Your recent post did seem a little critical,but maybe you were having a bad day.
No, I wasn't having a bad day. Even when I have, it doesn't affect my philosophical view on things. What I've written is the result of a gradual process, mixed with whatever book I would be reading at a certain moment. For example, some months ago I was reading several books by Dutch astrologer and herbalist Mellie Uyldert, and as a result I wrote something about "gradual progress" and the idea that we should experience divinity directly, not through a guru, and should develop our personal worldview, not adopt it from a tradition or certain teacher.
Then I encountered the work of David Wilcock, about quantum physics, spirit, the principles of creation, the ultimate structure of everything in the universe and the shift we're about to experience between now and December 2012. I then suggested that due to this shift residing near volcanoes could be dangerous (of course, if indeed a supervolcano develops in Yellowstone, there's really no place to hide).
During the last few months I've been listening to lectures by the late Terence Mckenna, who explored the link between consciousness, culture, religion and the psychedelic plants (ayahuasca, peyote, mushrooms, all containing tryptamines already existing or similar to neuropeptides in the brain). Terence suggests we have to experience these realms ourselves, and that what we experience there can not be received from a book or guru, and not even through meditation and yoga, which are also useful, but for other purposes. Research shows that all religions, without exception, have their roots in a culture that ingested a sacrement that would give one the "eyes to see". The Indian religion of course has the Soma, which most scholars think to have been made of the hallucinogenic mushrooms, although some think it was made of the natural amphetamin Ephedra, but in any case a plant which strongly affects the consciousness. In the Rig Veda we find the first "trip report" by a priest, describing the effects of Soma, a trip report not unlike those available on certain websites today. Similarly the Old Testament, Genesis, describes a "forbidden" fruit which alters consciousness.
Due to climate changes, migration, the development of agriculture, war and the dominance of organized religions, the hallucinogens were forgotten, and religions were continued on the basis of dogmas. For followers of these "new" religions God could be reached through sacrifice, obedience, study and service. One could hope to directly experience God after years of practice or after death. The entheogen based cultures, living in partnership with nature, simply took a certain plant (usually during a certain phase of the Moon), and have this mystical experience.
When you consider that really all religions, including the Vedic, have their roots in the consumption of natural psychedelics, we might ask whether they really belong to the forbidden category of "intoxication". They may be forbidden because they challenge parts of the validity of the (Vaisnava) religion, but should they be forbidden as far as the exploration of consciousness is concerned? When analysed, all foods influence our consciousness. We as human beings live in a symbiotic relationship with nature (or are supposed to). The psychedelic plants may serve a very important purpose for the human race. Considering the present state of the world, a world which for the past 2000 years was based on the consumption of alcohol and in which the use of hallucinogens was banned (either by the Inquisition or local government), we might wonder whether it's time to get back to the original religion where everyone would be allowed, even encouraged, to have the psychedelic experience. It may even be crucial for the survival of the human race.
To respond to Nanda-tanuja prabhu: Once a shaman, always a shaman. Prior to my becoming a devotee (age 18) I was exploring consciousness (from age 15)through the use of psychedelic plants and substances. I didn't smoke tobacco, I didn't drink alcohol, I basically avoided all addictive and intoxicating substances. I wan't fleeing from reality, I was searching it. For this purpose I would now and then enter the realm of the psychedelic experience (primarily LSD), and this alone made me become a vegetarian, shave my head and make all kinds of adjustments in my life and worldview (reincarnation seems the most obvious thing when you're tripping), which later made my becoming a Vaisnava brahmacari a piece of cake. There is no doubt that part of the reason why ISKCON and Indian religions in general boomed in the late sixties an early seventies was the widespread use of LSD, marihuana and Peyote.
So I'm surrounded by two parties: those who say you can only experience God through devotional songs, service and initiation by a guru, and those who suggest that one should experience God directly through one's own unique path, for which some authors suggest the intake of psychedelic plants is allowed/required. Certainly the authors of the Vedas suggested its use. And why was the picture of the Universal Form so much appreciated by the psychedelic community (see the album Axis Bold as Love by Jimi Hendrix)? Because psychedelics actually generate just that kind of experience, not just visually, but conceptually as well. Yet we now think looking at a photograph of a guru is somehow at a higher level of consciousness than directly experiencing the underlying unity of all beings.
Personally I like many parts of Indian culture and religion, yet I also value the reading of books by western authors, and I strongly believe the psychedelic experience, in a sacred context, should be part of every human life. Any government agency or religious organization which bans the use of such plants, and thus a certain domain of consciousness, must be rejected as far as this issue is concerned. Whether to transcend ordinary awareness through herbs or not should be an individual choice, not a law or religious principle.
