"Mystical experience seems to be as old as humankind, forming the core of many if not all of the great religious traditions. Some ancient cultures, such as classical Greece, and some contemporary small-scale cultures, have made use of psychoactive plants and chemicals to occasion such experiences. But this is the first scientific demonstration in 40 years, and the most rigorous ever, that profound mystical states can be produced safely in the laboratory. The potential is great."
-Huston Smith, holder of 12 honorary degrees, one of the great authorities on comparative religion.
(Q&A page http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2006/GriffithspsilocybinQ)
"People have long sought meaning and significance in their
lives through a variety of spiritual practices including
prayer, fasting, chanting, solitude, and meditation. Historically,
some of these practices have included the use of
certain psychoactive plants. A common theme of these
experiences, with or without the aid of psychoactive agents,
has been to free oneself of the bounds of everyday
perception and thought in a search for universal truths and
enlightenment. To a large extent, this type of subjective and
uniquely human experience has enjoyed little credibility in
the mainstream scientific world and, thus, has been given
little scientific attention. However, it may be time now to
recognize these extraordinary subjective experiences, even
if they are, at present, not directly verifiable by objective
measures and even if they sometimes involve claims about
ultimate realities that lie outside the purview of science."
-Harriet de Wit, Ph.D. Professor of Psychiatry at University of Chicago
(Psychopharmacology editorial http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2006/GriffithsCommentaries.pdf)
Hopkinsin sivu tiedote tutkimuksesta http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Press_releases/2006/07_11_06.html
(alhaalta löytyy linkki myös itse tutkimuspaperiin)