Le ciel et l'enfer

by Aldous Huxley

Heaven and Hell

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Classics, Psychology, Religion, Essays, Literature

119 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and philosopher. His bibliography spans nearly 50 books, including non-fiction works, as well as essays, narratives, and poems.
Born into the prominent Huxley family, he graduated from Balliol College, Oxford, with a degree in English literature. Early in his career, he published short stories and poetry and edited the literary magazine Oxford Poetry, before going on to publish travel writing, satire, and screenplays. He spent the latter part of his life in the United States, living in Los Angeles from 1937 until his death. By the end of his life, Huxley was widely acknowledged as one of the foremost intellectuals of his time. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature nine times, and was elected Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature in 1962.
Huxley was a pacifist. He grew interested in philosophical mysticism, as well as universalism, addressing these subjects in his works such as The Perennial Philosophy (1945), which illustrates commonalities between Western and Eastern mysticism, and The Doors of Perception (1954), which interprets his own psychedelic experience with mescaline. In his most famous novel Brave New World (1932) and his final novel Island (1962), he presented his visions of dystopia and utopia, respectively.

Reviews

[Ayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

He really doesn't care for kangaroos.

[Internet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Accidentally deleted my review! Basically, this is nowhere near as good as The Doors of Perception. Pretty much the whole thing is Huxley's poorly thought out (and often seemingly arbitrary) art criticism. He makes very little effort to actually justify anything he says.

[cookielover · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hay fragmentos en los que propone ideas muy interesantes respecto el arte y la religión. Otros trozos son muy aburridos, es demasiado estático y da la sensación de que repite todo el rato las mismas frases.

[Cecelia Alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an odd work. Like The Doors of Perception, it is really more art criticism than anything else. Most of the main text is about how the heavenly is represented in visual art, with some hypothetical links to psychedelic drugs or other visionary states thrown in. Hell appears very little, and when it does show up in the last few pages, Huxley seems to suggest that it differs not in its visual representation but in polarity--the same thing, interpreted as unbearable or evil instead of interpreted blissfully. This is odd. It is kind of like reading about the difference between blue and green, getting quite a lot of detail about blue, and then a couple of pages suggesting that green looks the same.

I guess what Huxley is really trying to get at is something about the nature of the visionary in general, with heaven and hell as the options within that realm, but it's really not clear to me that his excursion here leads anywhere interesting.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much heaven, not enough hell. Also, preternatural antipodes.

3.5 stars — plenty of what I like in here but my expectations were probably too high based on how much I drooled over The Doors of Perception.

[Thomas Hodgson · Rating 5 out of 5]

read this last night instead of starting das kapital. I am somewhat ashamed but at least I enjoyed myself

[Khatie Gagnidze · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think the book clearly discusses about the importance of enlightened mind to see the world above the daily rational routine. Best book for painters or ones who love art. The thing that I appreciate about this Huxley's work, he talks about different cultures and views and combines them into one metaphysical concept

[Nicholas Tamouridis Poet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many themes are beautifully touched on in this eloquent mind-stretching novel. For example, art and the visionary quality of intrinsic significance, praeternatural intensity, the Absolute, Eternal namelessness and formlessness, the Void, and many other themes and mystical drug-induced experiences with further references to Heaven and Hell, History and Religion. A great read.

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

Continues on in the same theme as Doors of Perception. The appendices were the most interesting part of the book.

[Ramna Palma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Legal. Breve ensaio ainda sobre a mescalina, como em As Portas da Percepção, mas aqui Huxley faz muito mais referências a obras de arte de dezenas de artistas, desde Grécia antiga até o século XX. Estou classificando como 3 porque não conheço nem metade das obras e não podia pesquisá-las ao ler, então foi chato em certa medida. Até vou reacessar o livro e ver algumas obras na internet.

* Li As Portas da Percepção e essse em um único livro, da editora Biblioteca Azul, mas quis dar notas diferentes aqui.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

An essay describing Huxley's favorite characteristics of visionary experience - light, color, and the instrinsic state of being - and how gems, artwork, and religion can intersect with this psychedelic state of mind. The essay ends with a brief mention of visual "hell," specifically how negative mental state and the schizophrenic experience can transmute even a blissful vision into a hellish landscape.

The most enjoyable part of this essay was looking up the many artists that Huxley would reference (a large section of the essay, considering his response to artwork in Doors of Perception).

I hope I don't read the word antipode again for a long time.

