Per Mental Floss, Huxley was a big fan of mescaline, a hallucinogenic drug. So much so, that he wrote “The Doors of Perception,” which Biography describes as a series of essays, to enlighten others with his encounters. Huxley reportedly first became interested in mescaline due to his fascination with mysticism. The Guardian also suggests that his consumption of hallucinogens was partly due to his poor vision. Hero Magazine backed this statement up; with mescaline Huxley was able to see more vividly than he could in years. Although he has a pessimistic view on drugs in his famed novel “A Brave New World,” it seems that mescaline changed his approach.
Huxley first experimented with the drug in May, 1953. Ultimately, this led him to become a proponent of mescaline as he believed that it was the way to true enlightenment. Hero Magazine points out that he also mentions spirituality and philosophy in “The Doors of Perception,” In other words, mescaline allowed him to delve deeper into his consciousness.
A little over a decade later, The Vintage News writes that Morrison, who had read “The Doors of Perception,” was inspired by the work and thus, suggested it as the name for his new band. Huxley, however, had conjured this title from a quote given by writer William Blake in his book, “The Marriage of Heaven and Hell.”
