The Secret Drugs of Buddhism

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Stoned Peacocks & Blue-Throated Gods

Drawing upon myth, folklore and Sanskrit word-play, Mike Crowley demonstrates that the peacock was used in both Hinduism and Buddhism as a symbol for psychedelic mushrooms, particularly those which bruise blue, such as Psilocybe cubensis. This hypothesis offers an explanation for the association of peacocks with amrita (the tantric psychedelic sacrament) and various deities (Amitabha, Mahamayuri, Janguli, et al.). It also may account for the curious name of a Shaiva monastic order known as matta-mayuri ("the intoxicated peacocks"). While this is the main focus of the talk, it may well provide a jumping-off point for other topics covered in the book Secret Drugs of Buddhism.

Mike Crowley was born in Wales and, in the mid-1960s, encountered psychedelics and Buddhism. A chance meeting with a Tibetan lama in London led to his becoming a lay-member of the Kagyud order in 1970. Following intense practice and study, Mike was ordained as a lama in 1987. Mike has lectured on Buddhist epistemology at the Jagellonian University, Cracow, Poland, on Tibetan history at the Museum of Asia and the Pacific, Warsaw, Poland and on various aspects of Buddhist practice at the Polish National Buddhist Center. He has also presented at various conferences including Mind States (San Francisco), Entheogenesis (Vancouver, BC), Sacred Elixirs (San Jose, California) and Breaking Convention (Canterbury, UK). He now lives in rural seclusion in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, northern California.

http://breakingconvention.co.uk/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Breaking Convention is a biennial British interdisciplinary conference on consiousness, bringing together experts from around the world to present data and commentary on psychedelic science and culture.

[shaunc]

I would have thought psychedelic mushrooms were covered under the 5th precept.

[krodha]

Interesting, never heard of that theory.

Apart from their feathers symbolizing visionary appearances (thigles, etc., which are not drug induced), the association of the Peacock in Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna is traditionally interpreted in this way:

All of us experience states of mind that cause us to feel anxious, depressed, fearful, uncertain, insecure, envious, doubtful, impatient. These feelings can seem so powerful at times that we try to eradicate them as quickly as possible through the usual methods: we try to repress them, drink them away, shop them away, frak them away, blame them away, or whatever it is we do when we experience sensations that aren’t pleasing to us.

Following are the first three verses from a teaching called "The wheel of Sharp Weapons", written by Dharmaraksita:

1. In jungles of poisonous plants strut the peacocks, though medicine gardens of beauty lie near, The masses of peacocks do not find gardens pleasant, but thrive on the essence of poisonous plants. 

2. In similar fashion the brave Bodhisattvas remain in the jungle of worldly concern. No matter how joyful this world's pleasure gardens, these Brave Ones are never attracted to pleasures, but thrive in the jungle of suffering and pain.

3. We spend our whole life in the march for enjoyment, yet tremble with fear at the mere thought of pain; thus since we are cowards, we are miserable still, but the brave Bodhisattvas accept suffering gladly, and gain from their courage a true lasting joy.

While preparing for a dharma talk about this subject last week, I learned that peacocks aren't very particular with regard to what kinds of food they'll eat: the brighter in color the object is, the better. They are drawn to a variety of plants and insects, and in fact they will even eat poisonous snakes if they come across one that's colorful enough. What's even more interesting is that just for the sake of amusement they will follow around a slithering, poisonous snake for a while, just observing it curiously before they devour it. And it is said that the poison they ingest from plants and snakes actually makes the colors of their plumage all the more vibrant and beautiful.

What if changed our approach to difficult, poisonous states of mind and met them with the same courage and curiosity as a peacock? 

Instead of running away from every mind state and emotion that feels threatening, we could simply observe the thoughts and sensations attached to these states of mind without getting caught up in the story about how they came about and who or what is to blame. 

Fixating on our stories only serves to inflame the poisonous feelings. Of course it is important to acknowledge what kinds of circumstances in our lives might be contributing and creating the conditions for suffering, and we should work to alter those circumstances whenever appropriate. But eventually we have to take responsibility for our own states of mind and realize that external events should not be able to dictate when we feel well and when we do not. 

We mustn't be our brain's bitch.

We liberate ourselves by simply resting our minds on the challenging feelings we experience without the usual overlay of our thoughts about how good or bad it feels, or why we feel this way, or who is to blame for how we feel. We can drop the storyline, drop the constant inner commentary, drop the ideas and concepts about what we are experiencing and instead directly experience the reality of our life as it is at any given moment. We don't have to obsess over negative emotions and we don't have to chase them away either--we can simply notice them the way we notice our thoughts when we meditate: with bare, brave attention.

