The Man Who Brought LSD To The World
‘When you take Psychedelics, the best place to do it is in nature,’ said the incredible Swiss scientist and Psychedelic founding-father, Albert Hoffman. Albert was the first known person to bring Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) to the attention of the world.
In 1938, in his now-world famous laboratory in Basel, Switzerland, Hoffman was playing around with Lysergic Acid derivatives whilst trying to conjure up a respiratory and circulatory stimulant. It was not until five years that he realised the implications of his little synthesis experiment, when, by mere accident he ended up absorbing a small amount of the compound through his fingertips. Moments later he was tripping. This is how he described the experience:
‘… 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 about two hours this condition faded away.’
We know that Psychedelics have been known and used by humans for thousands of years, and there is little doubt LSD–or some variation of it–was amongst those; this was not a ‘new’ discovery by Hoffman. Nevertheless, it was a pivotal, game-changing moment in the world of Psychedelics and medicine, and a significant point in the history of our species.
Imagine is Hoffman never made this discovery–would be of had the Beatles, Apple or Virgin? We’ll never know of course, but it’s interesting to wonder.
Albert Hoffman passed away in 2008 from a Heart attack in his home is Basil; surrounded by his family and close friends, he took his last breath and left for the skies at the astonishing age of 102.
