wiccans/pagans and drug use..

btw, a disclaimer, that's not to paint all American Wiccans with the same brush, any more than it is to say all American Christians are fundies. It's just that we seem to have a disproportionate amount of both on this side of the pond.

 

Some interesting points there.

It's hard for someone living in Europe to appreciate the degree to which Christian fundies etc influence things in the USA. In general, Christians have very little clout in the UK these days, and for the follower of Paganism or Wicca or any other religion, things are relatively easy.

It's odd in a way, because obstensibly, the USA has the constitution which guaruntees frredom of religion, whilst here, there is no such legal framework.

Crowley's law of Thelema can be studied in 'The Book of the Law', and Crowley's commentaries on it.
It is by no means a simple formula, and has to be understood in the way it is intended, and not as a mere lisence to do anything you like.
Crowley said 'it is the most sublime moral commandment ever uttered'.

Baically, the idea is that behind the ego and the surface will there is the real inner being. The will of this being is one with the will of the universe, so to discover one's true self and purpose is the goal.Typically, Crowley wrapped this up in symbolism which can be hard to penetrate, but well worth the effort IMO.

I am not very focused on ceremonial magick or ritual. It is more the underlying philosophy and approach that is of interest to me. Any steps one takes towards realization can be seen broadly as 'magick' - Crowley himself for instance was also an expert on various types of yoga. He was also an experimenter with many types of drugs. His novel 'Confessions of a Drug Fiend' is both amusing and filled with insight.

 

Some do and some don't. you could say the same about members of every religion tho.

 

I like mushrooms for personal meditation and introspection, and some times pot but not often (although I do like it recreationally) and I'd like to try some mescaline. But it's really up to you and whichever particular pagan following you're looking at.

 

I use drugs recrationally.. but i havent used them for ritual or spiritual purposes as of yet.. i'm sure i will at some point however.

 

I don't usually use drugs in magic - herbs is about as close as I come. When I DO use them is in my shamanic journeys - at various times I've journeyed with peyote/San Pedro (same drug different cacti), ayahuasca, P. Cubensis and Datura Inoxia.
Of all of them, datura is the only truly scary one; if mescaline is a stairway to teh stars, datura is a damn hyperdimensional rocket ship.