Philosophy For Our Times Consciousness and psychedelics: In conversation with Rupert Sheldrake
Nov 28, 2025
Rupert Sheldrake, a biologist renowned for his unconventional theories on consciousness and morphic resonance, joins philosopher Peter Sjöstedt-Hughes to explore the intriguing relationship between consciousness and psychedelics. They discuss ancient views of a conscious cosmos, Sheldrake's fascinating ideas on panpsychism, and the cultural significance of psychedelics in expanding awareness. Their conversation delves into personal experiences with substances like 5-MeO, the intersection of mystical traditions, and the resurgence of psychedelics in modern society.
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Conscious Heavens Reclaiming Old Views
- Rupert Sheldrake argues traditional cultures treated the sun and stars as conscious beings, a view largely abandoned by modern mechanistic science.
- Panpsychism reopens the possibility that consciousness need not be confined to brains and could extend to celestial bodies.
Psychedelics Map Ontologies Differently
- Peter Sjöstedt-Hughes links Spinoza's pantheism to psychedelics, especially 5-MeO, to probe cosmic unity phenomenologically.
- Rupert Sheldrake describes his own 5-MeO experience as resembling a Trinitarian, unitive state rather than strictly Spinozan unity.
A Turning Point With LSD In 1971
- Rupert Sheldrake recounts his first LSD experience in 1971 while at Cambridge, which broke his mechanistic worldview.
- The trip presented phenomena that lay outside the cultural map he had been taught, reshaping his perspective on consciousness.
