Questions about Cannabis

Hey. Posted below, I have a few excerpts from an essay by Alan Watts that he did called "Psychedelics and the Religious Experience". He listed some amazing effects that Cannabis in particular had on him. I have smoked a few times, but I have only felt these effects maybe once, and mildly at that. Is it that I am not smoking it correctly or am I not smoking the right strain? I am just curious. Tell me what you think!

Here are the excerpts from the article:
Of the five psychedelics tried, I found that LSD-25 and cannabis suited my purposes best. Of these two, the latter—cannabis—which I had to use abroad in countries where it is not outlawed, proved to be the better. It does not induce bizarre alterations of sensory perception, and medical studies indicate that it may not, save in great excess, have the dangerous side effects of LSD.


For the purposes of this study, in describing my experiences with psychedelic drugs I avoid the occasional and incidental bizarre alterations of sense perception that psychedelic chemicals may induce. I am concerned, rather, with the fundamental alterations of the normal, socially induced consciousness of one's own existence and relation to the external world. I am trying to delineate the basic principles of psychedelic awareness. But I must add that I can speak only for myself. The quality of these experiences depends considerably upon one's prior orientation and attitude to life, although the now voluminous descriptive literature of these experiences accords quite remarkably with my own. Almost invariably, my experiments with psychedelics have had four dominant characteristics. I shall try to explain them-in the expectation that the reader will say, at least of the second and third, "Why, that's obvious! No one needs a drug to see that." Quite so, but every insight has degrees of intensity. There can be obvious-1 and obvious-2, and the latter comes on with shattering clarity, manifesting its implications in every sphere and dimension of our existence.

The first characteristic is a slowing down of time, a concentration in the present. One's normally compulsive concern for the future decreases, and one becomes aware of the enormous importance and interest of what is happening at the moment. Other people, going about their business on the streets, seem to be slightly crazy, failing to realize that the whole point of life is to be fully aware of it as it happens. One therefore relaxes, almost luxuriously, into studying the colors in a glass of water, or in listening to the now highly articulate vibration of every note played on an oboe or sung by a voice.


The second characteristic I will call awareness of polarity. This is the vivid realization that states, things, and events that we ordinarily call opposite are interdependent, like back and front, or the poles of a magnet. By polar awareness one sees that things which are explicitly different are implicitly one: self and other, subject and object, left and right, male and female-and then, a little more surprisingly, solid and space, figure and background, pulse and interval, saints and sinners, police and criminals, in-groups and out-groups. Each is definable only in terms of the other, and they go together transactionally, like buying and selling, for there is no sale without a purchase, and no purchase without a sale. As this awareness becomes increasingly intense, you feel that you yourself are polarized with the external universe in such a way that you imply each other. Your push is its pull, and its push is your pull—as when you move the steering wheel of a car. Are you pushing it or pulling it?

The third and fourth characteristics were an awareness of relativity and an awareness of eternal energy.


Later,
Ben.

 

Interesting........Much of that is so very obvious, but it's stuff you don't think about in depth unless you're stoned or tripped the fuck out. I shall save this passage and ponder it the next time I am stoned. Thanks Ben.

 

Cool post, I have only ever really experienced such strong reactions with LSD though, never been that intense for me with just weed, although the bit about compulsive concern for the furutre diminishing and relaxing are true in my experience.

 

Cannabis is stronger than people give it credit for...i have experianced things such as out of body trips, closed eye visuals, and time/color distortion. Marijuana can allow the user to fully use the imgination...your mind is powerful, let it open up.

 

I somewhat experienced "awareness of polarity" at one point. But as to the question, maybe it happens the first few times you smoke, like you're mentally unspoiled from weed and these seem intense for the first time. But what do I know.

 

I agree. I have done many drugs: LSD, mushrooms, salvia, hydrocodone, methadone, valium, opium, ecstasy, sinicuichi, nutmeg, yopo, LSA, amanita muscaria, syrian rue, DPH HCL, insanely massive amounts of xanax, and a whole bunch of other shit that I can't seem to think of right now, but my most intense experiences have been from weed. Weed has caused me to pass out and have convulsions with my eyes rolling back and shit. Weed has caused me to have a full on trip, though not really a visual trip, just a complete mental fuck-over. I have had very deep and meaningful experiences with weed that I don't think other drugs could inspire. Though the other drugs are powerful in their own right, it is in a completely different way than weed. For these reasons, weed is the ONLY drug that I will continue to use for the rest of my life.

 

Hey. Thanks for the input. I am glad that you guys liked the article, too. I guess I will try to check out more strains of herb in the future


Later,
Ben.