Practicing Dharma in an environment awash with Cannabis?

[rockyysdt]

Since decriminalization the country is awash with all kinds of Cannabis, including access to potent strains.

 

Navigating life with its diversions and temptations, how difficult has it become to avoid negative habits?

Instant access to mind altered states vs a slow lifelong dedicated practice of mindfulness.

 

Although Dharma has the potential power to reveal the infinite, progress is not instant, often taking many years to seep in and transform.

On the other hand the temptation of using cannabis can yield instant experience, while also creating a habit often difficult to break.

 

What encouragement can be harnessed to help a traveler to maintain Dharma?

 

[Brucenkhamen]

A drug induced experience isn't comparable with an experience that has resulted from years of dedicated practice, even if they have a similar quality, because while the former creates a dependency on the drug the latter is only dependent on the skill developed to create it. 

 

If that skill created it once it can create it again, or further develop so that it becomes the norm. 

[ricklev]

1 hour ago, Brucenkhamen said:

A drug induced experience isn't comparable with an experience that has resulted from years of dedicated practice, even if they have a similar quality, because while the former creates a dependency on the drug the latter is only dependent on the skill developed to create it. 

 

If that skill created it once it can create it again, or further develop so that it becomes the norm. 

Well, I am not so sure that is true.  Seems like often folks with "years of dedicated practice" are devoted/addicted to the path and not awakening.  It don't seem fair, but I suspect the man or woman that took some mushrooms or other hallucinogen and by golly had an awakening experience may learn just as much as the man or woman with "years of dedicated practice".  Not always true, I am sure, but I don't discount it.   I am not sure marijuana is a powerful enough hallucinogen to bring about surrender, but I don't know. 

 

In fact, I don't know anything.   

[Brucenkhamen]

I have heard of a drug induced experience opening someone's eyes to what is possible and inspiring their practice, Sam Harris is an example.

 

Still its not the experience itself that is important, its the skill, the letting go, and the wisdom developed in the process that is important.

 

The risk is instead of that all you get is addiction.

[digbeth]

there are other vices from alcohol to fornication available, you're not really practicing if you can't refrain from them all

granted, practitioner like monks are supposed to avoid places of ilrepute or unwholesome situations, so walking along sukhumvit - nana at night is right out 

[rockyysdt]

On 10/14/2024 at 12:42 AM, digbeth said:

there are other vices from alcohol to fornication available,

A few observations I made regarding some of the differences:

 

Alcohol & drugs take minimal effort, while sitting & mindfulness practice needs considerable regular effort.

 

Habitual use of alcohol & drugs appears to result in diminished affect.

 

Increasing dosage to compensate can result in health issues.

 

Sitting & mindfulness practice is totally natural, untaxed, & experiences can increase with practice (some say all the way to infinity).

 

In most places it's not a criminal offence to be high on mindfulness.