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Breaking Open the Head: A Chemical Adventure

daniel pinchbeck

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A journey from cynicism to shamanism by a young US writer. Daniel Pinchbeck was an essentially sane and rational person, living the life of a sophisticated urbanite. But one disenchanted day he felt he'd exhausted the shallow aspirations of the contemporary scene. So he went on a quest. And he went all the to west Africa to test Iboga, a psychedelic herb which can cause such profound insight that one dose equals 20 years of psychoanalysis; to the Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert, where cutting-edge technology meets radical self-exploration; to Mexico and to the Amazon, where shamanic traditions are practised daily. Sceptical but curious, following in the footsteps of Aldous Huxley and Terence McKenna, Daniel Pinchbeck guides his readers on an astonishing journey around the world and through the mind. Are you brave enough to suspend your postmodern cynicism and break open the head with him?

338 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,2002

This edition

Format
338 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 2004 by Flamingo
ISBN
9780007149612
ASIN
0007149611
Language
English

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daniel pinchbeck

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Rating(4 / 5.0, 100 votes)
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Usui_007
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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Got the feeling the author rushed a bit in the interpretations of Benjamin; the burning man chapters subtract seriousness from an otherwise fascinating analysis of how certain sub cultures interpret the use of psychedelics. The analysis is interesting and keeps alive the question of why these substances remain taboo if they help inner contemplation without being poisonous
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hotline_Miami
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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This book takes you through several interesting anecdotes about psychedelics as well as giving a minor description of the various types of psychedelics. Super interesting stories. There is a chapter towards the end where the author takes a step back to warn the reader about the dangers of dabbling with unearned wisdom. Gave me a semi.
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loveme_nat
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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More than what it says on the fly leaf. This is about e writer’s journeys into psychedelics and shamanism, yes, but it weaves in deep observations of social critique, political and economic theory and human history, and the nature of reality… really good. 4.5
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4tizzim0s
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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almost done, dont want to be tho, becz this book raises so many interesting opinions of the flat rational world we westerners live in as compared to the world where everything is alive and the plants can show us many other worlds or at least understanding. dont want to drop acid now but do want to hold still in a forest and listen...the dalai lama says that when all the paved roads meet, the world will end, as we ashphalt ourselves away from any touch of nature...
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mcjazzman32
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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Pinchbeck is the embodiment of a modern Huxley, Castaneda and McKenna. His descriptions are believable, honest and valuable. Anyone with a remote interest in shamanism will enjoy this book. I will say that every once in a while, his ideas seem to carry themselves away and take him along. Keep that in mind, but for the most part, this is an excellent book.
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_youki
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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An all time favourite. Pinchbeck brings his most erudite prose and deep thinking to a year of losing his mind. I refer to him often and will likely think about it forever.
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_hehe_
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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p37. Ibogaine in breaking addiction: One theory is that ibogaine restores a balance between the brains two hemispheres. Dr. Carl Anderson of McLean Hospital, Virginia believes that people prone to addiction suffer from an imbalance between the left and right hemispheres. The conventional model is that our "rational" processes-language, logic, scientific thoughts- spring from the left hemisphere, while the right hemisphere controls the "irrational" processes-emotions, intuitions

p196. psychedelics revealed to Terrence McKenna "a curious literary quality running across the surface of existence.".... the world is made out of language, woven from myth-in other words, an objectified expression of consciousness.

p228. "The last best hope for dissolving the steep walls of cultural inflexibility that appears to be channeling us toward true ruin is a renewed shamanism"-McKenna

p236. Alcohol, for McKenna, is the "dominator drug par excellence." "nor other drug has had such a prolonged detrimental effect of human beings, " he writes. "Alcohol and slavery often went hand in hand across the economic landscape... A 'besotted underclass' was a permanent fixture of mercantile society whether in the home countries or the colonies." The opposite of hallucinogenic openness, alcohol leads to a narronwing of conscsiounesss, a "condition of efo obesession and inability to resist the drive toward immediate gratification." repression of women, frat rapes, and wife beatings are typical outcomes of the alcoholic lifestyle.
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mouthpiece
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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This book is eloquently written and is something that those just beginning to dabble in the subject area will enjoy. One thing that I do admire about Pinchbeck's book is that it does not shy away from the darker side of psychedelics - a very honest and insightful personal journey. However, for those more versed in the subject area I would more highly recommend the books that he has listed in his acknowledgments!
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