Month: February 2017

DISCLAIMER: The creators of
this book do not condone the use of illegal drugs. Please follow all local laws
when imbibing substances. Those using substances should be of sound mind and body.
When in doubt, consult a physician.

Despite the prohibitions of controlling bodies throughout history,
consciousness altering substances continue to be a major part of the human
experience. In fact, many higher order life forms partake in substances. Various
primate species seek out fermented fruits in order to imbibe alcohol. Certain
mammals will eat psychedelic mushrooms. Dolphins have been recorded sucking on
toxic puffer fish to get high. Entire schools of thought in history and archaeology
propose that agriculture, and thus the rise of civilization itself, was
invented so that humans can have a steady supply of alcohol and the molds that
grow on grain. The past eighty years of organized and sustained prohibition are
an anomaly, far outside the usual human condition and contrary to our own
genetics that predispose us to the use of these substances.

In the West, our cultural bias leads us to overlook the powerful nature
of our chosen drugs. Alcohol, caffeine, and to a lesser extent, tobacco, permeate
our culture so thoroughly that we scarcely classify them with the other
substances commonly used. Used despite the draconian laws made against them, by
people of every social and economic background. In fact, our familiarity with
those drugs and their removal from ritual context contribute to their abuse.

Magick requires the ability to see outside your normal range of consciousness.
No other activity can shift consciousness as reliably and as fully as drugs. To
say you can do magick without doing drugs is like saying you can build a house
without a hammer. Certainly you can find some other device to pound in nails,
but no other object is so properly suited to the task. Would you eschew the use
of a hammer just because you might slip and hit your thumb?

To take the analogy further, it is almost certain that the novice will
hit their fingers several times until they master the use of a hammer. We would
never say that drugs are harmless. In fact, they can certainly do more damage
than a broken finger. For those vigilant about their health, we’re not saying
you should be shooting up heroin on the weekends. While we stand behind our
statement that magick requires the use of drugs, it need not be often or in
large amounts. Nor are all drugs suited to the purpose. The aforementioned
heroin being the prime example of a drug that closes off consciousness more
than it awakens.

For example, a person of reasonable health who does not drink or
smoke, can have one cigarette and one shot of hard alcohol three to four times
a year with no ill effects. And, with their lack of tolerance of those
substances, would achieve the shift in consciousness necessary for the
participation in the Sabbat.