Subjective descriptions of the effects of LSD

Many attempts have been made to describe the LSD experience. These descriptions are different from each other, often confusing, sometimes contradictory, although there are some common features. The following excerpts, written by the most well-known supporters of LSD, demonstrate the diversity of this experience:

I looked into a glass of water. In the depths of his whirlpool there was a whirlwind that went down to the center of the world and to the heart of time … The dog barked and its piercing howl could be like all the wolves of Tartarus … At one point I was a giant in a tiny closet, and in another dwarf in a huge hall. I was lying on my back on the floor. Then my room disappeared and I was sinking, sinking and sinking. From afar, I heard the subtle word death. I began to sink faster, moving away millions of light years from Earth. The word grew louder and more insistent, surrounding me, including me. “DEATH … DEATH … DEATH …” I remembered the horror in my father’s eyes in his last moments. In the last moments before my own death, I shouted “no.” Absolute all-consuming horror. A series of visions began. A number of images appeared in sync with the music … I saw myself at the Mongol Khan’s court … at a concert that was held in front of a huge audience … in a fantastic place … at Versailles … near the Lincoln statue … I felt swallowed by the chaotic sea …

There were several boats worn by an agitated sea … I was on one of these ships … we sailed past a huge figure, standing in foamy water to the waist … His features were full of compassion of love and participation. We knew that it was the image of God. We realized that God was also captured by the storm.