Stan Grof, M.D., Ph.D. is a psychiatrist with more than fifty years’ experience researching the healing and transformative potential of non-ordinary states of consciousness. His groundbreaking theories influenced the integration of Western science with his brilliant mapping of the transpersonal dimension. He is one of the founders and chief theoreticians of Transpersonal Psychology and received an Honorary Award for major contributions to and development of the field of Transpersonal Psychology from the Association for Transpersonal Psychology in 1993. Dr. Grof is also the founder of the International Transpersonal Association (ITA) and its past and current president. He has organized large international conferences throughout the world and continues to lecture and teach professional training programs in Holotropic Breathwork and transpersonal psychology. Currently, Dr. Grof is Professor of Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in the Department of Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness, and teaches at the Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara, CA.

Website: stanislavgrof.com

Some of Dr. Grof's many books:

Healing Our Deepest Wounds: The Holotropic Paradigm Shift

The Ultimate Journey: Consciousness and the Mystery of Death

When the Impossible Happens: Adventures in Non-Ordinary Reality

Holotropic Breathwork: A New Approach to Self-Exploration and Therapy (Suny Series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology)

The Holotropic Mind: The Three Levels of Human Consciousness and How They Shape Our Lives

Spiritual Emergency: When Personal Transformation Becomes a Crisis (New Consciousness Readers)

The Adventure of Self-Discovery: Dimensions of Consciousness and New Perspectives in Psychotherapy and Inner Exploration (SUNY Series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology)

LSD: Doorway to the Numinous: The Groundbreaking Psychedelic Research into Realms of the Human Unconscious

The Cosmic Game: Explorations of the Frontiers of Human Consciousness (S U N Y Series in Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology)

The Stormy Search for the Self: A Guide to Personal Growth through Transformational Crisis

Interview conducted 10/24/2015 at the Science and Nonduality Conference

Summary and transcript of this interview

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 - Introduction to Stan Groff's Work

00:02:30 - Discovering a Life-Changing Book and Career Path

00:04:49 - Albert's Mysterious Experiment

00:06:45 - Albert's Bicycle Trip: A Transformative Experience

00:08:28 - The Life-Changing Session with the Strobes

00:10:08 - The transformative power of LSD sessions

00:12:02 - The Perception of the World

00:14:20 - The Unconscious and Spontaneous Episodes

00:16:07 - Peeling Layers of the Psyche

00:18:19 - Exploring the Boundaries of Consciousness

00:19:57 - Rediscovering Ancient Maps of Consciousness

00:21:52 - Expanding the Cartography of the Psyche

00:23:33 - The Levels of the Birth Process

00:25:24 - Archetypal Images and the Birth Process

00:26:54 - The Importance of Asking God for Answers

00:29:23 - World Events and Collective Consciousness

00:31:04 - Transforming Humanity and Saving the Species

00:33:06 - Using Psychedelics for Therapeutic Purposes

00:34:28 - Using breathwork for integration

00:35:46 - Bringing up the Unconscious through Breathing

00:37:10 - The Beginning of a Powerful Session Journey

00:39:38 - Non-drug techniques for therapeutic outcomes

00:41:11 - The Power of Breathwork and Healing

00:42:42 - Subtle Physiology and the Energy Field

00:44:22 - The Experience of Chakras and Energy Flow

00:45:57 - Choosing the Right Psychedelic Experience

00:48:01 - The Challenge of Maintaining Consciousness in a Digital Age

00:50:08 - Transformations through meditative practices and psychedelics

00:51:46 - Meditation in Action

00:53:18 - Training in Holotropic Breathwork

00:55:02 - Building Bonds Through Honest Reflection