A visionary guide to safely using psilocybin mushrooms to tap in to the wisdom of Nature and reconnect humanity to the biosphere
- Explores the ecopsychological effects of wild psychedelic mushrooms, including enhanced biophilia, expanded awareness, eco-shamanic encounters, and access to the ancient wisdom that binds all life on Earth
- Examines the most recent scientific studies on psilocybin in the U.S. and U.K.
- Details the author's work to keep the use of psilocybin mushrooms legal in the U.K. and shows that an irrational rejection of scientific evidence underlies the harsh war against psychedelic states of consciousness
Psilocybin, the active ingredient found in psychedelic mushrooms, is an invaluable natural resource for spiritually revivifying the human psyche and reconnecting us to the biosphere and the vast intelligence of Nature. Interweaving the most recent scientific studies in the United States and Britain, more than 25 years of sacred mushroom exploration, and behind-the-scenes details on the political wars against psychedelics, Simon G. Powell offers a guide to safely navigating and maximizing the healing and spiritual potential of psilocybin.
Powell explores the ecopsychological effects of wild psychedelic mushrooms, including enhanced biophilia, expanded awareness, mystical visions, and eco-shamanic encounters. He reveals how the beings and otherworldly teachers common in psilocybin experiences are actually emissaries from our higher consciousness that emerge when the floodgates of perception have been opened. He shares vivid descriptions from many of his own psilocybin journeys and shows how the mushroom offers a path of return to the ancient wisdom binding all life on Earth, a wisdom conveyed through tutorial visions and higher modes of perception. Illustrating psilocybin's healthful properties, now acknowledged by mainstream science, Powell describes his activism in the fight to keep psilocybin mushroom use legal in the U.K. and shows that an irrational rejection of scientific evidence underlies the harsh war against psychedelic states of consciousness.
Laying the groundwork for a new relationship with our biosphere, Powell shows how the Earth's psychedelic medicines can reconnect us to the spirituality and wisdom of Nature and bring the human race back from the brink of ecological and existential disaster.

How psilocybin mushrooms facilitate a direct link to the wisdom of Nature and the meaning of life
- Examines the neurochemistry underlying the visionary psilocybin experience
- Explains how sacred mushrooms help restore our connection to the natural intelligence of Nature
- Reviews the research on psilocybin's ability to dispel anxiety in the terminally ill and its helpful effects on obsessive-compulsive disorder
It has been more than 50 years since sacred mushrooms were plucked from the shamanic backwaters of Mexico and presented to the modern world by R. Gordon Wasson. After sparking the psychedelic era of the 1960s, however, the divine mushroom returned underground from whence it mysteriously originated. Yet today, the mushroom's extraordinary influence is once again being felt by large numbers of people, due to the discovery of hundreds of wild psilocybin species growing across the globe.
In "The Psilocybin Solution," Simon G. Powell traces the history of the sacred psilocybin mushroom and discusses the shamanic visionary effects it can induce. Detailing how psilocybin acts as a profound enhancer of consciousness and reviewing the research performed by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Johns Hopkins University, and the Heffter Research Institute on psilocybin's ability to dispel anxiety in the terminally ill and its helpful effects on obsessive-compulsive disorder, he examines the neurochemistry, psychology, and spirituality underlying the visionary psilocybin experience, revealing the interface where physical brain and conscious mind meet. Showing that the existence of life and the functioning of mind are the result of a naturally intelligent, self-organizing Universe, he explains how sacred mushrooms provide a direct link to the wisdom of Nature and the meaning of life.

A groundbreaking interpretation of evolution as the work of Nature's intelligence
- Refutes the orthodox view of evolution as a mindless process driven by chance
- Explains why context is more important than mutation in evolutionary innovation
- Shows how, by recognizing Nature's innovative and creative powers, we can overcome our social and environmental challenges with a new green science of evolution
Darwin's theory of evolution is undoubtedly one of the most important scientific ideas of the modern age, explaining the existence of both life and consciousness without recourse to divine intervention. Yet how do we "interpret" evolution? How do we evaluate the ability of Nature to engineer something as exquisite as the genetic code or the human brain? Could it be that evolution is an intelligent process? Is Nature smart? According to most scientists, the answer is no. While humanity may be intelligent and purposeful, the natural processes that crafted us are deemed to be devoid of such attributes.
In a radical move away from orthodoxy, Simon G. Powell extends Darwin's vision by showing that evolution is not just about the survival of the fittest but rather the survival of clever and sensible behavior. Revealing the importance of the context in which things evolve, he explores the intelligent learning process behind natural selection. Rich with examples of the incredibly complex plants, animals, insects, and marine life designed by Nature--from the carnivorous Venus flytrap and the fungus-farming leafcutter ant to the symbiotic microbes found inside the common cow--he shows Nature as a whole to be a system of self-organizing intelligence in which life and consciousness were always destined to emerge. Examining the origins of life and the failure of artificial intelligence to compete with natural intelligence, he explains how our scientifically narrow-minded views on intelligence are now acting as a barrier to our own evolution. As Darwin's unfinished business comes to light and Nature's intelligence is embraced, we learn that Nature's agenda is not simply the replication of genetic matter but of expanding consciousness. By working with Nature's creative and innovative powers instead of against them, we can address today's social and environmental challenges with a new green science of evolution.