What I have written here will be easier to understand for those who have had the psychedelic experience (and I know many devotees did experiment with psychedelics before they joined ISKCON). Those who haven't had the experience and haven't investigated the matter might think it consists of useless illusions and belongs to the same category as heroin and cocain. But the psychedelics truly form a category of their own, to be understood only by those who 'dare' to have the experience, the "initiated". To which mode of nature do these plants belong? To sattva, rajas or tamas? Clearly their effects do not fall in the categories of rajas and tamas, even though that is what many devotees preach.
So perhaps now you all realize I do not belong on this conference anymore and my account should be blocked. If the above is not enough, I also use fish oil capsules because I consider these omega-3 fatty acids essential for the nourishment and functioning of the human nervous system, for which there is no equal vegetarian alternative. And in my relationship I engage in sex for physical pleasure/ pair bonding, not for procreation (I already have two children, which I think is enough). I do not chant and I do not read Vaisnava literature, and this weekend, after a break of 5 years, I'm going to eat Psilocybine Cubensis again.
The good news is that I have no harsh feelings for ISKCON or the broader Vaisnava religion. I do not feel hurt, mistreated or abused by anyone. I do not regret joining ISKCON 12 years ago. Mine is simply a 'philosophical' disagreement.
I know there will always be some of you who want me to stay aboard, but I think most members rather not have me on this forum. And I think Swami Tripurari's opinion should also be considered.
Ivar Verploegh
IF you don't wish to participate then simply don't. You don't need to be banned if you no longer feel inspiration from devotional concepts.
The bhakti path is one that develops the heart and changes the consciousness from one to taking to one of giving.
Any drug will only affect your brain and your conscious experience for a short period of time. It may open a person to alternative ways of viewing the world and his/her purpose in it, but it is still a tempory phenomena and it is based on chemicals. Bhakti rasa is is not material and is not generated or induced by any material elements.
At any rate - good luck with whatever path you take in life. It's your choice to live as you decide.
Are you saying than God realization is as cheep as an acid trip? It takes time to shape your body, it takes even longer to shape your mind. Looking for an easy way out? Sorry, this will not happen. Even in old times entheogens were used as tools by highly experienced adepts, not as a recreational entertainment. I’m sorry, but you are moving down a very dangerous path, I feel that it’s my obligation to tell you about it.
Bhakta Ivar,
In the picture of the Universal Form on Jimi's album take notice of where he placed himself:in the center, as if the Godhead.That is where his "expanded" consciousness took him.He also wrote songs titled "Manic Depression","I Don't Live Today",etc. which were a testimoney to his sense of frustration on the sensual path.
Having grown up in the sixties,I did my share of psychadelics and think it did expand my frame of reference, making it easier to entertain so many far out things ,such as the accounts in the Bhagavatam.Around 1975 I had a realization that these substances were merely stimulating chemistry in the body,that could be stimulated in a more natural way(less mechanical and not involving going up and coming down).Taking these substances may give you a temporary sneak peak at higher realms,but not without a price,just as drinking coffee can give you a boost by stimulating adrenal hormones.Like using a credit card,you get immeadiate energy,while creating a deficit,and if you do it enough you can exhaust your adrenal glands.
Yoga,chanting and meditation can take you to these places and beyond.They take longer but the results endure longer.It's like the difference between eating white bread and whole grains.The simple sugars take you up fast and let you down fast.In 1975 I made a decision to achieve high levels of expanded awareness through yoga amd mysticism.30 years later I've realized some of that and think differently about those past "highs".
The chemistry is available in your own body,it just requires a catalyst.But it doesn't have to be a substance,it can be an emotion,a realization, a result of regular yogic discipline.Everything we do is chemistry. When we look at food or the opposite sex ,millions of hormones,neurotransmitters,etc. are released and a whole set of reactions are set in motion.Yoga is simply choosing wisely in which direction we want to be influenced.
Curbing the tendency to enjoy sensually is a proccess that can take a long time and many,many devotees are strugling with that.You are by no means alone in that.In fact without a higher taste,it is not possible for any length of time.A higher taste means a higher chemistry,but not one that won't endure,where the rug is constantly being pulled from under you.
Therefore for meat-eating, gambling,intoxication and casual sex,we have been warned against them,as they are forms of cheating.A shortcut to the nutrition of taking the effort to eat non-violently.A shortcut to "higher states".A shortcut to material gain,something for nothing.And a shortcut to a loving relationship with another(at first) and ultimately with god.
As far as fish oil is concerned,I believe flax oil(combined with borage oil,as an activator) is the source of omega 3's,as well as walnuts,pumpkin seeds,and a few others(chia, I think) The latest research says that some people can't utilize it from this source and require fish oil.I believe that this means those with compromised nutrient absorption due to poor intestinal health.That may very well be and those people may require fish oil for healing.In my 25 years of ill health I have concluded there are some illnesses that require non-vegetarian remedies,for reasons too complex to address here.Ayurveda uses everything,including meat as medicine, as required,even for vegeatarians.
