Why Carl Sagan Liked Smoking Marijuana
Here’s a short answer: serenity and insight, sensitivity and fellowship
We have known Carl Sagan as a luminary in the domains of cosmology, astronomy, and science communication in general. What many people do not know is that he was also fond of smoking marijuana. The major question here is: What exactly did he see or feel in smoking weed that other scientists we know (or at least I know) didn’t? Did Carl Sagan really just admit to getting high and finding it enlightening? Oh yes, he did, and how! Let’s dig into the narrative he left us (and I’ll leave a link to his own writing at the bottom of the story so you can check it our yourself), and you’re not just traversing the stars but exploring the intricate landscapes of the mind, all through the lens of a marijuana-induced high (feels kind of weird writing that).
Because when a man who spent his life demystifying the universe talks about his dalliances with cannabis, you know it’s going to be a trip worth taking.
Sagan’s cannabis confession isn’t your average “I tried it at a party” tale. No, this is a journey of a skeptical scientist becoming a believer, not in pseudoscience, but in the profound enhancements marijuana brought to his perception, creativity, and understanding. Initially dismissing it as a mere placebo, Sagan’s curiosity (because what is a scientist without it?) led him to a discovery that would change his views on the plant. “After about five or six unsuccessful attempts, however, it happened,” he recalls in his 1969 account for Marihuana Reconsidered. What followed were not just hallucinations of intricately detailed Volkswagens on ceilings, but a gateway to a world where art, music, and even potatoes seemed to reveal their secrets to him. In his own words he writes,
I was lying on my back in a friend’s living room idly examining the pattern of shadows on the ceiling cast by a potted plant (not cannabis!). I suddenly realized that I was examining an intricately detailed miniature Volkswagen, distinctly outlined by the shadows. I was very skeptical at this perception, and tried to find inconsistencies between Volkswagens and what I viewed on the ceiling.
But why did this matter to someone like Sagan, a man who had the universe at his fingertips? Because, perhaps, it wasn’t just about seeing pretty colors or laughing at the absurdity of a Sandeman sherry bottle character in the heart of a flame. It was about the “amplification of torpid sensibilities” and the “interesting effects” that cannabis induced. For Sagan, marijuana was a tool, not unlike his telescope, to explore the uncharted territories of the human mind and perception. He speaks of the cannabis experience enhancing his appreciation for art, music, and even food with the earnestness of a child discovering the world for the first time.
“The cannabis experience has greatly improved my appreciation for art,”
he admits, a confession that holds weight coming from a man who likely pondered over the origins of the universe while munching on an exceptionally textured potato. He adds,
The understanding of the intent of the artist which I can achieve when high sometimes carries over to when I’m down. This is one of many human frontiers which cannabis has helped me traverse. There also have been some art-related insights — I don’t know whether they are true or false, but they were fun to formulate.
And yet, Sagan’s musings aren’t without a critical lens. He’s quick to point out the absurdity of the legal and societal barriers surrounding cannabis use. “The illegality of cannabis is outrageous,” he distinctly mentions, an impediment to the exploration of a substance that could potentially foster “serenity and insight, sensitivity and fellowship.”
Sagan doesn’t just stop at questioning the status quo; he challenges it, urging us to reconsider our preconceived notions about marijuana.
But here’s where the skeptics might raise an eyebrow. Was Sagan merely justifying his own recreational use, or was there a deeper philosophical inquiry at play here? After all, this is a man who looked at the stars and saw more than just burning balls of gas; he saw the history of the universe. When he looked at cannabis, did he see just another plant, or did he perceive a tool for expanding the human consciousness, a way to break free from the shackles of conventional thinking?
So, here’s the takeaway for you (and for me too): Perhaps it’s the notion that exploration isn’t confined to the physical domains of space and time but extends to the vast landscapes of our inner worlds. Sagan’s foray into the effects of cannabis reminds me that the pursuit of knowledge and understanding knows no bounds. It’s a call to look beyond our biases and embrace the potential for growth, whether it comes from a telescope, a microscope, or, yes, even a joint.
Sagan’s 1969 essay for Marihuana Reconsidered (1971): http://marijuana-uses.com/mr-x/
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