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The Cosmic Game: Explorations of the Frontiers of Human Consciousness
In this, his culminating work, the leading international figure in consciousness research masterfully synthesizes his vast findings, drawing not only upon psychedelic therapy and Holotropic Breathwork, but also from literature, cross-cultural studies, ancient mystical sources and psychological data, resulting in a profound consolidation and articulation of what is now known about nonordinary states of consciousness.The Cosmic Game discusses the broadest philosophical, metaphysical and spiritual insights gleaned in Grof's research concerning human nature and reality, addressing the most fundamental questions human beings have asked about the nature of existence since time immemorial.Insights from research into nonordinary states of consciousness portray existence as an astonishing play of the cosmic creative principle that transcends time, space, linear causality, and polarities of every kind and suggest an identity of the individual psyche in its furthest reaches with the universal creative principle and the totality of existence. This identity of the human being with the Divine is the ultimate secret that lies at the core of all great spiritual traditions.What moves this book into the status of a classic is that it is in substantial agreement with the world's great wisdom and spiritual traditions. This modern corroboration of the perennial philosophy is a stunning achievement and deserves publication to the widest audiences. -- Ken Wilber, author of Up from A Transpersonal View of Human Evoution and The Atman A Transpersonal View of Human DevelopmentThe Cosmic Game is the latest and best of Stanislav Grof's extraordinary contributions to our understanding of human consciousness. This book provides a coherent picture of how individual experience fits into universal patterns of consciousness -- Frances Vaughan, author of Shadows of the Seeing through Spiritual IllusionsPerhaps the most important of all his works, representing as it does an integration of the most profound of his clients' experiences and demonstrating a remarkable convergence with the deepest spiritual experiences reported across centuries and cultures. This convergence is a finding of the greatest significance. -- Roger Walsh, author of The Spirit of ShamanismGrof is the world's leading authority on the deep exploration of the mind and soul... This is a wonderful gift! -- Charles Tart, author of States of Consciousness and Scientific Studies of the Psychic RealmStanislav Grof, MD, is a psychiatrist with more than fifty years of experience in research of nonordinary states of consciousness. He has been Principal Investigator in a psychedelic research program at the Psychiatric Research Institute in Prague, Czechoslovakia; Chief of Psychiatric Research at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center; Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University; and Scholar-in-Residence at the Esalen Institute. He is currently Professor of Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies, conducts professional training programs in holotropic breathwork, and gives lectures and seminars worldwide. He is one of the founders and chief theoreticians of transpersonal psychology and the founding president of the International Transpersonal Association (ITA). In 2007, he was granted the prestigious Vision 97 award from the Vaclav and Dagmar Havel Foundation in Prague. He is the author and editor of many books, including The Adventure of Dimensions of Consciousness and New Perspectives in Psychotherapy and Inner Exploration; Ancient Wisdom and Modern Science; Beyond the Birth, Death, and Transcendence in Psychotherapy; Human Survival and Consciousness Evolution; and Psychology of the Lessons from Modern Consciousness Research; all published by SUNY Press.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
About the author
Stanislav Grof
103 books625 followersGrof is known for his early studies of LSD and its effects on the psyche—the field of psychedelic psychotherapy. Building on his observations while conducting LSD research and on Otto Rank's theory of birth trauma, Grof constructed a theoretical framework for pre- and perinatal psychology and transpersonal psychology in which LSD trips and other powerfully emotional experiences were mapped onto one's early fetal and neonatal experiences. Over time, this theory developed into an in-depth "cartography" of the deep human psyche.
Following the legal suppression of LSD use in the late 1960s, Grof went on to discover that many of these states of mind could be explored without drugs by using certain breathing techniques in a supportive environment. He continues this work today under the title "Holotropic Breathwork".
Grof received his M.D. from Charles University in Prague in 1957, and then completed his Ph.D. in Medicine at the Czechoslovakian Academy of Sciences in 1965, training as a Freudian psychoanalyst at this time. In 1967, he was invited as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, United States, and went on to become Chief of Psychiatric Research at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center where he worked with Walter Pahnke and Bill Richards among others. In 1973, Dr. Grof was invited to the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, and lived there until 1987 as a scholar-in-residence, developing his ideas.
