William Blake and the Psychedelic Renaissance. Seven facets of cultural transformation

Mark Vernon - Talks and Thoughts

William Blake is famous for his phrase "cleansing the doors of perception". But he has much, much more to offer the renewed interest in psychedelics underway in our times.
He responds to the need for a social and spiritual setting, widely recognised by those investigating psychedelics now, so that personal experiences can be not only beneficial for individuals but transformative in cultural.
Here, I discuss facets of his insight that suggest seven elements in which the psychedelic experience overlaps with cultural need.
1. Learning that imagination is truth-bearing
2. Realising that inner freedom is crucial
3. Perceiving that consciousness is basic
4. Recognising that healing is collective
5. Experiencing death as a portal
6. Understanding that vision matters more than morality
7. Awakening to the malleability of time.