Opiates and magick?

I have heard it said by many practitioners that opiates and magick often go hand in hand for some. Why do so many feel this to be true? I am not trying to incite a “do or don’t”/“for or against” opiate use thread. I am genuinely curious as to why this class of drugs in particular is so widely used by so many in their spiritual practices. Does it help achieve certain effects, and why? Is it merely a fast-track to achieve what long-term discipline could attain without the use of the drug? Is it a coping mechanism used to ease the side effects of certain rituals? I am eager to see your opinions.

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I’ve heard use of certain drugs such as mushrooms and alcohol help to open the mind so that people can see and talk to the spirits better. I don’t know about the use of opiates tho. I know a lot of people in the past used drugs to help with journeying into the spirit world.

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My best guess based on personal experience of alcohol abuse and observation of people around me (offline life, not internet) is some combination of these:

  • need to feel in control, to a moderately insane degree, combined with fascination with the feeling of being overwhelmed by an intense state of being that feels under our control

  • pursuit of the generally weird, shunned, and “dark” things of life

  • the laser-like focus you can attain when your mind and some substance are acting in harmony, and with lesser concerns and nagging psychological and physical pain eliminated

  • magicians’ typical love of the feeling of power and ecstatic bliss, which comes at the crest of the high, and the ability to switch mindsets and control internal environment using drugs, drink, etc

  • we genuinely think we can handle things “normies” run away from in fear, so why not dive deep into this stuff, we’re Special dammit!

  • the utter refusal to take society’s word on what’s best for us that has us summoning demons is applied to cautions about drinking too much, or using drugs

  • having other factors that statistically tend people towards substance use, such as dysfunctional childhoods, a feeling of alienation from the everyday world, depression, depersonalisation, derealisation, and so on, some of which are made stronger and more unbearable by magick.

All the things that make us good at magick are also things that make the call of drugs, excessive drinking, excess in any form, appeal to us.

Forgot to add, along with control-freakery, we tend to have a lot of impatience, unrealistic demands on ourselves and the world (and people) around us, and perfectionism, these are all things that tend to go with regular alteration of brain chemistry through drink, drugs, or weird sex.

It’s not IMO that we can’t handle the magick, it’s that we don’t like “reality,” so we find ways to change it, and some are faster and simpler than others.

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Alerted state of mind, nothing more, nothing less. Weed does the same without the highly addictive nature of opiates. Not saying opiates aren’t fun, just need to be careful.

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Your whole response was on point, but that last bit sounded like a paraphrase of my psychological profile, lol. I have been under the influence of strong opiates before (prescribed), but I have never used them during ritual. If I were to guess, their use might be conducive to evocation; when that “falling feeling” starts to happen during TGS the focus the drug lends the user could give an edge to some people.

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Ew, opiates. I have had Xanax once, it totally zombified me. If you want opiates, but without the opiates. Kratom or Kanna is a good solution.

It has a easining effect on the mind (Kanna) and it isn’t something you get addicted to (unless you misuse of course).

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I don’t really combine any substance use with my own workings. I feel, for myself, that it makes me lose my personal edge.

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I don’t either. I was merely speaking on behalf of the drugs, not it’s use in rituals.

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Never heard of Kanna before you mentioned it. Herbalism is a passion of mine, so thank you!

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I can attest from personal experience that kratom is every bit as addictive as opiates. Anything that acts on the opioid receptors will hook you rather quickly and mytragine is no exception. Ive been hooked on kratom for years and although the withdrawal is much milder than what I experienced coming off heroin, its still no walk in the park.

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Kanna is great. Its effects are a lot like MDMA but with a strange “spicy” feeling throughout the body.

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I might have formulated my comment wrong. I was talking about Kanna not being as addictive.

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I’m bumping this because I only just now got around to reading your comment with an open head and its solid fucking gold.

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I’ve been in kratom withdrawal for the past week. I’m quitting on my own accord. I feel that it no longer serves me. Since quitting life has become a bit of a challenge but a visceral one. I’ve never felt more alive honestly. I’ve numbed myself for so long and reality is raw, and painful. Almost as if I’ve had a near death experience and been force back into my fragile body. Everything hurts but I’m focused. Life is a precious gift. We are as gods. We can do as they do and more.

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It’s tough, but the skills you acquire now may save your ass at some point further down the line, I found nothing I ever learned (factual or experiential) was wasted, that very much includes skills learned turning down the nagging whine of the addiction over, and over, and over, again.

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My own philosophy is that the only thing that I will allow myself to use for magick is weed. Not only because it helps me ease up and consentrate but also because I´m generally creative and weed helps me formulate ideas randomly and receive them. Never liked alcohol, seen too many drunks in my lifetime.

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Unfortunately I’m still on post release supervision and get random UAs, otherwise I’d be right there with you. If I could just use cannabis, most, if not all, of my impulses toward alteration of my biochemistry would be satisfied.

Xanax is a barbiturate not an opiate.

Xanax is a benzodiazapine, not a barbituate.

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