The Beyond Within: The LSD Story

A book review describes a work that places hallucinogenic drugs in historical perspective, discussing their effects on the mind and potential uses as psychotherapy adjuncts or chemical warfare agents. The review notes the medical community's alarm over uncontrolled use of these drugs in a major city and the lay press's accounts of their mystic properties, described as "instant Zen." A significant challenge highlighted is the difficulty of conveying the nature of the drug experience, which the reviewer personally appreciates having taken a hallucinogen as part of a research project.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The medical community was alarmed recently by the uncontrolled and somewhat-promiscuous use of "hallucinogens" in one of our major cities. The lay press contained many accounts suggesting the various hallucinogenic properties, but emphasized that the drugs seemed to provide the user with something of a mystic experience— what has been called "instant Zen." InThe Beyond Withinthe author places these drugs in a historical perspective, discusses their effects on the mind, and suggests their potential as adjuncts in psychotherapy or as agents of chemical warfare. The book reflects a significant problem facing the researcher working with these drugs—the fact that it is difficult to convey the nature of the experience after taking such a drug. This reviewer has taken a hallucinogen as part of a research project, and can appreciate the difficulty the author had in choosing accounts from people under the influence of these drugs. The experience does