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Here are all those groovy terms that hippies use and what they mean. If you have something to add to this list, please let us know.  You can search this page by going to Edit, Find on your menu bar or Cntl-F, or just click on the letter below.

Also check out Famous Hippy Quotes

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I Love You Alice B. Toklas: 1968 Peter Sellers movie where he is a lawyer who falls for a hippie girl who teaches him to mellow out with the help of some marijuana brownies.

If it feels good do it!: Don't be inhibited, explore what life has in store for you.

IFIF: International Foundation for Internal Freedom.  Founded by Timothy Leary to promote LSD research & publish The Psychedelic Review. 

In:  Whatever's trendy at the moment.  "Beatle boots and granny glasses are really in now!"

Incense:  Incense has been used for millennia to provide a ritual cleansing of a room for religious services.  Temples and churches are fond of it.  Supposedly it drives out the "evil spirits".  Most of the incense we use in the west comes from India.  When the hippies got going they would buy incense to mask the smell of marijuana.  Incense can also assist in meditation by giving your space an exotic feel.  Since incense comes in a wonderful assortment of scents you can just use it to add a nice fragrance to your house.

Jackson State:  Two student protesters at Jackson State University (Mississippi) were shot and killed by state police on May 15th, 1970.

Jefferson Airplane: Another San Francisco band that took off on the Summer of Love. Marty Balin, Grace Slick, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Cassady were band members. After Balin left it became the Jefferson Starship.

Jeanette Rankin Brigade: A coalition of women's peace groups, who demonstrated against the Vietnam war at the opening of Congress in 1968.  5000 women attended.

Jesus Freaks: A movement of people who just discovered Jesus and Christianity.  They would get together with signs and banners to promote Jesus.  Some hippies went this route.  Often they were 'false' hippies, who used the hip image to proselytize Christianity.  Hippies who were Christians sincerely were also Jesus Freaks...and were cool.

Joe Cocker sang the theme song of "The Wonder Years" - a cover of the Beatles tune "With a little help from my friends" off the famous Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band record.  He sang a super version of that song at Woodstock.

Joint: A marijuana cigarette.

Jonesing: When you want something real bad especially drugs. 

Joneser: Someone who wants drugs real bad that he'll rip you off if he has to.

Joplin, Janis: Blues singer extraordinaire.  Janis could belt out the blues like no one else.  Her performances at The Monterey Pop Festival and Woodstock were legendary.  With Big Brother and the Holding Company they blew everyone away with their psychedelic blues.  Cheap Thrills, their debut album featured a classic cover by Robert Crumb and the hits Summertime and Ball and Chain.  Janis' grief stricken life came to an end with a drug overdose in 1970.

Junkie: A heroin addict.

Karma: Indian term for fate. You reap what you sow. Our condition in this life is a result of the action we made in past lives.  We reincarnate until we free ourselves from our Karmic indebtedness.

Kent State: University where four students were shot and killed by National Guardsmen during a protest on May 4, 1970.  There is a monument to the students on the Kent State Campus which is still incomplete. Student activists still have an annual memorial gathering on the day of the shootings.

Kerouac, Jack: Beat author wrote "On the Road" and The Dharma Bums, about the freedom of living each day as it comes. He inspired a whole generation to get backpacks and take to the road.  His beat friends Allen Ginsberg and Neal Cassady appear in his works.  Kerouac coined the term "Beat Generation" to describe his friends and the phenomenon.

Key: A kilo of marijuana or other drug.

Kesey, Ken: Famous author, Merry Prankster, Ken wrote: Sometimes a Great Notion and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. His famous Acid Tests were the first LSD parties with music and light shows.  His legendary 1964 psychedelic cross country trip in a brightly painted bus inspired many hippies to do the same.

Kicks: Something you do for fun.  Something enjoyable.

Kif: The Moroccan term for marijuana that hasn't been processed into hashish.  Often mixed with tobacco and smoked in a sipsi. 

Killer: Something really great, powerful, or impressive.  "That was sure some killer weed we smoked."

King, Martin Luther: Leader of the Civil Rights movement, Dr. King was a firm believer in non-violent protest to achieve the goals of integration and economic, political and social equality for all people.

Krassner, Paul: Humorist, founding member of the Yippies, and publisher of the Realist newspaper, he's been called the founder of the underground press.