Being the founding president of the International Transpersonal Association (founded in 1977), he went on to become distinguished adjunct faculty member of the Department of Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness at the California Institute of Integral Studies, a position he remains in today.
Grof was featured in the film Entheogen: Awakening the Divine Within, a 2006 documentary about rediscovering an enchanted cosmos in the modern world.
Following the legal suppression of LSD use in the late 1960s, Grof went on to discover that many of these states of mind could be explored without drugs by using certain breathing techniques in a supportive environment. He continues this work today under the title "Holotropic Breathwork".
Grof received his M.D. from Charles University in Prague in 1957, and then completed his Ph.D. in Medicine at the Czechoslovakian Academy of Sciences in 1965, training as a Freudian psychoanalyst at this time. In 1967, he was invited as an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, United States, and went on to become Chief of Psychiatric Research at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center where he worked with Walter Pahnke and Bill Richards among others. In 1973, Dr. Grof was invited to the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, and lived there until 1987 as a scholar-in-residence, developing his ideas.
Being the founding president of the International Transpersonal Association (founded in 1977), he went on to become distinguished adjunct faculty member of the Department of Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness at the California Institute of Integral Studies, a position he remains in today.
Grof was featured in the film Entheogen: Awakening the Divine Within, a 2006 documentary about rediscovering an enchanted cosmos in the modern world.
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August 2, 2009
Stanislav Grof is a Czech psychiatrist who has dedicated his career to the study of so-called non-ordinary states of consciousness—especially as induced by psychedelic drugs. Having seen over the years many references to this guy, I decided it was time to have a read.
I was disappointed. More—annoyed. Grof’s basic premise is that the universe is informed by cosmic intelligence and is not purely material as conventional science would have us believe. We need a paradigm shift, he says, to save the world. Our new worldview must incorporate holotropic (his term for non-ordinary states) insights, and our new worldway (I just made that up) must include holotropic experiences because these reveal the essential oneness of all beings and, in fact, of all creation. Good stuff, but standard New Age fare. Grof’s claim to fame is that he’s accumulated forty years of case material about transpersonal states. Does he present this valuable information in The Cosmic Game? Almost none of it. Instead, he summarizes; meaning he blahblahblahs the usual New Age words without presenting anything fresh. For those familiar with the hymn book he’s singing the same old songs. For those unfamiliar with it he’s singing in pidgen English. Our native tongue is Grof’s second language and it shows. He could use a good editor. (Where was the SUNY Press when he needed them?) His prose mixes two of America’s more miserable styles: New Age fuzz and academic bafflegab. Abstract, wordy, repetitious, clunky. He has some good things (though not original) to say, but says most of them badly.
An apparent exception on originality: the birth trauma. Grof analyzes at some length the various stages of human birth, insisting that the experience is a powerful influence on later personality and behavior—and that one is freed into full humanity (and transpersonal awareness) only by later reliving and psychologically integrating the trauma of birth. He attributes most human aggression to the unresolved rage experienced by the helpless fetus as it is squeezed and mauled and half-suffocated while being violently thrust from the floating paradise of the womb into the sharp-edged hell of the “real world.” How much of this Grof takes from Otto Rank, daddy of “the birth trauma,” I’m not sure; but the details are intriguing. I was reminded of the central idea of Jacques Lacan, the “French Freud,” that all desire derives from the human wish to return to (the womb of) wholeness with the mother, and that conversely humans are rendered unhappy, alienated from the world and their fellow humans, when they are torn from the motherly embrace.
The most annoying part of The Cosmic Game was potentially the most interesting. While on LSD during an experiment in Maryland, Grof traveled out-of-the-body to his parents’ apartment in then-Czechoslovakia. According to him he was there: he could see, feel, hear everything in the full Czech reality. Simultaneously, he knew he was engaged in an experiment back in Maryland. So he decided to test the validity of the OBE by altering something in the apartment, and later having his parents verify the change. (He didn’t specify what change he had in mind, but presumably he would move a painting from one wall to another or something of that sort.) Great idea! Definitive evidence! But did Grof do it? Nooooo—he chickened out. Afraid, according to him, that if the OBE did prove real, it would shake his psychological foundations. So he did nothing. No-thing. Furthermore, he commented that if presented with the same opportunity now—decades later—he would probably chicken out again. An incredible admission for a man who has dedicated his entire adult life to researching non-ordinary states. Incomprehensible! Unless, of course, he’s conning himself, and he really chickened out for the opposite reason—afraid the experiment would fail to verify that the OBE was really out-of-body, and thus weaken his assumptions about the nature of transpersonal reality. In either case, this researcher after truth is shouting to us, “I don’t really want to know the truth!” Or maybe he’s slyly telling us that he is not a seeker of truth at all, but of experience—or salvation.
