la experiencia psicodélica
Reviewed in Mexico on January 19, 2024
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Si estás interesado en el mundo psicodélico y empezar a tener tus experiencias con plantas de poder pero no tienes idea de donde empezar es una súper buena guía de inicio, vienen dosajes, que hacer en caso de mal trips, etc, padrísimo! Es una guía informativa ☺️
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jean emrich
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read
Reviewed in Canada on December 2, 2022
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A must read
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Jesús
5.0 out of 5 stars Depende para quien
Reviewed in Spain on May 18, 2022
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A mi amigo, que es un colgado, le encantó.
3 people found this helpful
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Dr. Daniel Modolo
4.0 out of 5 stars O polêmico Timothy Leary!
Reviewed in Brazil on August 5, 2020
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Sobre o livro:
O livro é uma espécie da manual ao mesmo tempo místico, individual e técnico sobre a experiência de Timothy Leary com substâncias que alteram a consciência. Utilizando o Livro Tibetano dos Mortos como base, a obra se propõe a guiar o entusiasta dos psicodélicos nos diversos estágios da jornada, que Leary argumenta que é estereotipada em "bardos" para a maioria das pessoas e que, por conta disso, se relaciona com o processo de morte descrito pelos tibetanos antigos. Ele ensina como não cair em armadilhas de ego, como não se maravilhar com os visuais e com isso perder a real experiência sensorial completa e no final fornece alguns apêndices que, segundo sua própria instrução, podem ser gravados na voz do próprio psiconauta para ouvir durante a psicodelia, trazendo assim à lembrança os conceitos discutidos de forma racional no livro. Se você é entusiasta deste universo, vale a pena, ainda que não seja uma obra definidora da experiência e que esteja carregada desnecessariamente de alguns simbolismos que podem não ter o mesmo significado para todo mundo. Quatro estrelas!
9 people found this helpful
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Paul Kemp
5.0 out of 5 stars Psychedelic exploration guide
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 12, 2021
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A great and historical book. I remember getting a hardback copy from the local library and studying it closely when I should have been concentrating on my GGCSEs.
If psychedelics interest you this book is well worth reading.
8 people found this helpful
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