LSD and the Mind of the Universe: Diamonds from Heaven

A professor of religious studies meticulously documents his insights from 73 high-dose LSD sessions conducted over the course of 20 years • Chronicles, with unprecedented rigor, the author’s systematic journey into a unified field of consciousness that underlies all physical existence • Makes a powerful case for the value of psychedelically induced spiritual experience and discusses the challenge of integrating these experiences into everyday life • Shows how psychedelic experience can take you beyond self-transformation into collective transformation and help birth the future of humanity On November 24, 1979, Christopher M. Bache took the first step on what would become a life-changing journey. Drawing from his training as a philosopher of religion, Bache set out to explore his mind and the mind of the universe as deeply and systematically as possible--with the help of the psychedelic drug LSD. Following protocols established by Stanislav Grof, Bache’s 73 high-dose LSD sessions over the course of 20 years drew him into a deepening communion with cosmic consciousness. Journey alongside professor Bache as he touches the living intelligence of our universe--an intelligence that both embraced and crushed him--and demonstrates how direct experience of the divine can change your perspective on core issues in philosophy and religion. Chronicling his 73 sessions, the author reveals the spiral of death and rebirth that took him through the collective unconscious into the creative intelligence of the universe. Making a powerful case for the value of psychedelically induced spiritual experience, Bache shares his immersion in the fierce love and creative intent of the unified field of consciousness that underlies all physical existence. He describes the incalculable value of embracing the pain and suffering he encountered in his sessions and the challenges he faced integrating his experiences into his everyday life. His journey documents a shift from individual consciousness to collective consciousness, from archetypal reality to Divine Oneness and the Diamond Luminosity that lies outside cyclic existence. Pushing the boundaries of theory and practice, the author shows how psychedelic experience can take you beyond self-transformation into collective transformation, beyond the present into the future, revealing spirit and matter in perfect balance.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Foreword by Ervin Laszlo INTRODUCTION 73 Days ONE The Path of Temporary Immersion TWO Crossing the Boundary of Birth and Death THREE A Session Day FOUR The Ocean of Suffering FIVE Deep Time and the Soul SIX Initiation into the Universe SEVEN The Greater Real of Archetypal Reality EIGHT A Benediction of Blessings NINE The Birth of the Future Human TEN Diamond Luminosity ELEVEN Final Vision TWELVE Coming off the Mountain APPENDIX I What Dies and Is Reborn? APPENDIX II Pushing the Limits of Astrological Correspondence Reference List Index

About the Author :
Christopher M. Bache is professor emeritus in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Youngstown State University where he taught for 33 years. A Fellow at the Institute of Noetic Sciences, he is also adjunct faculty at the California Institute of Integral Studies and on the advisory board for Grof Transpersonal Training and the Grof Foundation. An award-winning teacher and international speaker, he is the author of 3 books and lives in Poland, Ohio.

Review :
“Once or twice in a century a book appears that has the explosive force of a supernova, breaking through the limitations of religion, science, and culture. This is such a book-- a gripping account of an utterly unique and extraordinary hero’s journey that opens our minds and hearts to a new vision of our universe and ourselves. A deeply moving template of our evolutionary journey.” “Chris Bache demonstrated tremendous courage to embark on the 73 highdose LSD sessions that form the core of this book. The insights and lessons he brought back are fascinating and profoundly relevant as we seek to answer fundamental questions of the meaning and purpose of our own lives. LSD and the Mind of the Universe: Diamonds from Heaven is a diamond from Chris!” “Chris Bache is an intrepid psychonaut whose 20-year odyssey has yielded an extraordinary harvest of luminous insights into the deeper structure of reality and the underlying dynamics of human existence. Prepare to be amazed, energized, purged, shattered, illuminated, and reborn by penetrating to the heart of this stunning revelation for our times.” “This most remarkable book fuses the critical reasoning of philosophy of religion and the epiphanies of mind that come from direct gnostic access to some of the deepest structures of the universe. That these impossible epiphanies were made possible by a most remarkable scientific discovery, LSD, which is now criminalized, only adds to the power of Chris’s remarkable revelation of who and what we really are.” “Every now and then a genuine pioneer arises in our midst. With modest yet profound intelligence, Chris Bache takes us with him on his courageous journey into the depth of the universe as a field of reality that transcends all our beliefs and consciousness. With him we experience the intense suffering and ecstasy of universal reality.” “This book is an extraordinarily rich journey, and Professor Bache’s cosmic insights represent a rare but profound gift to humanity. Highly recommended!” “We have extensive historical, cross-cultural, and experimental evidence that psychedelics can have significant therapeutic and religious benefits. Now we have a new kind of data: the careful reflections by an eminent philosopher and theologian of his own intensive and systematic psychedelic explorations into the farther reaches of human experience.” “A stunning and uplifting vision of the cosmos and humanity. This revelatory and transformative text is a genuine treasure; to read it is to open a portal into the vast and mysterious beauty of life.” “Chris Bache has traveled into largely uncharted realms to explore the further reaches of psychedelic experience and brought back hard-won insights into our world and our moment in history. His memoir will be a guidebook for generations to come. This is a gem of a book.” “A fascinating and inspiring work by an intrepid explorer. A rare glimpse into realms of consciousness and the transformation such journeys can bring, including a revelatory vision of an enlightened human future.” “Words can barely begin to describe the power and the importance of this book. If you open yourself to the paradigm-shattering wisdom of this remarkable book, you will be changed, and you will sense great possibilities for humanity. Essential reading for a species at the crossroads.” “Chris Bache’s controlled LSD experiences have been meticulously logged, analyzed, and synthesized in this extraordinary book, which greatly extends our known entheogenic cartography. A must-read for all those interested in psychedelics, psychology, and the furthest reaches of subjective experience.”