The best thing in the book is an amusing anecdote. When Neil Armstrong dropped to the lunar surface in 1969 he delivered his famous line, “A small step for a man—a giant step for mankind.” Less well known is a second line he delivered while boarding the lunar module to return home: “Good luck, Mr. Gorski.” For many years Armstrong refused to tell anyone what this meant. Then the Gorskis died, and he fessed up. It seems that as a boy in Wapakoneta, Ohio, he was outside playing one day when his ball rolled into the yard of his neighbors the Gorskis. It stopped just outside their bedroom window. As young Armstrong bent down to pick it up he heard Mrs. Gorski say angrily, “Oral sex? You want oral sex? You’ll get oral sex the day the kid next door walks on the moon!”
This book probably deserves more credit than I’ve given it. But I found it tough to read and therefore annoying. Recommended only for the intensely interested New Ager and/or the masochist.
I was disappointed. More—annoyed. Grof’s basic premise is that the universe is informed by cosmic intelligence and is not purely material as conventional science would have us believe. We need a paradigm shift, he says, to save the world. Our new worldview must incorporate holotropic (his term for non-ordinary states) insights, and our new worldway (I just made that up) must include holotropic experiences because these reveal the essential oneness of all beings and, in fact, of all creation. Good stuff, but standard New Age fare. Grof’s claim to fame is that he’s accumulated forty years of case material about transpersonal states. Does he present this valuable information in The Cosmic Game? Almost none of it. Instead, he summarizes; meaning he blahblahblahs the usual New Age words without presenting anything fresh. For those familiar with the hymn book he’s singing the same old songs. For those unfamiliar with it he’s singing in pidgen English. Our native tongue is Grof’s second language and it shows. He could use a good editor. (Where was the SUNY Press when he needed them?) His prose mixes two of America’s more miserable styles: New Age fuzz and academic bafflegab. Abstract, wordy, repetitious, clunky. He has some good things (though not original) to say, but says most of them badly.
An apparent exception on originality: the birth trauma. Grof analyzes at some length the various stages of human birth, insisting that the experience is a powerful influence on later personality and behavior—and that one is freed into full humanity (and transpersonal awareness) only by later reliving and psychologically integrating the trauma of birth. He attributes most human aggression to the unresolved rage experienced by the helpless fetus as it is squeezed and mauled and half-suffocated while being violently thrust from the floating paradise of the womb into the sharp-edged hell of the “real world.” How much of this Grof takes from Otto Rank, daddy of “the birth trauma,” I’m not sure; but the details are intriguing. I was reminded of the central idea of Jacques Lacan, the “French Freud,” that all desire derives from the human wish to return to (the womb of) wholeness with the mother, and that conversely humans are rendered unhappy, alienated from the world and their fellow humans, when they are torn from the motherly embrace.
The most annoying part of The Cosmic Game was potentially the most interesting. While on LSD during an experiment in Maryland, Grof traveled out-of-the-body to his parents’ apartment in then-Czechoslovakia. According to him he was there: he could see, feel, hear everything in the full Czech reality. Simultaneously, he knew he was engaged in an experiment back in Maryland. So he decided to test the validity of the OBE by altering something in the apartment, and later having his parents verify the change. (He didn’t specify what change he had in mind, but presumably he would move a painting from one wall to another or something of that sort.) Great idea! Definitive evidence! But did Grof do it? Nooooo—he chickened out. Afraid, according to him, that if the OBE did prove real, it would shake his psychological foundations. So he did nothing. No-thing. Furthermore, he commented that if presented with the same opportunity now—decades later—he would probably chicken out again. An incredible admission for a man who has dedicated his entire adult life to researching non-ordinary states. Incomprehensible! Unless, of course, he’s conning himself, and he really chickened out for the opposite reason—afraid the experiment would fail to verify that the OBE was really out-of-body, and thus weaken his assumptions about the nature of transpersonal reality. In either case, this researcher after truth is shouting to us, “I don’t really want to know the truth!” Or maybe he’s slyly telling us that he is not a seeker of truth at all, but of experience—or salvation.