Kundalini: A form of energy that lies dormant at the base of the spine that is channeled upward through the chakras via yoga.

Laid Back: Someone relaxed, easygoing.  A place that's cool.  "I've been to the commune, it's real laid back."

Later: Good bye.

Lay: Someone who has sex.  "She was a great lay."

Lay it on me: Give it to me.

Laugh-In: A popular sixties comedy show with Dan Rowan and Dick Martin as the hosts. Stars included Flip Wilson, Goldie Hawn, Judy Carne and Arte Johnson. Famous for its humor, zaniness, social commentary and frenetic pace and editing.  It captured the sixties style and attitude and added it's own set of expressions to the times, like "sock it to me!".

Lava Lamp - The original is a glass lamp lit from the bottom with a sort of liquid inside that rises in colorful amorphous bubbles.  These lamps are now enjoying a revival and can be purchased via the net. See http://hipplanet.com/hipmarket.htm.

LBJ - Lyndon Baines Johnson - He became President of the United States upon the death of John F. Kennedy.  Was elected in 1964 and served another four years.  Texas democrat was responsible for the buildup of forces in Vietnam and was in office during the bloodiest fighting.  Along with the next president, republican Richard Nixon were considered the epitome of the
government run by the military-industrial complex that prospered during the Vietnam war.  These two presidents highlighted the generation gap as they found it impossible to see the world from a youthful perspective.

Leary, Timothy: The psychedelic guru, acid impresario, prolific author, unchallenged hero of the free mind movement. "Turn-on, tune-in, and drop-out." Those words inspired a generation to experience the mind expanding capabilities of acid.

Led Zeppelin: English rock group that was one of the first "heavy metal" bands.  Their biggest hit, Stairway to Heaven is one of the biggest selling tunes ever.  Jimmy Page on lead guitar and Robert Plant's vocals make for some heavy blues rock.

Lemon Pipers: One or more person(s) who puts a hole thru a lemon (other fruit can also be used) then inserts a joint at the other end and inhales thereby not only cooling the smoke but giving the smoke a scented flavor. (Rolling papers eventually caught up to this fad and offer a flavored
paper commerically).

Lennon, John: Beatle, poet, artist, activist, singer, musician.  One of the great figures of the 60s.  Controversial, he once said the Beatles were more popular than Jesus (he was right at the time).  He sang about love and peace and his music inspired millions. He was murdered outside his apartment building in 1980.

Licks: Chops.  Groove.  A musicians musicianship.  The music they make.

Lid: A bag of grass, usually about an ounce (28 grams).

Light Shows: A visual performance accompanying music at clubs and concert venues using strobes, film, video, special effects and more recently lasers.  Andy Warhol put on some famous light shows in NYC.

Love beads:  Love beads were orginally made from small seeds.  They came in numerous patterns, and were given as gifts between friends or made by the wearer. They were a common sign of friendship.

Love-In: Like a Be-In it was a reason to get together with other hippies and have fun. Loving everyone and everything was the general theme of the event.

LSD or LSD25: Lysergic Acid Diethylamide. a rye ergot derivative.  First synthesized and absorbed by Albert Hoffman of Sandoz Labs, Switzerland in 1938.  Extremely hallucinogenic in minute doses, measured in micrograms. Effects can last up to 24 hours depending upon dose.  Used in psychotherapy in the 50s and 60s.  Researched at Harvard by Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert.  Both left Harvard and Leary continued as high priest of the LSD movement. In the 60s acid became the popular way to "trip". An LSD trip is not to be taken lightly.  It is a profound soul shaking experience that expands one's perceptions and broadens one's mind.  Reactions to LSD, which include physiological and behavioral changes, anxiety, and hallucinations, are influenced by the amount of the drug taken and the user's personality and expectations.

Lude: A Quaalude, a depressant drug.


Maintain: To keep one's shit together.  "Every since my babe left me I'm finding it hard to
maintain."

Make Love Not War!: Slogan that sums up the hippie attitude. Appeared on signs and buttons
during protests against Vietnam War.

Mamas and Papas: Popular group in the sixties.  John Phillips, Denny, (Mama) Cass Elliot, and Michelle Phillips sang California Dreaming, Monday, Monday, Creeque Alley.