This is just one more reason for devotees to eat right and pay attention to nutrition.One appalling thing I recently became aware of are excitotoxins(disguised under many tricky names) even in the health food store.They enhance the taste of food while killing brain cells.Do a google search and protect yourself.There is little use spending your whole life studying,if you won't be able to remember any of it,as in Alzheimers.That's what excitotoxins do!
Some drugs,herbs,substances may enhance our experience,but not without a price,depletion of nutrients,loss of brain cells or simply time lost and attention diverted.
I have had many pleasurable and (not so pleasurable) sensations on natural psychadelics but never felt choked up like I did one time when I saw Guru Maharaja in kirtan with his godbrothers in Los Angeles Ratha Yatra after being out of the movement for some time.
Wish you the best,Gopisvara
I do not agree with using drugs in the name of spirituality. Person can have some experience, but that is dangerous path. There are no shortcuts in attaining pure love of God. No magic, pills or plants. Off course you will have results, but that will not help you to attain pure devotion. We have independence and free will and we are responsible for our own actions. If that is path that you choose – that is your free will. We have our freedom. But we are also responsible for results. I just want to say, that from my point of view it will not help you to attain pure love for God, or to enter in the spiritual realm. Results of such practice are different. If that is something that you really want then I wish you all the best.
What I've written is the result of a gradual process, mixed with whatever book I would be reading at a certain moment.
That may be the crux of the issue. I too have read many books outside the devotional tradition, and gained much from them. However, I have always kept the devotional viewpoint, the Vaishnava Vedanta, as the benchmark against which all other systems of knowledge are to be measured and reconciled. It seems that you have not, as demonstrated by your repeated efforts to relativize religion under the materialistic world view (even the esoteric doctrines you frequently expound upon are materialistic). I have taken the opposite approach, that of attempting to relativize all materialistic knowledge with respect to the devotional siddhanta. That, to me, is what is meant by surrender of the intellect. I don't claim any personal credit for this; it is simply that the Gaudiya acharyas (and a liberal dose of suffering) have made a stronger impression on my mind than the allure of materialism. Your most recent post makes it clear that you're in a very different space. I respect your honesty, courage, and intelligence, but I tend to agree that you're out of place in this forum.
> IF you don't wish to participate then simply don't.
Yes, that possibility crossed my mind, but what happens is that I become curious about what's being discussed on TV, check out some threads (usually Philosophical Discussions or Questions & Answers) and feel irresistably urged to reply, even though many of my views and concepts are not rooted in Vaisnava thought and practice. Sometimes it seems I know Vaisnava philosophy, but that is only because I extensively studied the matter for some years, and I have a good memory in this regard.
> That may be the crux of the issue. I too have read many books outside the devotional tradition, and gained much from them. However, I have always kept the devotional viewpoint, the Vaishnava Vedanta, as the benchmark against which all other systems of knowledge are to be measured and reconciled.
Yes, most devotees can do that. And most authors haven't challenged my appreciation for the Vaisnava tradition. I think any devotee can 'safely' read Scott Peck, Erich Fromm, Alice Miller, George Bradshaw, Wayne Dyer etc., as long as one also regularly reads Vaisnava literature. I think some of my main doubts came from trying to figure out the truth about Indian history and scripture (of course this is not an easy subject, and certainly early British/Christian theories are generally useless).
> It seems that you have not, as demonstrated by your repeated efforts to relativize religion under the materialistic world view (even the esoteric doctrines you frequently expound upon are materialistic).
During the last, well, actually during this lifetime, I have been in search of the truth about things. Whether certain truths pertain to the material or the spiritual hasn't been my main concern, because I feel I must understand both. I do not know exactly which esoteric doctrines you refer to. Quantum physics? It's not certain whether that's materialism. It may be materialism, or it may be the dividing line between matter and spirit, and thus not only an interesting but also an important issue. The same applies to astrology, numerology and geometry. They may only seem unimportant from your point of view, which is the idea that only loving interaction with a cowherd boy and girl can be considered spiritual. Yes, my present search for truth and spirituality centers around tangible things, phenomena in and even of this world. And I firmly believe I'm investigating the same things the ancient Vedic seers have investigated: mathematics, geometry, numerology, astronomy, quantum physics, herbs, yes even the entheogenic herbs (Patanjali in his yoga-sutras even mentions that some achieve the mystic perfection of flight through ausadhi, herbs...). These subjects were investigated and discussed long before rasa-lila or guru-tattva were discussed, even long before the different avataras of Visnu were discussed. That is a fact that is beyond controversy: everyone agrees Rig Veda is the oldest scripture, and each year it becomes clearer how much astronomy and other "materialistic" sciences were discussed in it (carefully coded in myths and riddles).
> I have taken the opposite approach, that of attempting to relativize all materialistic knowledge with respect to the devotional siddhanta.
I'm not at the opposite side of your approach. I'm not trying to relativize all devotional knowledge, I'm simply open to all kinds of ideas.
