Cannabis has an
ancient history of ritual usage as an aid to trance and has been
traditionally used in a religious context throughout the old
world. Herodotus wrote about early ceremonial practices by the
Scythians,which are thought to have occurred from the 5th to 2nd
century BC. In India, it has been engaged by itinerant sadhus
for centuries, and in modern times the Rastafari movement has
embraced it. Anthropologist Sula Benet claimed historical
evidence and etymological comparison show that the Holy
anointing oil used by the Hebrews contained cannabis extracts, "kaneh
bosm," and that it is also listed as an incense tree in the
original Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the Old Testament. The
early Christians used cannabis oil for medicinal purposes and as
part of the baptismal process to confirm the forgiveness of sins
and "right of passage" into the Kingdom of Heaven. The Unction,
Seal, laying on of hands, the Counselor, and the Holy spirit are
all often synonymous of the Holy anointing oil. Early Gnostic
texts indicate that the Chrism is essential to becoming a
"Christian." Some Muslims of the Sufi order have used cannabis
as a tool for spiritual exploration.
Video
Ancient Pagan
use
In ancient Germanic culture, cannabis was associated with the
Norse love goddess, Freya. The harvesting of the plant was
connected with an erotic high festival[6]. It was believed that
Freya lived as a fertile force in the plant's feminine flowers
and by ingesting them one became influenced by this divine force
(Rätsch 2003). The Celts may have also used cannabis, as
evidence of hashish traces were found in Hallstatt, birthplace
of Celtic culture.
Rastafari use
Members of the Rastafari movement use cannabis as a part of
their worshiping of God, Bible study and Meditation. The
movement was founded in Jamaica in the 1930s and while it is not
known when Rastafarians first made cannabis into something
sacred it is clear that by the late 1940s Rastafari was
associated with cannabis smoking at the Pinnacle community of
Leonard Howell. Rastafari see cannabis as a sacramental and
deeply beneficial plant that is the Tree of Life mentioned in
the Bible. Bob Marley, amongst many others, said, "the herb
ganja is the healing of the nations." The use of cannabis, and
particularly of large pipes called chalices, is an integral part
of what Rastafari call "reasoning sessions" where members join
together to discuss life according to the Rasta perspective.
They see cannabis as having the capacity to allow the user to
penetrate the truth of how things are much more clearly, as if
the wool had been pulled from one's eyes. Thus the Rastafari
come together to smoke cannabis in order to discuss the truth
with each other, reasoning it all out little by little through
many sessions. They see the use of this plant as bringing them
closer to nature. In these ways Rastafari believe that cannabis
brings the user closer to Jah, Haile Selassie I, and pipes of
cannabis are always dedicated to His Imperial Majesty before
being smoked. While it is not necessary to use cannabis to be a
Rastafari, some feel that they must use it regularly as a part
of their faith. "The herb is the key to new understanding of the
self, the universe, and God. It is the vehicle to cosmic
consciousness" according to Rastafari philosophy, [24] and is
considered to burn the corruption out of the human heart.
Rubbing the ashes from smoked cannabis is also considered a
healthy practice[25].
Hindu use
Cannabis was used in Hindu culture as early as 1500 B.C., and
its ancient use is confirmed within the Vedas (Sama Veda Rig
Veda and Atharva Veda).[8]
During the Hindu festival of Holi, people consume a drink called
bhang which contains cannabis flowers.[9][10]
Charas, is smoked by some Shaivite devotees and cannabis itself
is seen as a gift ("prasad" or offering, not a poison like
ethyl-alcohol) of Shiva to aid in sadhana[11]. Some of the
wandering ascetics in India known as sadhus smoke charas out of
a clay chillum.
The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission Report[12] describes some
traditional Hindu spiritual uses of cannabis.
Connection of ganja with the worship of Shiva.
435. It is chiefly in connection with the worship of Shiva, the
Mahadeva or great god of the Hindu trinity, that the hemp plant,
and more especially perhaps ganja, is associated. The hemp plant
is popularly believed to have been a great favourite of Shiva,
and there is a great deal of evidence before the Commission to
show that the drug in some form or other is now extensively used
in the exercise of the religious practices connected with this
form of worship. Reference to the almost universal use of hemp
drugs by fakirs, jogis, sanyasis, and ascetics of all classes,
and more particularly of those devoted to the worship of Shiva,
will be found in the paragraphs of this report dealing with the
classes of the people who consume the drugs. These religious
ascetics, who are regarded with great veneration by the people
at large, believe that the hemp plant is a special attribute of
the god Shiva, and this belief is largely shared by the people.
Hence the many fond epithets ascribing to ganja the significance
of a divine pro-party, and the common practice of invoking the
deity in terms of adoration before placing the chillum or pipe
of ganja to the lips. There is evidence to show that on almost
all occasions of the worship of this god, the hemp drugs in some
form or other are used by certain classes of the people it is
established by the evidence of Mahamabopadhya Mahesa Chandra
Nyayaratna and of other witnesses that siddhi is offered to the
image of Shiva at Benares, Baidynath, Tarakeswar, and elsewhere.
