Here are two parts of an interview with Aldous Huxley. Each part goes roughly ten minutes and are well worth the watch. I personally think he was one of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century and even the 21st century.

He praises science

He praises mystical religion

He praises quakerism (at the end of the second part)

I'd like to hear other peoples thoughts about this great man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT_gvjJyjyc Part one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCVEl8Z4-5c...feature=related Part two

Hope you enjoy.

I think Island is a terrible book.
Brave New World is his only decent novel.
Anyone who thinks taking hallucinogens expands you mind is insane, it (and this is proven) damages it.

A very valuable and humble contribution to this appreciation thread Mattshark, thanks

I enjoyed watching those videos. For me as someone who is relatively new to Huxleys works it really brought him to life for me seeing him express himself in real life (tv). I really liked the moral values he expressed in the interview and feel unaffected by whatever he may have done in his life to have come to them.

Some do, some dont, some will, some wont. ~ Cant remember who

It was nice to see he was as eloquent in real life as his writing in his books.

I really liked what he was saying (and the way he was saying it) about how we should listen to the mystics.

At the moment i am reading the perrenial philosophy. His language is very sophisticated and have to admit that without a dictionary handy i would have great difficulty understanding his point
...but i feel that that says more about me than it does about him and i appreciate the stimulation of this.

So far i am quite blown away by the book. It is a massive work. To have compiled the quotations alone would have taken a vast amount of research and reading which shows that he devoted himself to the subject and was very knowledgable on it (especially considering there was no net in those days). Perrenial philosophy (advaita) is a very fine thing to become knowledgable on for it is a complex subject that holds many fruits. There are many ways it can be understood. Some people can know very little but have a better grasp than those who know alot. But the book shows that Huxley has a very deep rooted grasp and affinity with the subject. And to aquire such systematic and extensive knowledge on all the aspects of perrenial philosophy such as he did is a very commendable thing which i believe we could all do with aspiring to. The way all the information is grouped and set out is quite formidable...again considering the subject by its very nature is paradoxical and so very difficult to express. He explains something and takes you on a journey of learning through various quotations and their meanings and critique, commenting on peculiarities and particulars that have caught his attention or that he holds with reguard.

brain damage because 1 sees the truth. yeap it can be scary seeing the truth

tell that 2 an Amazon Shaman.i think he could change your perspective:) and did hallucinogens damage Terrence Mckenna`s mind?i dont think so! cause if u hear him speak u can tell he was highly intelligent, n he used alot of hallucinogens 2 expand he`s mind n i think it did 4 sure._Peace_Click to view attachment

With all due respect...I know you are Brave's girlfriend so its your job to back him up with anything lol

BUT why on earth would anyone stick an APPRECIATION thread about a novelist on a skeptics board????????? If you dont want anyone to put the book down in any way then placing it in a skeptics board is not the best move!!!!!!!!

An appreciation about a book / novelist thread should be placed in IE - Writers & Artists hangout section.....!!!!!!!!!!

I'm suprised no one mentioned the Beatles in response to MattSharks remark.

You believe that, I'll believe medical evidence.

Out of curiosity what have Amazonian shaman ever achieved?
Hallucinogens do not (proven not to) expand your mind, they cause neural damage, this is fact. They cause paranoia, and are associated with many mental illness, but they have already probably damaged your mind to much to comprehend that.

cough*Octopuses Garden*cough

A beautiful picture

Great song. Same with all their post LSD work.

I find it self indulgent crap personally.
Can't stand the Beatles.

Your loss.

I grew up in Liverpool, I got to hear plenty of them. McCartney is an Everton fan too
They are still only our cities second biggest tourist draw though!

Huxley's experience with mescaline was part of a carefully observed, scientific experiment. He was an ideal subject for exploring these subjective phenomena, since he was an accomplished writer who had "dinner table" acquaintance with the values and interests of science.

The results are a fascinating read, and available on the web, for example at:

http://www.acuteproof.com/aldous/

As with any first person account of a subjective experience, the narrator brings pluses and minuses to the narrative.

On the plus side, Huxley has the background to see the essential unity among the source of his drug experience, meditation, hypnosis, spontaneous alterations of consciousness (now known to be experienced by about one third of the population), and schizophrenic break.

On the minus side, he colors his interpretations to favor his preconceived religious or metaphysical viewpoint. These views may account for the OP's admiration.

It is a valuable document. Ironically, in light of Mattshark's comments, it is not fairly read as a "pro-drug" screed. Above all else, it shows that drugs are simply superfluous: all that happens with mescaline happens without mescaline, too.

Finally, a defense of shamans. Shamanism is an umbrella term covering a wide variety of practices pursued all over the world, having in common only respect for animal spirituality, attention to mystical experience, and that the shaman has a day job.

Drug use is not a necessary element of shamanism, nor is shamanism a necessary context for drug use. When drugs do show up in a shamanic culture, it may not be the shaman who is taking them. Drugs, among many other methods, may help the shaman to give the rest of the community a taste of what the shaman's own visions are like, reproducibly and "on demand" as it were.

The shaman himself or herself may simply have no need of drugs. Conversely, other people may not have the resources or interest in pursuing a shamanic lifestyle. So, in the very best imitation of modernity, the other people take a pill instead of doing the work.

Oh bummer ,I thought about the other Huxley as in Thomas Henry.

i dont like you, closed mind

I love the concept of Brave New World (the book, not the member, though I don't have anything against him either, lol). Unfortunately I have never read it. Back in High School, our class had to choose between "Brave New World" and "The Delinquents". Unfortunately the consensus went for the latter. I would very much like to read this book sometime in the future though. Beyond that, I don't know a great deal about Aldous Huxley, though many of the quotes I have read of him are very insightful.

How is that a loss lol

How is it having a closed mind??????
I could say the same about you in regards to any band you don't like!

LMAO @ the truth

Hallucinogens are drugs that cause hallucinations. An hallucination is a sensory experience of something that does not exist outside the mind. It may involve hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting or feeling something that isn't really there. Or, it may involve distorted sensory perceptions, so that things look, sound, smell, taste, or feel differently from the way they are.

Hallucinogenic drugs usually produce so-called pseudo-hallucinations. This means that the user typically knows that what he or she is seeing, hearing, smelling, etc. is not real, but is a product of the drug.

Sounds really weird lol I guess it would be the only way BM here would suddenely think the bible spoke the truth...pops a pill and bingo

Yeaa he should be like you and have an open mind...so all bright thoughts can pass right through LMAO kidding!!!

You should watch the interviews mate.

i am sad to see that u attack me like tht.of course it can cause paranoia etc.but only if u use it 2 get high.the Shamans dont use it 2 get high.they use it 2 get in touch with the spirit world.like they have done for 10.000 years.if u think its all crap then i reccomend u go to the Amazon find a Shaman n try it urself._ Out of curiosity what have Amazonian shaman ever achieved? Healing the spirit is the primary function of a Shaman.

This includes

Soul-extraction,

Soul-retrieval,

Soul-restoration

Herbal healing

Hands on healing

DivinationClick to view attachment

Dream Work

Soul Leading

Mmmm, herbal medicine is the only thing of value there and that is information that would have been known for a long time, thanks no doubt to trial and error, it doesn't require you being a shaman. The rest are nothing of substance for me since I find all of them highly disputable as does science.
It does not alter the fact that hallucinagens damage the brain.