> There are no shortcuts in attaining pure love of God. No magic, pills or plants.
I never suggested love of God is the object of the psychedelic experience. And as I mentioned, love of God is not (yet) my objective. I do not believe love of God can be "practiced" or achieved through certain methods (sadhana).
> In the picture of the Universal Form on Jimi's album take notice of where he placed himself:in the center, as if the Godhead.That is where his "expanded" consciousness took him.
That they placed the three members of the Jimi Hendrix experience in the middle doesn't mean they philosophically considered themselves the Godhead. Jimi Hendrix was suffering from manic depression. And LSD cannot cure that. Ayahuasca may cure some mental disorders, but it wasn't commonly known at that time. My point was that the description of the universal form clearly resembles the psychedelic experience (Arjuna becomes pretty disturbed by it, similar to a "bad trip"), which to me seems an indication the author of the Gita/Mahabharata (or a text in which such a description appeared for the first time, not necessarily related to Krishna) once had such an experience.
> Taking these substances may give you a temporary sneak peak at higher realms,but not without a price,just as drinking coffee can give you a boost by stimulating adrenal hormones.Like using a credit card,you get immeadiate energy,while creating a deficit,and if you do it enough you can exhaust your adrenal glands.
I don't think the "higher realms" experienced during a psychedelic session are the same which will be reached by spiritual practice (meditation, yoga, devotion). I wouldn't want to achieve a continuous psychedelic state of mind. It's just fine as it is: ingestion, 6 hours of intense experience, and then coming down again. Mushrooms don't exhaust any glands. Comparing hallucinogens to stimulants (or opiats) is useless.
> making it easier to entertain so many far out things ,such as the accounts in the Bhagavatam
That may actually reveal something about the author(s)! Why is it that those who had the psychedelic experience feel so comfortable with concepts as rebirth, God, and as you mention far-out mythological stories? And what about all the mysterious plants mentioned, like the Parijata, and potions like Varuni, Amritta and Soma? Why the mention of intoxicants like betel and even ganja?
> Yoga,chanting and meditation can take you to these places and beyond.
> The chemistry is available in your own body,it just requires a catalyst.
I once believed and preached that. But it's not true. You cannot naturally create psylocibine in your brain. Something could be said for DMT (dimethyl tryptamine), the main ingredient in ayahuasca, which indeed can be produced in minute quantities in the brain, but that would require prolonged meditation in absolute darkness. You can do that, or simply accept what the plants offer us. You can either accept a partnership with nature or reject it. Did you know that if you meditate for a long time in a certain way you can walk over water? It's a siddhi that can be achieved by yoga. But you also know you can get on a boat and cross the river. Why waste time and effort? It's the same with spirituality and nature. Mankind always knew nature is offering us the means to have instant mystical awareness, for the benefit of our species, our societies and the world in general. It's only during the last few thousand years that religions and society have rejected nature, have made mystical experience their monopoly.
> Ayurveda uses everything,including meat as medicine, as required,even for vegeatarians.
In Vedic times people ate all kinds of meat. Even in Ramayan meat eating was not condemned. It was Jainism and Buddhism which introduced absolute vegetarianism, which I think is OK, although I'm not certain about the fish issue. Yes, flaxseed oil is an option, but not a perfect one. And as far as the nervous system and brain are concerned, especially regarding babies, children and teenagers, I believe we should not take risks.
> I have had many pleasurable and (not so pleasurable) sensations on natural psychadelics but never felt choked up like I did one time when I saw Guru Maharaja in kirtan with his godbrothers in Los Angeles Ratha Yatra after being out of the movement for some time.
I can relate to that. But it doesn't prove or disprove anything. As I wrote in a previous post, there was a time (1996-1998) when devotional activities truly made my hair stand on end, my voice would stammer and things like that, almost on a daily basis, even (or especially) during activities like japa. In retrospect I can see that this was the result of a certain spiritual, mental, intellectual and physical make up, so I'm not 'proud' that I was experiencing certain higher stages of bhakti, nor do I believe that because of these experiences the path I was on must have been real.
> Are you saying than God realization is as cheep as an acid trip?
No, not at all! However I could say "Realization of other dimensions is as cheep as an acid trip". Actually I'm not so fond of acid (LSD). I believe we must turn to the plants, not to isolated or fabricated compounds. Herbs like ayahuasca and mushrooms have been used for thousands of years, whereas substances like LSD are very new, and we do not know their longterm effects. It may be that fate/God/the universe purposefully allowed LSD to be invented (and mass produced, a major quality of acid), but that is a speculation which no one can answer.
