Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search results

Grof, Stanislav, 1931-

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: July 1, 1931-

Biographical Information

Stanislav (Stan) Grof, noted psychiatrist, author, consciousness researcher, and pioneer of transpersonal psychology, was born on July 1, 1931 in Prague, Czechoslovakia to Stanislav (a chemical engineer) and Maria Petnik Grof. Heavily influenced by the works of Freud early in his studies, Grof was inspired to become a psychiatrist and earned an M.D. at the Charles University School of Medicine in Czechoslovakia in 1956, and a Ph.D. at the Czechoslovakian Academy of Sciences in 1965. Dr. Grof’s interest in the clinical use of psychedelic substances was spurred in the 1960s when the Sandoz pharmaceutical company approached the Psychiatric Research Institute in Prague, requesting that studies be conducted on LSD-25 in order to ascertain whether or not the substance had therapeutic properties.  Grof subsequently volunteered to participate in a research program which explored LSD as a tool for experiential training, allowing psychiatrists and psychologists to experience the “inner-world” of psychotic patients.  He eventually became principal investigator of this program, and has gone on to devote his career to examining the therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances. In 1967, he was invited to Johns Hopkins University as a research scientist, and in 1969 continued on at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center where he served as Chief of Psychiatric Research and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry.  In 1973, Grof became a scholar-in-residence at the Esalen Institute, a non-profit organization devoted to the exploration of human potential in Big Sur, California.  While there, he authored books, lectured, and developed Holotropic Breathwork, an innovative form of experiential psychotherapy, with his wife Christina. Dr. Grof is also the founder and president of the International Transpersonal Association (ITA), and has organized major international conferences on transpersonal psychology. Grof’s major fields of research interest include therapeutic and heuristic aspects of non-ordinary states of consciousness, the use of psychedelics and non-drug techniques in psychotherapy, alternative approaches to psychoses, spiritual emergency and treatment of transpersonal crises, biology, brain research, and consciousness studies.  He also maintains interests in other non-ordinary states of consciousness such as shamanism, Eastern spiritual systems, mysticism, the rites of passage of aboriginal cultures, and near-death experiences. Dr. Grof is a Professor of Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in the Department of Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness, and also teaches in the Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara, CA. In October 2007, Dr. Grof received a VISION 97 award granted by the Foundation of Dagmar and Vaclav Havel in Prague.  The foundation’s mission supports cultural and social projects with the potential to bring meaningful change to the future. Dr. Grof has written extensively on LSD and its use in psychotherapy and about other methods and types of psycho-spiritual work.

Chronology

July 1, 1931
Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia; son of Stanislav Grof and Maria Petnik Grof.
1950-1956
Student at the Charles University School of Medicine, Prague, Czechoslovakia.
1954-1956
Participation in clinical LSD research and the study of artistic expression of psychiatric patients.
1956-1959
Psychiatric residency at the State Mental Hospital in Kosmonosy, near Prague.
1957-1960
Participating researcher in a multidimensional dynamic study of psychedelic drugs and anticholinergic delirogens in the Research Institute in Prague.
1959-1960
Outpatient Psychiatrist at the Psychiatric Clinic of the National Institute of Health, Prague.
1961-1967
Principle Investigator in a psychedelic research program at Psychiatric Research Institute, Prague, Czechoslovakia. Also involved in a team studying the mechanisms of psychogenic disorders and psychotherapy.
1965
Completes postgraduate training at the Czecho-slovakian Academy of Science, recieves Ph.D. degree (Doctor of Philosophy in Medicine).
1967-1969
Clinical and research fellow, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD.
1967-1973
Chief of Psychiatric Research, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Catonsville, MD. Assistant professor of Psychiatry at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD.
1973-1987
Scholar-in-residence at the Esalan Institute in Big Sur, CA.
1987-
Self-employed, conducting professional training in Holotropic Breathwork and transpersonal psychology, lecturing, and writing.
1994-
Professor of Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), Institute of Psychology, Cosmology, and Consciousness, San Francisco, CA.

