Entheogenic Esotericism
This article examines the significant influence on modern Western esotericism of practices involving the use of mind-altering substances, which have received little attention in the research literature to date. The study confirms that a number of the “transformative experiences” described by esoteric authors after the 1970s were caused by psychedelic drugs; but they were silenced by the “war on drugs” rhetoric that emerged in the United States after the countercultural events of the 1960s. The purpose of this article is to draw the attention of researchers to the significant phenomenon of “entheogenic esoterism” and to point out the need for its close study.