I was wondering if anyone knows what the Hindu belief on the use of Cannabis Sativa/Indica is? And also if they had a belief on the use of psilocybin mushrooms? Also is their a ritual for the use of these substances if they are permitted?
Two very different attitudes. Cannabis is used by some Sadhus(holy men) in India, but it is not encouraged for people in general. I believe that it's associated with the god Shiva. That's about all I can tell you on that. Mushrooms are forbidden as a food to most Hindus, and I don't know if there is much use of psychoactive ones - but a friend of mine told me he had psilocybin mushrooms in northern india, so they're obviously known about. But in this context, see the work of Gordon Wason, who concluded that Amanita Muscaria was the origin of the Soma mentioned in the Veda, and also 'Food of the Gods' by Terrence Mckenna, who dismisses Amanita as a candidate for Soma, but thinks it might have been a type of Psilocybin mushroom. He argues that during the Indus Valley civilization period, mushrooms were used, but at a later time, there were changes of attitude - from eating meat, and beef at that, to vegitarianism, and sacred cows - and mushrooms came to be frowned upon. It all seems a bit speculative and inconclusive to me.
Vaishnavas- worshippers of Vishnu, do not use anything that may pollute our bodies and do not support the use of any polluting agent to fulfill our desires. Your body is not your own, it belongs to God, so treat it with respect- as his temple... so do not smoke cannibis and abuse the house of God, you may very well be kicked out sooner than you can imagine.
I am not an expert but I think the switch to vegetarianism came about with the rise of buddhism in India. Also, I think Vaishnavism also became very popular at that time. Cows are considered sacred because they are the symbols of krishna.
The ones here in England, Psilocybe Semalinceata, don't grow on dung, but in the soil. But they're probably more common on cow pasture, although they also grow on heath land, sheep pasture and even sports fields. Not much relevance to use in India, but thought I'd mention it.
There is a huge diversity of believes and rituals under the umbrella of Hinduism and you can't generally say what Hinduism sais about this or that. The followers of Shiva are smoking cannabis for ritual purposes and to call upon and honour their god. Some Sadhus (holy men) do that on a daily basis, other followewrs only do it on certain occasions, especially on Shivarati, which is a holy day to honour and celebrate Shiva. Followers of Shiva also use other so called drugs in their celebrations, for example datura and opium. I have been participating in festiveties in northern India, where we were drinking a brew which contained cannabis and opium and also have been given blessed datura seeds for eating during Shivarati celebrations. If you are a follower of Shiva there speaks nothing against the use of cannabis, as long as you don't abuse it to simply get stoned, but use it with respect and as a means to honour and get in closer contact with the deity.
from the books I've read of holy men or by saints or yogi's or what have you; I've come to understand that god not really concerned with what it takes to love god, as long as you love him completely, so if someone has to smoke pot or eat mushrooms to find gods love, as long as they find it and keep loving then its all irrelevent of course to go all the way the desire for pot or mushrooms will have to go
I don't know if he did, but eating hemp seeds doesn't make you high. In northern India, where cannabis grows wild, people collect the seeds and use them in their food. Especially old people like them in wintertime. They make you feel warm inside and are said to be good for the joints. Here in Sweden and also in Germany (don't know about other countries) you can buy hemp seeds and hemp seed oil in the healthfood shops. I have some friends that drink a small glass of hemp seed oil every day, it contains a lot of Linoleic acid and linolenic acid (essential fatty acids) and is supposed to be very healthy. Hemp Seed: The most nutritionally complete food source in the world
This is from the 'Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali' ch.4 vs 1. (Isherwood Prabhavananda translation) "The Psychic powers may be obtained either by birth, by means of drugs, or by the power of words, or by the practice of austerities, or by concentration" Isherwood and Prabhavananda comment 'certain drugs may produce visions, but these are invariably psychic - not spiritual, as is commonly believed. Furthermore, they may cause prolonged spiritual dryness and may even do permanant damage to the brain' But I wonder if either of them had any actual experience with these substances? If not, it's hard to see how their conclusions could be valid. Certainly, there is no truth whatsoever in their claim that psychedelic drugs (ie indole ring psychedelics such as LSD or psilocybin) damage the brain physically.
thats ridiculous! God does not need artificial love! all of the "take the drug and love the God" is maya.
Weed is the fruit of the Earth - of the Body of Bhuvaneshwaraya for the pains of a harsh existance. If weed makes one feel better in their skin then so be it. The Divine Mother says go ahead and smoke of Her body. That's why it's there. If you are afraid, then merely be afraid of the police, or of the effect of too much smoking on your vital organs, but don't be afraid that the Goddess will stop loving you. As for fearful Vaishnavas. Don't worry about them. The Earth and Her splendor is for all beings. All of them, and somewhere within her you will find your place.
I don't see how its artificial, I mean pot is God..... I don't see how smoking a joint and opening yourself to god is any different then using tantra sex to open yourself to god two different vehicles from the same source taking you to the same source I mean isn't arriving at god the ultimate goal and the trip is just a means for getting there?
The Earth and Her splendor is for all beings. I vote yes, and we ought to agree to disagree. Peacefully, mind. Our differences is what makes us beautiful, not our sameness.
I have serious doubts about this whole business of tantric sex, sex magick etc. I don't really think it is a path to God.
