Psychoactive plants and spiritual/ religious practice

Dalai Lama - A great man with a great smile :)
@hellcord (673)
Romania
November 14, 2008 7:19pm CST
A while ago I saw Terrence McKenna in an interview, talking about religious practices, and he made a very interesting observation: - Meditation - Staring at a Mandala, or other religious imagery - Visualizing (images of gods) - Chanting mantras, repeating prayers ..and many other practices usually done nowadays in religious context, have the following properties: - They are very very BORING when in a normal state - They are highly INTERESTING, and often come naturally, spontaneously, when under the influence of psychedelics. I don't mean weed of course, I mean specifically psychedelic/hallucinogenic plants and substances. Peyote, Magic mushrooms, Salvia Divinorum, DMT, LSA, Ayahuasca. The implication was that it's very likely that this is the very way they appeared, practiced by people that were in a deeply altered state. Not necessary from such plants, maybe from long fasting periods and other activities that change the brain chemistry. On that note, with that possibility in mind, I'd like to share my last experience with you, and perhaps hear your opinions: Last Sunday I took 3 seeds of Hawaiian Baby Woodrose - fully legal, active ingredient LSA, somewhat related to LSD. The trip lasted almost 5 hours, and one striking part of it was when I got some really strong images from Tibet. I tried something like mantras (repeating random syllables) and the way in which I was saying them gradually changed to the gutural throat-singing sounds that are characteristic in Tibetan Buddhism. Since then, I got some mp3's with that sort of music, and have spent several mornings working on my voice, practicing, eyes closed, and seeing how those sounds help me get back in the state, and get strong visual images in my mind (blue sky, mountains, light, shining, etc) Also I am in the process of finding and ordering at least one Himalayan Singing Bowl, for meditation. Now bear in mind that I am not a Buddhist, had no interest in Tibet or monks or singing before taking those seeds, and had no idea that such a thing as singing bowls existed, let alone plan to buy one asap, from this month's paycheck. This is what strikes me, the priority with which these things came to me. We all know meditation might be good, but don't take daily time to do it. Here however comes a trip after some seeds, and WHAM! I must now naturally work on my throat tones, on my visualizing skills, get a genuine Tibetan singing bowl to back me up and help me progress fast. This is not the first time I take a psychedelic, and some other, new form of spiritual practice enters my behavior, naturally, and deeply, in one single trip. Do you think these plants may have value for you, and may aid you in your spiritual practice, taking it to a higher level? What do you make of such positive effects?
2 people like this
2 responses
• Thailand
15 Nov 08
Chemical aids are useful as long as you move beyond them in the end. Your journey sounds interesting so far but don't forget that every journey needs a destination. Don't let the process prevent you from reaching the objective. If self realization is your goal use whatever tools you need help you get there but don't ever forget where you are trying to go. Tools such as hallucinogens can take you to the door of perception but they can't take you through that door. You will have to find something within yourself to open that door.
3 people like this
@hellcord (673)
• Romania
16 Nov 08
Hey there. It's been less than 6 months since I had my first psychedelic, so I'm just starting with them, I've never though of how long I will be using them or if / when I will move on to something else, or what that something might be. I'm sure it will be revealed in due time :D For now the visions told me to draw and paint what I see, so I am doing that. They showed me how to use the voice to calm the mind and open up for imagery, so I practice that. They got me interested enough in Tibet to understand that I need a stronger power object, and it seems that a proper Himalayan singing bowl is it, at least for now. I'm sure more things will be revealed in time, we can only walk the path one day at the time. In any case it's not the herbal 'trip' I'm looking for, it's the knowledge that comes from it, the inner changes that happen, the understanding that lasts for much longer than the trip itself. Thanks for commenting, Peace :D
2 people like this
• United States
16 Nov 08
You sound very somber and serious Chiang Mai! It is my experience that Love, Joy, Passion, Knowledge... all resonate at a similar frequency to the energy that people have called 'God'. Fear - and somber seriousness is fear-based - is an absence of 'God'... well, not so much an absence of that energy, as an occlusion of it, it is still there it is just not being 'observed'. But the truth of the matter is, one does not 'have' to do anything other than exactly what one is inspired to do, and if the intention is strong enough, whatever you do will take you exactly where you want to go.
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@hellcord (673)
• Romania
16 Nov 08
Passing, you may have a point, my impression of chiang was pretty much the same, that he relies to heavily on the left side of the brain and academic thinking, and too little on the youthful organic colors of the right side, but since our man is educated in the ways of the psychoactive herbals, and has decided to not use them, there was nothing else I could recommend :) Well, to each his own path, Peace :D
1 person likes this
• United States
16 Nov 08
The fact that you enjoy psychedelics tells me something about you, and that is that you must not harbor a lot of fear in your psyche and that you are strong in your connection to the spirit aspect of your Self... which is really who we all are anyway... this physical experience is truly just an agreed on hallucination. It really annoys me when people try to separate experience and activities in life by saying stuff like 'this is spiritual and this is not... eating this is not spiritual, eating that is, thinking this thought is not spiritual, thinking some other thought is', etc. Life itself is a 'spiritual practice'. It is individual aspects of spirit practicing their creative power. Drinking coffee and eating chocolate, or whatever, can have just as much value as any of the best 'spiritual practices'... it just depends on your intention... Intention is everything. And what do you mean 'not weed of course'?? Why do you discount cannabis? I used to take a lot of LSD, and invariably I would end up doing yoga, even though I had not in this lifetime studied yoga. In my everyday life, it is very difficult for me to quiet my mind enough to focus on my yoga practice, I either don't do it at all, or I do it but without that sense of 'super awareness' like when I was on acid. But if I smoke a little cannabis and do yoga it is the same level of awareness that ever was with LSD... well, ok, maybe not as 'loud' but still... And all those things like meditation and mantras and all that jazz, mainly serve one purpose, and that is to clear the mind of extraneous thought and focus the attention. Witchcraft serves the same purpose. The vehicle is not important, it is the INTENTION that is important, your focus, your desire, your decision. Psychedelic substances are very valuable in that they face you in the direction of the inner journey, which is the real journey, but ultimately they are not necessary. I don't know if it would be as fun without the act of swallowing some seeds, chewing up some 'magical' mushrooms, or sucking in a lungful of smoke, but I'm striving for it anyway, hahaha!
1 person likes this
• United States
17 Nov 08
My mother once decided that she wanted to try LSD to see what all the 'hullabaloo' was about. I 'sat' with her when she did, without taking any myself. She levitated right before my very eyes! I kid you not! She brought her entire body up flush with the underside of a ledge in absolute terror to hide from whatever it was she was hallucinating. She can not even smoke pot without fear 'guiding' her 'trip'. I do not recommend psychedelics for people who are very fearful. Best for them to find some way of releasing some of their fear first. I like cannabis because it is something that I can use everyday if I want to. It's milder and serves my purpose very well... I am just looking for a gentle reminder, not a full blown psychedelic experience. And these lawmakers that want to go around trying to control other people's behavior can really enrage me! If they have a problem with certain plants that grow in nature, I think they should take it up with the creator of the plant and see where that gets them. Of course it will get them nowhere, and that is probably why they resort to trying to bully others, giving them a sense of power that they do not actually possess. I love reading the things you write... you almost make me as high as a psychedelic plant, hahahahaha!
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