[Alexey Gopachenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Impressive systematic analysis of Heavenly and Hellish sensorials across times, cultures, religions and artifacts from the perspective of psychedelic experience. Personal account(s) of latter is recommended)

[Liquidlasagna · Rating 2 out of 5]

a. Huxley drops mescaline into a pitcher of Kool-Aid
b. Huxley drinks Kool-Aid
c. Huxley flips out
d. he has an eka-dream state
e. bursting through a wall saying 'Oh Yeah!'
f. Huxley rants DReeMS ARE REEL!!!
g. khemical ersatz reality is The Matrix
h. Huxley writes book about making a Perpetual Motion Machine by drinking Mister Pibb and peeing on a miniature waterwheel due to Charles Nelson Reilly appearing at his door dressed in a wizard costume and uttering the magical formulae of weewee.

[Ruben · Rating 1 out of 5]

Al contrari que The Doors of Perception o Brave New World, aquest és un merdot. Anava de tripi fins les celles per escriure tanta bajanada.

[udu · Rating 3 out of 5]

partea in care face raportul dintre materiale si modul de perceptie al acestora intr-un plan superior al existentei este foarte foarte cool

[Bora · Rating 5 out of 5]

this and The Doors of Perception remain one of the best works I’ve ever read

[Braxton Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an accompaniment to “The Doors of Perception”, it’s a bit of a let down. I rarely give a read less than 5 stars- but this work comes across as a pedantic art review with mescaline infusions rather than any kind of revelatory work on consciousness.

It was interesting enough, but I don’t feel as though I learned anything new, really.

[sageypoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

hey still need that mescalin

[Jonathan McWilliams · Rating 2 out of 5]

References to art that i'm not familiar with had a dampening effect on how much enjoyment and understanding I could extract from these series of essays. I do think there was some genuinely interesting theories presented such as the relationship between various forms of art and religion and the "other world" of human transcendence. It would be funny if mysticism turned out to be linked to carbon dioxide levels in the blood. The biggest argument in this essay is really that humans desire a need to self-transcendence and that alcohol/opiates cause a lot of harm to the individual and society. Huxley is very pro mescaline and gives various reasons on why we should substitute one vehicle for transcendence for another.
In the "Drugs That Have Shaped Men's Mind" essay, Huxley accomplishes everything in "Heaven and Hell/Doors of Perception" sans art history references and vaugeries. If you pinched on time read that instead. Overall I think the essays are worth reading but just okay.

[Dru · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somewhat rambling attempt by Huxley to explain the source and meaning of visions, whether from drugs or other sources, including meditation, starvation, or even the simple staring at art works. That’s where he lost me...half the book attempts to convince me that artists made their art because it inspires visions when looked at long enough.

And, as in The Door of Perception, there is WAY too much pseudo-profound bullshit. Too many references to “The antipodes of the mind”, “Other Worlds”, “the autonomous otherness of nature” and other such meaningless drivel.

[War De · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evenals The Doors of Perception moet ik deze nog eens lezen. Het is voornamelijk een kritiek wat betreft kunst over hemel en hel en al het bovennatuurlijke wat daar tussenin zit. Toch genoeg tot nadenken: foto's en moderne belichting geven een compleet andere indruk van beeldende kunst; wij mensen voelen ons aangetrokken tot edelmetalen en zeldzame voorwerpen omdat deze doen denken aan de geometrische 'basis van materie' die je ziet door psychedelische drugs.

[Nathalia Fagundes · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the greatest essays I have ever read

[Brandon Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My signed first edition of this book is one of my greatest treasures.

[Guadaloupe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing!

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Sanity is a matter of degree ..." -Aldous Huxley, Heaven and Hell

[#DÏ4B7Ø Chinnamasta-Bhairav]

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To SEE a WORLD in a Grain of Sand,
And a HEAVEN in a Wild Flower,
Hold INFINITY in the palm of your hand
And ETERNITY in an Hour"
~ William Blake ~

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Form is Emptiness; Emptiness is form.
Form is not different than Emptiness;
Emptiness is not different than form
~ Heart Sutra ~

Like the ocean and its waves,
inseparable yet distinct

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" I and The Father are one,
I am The Truth,
The Life and The Path.”

Like a river flowing from its source,
connected and continuous

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Thy kingdom come.
Let the reign of divine
Truth, Life, and Love
be established in me,
and rule out of me all sin;
and may Thy Word
enrich the affections of all mankind

A mighty oak tree standing firm against the storm,
As sunlight scatters the shadows of night
A river nourishing the land it flows through

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[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had misplaced this book for a few weeks, only to rediscover it today in a very obvious place. I realized it was tracing the path of my unconscious. I only found the book after writing about exactly what Huxley wrote about, which somehow enabled me to crouch in the exact position that would allow me to find this book soon after. Our unconscious knows what we are doing even if the surface level seems to be blind luck.
Funny enough, as soon as I read the first pages the name 'Umberto Eco' popped into my mind - I don't believe he was mentioned and I have no idea who he is besides the fact that he is a historical name. I log into goodreads (the app) and the first thing I see is a quote from Umberto Eco.
So, something tells me this book represents the truth.