The best thing in the book is an amusing anecdote. When Neil Armstrong dropped to the lunar surface in 1969 he delivered his famous line, “A small step for a man—a giant step for mankind.” Less well known is a second line he delivered while boarding the lunar module to return home: “Good luck, Mr. Gorski.” For many years Armstrong refused to tell anyone what this meant. Then the Gorskis died, and he fessed up. It seems that as a boy in Wapakoneta, Ohio, he was outside playing one day when his ball rolled into the yard of his neighbors the Gorskis. It stopped just outside their bedroom window. As young Armstrong bent down to pick it up he heard Mrs. Gorski say angrily, “Oral sex? You want oral sex? You’ll get oral sex the day the kid next door walks on the moon!”
This book probably deserves more credit than I’ve given it. But I found it tough to read and therefore annoying. Recommended only for the intensely interested New Ager and/or the masochist.
September 8, 2018
A bit frustrating at the beginning of this book with some of the generic spirituality ideas, I guess, as I have seem them stated so many times, but it does in time get into specifics and connects it more with the transpersonal psychology, which is what I was reading this book for. And in these areas I found it a very valuable and interesting read.
A sober criticism of "materialistic science" as he calls it, from a person who wants to keep open our eyes to individual, independent experiences of transpersonal domains beyond the level of basic material reality as being potentially insightful in to a real domain of experience, and not just as no more than pathological delusions of one kind or another. He makes a good case for it. The flattened out secular world is taking meaning away from everything by reducing us to meat suits with an ever more restricted mental domain of freedom isolated inside our own heads, not always based on good scientific understanding of the specific real experiences, but based on a presumptive theoretical and metaphysical framework, that could easily be wrong in some areas.
A sober criticism of "materialistic science" as he calls it, from a person who wants to keep open our eyes to individual, independent experiences of transpersonal domains beyond the level of basic material reality as being potentially insightful in to a real domain of experience, and not just as no more than pathological delusions of one kind or another. He makes a good case for it. The flattened out secular world is taking meaning away from everything by reducing us to meat suits with an ever more restricted mental domain of freedom isolated inside our own heads, not always based on good scientific understanding of the specific real experiences, but based on a presumptive theoretical and metaphysical framework, that could easily be wrong in some areas.
July 17, 2012
While I generally like Grof's work, I'm starting to notice a distinct lack of variety from book to book as I read more of his writing. I still do like most of the theories presented in his work, but I feel as if this book was far more an opinion and speculation piece than I have come to expect out of some of the rest of his writings.
In this book, Grof goes over his theory of psychology that extends psychotherapy from the biographical level to the perinatal and transpersonal levels using a variety of "technologies of the sacred" that can include psychoactive substances, breathing techniques, and shamanic techniques that induce expanded states of consciousness that Grof refers to as Holotropic. This is all very exciting, but I've read it before, even down to most of the anecdotes. There is very little new material in this book that hasn't shown up in some of his other work.
Another thing that highly disappointed me was Grof's attack on the idea of evolution during his argument against materialistic monism as being the only valid reality. While I agree with his argument about materialistic monism, I think that the attack on the evolutionary process was unwarranted, unnecessary to support his argument, and gave a very clear picture of Grof's lack of understanding of the biological and evolutionary process. An infinite creator such as he posits could have created an infinite number of different realities that all exist simultaneously. In one of those, no matter how seemingly unlikely, there has to be one like ours where things just worked out the way they did. I think that this section of the book shows a serious lapse in judgment on Grof's part and I hope that he will correct the mistake in the future.