My point is that mankind first took the herbs, and then tried to describe the experience. From these descriptions concepts like brahman and later God/Goddess were formed, depending on the culture (matriarchal/patriarchal), area and structure of life (nomadic/agricultural). When we now talk about "God realization" it's always about God as defined by certain scriptures and followers/teachers, and a God that can only be reached by a certain religious process. The only bonafide mystical experience for a Vaisnava is when he or she is visited by a God whose appearance conforms to the images laid down by Vaisnava scriptures, and it must be achieved by a person who has been an obedient disciple of an authorized lineage.
What you will experience during a psychedelic session is best named the psychedelic object. No names and no demands placed on it. Simply to experience that which ancient seers have experienced. And when the experience is over (usually within 4 to 8 hours) to get on with study, recitation, work, cleanliness, service, contemplation, meditation, pranayama, yoga, control of the senses, you name it. Not with the intent of having a psychedelic experience without psychedelics, but simply to obtain the respective objectives of these different activities.
> Looking for an easy way out?
Let me tell you something about the psychedelic experience: it's not easy. A trip is usually hard work. And more importantly, you will not become a self realized person by taking one or a number of psychedelic trips. It doesn't work like that. Spiritual growth will always remain a lifelong process, no matter what you do.
> entheogens were used as tools by highly experienced adepts, not as a recreational entertainment.
Nor am I suggesting such use of these plants, considered sacred by millions of people, for thousands of years. Taking mushrooms and going to a party or rock concert is useless, just like chanting japa while watching a movie. One must take these things in silence and darkness, simply experiencing what the plants have to offer. One's attitude should be that of a shaman, or student of a shaman (one doesn't have to be a highly experienced adept, the plants can be taken by any healthy individual). It's a sacred thing, a valuable thing, but only when applied in the right way.
> I’m sorry, but you are moving down a very dangerous path, I feel that it’s my obligation to tell you about it.
I have been moving down several dangerous paths (according to Vaisnava standards) for some years now, and I do not feel I'm in trouble at all. And I certainly feel that this is the path I have to traverse. I'm very curious where it will lead. I will not restrict myself/life as to where my progress should lead. I used to hope that I would stay a Vaisnava forever and if you were to ask my goal in life it would be Krishna-prema. Now I simply want to learn forever, do what I'm supposed to do and achieve the state of (spiritual) perfection, whatever that may be like. I have the experience of truths (big and small) coming to me without much effort. I am confident that if the Vaisnava path is actually the right one for me, I will find out about that. For now such indications are absent, and so I do not cling to it anymore.
> The bhakti path is one that develops the heart and changes the consciousness from one to taking to one of giving.
It may be. From my point of view it conditions one to simply be obedient. To give because the guru/tradition tells you to give, to love because you are told to love. Take that famous verse from siksamrta (dadati pratigrihnati?), wherein Rupa Goswami speaks of the six ways in which devotees express their love for eachother. Why would one require a teacher or scripture to act lovingly? All these instructions create an external conscience, an external guidance, an external awareness, an external heart! The psychedelic experience dissolves boundaries, and naturally stimulates giving and acts of fairness. Granted, many of the hippy communities ultimately disappeared and here and there things went wrong, but still we all know that they spontaneously created communities, spontaneously practiced peace and love, unskillful perhaps, but still. Taking away the hippy culture, and simply studying the effects of natural hallucinogenics in sacred settings, we know that they encourage the formation of partnership models of (local) government and interaction. They encourage the use of natural holistic medicines, new forms of language and technology, and a basically vegetarian diet, organically cultivated. These things spring forth spontaneously, simply from the consumption of certain foods (mushrooms etc.). If one claims that foods should not change our brain chemistry, one should stop eating, because everything you eat influences your consciousness. Nature has provided us with all kinds of herbs for nourishment, comfort and healing, and certain herbs provide 'enzymes' for human development and exploration of consciousness. A society or religion which discourages humans to cultivate these plants (i.e. to cooperate with them, preserving their DNA is our service to them) and reverently consume their fruits, actually limits the exploration of consciousness, which indeed is a serious issue from a metaphysical point of view.
> Bhakti rasa is is not material and is not generated or induced by any material elements.
It may be that bhakti is a self-induced/tradition-induced psychological state. Its cause are words and books, in itself material objects, to which the tradition has attributed spiritual qualities and a spiritual source (and thus we can state that bhakti is ahaituki, "causeless"). Whether an experience is generated by words or certain chemicals doesn't make the effect either spiritual or material. You say it's just chemicals, certain elders say they are plant spirits, some even say the mushrooms were placed here by visitors from outer space. It doesn't really matter, fact is that these substances have been used throughout history, and are clearly related to the beginnings of all religions, not just the shamanic.
As I mentioned, this weekend I consumed Psilocybine Cubensis. I took 12 grams of fresh mushrooms, a moderate dose. I went through the trip in silence and in darkness, with the Full Moon in my 12th house, 120 degrees from my natal Jupiter. I cannot say much about the experience, other than that it was very interesting and personally meaningful.
Ivar Verploegh
Monarch of everything that sees the sunlight,
Soma cleanses himself.
