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Cover of The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley

The Doors of Perception

  • 79 pages · about 1 hour
  • First published 1954
  • 15 editions

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1 About this book

The Doors of Perception is an autobiographical book written by Aldous Huxley. Published in 1954, it elaborates on his psychedelic experience under the influence of mescaline in May 1953. Huxley recalls the insights he experienced, ranging from the "purely aesthetic" to "sacramental vision", and reflects on their philosophical and psychological implications. In 1956, he published Heaven and Hell, another essay which elaborates these reflections further. The two works have since often been published together as one book; the titles of both come from William Blake's 1793 book The Marriage of Heaven and Hell.

The Doors of Perception provoked strong reactions for its evaluation of psychedelic drugs as facilitators of mystical insight with great potential benefits for science, art, and religion.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Good for readers who want: short stories and a short read.

  • Hallucinogenic drugs
  • Vision
  • Short stories

2 About Aldous Huxley

1894–1963

Aldous Leonard Huxley ( AWL-dəs; 26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. His bibliography spans nearly 50 books, including non-fiction works, as well as essays, narratives and poems. Born into the prominent Huxley family, he graduated from Balliol College, Oxford, with a degree in English literature.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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