While I agree that there are certain things that science has become dogmatic about, I don't think evolution is one of them, nor does it need to be one of them for the idea of the type of divinity that Grof posits to exist to be present. Evolution is a beautiful process and I don't think anyone needs to scoff at it and go "scientists think that is ALL it was." ALL it was? It was amazing, and there is nothing small about the evolutionary process. I also think that these statements, without proper evaluation, may serve to alienate scientists who might otherwise be open to some of Grof's theories. The tone of the passage drips with the same arrogant ignorance that I have heard many fundamentalist religious people use, and I think that is a dangerous game to play. If you disagree with evolution, that is fine, but you had better be willing to back it up against the mountains of supporting evidence that it has gathered, and please don't use the no transitional specimens argument. It is one of the oldest and most ill informed arguments out there.
Altogether, this book left a bad taste in my mouth compared to some of the rest of Grof's work. I'm starting to sense a bit of personal stake at battling materialistic monism that is perhaps clouding his ability to realize that he is tipping too far one way in searching for the balance between science and spirituality. I don't think they need to be at odds, and Grof says as much himself, but then he goes and includes such a poorly thought out argument against evolution when it isn't necessary within the context of the rest of the book. I still like the book, because most of it is sound, but I would steer any curious minds to any book other than this one if they would like to read Grof.
In this book, Grof goes over his theory of psychology that extends psychotherapy from the biographical level to the perinatal and transpersonal levels using a variety of "technologies of the sacred" that can include psychoactive substances, breathing techniques, and shamanic techniques that induce expanded states of consciousness that Grof refers to as Holotropic. This is all very exciting, but I've read it before, even down to most of the anecdotes. There is very little new material in this book that hasn't shown up in some of his other work.
Another thing that highly disappointed me was Grof's attack on the idea of evolution during his argument against materialistic monism as being the only valid reality. While I agree with his argument about materialistic monism, I think that the attack on the evolutionary process was unwarranted, unnecessary to support his argument, and gave a very clear picture of Grof's lack of understanding of the biological and evolutionary process. An infinite creator such as he posits could have created an infinite number of different realities that all exist simultaneously. In one of those, no matter how seemingly unlikely, there has to be one like ours where things just worked out the way they did. I think that this section of the book shows a serious lapse in judgment on Grof's part and I hope that he will correct the mistake in the future.
While I agree that there are certain things that science has become dogmatic about, I don't think evolution is one of them, nor does it need to be one of them for the idea of the type of divinity that Grof posits to exist to be present. Evolution is a beautiful process and I don't think anyone needs to scoff at it and go "scientists think that is ALL it was." ALL it was? It was amazing, and there is nothing small about the evolutionary process. I also think that these statements, without proper evaluation, may serve to alienate scientists who might otherwise be open to some of Grof's theories. The tone of the passage drips with the same arrogant ignorance that I have heard many fundamentalist religious people use, and I think that is a dangerous game to play. If you disagree with evolution, that is fine, but you had better be willing to back it up against the mountains of supporting evidence that it has gathered, and please don't use the no transitional specimens argument. It is one of the oldest and most ill informed arguments out there.
Altogether, this book left a bad taste in my mouth compared to some of the rest of Grof's work. I'm starting to sense a bit of personal stake at battling materialistic monism that is perhaps clouding his ability to realize that he is tipping too far one way in searching for the balance between science and spirituality. I don't think they need to be at odds, and Grof says as much himself, but then he goes and includes such a poorly thought out argument against evolution when it isn't necessary within the context of the rest of the book. I still like the book, because most of it is sound, but I would steer any curious minds to any book other than this one if they would like to read Grof.
March 26, 2017
La mejor obra de Stanislav Grof. Imprescindible. Quien quiera dar un paseo por las maravillas que nos ofrece adentrarnos en las más modernas descripciones y acercamientos al mundo de la conciencia, la mente y el es espíritu... Éste es le libro. Si la neurosis a la que te lleva el materialismo científico y los ingenieros sociales comienza a embotar tu mente y ánimo.... No lo dudes. Léelo ya.
March 19, 2023
Grof's book is as exhilarating as it is unsettling, providing a comprehensive look into the realms of human consciousness through the lens of transpersonal psychology, psychedelic experiences, and other consciousness-expanding techniques. This work will both captivate and challenge the reader, forcing them to confront their own beliefs about reality and the nature of existence. But be warned, this book may bring you closer to understanding the absolute and the interconnectedness of all things—both immanent and transcendent—than you ever thought possible. Tread carefully, for once you embark on this journey, you may find yourself hesitant to return.