Triumphing over the Prophets,
he made the Word of the Way to resound,
he who is cleansed by the Sun's ray,
he the father of poems,
Master-Poet never yet equalled!
(Rg-Veda, IX 76 (4))
Soma: The Mystery
by: Steff X
To the Aryans Soma was a god. Soma was also, simultaneously, a plant, and the juice of the plant, which was consumed and which inspired a religious ecstasy. Many hymns were sung to and about Soma, and were immortalized in the text of the Rg-Veda, and are still sung and revered by their Hindu descendents to this day.
But for those descendents, Soma was also a mystery. Soma was a plant, yes, but what plant exactly? For two thousand years, the priests in India have used substitutes. They have discussed at great length the relative merits of one substitute and another, but have demonstrated no concern over the lack of the authentic material, nor any interest in its botanical specifications.
Various Western scholars expressed various opinions as to the nature of the Soma-plant -- rhubarb, date juice, hashish, mead. None of these, however, were very satisfactory, primarily because they each conflicted, in one way or another, with the nature of Soma as accounted for in the Rg-Veda hymns.
A Biological Identity for Soma
The RgVeda does not offer a Latin taxonomy for this god, but it offers many clues about Soma's botanical characteristics. A dozen references are made to Soma's place "on the mountain" or "on the mountain top". In color it is "hari" -- brilliant, flame-colored, the color of the steeds of the sun -- twenty references in the RgVeda invoke Soma by speaking of the sun, "Soma didst fill the sun with rays"; "the Soma's flowing liquor like the rays of the sun". Soma is linked to Agni, the god of fire. Soma is like a "red bull", but with a "dress of sheep". Soma "creeps like a serpent out of his old skin". Soma has a fleshy stalk, from which an inebriating juice can be pressed. No mention is made of its leaves, roots, blossoms, or seeds.
In 1963, Gordon Wasson -- the same American banker who, with his medical-doctor wife Valentina Wasson, had already documented the sacred Teonanacatl mushrooms of South America, and traced the obscured history of ethnomycology in traditional Europe -- turned his attention to the mystery of Soma. He wrote, "As I entered into the extraordinary world of the RgVeda, a suspicion gradually came over me, a suspiciou that grew into a conviction: I recognized the plant that had enraptured the poets. For this purpose the text of the hymns, the epithets and tropes pertaining to the plant, are abundantly clear. As I went on to the end, as I immersed myself ever deeper into the world of Vedic mythology, further evidence seeming to support my idea kept accumulating. By Jove, I said, this is familiar territory!"
Wasson's "candidate" for Soma is, indeed, a mushroom -- to be specific, the Amanita muscaria. A muscaria, sometimes called "the fly agaric" in English, is the very red-capped, white-spotted fungus that is perhaps our most canonical and easily-recognized "toadstool".
The biology, appearance, and chemistry of Amanita muscaria fit very well with the descriptions of Soma in the RgVeda. It sprouts, and has a "foot" and a "head" (usually called in English the "stalk" and the "cap"); unlike a true plant, it does not have blossoms or leaves or seeds. Like many other Amanitas, it begins fruiting as a white "egg" encased in the material of the universal veil; as it grows, the stalk pushes up and the fiery, crimson-to-orange cap appears from behind this veil, which remains in fuzzy white spots or patches -- just like a "hide of bull" in a "dress of sheep", or like a "serpent creeping out of his old skin", to use the RgVedic metaphors. When crushed, the Amanita muscaria yields a tawny yellow juice, just as the Soma was described as yielding juice.
Perhaps most peculiar is the "two forms" of Soma, compared with the "two forms" by which Amanita muscaria may be taken for its psychoactive effects. One is directly, eating the mushroom or its juice. The other -- well-known to us as a practice in Siberia -- is to drink the urine of somebody who has previously imbibed. In the RgVeda, Soma is referred to has having "forms" -- once in the dual construction, twice in the plural. Perhaps the most significant reference, however, is in IX 74,4: "Soma, storm cloud imbued with life, is milked of ghee, milk. Navel of the Way, Immortal Principle, he sprang into life in the far distance. Acting in concert, those charged with the Office, richly giftted, do full honor to Soma. The swollen men piss the flowing [soma]."
This "second round" for the substance may in fact be easier on the body than the "direct route" of consumption; the mushroom is somewhat poisonous, and the poisons may be broken down or filtered out by the body of the first person to consume it. This would seem to be what the RgVeda is talking about in IX 70,9-10: "Clarify thyself, O Soma, for the invitation to the gods. Thou who art a bull enter into the heart of Indra, receptacle for Soma! [....] Purify thyself in Indra's stomach, O juice! As a river with a vessel, enable us to pass to the other side, thou who knowest; thou who battlest as a hero, save us from disgrace!" In IX 80,3a "In the belly of Indra, the inebriating Soma clarifies itself."