At the Shivratri festival, and on almost all occasions before
the on which this worship is practised, there is abundant
evidence Commission which shows not only that ganja is offered
to the god and consumed by these classes of the worshippers, but
that these customs are so intimately connected with their
worship that they may be considered to form in some sense an
integral part of it
Worship of the
hemp plant
The custom of worshipping the hemp plant, although not so prevalent as
that of offering hemp to Shiva and other deities of the Hindus,
would nevertheless appear from the statements of the witnesses
to exist to some extent in some provinces of India. The reason
why this fact is not generally known may perhaps be gathered
from such statements as that of Pandit Dharma Nand Joshi, who
says that such worship is performed in secret. There may be
another cause of the denial on the part of the large majority of
Hindu witnesses of any knowledge of the existence of a custom of
worshipping the hemp plant in that the educated Hindu will not
admit that he worships the material object of his adoration, but
the deity as represented by it. The custom of worshipping the
hemp plant, though not confined to the Himalayan districts or
the northern portions of India alone, where the use of the
products of the hemp plant is more general among the people, is
less known as we go south. Still even far south, in some of the
hilly districts of the Madras Presidency and among the rural
population, the hemp plant is looked upon with some sort of
veneration. Mr. J. H. Merriman (witness No. 28, Madras) says: "I
know of no custom of worshipping the hemp plant, but believe it
is held in a certain sort of veneration by some classes." Mr. J.
Sturrock, the Collector of Coimbatore (witness No. 2, Madras),
says: "In some few localities there is a tradition of sanctity
attached to the plant, but no regular worship. "The Chairman of
the Conjeveram Municipal Board, Mr. E. Subramana Iyer (witness
No. 143, Madras) says: "There is no plant to be worshipped here,
but it is generally used as sacrifices to some of the minor
Hindu deities. "There is a passage quoted from Rudrayanmal
Danakand and Karmakaud in the report on the use of hemp drugs in
the Baroda State, which also shows that the worship of the bhang
plant is enjoined in the Shastras. It is thus stated: "The god
Shiva says to Parvati-- 'Oh, goddess Parvati, hear the benefits
derived from bhang. The worship of bhang raises one to my
position. In Bhabishya Puran it is stated that "on the 13th moon
of Chaitra (March and April) one who wishes to see the number of
his sons and grandsons increased must worship Kama (Cupid) in
the hemp plant, etc."
Ancient Hebraic
use
According to Aryeh Kaplan, [13] cannabis was an ingredient in
the Holy anointing oil mentioned in various sacred Hebrew texts.
The herb of interest is most commonly known as kaneh-bosem (קְנֵה-בֹשֶׂם;
the singular form of which would be kaneh-bos[14]) which is
mentioned several times in the Old Testament as a bartering
material, incense, and an ingredient in Holy anointing oil used
by the high priest of the temple.
The Septuagint (300AD) translates kaneh-bosem as calamus, and
this translation has been propagated unchanged to most later
translations of the Torah (1500BC+). However, Polish
anthropologist Sula Benet published etymological arguments that
the Aramaic word for hemp can be read as kannabos and appears to
be a cognate to the modern word 'cannabis',[15] with the root
kan meaning reed or hemp and bosm meaning fragrant. Both
cannabis and calamus are fragrant, reedlike plants containing
psychotropic compounds. While Benet's conclusion regarding the
psychoactive use of cannabis is not universally accepted among
Jewish scholars, there is general agreement that cannabis is
used in talmudic sources to refer to hemp fibers, as hemp was a
vital commodity before linen replaced it.[16]
Muslim use
Generally in orthodox Islam, the use of cannabis is deemed to be
khamr (intoxicant), and therefore haraam (forbidden).[17][18] As
with most orthodoxies, early practices differ in this. Some say
that, as hashish was introduced in post-Koranic times, the
prohibition of khamr (literally, "fermented grape" but generally
understood to mean anything that clouds consciousness) did not
apply to it.[19] Others point to various hadith, which equate
all intoxicants with khamr, and declare them all haraam, "if
much intoxicates, then even a little is haraam". [20] [21]
Because some Muslims have attributed the cannabis state of
consciousness with higher states of awareness, whether its
effects are even considered intoxicating is controversial.
Before the demonization in the West (e.g. United States)
cannabis was generally never looked down upon.
Although cannabis use in Islamic society has been consistently
present, often but not exclusively in the lower classes, [22]
its use explicitly for spiritual purposes is most noted among
the Sufi. An account of the origin of this:
According to one Arab legend, Haydar, the Persian founder of the
religious order of Sufi, came across the cannabis plant while
wandering in the Persian mountains. Usually a reserved and
silent man, when he returned to his monastery after eating some
cannabis leaves, his disciples were amazed at how talkative and
animated (full of spirit) he seemed. After cajoling Haydar into
telling them what he had done to make him feel so happy, his
disciples went out into the mountains and tried the cannabis for
themselves. So it was, according to the legend, the Sufis came
to know the pleasures of hashish. (Taken from the Introduction
to A Comprehensive Guide to Cannabis Literature by Ernest Abel.)