As you navigate the depths of this thought-provoking work, you may find yourself reluctant to grasp the answers to the questions you've been seeking. After all, the joy of seeking often lies in the journey rather than the destination. But the insights gained within these pages are nothing short of transformative, and you may find it impossible to ignore the implications of Grof's research.
The Cosmic Game, to me, delves into the idea that our world is being slowly infiltrated by higher-dimensional forces, reaching out to us through various means, such as psychedelics, to pull us towards a more enlightened future. As these ethereal "tentacles" begin to intertwine with our lives, we may find ourselves inching ever closer to a reality where the boundaries between dimensions begin to blur. It offers a captivating exploration of the intersection between immanence and transcendence, encouraging readers to delve deeper into the mysteries of our existence. It is a challenge to hold these seemingly paradoxical concepts simultaneously in our minds, to juxtapose the intrinsic and extrinsic, the cosmic and the personal, and observe the fascinating unity that emerges, like stereoscopical vision.
This unity can be seen in the way physicists describe the origins of the elements that constitute our bodies. Born from the hearts of stars, the atoms within us are a testament to our deep connection with the universe. We are, quite literally, made of stardust. This realization forces us to confront the interconnectedness of all things and the notion that the universe is experiencing itself through us.
Simultaneously, The Cosmic Game delves into the vast internal universe that each individual possesses, a realm of infinite potential and exploration. As we journey through our inner cosmos, we come to understand that our subjective experiences are just as essential to the fabric of reality as the physical world that surrounds us.
Grof challenges us to see beyond the dichotomy of immanence and transcendence, to embrace the inherent unity of all things. By doing so, we are invited to participate in the continuous unfolding of the universe, both within and beyond ourselves.
If all of this sounds nuts, then don't read it. There is, however, a potential future after reading x and y, where Stanislav Grof suddenly starts to make a lot of sense. It's a strange endeavor.
As you navigate the depths of this thought-provoking work, you may find yourself reluctant to grasp the answers to the questions you've been seeking. After all, the joy of seeking often lies in the journey rather than the destination. But the insights gained within these pages are nothing short of transformative, and you may find it impossible to ignore the implications of Grof's research.
The Cosmic Game, to me, delves into the idea that our world is being slowly infiltrated by higher-dimensional forces, reaching out to us through various means, such as psychedelics, to pull us towards a more enlightened future. As these ethereal "tentacles" begin to intertwine with our lives, we may find ourselves inching ever closer to a reality where the boundaries between dimensions begin to blur. It offers a captivating exploration of the intersection between immanence and transcendence, encouraging readers to delve deeper into the mysteries of our existence. It is a challenge to hold these seemingly paradoxical concepts simultaneously in our minds, to juxtapose the intrinsic and extrinsic, the cosmic and the personal, and observe the fascinating unity that emerges, like stereoscopical vision.
This unity can be seen in the way physicists describe the origins of the elements that constitute our bodies. Born from the hearts of stars, the atoms within us are a testament to our deep connection with the universe. We are, quite literally, made of stardust. This realization forces us to confront the interconnectedness of all things and the notion that the universe is experiencing itself through us.
Simultaneously, The Cosmic Game delves into the vast internal universe that each individual possesses, a realm of infinite potential and exploration. As we journey through our inner cosmos, we come to understand that our subjective experiences are just as essential to the fabric of reality as the physical world that surrounds us.
Grof challenges us to see beyond the dichotomy of immanence and transcendence, to embrace the inherent unity of all things. By doing so, we are invited to participate in the continuous unfolding of the universe, both within and beyond ourselves.
If all of this sounds nuts, then don't read it. There is, however, a potential future after reading x and y, where Stanislav Grof suddenly starts to make a lot of sense. It's a strange endeavor.