How Soma was Used:
Amanita muscaria (or, at least, some populations of it) contains a substance called ibotenic acid, which is psychoactive and potentially entheogenic. It has a wide tradition of religious use in many cultures, continuing up through the modern age.
As nearly as can be pieced together from the ancient sources, the rites of Soma may have gone something like this:
While the worshippers still lived in Northern Eurasia, they most likely collected the Soma themselves, in the forests of birch and conifer. Perhaps at the time there were ceremonies conducted at the gathering, as there are in other cultures that collect sacred mushrooms and herbs. Once they had migrated to India, however, this would have been impossible; Soma must have been traded for (if, indeed, it were much available at all) with the tribes that controlled the mountains. No collecting-ceremony would have been possible, but in the Satapatha Brahmana (as well as elsewhere) there are some peculiar-sounding accounts of ceremonial purchases of the Sacred Element, including such strange features as a cow of a particular color of skin and eye (quite a high price to pay for a mushroom!), and a speckled cane with which to beat the seller.
Soma would then have been juiced, or "milked" as the RgVeda often puts it; the mushrooms pressed with stones and the resultant liquor filtered through lambswool. It was then mixed with milk or curds and drunk: IX ii5-6 "Cleanse the Soma, pressed out by the hand-worked stones; dilute the sweet one in the sweetness. Approach with reverence; mix him with curds, put the Soma juice into Indra.". It may have been drunk again, in its second form, perhaps by less-experienced Brahmans, or by the laity.
After the drinking, of course, came the religious ecstasy for which purpose the ceremony was composed: "Thy inebriating drinks, sweet, are released ahead, like teams running in divers directions, like the milch cow with her milk towards her calf, so the Soma juices, waves rich in honey, go to Indra, thunderbolt carrier. Like a racehorse launched in movement for the victory prize, flow, o Soma, thou who procurest the light-of-the-sun for heaven's vat, whose mother is the pressing stone; thou, Bull, seated in the filtre above the calf's wool, clarifying thyself, thou Soma, that Indra may have his pleasure." (IX 86 2,3) As the RgVeda is the record of the Brahmans, or the priestly caste, it is not known whether only priests partook of Soma, or whether other worshippers did so in either its first or second forms.
Whatever Became of the God?
The RgVeda refers to Soma as the "plant from the mountains", "seated on the mountain top", "born on the mountain top", "grown on the mountain top". The Amanita muscaria grows in a mycorrhizal (symbiotic) relationship with birch and conifer, which grow at sea level in Northern Eurasia, but only at great heights -- 8,000 to 16,000 feet -- south of the Oxus and in India. The Indo-Aryans, having conquered only the valleys, would not have controlled the Soma's habitat -- the mountains were held by their enemies, probably the despised Dasyus. With the true Soma lost to the social economy, the priests turned to symbols and substitutes -- an antique and popular practice among religions faced with changing circumstances -- and went right on worshipping their Soma, without actually partaking of it again. As a late passage in the sacred texts concludes, One thinks one drinks Soma because a plant is crushed. The Soma that the Brahmans know
-- that no one drinks.
Soma (from Hindu Mythology)
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Soma is mentioned many many times in the Hindus' holy books - the Vedas. There are four Vedas in total; The Rig-Veda being the oldest. There is evidence to suggest that some of the earliest hymns and mantras in this book were written as far back as B.C 2400. There is no doubt that the vedas are amongst the oldest literary productions in the world. In my quest for more information about Soma whilst being in India, I found out many interesting things. It was not easy, as when speaking to the local Indians the word -Soma had taken on a drastically different meaning. Most people I had questioned upon their knowledge of Soma simply replied Soma was a word for alcohol. Certainly the local Vedic herbalists I spoke to had no idea of Soma any longer, or any plants it could be. It seemed that Soma in the period of nearly 4000 years had become a word for alcohol. Not too surprising if you read on about Hindu mythology as below, and the present Hindu attitude towards intoxicants. I would now like to quote from a book I found in India called Hindu Mythology by W.J Wilkins:-
Soma according to Vedic Hymns, is the god who, "represents and animates the juice of the Soma plant." He was the Indian Bacchus. Not only are all the hymns of the ninth book of the Rig-Veda, 114 in number besides a few in other places, are dedicated to his honour, but constant references occur to him in large proportions in other hymns.
In some of these hymns he is extolled as the Creator, or Father of the gods. Evidently at that time he was a most popular deity. Indra was an enthusiastic worshipper of Soma.
"This Soma is a god; he cures
The sharpest ills that man endures.
He heals the sick, the sad he cheers,
He nerves the weak, dispels their fears;
The faint with martial ardour fires,
With lofty thoughts the bard inspires;
The soul from earth to heaven he lifts :
So great and wondrous are his gifts,
Men feel the god within their veins
And cry loud in exulting strains :
'We've quaffed the Soma bright
And are immortal grown :
We've entered into light,
And all the gods have known.
