Under the yew tree

 

Dharma Bodhi (Kol Martens) from Trika Mahasiddha Yoga (TMY) explains the place of drugs (as in narcotics) on the spiritual path. I previously linked to a longer discussion on the same topic by Dharma. 

The short form is that TMY doesn´t generally recommend psychedelic drugs to spiritual practitioners. Today, they often lead seekers astray and make them permanently stuck in "the god realm", by which Dharma means the world of the devas, here interpreted in Buddhist fashion as vain demi-gods who don´t realize their own mortality. I assume he means that they are metaphorically stuck in this realm already in this life. Or as Dharma puts it: "You are just high"!

However, drugs can be of some use if somebody has gotten completely stuck on the spiritual path for years. They don´t help the practitioner to become enlightened, but strong experiences of a supernatural dimension can motivate him to continue his sadhana (day to day yogic practice). 

Dharma Bodhi also discusses various related topics, such as how to achieve shaktipata, by which I assume he means enlightenment through divine grace. In this system, it seems that you can´t get the grace through an electric-like transmission from a guru, but only by your own efforts until one day the shaktipata hits you like a thunderbolt. Gurus who claim to be able to transmit shaktipata person to person are just cult leaders, and the ultimate cultist of them all was Franklin Jones who claimed that you could get the grace simply by being present at his satsangs. I think Dharma sees a similarity between this electric stuff and the idea that really potent psychedelics can be a substitute for sadhana. 

On a lesser note, he mentions how to prepare drugs for consumption. I´m not sure of this stuff, so please don´t try it at home, but supposedly you can give poisonous mushrooms to dogs, and then drink their urine! Sitting underneath a yew tree also produces quite some effect, apparently, so you don´t actually have to consume any part of it directly. The idea of a buddha achieving enlightenment under a yew tree does have a certain intrinsic appeal, so please remember that you can´t! Completely in passing, Dharma also claims that he trained with the Aghori...

Ahem, come again?

The most funny proposal in the clip is the claim that all world leaders should get together and take psychotropic drugs, and then this planet would actually become much better! This reminded me of the Taliban trolling Joe Biden with ice cream, but OK, maybe I just have a bad sense of humor.

Nothing in this blog post should be taken as medical advice, or indeed any kind of advice whatsoever.