March 9, 2016
The Cosmic Game is likely the book most aligned with my own thinking about the cosmos and consciousness. The similarities between my thinking and Grof's don't suggest that we're necessarily right in our thinking; however, the resonance is profound. At times, it felt like the author was inside my own mind and soul. I found The Cosmic Game incredibly thorough, insightful, enjoyable and uplifting. Perhaps my favourite read ever :)
May 25, 2020
Great read and research by Stanislav Grof on psychedelics and holotropic states of consciousness. [reading time: 12h49m]
January 24, 2023
This book is a brilliant summary of where modern spirituality has evolved from a theoretical spirituality that was controlled by a priest class to an experiential spirituality of the individual. The author essentially argues that direct experiences are not only available to everyone but can be easily documented and proven.
May 10, 2020
This book simply is one of the greatest I have read on the subject matter. It can be a hard read for most and even harder for those not experienced in deep holotropic experiences but whatever I have experienced seems to match for the most part what Grof writes about. Grof's claim regarding lack of proof that consciousness is created in the brain disturbed me deeply awhile back but is no longer the case. Some experiences can be so world shattering that denial can no longer cut it. What is left is beautiful. Happy reading and if you cannot believe the man try not to write him off. Some things require firsthand experience before it can be considered plausible; until then it is easy to call bulls*it and this is perfectly normal considering the topic.
January 12, 2022
pretty deep account on what god is. I find it interesting that Grof states "in the end there is only 1 actor in the universe - God". God plays role of gorilla, Einstein, stars, planets, and all other objects, creatures.
The universal mind started it all as a game, cuz god needs to express himself - thru all creatures, objects, processes. This belief helps me thinking that there is no judgment of people!
Evil exists to make good, kind feel more intense. God is omnipresent, all encompassing, powerful being and it is in eternal state of 'boredom' and can't do anything but to entertain itself, know itself deeper.
Very deep book , but has lots of details about his personal life in US and Prague.
The universal mind started it all as a game, cuz god needs to express himself - thru all creatures, objects, processes. This belief helps me thinking that there is no judgment of people!
Evil exists to make good, kind feel more intense. God is omnipresent, all encompassing, powerful being and it is in eternal state of 'boredom' and can't do anything but to entertain itself, know itself deeper.
Very deep book , but has lots of details about his personal life in US and Prague.
August 28, 2023
It's amusing to hear the thoughts of Stanislav Grof on life in the Cosmos.
Grof considers the evidence for information of prior lives (reincarnation-type phenomena) to be adequately substantial that the role of science is in exploring models that fit said data, which some diatribes on the proper role of science.
Thus enters the question of this Cosmic Game that we are playing. There's a lot of focus on how holotropic states of consciousness should help to inform us as to the nature of the cosmos. These are states where one is aware of the unity of all beings.
The book focuses much more on the ongoing exploration of these questions than on sharing definitive conclusions and insights, with much social and historical commentary.
Grof considers the evidence for information of prior lives (reincarnation-type phenomena) to be adequately substantial that the role of science is in exploring models that fit said data, which some diatribes on the proper role of science.
Thus enters the question of this Cosmic Game that we are playing. There's a lot of focus on how holotropic states of consciousness should help to inform us as to the nature of the cosmos. These are states where one is aware of the unity of all beings.
The book focuses much more on the ongoing exploration of these questions than on sharing definitive conclusions and insights, with much social and historical commentary.
June 23, 2017
The Divine Drama of life is about the quest to rediscover and connect with the divine source. According to Grof, this is the both the source of creation and The Void. Creation out of nothing and nothing out of creation.
Our longings to be accepted, being with family, success, fame, and any other desire is all an illusion, and all of these longings are an attempt to return to unity with the source of creation.
Consciousness is not an epiphenomenon of the brain, the brain is more like a television set, and consciousness is the signal.
An incredible book summarizing the career of one of the pioneers of psychedelic research.
Our longings to be accepted, being with family, success, fame, and any other desire is all an illusion, and all of these longings are an attempt to return to unity with the source of creation.
Consciousness is not an epiphenomenon of the brain, the brain is more like a television set, and consciousness is the signal.
An incredible book summarizing the career of one of the pioneers of psychedelic research.
April 23, 2020
Highly speculative, strongly based on anecdotes, sometimes on factually wrong accounts (like the story of Mr. Gorsky) used to construct a manifesto for a psychedelic belief system. Can be a bit or miss, some parts spoke strongly to me, some left me very cold. I am a believer that reality is so fluid that we can only talk about it in terms of analogies and metaphors, and I found that this book tries to pin down reality to defined and confined descriptions.