Man: A dude.  The Man is the police.  Man! means damn!  My Man! means a friend. 

Mantra: A form of meditation that uses repeated phrase(s) that help to free the yogi from random thoughts by focusing on the phrase.  Different mantras have different effects.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: Famous guru to the Beatles, Beach Boys, and other famous personalities. First everyone went to visit him in India, then he bought his teachings to the U.S.  Emphasizing the power of meditation, he drew a huge following among the hippie generation.

Manson, Charles: Convicted along with his followers of the 1969 murders of Sharon Tate and the La Biancas.  Manson had created his own cult out in the California desert.  In his warped mind, he believed that John Lennon's song "Helter Skelter" was a call to war and mayhem.  He used mind control to get his followers to do whatever he wanted.  He is still serving his life sentence.

Marinol: Pharmaceutical extract of marijuana, allowed (by U.S. gov't) for those who have prescription for marijuana. 

Marley, Bob: Rastaman supreme.  The charismatic Bob Marley and his band the Wailers burst onto the music scene in the early 70's bringing Reggae into the world.  His music about love, Jah (god), freedom and equality touched so many people and inspired many to become rastas.

Mary Jane: Marijuana

Maui Wowie: The fabulously sweet, potent pot grown on the island of Maui in Hawaii.

Max, Peter: Famous hippie artist famous for album covers, movies, paintings, advertising. His colorful, flowing style graphics had a great influence on art in the 60s.

Maya: The veil of materiality and self-delusion that screens us all from the true reality of oneness.

McGovern, George: Democratic candidate for president in the 1972 elections.  He lost out to Richard Nixon.  McGovern was supported by liberals and hippies.  We can only wonder, what might have been...

McKenna, Terence: Ethnobotanist and author of the book Food of the Gods about organic psychedelics.  Terence is a popular speaker and visionary who likes to focus on discovering our place in the universe, our reason for being here, and the future of mankind.

Meditation: An exercise where one focuses one's attention, releving stress, allowing contemplation.

Mellow: Something pleasant and enjoyable.  Often used to describe the marijuana high.

Mellow Yellow: Donovan song that had everyone thinking you could get high smoking banana
peels.  One of the greatest put-ons. 

Mellow out!: Calm down! Equal to chill out!

Mescaline: A hallucinogen made from the peyote cactus plant, still used for native american ritual purposes. These cacti are eaten in raw form. Processed mescaline compound was ingested as a pill form. Synthetic mescaline made a brief appearance mixed with chocolate powder and was one of the best highs ever - it made you laugh uncontrollably for hours. Anyone know how to make more?

Microdot: A type of LSD in a colorful tiny pill.

Mikes: The number of micrograms as in a dose of LSD.

Military-Industrial Complex: The leading force in the American economy in the 60s. The combination of large American industries with huge defense contracts.  Reaps profits from war. Blamed for lobbying Congress to increase military spending, to step up war in Vietnam. In 1960 President Eisenhower warned that the Military-Industrial complex was getting too big and powerful.

Mind Game: When someone tries to control your mind, often by trying to bullshit you.

Monterey Pop Festival:  This was the first rock festival ever.  Held in 1967, it showcased a whole new genre of music.  Produced by Paul Simon, Johnny Rivers and John Phillips (of the Mamas and Papas) it was an event that almost didn't happen.  Disagreement between the producers (who wanted to charge for the concerts) and the musicians (who wanted it to be free) were resolved thanks to impresario Bill Graham.  Acts included memorable performances by Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. The event was filmed and is available on video. 
More power to you!: Good for you. 

Mountain Girl: Aka Carolyn Adams. One of the Merry Pranksters.  She lived with Ken Kesey, and had his child, then married Jerry Garcia. 

Movie: The reality we create for ourselves based upon a script we are constantly writing.  This concept allows us to take control of the circumstances of our lives by recognizing we are not victims but actors in a play who can change our role whenever we choose. 

Mr. Natural: Cartoonist R. Crumb's popular philosophical character was a spoof of gurus and their followers. 

Munchies: Also known as the raving munchies. The mad craving for food, often sweets that you get after smoking marijuana.  It's so effective as an appetite stimulant, that's one of the main reasons it's prescribed by Doctors for AIDS and those undergoing chemotherapy. 

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