What mortal now can harm,
Or foeman vex us more ?
Through thee, beyond alarm,
Immortal god, we soar. '"
From the Vedas the following account of Soma is derived. (Ibid. v. 263 ff.) In some passages the plant is said to have been brought from a mountain and given to Indra; in others, King Soma is said to have dwelt amongst the Gandharvas, a race of demi-gods that form the choir in Indra's heaven. The gods, knowing the virtues of this king or plant-for two terms seem to be indiscriminately applied-wished to obtain it. Not knowing how to get it, Vash (the goddess of speech) said, "The Gandharvas are fond of women;let me go, and I will obtain it for you ? "She replied, "Obtain the god; and I will then return to you, whenever you may want me."
Another account of this affair is, that whilst the gods were living on the earth, Soma was the sky. Wishing to possess it they sent Gayatri (a name for Brahma's wife or daughter to fetch it. She went in the form of a bird, and was returning with it, when the Gandharvas seized it, and only gave it up when the goddess Vach went amongst them as narrated above.
When Soma was brought to the gods, a dispute broke arose as to who should have first draught. At length, this was decided by a race. Vayu was first, Indra being second. Indra tried hard to win, and when near the winning post proposed that they should reach it together. Vayu taking two-thirds of the drink said, "Not so ! I will be the winner alone." Then Indra said "Let us come in together, and give me one-fourth of the draught divine!" Vayu consented this, and so the juice was shared between them. (Muir, O.S.T., v. 144)
Soma is said to have 43 wives, the daughters of Prajapati; of these Rohini was the favourite. Being dissatisfied with the partiality shown to their sister, the other wives returned to their father. Soma asked that they might come back to him; the father consented to restore them, provided Soma would treat them all alike. Soma promised to do this, but failing to keep his promise, he was smitten with consumption for breaking his word.
In the verses descriptive and songs in praise of Soma, the actual juice, and the god supposed to dwell in and manifested by it, are not all at all distinct. All the gods drink it; and Soma the god of the Juice, is said to clothe the naked and heal the sick. Many divine attributes are ascribed to him. He is "addressed as a god in the highest strains of adulation and veneration. All powers belong to him; all blessings are besought of him, as he is to bestow." He is said to be divine, immortal, and also to confer immortality on gods and men. "In a passage where the joys of paradise are more distinctly anticipated and more fervently implored than in most other parts of the Rig-Veda, Soma is addressed as the god from whom the gift of future felicity is expected. Thus it is said, "Place me, O purified god, in that everlasting and imperishable world, where there is eternal light and glory. O Indu (Soma), flow for Indra! Make me immortal in the world where Vaivasvata lives, where is the universal sphere of the sky, where those great waters flow." (Ibid., v. 266)
From the hymns addressed to this deity it is evident that at one time it was considered right to use intoxicants. Now as a rule they are forbidden. Amongst the members of one branch of the Kali they are commonly indulged in, but with almost this single exception, the people do not touch them, and Soma, in his Vedic character has ceased to be worshiped.
In later years the name Soma was and still is, given to the moon. How and why this change took place is not known; but in the later of the Vedic hymns there is some evidence of this transition. in the following passage Soma seems to be used in both senses-a god of the intoxicating juice, and as the moon as ruling through the night. "By Soma the Adityas are strong; by Soma the earth is great; and Soma is placed in the midst of the stars. When they crush the plant, he who drinks regards it as Soma. Of him whom the priests regard as Soma (the moon) no one drinks." (Muir, O.S.T., v 271) In another passage this prayer is found : "May the god Soma, he whom they call the moon, free me." Again, "Soma is the moon, the food of the gods. The sun has the nature of Agni, the moon of Soma."
In the "Vishnu Puranan" (Book i, chap xxii) we read, "Soma was appointed monarch of the stars and planets, of Brahmans and plants, of sacrifices and penance." In this Purana we have quite a different account of the origins of Soma; but it must be bared in mind that in this account the term only refers to the moon. At the time the "Vishnu Purana"was written, intoxicants were strongly forbidden; hence Soma, the god of the intoxicating juice was no longer known and praised.
Yoga-sutra IV. 1.
The attainments listed in the previous section are not only the fruits of the threefold inner discipline, but they are congenital in some, and in others they may follow the right and intelligent use of certain medicinal herbs or of certain mantras or they may follow the kindling of the psychic fire.
Ivar,
I do not think that your present interests and philosophy fit well with this forum, and in the interest of all concerned it would be best if you desisted from participating.
Ivar,
I do not think that your present interests and philosophy fit well with this forum, and in the interest of all concerned it would be best if you desisted from participating.
Yes, I agree. It would be most practical if my membership is ended, so that I cannot enter Tattva-viveka again.
Thank you, Swami, for tolerating my presence for so long. I hope you'll be successful on your path. Namas te.
Ivar