Origin of Term
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή (psyche, "mind") and δηλείν (delein, "to manifest"), hence "mind-manifesting", the implication being that psychedelics can access and develop unused potentials of the human mind. The word was coined in 1957 by British psychiatrist, Humphrey Osmond, the misspelling loathed by American ethnobotanist, Richard Schultes, but championed by the American psychologist, Timothy Leary.
Aldous Huxley had suggested to Humphrey Osmond in 1957 his own coinage phanerothymic (Greek "phanero-" visible + Greek "thymic" spiritual, thus "visible spirituality"). Recently, the term entheogenic has come into use to denote the use of psychedelic drugs in a positive and non-recreational context.
Read more about this topic: Psychedelic Drug
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