narratives

[Jeremy Osner]

Sojourner wrote:
> 
> Many religions which use "mind-altering" drugs believe the exact opposite,
> that you are hallucinating most of your life until you come to a point of
> clarity (whether with drugs or with fasting etc.) and you are NOT
> hallucinating
> and therefore can see the "lines of the world". 

The notion of "hallucinating" vs. "not hallucinating" (i.e. "seeing
unreal things" vs. "seeing real things") doesn't seem useful to me. I do
Zen meditation and have been told by teachers in the Zendo that one
should not cloud one's mind with drugs. I also smoke pot occasionally
and find that it alters my perceptions in interesting ways. I am not
really interested in Zen or Pot as an avenue to the "truth" but more as
a means for finding "inner peace". So the question that I deal with more
frequently is, does it help me see the "lines of my own consciousness."

One could argue that the search for "inner peace" involves a search for
"understanding" for which "true reality" and knowledge of same is a
necessary ingredient. However even accepting this argument, "truth" is
not the primary goal of the search.

Jeremy