odd that you talk about labeling things as arbitrary, then just arbitrarily say these things have value. the use of psychedelic substances is as old as civilization itself, in India they used mushrooms, pot and soma, these things would have been well known to a yogi, the Buddha started out as just a yogi. why then didn't he mention them?Viscid wrote:Tex wrote:
These substances should not be carelessly abused, but you cannot simply dismiss their value.
I'm no prude, these things were a few times a week indulgence for me when i was younger, and even after finding Buddhism i revisited them to just make sure i hadn't missed something or had just used them wrong. they don't lead into insights.
all conditioned things are not-self, impermanent and dukkha, the state of mind you "achieve" by using a substance is a conditioned state, a fabricated state. thus it is not-self, impermanent and dukkha, thus not a path to liberation. so what would be the point , in a dhammic sense, in fabricating another mind-state that is just dukkha?
if you want to do these things, by all means that's your choice, but if you're really honest with yourself you can see its just more saṅkhāra, no different from the state of mind you could create through alchohol, or day dreaming or whatever.
handa'dāni bhikkhave āmantayāmi vo, vayadhammā saṅkhārā appamādena sampādethā ti.
'Disciples, this I declare to you: All conditioned things are subject to disintegration - strive on untiringly for your liberation.' (Mahāparinibbāna Sutta)