When we do this we can further cultivate qualities of love and compassion that we can apply towards ourselves and other people. We can make use of our painful mind states and transform them into something that opens our hearts and allows us to be of more service to others.

By immersing ourselves in the reality of our moment to moment experience we can make friends with impermanence and ride it's wave rather than have it crash over us and cause us to drown.
-Lawrence Grecco

[Berry]

Drawing upon myth, folklore and Sanskrit word-play, Mike Crowley demonstrates that the peacock was used in both Hinduism and Buddhism as a symbol for psychedelic mushrooms

I've never heard of that before either. Its this type of reference to peacocks that I'm more familiar with:

In Tibetan Buddhism, the peacock is a symbol for the bodhisattva, the awakened warrior who works for the enlightenment of all beings. A peacock is said to eat poisonous plants, but to transform the poison into the gorgeous colors of its feathers. It does not poison itself.

In the same way, we who advocate world peace must not poison ourselves with anger. Regard with equanimity the powerful, worldly men who control the war machines. Do your best to convince them of the necessity of peace, but be constantly aware of your state of mind. If you become angry, pull back. If you are able to act without anger, perhaps you will penetrate the terrible delusion that perpetrates war and its hellish suffering.

http://voiceseducation.org/content/chag ... he-tibetan

[tlee]

Western universities are notorious for misrepresenting (or completely fabricating) Buddhist texts/teachings/history/etc..

At my own university there are professors lecturing on Buddhism (art, history, philosophy) that genuinely make me feel ashamed of my education.
Buddhism is not a difficult subject; it's mostly straightforward. In the Western world, some people apparently feel that learning a subject is too much hassle and it's acceptable to fabricate information as long as there is no one around who is in a position to correct you.

The whole, "enlightenment through drugs", thing is incredibly bleak to me. If the highest potential of human life is that, then what's the point of continuing?

[Nick r]

The whole, "enlightenment through drugs", thing is incredibly bleak to me. If the highest potential of human life is that, then what's the point of continuing?

I think the perennial argument in general is that it's not about becoming enlightened through drugs, but that maybe these "drugs" may have a role within religion. Perhaps the use of some of these pants within a sacred structure could help an individual go beyond just the intellectual/ rational mind. It could be more about using everything you can to break free. It's not the path itself, but could be just a part of the path, if you so choose. The important thing is that once you receive the message, hang up the phone.

[lorem]

Cause of Attachment.

Do I think early humans ate shrooms. Yes.
Did the mahasiddhas know about cannabis, datura, betel. Yes. (Tilopa in his profession prob. Most definitely)

[Grigoris]

Here's a question for everybody: of all the people here at DW how many have been given drugs (apart from a few drops of alcohol) to ingest as part of a serious formal practice session by qualified teachers?

I haven't.

I am willing to bet that we won't get a single answer in the positive.

[lorem]

The important thing is that once you receive the message, hang up the phone.

Half joking here, half serious. It's the message in the white noise, the background that gets interesting.

[lorem]

No. Just Trungpa and Osel Tendzin And/or others that I've heard of. (I wasn't there so don't know if it was serious formal meditation session. But then again with Trungpa...)

EDIT Longchenpa seemed to be familiar with datura--

[odysseus]

There has never been any formal digestion of psychedelics within Buddhism. If a person takes psychedelics, it´s his own thing and has nothing to do with Buddhism. The definition of magic mushrooms as an intoxicant, however, is modern man-made law.

There is uses of liqour as an offering, but it´s not drinked, you put it on your hair as a symbolic act. Alcohol can sometimes be a medicine, but not to be indulged in, just like with shrooms.

[lorem]

There has never been any formal digestion of psychedelics within Buddhism.

Monastic Buddhism. I would have to disagree with you on teacher-student in siddha tradition. Neither of us remembers being alive back then but I have a really sneaking suspicion that it may have been used to introduce/test bardo illusion like etc.

Same as forceful projection of consciousness into another's body. Not taught now.

[Grigoris]

Everybody has a theory, but nobody has a reality.

[lorem]

As Ken McLeod has said Tibetan Buddhism was the meeting of the monastic order, direct awareness groups, and the rain sorcery cults.

Use your imagination.

[Grigoris]

More theories.