Anais Nin participates in an experiment involving taking the drug LSD under the supervision of a psychiatrist and in the presence of two other participants: a biologist and a painter. It was thought that a writer, Anais, could describe the experience more articulately than a previous experience described by another painter had been.
It took about 20 minutes to take effect, then everything started liquefying. Other images such as split selves and standing alone on another planet were experienced. At one point, everything turned to gold, including Anais.
After the experience, Anais contemplated whether these experiences were new, unfamiliar, unknown, and concluded that they were not; most of the images were either in her writings or the writings of other authors. She determined that the drug did not reveal a new world but it did shut out the interferences of the real, known world so that one could be alone with one's dreams, fantasies, and memories, which made it easier to gain access to the subconscious life.
The bottom line for Anais is that drugs provide a passive experience whereas real living provides an active experience, which is preferred so long as we have courage to act out our dreams.
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