Found in 30 Collections and/or Records:

Academic writings, 1963 - 1971

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 2
Identifier: MSP 68, File 2
Scope and Contents From the Collection: The William Richards Collection on Walter Pahnke (1952-1972; 0.2 cubic feet) contains materials collected and donated by William Richards that document the life and work of his close colleague, Walter Pahnke. It includes some of Pahnke's important academic writings, copies of personal manuscripts, some biographical information, writings by his wife (Eva Sontum Pahnke), and materials memorializing his untimely passing.
Dates: 1963 - 1971

Articles, 1966 - 1980

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 2
Identifier: MSP 67, File 2
Scope and Contents This file contains "Implications of LSD and Experimental Mysticism" by Walter N. Pahnke and William A. Richards, "LSD-Assisted Psychotherapy with Terminal Cancer Patients" by Walter H. Pahnke, M.D., Ph.D. Albert A. Kurland, M.D., Louis E. Goodman, M.D., and William A. Richards, S.T.M. (Psychology), "Psychedelic Drug-Assisted Psychotherapy with Persons Suffering from Terminal Cancer" by William A. Richards, "DPT as an Adjunct in Brief Psychotherapy with Cancer Patients" by William A. Richards,...
Dates: 1966 - 1980

Correspondence, 1979 - 2014

 Series — Box: 22, Folder: 1
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 5
Scope and Contents Contains Grof's correspondence concerning the Esalen Institute and the screenplay Brainstorm. The correspondence also documents Grof's achievements, as well as a letter from the Czech president. This series includes an email between Michael Horowitz and Ralph Metzner and a letter to Dr. Willis Harman from and signed by Albert Hofmann.
Dates: 1979 - 2014

"Dipropltyptamine (DPT) as an Adjunct in the Counseling of Cancer Patients", undated

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 1
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 1, Sub-Series 1, File 5
Scope and Contents Co-authored with William A. Richards, John C. Rhead, Louis E. Goodman, Francesco DiLeo, and Albert A. Kurland. Signature on first page.
Dates: undated

"DPT as an Adjunct in Psychotherapy of Alcoholics," International Pharmacopsychiatry, Vol. 8, 1973

 Item — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 1, Sub-Series 2, Item 17
Scope and Contents Co-authored with R.A. Soskin, W.A. Richards and A.A. Kurland. Three copies, one in Box 1 and two in Box 20.
Dates: 1973

Engel, Kenneth S. R. New Cartographies of the Mind: Stanislav Grof. (typed manuscript), undated

 Item — Box: 4, Folder: 2
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 3, Sub-Series 2, File 5, Item 25
Scope and Contents Minor handwritten notes and edits throughout.
Dates: undated

Gormsen, Klaus and Jorgen Lumbye. A Comparative Study of Stanislav Grof's and L. Ron Hubard's Models of Consciousness. (photocopy), undated

 Item — Box: 5, Folder: 1
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 3, Sub-Series 2, File 7, Item 27
Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Includes published and unpublished preprints, reprints, abstracts, and drafts of articles on the use of psychotropic substances as a therapeutic agent. It also includes book chapters, letters to the editor, and conference presentations.
Dates: undated

Grof, Stanislav et al. "DPT as an Adjunct in Psychotherapy of Alcoholics." Presented at the Collegium International Neuro-Psychopharmacologicum, Copenhagen, Denmark, August 14 - 17, 1972

 Item — Box: 6, Folder: 3
Identifier: MSP 70, Series 4, File 3, Item 5
Scope and Contents From the Series: Contains manuscripts and undated manuscripts documenting Savage’s research, as well as miscellaneous manuscripts possibly created by Savage, his patients, or his colleagues. Materials are arranged chronologically when possible. Undated materials are arranged alphabetically by the author’s last name.
Dates: August 14 - 17, 1972

