The politics of ecstasy PDF
Preview The politics of ecstasy
Ph.D. 'iJiUD'ijJJi_[i>A_l^J, The Politics Of ecstasy BY TIMOTHY PHD LEARY, RONIN PUBLISHING PO BOX 522 BERKELEY, CA 94701 www.ronlnpub.com The Politics OfEcstasy ISBN:l-57951-031-0 Copyright 1980, 1985,1993, 1998 TimothyLearyPh.D. Publishedby RONIN PUBLISHING,INC. PostOfficeBox522 Berkeley,California94701 www.roninpub.com Allrights reserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybe reproducedortrans- mittedin anyform orbyanymeans,electronic ormechanicalincluding photocopying,recording,postingonthe internet orbyanyinformation storage and retrieval system,withoutwrittenpermission fromthe authororthepublisherexceptfortheinclusionofbriefquotationsina review. BeverlyPotter ProjectEditor JudyJuly/GenericType CoverDesign DataRepo Printer 987654321 PrintedintheUnited States ofAmerica Collector'sNote: TheoriginaleditionofPoliticsOfEcstasyhasbeendivided intotwobooks. ThisabbreviatededitioncarriestheoriginaltitleofPoliticsOf EcstasyandcontainsChapters 1 to 11 oftheoriginal. Theremainingmaterial appearsinacompanionbookentitled TuneIn, Turn On,Drop Out which containsChapters 12to22oftheoriginaltext. Dedicated toAbbieHoffman Please allow me to reintroduce this book called, so prophetically,ThePoliticsofEcstasy. Icanmodestlypraisethe magnificent, audacious, oxy-moronic, oxy-generic titlebe- cause itwas given to mebyAbbie Hoffman, to whom I re- dedicatethebook. ECSTASY: Theexperienceofattainingfreedomfrom limitations,eitherself-imposedorexternal;astateofexalted delight in which normal understanding is felt to be sur- passed. FromtheGreek"ex-stasis." Bydefinition,ecstasyis anongoingon/offprocess. Itrequiresacontinualsequence of"droppingout." Onthoseoccasionswhenmanyindividu- alssharetheecstaticexperienceatthesametime,theycreate abrief-lived"counter-culture." SYNONYMS: Euphoria,high,rush,delight,bliss,ela- tion, enchantment,joy,nirvana,rapture. STASIS: Standing,astandstill Allen Ginsberg and Timothy Leary Table of Contents FOREWORD byTomRobbins 1 INTRODUCTIONby R.U. Sirius 3 INTRODUCTION by TimothyLeary 5 1.The SevenTonguesofGod 13 2.Whatto DoWhentheVietcongDrop LSD in OurWaterSupply 59 3.TheFifth Freedom TheRightto GetHigh 64 4.EcstasyAttacked EcstasyDefended 70 5. ChemicalWarfare TheAlcoholicsvs.thePsychedelics 87 6.TheMagicalMysteryTrip 103 7. She Comes inColors 118 8. Drop OutorCop Out 160 9.HormonalPolitics MenopausalLeft-Rightandthe SeedCenter 168 10. Poetofthe InteriorJourney 176 11.ATripwith Paul Krassner 195 RoninBooks-For-Independent-Minds 223 Foreword by Tom Robbins jfr, on the face of it, the phrase, "poHtics of ecstasy," seems an oxymoronontheorderof"wildlifemanagement,"pleaserememberthat in the Sixties virtually all political activism was connected, directly or indirectly,totheingestionofpsychedelicdrugsandthereforewasshaped by,ifnotcenteredin,ecstaticstatesofbeing. In addition,therewerethepoliticsthatplaguedourecstaticenter- prises themselves, no matter howwe twisted and squirmed to escape it. Manyacommune,demonstration,orlove-inwreckedonthetwinshoals ofpropertyandcontrol. Then,too,therewerethepoliticalfireskindled bythefrictionoflatter-dayecstasycultsrubbingupagainstthestiffhide oftheoldiguana-brainedEstablishment. ItisanunderstatementtowritethatTimothyLearywasprivytothis stormy marriage of the mundane and the rapturous. Simultaneously observerandparticipant.Dr.Learyanalyzedeventsaroundhimevenashe helped make them happen. Boundlesslyenergetic, keenlyinsightful, he wasuniquelyqualifiedtoworkbothsidesofHeisenbergStreet. Imagine him studiously taking notes even as he skated on one foot along the vibratingrim ofanindole ring. ForthosewhoseimageofDr.Learyhasbeenformedbyshallowand oftenmaliciousreportsinthepress.ThePoliticsofEcstasyprovidesamore accuratepictureofthebraveneuronautwhomIbelievetobetheGalileo ofourage,albeitaGalileopossessedofconsiderableIrishblarney(which makeshim allthe more agreeable). Ofmore importance,perhaps, is the Ught this book casts upon the century's outlaw decade at a time when Sixtiesrevisionismis epidemic. Whether out of ignorance of cowardice, far too many historians writing about the period are avoiding any discussion of those mind- altering substances without which the Sixties, as we know them, would [1 never had occurred. Dr. Leary, as might be expected, leaves no turn unstoned. Ultimately,the Sixties maybeviewed as a staging area forthe next leap forward in human evolution. We have left them behind only as panickyclimbersmightfleetheirbasecampforatemporarydescentback intothedarkanddecadentvalleyoftheirorigins.Whilemillionsmayhave retreatedintomaterialismandftindamentalism,however,TimothyLeary has continuedup the mountain,his ropes coiledlike ahelix,his gaze on hyperspace. Forthoseofuswholagbehind,hisas-it-happenedobservationsof where we've been are as crucial as they are entertaining. And they are entertaining,indeed,indeed. Tom Robbins
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