Like all of grof's books tends to ramble on and on on the same topic.
Don't go into this book without experiencing altered states of consciousness or it would seem like pure fancy of the imagination.
Like all of grof's books tends to ramble on and on on the same topic.
Don't go into this book without experiencing altered states of consciousness or it would seem like pure fancy of the imagination.
October 27, 2019
I was a bit disappointed. While I must appreciate the writing style and the thoughts the author entertains, I've had increasing difficulty with his concepts being given out as proofs. Sorry to say, but number of people experiencing something beautiful, extraordinary and seemingly out of this world does not make it a proof of higher existence. It is our belief, not proof.
Furthermore, the few "proofs" in the book have been attacked as inaccurate and wishful thinking of the researchers tasked with the evidence gathering. More research needs to be done.
Furthermore, the few "proofs" in the book have been attacked as inaccurate and wishful thinking of the researchers tasked with the evidence gathering. More research needs to be done.
October 26, 2017
Dr Grof has proposed interesting concepts. However I do not think his ideas would be taken seriously by the scientific community at large. I think transpersonal psychology is a field worth being respected and developed, but the nature of these observations are mutually exclusive to Western Rationalism.
May 12, 2022
Solid introductory book. Provides a complete overview to altered states of consciousness questions such as “what is darkness/evil and why does it exist?” or “what does the science tell us about consciousness and what are its limits?” etc. Some parts (especially stories & examples) are redundant with other books by Stanislav Grof.
June 5, 2019
Brilliant!
This is a fascinating book, well written by a very intelligent and reputable researcher. I could hardly stop reading it! It can change of world view, specially if you are open minded but still in the materialistic monism that prevails in the scientific community.
This is a fascinating book, well written by a very intelligent and reputable researcher. I could hardly stop reading it! It can change of world view, specially if you are open minded but still in the materialistic monism that prevails in the scientific community.
November 9, 2021
One of Stanislav Grof's best books. This one is excellent if you're looking for a high-level ontological investigation. I recommend the 'Realms of the Human Unconscious' for his more empirical dissection of the human mind.
March 13, 2019
Exceptional book presenting both the main theories in the field as well as personal experiences and practical examples
January 2, 2020
Musím prostudovat víc k tématu, abych mohla hodnotit. Každopádně je téma hodně zajímavé a zaujalo mě.
April 29, 2021
If you didn't read it, read it!
July 22, 2021
Pretty interesting little book wandering around the borders of philosophy, sociology, psychiatry and psychology.
February 19, 2023
one day, we will look at holotropic research and its pioneers the same way we now look at top-tier physicists. Grof is one them and this book is one of his best works.
July 6, 2023
Great book! Sometimes a little difficult to understand but definitely coming back to some chapters to get help understanding holotropic states.
February 11, 2024
Good basic spiritual knowledge.
March 19, 2024
Easily one of the best books I've read.
January 25, 2014
A wonderful overview of Grof's works with non-ordinary states of being. His life's work has centered around the use of psychedelics and other forms of altered states for healing through going deep into our psyches to encounter the source of the wounds and engage them by reliving the past, or expanding our awareness to the non-material plane of existence.
Grof is very personal in his writing because he writes as one who has been on the journey and touched in his life through the exploration of altered states.
Grof is very personal in his writing because he writes as one who has been on the journey and touched in his life through the exploration of altered states.
February 24, 2008
In my opinion one of the greatest living psychologists. His contribution to our understanding of both spirituality within psychopathology and the deeper dynamics of transformation that can effect us all is unsurpassed. If you ever felt like your spiritual emergence was turning into an emergency then turn to Grof. This book is a summary of his philosophical and spiritual insights from over 40 years of research into the healing effects of non-ordinary states of consciousness. Awesome.
July 11, 2020
Un libro que recomiendo a quienes buscan un sentido a su espiritualidad, sin los límites de una cultura y religión... porque al final, la razón no es suficiente para simplificar aquello que va más allá de la existencia de todo lo que hay en el universo.
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