Huxley posits that Heaven and Hell are dimensions of experience which exist as underlying or overlaying layers on the 'real world' or ordinary experience. Some proof of this is the human attraction to bright gems and their expression of this in art and religious visions across all cultures; the same can be seen in a pebble when under the influence of psychedelic drugs. In essence, Heaven and Hell and the Ordinary are states seen from the eye of the visionary. This continues after death. Our consciousness enters into one of the three depending on our mood, and not our virtues.
The thing is, I have seen the kind of Heaven he is talking about through music, and at times randomly through dreams.
Early on, Huxley notes the idea that when put into a dark room with all of their senses cut off, the human mind will start to see and hear things that aren't there. This means that our minds are always seeking a state of imagination. The real world is then a stable dream that grounds our consciousness at the moment. I believe our consciousness is united to each other and the universe and is much bigger than we think, more powerful, and acts as the source of any visions of Heaven or Hell. Drugs don't have to be the sole gateway.
Beauty is all around us all the time. Everything is shining. We just have to wake up, listen to our innermost selves, and stay awake, which is a difficult but worthy balance.

I believe that very few people will understand this book as they are so attached to the real world. They will judge it by its words and not the feeling it emanates, because unfortunately they have never experienced Heaven on Earth - they see anyone or any idea that challenges their terrible real world as a threat, and attempt to label, dismiss, and avoid it.

In order to agree with this book, you'd have to either try psychedelics or open up your imagination through music or silence.

[Alan Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Huxley has a very unique manner of writing and interpreting experience, and this is a good follow on from Doors of Perception.

It’s fascinating that all cultures that have experimented with psychedelics have provided consistent feedback regarding the visions in their trips. The brightness and intensity of colour, the serenity of the light, the geometric shapes, the structures & civilisations, the landscapes, the symbolism and living beings as the most common. Yet, we don’t know why these are shared experiences. Huxley suggests they are NOT memories but a window into maybe a future or the memories of something else. These conclusions, of course, are entirely hypothetical. Of course, he also refers to how such visions extend beyond what is capable in dreams though - it must be noted - some dreamers have reported experiences of full on psychedelic trips. I’ve experienced it once and I woke up very quickly.

Huxley outlines the fascination between religion and desire for such visions...

“For men of the Middle Ages, it is evident, visionary experience was supremely valuable. So valuable, indeed, that they were ready to pay for it in hard-earned cash. In the twelfth century collecting-boxes were placed in the churches for the upkeep and installation of stained-glass windows. Sugger, the Abbot of St Denis, tells us that they were always full.”

Huxley frequently makes the connection with schizophrenics when describing the Mescalin experience, outlining the close line between heaven and hell (a little like the close line between love and hate). The serenity of heaven can quickly become too much of lasting for too long and the ‘observer’ has a desire to return to normality, the mundaneness of this plane. The intricate weaving of art and religious experience into the narrative is interesting, as there are obvious cross-over points in respect to man’s influences in art and theology, which are - Huxley suggests - intensified by the Mescalin experience.

[Jakub Zahumensky · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the book/essay is a fairly interesting read, I guess I was expecting something else. Huxley presents the idea that our minds are inhabited with some kind of creatures/things that are the equivalent to the Australian fauna for a European/American. He says that we can gain access to them in various way, including starvation hypnosis, and of course the use of substances such as mescaline and LSD. At a certain point I couldn't help but wonder - are these creatures/things manifestations of something real, some higher reality/truth, as Huxley seems to believe, or are they simply hallucinations of the deprived brain? Definitely an interesting read for anyone interested in the human mind and its altered states, but I personally found the Doors of Perception MUCH more interesting and thought-provoking.

Also, I was a bit disappointed that the aspect of hell was touched only marginally.

[Walter Schutjens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realise that this book often gets lower reviews due to its tendency to stray of off the more popular paths in psychology and philosophy. And this brings into question if everything he says is truthful, or based off of vague literature, ideas estranged by notions of aestheticism and beauty. Theories like, that there is another world of being yet to be explored in our subconscious that is propagated by "perfect forms and constructs" . Whether that may be true or not, the idea that Plato's theory of forms could be applied into a contemporary understanding of the workings of vision is surely a good read. What I love most about this book is that he takes this presupposition and extends it to matters of art, literature, history, and what the future could hold in store for our perception of beauty through transcendental visual experiences.