Andy S said (June 29, 2018):

Here is a useful perspective on cannabis. Unfortunately many, if not most people continue to refer to cannabis as a “drug”. Cannabis and the human body enjoy a very unique relationship with numerous benefits far beyond the token psychoactive THC high that most folks dwell on.

https://thefreshtoast.com/cannabis/neuroscientists-claims-vitamin-weed-slows-aging-process/

Be well and keep up the good work!

Kathleen said (June 29, 2018):

Re "Use Weed to Know God...", I respect and agree with you on many topics, but not this one. I do think marijuana has legitimate potential medical uses, and just as with wine, it can be pleasantly relaxing to
some...in moderation.

However, I doubt that any emotional or mental or physical 'high' one may experience with weed is a genuine spiritual connection to God. For most
of us, experiencing God's presence is often very subtle, and sometimes we may feel nothing at all.

So what do we have? Faith -faith, which is often dry not ecstatic. There is the life of prayer, humility, trust, abandonment to God's will, love of God and others and growing in virtue.....a challenging, lifetime
quest. While numinous moments may occur in prayer (or nature..or love...), they are gifts to be accepted and then let go of, not goals in and of themselves. God offers and withdraws His consolations as He
wills, and our job is to accept His will at each moment.

The ecstasies and true vision of God's face await us in the next life, beyond all hope and desire.

David M said (June 28, 2018):

Henry, if your god can be known through chemical disturbances to the proper purpose of the brain which is to connect the metaphysical "mind" to the physical world of sense and motor, you're not one of us who reasonably believe that we are created with a sublime origin and purpose.

If you can assert that a chemically induced phantasm could create a god-thing transcending the brutal reality we belong in... at very least, Blavatsky's "Theosophy" (and a plethora of similar philosophically idiotic esoterica) gains a "credibility" that has no foundation in observed reality. Blind guide! In spite of your grandiose speeches your roots are in the Kabbalah and you think that your mission is to create a god in your own image and likeness to serve your ambitions. Chutzpah, to imagine that you can "educate" God, is to presume to make Him what He was not. What idiocy is this to presume to create your own creator.

The only constant in all esoterica is a litany of diabolical contradictions based on the assumption that Nothing is in the process of becoming Everything.

--

CR said (June 28, 2018):

While marijuana can be used for spiritual experiences such as meditation, I really don't see anything inherently spiritual about smoking weed. For it to be a spiritual experience requires a spiritual mindset.

A lot of people (particularly high school and university students and others in that age group) just want to get "fucked up" and this is another substance to add to their list which may include alcohol, prescription drugs, and other hard drugs.

You hear about people traveling to the Amazon for ayahuasca ceremonies led by shamans, but meanwhile there are some messed up kids taking DMT (the active ingredient in ayahuasca) to have fun and party. It was somewhat popular in the "rave" scene, on top of ecstasy, LSD, ketamine, and GHB (the date rape drug - some idiots actually took that for fun).

My opinion is that marijuana is being promoted to make people docile and complacent. If your girlfriend left you, your dog died, and you are going on trial tomorrow you can still smoke a joint and feel nice for a moment, as opposed to being motivated to improve your situation.

Like any other medicinal herb, it has it's uses but there is no real benefit to recreational use any more than having a few drinks on the weekend is beneficial. I'm not opposed to legalization at all, the whole thing seems like a big deal about nothing. The government just wants to take away people's money while simultaneously making them comfortable in their misery (which looks like it's going to steadily increase).

The plan is not exactly full legalization either since there will be more hurdles to jump through to get into the business and grow-ops and black market dealers will still be prosecuted, this is a government monopoly on a substance that they can't get rid of so they aim to benefit from it any way they can. In the last 20+ years it has never been particularly difficult to buy marijuana in Ottawa either.

The marijuana selling in Canada these days has a more sedating effect than in the past, supposedly this is because it is the indica variety rather than sativa or a hybrid of the two. I smoked just about every day for over 15 years, I no longer have any interest. It just makes me sleepy, and I really don't need much help to fall asleep anyway.