Other
modern religious movements
Elders of the modern religious movement known as the Ethiopian
Zion Coptic Church consider cannabis to be the eucharist,[26]
claiming it as an oral tradition from Ethiopia dating back to
the time of Christ.[27]
Like the Rastafari, some modern Gnostic Christian sects have
asserted that cannabis is the Tree of Life.[28]
Other organized religions founded in the past century that treat
cannabis as a sacrament are the THC Ministry, the Way of
Infinite Harmony, Cantheism, the Cannabis Assembly, the Church
of Cognizance[29], the Sinagogue of Satan and the Church of the
Universe.[30][31]
Modern spiritual figures like Ram Dass[32] and Eli Jaxon Bear
openly acknowledge that the use of cannabis has allowed them to
access "another plane of consciousness" and use the drug
frequently.
References
1. ^ Herodutus The Histories, 4.75
2. ^ McClintock,John; Strong, James; Cyclopaedia of Biblical,
Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature; 1867; Harper Inc.;
p. 241
3. ^ Cook, John Granger; The Interpretation of the Old Testament
in Greco-Roman Paganism; 2004; (Mohr Siebeck publishers), page
78; ISBN 3161484746, 978316148474
4. ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/jan/06/science.religion
5. ^ Pilcher, Tim; Spliffs 3: The Last Word in Cannabis
Culture?; 2005; page 34; (Collins & Brown publishers) 2005; ISBN
1843403102, 9781843403104
6. ^ Ibid.
7. ^ Creighton, John; Coins and Power in Late Iron Age Britain;
Cambridge University Press, 2000; page 52; ISBN 0521772079,
9780521772075
8. ^ Marijuana - The First Twelve Thousand Years. Ch. 1.
Cannabis in the Ancient World - India: The First
Marijuana-Oriented Culture
9. ^ The History of the Intoxicant Use of Marijuana
10. ^ Indian Hemp Drugs Commission Report - Social and Religious
Customs
11. ^ Starting The Day With The Cup That Kicks, Hindustan Times;
4 Nov 2007
12. ^ a b Report of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, 1893-94.
Simla, India: Government Central Printing House, 1894, 7 vols.,
CHAPTER IX, SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS
13. ^ Kaplan, Aryeh. The Living Torah New York 1981. p. 442.
14. ^ CC11: Cannabis and the Christ: Jesus used Marijuana
15. ^ kanehbosm
16. ^ Encyclopedia Judaica. Volume 8. p. 323.
17. ^ Abdul-Rahman, Muhammad Saed; Islam: Questions and Answers
- Pedagogy Education and Upbringing; MSA Publication Limited,
2003; page 123; ISBN 1861792964, 9781861792969
18. ^ Pakistan Narcotics Control Board, Colombo Plan Bureau;
First National Workshop on Prevention and Control of Drug Abuse
in Pakistan, 25-30 August 1975, Rawalpindi: Workshop Report;
1975; page. 54
19. ^ United Nations Dept. of Social Affairs UN; Bulletin on
Narcotics United Nations Division of Narcotic Drugs; (Division
of Narcotic Drugs [publishers]); 1972; pg. 15
20. ^ Buyukcelebi, Ismail; Living in the Shade of Islam: A
Comprehensive Reference of Theory and Practice; page 340; Tughra
Books, 2005; ISBN 1932099212, 9781932099218
21. ^ University of Glasgow (Gran Bretaña); Archivum
Linguisticum; Scolar Press., 1977; page 114;
22. ^ New York Academy of Medicine; Bulletin of the New York
Academy of Medicine; The Academy (publishers), 1982; pg. 824
23. ^ Marijuana - The First Twelve Thousand Years - 6
24. ^ The Watchman Expositor: Rastafarianism Profile
25. ^ Joseph Owens Dread, The Rastafarians of Jamaica
26. ^ Marijuana and the Bible
27. ^ Erowid Cannabis Vault : Spiritual Use #2
28. ^ http://www.iamm.com/man-cu.htm#_ABRIDGED_THEOLOGICAL_DISCUSSION
29. ^ Innes, Stephanie; Pot-Deifying Duo Guilty, Confident
They'll Avoid Prison; 5 Sep 2008
30. ^ Jackson Hayes; "Appeal Date Set For Pot Priests"; Hamilton
Spectator; 2008
31. ^ Church of the Universe (web site)
32. ^ Ram Dass: Longtime Spiritual Leader, Opponent of the 'War
on Drugs' March 8, 2004
33. ^ Citation. (6 February 2009). In Wikipedia, The Free
Encyclopedia. Retrieved 04:27, Feb 9th, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritual_use_of_cannabis