Stanislav Grof papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSP 1
Scope and Contents Papers and related materials documenting the life and career and of psychiatrist and author Dr. Stanislav Grof (Stan Grof). The papers consist primarily of published research articles and clippings discussing the therapeutic effects of psychoactive substances, as well as some first-hand accounts of transcendental experiences.
Dates: 1931 - 2014; Majority of material found within 1950 - 1980

Kurland, Albert A., Walter N. Pahnke, Sanford Unger, Charles Savage, and Stanislav Grof. "Psychedelic LSD Research," Psychotropic Drugs in the Year 2000. (photocopy), 1971

 Item — Box: 20, Folder: 3
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 3, Sub-Series 2, File 11, Item 44
Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Includes published and unpublished preprints, reprints, abstracts, and drafts of articles on the use of psychotropic substances as a therapeutic agent. It also includes book chapters, letters to the editor, and conference presentations.
Dates: 1971

"LSD-Assisted Psychotherapy and the Human Encounter with Death," The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, Vol. 2, 1972

 Item — Box: 1, Folder: 2
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 1, Sub-Series 2, Item 52

"LSD-Assisted Psychotherapy in Patients with Terminal Cancer," International Pharmacopsychiatry. 8. (reprint), 1973

 Item — Box: 20, Folder: 1
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 1, Sub-Series 2, Item 28
Scope and Contents Co-authored with L.E. Goodman, W.A. Richards, and A.A. Kurland. Two copies.
Dates: 1973

Ralph Metzner collection

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSP 56
Scope and Contents The Ralph Metzner collection of articles documents the progression of psychoactive substance research, legality issues, and the religious or spiritual aspects of its use. These articles were not solely written by Ralph Metzner, but they instead represent the type of work that influenced Metzner during his career. These article files do not contain the personal papers of Ralph Metzner. Instead, they provide insight into the diverse sources that Metzner sampled while conducting his research....
Dates: 1958 - 2008; Majority of material found within 1960 - 1990

Razmgar, David. "Spiritual madness and its many definitions, according to Hafiz, Western psychology and Stanislav Grof." (print out), Spring 2009

 Item — Box: 20, Folder: 4
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 3, Sub-Series 2, File 17, Item 3
Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Includes published and unpublished preprints, reprints, abstracts, and drafts of articles on the use of psychotropic substances as a therapeutic agent. It also includes book chapters, letters to the editor, and conference presentations.
Dates: Spring 2009

Thomas B. Roberts papers

 Collection — Box: 1
Identifier: MSP 71
Scope and Contents The Thomas B. Roberts papers documents his research in psychoactive substances through articles, clippings, correspondence, conference materials, and a course syllabus.
Dates: 1967-2006

Soskin, Robert A., Stanislav Grof, and William A. Richards. "Low Doses of Dipropyltryptamine in Psychotherapy," Arch. Gen. Psychiatry. Vol. 28 (reprint), June 1973

 Item — Box: 20, Folder: 5
Identifier: MSP 1, Series 3, Sub-Series 2, File 18, Item 85
Scope and Contents From the Sub-Series: Includes published and unpublished preprints, reprints, abstracts, and drafts of articles on the use of psychotropic substances as a therapeutic agent. It also includes book chapters, letters to the editor, and conference presentations.
Dates: June 1973

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 18

 Unprocessed — Box: 1
Identifier: 20130319

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 19

 Unprocessed — Box: Box 1
Identifier: 20130801
Dates: circa 1985 - 2012

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 20

 Unprocessed — Box: Box 1
Identifier: 20131204.1
Dates: circa 1999 - 2010

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 21

 Unprocessed — Box: Box 1
Identifier: 20131123.1

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 22

 Unprocessed — Box: Box 1
Identifier: 20131225

Stanislav Grof papers, addition 23

 Unprocessed — Box: Box 1
Identifier: 20140424
Dates: circa 1931 - 2014